Dice In The Darkness: Cthulhu Calls

"I swear, Ryuusei, there was no need for you all to gather around and witness my resurrection. Do you even realize how close you came to scaring me to death again?" Zhang Jingxu exclaimed, patting his chest once he had a clear understanding of the situation.

Liu Xing chuckled and patted Zhang Jingxu’s shoulder. "Welcome back, Mr. Zhang Jingxu. Your remarkable performance in defeating the water ghost and sacrificing yourself led us all to gather here to witness your triumphant return."

Zhang Jingxu raised an eyebrow, not entirely pleased. "Do you really expect me to believe your nonsense? But from what you’re saying, Ryuusei, it seems that after my fainting spell, you and Ling Ishikawa managed to defeat the water ghost."

Ling Ishikawa nodded and proceeded to inform Zhang Jingxu about everything that had transpired after his unconsciousness, including the matter of the water-repellent bead.

After listening, Zhang Jingxu nodded and said, "It seems that this Hu Li has a conscience after all, knowing to hand over the water-repellent bead to us. But, to be honest, the sensation of being killed is truly unbearable, especially after I lost consciousness. It felt like I was falling into an endless abyss, the weightlessness in my body and the despair in my mind constantly pushing me to the brink of collapse. I had no idea how long I fell like that until I suddenly hit the ground, experiencing indescribable agony before I completely lost consciousness until just now."

Watching Zhang Jingxu’s expression of lingering fear, Liu Xing couldn’t help but recall the sensation when he, as "Liu Xing," was killed by Bai Hecheng with a single strike. It was an experience that haunted him to this day.

Unbearable memories.

Thinking about this, Liu Xing spoke up, "Ah, it’s all because I wasn’t feeling well today and didn’t accompany you to Wang Anquan’s place. If I had been there, perhaps the water ghost wouldn’t have been able to kill you, Zhang Jingxu. So, in a way, my absence played a part in your death."

Liu Xing’s words were an attempt to preemptively silence any potential rumors, but he doubted they would have much effect. After all, rumors spread easily, but debunking them could be much harder.

Zhang Jingxu shook his head and smiled. "Ryuusei, you’re being quite insincere today. You actually said something like that? My death this time had nothing to do with you. Who could have known that the water ghost would attack us at that moment? And perhaps it was because you weren’t present that the water ghost decided to ambush us on our way back. So, your absence may have actually been a blessing in disguise."

Ling Ishikawa also nodded, smiling, and added, "Zhang Jingxu is right, Ryuusei. Your decision to stay behind was a contribution in its own right. At least it led the water ghost to reveal itself. If it hadn’t attacked us this time, it would have been very difficult for us to locate its whereabouts, especially since we still don’t know where it resides."

Hu Cang, feeling drowsy, interrupted, "Well, now that Mr. Zhang Jingxu has safely returned, I’ll head downstairs for some rest. Before you all arrived in Panlong Town, I used to go to bed around ten o’clock every night, so I’d like to get some sleep now. I won’t keep you company for the chat."

Zhang Jingxu nodded and smiled, expressing his gratitude, "Very well, Mr. Hu Cang, you can go rest now. Although you couldn’t bring me back to life this time, I still appreciate your help. Thank you."

Hu Cang shook his head and earnestly replied, "A doctor’s duty is to save lives. How could I, as a doctor, let you die without trying to save you? Besides, I must admit that my surgical skills need improvement, and that’s why I couldn’t bring you back from the brink of death. So, your words of thanks make me feel humbled."

After exchanging a few more polite words with Zhang Jingxu, Hu Cang left.

With Hu Cang gone, Wan Chongshan retrieved a small package from under the table, resembling the kind seen in ancient costume dramas carried by passersby.

"If no one objects, shall we open this package now?" Wan Chongshan proposed.

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Wan Chongshan then opened the package, revealing not many items inside. However, one item immediately caught Liu Xing’s eye.

It was a white stone, similar in size to a pebble.

Liu Xing had a hunch that this white stone was the final item the black cat demon needed.

But it wasn’t the right time to take it. Liu Xing didn’t want to draw too much attention to himself, so he forcefully shifted his gaze to the other items in the package.

Inside the water ghost’s package, besides the white stone, there was a Nokia cell phone, a thick-looking book, a silver pendant with strange symbols, and a wallet.

"It seems that this package is quite waterproof. This book doesn’t show any signs of being soaked, and both the symbols on the book cover and the pendant seem to be related to Gralki. The symbols on the book cover are identical to those on the pendant," Li Dian remarked.

Indeed, the water ghost’s package had impressive waterproofing, with no signs of water damage on any of its contents. The symbols on the book cover matched those on the silver pendant, resembling an abstract hedgehog.

Speaking of which, Gralki did somewhat resemble a hedgehog.

Liu Xing thought for a moment and pointed to the Nokia cell phone, saying, "Let’s start by checking this Nokia cell phone for any valuable information. Even though the model appears quite outdated, as long as the text messages haven’t been deleted, we should be able to uncover some information, such as whether Xiao Mochen is truly a follower of Gralki."

However, Ling Ishikawa expressed some concerns, saying, "Is this Nokia cell phone still functional? I remember when we were dealing with the water ghost, I struck this package with my sword, and at the time, I felt that I hit something hard, which was probably this Nokia cell phone. So, I’m worried that I may have damaged it."

Zhang Jingxu chuckled and replied earnestly, "Ling Ishikawa, I believe this Nokia cell phone should still work. After all, it’s a Nokia, known for its durability. It can even withstand close-range gunfire, let alone your sword strike."

