Dice In The Darkness: Cthulhu Calls

Chapter 93: Successful Inspiration and Failed Persuasion

Mo Jin sighed theatrically and began to speak, "Ah, during the earthquake, Tang Tai was joking with us, holding a pitchfork and making that 'Jealousy Falls' joke. But as you all know, the recent earthquake was incredibly powerful, and that's when Tang Tai fell to the ground. He accidentally let go of the pitchfork, and it ended up piercing his heart."

"He who lives dangerously dies dangerously," Tang Tai practically played himself to death.

"How coincidental," Shi Ying said with an almost incredulous expression, though deep down, she knew Tang Tai's luck was truly abysmal. After all, he rolled a 100 in the Luck Check, which, in some village rules, was the epitome of a colossal failure. So, Tang Tai's demise was entirely expected.

Moreover, Liu Xing thought Tang Tai's death was relatively merciful. The pitchfork had pierced his heart directly, essentially causing Tang Tai to die instantly with minimal suffering.

"Now is not the time to mourn for Tang Tai," Liu Xing sighed once more, addressing Shi Ying and Mo Jin. "Earth Dragon Village has experienced another earthquake, and there's a high likelihood of casualties. We need to go help with the relief efforts first and return later to deal with Tang Tai's body."

Shi Ying and Mo Jin both nodded in agreement. After Liu Xing instructed the middle-aged villager to watch over Tang Tai's body, the three of them left the house, preparing to assist in disaster relief.

However, as they stepped outside, they were surprised to find that the other houses in Earth Dragon Village appeared completely unaffected, and the villagers were leisurely strolling and drinking tea as if nothing had happened.

"What's going on? The earthquake we just experienced was at least a magnitude six or higher. How is it that the village and the villagers seem completely unharmed and unperturbed? This is incredibly unusual," Liu Xing said, his perplexity evident.

Shi Ying nodded in agreement and added, "Indeed, what is happening here? Could it be that only our house was affected by the earthquake?"

Liu Xing and Shi Ying shared their thoughts, coming to the conclusion that the recent earthquake had been caused by the Earth-boring Demon Worm and had a limited range, affecting only their house.

"All of this seems too bizarre. First, there was a massive earthquake, but Earth Dragon Village, at the epicenter, remains untouched. Now, we have experienced a minor earthquake. I can't help but feel that there's more to this situation," Mo Jin pondered, rubbing his chin.

"Liu Xing, can we use an inspiration to uncover the mystery behind Earth Dragon Village and these two unusual earthquakes?" Liu Xing cautiously inquired of KP Snail.

KP Snail didn't hesitate this time and replied, "Certainly, but you'll need to pass a challenging inspiration check to realize that Earth Dragon Village is not as simple as it appears."

"No problem. Let's proceed with the inspiration check," Shi Ying suggested.

Liu Xing: 44/45 - Success.

Shi Ying: 71/35 - Failure.

Mo Jin: 12/30 - Success.

"Alright, then. I'll provide additional information to Liu Xing and Mo Jin, who successfully passed the challenging inspiration check. Shi Ying, you sense that something is amiss, but you can't quite put your finger on it," KP Snail explained.

"So, Liu Xing, you suddenly recalled that when we arrived at Earth Dragon Village last night, you seemed to have heard a strange sound. Coupled with the bizarre earthquake we experienced today, it reminded you of Wang Wei's stories about Earthworms. You began to entertain the idea that Earthworms might actually exist in this world." KP Snail shared the reward information with Liu Xing after passing the challenging inspiration check.

Liu Xing silently breathed a sigh of relief. With this reward information, his actions would become more flexible. Previously, "himself" had no awareness of the existence of the Earth-boring Demon Worm, so there were many actions he couldn't take, such as refusing to participate in the sacrificial ceremony in the ancestral hall because "he" had no reason to decline.

However, now things were different. "Himself" had become aware of the possible existence of the Earth-boring Demon Worm, so Liu Xing could reasonably role-play that "he" was concerned about the creature's presence and use a mild case of diarrhea as an excuse to decline participation in the ceremony.

In the Cthulhu RPG Game, every action required justification, and players couldn't play with an all-knowing perspective. It was part of the challenge for players to guide their characters into the darkness, unaware of the mythical creatures lurking within, until a dramatic ending was reached.

Finally, the "Liu Xing" who had realized the danger wouldn't have to willingly become a sacrifice to the Earth-boring Demon Worm.

"So, Liu Xing, you can choose to share this reward information with Shi Ying, but you'll need to convince 'Shi Ying' to accept your explanation through persuasion. The choice is yours," KP Snail said with a smile.

As soon as KP Snail finished speaking, Liu Xing directly said to Shi Ying, "Shi Ying, I suddenly remembered something. When we first arrived in Earth Dragon Village, didn't we hear a strange noise? And with this strange earthquake happening now, do you think it resembles the actions of the Earth Dragon that Wang Wei told us about in legends?"

After Liu Xing's statement, the sound of rolling dice filled the air.

Liu Xing: 97/60 - Critical Failure!

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, not expecting to roll a critical failure himself. This was not good news for Shi Ying.

Standing beside Liu Xing, Shi Ying first gave a bitter smile and then mockingly said, "Dr. Liu, can you please stop being so superstitious and backward? Mythical creatures like Earthworms only exist in legends. How could something like an Earth Dragon possibly exist in reality? Dr. Liu, you're overthinking things."

Liu Xing was left speechless, and Mo Jin shrugged, indicating his helplessness. After all, Liu Xing's critical failure in the persuasion check had caused Shi Ying to reject the idea of the Earth-boring Demon Worm's existence, so there was no point in attempting another persuasion check.

The atmosphere suddenly grew awkward.

"Alright, let's not discuss this for now. Since there's nothing happening in the village, let's go back and prepare Tang Tai's body. After participating in the ritual, we can take it with us to County Town," Mo Jin spoke up, breaking the silence.

Liu Xing and Shi Ying nodded silently. Then, the three of them turned and headed back to Tang Zilin's house. However, as soon as they entered the living room, they froze in place. Tang Tai's body was nowhere to be found!

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