Ch 272: Apocalypse Star House Hoarding

Ten minutes later, the remaining participants arrived, bringing the total to fifteen. The game facility before them automatically opened its doors, and the familiar childish voice echoed from within, inviting them to enter.

Yu Xi counted—fifteen people in total.

Most of them were unaware that tonight was a special game event. They continued to act like regular tourists, but a few keen observers had already noticed something was off. Their gazes subtly scanned the others, slowly piecing things together.

To Yu Xi, it was actually quite obvious. Normally, when ordinary tourists were selected for Nightmare Amusement Park, it was their first time. Their faces would be filled with confusion, speculation, anger, or fear.

They wouldn’t act like travelers—staying low-key, blending into the crowd, and remaining silent.

But when everyone in the group was cautious and reserved, the answer was clear.

Of the fifteen participants, Yu Xi’s team accounted for four—nearly a third. It was hard to say whether the special event had been triggered precisely because Lin Wu and the others had arrived in this district today.

But this possibility also served as a reminder to all four of them—they absolutely could not expose their team relationship tonight.

It wasn’t that they couldn’t handle the other travelers, but during an unknown Nightmare Amusement Park game, their full attention needed to be on survival.

The game facility was completely enclosed. Yu Xi recalled that it had also existed during the daytime, but there had been no sign indicating its purpose. Since it was tucked away in a corner and had always remained closed, no one had paid it much attention.

Inside the facility, darkness enveloped them. As the fifteen travelers moved down the passageway to its end, a 3D holographic screen materialized before them. Floating above it were fifteen rectangular cards.

“Please begin drawing your lots,” the childish voice announced from somewhere inside the facility.

Its words echoed throughout the vast chamber. The game venue seemed especially large this time, though in the current darkness, only vague outlines were visible.

The fifteen travelers exchanged glances. Seeing that no one panicked or acted rashly, those who had been unaware of the situation up until now finally understood.

Some furrowed their brows, while others hesitantly reached out to select a card. Soon, all fifteen cards disappeared as participants touched them.

“Dear travelers… Ah, hehe, you must have noticed by now! Please check your wristbands to see your lot. And remember—keep your results a secret~” The childish voice tried to sound playful and cute, but it sent chills down everyone’s spine.

Because everyone here had experience. They all knew exactly what kind of NPC lurked behind that deceptively sweet voice.

Yu Xi glanced down and tapped her wristband. The card projection she had just touched was now stored inside. She clicked it open, revealing the result.

Blank.

Nothing?

What did this mean?

Her brows furrowed slightly. From the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of Yu Zhenzhen nearby—who also seemed to be frowning.

“All right! Now, the game rules.

Fun Game: Attack of the Golden Ball.

Objective: Oh no! The princess’s golden ball is missing again! Find the golden ball and return it to the princess within one hour to win!

Warning: If you get it wrong three times, the princess will be very, very sad~”

Compared to the other Nightmare Amusement Park games Yu Xi had played, this one seemed simple. As long as they found the golden ball within 60 minutes and returned it to the princess, they would win.

But this was a special event. The simpler the rules, the more ominous the situation felt.

As soon as the game instructions finished, the facility was suddenly flooded with light.

The drastic change in brightness made everyone instinctively shield their eyes. After a few seconds, they adjusted and looked forward.

What lay before them was an enormous, simulated forest. There were trees, bushes, wild grasses, flowers, ponds, and even a towering castle partially obscured behind the trees.

But something was different—this forest was enormous. The participants stood within it like miniature people who had accidentally stumbled into a land of giants.

Many began speculating—was the gigantic forest simply meant to increase the difficulty of finding the golden ball?

Even though they all knew each other were travelers, everyone remained wary. However, since this was a collective game where only one person needed to succeed for everyone to clear the level, cooperation seemed inevitable.

Of course, rewards would likely be distributed differently. But for a game where all participants were experienced travelers, survival itself was already a victory.

