Chapter 22: Appearance

The amusement park in the early morning was as still as a graveyard, its rides unmoving, as if dead, a stark contrast to last night's lively hustle and bustle.

All was silent, not even the soft whisper of a breeze could be heard.

A cold, ghostly breath filled the entire amusement park, as though death and silence had materialized.

"Feels like we are the dead ones," Zhou Yuan exhaled, his breath forming a mist in the air.

At night, the stage belonged to the ghosts, and the park buzzed with impeccable hospitality;

During the day, the domain of humans, the park lay lifeless, cold as a corpse.

Life and death, Yin and Yang, humans and ghosts... the entire world seemed eerily inverted.

Is this the anomaly...

Zhou Yuan's gaze shifted to a shop beside the road, which was in complete disarray, shelves toppled and strewn about, a large number of plush toys scattered on the ground, trampled beyond recognition, and the food area was completely empty.

Yet, when he had passed by last night, he clearly remembered it being warm and inviting, with goods neatly arranged and a wide array of food.

It seemed, then, that there indeed were many differences between the park during the day and at night.

Soon, the group arrived in front of the carousel, and a prompt popped up in front of Zhou Yuan:

[A mundane amusement ride, nothing unusual to see here—just kidding.

This carousel has a personality; it only wishes to carry those innocent, child-hearted souls, for it adores their pure and unblemished spirits.

The souls of adults have long been corrupted by this filthy world, no longer pure, and if they dare to ride, it will become furious.]

Only children with pure hearts can ride?

Zhou Yuan instinctively looked around at the group, and the only one who could pass for a child...

Seems to be just me?!

Zhou Yuan's expression immediately turned awkward, not because he was trying to act young, but because he seemed to be the youngest among them.

Even Bai Xiao, who looked like a high school student, was actually over twenty-five years old.

But he was only considered a "child" among this group, definitely not meeting the requirement to ride the carousel.

Do we need to snatch a little ghost to try?

"Did your marvelous tool reveal anything?" Chen Guangxi asked.

"It seems the carousel really dislikes adults and probably... needs a child to ride it."

Zhou Yuan pretended to frown and pondered for a while before saying, "We don't have a child here, how about catching a little ghost tonight and strapping it on to try?"

Chen Guangxi clicked his tongue, "Are you serious? Those little ghosts aren't orphans; they all have parents. Once a child goes missing, the parents will seek help from the park staff, who enforce the rules of the park and are incredibly powerful."

Hearing this, Zhou Yuan knew they had definitely tried this method before, but it seemed the results weren't good.

"Besides, I'm a child, but getting on it still triggered the killing rule," Chen Guangxi added.

Zhou Yuan looked shocked.

You?

A child?

"Come on, don't look at me like that; I'm only three hundred years old. I'm still young," Chen Guangxi rolled his eyes.

Three hundred years old... Zhou Yuan's eyes twitched. The perspective on life span truly is different for the Longevity Species.

"Let's go take a look at the roller coaster and Ferris wheel."

The roller coaster wasn't far from the carousel, and the group arrived there in just two or three minutes.

Zhou Yuan looked at the roller coaster parked at the start point.

[Do not be deceived by appearances. This roller coaster might look like one, but in fact, it is a vengeful ghost disguised as a ride.

I must remind you: damaging amusement park facilities will attract the park's security, so killing it isn't feasible.

Another tip: check your backpack again.]

The ghost masquerading as a roller coaster… Zhou Yuan suddenly understood why the investigators had such a hard time finding a pattern in the murders on the roller coaster. It wasn't a mechanically operated facility, but a ghost, killing people without any discernible pattern, completely at random.

As for checking the backpack… This indicated that there were items in the backpack that could get them through the park.

Which sausages?

Zhou Yuan gradually formed a plan. The sausages were food for the ghosts, which might also distract the roller coaster ghost and temporarily stop it from killing.

"What have you figured out this time?" Chen Guangxi asked again.

Zhou Yuan shook his head, "Hard to say, let's test it tonight."

Soon after, the group arrived at the base of the Ferris wheel.

[Still, don't be fooled by appearances. What looks like a Ferris wheel is actually the source of the amusement park's anomalies.

To get through this challenge, you'll have to endure a potentially lethal test of the spirit.]

The source of the park's anomalies?

Zhou Yuan's attention was captured instantly. He scrutinized the Ferris wheel carefully, but no matter how he looked, it just seemed like an ordinary Ferris wheel.

Maybe wait until night?

But no, it looked the same last night too.

Zhou Yuan mulled over the hints from the Eyes of Identification, and suddenly had a flash of insight.

"—Only after entering the park director's office can I see the true face of the Ferris wheel?"

If collecting key fragments and entering the park director's office was considered the first phase of the task, then triggering the second phase after entering the office, which was the truth behind the park's anomalies, seemed reasonable.

And now, the Eyes of Identification had given a hint—the Ferris wheel was indeed the source of the anomalies.

So this hypothesis was quite plausible.

Zhou Yuan immediately looked toward a distant building:

"I want to take another look at the entrance to the park director's office."

A few minutes later.

Zhou Yuan and his group arrived at the entrance to the amusement park director's office.

"If you're thinking of using your ability to phase through the wall, forget it, we've tried everything. The door, walls, windows, ceiling, floor—all are protected by a mysterious force," Chen Guangxi reminded.

[This room hides the secrets you want to know, but you need a key to open it. Also, Dache is right.]

"Then that's it, let's go."

The hint from the Eyes of Identification wasn't helpful, so there was no need to stay here any longer.

Back at the base, Gu Honggao approached Zhou Yuan and asked, "What are your thoughts for tonight?"

Zhou Yuan pondered for a moment:

"Let's start with the carousel tonight."

As he spoke, he looked at Chen Guangxi nearby, whose eyes were vacant, "Let her go."

"Huh?"

Like a bamboozled Bajie at the command to "get rid of the Tang Monk and his disciples," Chen Guangxi's face filled with confusion, pointing to herself: "Me?"

"Aren't you like a child? Then you're the only choice," Zhou Yuan shrugged.

"But I tried once before, and it still triggered the killing rule."

"That was when I wasn't here. This time, follow my cue."

"Wow, such confidence. How sure are you?"

"The secrets of heaven cannot be revealed."

Zhou Yuan pretended to be profound, though he wasn't really sure himself.

They could only wait and see how it unfolded tonight.