Dice In The Darkness: Cthulhu Calls

Chapter 303: "Sacred Artifact"

For Liu Xing, lending his cellphone to anyone was out of the question, even if it were his closest ally, Yin En. After all, his phone contained a trove of important information.

To put it bluntly, Liu Xing believed that if his phone were discovered by a stranger, that person would undoubtedly call the authorities to apprehend him...

However, just then, Miyako Goudong said earnestly, "Well, if Liu Xing is willing to go down there, I can lend you my phone."

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, surprised that Miyako Goudong was willing to lend him his phone. But upon further reflection, he understood why. Given Miyako Goudong’s personality, his phone likely held only some eccentric, juvenile history. So, for him, lending his phone to him wasn’t a big deal...

Since Miyako Goudong had said so, Liu Xing reluctantly nodded and said, "Alright, since you all insist, I’ll make another trip down there next time."

In truth, Liu Xing was quite willing to venture into the underground ruins again. He believed that he might find useful items in the underground ruins, especially since the things Moon Beast had given to the ancient tribe were valuable. Moon Beast was a pragmatist, so even after tens of thousands of years, there should still be something worthwhile in the underground ruins.

Furthermore, Liu Xing felt that there were other secrets hidden in the underground ruins. To obtain firsthand information, he thought it was necessary for him to go himself.

Of course, there were risks involved. Liu Xing suspected that the underground ruins might hold dangers, such as the last line of defense for the ancient tribe. The massive circular space in the middle was likely the tribe’s last refuge, so it should be equipped with some defensive measures. If he, as an "intruder," entered recklessly, he might trigger these defenses and put his life in danger.

Nevertheless, Liu Xing had a premonition that something in the underground ruins was calling him, and that something was of great importance to him...

After resolving the issue of who would go to the underground ruins tomorrow, Dogo Aige arrived at the villa with food.

At the same time, Dogo Aige brought some mixed news.

"By the way, there’s an event tomorrow afternoon. We need to go to Fisher’s Village’s Ancestral Hall together to pay respects to the ancestors of Fisher’s Village by offering incense. After that, Matsui Yui and I will have our wedding ceremony at the beach, so we won’t need to go to Fisher’s Village’s Ancestral Hall again," Dogo Aige said with a smile.

Everyone exchanged glances; this news came quite unexpectedly.

The reason it was considered mixed news was that it was good because they could directly investigate Fisher’s Village’s Ancestral Hall, confirming some of their previous speculations and gathering useful information. However, the bad part was that Ling Ishikawa’s return from Hybrier was still uncertain. If Ling Ishikawa couldn’t return by tomorrow afternoon, it could arouse suspicion from Dogo Aige, Matsui Ichiro, and Matsui Yui. If they delved deeper, they might not be able to keep Ling Ishikawa’s sudden disappearance a secret.

So, after Dogo Aige left, everyone ate in silence, wearing troubled expressions.

After finishing dinner, Zhang Jingxu couldn’t help but speak up, saying, "Alright, let’s not dwell on this. While Ling Ishikawa’s situation is uncertain, we can still use his old ailment as an excuse to continue deceiving Dogo Aige and the others. This won’t hinder our investigation into Fisher’s Village’s Ancestral Hall. Let’s divide our tasks."

"First, we need to confirm who else will be at Fisher’s Village’s Ancestral Hall besides Dogo Aige. If we’re lucky and it’s just us and Dogo Aige, we can have one or two people distract Dogo Aige while others explore Fisher’s Village’s Ancestral Hall to see if there’s anything worth noting."

"If, on the other hand, Matsui Ichiro, Matsui Yui, and Alice are also present, we’ll need to find opportunities to discreetly observe the details of Fisher’s Village’s Ancestral Hall. According to my knowledge, if Fisher’s Village’s Ancestral Hall has indeed been transformed into a place of worship for Ocean True Deity Sect’s deity statue by Matsui Ichiro, it should contain some sacred artifacts. After all, Ocean True Deity Sect invested heavily in controlling Fisher’s Village, so they must attach great importance to it. Thus, having some sacred artifacts in Fisher’s Village’s Ancestral Hall is only natural."

Liu Xing nodded and added, "Indeed, let’s put Ling Ishikawa’s situation aside for now. We must focus on investigating Fisher’s Village’s Ancestral Hall. Based on my understanding, if Fisher’s Village’s Ancestral Hall has truly been converted into a place of worship for Ocean True Deity Sect’s deity statue by Matsui Ichiro, there should be some Ocean True Deity Sect sacred artifacts inside. After all, Ocean True Deity Sect went to great lengths to control Fisher’s Village, so they must value it highly. It’s only reasonable for them to keep some sacred artifacts in Fisher’s Village’s Ancestral Hall."

Liu Xing’s statement was rooted in the memories of "Watanabe Ryuusei." In those memories, Worshipers of the Yellow Sect had developed five branches at their peak, and Watanabe Masao, Liu Xing’s father in those memories, had distributed different quantities and grades of "sacred artifacts" to each branch, depending on their size and importance. However, as a recently established secret cult without a historical background, Worshipers of the Yellow Sect couldn’t possibly possess any sacred artifacts. So, these so-called "sacred artifacts" were all fabricated by Watanabe Masao. For instance, an ordinary bracelet available for a few dollars online became "King Hastur in Yellow Robes’ gift to the saint Louise" in Watanabe Masao’s words. The term "saint Louise" was adapted from the names of the first twelve characters Watanabe Masao had come across in a foreign novel...

