Chapter 385: Impurities

The air hangs as solid as a block, each breath carrying a rust‑like heaviness.

The players instinctively spread apart, their eyes scanning the surroundings warily, especially toward Cheng Shuili.

A Damocles sword hangs over each head, the invisible pressure tightening like a net, nearly choking the throat.

Haohao grips the axe tightly, cold sweat beading on her palms; she had struggled before, but now she is resolute.

Thus, regardless of what the Faceless Jester says, she stands half a step away from Cheng Shuili's side, like a cornered yet loyal cub, baring fangs at every looming danger.

Panshi and Kai Er wear grim expressions, and their respective squads quickly draw together.

The team that just stood together seems to have already fractured invisibly.

Panshi whispers to his teammates, "Keep an eye on everyone, especially those who are alone or whose gaze is off."

His gaze falls on Cheng Shuili with mixed feelings, yet he does not approach.

At this moment, every action must be taken with caution. Without absolute certainty, Panshi dares not gamble with his squad.

Kai Er, irritated, slams a fist into a decorative stone pillar and mutters low:

"That damned monster! It just wants us to kill each other!"

The words drift into the Faceless Jester's ear, and the smile on its mask seems to widen.

That is exactly what it wants.

Time ticks away second by second.

In the suppressed silence, only the rustle of wind through leaves and the players' heavy, uneasy breaths can be heard.

Cheng Shuili, however, seems completely detached.

She even finds a relatively clean stone step to sit on, elbows propping her knees, palms supporting her chin, eyes once again fixed on the shadow of the platform, as if earnestly pondering the precise process of "making a dessert."

Her overly calm demeanor only makes some restless players more wary.

"She… how is she not scared at all?"

"Does she have some hidden card?"

"Maybe if she's chosen she could counter‑kill…"

"But the opponent is the Faceless Jester… she just said herself that this monster follows the rules and can't be killed!"

"Stay put; the Faceless Jester may not select us, but if we attack it proactively, we're certainly doomed!"

Murmurs of debate ripple beneath the stifled silence.

Cheng Shuili is indeed thinking, but her thoughts differ entirely from what others imagine.

The current situation: the Faceless Jester is using accumulated "discontent" to target Cheng Shuili…

It counts as exploiting the players' internal conflicts to eliminate its first target, Cheng Shuili.

The method isn't clever, but it is undeniably effective.

However, it seems to overlook one thing…

Cheng Shuili's gaze sweeps over the anxious‑looking players.

Fear spreads.

When a butcher's knife hangs clearly over one's head, others feel relieved and may even be eager to give it a push.

But when the knife falls randomly, and the one who picks it up might be struck back…

A faint, icy curve lifts at Cheng Shuili's mouth.

The pressure returns to everyone.

Only three minutes remain.

The atmosphere is stretched to its limit.

It's like a bow drawn to the extreme—either release the arrow or snap the string.

In most cases, it's the former.

A skinny male player standing at the edge suddenly breaks down.

He points sharply at Cheng Shuili, his voice sharp with accusation: "It's all her! She killed the attendant and angered the monster! Hand her over! Turn her into a dessert! Then the rest of us will be safe!"

He seems to clutch a last lifeline, his voice fervent as he rallies those around him: "Let's all go! Doesn't Long Guo have that old saying? 'Two fists can't match four hands!' Capture her! If we capture her, when the chosen ones use her as material to make a dessert, we'll all survive!!"

Those incendiary words ring especially harshly in the deathly silence.

A few already uneasy players flicker their gazes, shift their steps slightly, seemingly truly weighing the proposal. The will to survive is overwhelming reason.

"You ****!"

Haohao lets out a roar, cursing filthy.

Cheng Shuili isn't shocked by the player's words; she's startled by Haohao's outburst.

Shouldn't this person be the picture of a courteous, high‑quality young man?

How can his insults be so… fluid and creative?

No wonder he wields an axe; the contrast is striking.

Haohao, unaware of Cheng Shuili's thoughts, sees her like a small leopard in an invaded territory, eyes blazing, stepping forward, axe whooshing toward the agitator: "Keep spouting nonsense, and I'll be the first to slaughter you—believe it?"

