Chapter 34: Inference

“Players can't get the traits of the players they kill at all,” Liu Yuanyuan said, taking the lead. “You're just bluffing.”

“You're a Red Player. Red Players don't have traits to begin with, so of course you can't take anyone else's. Everyone just got off the Preliminary Trial Train; I assume none of you have many items either.”

Ignoring Liu Yuanyuan's furious gaze, Wang Wei's eyes remained locked on Xu Huo's face. “A person living alone cannot complete the dungeon mission. There are five of you now. Rather than increasing casualties, wouldn't it be better if we stayed out of each other's way and quietly waited until the fifth day?”

Huang Junjie, weighing the pros and cons, felt a flicker of hesitation. He instinctively looked toward Xu Huo.

“You don't need to test me,” Xu Huo said. “Even if you kill a player, you won't get their traits. The only legacies that can be inherited are money and items.”

“It's true that one person alone cannot clear the dungeon. The simplest way would indeed be to ensure multiple players survive until the end of the dungeon. But as you said, we just got off the train; perhaps the players you killed didn't even have any items.”

He smiled. “The hardest part is over. The grand prize package is right in front of us; taking a little risk is worth it.”

Anticipating that Xu Huo wouldn't be so easily fooled, Wang Wei turned to Yuan Yao and the other two. “You think so too?”

The three remained silent. Wang Wei let out a cold sneer and turned back to Liu Yuanyuan. “Killing me won't get you any benefits. You'll be their next target.”

Liu Yuanyuan shrugged. “I don't care. The dungeon rewards are more tempting to me.”

“You've said so much... are you actually afraid?”

As soon as the words left her mouth, she lunged at Wang Wei like a beast released from its cage!

Wang Wei dodged to the side, three bloody gashes being torn across his face. The pain of the flesh ripping caused his muscles to twitch. After retreating a few steps to avoid her momentum, he reached out into the air, and a black cloak swirled around him, covering his entire body!

But before he could fully hide within the cloak, Xu Huo suddenly lunged from the side, sweeping his leg to knock him down. “Catch him!”

Abel and Yuan Yao followed immediately, each grabbing one of his legs and forcibly dragging Wang Wei out from under the cloak!

Though he was pulled out, he kept one hand tightly gripping the cloak, leading to a three-way tug-of-war!

Seizing the opportunity, Huang Junjie gripped his bamboo blade with both hands and thrust toward Wang Wei's chest and abdomen. But just as his hands rose, he was hoisted into the air by an extremely fine, silver-black metallic wire hooked around his neck!

The bamboo blade fell to the ground. Huang Junjie struggled to pull at the wire, but both ends of the thin filament had no visible connection; it was as if it were growing out of thin air. As Wang Wei crossed his index and middle fingers, the wire suddenly crossed and tightened on its own, leaving a bleeding line across Huang Junjie's neck!

Xu Huo glanced at the man whose eyes were rolling back from being strangled, stepped firmly onto the black cloak, and opened the "Arsonist's Tool," shouting, "Burn, burn, burn!"

Without the black cloak to shield him, three clusters of flames erupted out of nowhere on Wang Wei's clothes, the fire growing rapidly in an instant!

The sudden fire caused Wang Wei to panic. He stopped controlling the wires and instead kicked off Abel and Yuan Yao, turning back to strike at Xu Huo!

The two had originally been at a distance, but now a black electric baton appeared in Wang Wei's hand. The surging current enveloped his entire arm; the dancing electricity was so bright it was blinding and made it impossible to find an opening.

Xu Huo narrowed his eyes, hesitating on whether to let go, when Liu Yuanyuan suddenly lunged from the side. Wearing insulated gloves, she grabbed Wang Wei's left arm and snapped it. With a loud *crack*, the electric baton rolled onto the ground!

She snatched up the baton and ran, while Xu Huo and the newly risen Huang Junjie delivered simultaneous finishing blows, stabbing at Wang Wei's wrist and calf respectively!

By now, Wang Wei's entire body was ablaze. The fire had exceeded his endurance, forcing him to abandon the black cloak. He swung the Headhunter's axe to force the two back, then rolled on the ground to create distance!

Just as he scrambled up, Abel charged in carrying the Great Cross. Wang Wei managed to block with his axe, but the impact sent him flying against the wall. After landing, he spat blood and began frantically tearing at his clothes!

Thanks to his Evolver physique, although his skin was burned, it wasn't life-threatening. However, the melted, charred fabric was stuck to his flesh and could not be forcibly removed; he could only wait for it to cool.

The scent of cooked meat filled the warehouse.

*Gulp.* Liu Yuanyuan swallowed hard.

“The risk was worth it,” Xu Huo said, lifting the black cloak in his hand.

In a clash lasting only dozens of seconds, the Headhunter Wang Wei had not only failed to gain an advantage but had lost his greatest asset—the black cloak—and lost an item. Even his axe had a chipped corner from Abel's Great Cross. On their side, the damage was negligible.

Panting heavily, Wang Wei stared at Xu Huo with a hideous expression, the malice in his eyes almost tangible. He couldn't understand. “Why are you so certain the Headhunter must be a player? There have always been rumors of a Headhunter at the Hot Spring Villa. A normal person would think there was naturally a Headhunter here, especially with the proof I manufactured. Why won't you believe me!”

“Because you were too clever for your own good!” Yuan Yao said impatiently. “Would a real Headhunter bother playing such petty tricks?”

“Just because of that?” Wang Wei raised his voice.

Not just him—Huang Junjie and the others didn't understand either. Especially Huang Junjie, who had initially only guessed that a player was impersonating the Headhunter to kill; he never imagined the Headhunter *was* a player.

“Pay attention to the prompt. The dungeon background says people have died frequently at this villa over the past three years, but looking at the materials found in the warehouse, the rumors of the Headhunter actually go back decades,” Xu Huo said, flicking his lighter.

Wang Wei's eyelid twitched. “And what does that prove?”

“The key is in these records. Setting aside the people who died before, looking only at the last three years, there is a pattern to the killings: consecutive victims missing heads, or consecutive victims with missing limbs.”

Xu Huo glanced at Huang Junjie. “Setting aside the theory of copycat crimes, this fits the profile of a player much better. Most are ordinary players, a small portion are Red Players.”

“So that's why they're missing arms and legs. If the corpses had been eaten, wouldn't the Headhunter's identity have been easily exposed?” Yuan Yao muttered.

“Past records and cases can be found in newspapers, which shows that the villa wasn't closed down because of the Headhunter in the past; at least newspapers were still being delivered. Combined with the game stating this place was once popular with both players and non-players, there is a high possibility it was a dungeon in the past as well, and everyone coming here were players. Since this is a dungeon, and considering the pattern of the corpses, it is more logical that the Headhunter is a player.”

“So this dungeon started decades ago?” Abel asked in shock. “This is our first time entering! How is that possible!”

“It's possible,” Huang Junjie said, his face turning pale as a thought struck him. “Isn't the Woodcutter a stranded player?”