While these so-called "sacred artifacts" were most likely fabrications by the leaders of the secret cult, they held a sacred and inviolable status for the faithful believers.

Therefore, when Liu Xing mentioned the possible Ocean True Deity Sect "sacred artifacts" in Fisher’s Village’s Ancestral Hall, it was to remind other players that they could try to take these "sacred artifacts" to threaten Matsui Ichiro and force him to compromise.

Miyako Goudong quickly grasped Liu Xing’s intention and immediately said, "I see what you mean. In many novels and anime, evil and mysterious organizations like the Ocean True Deity Sect love to have all sorts of random things as their sacred artifacts. And for fanatical believers like Matsui Ichiro, these artifacts are even more important than their own lives. If we can obtain these sacred artifacts, I believe Matsui Ichiro wouldn’t dare to harm us recklessly."

Zhang Jingxu nodded in agreement, stroking his chin.

So, everyone unanimously decided that during their visit to Fisher’s Village’s Ancestral Hall the next day, they would do their best to find any possible Ocean True Deity Sect "sacred artifacts" that might be kept there, giving their group another ace up their sleeve.

As evening approached at seven o’clock, Zhang Jingxu, as usual, found an excuse to send Lu Tianya back to her room and then initiated the Private Room session for the day.

"Man, what’s up with this module? Moon Beast and Star Kin showing up?!" Panda Pig couldn’t help but comment.

Liu Xing nodded and shrugged, saying, "I think Moon Beast and Star Kin are probably just making a cameo appearance to set the stage for the story. After all, whether it’s Moon Beast or Star Kin, having any one of them show up could lead to an instant game over for us. So, unless this module is truly insane, Moon Beast and Star Kin shouldn’t make a formal appearance."

Liu Xing’s thoughts received support from Zhang Jingxu. "You’re right. We’re still in the Shoggoth Region, so it’s unlikely that Moon Beast or Star Kin, such powerful mythical creatures, would appear here. And you should all know this interesting tidbit about the Cthulhu Role-Playing Game Hall: the name of each region represents the most powerful mythical creature that can appear in that area. So, in this Shoggoth Region module, the most we should encounter is Shoggoth. Moon Beast and Star Kin will probably appear in the upcoming Hound of Tindalos region. However, these mythical creatures can potentially appear in any region, and their reputations and legends persist throughout."

"But speaking of special modules, it’s possible for any mythical creature to show up, and if their strength surpasses the region’s limit, they may be subject to restrictions, such as not being able to attack players, or they may only be able to attack a certain number of times and disappear after killing a certain number of players, or they might have fatal weaknesses."

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow; he had actually been unaware of this interesting fact about the Cthulhu Role-Playing Game Hall. However, it made sense, as in the previous Ghoul region, Liu Xing had encountered Ghouls, Deep Ones, and Formless Offspring.

Of course, entities like Aughra had been automatically ignored by Liu Xing...

Thinking of this, Liu Xing suddenly remembered the question he had wanted to ask Zhang Jingxu earlier. He immediately turned to Zhang Jingxu and said, "By the way, Zhang Jingxu, what was the outcome of the Blood Soup module we did together?"

Zhang Jingxu raised an eyebrow and chuckled, "Liu Xing, you’ve forgotten already? I was the first to clear that module. However, I know another player who told me what happened next, including the part where you were poisoned by your teammate."

"After you were poisoned by your teammate and opened the large door, which alerted the Dread Hunter inside, the Dread Hunter launched an attack and killed the NPC girl directly. But as I mentioned earlier, mythical creatures in special modules like this one have limitations. So, after killing the NPC girl, the Dread Hunter disappeared. In the end, the remaining players passed through without further incidents."

Liu Xing nodded; the outcome of that module was as he had expected. After all, it was a welfare module with reduced difficulty, so everyone clearing it was quite normal.

"However, speaking of this module, I have a feeling that it’s not as simple as we think. The appearance of this underground ruin seems to foreshadow something," Miyako Goudong mused, stroking his chin.

Liu Xing chuckled, teasingly saying, "Miyako Goudong, did your character card infect you with chuunibyou? Why do you have such thoughts?"

Miyako Goudong smiled and shook his head, speaking seriously, "To be honest, my sixth sense has always been quite accurate. It’s one of the reasons I’ve survived this long with my character card."

Panda Pig raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised, and said, "I never thought you were one of those players with a sixth sense. I’ve heard that players like you are considered mystical in tabletop role-playing games. They always seem to dance on the edge of danger but miraculously survive each time."

Miyako Goudong nodded, still with a touch of trepidation in his voice. "That’s right. I recall some situations now and feel a bit scared afterward. Especially one time, I almost became a sacrifice for a certain secret cult. But my sixth sense kicked in, and I sensed something was wrong with the tea that NPC had given me. Luckily, my character card’s chuunibyou attribute aligned with my sixth sense, so I had a reason not to drink that tea. In the end, I narrowly escaped."

Liu Xing had always found the concept of a sixth sense quite fantastical, but he couldn’t deny its existence.

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