As soon as they understood, they rushed forward without hesitation, lifting Rong Rong's skirt to reveal a crudely bandaged, horrifyingly deep gash on her thigh, with skin and flesh peeled back at the edges.

"Hiss… that's brutal, even for yourself," Liu Mang murmured, visibly shocked.

After verifying the evidence, all the men in the room courteously averted their gaze.

"This… I accidentally cut myself," Rong Rong stammered, looking utterly humiliated, her voice thin and barely audible.

“What kind of accident would make a wound that deep? Should we bring the axe over and check the size?” Lu Wanting asked, instantly switching sides.

"And all this is based on your claim that there's an eleventh axe," Rong Rong argued, still unwilling to give up. "If it can’t be found, then—"

"Found it!" A loud voice rang out from the doorway.

Li Duo strode in holding an axe. "Just as you guessed—it was buried right beneath Zhang Bin’s body."

In an instant, all color drained from Rong Rong’s face.

"How’d you know it’d be there?" Li Duo asked, slamming the murder weapon onto the table. Now, two blood-stained axes lay before everyone: one stained with Zhang Bin’s blood, the other with Rong Rong’s.

"The soil in the forest is hard-packed," Fang Chen explained calmly. "Burying something would cause it to loosen, leaving signs of disturbance."

Li Duo scratched his head, comprehension dawning on his face. "Oh… so using the body as cover was the best way to hide it."

"A truly ruthless heart," Bai Li, previously accused, couldn’t resist the chance to retaliate.

"But…" Meng Qiyan’s confusion only grew. "I still don’t get it—how was Zhang Bin persuaded to go there without being suspicious?"

"You’ll have to ask her," Fang Chen replied.

At this stage, Fang Chen didn’t need to understand every detail to identify the Tribute. The evidence laid bare before them, Rong Rong opened her mouth to argue but, after a moment of hesitation, sighed in defeat, the anger and malice draining from her face.

"Of course Ah Bin would cooperate with me. This was his plan."

Her statement fell like a stone into a silent pond, rippling through the room.

Meng Qiyan’s jaw dropped in shock.

It made sense now why, when they had split into pairs, Zhang Bin had proposed grouping with the same gender—to help create Rong Rong’s perfect alibi.

"He brought back the axe the night before, said it was for protection. Who would’ve thought the weapon meant to protect me would end up killing him."

"When I drew the Tribute lot yesterday, I was terrified. I didn’t want to die. I told Ah Bin, and he just smiled gently and assured me everything would be fine."

Rong Rong’s eyes turned vacant, her gaze seemingly focused on someone far off.

"One of us had to make it out alive, no matter what."

"The plan was his idea; he even taught me how to swing the axe properly. Last night, he held my hand, practicing over and over."

"I don’t even remember how I managed to lift the axe and bring it down on him."

Looking at her trembling hands, Rong Rong whispered, “It’s terrifying… how did I become so selfish, too scared to die, yet willing to kill the one I love the most?”

"And to think…" she turned her gaze toward Yan Xuan with a bitter smile, "I thought no one else knew about the axe. You’re a Deep Diver, aren’t you?"

Yan Xuan responded with a gentlemanly smile, offering no answer.

Without exception, Rong Rong received a unanimous vote.

"Correct answer! Since there are now two new sacrifices today, the next trial will be held the evening after tomorrow," the carpenter announced, holding up his lantern as he reached out to Rong Rong. "This way, my fresh timber."

As if yanked back to reality, Rong Rong’s face twisted in horror.

“No! If I die, then Ah Bin’s sacrifice is meaningless!” She leapt up in a panic, but as she turned, she stumbled into the edge of the table, hitting the floor hard. Ignoring the pain, she scrambled up and bolted for the door.

“Hahaha… Ah Bin, why did you die for me?” Her cries grew more hysterical. “You could’ve lived! I was supposed to be the Tribute!”

The carpenter watched her retreating figure without a word, shaking his head before leisurely following, even taking a moment to close the door behind him.

As they left the hall, the lights inside flickered out, leaving only a faint glow from the candle outside the window.

Rong Rong’s desperate flight cast a shadow on the courtyard wall, magnified to an immense size, stretching almost across the entire wall.

Then, suddenly, her shadow froze, trembling in agony.

At the same moment, a blood-curdling scream erupted from outside.

Through the small window, in the dim candlelight, everyone could glimpse the horror unfolding outside, visible only through her shadow.

The shadow lifted into the air, folding in on itself under some unseen force. With a sickening crack, it bent at impossible angles.

Then it folded again… and again…

The sound of bones breaking and bending in horrifying ways was unmistakable.

Meng Qiyan and Lu Wanting screamed, clinging to each other. The others turned away, unable to watch.

But the sickening sound seeped into each of their minds.

