Chapter 39: Polluted Nightmare-Level Instance! Are You Crazy or Am I Crazy?

"Why is Brother Wei Wang Ren so curious about the Nightmare-level instance difficulty?"

Chen Baili had been pondering this question.

Ever since parting ways with Wei Wang Ren late that night.

The other party would occasionally ask him some very basic questions in the friend chat box.

It was clear he was indeed a newcomer.

Yet he had never asked about any instances below Nightmare level, as if he didn't care about instances of other levels at all.

"Could it be that his next instance notification has already arrived, and it's Nightmare level!?"

Chen Baili was startled by this absurd speculation.

Matching a newcomer with a Nightmare-level instance.

The 【Spirit Calamity Game】 isn't that insane, is it?

"Wait... it seems there actually was a case recently where a newcomer experienced a Nightmare-level instance."

Chen Baili suddenly remembered.

The last newcomer instance livestream that had just ended.

Even to this day, the Bureau of Unusual Affairs still has a large number of technicians attempting to analyze what that Nightmare-level newcomer instance truly meant.

The current judgment given is—

The probability of a newcomer clearing a Nightmare-level instance remains 0%; it was most likely a bug in the game system.

Even though the instance that was livestreamed appeared to be cleared, the scene where the game settled accounts with the final clearers was still noticed by the technicians.

This means the other party didn't truly clear it either; right now, the grass on their grave is probably two zhang high.

If it weren't the case.

Chen Baili initially thought Wei Wang Ren was that god-tier newcomer who secured the final beta qualification.

Unfortunately, that person is already dead.

"Sigh, the higher-ups recently ordered cooperation in investigating instance pollution issues, saying it has become so severe that the Director personally took action, leaving absolutely no time to attend to my report on the new recruitment application," Chen Baili sighed, feeling indignant.

A colleague at the neighboring workstation heard this.

He couldn't help but tease: "Brother Dao, is that newcomer you mentioned really that amazing? Or is it because you didn't reap any benefits from the reality-oriented instance, and you're worried about being mocked by us, so you're making up an excuse and blowing smoke?"

Ever since Chen Baili returned from the instance that night, he had been bragging to them about a certain highly promising newcomer.

But he bragged so fantastically.

Basically, no one believed him.

A level-one newcomer playing around with four veteran players fully equipped with items, plus an instance BOSS comparable to Nightmare level.

Even Director Qing Long wasn't this awesome at level one! You're blowing it way too out of proportion!

But Chen Baili seemed to have genuinely and seriously applied to the higher-ups for special-level recruitment resources the day he returned.

Unfortunately, it was rejected.

Because the bureau's resources are currently tilting towards combating instance pollution.

Polluted instances see their difficulty skyrocket, and participating players are prone to permanent mental damage, the so-called San value dropping to zero.

Simple instances get damaged and written off immediately upon pollution; medium instances instantly reach the difficulty of hard instances after pollution; and hard instances become Nightmare level directly upon pollution.

This has also caused the casualty rate among Bureau of Unusual Affairs personnel to skyrocket recently.

"If the newcomer you mentioned really enters a Nightmare-level instance, then there's no need to continue monitoring him; just follow the news and see where in Mingyang City someone dies of sudden cardiac arrest; it's most likely that newcomer."

A voice suddenly came from behind.

Chen Baili turned his head sharply.

He discovered it was his direct superior, also the highest person in charge of the Mingyang City branch of the Bureau of Unusual Affairs.

Such an evaluation made his eyes dim significantly.

Indeed, if Brother Wei Wang Ren really entered a Nightmare-level instance.

Then prepare to collect his corpse.

"Focus your attention on the polluted instance missions first," the leader said.

Ever since attending the meeting at headquarters three days ago and seeing Director Qing Long, he had been unusually concerned about polluted instances.

At this moment, a strange thing floated up in Chen Baili's mind again.

He unconsciously asked: "You say, if a Nightmare-level instance gets polluted, what would be the consequences?"

Leader: "..."

The entire office remained silent for a long time.

Finally, the sound of the leader sighing came through: "The consequence is that you can only kneel on the ground and burn an incense stick, praying that your death won't look too ugly."

Polluted Nightmare-level instance.

Do you want to listen to what you're saying!

Are you crazy or am I crazy?

Nightmare level is already an instance with a clearance rate of less than 1%.

Add pollution to that.

Then it's basically a 0% clearance rate!

Whoever encounters it dies!

————

"Hehehe, Grandpa Village Head, will I die?"

Wu Wang smiled foolishly at the old village head.

Right now, all the gazes in the entire square were focused on him.

To be precise, it was on that wooden plaque with part of its graffiti missing.

Time rewound to before the banquet began.

Just like in previous years' Yin Yuan Grand Sacrifice, the old village head invited the entire village to step forward and sense the aura of the wooden plaque.

As each villager, one by one, underwent purification by gazing directly into the eye graffiti on the plaque.

Everyone felt their souls purified.

Bathed under that majestic aura, they longed for the Great God of Yin Yuan to grant them favorable weather and bountiful harvests.

Until some little madman stepped onto the stage.

Wu Wang glanced over.

The red vertical pupil on his own wrist simultaneously opened and blinked.

It lasted merely three seconds.

One-fifth of the exquisite vertical pupil on the wooden plaque vanished.

Terrified, the old village head quickly pulled Wu Wang aside and had someone fetch a black cloth to cover the plaque.

Whose unlucky child is this?

What did he do?

"You are... whose child?"

Aunt Li hurried forward to speak: "Village Head, he is Zhang Sanfeng; the day after tomorrow, he is to be used to sacrifice to the Great God of Yin Yuan."

A gleam flashed in the old village head's eyes.

He nodded silently: "So it is him... step forward and let Grandpa take a look."

Wu Wang lowered his head and slowly walked forward.

He could almost smell the corpse stench emanating from the old village head.

Beneath that thick padded cotton jacket lay a skeleton ghost that made one nauseous.

He didn't know how the other had stitched the human skin together.

From the outside, there truly appeared to be no problems whatsoever.

"Come, let Village Head Grandpa see your eyes." The old village head's voice was like a demon's whisper from hell; when it entered Wu Wang's ears, it actually made him stagger slightly.

Instinctively, he walked toward the other.

He hadn't expected this skeleton ghost to still be able to bewitch people's hearts!

Unfortunately, the daze lasted only an instant.

The heart-bewitching curse was swallowed by the red vertical pupil.

The Abyss God Mark acted like a King of Bewitchment.

Whenever Wu Wang suffered pollution from other similar curses, it would jump out and devour them.

As if declaring its sovereignty.

This guy! Only I can pollute!

Pfft—

The moment he reached the old village head.

A bone spike brutally pierced through the old village head's cotton jacket.

It stabbed straight through from front to back at the heart position.

Under the other's incredulous gaze, Wu Wang leaned close to his ear and said: "Old Village Head, you dropped something; now I return it to its owner."

"Shh~ Don't make a sound; you wouldn't want the villagers to know you're a ghost, would you?"

By day, I am timid and submissive.

By night, I am the center of attention!

If you have the guts, expose your ghostly form before everyone's eyes!

Let's see if this Yin Yuan Grand Sacrifice can still proceed!

Wu Wang smiled, gripping that bone spike with his hand, using his body to block the line of sight between it and the villagers.

He twisted and turned it again and again.

The old village head's face had already twisted into a grotesque, unrecognizable shape.

For some reason.

He truly could not expose himself.

He could only endure the other's humiliation with resentment!

"Rest assured, I, a brother, never hold grudges overnight."

"If there's a grudge, I settle it on the very same day!"