Dice In The Darkness: Cthulhu Calls

It was quite awkward, considering these makeshift Molotov cocktails required an open flame to ignite, unlike the military-grade ones that could be activated with a pull of the ring.

Furthermore, Liu Xing had checked the information on these improvised Molotov cocktails and discovered their extremely unstable nature. They would automatically explode five seconds after ignition, creating a hidden danger.

So, it required the player to throw the ignited Molotov cocktails quickly within a short timeframe, or there was a risk of self-immolation if they held onto them for too long.

Therefore, if they didn’t have a lighter or matches, they were in trouble.

Just as Liu Xing was about to ask Zhang Jingxu and the others who had a lighter or matches, he noticed Ling Ishikawa.

Liu Xing slapped his thigh, suddenly remembering that Ling Ishikawa had a mobile lighter. After all, Ling Ishikawa’s fireball art, although not very powerful, was more than sufficient to substitute for a lighter.

Therefore, Liu Xing smiled at Ling Ishikawa and said, "Ling Ishikawa, it’s time for you to show your true skills. Quickly use your fireball art."

Ling Ishikawa raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised, and said, "Oh, right, I can use fireball art. I almost forgot I had this Magic Spell. But using this fireball art is just perfect now. I have enough mana to use it more than ten times. I should be able to ignite all these Molotov cocktails."

Liu Xing nodded and informed Wan Chongshan and the others about Ling Ishikawa’s ability to use fireball art.

With that settled, though one concern was removed, they still had a problem on their hands as they watched the pig head butcher wandering aimlessly below. After all, the pig head butcher was incredibly fast in its movements, and because it lacked intelligence, it acted solely on instinct. With no more targets to attack on the street, it was like a headless fly, darting around randomly.

This presented a problem because Liu Xing knew that the Molotov cocktail throws would require a throwing Judgment. He was sure that out of the five players and two NPCs present, at least one had the throwing skill. If that were the case, Liu Xing would dare to jump down from the third floor and confront the pig head butcher directly.

Therefore, Liu Xing felt that, with their base throwing skill of 20 points, it would be extremely difficult to hit the constantly changing direction of the pig head butcher. Sometimes, instincts were scarier than intelligence, and Liu Xing was certain that if their first round of Molotov cocktails failed to hit the pig head butcher, it would realize their hostile intentions. Then, it would become wary of them, making it nearly impossible to hit with Molotov cocktails in subsequent attempts.

So, the first wave of Molotov cocktail attacks was crucial, determining whether they could deal with the pig head butcher or not.

Liu Xing examined the Molotov cocktails in his hand and said, "What should we do? We need to find a way to slow down the pig head butcher’s speed so that we can throw the Molotov cocktails more accurately. If this first wave of Molotov cocktails doesn’t hit, we may not have another chance to kill it today, and we might even anger it, making it continuously chase us."

Hu Li rubbed his chin and said, "From my observations, it’s clear that the pig head butcher is currently acting solely on instinct. Its choice of targets seems random. However, I suspect its vision has weakened or even disappeared entirely. It relies solely on its sense of hearing to determine its direction. When I first arrived at the slaughterhouse, the pig head butcher suddenly burst out of it. It ignored one person who was too scared to move and another who ran away, going straight for the person who fled, not paying any attention to the trembling person in front of it."

Zhang Jingxu nodded and said with a smile, "In that case, we can use sound to attract the pig head butcher’s attention. Since the other residents of Panlong Town are hiding indoors and not making any noise, we can create some sound to lure the pig head butcher over. When it comes downstairs, we can throw the Molotov cocktails directly at it. After all, Molotov cocktails are area attacks."

Hu Cang added, pointing to the glass bottles on the floor, "Let’s use these glass bottles to create noise. It will also distract the pig head butcher, as it won’t realize that these bottles won’t harm it."

With the plan decided, Liu Xing and the others didn’t waste any time. They immediately threw several glass bottles towards the pig head butcher.

Since these glass bottles were unlikely to hit the pig head butcher and would not cause any harm even if they did, KP Snow Wind did not require a throwing Judgment.

Fortunately, the pig head butcher stopped in its tracks upon hearing the noise and focused its attention on the building where Liu Xing and the others were.

Seeing this, Liu Xing threw another glass bottle towards the pig head butcher.

"Smash."

The pig head butcher, despite hearing the noise, didn’t raise its head due to its inertia. Instead, it swung its pig-killing knife at the shutter door, tearing open a large hole.

Just as the pig head butcher was about to squeeze through the opening, the Molotov cocktails above it had already turned into a rain of fire, about to hit the pig head butcher.

