Chapter 72

Bei Lang was pacing outside the opera house.

He maintained as much calm and rationality as possible.

In his hand, he held a small notebook, recording all detected anomalies in concise, clear language.

【Memorized Memo (Premium): The holder can effortlessly recall and reconstruct any scene written in the memo, under any circumstances, provided the notebook is not lost.】

【Equipment Requirement: Legible and neat handwriting.】

【Note: You seem to have forgotten something…】

This equipment seemed utterly useless.

But for players skilled in analysis, it was an absolute weapon!

Human memory is always limited.

Especially in various dangerous supernatural instances, tension and fear cause certain anomalous details to slip from recall.

This memo allowed the user to directly recall scenes—almost like a half external brain.

Bei Lang's most fortunate moment was when he encountered an instance that caused players to constantly forget; he cracked key information using what he'd written in the memo.

"Maintain silence during the opera performance; applaud only during climactic moments; to leave midway, pay a small tip to the server for escort; at the end, one audience member will be randomly chosen to sing onstage…"

These were all locations where anomalies had occurred.

The moment he arrived at the opera house, he saw an audience member selected to sing onstage.

The confused audience member stood on stage for several minutes, unsure what to do.

Right before Bei Lang's eyes, the man's limbs stiffened, then took on a wooden texture, his joints transforming into latch nodes—within ten seconds, he became a wooden puppet with a smiling face!

The puppet then returned to its original seat.

It began mechanically clapping.

Preparing to watch the next opera.

Only then did Bei Lang notice: though the opera house appeared packed, over half the audience were lifelike wooden puppets!

All of them had been transformed from guests!

The rules above were confirmed only after he witnessed someone break them and turn into a puppet.

Looking at the nearly complete notes.

Bei Lang nodded silently, preparing to head to the next location.

Otherwise, if he stayed any longer, he might become the next audience member called onstage!

"Excuse me, I have an urgent matter and must leave. I'd appreciate your help." Bei Lang spoke as quietly as possible to the nearby server, slipping a few bills from his pocket into their hand.

"No problem, Mr. Number 6 is pleased to serve you. Please follow this way."

The server's smile remained unchanged.

After accepting the tip, they extended their hand with utmost gentlemanly grace, offering it for Bei Lang to grip and help them rise.

Under the female server's guidance, he quickly exited the opera house.

Looking at the labyrinthine corridors, Bei Lang sighed helplessly.

Too big…

This cruise ship was truly the pinnacle gathering place of high society.

According to the server, even excluding restaurants and restrooms, the facilities were so extensive they made one's scalp tingle.

Every kind of entertainment venue, gym, wellness center, mall, theater, pool, and even religious chapel existed here.

There were over fifty public areas of varying sizes, and countless private zones.

Players had only five days.

If they stayed together the whole time, they could never explore everything.

So since Elder Yan Shuangying left, and they confirmed the servers posed no malice, everyone had summoned their room service staff to split up and explore the cruise ship individually.

I wonder how the others are doing…

"Bei Lang! There you are! Hurry to Starlight Bar! Bat's in trouble!"

Just as he stepped out of the opera house, a slightly panicked female voice came from behind.

Bei Lang turned his head.

There stood Young Lady Black Cat sprinting toward him in high heels, beads of glistening sweat on her forehead, her cheeks flushed—like a ripe apple hanging after rain, irresistibly alluring.

Without hesitation.

Bei Lang immediately followed Young Lady Black Cat to the so-called Starlight Bar.

After all, this was only the first day of the instance!

They couldn't afford to lose a teammate so soon!

Moments later, the two appeared in a quiet bar echoing with slow, mellow music.

The interior decor was extremely minimalist, yet the ceiling sparkled with countless stars.

At first glance, patrons seemed to be drinking and chatting beneath an actual starry sky—romantic beyond words.

Behind the bar, a bartender displayed his skill, bottles dancing in his hands as if alive.

Before him lay a man, pale as death, convulsing uncontrollably, dressed in a light blue elegant suit, wearing a bat mask.

He was now barely clinging to life.

Other teammates stood nearby.

All their eyes betrayed anxiety and irritation—they had clearly noticed Bat's condition was dire.

