Players, Please Board the Train

”Reason?” Xu Huo didn’t rush to dismiss his words.

”I’ve read all reports and investigations about The Headhunter Demon. Its methods are extremely practiced—most victims die instantly with only neck wounds. The person who attacked me yesterday was panicked and didn’t even choose the right moment to strike.”

Huang Junjie appeared confident. ”In most cases, the victims died silently, only discovered afterward.”

”But in a minority of cases, victims had missing limbs or showed signs of struggle before death. That contradicts your description,” Xu Huo questioned after listening.

”Copycat killings,” Huang Junjie asserted. ”Such cases are extremely rare.”

”If what you say is true, why target you first?” Xu Huo continued. ”I think Du Lanlan would’ve been an easier target.”

Huang Junjie showed regret. ”I shouldn’t have confronted Wan Zhikang yesterday.”

If a player wanted to kill others under The Headhunter Demon’s identity, female players or white players would indeed be easier targets—unless someone absolutely had to die first.

Precisely because he’d shown his capability, he became a target.

”If my attacker fell for the diary’s trap, tonight’s target will be among you, me, or Xia Guo,” Huang Junjie proposed. ”Why don’t we team up to catch them red-handed?”Xu Huo chewed his cigarette. ”By your logic, there’s still The Headhunter Demon in the villa. Maybe it’ll kill tonight too.”

”Depends who’s unlucky,” Huang Junjie shrugged.

As they talked, the trio continued toward the wooden hut.

”I’m going to the hut first to lure out my attacker, second to distance myself from other players. If we don’t catch anyone, we can still deduce their identity through process of elimination.”

After explaining, Huang Junjie asked, ”Why are you two going?”

Yuan Yao shook his head, looking at Xu Huo.

Xu Huo stopped walking and jerked his chin toward the woodchopper, who’d already tied a noose and stood on the firewood pile. ”I came to see if he’d hang himself yet.”

Huang Junjie and Yuan Yao paled, immediately moving to intervene, but Xu Huo blocked them. ”He hangs himself every night—probably possessed. What if the ghost switches targets to you two? You’re not villa NPCs; you won’t respawn after dying.”

Fair point.

The trio circled around to face the woodchopper instead of approaching. Xu Huo stood on a tree stump and waved. ”Hey, hanging yourself?”

The woodchopper’s eyes twitched. His neck jerked forward as he hanged from the tree.

Xu Huo watched calmly until the man’s limbs went limp. ”Get him down. It’s getting dark—I’ll check the hut for light sources.”

Later, with candles lit in the hut, the woodchopper’s corpse was laid back on the bed.

Gazing at the villa’s bright lights, Huang Junjie muttered, ”Not time yet...”

Behind him, Xu Huo thoroughly examined the corpse before fetching hemp rope from a cabinet to truss it up like a package, then grabbed a shovel.

”X-Xu bro, what are you doing?” Yuan Yao stammered, eyeing the woodchopper’s half-pulled-down pants.

”Digging a grave.” Xu Huo spun the shovel while staring at the corpse. ”Testing if he revives when buried too.”

Yuan Yao forced a smile. Huang Junjie looked conflicted, baffled why Xu Huo fixated on tormenting an NPC.

Xu Huo actually went outside to dig, incidentally unearthing a fresh grave.

The woodchopper’s alleged ”daughter”—a shriveled female corpse—lay exposed in dirt without even cloth wrapping. Rope marks circled her neck from strangulation.

Flipping her over revealed white serial numbers on her unrotted back.

After reburying her, Xu Huo excavated two adjacent graves—one headless corpse, another strangled victim: an eater player and a black player.

”Killed quite a few.” Instead of reburying them, Xu Huo dropped the shovel, sat down, and smoked while watching the villa.

Drizzling mist thickened, dimming the villa’s lights—still visible at night—until they suddenly extinguished, noticed by all three at the hut.

As Xu Huo walked from the graves, a piercing shriek echoed.

”Something happened there!” Huang Junjie sprinted out. ”I’m going!”

”Yuan Yao goes with you.” Xu Huo stayed put. ”I’ll remain here.”

Huang Junjie gave him a suspicious look but left without questioning.

”Xu bro, maybe I should stay with you?” Yuan Yao hastily suggested, not wanting to face either The Headhunter Demon or its impersonator after hearing that scream.

Xu Huo glared coldly.

Yuan Yao gulped and chased after Huang Junjie without another word.

Only after confirming his departure did Xu Huo re-enter the hut. Stepping on the bed frame, he retrieved his phone from the rafters, stopped the video recording, and reviewed earlier footage. Suddenly laughing, he addressed the ”corpse”: ”Stop pretending. I know you revived.”

No movement.

Xu Huo pocketed his phone, grabbed the woodchopper’s collar, and dragged him outside. ”I said I’d bury you if you died. The grave’s ready—since you won’t wake up, I’ll do the honors early.”

He mercilessly dumped the ”corpse” into the pit—the same one containing other bodies—and began shoveling dirt.

When foul soil hit its face, the ”corpse” finally stirred, blinking confusedly before assessing its situation and screaming: ”Help! Murder!”

”Quiet.” Xu Huo stuffed grass and dirt into its mouth. ”You know everyone’s at the villa. No one’s coming.”

”Now that we have time, let’s discuss something else.”

”Are you The Headhunter Demon?”

The woodchopper smirked derisively—until Xu Huo’s next words wiped it clean off.

”If not The Headhunter Demon, then just a player stranded from the last game.”

”Performing hanging tricks before players—you wanted them to think you’re part of the villa’s original setting.”

”The corpses you killed decomposed differently. You’ve encountered at least three player groups here, but the grave count doesn’t match. I’m guessing the game didn’t clean up players you killed, forcing you to bury them here.”

”The villa’s small—instead of hiding burials and risking exposure, you opted for brazen displays.”

”But the villa had a major fire years ago. After renovations, it closed for half a year—even this hut was built later. Claiming you’ve always lived here is ridiculous.”

”And your ’daughter’? Add a few years, she could be your aunt. Didn’t consider someone might dig her up?”

After removing the grass gag, Xu Huo gestured for him to speak.