Deceitful Game

Chapter 166 Ice Heart

Chapter 166 Ice Heart

"----I see."

After watching the movie "The Silence of the Lambs," Mingbo fell into deep thought and closed his eyes.

He understood—the meaning of the movie's title, which was also the meaning of his own title.

When the female protagonist Clarice and Hannibal exchanged secrets, she mentioned her childhood.

After losing her father at a young age, she was fostered by relatives on a farm. One night, she was suddenly awakened by the pitiful screams of lambs about to be slaughtered.

It was like a child's scream.

She tried to open the sheepfold door to let the sheep out, but the lambs only squealed and did not move, refusing to run away.

Touched by the pitiful screams, she thought that even saving just one lamb would be worthwhile. So she grabbed a lamb and ran away.

She had only gone a few miles when she was stopped by the sheriff's car. Her relatives were furious and sent her to an orphanage.

The lambs she tried to rescue were, of course, killed.

From then on, she would occasionally be awakened in the middle of the night by the screaming of lambs.

Mingpo slightly opened her eyes, a dim yellow glow flowing in her pupils.

That wasn't just the scream of a lamb to the slaughter—it was a concrete manifestation of the helplessness she felt as a child after becoming an orphan.

She wasn't lacking in courage, because she actually did it, regardless of whether it was right or wrong. But she failed simply because she was too weak and powerless.

She can't do anything.

This sense of guilt stayed with her throughout her life, leading her to become a policewoman.

She tried to rescue Catherine, who had been kidnapped, because she didn't want to feel that helplessness again.

Just like the question Hannibal asked—

"Do you think saving Catherine will stop the lambs from screaming?"

Her life was a microcosm of this problem.

"That's amazing."

Mingbo murmured, "The 'Silent Lamb' refers to Clarice, or perhaps Catherine—but the power I gained belongs to Hannibal. Just like—"

— Just like "Frankenstein".

Frankenstein actually refers to the scientist, not "Frankenstein's monster." However, Simpson possesses both the ability to disassemble and reassemble limbs and monstrous strength.

Now, Mingpo has also mastered the ability to understand other people's psychology.

The detective's ability to see through the attributes of items has been weakened, and now Mingpo can only see a very short hint.

Instead, he can now see through the despair, pain, and darkness in the other person's heart at a glance.

Perhaps it wasn't just the other party—which naturally included Mingpo herself as well.

In Mingpao's current perspective, the emotions hidden deep within others' hearts are like strings on a musical instrument. As their memories rise and fall, whether clearly or subtly, he only needs to reach out to touch them and make them resonate.

But his own heart became unusually calm. No longer excited, no longer anxious, no longer furious. It was probably for this reason that Ai Shiping thought Mingpo was "not in a good mood".

But that's not actually the case. Mingper believes she's in a very good mood.

His heart was not "still as a well," but rather like a solidly frozen icicle.

Clear and transparent, cold and sharp.

Enough to kill without leaving a trace.

Mingpo also tried to use her ability, but failed.

Lack of goals.

This clear thought popped into Mingpo's mind.

This means that this ability can only be used on a specific person, and not on oneself.

While it's generally safer to test one's abilities before entering the promotion instance, Mingpo didn't want to reveal that she had changed her title—which could expose the existence of the Dionysian Shrine—nor did she want to use her abilities against Ai Shiping and Gao Fan.

What if his ability has some kind of offensive capability?

What if his abilities could cripple, permanently strip someone of their will, or even kill them outright?

Even if there is only a possibility, we should remain cautious.

For other charlatans, the promotion ceremony might be something they could barely survive by doing everything in their power.

But this is not the case for Mingbo.

After all, these games weren't particularly difficult for him.

Or rather—so far, Mingpo has not truly found his "nemesis." He has no enemy or game that he can take seriously.

Testing new abilities in promotion games is naturally not a problem.

After all, even without using his active abilities, he might still be able to pass the advancement game.

As for Gao Fan, he has already made his move.

Although he intended to challenge Gao Fan to a duel, he naturally couldn't set off at the same time as Gao Fan. They had both advanced to the Zhou Zhi Qingqian level, but their strengths were completely different. Setting off at the same time would actually be unfair to Gao Fan—it's like in chess, if the skill gap is too large, you have to give your opponent a few pieces.

So Mingpo gave Gao Fan two hours.

If Gao Fan can come out before Ming Po, then Ming Po is willing to acknowledge him as an older brother.

Moreover, contrary to her seemingly arrogant and aloof demeanor, Mingpo actually doesn't care at all about childish questions like who should be the eldest brother or the second eldest.

For Mingpo, being able to call someone he trusts a brother is already a very happy thing. This bet is a reward for him in two ways.

"However, now that the movie is over—it's about time to get going."

Mingpo leisurely got up and straightened her clothes in front of the full-length mirror.

He looked at himself in the mirror, and a thought popped into his mind:

It feels like it's missing a hat. A cane would also look great—it would look much better.

The current Mingpo has a noticeably different demeanor compared to before he participated in the Deceitful Game. He is no longer so restless and manic, but has instead developed a sense of composure and restraint.

Perhaps he had already satisfied the dangers of the deceptive game, so he no longer needed to "seek death".

With that thought in mind, Mingpo walked toward the gate of Gao Fan's house.

He took out a Zhou Zhiqing lead coin and examined it carefully.

This is also the only "weekly" level chip that Mingpao currently possesses.

The outer ring is a mix of dark green and turquoise, while the inside has the texture of metallic lead.

The design of "Red Copper of Time" is an hourglass that resembles stars, while "Pseudo Gold of the Sun" is a dim, distorted sun like a tree canopy.

The chip has a star pattern in the center.

It looks like five stars, but if you look closely, you can find two hidden stars connected to the largest star.

—What do you mean? Does it mean five workdays plus two weekend days? And the weekend and Friday are consecutive?—

Mingpo's lips curled up slightly.

He was amused by his own thoughts.

He tossed the chips up, caught them casually, and threw them into the gate.

One [Promotion].

With a clang, pure black rose patterns slowly spread across the gate.

The number of rose patterns is far greater than in any previous game!

Immediately afterwards, a few star emblems appeared in the center of the door, just like the logo on Zhou Zhiqing's pencil.

Mingpo opened the door, stood tall, and strode inside.

During his last promotion, he was anxious, violent, and almost desperate.

But now, Mingpo is calm and composed, with a tranquil mind.

Because he was no longer alone.

He will no longer fear loneliness.

Mingpo now has true friends of his own, and there will be more and more of them.