Failure meant not only missing out on rewards—but also losing their lives.

Everyone here was an S-Rank station traveler. They understood their priorities. The tension in the air slightly eased as some softened their expressions, and a few even spoke up to exchange opinions.

Yu Xi’s phone vibrated. She discreetly checked the message—it was from Yu Zhenzhen in the team chat.

Yu Zhenzhen: Should we pretend to cooperate with them?

Yu Xi: No rush. Let’s observe for now. The NPCs still haven’t appeared—that’s unusual.

Indeed, there were no NPCs.

Yu Xi had participated in Nightmare Amusement Park every night for the past week. Each game had at least one NPC present. Most of these NPCs were travelers who had been stranded at the station and could never leave. They were often filled with resentment, their cold gazes fixed on the participants, waiting for someone to break the attack rules so they could strike.

If Xi Yuan had also been pulled into this game as an NPC, he hadn’t appeared yet either.

What would that mean?

---

The travelers advanced into the facility, stepping into the dense overgrowth. The seemingly ordinary wild grasses were now taller than a person, severely limiting their visibility.

Finding a single golden ball in this massive forest was clearly going to be anything but easy.

A more strategic traveler clapped their hands, stepped onto a stone over a meter high, and suggested that since there were only fifteen of them in such a vast area, searching blindly would lead to overlapping efforts and inefficiency.

With only sixty minutes on the clock, the best approach would be to divide the area into sections, with each person responsible for searching one part. That way, they could maximize coverage and locate the ball as quickly as possible.

The logic made sense, and some travelers nodded in agreement. However, others grew impatient and had already started pushing through the grass to begin their search.

Just as they were discussing how to divide the zones, everyone simultaneously heard an unusual sound—like something heavy striking the ground: thump—thump—

Each beat was rhythmic.

Then, the tall grass around them began rustling, as if something was drawing closer.

Before anyone could react, a thick, blood-red tongue shot through the air. It was over half a meter wide and moved with terrifying speed. With a loud snap, it struck the traveler standing on the rock.

The traveler was instantly stuck and yanked backward as the tongue recoiled.

Reacting swiftly, he pulled out a weapon and fired, bullets sinking into the tongue, which exploded with a thick, viscous liquid. But the moment the traveler made contact with the substance, he let out a harrowing scream.

“Ahhh—it burns—!” His face, arms, and legs instantly turned black, as if scorched by acid. The next second, the tongue whipped him straight into a massive, blood-red mouth. The only sound left was the sickening noise of chewing.

“It’s a frog!” someone shouted.

The gathered travelers immediately scattered—some diving behind stones for cover, others hiding within the tall grass.

Yu Xi quickly retreated, positioning herself behind the trunk of a massive tree.

From the grass where they had been standing, a gigantic frog’s eye emerged. Its head alone was the size of a truck’s front end. It smacked its lips as it chewed, then extended a clawed hand and, with a puh, spat out something from its mouth.

“Hee hee hee, a golden ball!” the frog chirped in a childish voice—the same voice that had announced the game’s rules.

This was the NPC for tonight’s game!?

Despite being seasoned travelers accustomed to life-and-death situations, the sight of what the frog held in its claws made them feel sick.

It was a bloody, mutilated “human ball.”

Because travelers had superior physical resilience, some life signs still lingered, and they could even see the grotesque “ball” twitching slightly—its faintly trembling hands and feet still visible.

“I need to return the golden ball to the princess!” the frog muttered to itself, reciting lines from the fairy tale.

Yet its gaze remained locked on the travelers scattered throughout the forest. Despite playing the role of the frog, its true target was clear—them.

Most likely due to the game’s restrictions, the frog had to return the “golden ball” to the castle before it could continue hunting. Although it seemed reluctant, it obeyed the rules and once again stuffed the bloody sphere into its mouth before leaping back into the grass.

