Dark Sand: My Players Are All Actors
Chapter 65 - 61 Playing Su Xianjun

Chapter 65: Chapter 61 Playing Su Xianjun

Chu Ge carefully read the description of this golden talent.

"It seems that this is a golden talent that could possibly be activated by a special identity, and it’s somewhat like a specific game mechanism.

"Because in the game ’Dark Sand,’ although the trial instances are based on real history, many details are actually not recorded in historical documents.

"And even if they are recorded in the documents, they may not be entirely true.

"So, if demonic alterations are added into the instance, it would make the entire event confusing and obscure. With too many variables, even the smartest players would find it difficult to know the complete truth.

"In such situations, even if players strive to develop the instance according to historical records, they could end up going in completely the wrong direction. This clearly goes against the fundamental goals of the game ’Dark Sand.’

"In the game, players’ roles are ’Order Restorers,’ and according to the official setup, they are supposed to reenact historical segments as they historically unfolded, not rewrite history.

"If the contest between the Order Restorers and the demons was merely about who is stronger and thus how history changes, it would distort the role of the Order Restorers and turn history into a young girl dressed up by anyone, which certainly isn’t the intent of the game.

"So, after introducing the mechanism of demonic historical alterations, the designers of ’Dark Sand’ also proposed a new mechanism—this golden talent.

"According to the skill explanation, this talent essentially provides players with something that cannot be altered, which is the current character’s memory fragments of other characters.

"Through these memory fragments, while it’s not possible to entirely determine the other characters’ morality, they can at least provide a valuable reference. As many characters’ memory fragments are gradually collected, the full picture of the entire event will also unfold before the players.

"At that time, the possibility for players to reproduce real history will naturally greatly increase!"

Thinking this, Chu Ge did not hesitate to choose the memory fragment talent.

Because no matter how one analyzes it, to solve the mystery correctly, this talent is essential to possess.

Of course, by doing so, he could no longer choose the mastery of traditional opera.

For playing the role of Su Xianjun, not choosing mastery of traditional opera meant he would be unable to perform in the opera scenes later on.

But that didn’t matter, since Chu Ge was still in the puzzle-solving phase, and whether or not he performed the opera wouldn’t affect his puzzle-solving.

After selecting his identity and talent, the Trial Illusion began to operate again.

...

Backstage at the theater.

From the bronze mirror in front of him, Chu Ge saw his own face.

The makeup on his face had not been completely washed off, and he could still vaguely see the previous guise, but there was no doubt that the face in the mirror had transformed into that of Su Xianjun.

This famous actor had started performing opera from a young age and had always played female roles, so naturally, every movement carried a feminine grace.

After Chu Ge selected Su Xianjun’s identity, he also inherited the muscle memory within this body, so both his movements and voice naturally aligned with the original Su Xianjun.

"Xianjun, those Eastern Barbarian bandits have taken over the theater, and the scholar leading them said that if we perform for them, the city’s people might still have a chance to live. If we do not perform, come tomorrow morning, not a chicken or dog will be left alive!

"Xianjun, I have rarely asked favors of you, but even if you don’t do it for me, or for our fellow troupe members, at least think about all the people in the city.

"Consider it a request from me for the sake of all the townspeople, I am begging you this one time!"

Originally facing the makeup mirror, Chu Ge now turned his head and indeed saw Yang Xinyan.

Yang Xinyan’s tall figure was bowed to the ground, appearing very humble, and his inner panic was evident.

Chu Ge quickly located the current time node within the Trial Illusion.

"This must be after the Eastern Barbarian bandits had entered the city and occupied the theater, where Yang Xinyan, this ’Overlord,’ cowered instantly.

"But when seen previously from the perspective of a troupe member, Yang Xinyan was clearly advocating from outside the door, and Su Xianjun’s attitude was very intense.

"That means... Yang Xinyan had approached Su Xianjun more than once. Perhaps the first time was a conversation inside the room, but he was quickly driven out by Su Xianjun, after which he could only be scolded from outside."

"After that, it was Wang Jinhui who came forward to persuade.

