After swinging the whip, Bai Liu was exhausted from using the high-level Fishbone. He panted and half-knelt on the hood of the car, his face pale and his shirt soaked with sweat.
[System tip: Player Bai Liu's physical strength has dropped by 80 due to using the item Siren's Fishbone. Please replenish your physical strength in time! Avoid running out of energy!]
The passenger struck by Bai Liu let out a pained roar. The eyeballs fixed in his eye sockets by scorched nerves trembled. He immediately turned and charged toward Bai Liu on all fours.
Bai Liu raised his head and drank a physical strength supplement. His eyes were calm as his whip struck another passenger who was about to attack Mu Sicheng. His voice was hoarse. "The second one. Three more to go."
[System tip: Player Bai Liu has used the Siren's Fishbone to hit the passenger. The target's hate value has been transferred. It has decided to catch the naughty player Bai Liu…]
His whip lashed out again and again. Bai Liu poured the bottle of supplement into his mouth while aiming at the passengers from the corner of his eye. The rapid depletion of his stamina caused his status to visibly deteriorate.
His face was deathly pale, and sweat was soaking his entire body. The hand holding the whip trembled so violently that he could barely remain standing on the car. He stayed upright only because the seat belt tied around his ankle anchored him to the vehicle.
Yet even in a state resembling that of a terminally ill patient, Bai Liu never missed. Every strike landed precisely on the backs of the passengers' hands just as they were about to attack Mu Sicheng. Moreover, he maintained terrifying consistency—almost every whip landed in the same position.
Du Sanying stared in a daze. Too strong… Were newcomers this outrageous now?!
He desperately wanted to know how Bai Liu could aim like a sharpshooter. All of Bai Liu's panel attributes were plummeting, and his stamina was repeatedly hovering near zero. If it were Du Sanying, he would already be delirious and collapsed like a dead dog. Yet—
Bai Liu's focus on Mu Sicheng never wavered for even a second.
"The fifth one." Bai Liu looked like a fish dragged onto land. His forehead was drenched, his eyes darker beneath the sheen of sweat. They reflected only Mu Sicheng. He smiled faintly and exhaled. "Go on, Mu Sicheng. The plan works. Keep going."
His stamina was exhausted again. His legs went weak, and he nearly slipped off the car. Du Sanying reacted quickly, grabbing Bai Liu's ankle and pulling him back up. Bai Liu lay sprawled on the hood, gasping, before grabbing another bottle of supplement and drinking it.
Du Sanying drove the car around the carriage with five passengers chasing behind them, glancing anxiously at Bai Liu, who could barely stand. "Bai Liu, you're in terrible shape! Do you want to rest for a bit?!"
"No. The train is about to depart." Bai Liu was merciless toward himself as he issued orders to Mu Sicheng. He staggered to his feet atop the hood, eyes calm. "Keep going. Don't steal from every passenger, or your health will drop too quickly. Try to find the ones carrying lenses."
"I don't want to either!" Mu Sicheng snapped irritably. Every time he grabbed one, flames scorched him, and his health dropped by one point. There were too many passengers—stealing from each one was suicide. "But I can't tell who has a lens!"
All the passengers were charred, still burning. Who the hell could spot a broken lens the size of a few carats among that mess?
"Isn't identifying stolen goods what thieves are best at?" Bai Liu teased calmly.
As he spoke, he finally shifted his gaze away from Mu Sicheng and surveyed the passengers. Flames belched smoke, ashes swirling through the air and obscuring vision. It was impossible to directly identify who carried the lenses.
Since observation wasn't working, Bai Liu worked backward from the result. His eyes quickly scanned the five passengers chasing behind the car—one of whom Mu Sicheng had already stolen a lens from. His gaze narrowed.
Among the five, one moved significantly slower and burned with weaker flames. It staggered like a headless fly. This was the passenger Mu Sicheng had stolen from. Bai Liu distinctly remembered it had moved much faster when it still possessed the lens.
"Mu Sicheng, the weakness of the passengers with lenses is the lens itself!" Bai Liu spoke rapidly. "The lens seems to grant them a buff. Look for passengers with faster movement and stronger flames. Steal from them. From your angle, can you tell who's moving faster and burning more fiercely?!"