As soon as it disappeared, a traveler couldn’t help but exclaim, “What the hell was that?! Is it an NPC or a frog?! Are we supposed to find the ball, or is it?!”

Yu Xi’s phone vibrated.

Yu Zhenzhen: mom, you have to be extra careful! We all have shields except for you—don’t face it head-on!

Ya Tong: let’s try to stay within each other’s range. Not too close together, but close enough to assist.

Lin Wu: the frog thinks we’re the golden ball?!

Yu Xi: this game isn’t that simple. Think about the “three mistakes” rule and the lottery draw.

Fifteen people had drawn lots, which meant there had to be a reason for the assignment of different identities within the game.

“Three mistakes and the princess will be very sad.”

This meant the golden ball wouldn’t be found immediately—either because there were too many potential “golden balls” or because there was a deception in place.

The truth was already clear.

This game wasn’t about finding the golden ball.

They were the “golden balls.”

**

As expected, a sharp, furious voice echoed from the direction of the castle a few moments later.

“This is not my golden ball!”

Then, there was a loud boom followed by the childish voice screaming in pain.

Yu Xi recalled the alternate version of the fairy tale, where the princess had a bad temper and threw the frog against a wall in anger. She immediately guessed what had happened—the princess had rejected the frog’s offering and had thrown it against the ground or a tree.

With its frustration level rising, the frog would return even more aggressively this time.

Sure enough, just as Yu Xi finished sending her message, the enormous frog leaped back into the area at terrifying speed.

“Golden ball! I must find my golden ball!”

It roared as it rampaged through the grass, stones, and trees. Some unlucky travelers who had been hiding were immediately exposed, triggering a desperate battle.

But the frog was enormous. Its skin and tongue were so corrosive that any wound inflicted on it splattered acid-like pus, making the fight difficult. Even using flamethrowers didn’t set its skin alight.

Despite this, the travelers were in a life-or-death situation, forcing them to use their best abilities. For a moment, the frog howled in pain under the assault.

Some travelers shouted, “Don’t kill it! The game’s rule is to find the right golden ball! If you kill the frog, we’re all dead!”

Another voice followed, “Yes! The priority is to find the real golden ball!”

As these words were spoken, the tension in the air thickened.

By now, everyone had realized the truth—the golden ball was someone among them.

The fifteen-person lottery had assigned them roles, and one of them was the real golden ball.

Only by letting the frog deliver the correct golden ball to the princess could they end the game.

Otherwise, when the sixty-minute time limit is up, the game will fail.

This meant that they now had to find the traveler who had drawn the golden ball among the remaining fourteen people.

But that person, as the “golden ball,” would never reveal themselves willingly. In fact, based on typical game mechanics, they might have received an additional rule along with their golden ball draw.

For example: if they could avoid being found for sixty minutes, they would win the game.

Under these circumstances, that person would do everything in their power to protect their identity, hiding in the most secure location possible to run out the clock. Worse still, they might deliberately mislead the group, pointing fingers at other travelers to attract the frog’s attention and get rid of others first.

Once they realized this possibility, the travelers’ temporary cooperation instantly fell apart, replaced by mutual suspicion.

“Alright, which one of you is the golden ball? Just confess already. I don’t have time to play games! If nobody talks, we’ll just check everyone’s wristbands one by one!” one traveler snapped while the frog was still occupied with another fight.

“It’s not me!”

“Same here! And who do you think you are, giving orders?!”

“Oh? Then that means it’s you! Everyone, let’s grab him and throw him to the frog!”

“Like hell it’s me! You’re doing this on purpose! I bet you’re the golden ball, trying to frame someone else! Don’t think we’re that stupid!”

“Shut up! If we don’t figure this out, we’re all dead! I’m not dying with you idiots!”

While chaos erupted among the travelers, the battle on the other side also reached its conclusion. The frog was simply too resilient, and with its acidic secretion, the traveler fighting it eventually succumbed. In the end, he too was swallowed whole and chewed into another gruesome, bloody “ball.”

