Chapter 4: Old Gods Believers and the Terror of the Night

'Dark Crow of Profane Fortune' has a daily usage limit of five times. I used it once to look at the dead sun, once to grab Ding Xiaolan's snacks during the second run, and once when obtaining the 'Dream Realm Mother Goddess Flower Seed.' That leaves me with two uses remaining.

But this time, Yang Qizhou decided not to reset the timeline again.

The area near the Holy Image of the Moonlight Ancient God had already been thoroughly scoured. The beginner rewards, 'Dream Realm Mother Goddess Flower Seed' and 'Kan Rui's Wizard Ring,' were both in hand. There likely wasn't anything of value left there, so opting for a normal resurrection seemed the better choice.

"You chose to rewrite the ending of your death. The flames of Destiny's Blessing flicker amidst the Eternal Night as you reopen your eyes in desolation."

"You still retain the memories from before the timeline reset. As you survey your surroundings, you find the Holy Image of the Moonlight Ancient God has shattered. What lies before you now appears to be a singular path forward."

"Greedy yet reckless and arrogant explorer, will you choose to explore the village beyond the Gray-White Fog?"

This time, only one option was presented.

The Holy Image of the Moonlight Ancient God indeed shattered—Yang Qizhou wasn't surprised. He had previously speculated on the difference between the powers of the 'Desecrating Dark Crow' and a normal resurrection. The latter simply revived you, with time continuing to flow and events remaining unchanged. The former, however, reset the destiny timeline, rewinding back to the moment of the previous decision while retaining the benefits gained before the restart.

The more Yang Qizhou analyzed it, the more he felt he had chosen something extraordinary.

The game resumed.

"You chose to head to the village beyond the Gray-White Fog."

"The hazy moonlight spilled over the desolate land. With the effect of 'Kan Rui's Wizard Ring,' you gained night vision and saw a significant boost in physical strength."

"Brimming with confidence, you believed yourself blessed by the moonlight, no longer the weakling you once were."

"You set foot on the path to the village."

"An Old God believer you passed by was deeply disgusted by the Wizard Aura emanating from you and casually smacked you to death."

"You died."

???

Yang Qizhou was speechless for a long while. No surprise—it's the old, accursed land teeming with malevolent entities, where eerie, grotesque, and horrific occurrences run rampant, and the unknown coexists with the mysterious. Twists and wickedness intertwine. Just taking a stroll could lead to an encounter with an Old God believer and, naturally, being swatted to death.

But what the hell is this disgust for Wizard Aura?

Is 'Kan Rui's Wizard Ring' a beginner's perk or a death-dealing buff?!

"You deftly returned to the River of Death. The flames of Destiny's Blessing still flicker, and the 'Dark Crow of Profane Fortune' continues to caw."

"Do you choose to use the power of destiny to rewrite the outcome of your death."

"Or do you wield the 'Dark Crow of Profane Fortune' to return to the moment of your last choice?"

Yang Qizhou, naturally, opted for a normal resurrection this round. The last choice only offered one path, with no way to branch into other plotlines, so wasting a use of the 'Dark Crow of Profane Fortune' seemed unnecessary.

"You wake once more in desolation."

"This time, aware that Old God believers loathe the Wizard Aura, you carefully decide to remove 'Kan Rui's Wizard Ring.'

"You hit the road again."

"Once more, you encounter an Old God believer. This time, he dismissively regards you as trash and walks away after giving you a single glance."

???

Thanks a lot, Old God believer.

"The Gray-White Fog was far too thick, obscuring your view. You could only rely on faint lamplight to move toward the village."

"Suddenly, you hear cries for help."

"Will you choose to continue toward the village lights ahead, or investigate the source of the cries for help?"

"Oh greedy and despicable explorer, blessed with cheats galore, make your decision now."

Despite one mistake, Yang Qizhou, believing himself well-versed in the worldview of the Deceit World, remained adamant: having too much curiosity was unwise. He resolved to stay away from anything that seemed inherently problematic and avoid entangling himself with strange individuals.

So his choice was… to press onward.

"For once, the explorer's caution paid off. The cowardly self inside you suspected the cries for help were suspicious and chose to ignore them, pressing onward toward the village."

"You walked for half an hour."

"You walked for an hour."

"You found that the distance to the village hadn't shortened. Frustrated and defiant, you pushed onward."

"You walked for two hours."

"Night fell. Your vision ahead steadily worsened, starlight and moonlight dimmed to a faint glow, the outlines of trees and grass blurred, and darkness completely devoured you. Unseen monsters descended upon your body and tore you apart."

"You died."

?????

Look at the sun—you die. Walk a bit—Old God believers smack you dead. Fantastic, now even strolling through the night gets you killed. Turns out there are ten thousand bizarre ways for players to bite the dust in this game.

Yang Qizhou was numb at this point, deeply feeling the viciousness of the *Deceit World*'s hostility toward players. If not for the game's deeply entwined problems allowing its elements to manifest in real life, he would've smashed his phone and quit long ago.

Garbage game.

"No surprise, you returned to the River of Death. The flames of Destiny's Blessing still flicker, and the 'Dark Crow of Profane Fortune' continues to caw."

"Do you choose to use the power of destiny to rewrite the outcome of your death."

"Or do you wield the 'Dark Crow of Profane Fortune' to return to the moment of your last choice?"

This time, Yang Qizhou chose to harness the power of the 'Dark Crow of Profane Fortune,' rewinding the timeline to the moment when cries for help echoed through the Gray-White Fog. He reasoned that the reason he spent two hours unable to reach the village was likely due to not triggering this subplot.

Dammit,

Wasn't the core survival rule in the Lovecraftian world supposed to be avoiding curiosity, steering clear of problematic places, and shunning interactions with bizarre individuals? Why was it all useless on this ancient, cursed land?

"The Gray-White Fog was far too thick, obscuring your view. You could only rely on faint lamplight to move toward the village."

"You once again hear cries for help."

"Will you, like before, follow the village's lights ahead, or will you investigate the source of the cries this time?"

"Oh explorer, terror-stricken in the face of nighttime horrors, make your choice."

This time, Yang Qizhou chose the latter option.

"Believing yourself to be a kind and brave adventurer, you refused to let another soul remain in danger, even though you wouldn't admit that fear of the dark horrors drove you to this decision."

"You weaved through layers of overlapping Gray-White Fog and discovered a beautiful girl with an injured leg."

"You were captivated by her charm."

"Feigning gentlemanly demeanor, you asked the beautiful girl if she needed help."

"Moved by your supposed kindness, the beautiful girl revealed her identity. Her name was Alice, the daughter of Porter, the Night Watcher from Fire Stealing Village. She had injured her leg while picking yams and couldn't walk properly. With nightfall just two hours away, Alice was both anxious and frightened. She begged you to escort her back to the village."

"Oh deceitful adventurer, will you accept Alice's plea for help, or refuse and head onward alone?"

"Make your choice."