At that moment, KP Snow Wind spoke up, "Since the pig head butcher did not attempt to dodge, the throwing Judgment for this round is automatically successful. Now, let’s judge the pig head butcher’s position relative to the Molotov cocktails’ effective damage range. Due to the pig head butcher’s unique characteristics, we have added a special feature—burning value. When the pig head butcher’s burning value reaches 100, it will die completely. Each effective damage Molotov cocktail will increase the burning value by 20, and for the next 30d2 seconds (not cumulative), it will continue to increase by 1 per second."

Rolling a 1d7 resulted in a 3.

Rolling a 30d2 resulted in 27.

87 burning points!

Liu Xing furrowed his brows, realizing that they hadn’t quite reached a burning value of 100 for the pig head butcher. However, they were very close, needing just two more Molotov cocktails that could cause effective damage to the pig head butcher.

Just as Liu Xing was thinking about this, the pig head butcher below suddenly emitted a painful roar. Liu Xing turned to look and saw that the pig head butcher had turned into a massive fireball, surrounded by a sea of flames. He could even smell the aroma of roasting pork.

It was truly appetizing.

The pig head butcher, now a fireball, began rolling on the ground instinctively in an attempt to save itself. However, Liu Xing and his group weren’t going to give the pig head butcher a chance and continued to throw Molotov cocktails at it.

Liu Xing: 29/20, failure.

Ling Ishikawa: 36/20, failure.

Zhang Jingxu: 23/20, failure.

Li Dian: 90/20, failure.

Wan Chongshan: 65/20, failure.

Although all the Molotov cocktails thrown by Liu Xing’s group in the second round missed, due to the Molotov cocktails’ unique properties, a blazing sea still formed around the pig head butcher, increasing its burning value by several points.

Victory was within reach.

Seeing the glimmer of victory, Liu Xing’s group continued to throw Molotov cocktails. Since the pig head butcher only needed less than ten more points to reach a burning value of 100, KP Snow Wind didn’t bother with throwing Judgments and directly increased the pig head butcher’s burning value to 100.

After about half a minute of roasting, the pig head butcher finally emitted another scream before collapsing on the ground, lifeless.

"Quick, let’s retrieve the pig head butcher’s knife before someone else takes it," Hu Li nervously said.

Liu Xing’s group hurriedly descended to the first floor, but they encountered a problem. The shutter door had been heated and discolored by the fire created by the Molotov cocktails. Liu Xing estimated that the shutter door might melt in a little while.

Moreover, through the hole the pig head butcher had made, Liu Xing could see that the outside was still a sea of flames, showing no signs of extinguishing.

Liu Xing furrowed his brows, feeling somewhat helpless. He said, "We just threw over twenty Molotov cocktails, and they’re all piled up together. So, this sea of flames we’ve created will likely continue for at least three to four minutes. We won’t be able to get through from here."

Hu Cang nodded and pointed towards the kitchen, saying, "Let’s go this way and use the back door."

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, surprised that the house had a back door.

Through the back door, Liu Xing’s group took about a minute to reach the front door. Fortunately, despite the pig head butcher being dead, its aura still deterred the residents of Panlong Town, and no one dared to approach its body.

So, Hu Li easily retrieved the pig head butcher’s knife. It was clear that the knife was of good quality, as it had been exposed to fire for so long, yet the blade remained as sharp and undamaged as new.

Hu Li nodded in satisfaction and said with a smile, "Thanks to you all, I was able to deal with this rampaging pig head butcher. Once I finish making the daggers, I’ll give you the promised rewards, plus an extra one to show my gratitude. Well, I’ll head back now."

After saying that, Hu Li took the pig head butcher’s knife and left.

Suddenly, it started pouring rain.

It seemed that the next time point was approaching.

The fire outside the door was extinguished by the downpour, and Liu Xing’s group hurried inside to avoid getting drenched.

After changing into dry clothes in their respective rooms, Liu Xing’s group reconvened on the first floor.

At this moment, Liu Xing realized that the heavy rain would continue until the next time point, meaning he would have to go to the rooftop to meet the black cat demon in the pouring rain. He found this inconvenient, as Ling Ishikawa and the others would likely stay on the third floor in this heavy rain. If he had no valid reason to go to the rooftop, it would arouse Ling Ishikawa’s curiosity or suspicion. Moreover, he couldn’t reveal the black cat demon’s quest to everyone, and if Ling Ishikawa and the others followed him secretly to the rooftop, it could jeopardize the quest.

Liu Xing rubbed his chin, contemplating his options.

However, at that moment, Ling Ishikawa suddenly slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "Oh no!"

All eyes turned to Ling Ishikawa, who looked a bit embarrassed. He explained, "I just remembered something. I have a very valuable figurine in my travel bag, and now I can’t retrieve it. That’s why I’m feeling a bit agitated."

While speaking, Ling Ishikawa discreetly exchanged a meaningful glance with Liu Xing.

Liu Xing understood the message. Ling Ishikawa was referring to the underground statue in Panlong Town’s middle school.

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