The skinny man shivers at Haohao's murderous aura, yet the urge to survive overwhelms everything; he cries out with fierce exterior but timid heart: "Look! They're going to kill and silence us! They just want to drag us to death together! What are you waiting for, waiting for this guy to save us? How can she possibly save us?!"

This time, it's Panshi who speaks.

"Calm down! Everyone stay calm! Don't fall into the monster's trap; turning on each other will only make us die faster! Remember the previous impostors."

Although Kai Er says nothing, his and his teammate's hostile gazes are fixed on the agitator.

Seeing few responders, the skinny player becomes even more desperate and agitated: "You're crazy?! What's the point of protecting her! She's being targeted! We'll be implicated by her; only by killing her can we live! Do you all just want to die?!"

Cheng Shuili doesn't look at him; instead she lifts her gaze to the Faceless Jester, which seems quite pleased.

It hovers mid‑air, posture like sitting on a stool, legs together, elbows resting on its thighs, palms propping its face.

Cheng Shuili watches its every move intently, and only when the monster is about to look her way does she shift her gaze to the provocateur player.

He looked like a madman, actually pulling out a dagger from his waist and charging recklessly at Cheng Shuili!

"Courting death!" Hao Hao's face flushed red, obviously angry, a flash of killing intent in her eyes as she was about to step forward.

But someone was faster than her.

Cheng Shuili, who had been sitting quietly, had somehow already stood up.

She didn't even adopt any obvious defensive or offensive stance; she merely lifted her gaze and gave him a faint glance when the player rushed to within a few steps of her.

That gaze was calm and waveless, with no killing intent, no anger, not even contempt.

It was like looking at an irrelevant passerby, at a piece of trash by the roadside not worth mentioning.

Yet that utterly plain glance made the frantically charging player feel as if doused with invisible ice water—his movements froze instantly, his momentum halted dead, and the raised dagger hung suspended in midair.

He met Cheng Shuili's eyes.

Within it there was nothing, yet it seemed bottomless, containing something more chilling than the malice of the Faceless Joker.

An absolute, indisputable indifference toward life itself.

He instantly understood Cheng Shuili's meaning: killing him was to her as trivial as stepping on a cockroach.

This silent proclamation was more lethal than any roar.

From the player's throat came a hoarse "heh-heh" sound, like an unwilling last thought; the courage he had barely mustered evaporated in an instant, leaving only bone‑deep chill that made his whole body tremble.

He struggled to grip the dagger tightly, but it ultimately clanged to the ground.

He staggered back a few steps, then his legs gave way and he slumped to the ground, dazed and spiritless.

It was as if all his strength and will to live had been drained by that glance.

Cheng Shuili said nothing, simply sitting back down and propping her chin up again.

But everyone clearly understood what had just happened; this scene completely subdued anyone still harboring dissent.

Pan Shi felt a chill in his heart; this intimidating force absolutely came from her absolute confidence in her own strength.

Most importantly, this person is from the Long Guo major region!

Her name must be on the major region ranking list!

Who is she?

Kai Er's pupils contracted slightly, he silently clicked his tongue: "... Really a monster."

After muttering that, he recalled his own offense against this person and Pan Shi when they first met, and his heart fluttered with anxiety.

Meanwhile, Hao Hao, who had always stood beside Cheng Shuili, looked full of admiration, almost wanting to wave flags and shout.

In this eerie silence——

Clang!

The final bell tolled!

The ten‑minute countdown ended!

On the high platform, the Faceless Joker rose to his feet.

"Time's up~!"

It announced in a chant‑like voice, its smooth face slowly sweeping over every player below; the intangible gaze seemed to carry substantive weight, making everyone hold their breath as their hearts pounded in their chests.

No one knew whether they would still be able to feel their own heartbeat the next second.

"Let me see, tonight's lucky one is……"

Its finger idly traced the crowd, finally stopping in a certain direction.

Every player's heart leapt to their throats.

Cheng Shuili finally lowered the hand propping her chin, slightly lifted her gaze, and looked toward the direction the Faceless Joker pointed.

