Giving Interstellar Players a Horror Ghost Game Shock - Chapter 12

Liver Bro prided himself as a high-level gamer, especially when it came to his impeccable sense of direction.

While the others wandered around for ten minutes, he managed to reach May Bridge in just two, taking the shortest possible route.

However, as he arrived, his flashlight landed on a faceless cardboard cutout of a woman on the bridge, giving him such a fright that his sanity points immediately dropped by 5, leaving him at 45.

In Ye Yuxi’s original design, sanity points were an invisible stat, only appearing once they reached a critical level. But later, to make the game easier, she adjusted it so that the value would become visible after the first deduction, serving as a warning to players.

Liver Bro’s screen now displayed a permanent, small red number in the corner, accompanied by a line of information:

Sanity Points: Reflect the player character’s current mental state. Reduced based on the intensity of negative emotions. If the value falls below 15, unpredictable dangers may occur. If it reaches 0, the player character is considered dead.

“What the heck is this? This design is so messed up!” he muttered after reading the game prompt, finally recovering from his scare.

Cursing under his breath, Liver Bro walked closer, shining his flashlight to confirm it was just a cardboard cutout. Relieved, he took a deep breath.

Soon, he noticed creepy posters plastered on the archway’s sides—and even on the faceless cutout he’d just encountered.

Leaning in for a better look, he realized they were promotional posters for the May Bridge Courage Test Event.

“‘Think you’re brave? Prove it!’” Liver Bro conveniently ignored his earlier scare, flashing a confident grin. “Alright, I’m here!”

[LOL.]

[Who was it that got scared just now? Not naming names.]

When he reached the gathering spot, a braided girl immediately approached him.

“Wow, senior, you’re right on time! Come on, let’s get you in the circle. The sooner we finish rehearsing, the sooner we can head back to rest.”

Liver Bro instinctively checked the time.

It was 9 PM—three hours until midnight when the event was officially scheduled to begin. If this weren’t a horror game, he might actually get some rest afterward.

Since he arrived early, he unlocked a hidden Easter egg: the chance to meet his team members before the summoning ritual began.

The game’s backstory identified the player character as a third-year student at May University, with their gender matching the player’s choice.

The team consisted of:

• Qiu Zi: A second-year junior with braided hair, adorable and lively.

• Wen Qian: A fourth-year senior with a high ponytail, cold and aloof, but also the team leader.

• Li Hua: A fellow third-year, quiet but reliable.

• Ah Fei: Another second-year junior, the comic relief, with a noticeable lack of courage. The slightest rustle sent him trembling.

Seeing that Ah Fei’s character description included “forcibly added to the Courage Test team after losing a draw,” Liver Bro couldn’t help but think of his own timid yet loyal livestream viewers, feeling an unexpected sense of kinship.

“Don’t worry, junior! If that vengeful ghost or whatever shows up, I’ll drag you with me and we’ll both make a run for it!”

Moved to tears, Ah Fei exclaimed, 

“Senior, you’re amazing! I’ll give you one of the protective charms my grandma got for me!”

Liver Bro didn’t entirely understand what a protective charm was, but judging from the context, it seemed like he’d unlocked some kind of reward. Delighted, he accepted.

After some idle chatter, the summoning ritual officially began.

Following the instructions to the letter, Liver Bro carried out each step. But when he closed his eyes to spin counterclockwise, he suddenly felt a chill creep over him. His hands and feet grew icy cold, and the surrounding temperature seemed to plummet.

…It didn’t feel like his imagination.

Even with his eyes closed, he heard Wen Qian grumble, 

“Why is it so cold tonight? I should’ve brought a jacket.”

As soon as the words left her mouth, Liver Bro opened his eyes and stepped out of the candle circle. With the four gazes behind him weighing heavily, he began ascending the uphill stairs, one step at a time.

It wasn’t until he was nearly at the top that he suddenly realized something.

“Wait a second, guys… did I forget to count the steps?”

The livestream chat instantly exploded with laughter.

[LMAO, Fish General strikes again with that fish-like memory.]

[Seriously, how did you already forget the steps? You just read the instructions! Are you even going to remember your way during the chase scenes?]

Liver Bro pulled an exasperated face.
“Relax, everyone, I’ve got the important stuff down. I just… have a tiny touch of forgetfulness—”

“What the hell was that noise?!”

Already on edge after losing sanity points earlier from the cardboard cutout, Liver Bro was unnerved by the eerie atmosphere. Suddenly, a strange creaking sound came from above.

Cursing loudly to psych himself up, he glanced upward.

The next moment, a wooden doll painted with the face of a beautiful woman dropped from the tree above him. Its face, eerily lifelike but marked with visible wooden grain, swung close—so close it nearly touched his face. The ball-jointed limbs left no doubt about its unnatural origins.

Frozen in place, Liver Bro stared at the doll as it dangled just inches away, perfectly framing its unnervingly humanlike face.

His voice caught in his throat.

At that moment, he finally understood what the Uncanny Valley felt like.

The sheer terror of something inhuman wearing a face that was too human, combined with the sudden jump scare, sent his fear skyrocketing to its peak.

“AAAAHHHH!”

But the scream wasn’t his—it came from Ah Fei, the NPC.

At the same time, a piercing ding-ling-ling sound erupted.

Liver Bro instinctively turned his head and saw the red ropes tied to the nearby trees. All the soul bells were ringing wildly, swinging as if caught in a fierce wind—yet there was no wind at all.

The candles on the ground, which had been burning steadily moments ago, were now all extinguished without warning.

However, what shocked him the most was the sight of the once-occupied clearing. The four teammates who had been standing there earlier had vanished—except for Wen Qian.

Wen Qian shouted up at him,

“Run! Something’s gone wrong!”

Without looking back, she bolted down the opposite set of stone steps at full speed.

Liver Bro: “???”

“Wait, you’re NPCs! I wasn’t expecting you to risk your lives for me or anything, but you’re just gonna bail like that?!”

Before the game could even prompt him with the mission “Escape from the Female Ghostly Senior”, Liver Bro turned on his heels and ran, not daring to glance back. He followed the direction Wen Qian had gone, sprinting down the steps as fast as he could.

“Slow down, you guys! Don’t leave me behind!”

Gone were his earlier bold proclamations; all he cared about now was regrouping with the team.

Meanwhile, the once-empty chat finally seemed to recover from the shock, and messages began flooding in.

[Help… that seriously scared the life out of me!]

[My mom asked why I wet the bed. I told her I’ll never use the streamer’s first-person POV again.]

[That jump scare was brutal… It reminded me of playing Night Walk, when the killer suddenly appeared around the corner and got right in my face.]

[Who designed this? They’ve got some serious talent—it feels like they’ve captured the essence of classic horror games.]

[Replying to above: The dev’s ID is Miss Ye. Seems like a rookie designer.]

[Guys, stop chatting and look ahead! What the hell is that in front of Fish General?!]