Chapter 346: VIP Room for One in the Melting Furnace, Crank Up the Heat and Burn It

Qi Suian controlled Pan Fan’s "corpse," making it move. Through its eyes, Qi Suian finally gained a brand-new perspective of the Underworld.

’Once the contamination level gets high enough, the view is completely different.’

’The Doomsday Game didn’t just throw me into the Underworld; it even used my own traits to keep me on the most superficial layer of the truth.’

The scene before Qi Suian was no longer one of a dim sky and a deathly silent mansion.

Instead, it was a lush and vibrant landscape that seemed full of life at first glance.

However, there was still no sign of human life. It was just a large, empty mansion. A coffin sat in the main hall, looking extremely odd.

A coffin itself wasn’t rare, but its placement in the main hall—an area that usually serves as a living room—was.

A closer look revealed a person lying inside the coffin: an old woman.

"Is... is this just a sheet of skin?" The moment the words left Qi Suian’s lips, the surrounding scenery began to churn violently.

The sensation was like missing a step and falling endlessly downward.

Qi Suian remained unaffected, standing as unshakable as a mountain. It wasn’t he who was changing, but the environment around him.

At the same time, the contamination on Pan Fan’s "corpse" began to skyrocket.

In less than three seconds, Pan Fan’s appearance changed completely.

He looked just like someone who had died by hanging, and the visual link connecting Qi Suian to him was immediately severed.

’He’s dead. That contamination is certainly intense.’

Qi Suian examined Pan Fan. This time, he was well and truly a corpse.

Fortunately, there were no signs of reanimation. A thorough examination concluded that he had died by hanging.

Clearly, the change was caused by some kind of rule taking effect.

Qi Suian then tossed him into the Melting Furnace. Upon death, his value had vanished completely, leaving only his worth as fuel.

But Pan Fan hadn’t died in vain. At the very least, through his observation, the layer of truth and Qi Suian had finally rushed to meet each other.

"This is what a normal world looks like, right? Sunny skies, birds and flowers... wait, why is it as silent as a static image? And why don’t the flowers have any scent?" Qi Suian hadn’t even finished his musing before he was proven wrong.

He then looked toward the main hall nearby; the old woman in the coffin was gone.

Out of thin air, a white silk sash suddenly materialized, instantly looping around the necks of both Qi Suian and the Tai Sui God.

’So this is a Hanged Ghost?’ Qi Suian wasn’t worried in the slightest.

The moment he finished speaking, the sash began to exert force.

The force wasn’t actually great—just that of a normal hanging—yet it was imbued with some sort of rule-based power.

Qi Suian was completely unable to resist; with a sharp SNAP, his neck was broken.

The same happened to the Tai Sui God, its neck stretching unnaturally long.

’Theoretically speaking, the Tai Sui God and I are already dead.’

’But in this case, a Hanged Ghost is actually trying to hang an energy-based, virus-type humanoid and a suit of armor...’

’That’s like Captain America trying to choke out Ultron.’

Qi Suian reached up, unwound the white silk sash from his neck, and studied it for a moment. He discovered it was just a normal sash.

He then casually tossed both his and the Tai Sui God’s sashes into the Melting Furnace as fuel.

"So, where exactly am I now?" A strange expression crossed Qi Suian’s face.

He had indeed gotten out, but there was something wrong with the place he’d emerged into.

If he had previously been in the ghosts’ spiritual or inner domain, then this had to be the place where the ghosts were sealed.

Therefore, he needed to break the seal to get out for good.

"Let’s check the coffin first." Qi Suian jogged into the main hall and immediately exclaimed, "Holy shit, this coffin has a sliding lid? How trendy is that?"

The coffin was empty; the Hanged Ghost wasn’t inside.

Recalling the previous pattern of death—entering a room and looking up to have your neck broken—he looked up and, sure enough, saw the Hanged Ghost dangling right above his head.

"AI, why isn’t the reconnaissance network reacting?" Qi Suian asked.

[Categorizing based on your currently acquired data: Ghosts are rule-based, observation-type entities. They require a corresponding observation from a lifeform to induce a reality collapse.]

[The Tai Sui God is not a lifeform, therefore it cannot form an effective observation and is unable to detect them.]

[They can be observed through electronic equipment, but no trace can be stored on said equipment.]

[It is only through the indirect method of memory transmission, facilitated by your Viral Bloodline Armor Module, that the Tai Sui God is able to store this information.]

The AI made it very clear: the ghosts of this world were not normal. They weren’t energy structures or spirits, but something more akin to fundamental rules.

Because the Tai Sui God wasn’t alive, it couldn’t see them, much less remember them.

Only Qi Suian’s indirect recording allowed the AI to establish a definite cognition.

Therefore, for the Tai Sui God’s reconnaissance network to detect anything, it could only do so by identifying something akin to an interference point.

Qi Suian took out a camera. Through his own eyes, it looked like he had successfully filmed it.

But upon playback, the footage showed nothing at all.

This confirmed the AI’s data: non-lifeforms could not make direct recordings.

’It seems that indirectly spreading the truth doesn’t lead to contamination.’

Saying this, Qi Suian reached up and pulled the Hanged Ghost down.