As he spoke, Zhang Jingxu picked up the Nokia cell phone, pressed the power button for three seconds, and the device dutifully powered on.

After the familiar startup animation, Zhang Jingxu skillfully navigated to the call log.

"Indeed, Xiao Mochen seems to be a follower of Gralki. He has known this water ghost since 1996, although back then, Xiao Mochen probably wasn’t a follower of Gralki yet. Their contact was limited to one or two calls a year. However, it seems that their communication became more frequent after Xiao Mochen’s mother fell critically ill. At least, they were talking at least twice a week," Zhang Jingxu said as he handed the phone over to Wan Chongshan.

Finally, the phone reached Liu Xing, who glanced at the screen. He noticed that there was only one contact saved – "xiao," which was most likely Xiao Mochen.

In the call log, as Zhang Jingxu mentioned, Xiao Mochen’s contact with the water ghost became increasingly frequent over time. However, once the water ghost entered Panlong Town, their contact seemed to decrease significantly.

This could be easily explained, as Xiao Mochen no longer needed to contact the water ghost via phone. They could meet openly, especially since Panlong Town wasn’t too large.

Liu Xing continued his exploration, entering the text messages section, only to find it completely empty.

Shrugging, Liu Xing placed the phone back on the table and remarked, "All the text messages on this phone have been deleted. As an old black-and-white screen phone, I doubt it can provide us with any useful information."

In that era of black-and-white screen phones, there were no apps for downloading, so information could only be obtained from the "contacts," "call logs," and "text messages" sections.

No one objected to Liu Xing’s assessment, so the Nokia phone was temporarily set aside.

As the only "professional" among them, Zhang Jingxu picked up the book and briefly examined a few pages.

"While this book doesn’t have a title, from the content on the first few pages, it appears to be the ’Bible’ of Gralki’s followers. It starts by asserting that Gralki is the one true god in this world, and humans who believe in Gralki can attain eternal life, and so on. However, what’s noteworthy is the table of contents, which mentions how newcomers can contact Gralki and become his followers," Zhang Jingxu said with a furrowed brow.

While Wan Chongshan and the others took turns inspecting the book, Liu Xing seized the opportunity to pick up the white stone.

The Cold-Warm White Stone, a peculiar and rare stone with mysterious effects.

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, realizing that the mysterious effect of the Cold-Warm White Stone likely involved stabilizing the erratic state of the black cat demon.

The sensation when holding the Cold-Warm White Stone was indeed unique, alternating between cold and warm, but the temperatures remained within the range tolerable by the human body.

Truly a case of "ice and fire" in one.

At this point, it was Liu Xing’s turn to examine the book.

Liu Xing handed the Cold-Warm White Stone to Ling Ishikawa, wearing a surprised expression, and said, "This little stone is quite interesting. It can continuously switch between hot and cold, although I’m not sure what practical use it has."

Ling Ishikawa took the Cold-Warm White Stone, and Liu Xing picked up the book, expecting something unusual. To his surprise, the book was also an "item."

Gralki’s Guidance Book, which required 3d5 hours of reading to master Magic Spells - Contacting Gralki in Dreams.

Contacting Gralki in Dreams would cost the caster 2d6 sanity points, allowing them to connect with the Great Old One - Gralki during their slumber.

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, suspecting that this Magic Spells was a trap set by Gralki. Before even encountering Gralki, the caster lost 2d6 sanity points, and when they did encounter Gralki in their dreams, they would likely lose even more sanity points, inevitably descending into madness.

In the end, a caster who had gone insane would be susceptible to Gralki’s influence, becoming his slave.

Therefore, Liu Xing quickly lost interest in this Magic Spells.

Pretending to flip through a few pages of the book, Liu Xing spoke, "The last entry in this book mentions a rather interesting Magic Spells. It allows the caster to encounter Gralki in their dreams. However, this also implies that contacting Gralki is relatively straightforward. So, it’s safe to say that Xiao Mochen is indeed a follower of Gralki."

At this moment, the sound of dice hitting the table resonated.

Then, Wan Chongshan, who was holding the pendant, nodded and said, "Indeed, Xiao Mochen should be a follower of Gralki. When I was playing mahjong with him that day, I noticed not only that Xiao Mochen had no Adam’s apple but also something hanging around his neck. Due to clothing covering it, I could only see that it was a silver chain. Now, the chain on this pendant is also a silver square-link chain, and this pendant should serve as proof of a Gralki follower’s identity."

Liu Xing recalled that Xiao Mochen did have something around his neck, but he couldn’t remember if it was a silver square-link chain specifically. He only remembered that the chain was silver in color.

However, this provided Liu Xing with an opportunity to perform the Judgment for the Gu Master’s Entry Manual. Even though he had succeeded in a secret roll, he couldn’t explain his actions in front of everyone, as they had heard the dice fall on the table.

Now, Liu Xing thought he could use the excuse of performing an inspiration Judgment to execute the Judgment for the Gu Master’s Entry Manual.

Thus, Liu Xing secretly contacted KP Snow Wind, saying, "KP, I want to perform the Judgment for the Gu Master’s Entry Manual now, but I want it to be a secret roll."

KP Snow Wind didn’t hesitate and immediately conducted the Judgment for the Gu Master’s Entry Manual.

Judgment result: 53/60 (80-20), success.

Liu Xing breathed a sigh of relief, realizing that his luck was still holding up.

However, he had to continue the act. After the Judgment result was revealed, Liu Xing added, "Yes, I also remember that Xiao Mochen had something around his neck, although I’m not entirely certain it was a square-link chain."

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