The Only Player in 'Child of Stardust'

Zhou Yuan opened her eyes again and found herself standing on a silent street.

By the dim light of the street lamps, she could see her surroundings clearly.

The night was quiet, the street was deserted, and a few cars were parked on either side, their license plates styled after those in America. The shop signs and billboards were all in English.

"A small town in America, perhaps..."

Zhou Yuan felt a sense of wonder. Just a moment ago, she was in East Continent, and now she had teleported to America. It was unbelievable.

"Next, I need to find the mission targets and kill them."

The novice mission was incredibly simple. There was no brain-teasing puzzle to solve, just the task of killing the targets. It perfectly fit the impatient mentality of most players: "I don't know who I am. I don't know where I am. I only know I am here to kill!"

"But the problem is, where am I supposed to find them in this vast place?"

Zhou Yuan walked out of the alley and looked around. As she glanced westward, the Eyes of Identification provided a mission prompt.

[Walk this way.]

"This prompt is really straightforward and crude."

Zhou Yuan muttered to herself, heading west along the street.

With the illusion effect active, she wasn't afraid of being captured by surveillance cameras. After all, she would teleport away once the mission was over. Who would ever think she came from across the ocean?

Thirty minutes later.

Zhou Yuan arrived at a farm located on the outskirts of the town.

In the farm, a lit-up villa stood lonely, surrounded by endless darkness, like an isolated island floating in a deep sea, ready to be swallowed at any moment.

Zhou Yuan felt a shiver down her spine. Even though she had a gun, the atmosphere was too eerie. She naturally had a timid disposition and felt a bit scared.

She cautiously looked around, and the Eyes of Identification popped up a series of prompts.

[There's a bear trap here], [There's a spike trap here], [There's a snake trap here]...

Oh my God, why so many traps... Zhou Yuan's eyelids twitched. Following the Eyes of Identification's prompts, she weaved left and right, finally reaching the villa's entrance after more than ten minutes.

The villa's windows were tightly shut, and the curtains were drawn firmly. A melody from a piano wafted from an upstairs window, the tune gentle and warm, momentarily dispelling the oppressive darkness around.

But faintly, Zhou Yuan heard some discordant sounds, her face changed slightly.

After pondering briefly, she activated Phantom Walker and rushed straight into the villa.

Once inside, the sounds became clearer; a woman's voice shouted, "Oh! Yes! Yes!!"

Her expression turned curious, and she couldn't help but look up.

[Above you, Jim and Helena are composing a symphony of life, while Helena's husband Bob, the pianist, accompanies them.

This is not a solo performance, nor a duet, but a paradise for three!

With a charm value of 8, you can go upstairs and knock on the door, they might let you join.]

"Alright, if that's how you want to play it."

Zhou Yuan thought about ways to kill them. The commotion was too filthy for the soul.

She tiptoed around the house searching. As her gaze focused on a spot, a prompt popped up.

[The floor here can be opened; you might find something unexpected inside.]

Something unexpected?

"I hope it's not body parts in formaldehyde..."

Zhou Yuan muttered as she fumbled around, successfully removing the wooden floorboards to reveal a metal box with a combination lock.

[The password is 6324; inside is your favorite thing.]

Click!

Zhou Yuan entered the password and opened the lock. Inside were stacks of cash and three shiny gold bars.

This is indeed my favorite thing!

Overjoyed, she quickly put the box into her player backpack.

The player backpack had unlimited slots, allowing Zhou Yuan to store as many items as she wanted, but size restrictions applied; items couldn't be too large.

After replacing the floorboards, Zhou Yuan continued to wander on the first floor. The noises above hadn't stopped; in fact, they had intensified with the piano's rhythm.

She took out the Bow Tie Voice Changer, and started recording Jim and Helena's voices. Even if she didn't use them for this mission, she could use them to impersonate later.

Soon, she had scoured the entire first floor, finding nothing valuable, much to her disappointment.

"Really? Even the gas is off."

In the kitchen, Zhou Yuan murmured in frustration; the gas explosion plan was thwarted.

She had to activate Phantom Walker again, phasing through the house and into the adjacent storage.

"Not even gasoline?"

The fire attack plan was also dashed.

"Hmm... The prompt before said I could go upstairs and knock on the door. That probably wasn't just a joke but a real useful tip."

Zhou Yuan pondered for a moment. After Phantom Walker's cooldown period ended, she phased through the warehouse and back into the villa, headed straight to the second floor, and knocked on the door.

Knock, knock, knock.

The symphony inside halted momentarily, but soon Jim and Helena resumed their performance.

"Seriously? They just keep going?" Zhou Yuan was astounded. Should she admire their nerves or their openness?

"Who?" asked a man, presumably Bob, the musician.

Zhou Yuan, with only a middle school education, didn't speak English, but she did know Federal Language. A hundred years ago, after the Third World War ended, the World Federal Government was established. To promote communication and exchange, the Federal Language was invented, becoming a mandatory second language besides one's mother tongue.

"I'm here to join you." Zhou Yuan replied in Federal Language.

Creak.

The door opened, revealing a man with a gaunt face, wearing a tailcoat, eyes bloodshot, and a hint of madness in his expression.

At the same time, an Eyes of Identification prompt popped up.

[Musician Bob, given his impotence, was severely cuckolded by his wife. He couldn't even go out for a pack of cigarettes without running into seven men who had slept with his wife, leading him to develop a certain fetish.

A few days ago, he inadvertently acquired a mysterious sheet of music at a musicians' gathering. Since that night, he has gone mad.]

Bob scrutinized Zhou Yuan with those mad eyes for a while, suddenly revealing a delighted smile:

"Come in, quickly!"

"Uh? Just like that?" Zhou Yuan was taken aback for a moment. With heightened alert, she stepped inside.

Then, she stood frozen in place, witnessing a scene she would never forget.

On the bed.

A large, pale, fleshy mass writhed incessantly. It had four arms, four legs, and the heads of a man and a woman, both showing expressions of bliss as though in a heavenly paradise.

It seemed like two bodies had merged to form a grotesque entity but more like a bed of flesh made entirely of countless writhing maggots, every inch of their bodies squirming and twisting, sending shivers down one's spine.

Bob, unaffected by the scene, quickly returned to his piano, face beaming with joy, unable to contain his admiration:

"It's wonderful to see such a handsome man join us. Ah... Bliss!!!"