"No!" Mu Sicheng hung from the ring, pressing his back against the carriage ceiling. He waved away the ash clouding his vision and squinted at the red-black masses below. "All I see is fire, and bodies clumped together. I grabbed it blindly last time!"
Suddenly, Mu Sicheng hooked his tail onto the ring and plunged his body into the flames. Gritting his teeth, he reached toward a passenger.
[System tip: Player Mu Sicheng has been burned. Health -1, Mental -1.]
"Stop! You can't keep grabbing randomly. Your health will drop too fast. If they catch you, you'll die easily. Last time you found one out of five—that's an 80% failure rate. It might not work again—"
Almost simultaneously, Bai Liu's whip lashed out, striking the passenger about to attack Mu Sicheng.
Mu Sicheng raised an eyebrow and gestured triumphantly with the newly stolen lens. Grinning, he cut Bai Liu off. "Sorry. It worked this time."
[System tip: Player Mu Sicheng has obtained the broken lens (2/???).]
Bai Liu looked up quickly at the figure hanging from the rings. "You can see them?"
"I can once I fully dive into the pile." Mu Sicheng wiped soot from his face and smirked. "Your accuracy gives me confidence. Otherwise, I'd never risk this. If their hate value locks onto me while I'm down there, I'm dead."
"I guarantee I won't miss." Bai Liu smiled and made a polite 'after you' gesture with his whip. "Continue."
Hanging by his tail like a monkey scooping the moon from water, Mu Sicheng descended into the sea of fire again and again. Passengers snapped at him, flames blasting from their mouths, scorching his face. Before fear could set in, a white bone whip would tear through the air and strike the grotesque creature, aiming for his shoulder.
It was theft without hesitation.
Later on, Mu Sicheng barely needed to think. He could steal from two or three passengers at once without worrying about retaliation. Just as Bai Liu had said, every strike was precise. No matter how recklessly Mu Sicheng moved, Bai Liu maintained absolute control over the battlefield, carving out a safe zone for him each time.
Gradually, Mu Sicheng forgot that he was entrusting his back to a player with an F-grade panel who was only in his second game.
Each swing of the whip consumed 60% of Bai Liu's stamina. All the passengers Mu Sicheng had stolen from now trailed behind the car, reducing his own pressure. Stealing lenses became easier.
But on Bai Liu's side, the burden on Du Sanying grew heavier.
Du Sanying's go-kart was fast and could even drive along walls. With his luck buff, most head-on collisions were missed. Still, his face had turned ghostly pale. A long string of charred corpses chased behind him, some nearly fast enough to leap into the car.
"B-Bai Liu!" Du Sanying screamed, glancing at the vicious expressions of the passengers. Their flames merged, growing stronger, scorching the car's rear. He stammered, "W-We can't hold on! There are too many! We're going to flip!"
"Others might flip. You won't." Bai Liu calmly continued clearing threats without even looking at him. There was unmistakable praise in his voice. "Believe in yourself. You're 100% lucky."
For the first time, Du Sanying heard someone praise his luck. Yet he felt no joy. He gripped the steering wheel, near tears. "I'm 100% lucky, not invincible! It only lowers my chance of death—it doesn't guarantee I won't die!"
"I can't drive anymore!" His face was drained of blood. He had nearly been bitten moments ago. "Bai Liu! Take the car! I'm getting off!"
A powerful sense of impending disaster surged through him. Du Sanying's intuition had saved him countless times. When this feeling appeared, something terrible was coming.
"I told you to believe in yourself, Du Sanying." Bai Liu stood atop the car, his gaze cold and black as charred carbon. Smiling faintly, he whispered, "I need you."
Every hair on Du Sanying's body stood on end. The warning in his mind screamed: Run.
He tried to leap from the car—
[System tip: Player Bai Liu requires assistance from Player Du Sanying. Player Du Sanying must cooperate with Player Bai Liu's actions!]
Du Sanying collapsed in shock. "!!! When did you control me? I'm wearing anti-control gear! Even the Puppet Master can't control me! How can you?!"
