I Play the Horror World as a Simulation Game
Chapter 83: Puzzle pieces, honest cooperation!

"Congratulations, Player, for triggering a main storyline clue fragment. Collect all fragments to obtain a crucial main storyline clue!"

(After nightfall, the fragments scatter to various corners. Piece them together for an unexpected discovery!)

"Another clue?"

Qin Nuo was taken aback. So this puzzle piece is actually a clue fragment.

A crucial main storyline clue—how crucial could it be? Could it lead to uncovering the mastermind behind the murders of everyone in the asylum?

But how many puzzle pieces are there?

Judging by the size of this piece and the scale of the image on it, there should be more than ten pieces.

Qin Nuo pondered for a moment, then picked up the oil lamp and left the room without lingering.

Since he needed to replace the fragments, the search area was undoubtedly larger, and searching in the dark came with many dangers.

Thus, obtaining such a crucial clue fragment didn't bring much joy to Qin Nuo.

Through the woman in the bathtub, Qin Nuo roughly understood that the oil lamp could only repel things in the dark and was ineffective against the ghosts already in the asylum.

As he walked down the stairs, Qin Nuo suddenly noticed that the sparks on the puzzle fragment in his hand were drifting in a particular direction.

"Is it guiding me?" Qin Nuo was stunned.

Could it be that when the puzzle pieces get close, they have a magnetic attraction?

This guess was likely correct. Qin Nuo quickened his pace, following the direction of the drifting sparks.

Arriving at a corridor in the South District, the sparks on the puzzle seemed to burn more fiercely.

It's nearby!

Qin Nuo's eyes lit up, and he continued forward.

At the corner, he suddenly heard some movement.

Soft footsteps—something was approaching him!

Qin Nuo paused, then swiftly drew the Mountain-Cleaving Knife and slashed backward.

The opponent reacted quickly, stepping back abruptly, but the blade sliced through the fabric on his chest.

Only then did Qin Nuo see that the other person was also holding an oil lamp.

"Player?"

The man hadn't expected Qin Nuo to be so sharp, suddenly swinging a knife at him.

Looking at the cut on his chest, the dark-haired man frowned: "Good reflexes. If I hadn't reacted quickly, I'd have to use my immunity token here!"

Qin Nuo raised an eyebrow at the matching oil lamp in the man's hand.

As expected, he wasn't the only one able to move in the dark.

Thinking it over, it made sense. This instance had many high-level players; they couldn't all be less capable than him.

"You weren't following me with good intentions, were you?" Qin Nuo sneered.

The dark-haired man chuckled: "I was just curious to see who the third player able to move in the dark would be."

"The third one?" Qin Nuo was startled.

Just then, another light appeared in the distance, and someone walked over.

It was none other than the blond man.

Seeing Qin Nuo, the blond man was a bit surprised, but then he seemed to understand something and regained his composure.

"Any discoveries?" The dark-haired man glanced at the blond man.

The blond man remained silent, taking out an item that was the same puzzle fragment as Qin Nuo's.

"It took some effort, but I got it." The man, with a bloodied hand, also took out a puzzle fragment.

In an instant, the three puzzle fragments reacted.

The two men then noticed the piece in Qin Nuo's hand. The dark-haired man's eyes lit up: "No wonder the puzzle kept reacting; you have a piece too!"

As he spoke, the dark-haired man licked his lips, his eyes filled with ill intent.

He and the blond man were partners.

Because they were both high-level players and knew each other's strengths, teaming up gave them a great chance to complete the main storyline of this instance!

But a Level 2 rookie player? He had no intention of cooperating.

The pie wasn't big, and no one wanted to share more than necessary.

Qin Nuo sensed the man's intentions and said calmly, "What, planning to snatch my piece?"

"You might have to shed some skin for that."

"Rookie, where's your confidence coming from? That knife?" The man sneered, pulling a double-barreled shotgun from his sleeve.

"You can try." Qin Nuo glanced at the shotgun, a smirk on his lips.

"Lan Yan, you'll regret it," the blond man suddenly said.

"Why?" Lan Yan frowned. He knew the Emperor's character and wouldn't joke around.

"Because he's called Phantom."

Lan Yan muttered the name, initially confused, then his expression suddenly changed.

"The Phantom with a 16.0 rating?"

Lan Yan's gaze returned to Qin Nuo, surprised: "Really a Level 2 rookie. I thought those guys were exaggerating!"

Qin Nuo looked at the blond man with some surprise.

Not many players knew Phantom's identity, mostly those in Jinzhou. These two were likely from Jinzhou.

No wonder this guy kept staring at him!

"Friend, I was just joking earlier, don't mind!" Lan Yan quickly changed his tune, putting away the shotgun and smiling.

"Since you have a puzzle piece, are you interested in joining us?"

"I'm not interested in a partnership filled with hidden agendas." Qin Nuo shook his head.

Lan Yan opened his mouth, unsure of what to say.

The blond man spoke up: "You're holding a puzzle piece, so you must be interested in the main storyline of this instance."

"Without each other's puzzle pieces, no one can obtain the crucial clue."

"There are no eternal friends, only eternal interests. Since our interests align, what's wrong with a partnership filled with hidden agendas?"

The blond man's smile was stiff, clearly not used to smiling.

Qin Nuo pondered for a moment and said, "I like straightforward people like you, not hypocritical. Happy cooperation."

Lan Yan's face was a bit unnatural, feeling like he was being subtly mocked.

The relationship among the three seemed to become much more harmonious in an instant.

But they all knew in their hearts.

This cooperation would only last until the puzzle was completed.

Once the puzzle was fully assembled and the crucial main storyline clue obtained, the cooperation would collapse, and they would become enemies.

The MVP rating for the instance offered unimaginably rich rewards.

No one would be generous enough to want to share!

"Based on our estimates, there are likely 12 puzzle pieces, forming a complete frame."

"And these puzzle fragments only appear at night, meaning we have to search every night for the next few days."

The blond man said.

"The oil lamp can only last about 24 hours, which is two nights. If we can't replace all the pieces in two days, we'll have to complete instance tasks to get more oil lamps."

Lan Yan added: "We'll search separately. There are many ghosts in the dark that aren't afraid of the oil lamp, so be careful."

"After all, we don't know if the puzzle fragments disappear or scatter elsewhere if a player dies."

Qin Nuo just nodded. What they said wasn't particularly useful information.

They still had to search, but with two more people, the efficiency would be faster!

"Then let's continue searching separately. The oil lamp's light is precious, not for chatting."

The blond man stood up and said.

Qin Nuo looked at him and suddenly asked, "Last night, without a white candle or an oil lamp, how did you make it till dawn?"

He remembered that in the morning, the blond man was covered in injuries, and now they were gone, clearly using some healing item.

The blond man's expression turned indifferent, clearly not wanting to discuss this topic: "I have my ways."

"You saw those things in the dark, right? What exactly are they?" Qin Nuo asked, unconcerned.

Lan Yan also glanced at the blond man, as he had always wanted to ask this question.

The blond man's face was somber, his eyes still shadowed by last night's events, and he replied coldly, "They're true nightmares; you wouldn't want to know..."

With that, he turned and left.