Its face was very similar to Wang Qin’s, whom he had seen before. Upon comparison, he confirmed that it was indeed Wang Qin.

Except one was the young version, and the other... was also the young version.

Qi Suian examined the corpse and discovered a serious problem: its bone age and physical appearance were completely mismatched.

’It seems something caused her to age.’

’Don’t tell me it was another ghost.’

"And then she got old, her engagement was broken off, and she ultimately hanged herself." Qi Suian instantly fabricated an entire plotline in his head.

Suddenly, the Hanged Ghost’s eyes snapped open, the ghastly whites filled with a dead stillness.

The white silk sash dropped from the ceiling beam, once again hanging Qi Suian and the Tai Sui God.

Then, it started hoisting them upward.

"Seriously..." Qi Suian said, exasperated. "You have no idea how heavy the Tai Sui God is, do you? You’re really not afraid of bringing your own house down?"

As he spoke, the AI deactivated the weight containment of the strategic Dimensional Folding Space.

And then the entire main hall came crashing down.

After pushing his elongated neck back into place, Qi Suian dragged the Hanged Ghost out from the ruins of the hall.

’The good news is that the main hall seemed to be the center of the seal. An opening appeared after it collapsed.’

’The bad news is, the opening is too small. I don’t think I can get out.’

’I have to find a way to make it bigger.’ In the sunny sky above Qi Suian, a crack the size of a human head had appeared.

It gave the impression of a splash of ink on a painting—completely out of place.

This sense of dissonance was growing.

The Hanged Ghost in his grasp began to tremble, trying to break free from Qi Suian and escape through the crack.

But it was utterly unable to break free from his control.

The creature’s uncanny power lay in its hanging sash and its incredibly tough and resilient body; Qi Suian suspected that even a Dark Energy Beam from a Floating Cannon couldn’t decompose it.

Clearly, it wasn’t composed of any normal structure; it was definitely of a rule-based nature, a higher order than even the Dark Energy Beam.

This meant that ghosts couldn’t be killed... right?

Qi Suian himself wasn’t sure.

"Alright, you go stay in my Melting Furnace for a while." With that, he shoved it into the Melting Furnace.

"AI, one guest for the Melting Furnace’s VIP suite. Crank up the heat and burn it!"

Qi Suian reckoned that if it could actually be burned, the amount of evolutionary energy he’d obtain would be substantial.

"Hey, would you classify this type of ghost as living or dead?" Qi Suian suddenly asked.

[Currently unable to determine. An experiment can be conducted. However, this type of ghost is a ’rule’ entity. It is not recommended that you use it as a module for the Tai Sui God.]

Given Qi Suian’s personality, the AI didn’t even have to guess what he was about to do.

If the AI could acquire a rule-level module, the results would be absolutely phenomenal.

However, as good as the idea was, it was completely impractical.

It was for one simple reason: while the Hanged Ghost might seem weak and couldn’t inflict a shred of damage on Qi Suian, its effect was potent.

Without the fifth batch of survivors’ ’Contamination Resistance’ talent, the process was simple: the logic would execute, and the outcome would be preordained.

Even Qi Suian could be strung up and have his neck snapped.

He was a stat-based fighter, whereas the Hanged Ghost was a mechanic-based entity.

Each simply had its own advantages.

’Fine, but if I could obtain a similar ability, wouldn’t I be invincible too?’

’At minimum, we’re talking about a concept- or rule-level ability. It would have to be at least SSS-rank in quality, maybe even X-rank.’

How could Qi Suian not be tempted by that?

[Your idea is sound, but you must also consider the logic. If you were preparing to reside permanently in this Doomsday World, acquiring one or more such abilities would be worthwhile.]

[However, you cannot remain in this world indefinitely. Once you leave their world of origin, rule- and concept-based abilities lose their contextual support and revert to normal levels.]

[You may reference the plague and disease series of modules on the Tai Sui God for comparison.]

’That’s reasonable. Between different worlds, the Extraordinary systems are different, so the rules and parameters would also change.’

’But since I’m already here, it’d be a waste not to take something with me when I leave.’

’Even a piece of toilet paper has its use, let alone a whole ability.’

Qi Suian agreed with what the Tai Sui God said, but he was already in this Doomsday World, and there was only this one Extraordinary system. It wasn’t as if he could pick and choose.

This was the only path available.

"Wait, does this mean I’ve completely lost contact with the other survivors?" Qi Suian suddenly realized he had left the Netherworld and arrived in another reality.

That meant he could no longer see the survivors.

From now on, he’d have no way to study them.

’Damn it, so this was all part of the Doomsday Game’s calculations.’

’Whether I stay or go, it holds all the cards.’

Qi Suian felt like the Doomsday Game was getting more and more cunning. He wondered if it had finally developed a brain after being repeatedly thrashed by various Doomsday Worlds, all thanks to him.

This wasn’t just his imagination; it was true.

Furthermore, it could now even turn the tables and exploit Qi Suian’s own plot armor against him.

’Everyone’s improving. I’m clearly the protagonist. Isn’t the enemy supposed to just wait in place for me to catch up and then get his face slapped? Isn’t that how this works?’