"I'm not controlling you." Bai Liu coughed weakly, wiping spilled supplement from his mouth. He smiled faintly. "I'm just asking for cooperation. I used a small precaution."
"Keep driving." His gaze locked onto Du Sanying. "If you run now, Mu Sicheng and I die. So you must stay steady. Understood?"
Bai Liu looked down at the trembling Du Sanying. "Don't worry. I won't let Mu Sicheng die, and I won't let you die."
He smiled. The bloodstains and ashes on his face gave his otherwise gentle smile a cruel edge. "You are all valuable to me."
"The train is about to depart. Passengers who wish to disembark, please line up and exit in order."
The group of charred corpses filed out of the blood-soaked carriage one by one, leaving behind three people collapsed close together.
Du Sanying's eyes were lifeless. He lay flat on his back in the mangled go-kart, looking as though he might start foaming at the mouth at any second. "I don't want to drive anymore…"
Mu Sicheng knelt on one knee, his head leaning back against the carriage door. He had reverted from his Capuchin Monkey form to his human appearance. His entire body was covered in burns. The corners of his mouth, his cheekbones, and the backs of both hands were severely scorched, the skin split open to reveal raw red flesh. The monkey on his headphones looked as if it were dying—curled into a pitiful ball, whimpering softly, the red light in its eyes dim.
However, the worst condition among the three belonged to Bai Liu.
There wasn't a trace of blood on him. He was pale as a snow-made mannequin. He coughed several times, and blood dripped from the corner of his mouth. Bits of blood and what looked like visceral fragments filled his mouth, which he casually wiped away. His fingers slowly rolled the diamond-like broken lenses Mu Sicheng had collected.
Repeatedly forcing his stamina to empty and then replenishing it had taken a severe toll. This type of consumption directly reduced health points, just as mental attacks reduced mental value. A decrease in mental value meant the player's mental state was unstable. A decrease in health meant the body itself was deteriorating.
Mu Sicheng was familiar with the nauseating dizziness that came from draining one's strength and forcibly restoring it. It felt as if his entire body had been thrown into a washing machine and spun through a full cycle—his organs cracking and ready to burst. Empty bottles were scattered around Bai Liu's feet, all stamina supplements. Combined with Bai Liu's dazed expression, he looked like someone suffering from a brutal hangover.
Mu Sicheng glanced at the empty bottles and snorted. This was insane. After drinking so many supplements, Bai Liu could barely stand when the train left the station—yet the first thing he did was ask Mu Sicheng for the broken lenses.
"Bai Liu, how much do you have left?"
Bai Liu slowly opened his panel. His wrist moved stiffly after repeatedly swinging the whip.
[Player Bai Liu's Personal Panel:]
[Health: 21 (decreased after being attacked by player Mu Sicheng and burned by flames)]
[Physical Strength: 31 (empty, restoring)]
[Mental Value: 89 (slightly alienated due to passenger attacks)]
"21 health," Bai Liu replied calmly. "This wave cost me 10 health points. Mu Sicheng, what about you?"
Mu Sicheng opened his own panel, and his expression immediately darkened.
[Player Mu Sicheng's Personal Panel]
[Health: 70 (decreased after being burned by fire)]
[Physical Strength: 59 (empty, restoring)]
[Mental Value: 61 (slightly alienated due to passenger attacks)]
"Damn. I lost 24 health points." Mu Sicheng's gaze turned gloomy. "I was more careful later, so the flames didn't lower my mental value too much, but it's still close to the threshold. I want to cleanse it."
"Don't cleanse it. Your low mental value is useful to me," Bai Liu said while continuing to check the monster book and main quest progress on his panel.
[Main Quest: Collect the broken lenses on the last train (20/???)]
[The Exploding Last Train Monster Book has been updated — Exploding Passengers (1/3)]
[Monster Name: Exploding Passengers]
[Features: Extremely fast movement speed (1,000 movement points; flames grant a bonus effect)]
[Weaknesses: Broken Lenses (1/3)]
[Attack Method: Being burned by an Exploding Passenger reduces health and mental value.]
"This isn't good. I'm in serious trouble…" Bai Liu's expression grew solemn.