"What happened to him?" Bei Lang asked urgently.

Fox Loli stepped forward, coldly stating: "He ordered a cocktail—Bloody Mary. After drinking it, the bartender told him to recreate an identical one. He failed—and became this."

Bei Lang stepped forward to observe.

Suddenly, they noticed a streak of red at the corner of the Bat-Man's mouth, and more red liquid kept spewing out, yet there was no scent of blood in the air.

They sniffed carefully.

It seemed to be the Bloody Mary he had drunk earlier!

Could the wine be poisoned?

"Mr. Bartender, hello," Bei Lang stepped forward and asked as politely as possible, "May I ask why this guest has become like this? Is there any way to alleviate his condition?"

This was something Bei Lang had discovered during previous explorations.

As long as one does not violate the rules or directly ask about the rules, and provided one is sufficiently polite and respectful, even if the question touches the very edge of the rules.

They might still answer.

It depends on the staff's mood.

Fortunately, the bartender was in a good mood.

He slowly set down the wine glass in his hand, raised an eyebrow disdainfully, and said, "This guest does not understand wine."

Then, he handed over the wine menu.

Sliding his hand over the names of various cocktails on it, he spoke in a sinister tone, "If you do not even understand the wine you drink, then you are not worthy of drinking it. Therefore, I am simply helping him understand the 'Bloody Mary' a bit better."

"From now on, no one will understand the 'Bloody Mary' better than him."

Bei Lang glanced at the Bat-Man beside him.

Indeed, no one would understand it better than him.

Because the blood inside his body was turning entirely into the cocktail known as "Bloody Mary"!

At this moment, everyone finally understood.

What was flowing from the Bat-Man's mouth was not the wine he had drunk earlier, but continuous vomiting of blood; only the blood had turned into wine.

A wine-man was being brewed!

It was already too late to save him...

Everyone's faces grew increasingly grim.

The Bat-Man was level 14.

The lowest level among them.

However, the strength of Spirit Disaster players is not really tied to their level; a higher level merely means they have cleared more dungeons and possess more equipment, skills, and trump cards in the form of items.

Their levels were not far apart.

This also meant that, barring any unexpected events,

the wine that could kill the Bat-Man could also kill any player present.

He had no items or equipment on him that could save himself.

Because this was not some form of direct damage, nor was it even related to mental pollution!

It was the power of some rule that twisted and altered the nature of the blood; they could not resist this invisible and intangible rule!

"Absurd! If drinking any wine requires one to know how to mix that wine, who could drink anything in this bar? Does this place only welcome bartenders?"

Thorns Sao Bao frowned and spoke with some anger.

A strange bar that does not welcome guests, only bartenders, is truly laughable!

Unexpectedly, upon hearing these words, the bartender

instead wore a smile on his face, and said with a look of longing and admiration, "This guest, just because you cannot do it, does not mean other guests cannot."

"Before you arrived, a guest mixed every single wine on the menu, and even educated me on the raw materials and production processes of various base liquors."

"Oh! My good heavens! His cultural foundation in wine and his mixing skills made me feel Tao Zui! He was practically Dionysus, the God of Wine, reincarnated!"

"I had no choice but to gift him a bottle of my private collection as a return for his respect."

Upon hearing this, the players' expressions changed.

There is still such a person on the ship?

Either this person truly mastered various mixing techniques, or he understood the rules of this place!

They were more inclined to believe the latter.

An NPC who knows the regional rules!

Finding him might yield more information!

Miss Rose could not help but step forward, batting her eyelashes at the bartender and asking, "Handsome guy, could you please tell me what this miraculous guest looks like? I also want to find him to discuss the art of wine culture."

The bartender's expression suddenly became unnatural.

He said somewhat awkwardly, "This... that guest's outfit and matching were very strange; he was entirely pink... oh, it was magenta tokusatsu attire. He specifically corrected me on this issue."

"He also asked me to convey a message to anyone trying to inquire about his identity: 'If you are a noob, just practice more.'"

Miss Rose: "?"

A lunatic appeared in her mind.

Others also thought of that lunatic.

Holy crap! Is it him?