Standing there was a member of Kai Er's team, a young man who had always been unnoticeable.

The moment he was pointed at, the young man's face turned deathly pale, his body trembling uncontrollably, his eyes filled with despair.

"Congratulations! My esteemed guest!" the Faceless Joker's voice brimmed with "delight," "Please step forward and make a dessert for us……"

The young man's legs went weak, nearly causing him to collapse to his knees.

The Faceless Joker added in a sickly tone: "If you refuse my invitation, something even more terrifying will happen."

This is an blatant threat!

Initially, others' gazes were sympathy and relief, but after the Faceless Joker said that, those looks turned into urging.

Amid Kai Er's complex gazes, the young man was practically dragged, rolling and crawling, onto the high platform at the Joker's "request."

He stood alone and helpless beneath the Faceless Joker's twisted shadow, tiny as a bug that could be crushed at any moment.

"Well then, begin, my dear chef." the Faceless Joker let out a low chuckle, his faceless face turning toward Cheng Shuili, malice barely concealed, "Select your ingredients and present us with the most…… delicious dessert."

Its words once again pointed the spear at Cheng Shuili!

The young man also snapped his head toward Cheng Shuili, his eyes filled with struggle and fear.

Pan Shi silently thought "not good," and Kai Er furrowed his brows.

Other players instinctively stepped back, further isolating Cheng Shuili and Hao Hao.

The air seemed to congeal once again.

Should they follow the Faceless Joker's hint and act against Cheng Shuili?

Or defy this obvious rule and suffer an unknown punishment?

The young man's breathing grew ever more ragged, his gaze darting between Cheng Shuili's calm face and the Faceless Joker's terrifying figure, his forehead beaded with cold sweat.

Fear of the Faceless Joker, fear of Cheng Shuili, and the desire to survive tore wildly at his mind.

Cheng Shuili, however, remained calm.

She even stepped forward a few steps, breaking free of Hao Hao's unconscious protective range, standing alone on an open patch, head raised to watch the young man on the high platform and the Faceless Joker shrouded in shadow.

"It said to remove impurities, so the feast may return to perfection."

She paused, her gaze calm as she looked at the young man, "What do you think is the biggest impurity in this feast?"

The young man was stunned.

The other players were also stunned.

The biggest impurity?

Is it the Faceless Joker itself? Is it these twisted rules? Or……

Cheng Shuili didn't wait for his answer, continuing in that matter-of-fact, flat tone: "The attendant corpses lie there, the guests are like lambs to the slaughter, all rules are decided by its single word, life and death at its mercy. This feast has been filled with impurity from the very start."

She raised her hand, pointing at the twisted figure on the high platform.

"Truly destroying harmony, making this feast utterly hideous……"

Her voice suddenly rose, echoing throughout the venue:

"Isn't it just itself?!"

The moment her words fell, the entire island seemed to fall silent for an instant.

All the players stared, dumbfounded, at Cheng Shuili.

She… what did she say?

She actually directly accused the Faceless Joker of being the impurity?!

This… this is practically bungee jumping wildly on the red line of the rules!

On the high platform, the Faceless Joker's cheerful demeanor showed its first sign of stagnation.

The invisible pressure surrounding it suddenly intensified, a bone-chilling cold spreading through the air.

"Arrogant… guest…" its voice still carried a laugh, but that laugh had turned icy and ferocious, "You are… desecrating my feast!"

Cheng Shuili, however, seemed not to feel that pressure that could almost crush a person; she even stepped forward, locking eyes with the Faceless Joker, her tone laced with a near-mocking doubt:

"Oh? Could I have been wrong?"

"You set the rules, yet lure us into breaking them. You host the feast, yet treat guests as sacrifices. You call yourself the master, yet wantonly play with lives."

"Someone like you, could you not be the biggest impurity that shouldn't exist in this feast……"

She repeated the word "impurity" once again.

And she clearly nailed it onto the Faceless Joker!

"To make desserts, one must remove impurities."

Cheng Shuili turned to the completely dazed young man, speaking each word clearly:

"So, your ingredients…"

Her finger, unwavering, pointed at the high platform.