His words immediately made Mu Sicheng and Du Sanying tense. Bai Liu rarely spoke like this. Usually, he radiated an attitude of "No difficulty is insurmountable—the best way to overcome a problem is to overcome it." He always seemed calm, as though victory were already in his grasp.
Yet now he had actually said he was in big trouble.
"What is it?" Mu Sicheng and Du Sanying asked almost simultaneously, anxiety evident on their faces.
"I bought 80 bottles of stamina supplements. I've used 33 so far, leaving 47. But there are still several platforms ahead. These 47 bottles won't be enough…" Bai Liu's face showed genuine distress. "And I just realized I don't have enough points to buy more. I'm very poor. This is a major problem."
[System: Bai Liu's account balance is 179 points. You cannot purchase additional stamina supplements.]
"I need your help!" Bai Liu looked at Du Sanying and Mu Sicheng with shining eyes. "Could you lend me some points? Thank you!"
Du Sanying and Mu Sicheng: "..."
Using them as labor and then asking them for money. Could this person be any more shameless?
-----------------
Graveyard Bounce Zone
For once, the area was packed.
A dense crowd surged toward a single spot—the screen showing Bai Liu's small TV. Nearly everyone in the Graveyard Bounce Zone had gathered there, heads tilted up, eyes fixed on the broadcast.
The second round of pursuit had begun. Mu Sicheng's desperate theft of broken lenses, Bai Liu's precise whip strikes transferring hate value, Du Sanying nearly breaking down before regaining control under Bai Liu's command—so much had happened in just two minutes.
No one dared blink. They held their breath unconsciously.
More and more spectators arrived, quietly merging into the crowd staring up at Bai Liu's screen.
Almost no one spoke. Before the outcome of that fierce struggle was revealed, any discussion felt meaningless. This was a gamble orchestrated entirely by Bai Liu—a high-stakes bet with an unknown result. Until victory or defeat was decided, all outside judgment would be shallow and one-sided.
Only success or failure could determine whether Bai Liu's madness had been right.
This lunatic had controlled the third- and fourth-ranked players on the Rising Stars leaderboard—and succeeded.
Wang Shun, standing closest to the screen, finally let out a long breath. He had been so tense that his breathing had nearly stopped for two full minutes. Now he inhaled deeply. His heart pounded, and his fingertips felt numb.
He stared at Bai Liu's calm face on the screen in a daze.
He suddenly found himself unable to come up with proper words to evaluate this newcomer. Bai Liu had once again shattered his expectations. Searching for broken lenses and filling out the monster book was standard gameplay—but maintaining such clarity and ruthless calm while doing so was not.
Mu Sicheng had trembled. Du Sanying had panicked. In a life-or-death game, it was hard for anyone to place "victory" above "survival," even if the two were intertwined. Faced with death, very few players were willing to gamble their lives to win.
But Bai Liu… from beginning to end, he calculated Mu Sicheng's survival rate, Du Sanying's survival rate, and the game's progress.
The only thing he never calculated was his own.
His stamina had been drained and replenished within seconds, over and over. Blood seeped from his body under extreme strain; his health bar fluctuated dangerously. By the later stages, he could barely remain upright—his body slumped against the car, swinging back and forth, held only by the seat belt around his ankle.
And yet his whip never lost accuracy.
When the passengers disembarked, the very first thing Bai Liu did was grab Mu Sicheng's collar and demand the broken lenses.
That frenzied, chilling desire to win shocked not only Mu Sicheng and Du Sanying inside the game but also the audience watching outside it. People kept flooding into the Graveyard Bounce Zone, wanting to witness how far this newcomer could go.
"This guy really has what it takes," Wang Shun muttered, flexing his numb fingers. He lowered his head and opened his wallet. "Watching you struggle because you're short on money is just too awkward."
Around him, others did the same.
"If Bai Liu survives this round, he'll become a future god."
"He only has 21 health left… but I just don't feel like he'll lose."
"It's terrifying. Thirty-three bottles of stamina supplements in two minutes. Isn't he F-grade? How can he withstand that? If my C-grade panel was drained and refilled that fast, I'd vomit three times."
"…I usually watch Du Sanying's stream. I've never seen him fight like that."