"At the current stage, it should be the first time Yang Xinyan found Su Xianjun. He was not clear about Su Xianjun’s thoughts, but he vaguely had some guesses.

"Without a doubt, this time Su Xianjun definitely refused him and even drove him out."

Having roughly determined the time node of this scene, the following portrayal also began to take shape.

As long as Chu Ge now severely scolds Yang Xinyan and sends him away, and later repeatedly refuses Yang Xinyan’s persuasion, then the entire story can at least progress smoothly up to the point before going on stage to perform.

But Chu Ge does not plan to follow the script. After all, his task now is to solve the puzzle, so he had to try something different.

Soon, Chu Ge had an idea.

The Su Xianjun he was portraying turned his head and, staring into Yang Xinyan’s eyes, asked, "The bandits have entered the city, and the County Magistrate was killed in battle. Are you completely indifferent?"

Yang Xinyan was taken aback, "Xianjun, what are you talking about? Of course, I feel sorrow for the County Magistrate’s death in battle, but we are just a troupe, not local militia or soldiers. What can we do?"

Chu Ge slightly lowered his voice, but his expression became even more determined, "Don’t the bandits want to watch a play? They are all in the theater now. This is a rare opportunity.

"There is still kerosene in the city. You secretly take people to get the kerosene, and while I perform for the bandits deep into the night, pour the kerosene around the theater.

"When I loudly call for it, you ignite it directly, burning the theater and those bandits to death!"

Yang Xinyan was utterly shocked and pale, "Xianjun, this must not be done!

"Your plan sounds heroic, but it’s no different from a death sentence.

"Not to mention that the entire theater is occupied by bandits, making it difficult for us to leave. Even if we manage to leave, the actions of pouring oil, stacking wood, and lighting a fire are so conspicuous. How could we possibly deceive those bandits?

"Even if the bandits have drunk alcohol and are tired, even if you lure their attention with your performance on stage, the strong smell of kerosene, and the bustle of so many people pouring oil around the theater, will inevitably make some noise. If any of the bandits notice something unusual, all will have been in vain!

"At that time, not only would we be killed under chaotic swords, the bandits might, in their rage, destroy the entire county!

"Xianjun, please abandon this impractical idea. Performing on stage for the bandits is indeed shameful, but if it can keep the townsfolk safe, we are just actors. What’s carrying some infamy compared to that?"

It must be said, for a moment, Chu Ge was almost persuaded by Yang Xinyan.

Although Yang Xinyan seemed cowardly, his analysis of the feasibility of "burning the theater" did hold some reasoning.

Chu Ge hadn’t thought much about it before, but now, thinking carefully, yes, the idea sounds heroic, but the actual success rate wasn’t high!

The prerequisite for burning the theater was for many people to go out, transport kerosene, and pour it around the theater.

However, the Eastern Barbarian bandits, though seemingly reckless, were actually highly vigilant; with so many people pouring oil outside the theater, are they all deaf and blind? Wouldn’t someone see? Wouldn’t someone hear a noise, smell the kerosene?

Wasn’t this a bit too much of a downgrade in intelligence?

Moreover, although the theater was predominantly wooden in structure, the oil of that era didn’t burn as fiercely as the oil in later times. Although historical records mention fierce fire oil, that stuff was for military use, and it was unlikely to be available in a small county town.

Even if everything went smoothly, it would take some time for the fire to grow; it wasn’t going to turn into a sea of flames immediately to completely block the bandits.

Once ignited, if the bandits rushed out immediately, this small fire would mostly likely not stop them.

How could it possibly be so easy to burn them all to death in the theater?

Chu Ge was also puzzled.

He hadn’t thought it through before because he was biased by prior assumptions, knowing that Su Xianjun’s plan was mostly successful, so he hadn’t carefully analyzed its feasibility.

Now, having heard what Yang Xinyan said, he realized that maybe burning the theater wasn’t so simple after all?

Yet, if there was no burning of the theater, annihilating this group of bandits seemed even more impossible.

Chu Ge was momentarily confused.

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