“Hee hee hee, golden ball!” The frog NPC recited its lines once again. “I will return the golden ball to the princess!”

The travelers, momentarily distracted by their own conflicts, snapped their attention back to the frog, watching as it leaped toward the castle with its second “human ball.”

Now, only thirteen of them remained. At that moment, everyone went silent, waiting with bated breath, hoping that by some luck, the frog had found the correct “golden ball” this time.

But it wasn’t long before an enraged shriek came from the castle once more.

“This is not my golden ball!!”

Then, another loud boom, followed by the frog’s pained scream.

Seconds later, the frog let out an enraged croak and started bounding back toward them. Everywhere it passed, grass was flattened, and dirt flew into the air.

The travelers’ faces turned grim. The frog’s frustration had increased again—meaning its attacks were likely getting stronger, too.

“This isn’t working. We need to work together to restrain the frog first, then figure out who drew the golden ball!” someone suggested. It was a fair proposal, but at that moment, who would dare to stand up and face the terrifying frog directly?

“And how do you guarantee that once the frog is restrained, we’ll actually find the right person?” another traveler countered.

Yu Xi took the chance to quickly count the remaining travelers. All thirteen were still here.

The golden ball holder hadn’t run away either. That meant one of two things—either they were so powerful that they didn’t feel the need to hide, or they had a way to conceal their identity so that even if someone checked their wristband, nothing would appear.

If it was the latter, then things were really troublesome. That person could stay hidden among the group the entire time without ever being exposed.

The frog landed nearby, and Yu Xi exchanged glances with her three teammates. They were in perfect sync—without hesitation, they turned and ran in the same direction, looking for a more concealed place to hide.

“Golden ball! I must find the golden ball!”

The frog had returned, but this time, no one tried to fight it. Everyone had realized by now that they were no match for the frog in a one-on-one battle.

Besides, they couldn’t actually kill it. If the frog died, the game wouldn’t be able to continue—and they’d all be doomed.

In the end, the game devolved into a frantic chase. The frog rampaged through the area, searching wildly and destroying everything in its path.

Its massive size gave it the advantage. With its long, spring-like tongue capable of striking from a distance, it could sense any movement in the grass and attack instantly.

Soon enough, it found another traveler hiding between some rocks. The unlucky person shouted for help, insisting they weren’t the “golden ball,” begging others to assist in fighting off the frog.

But at this point, no one was going to risk exposing themselves.

After a fierce struggle, the traveler was ultimately swallowed, crushed into another horrific “human ball.” Once again, the frog repeated its eerie routine.

The remaining travelers held their breath, waiting.

A moment later, from the castle, the princess’s furious voice rang out again.

“This is not my golden ball! You useless thing! None of these are my golden ball!”

After the princess’s shriek, another loud crash shook the ground as the frog was violently thrown against something.

Then, something changed.

The dense grass rustled at the far end of the field.

From the shadows, a massive figure emerged.

It was a giant princess.

She stormed toward the forest, her towering form casting a long shadow over the travelers. With each step, the ground trembled slightly.

As she moved, she issued a chilling command:

“Guards! Follow me! Clear this entire area!”

Clear…?

The travelers barely had time to process what she meant before the landscape around them began to shift.

From the direction of the castle, trees began to topple, and the once-dense grass and foliage were being mowed down, systematically erased.

Four enormous knights appeared at her sides, clad in black armor and wielding massive weapons—two with giant axes, and two operating enormous mechanical scythes that functioned like industrial-sized weed cutters.

They advanced methodically, slicing through the forest, reducing the travelers’ available hiding spots with each passing second.

Three mistakes.

Three failed attempts to present the correct “golden ball.”

And now, the princess was coming for them herself.

So this was what the game meant by “three mistakes would make the princess very sad”…

Sad, my ass.