"I came from Mu's stream. I've never seen him pushed this hard…"
"How does this newcomer have so much nerve? The third and fourth on the Rising Stars rankings are completely suppressed by him. They're following his commands."
Amid the hushed discussions, the soft sounds of wallets opening echoed one after another.
Wang Shun glanced back at the crowd that had gathered behind him at some unknown moment. He saw admiration—and something more complicated—in their expressions. He let out a quiet sigh of relief.
Bai Liu, who had fallen into the Graveyard Bounce Zone, was climbing back up through sheer performance alone. It was almost on par with the first-ranked Spades.
[9,706 new users liked Bai Liu's small TV. 10,000 users bookmarked it. 7,900 users have tipped Player Bai Liu. 12,081 points have been credited.]
[15,900 new viewers are watching Bai Liu's small TV. You now hold 99% of the viewership in the Graveyard Bounce Zone and are the most popular small TV in the area!]
[You need 37,588 more likes, 40,854 more bookmarks, and 2,643 more tipped points to leave the Graveyard Bounce Zone.]
[System Tip: Player Bai Liu has received 12,081 points. Would you like to purchase items?]
Bai Liu smiled faintly. A good harvest.
"Yes. I'd like to purchase items."
Having just played pitifully to milk donations from the audience, Bai Liu responded internally and swiftly scrolled through the system store interface. His fingers paused.
"Why are items like rocket launchers, atomic bombs, fire hydrants, and high-pressure water guns unavailable in this game?"
[System: The game prohibits players from purchasing items that would severely disrupt game balance.]
Items that severely disrupt game balance… Bai Liu narrowed his eyes. "Search for any purchasable bomb-type or water-type items."
The system paused.
[Sorry. Player Bai Liu cannot purchase such items.]
As expected.
No wonder Mu Sicheng hadn't tried to buy water to extinguish the passengers' flames—it simply wasn't possible.
"I see… So bombs and water can only be obtained locally."
"Bai Liu, you were right. The broken lenses are indeed on the passengers," Mu Sicheng's hoarse voice pulled Bai Liu back to reality. "But your plan consumes too much from all of us."
"I lost 24 health clearing one station. I can't sustain that for the remaining eight. By my estimate, I can last three more platforms at most."
He paused.
"That includes you. You only have 21 health left. You can hold out for two stations, max. There's no way we can collect all the lenses."
"That's true," Bai Liu replied calmly. "But I don't intend to use your life to gather them."
He glanced at the broken lenses in his hand, then tossed them to Du Sanying, who had been shrinking into a corner trying to disappear.
"You hold onto them, Du Sanying."
Du Sanying hurriedly caught them, pointing at himself in disbelief. "Me?! You're giving them to me?!"
"Yes," Bai Liu said before Mu Sicheng could object. "It's safest with you. No one can easily take them from you—not even the Puppet Master."
Mu Sicheng narrowed his eyes. "What are you planning?"
Instead of answering directly, Bai Liu sat cross-legged and began writing on the dusty floor with his finger.
"I checked the store. All fire- and water-type items are banned. That means players are forced to be burned to obtain lenses. Losing one health per lens is likely the intended difficulty—health in exchange for fragments."
He wrote two numbers: [700] and [20].
"There are seven players. Combined total health: 700. The game's mortality rate is 50–80%. If each lens costs one health, then total fragments should fall within 350 to 560."
He wrote: [350–560].
Then he circled 20.
"We collected 20 fragments at one station. We controlled roughly half the carriages; the Puppet Master controlled the rest. Assuming equal collection, about 40 fragments per station."
"There are 10 stations. That makes roughly 400 fragments total."
He tapped the range on the ground.
"Four hundred fragments require 400 health points."
His tone remained steady.
"There are two ways to clear the game."
"First: all seven players cooperate. Each person sacrifices about 57 health. Everyone survives. But Puppet Zhang won't accept that."
"Second: four players each lose 100 health, allowing the remaining three to clear."
He paused slightly. The confident smile returned.
"You two were forced to cooperate with me before. But I believe you've seen that I truly don't intend to let you die. I doubt you'd like to be among the 'consumed,' right?"
"Perhaps we can cooperate honestly."