This was the sacrifice—a living person twisted and broken into a pile of lifeless wood.

Minutes later, the hall lights flickered back to life, revealing seven slips of paper lying quietly on the wooden table.

The mist had not lifted, and this deadly Tribute game was far from over.

“I want to go home…” Lu Wanting shrank back in her seat, as if trying to disappear. "Can’t we just… not draw lots?"

The hall fell into an oppressive silence. Meng Qiyan, sitting next to her, bit her lip, holding her breath.

No one answered.

Liu Mang clenched his fan so tightly his knuckles turned white, but at last, he reached forward and pulled a slip of paper.

Fang Chen picked up one as well. Opening it, he found two large words staring back at him—

Tribute.

Fang Chen folded the slip of paper back up, expression unchanging as he remained seated.

His life had just entered its countdown—two days left.

The gazes around the round table exchanged subtle glances, and Fang Chen met each one calmly until his eyes met Yan Xuan’s. The moment their eyes locked, for some reason, Fang Chen instinctively looked away, his gaze landing on the red diary nearby.

Noticing this momentary evasiveness, Yan Xuan raised an eyebrow slightly.

Taking the hint, Fang Chen stood up and picked up the diary. Based on his earlier assumptions, it seemed to update with a new entry every night. Sure enough, the third page now contained fresh content, and this time, there was even a photo tucked inside.

[October 30, Overcast] Is it true I’ll lose so much money if I don’t deliver on time? Damn it, now I can’t pay back my loan. My cousin wouldn’t deceive me; I have only myself to blame for not seeing clearly. My wife must hate me deeply now. I can only look at her from a distance, watching through the window. Suddenly, I feel like listening to the music box she gave me. Strange, where did I put it?

Next, Fang Chen picked up the photograph and examined it closely.

The photo’s background showed a dark, foreboding forest, eerily shadowed. Only a few rays of light managed to pierce through the dense canopy. In the picture, the carpenter stood alongside a woman dressed in a vibrant red dress, sweetly leaning against him. They looked happy, framed together within that small, rectangular scene against the lush trees.

On the back of the photo was a message, written in delicate, neat handwriting:

My dear, my woodworking isn’t as good as yours. This was my first attempt—a wooden music box. Whenever you feel down, try listening to it. I hope it will ease your worries. I’ll always be with you.

“A music box?” Fang Chen mused aloud. "It sounds like it might be very important to the carpenter. We should find a way to get it.”

He pushed the diary across the table to the others, tapping its surface. “Let’s head to the forest tomorrow and see if we can find anything. Meet here at eight.”

Bai Li took the photo, staring at it in confusion. “How can you be so sure it’s the same forest we went to?”

Liu Mang glanced over, picking up on Fang Chen’s reasoning. “Have you seen any other forest that dense, with trees blocking out the sky?”

Reluctantly, Bai Li withdrew, seeming to accept the logic. The others appeared to sense the importance of the music box as well and silently agreed to Fang Chen’s suggestion.

Since the trial, everyone seemed withdrawn, with an uneasy distance falling back over the group, much like on the first night.

“I’m not feeling great, so if we’re done, I’ll head back.” Meng Qiyan said, rubbing her stomach as she got up first.

The others slowly followed her lead, leaving only one person still sitting, lost in thought.

“Miss Lu?” Fang Chen called softly.

“Ah?” Lu Wanting jolted as if suddenly snapped out of a trance.

Considering she had been close with Rong Rong and, as a literature teacher, was more sensitive than most, it made sense that she’d feel unsettled by what had happened.

Fang Chen offered a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry. No one else will have to die.”

“Why do you say that?”

“I’m the Bridgekeeper. If you can’t trust me, who can you trust?”

“Let’s hope you’re right,” she replied, forcing a faint smile that suggested she wasn’t quite convinced. She trailed the others up the stairs.

The hall grew silent, leaving Fang Chen alone. Time was running out, and he couldn’t shake the feeling that they were being manipulated at every turn. It was time to take action. Deep in thought, he stepped outside.

Night—a time when danger feels palpable, where shadows conceal every lurking horror, waiting to strike from the darkness. If he was going to act, he’d need a weapon.

Decisively, Fang Chen retrieved an axe from the tool room. It felt like a buff item, boosting his courage the moment he slung it over his shoulder.

He had questions for the ghost in the red dress. Hopefully, she’d be a bit more “cooperative” this time.

Returning to the small attic, Fang Chen gripped the axe tightly in one hand and carefully pushed open the door with the other.

He had mentally prepared for a multitude of possible scenes, ready to face whatever horror might appear. Yet nothing could have braced him for what he saw.

At first, he was merely confused, but as he grasped the situation, a chilling realization crawled up his spine, sending his nerves into overdrive.

She was gone.