Mu Sicheng sneered. "Why talk about cooperation when you can just control us?"
"There's a high chance I won't have the bandwidth to control you in the next phase," Bai Liu replied evenly. "If you don't want to work with me, you're free to leave."
He lifted his gaze.
"That is—if you're comfortable being alone and becoming the Puppet Master's target. He'll gladly consume your health for fragments."
After Bai Liu finished speaking, an odd silence settled over the three of them.
Only the sound of the wind rushing past the moving train and the faint sway of the carriage could be heard. Their breathing was so shallow it was almost imperceptible.
Bai Liu had used the relatively mild word "consumption," but it couldn't disguise the bloody implication beneath it.
A long while passed before Mu Sicheng spoke flatly. "Tell me your exact plan."
Du Sanying bit his lower lip, hesitating.
His 100% luck value meant he was statistically less likely to become one of the "four consumed players." He didn't want to keep following Bai Liu. This man's extreme gambling style instinctively repelled him.
Moreover, his intuition was tangled and contradictory. Misfortune and fortune felt intertwined so tightly that he couldn't determine whether following Bai Liu would lead to disaster or survival. Especially since he had already been tricked by Bai Liu once…
Bai Liu seemed to see straight through him. He turned his head and smiled.
"Du Sanying, are you thinking that if you don't cooperate with us, the Puppet Master won't notice you and will let you slip by? Then you'll rely on your luck to clear the game after he does?"
Du Sanying stiffened.
"First," Bai Liu continued calmly, "this game requires four players to clear it. Even if the Puppet Master kills Mu Sicheng and me, that still isn't enough. Do you really think he would sacrifice his own puppets before sacrificing you?"
He lifted his gaze and looked directly at Du Sanying's pale face.
"Second, I believe you'll be the first player he targets."
The fine hairs on Du Sanying's neck stood on end. "Why me? He has more of a grudge against you!"
"Wrong." Bai Liu raised a finger and gently wagged it. "Our value to him is far greater than yours."
"One of his objectives in entering this game is to turn Mu Sicheng and me into puppets. You, however, are useless to him. On the contrary, your 100% luck is one of the greatest obstacles to his clearance."
Bai Liu's smile remained mild.
"If I were him, I would sacrifice you first. Then I would control myself. After turning Mu Sicheng and me into puppets, he could casually sacrifice three insignificant ones."
"Once all his objectives are fulfilled, he clears the game perfectly."
He tilted his head slightly. "What do you think, Du Sanying?"
Du Sanying fell silent. He lowered his head, lips trembling faintly, fingers curling into his palms as he processed Bai Liu's words.
Meanwhile, Mu Sicheng watched Du Sanying's frightened expression before shifting his gaze to Bai Liu. His eyes were dark with resentment.
How familiar this sounded. It was the exact same speech Bai Liu had given him the first time they met in the subway station.
First, establish a common enemy. Then construct layered hypotheticals that corner the other party into despair—until they see that refusing to cooperate means self-destruction. Finally, reveal calculated weakness and goodwill, presenting sincerity and vulnerability just enough to pull them into the same camp.
We're both being targeted by the Puppet Master. Have you considered what happens if he controls me? You'll be facing five opponents alone. You don't want to fight a group-control player by yourself, do you? I won't let you die, Mu Sicheng. You're my most valuable card.
His tone had been gentle and sincere. His eyes are clear, almost fragile.
All while he was manipulating them.
What a heartless bastard.
Mu Sicheng closed his eyes, recalling how he had fallen step by step into Bai Liu's plan—from the very beginning of the game. His teeth clenched.
Now Bai Liu had completely tied him and Du Sanying to the same boat.
From this point forward, the three of them were grasshoppers bound to the same rope. If they wanted to survive, they had no choice but to cooperate with Bai Liu—just like during the desperate battle to steal the lenses.
They might resist him in their hearts.
But Bai Liu had already severed every other path.
There was only one road left.
Du Sanying, a lamb armed with nothing but luck, stood no chance against someone like Bai Liu.
At last, Du Sanying slowly raised his hand. He looked at Bai Liu, still stammering slightly.
"B-Bai Liu… what exactly is your plan?"