Free Web NovelChapter 14: Ghosts’ Live Stream
The system didn’t announce it properly this time.
No fanfare.
No ceremonial glitch.
Just a quiet line of text that appeared like an error pretending to be intentional.
[SSS HIDDEN CLASS CANDIDATE DETECTED]
Shen Yu stared at it for a moment.
"...candidate?"
The Bride stood beside him, arms crossed as usual, but her eyes narrowed slightly.
"That’s not normal."
Shen Yu nodded.
"I assumed as much."
The system expanded reluctantly, as if revealing something it had tried to bury.
CLASS ACCESS: PARTIAL UNLOCK
Title: MORTAL TRICKSTER
Authority: LOW-LEVEL SYSTEM RULE MANIPULATION
Restriction: HIGH (REALITY STABILITY SAFEGUARD ACTIVE)
The air changed.
Not physically.
Conceptually.
Like the dungeon space remembered it was supposed to have rules—and now those rules were being edited mid-sentence.
The Bride stepped back slightly.
"...you’re not supposed to get that."
Shen Yu tilted his head.
"Supposed to?"
She frowned.
"SSS hidden classes are forbidden outcomes. They don’t exist in stable systems."
"That’s what makes them hidden," he replied.
She stared at him.
"That is not how forbidden things work."
Shen Yu didn’t respond immediately.
Because something else had appeared.
A second layer beneath the class interface.
NEW ABILITY UNLOCKED
DEATH CRIT (PASSIVE)
Effect: Certain death events generate amplified system rewards and forced probability distortion.
Condition: User must experience "meaningful failure" during event.
The Bride read it over his shoulder.
"...meaningful failure?"
Shen Yu nodded slightly.
"I assume it means I need to die better."
She blinked.
"That is the worst sentence you’ve ever said."
He ignored that.
Instead, he tested it immediately.
A low-tier dungeon instance formed around them.
Basic horror environment.
Minimal threat.
Perfect testing ground.
The system was probably expecting controlled behavior.
It was wrong.
Shen Yu stepped forward.
Then intentionally triggered a lethal event without resistance.
The system hesitated.
Just for a moment.
Then—
[DEATH EVENT REGISTERED]
Condition: MINIMAL PAIN DETECTED
RESULT: FAILURE
DEATH CRIT: NOT ACTIVATED
Shen Yu paused.
"...so it rejects inefficient death."
The Bride stared at him.
"You’re disappointed."
"Yes."
She exhaled sharply.
"You are insane."
Shen Yu tried again.
This time differently.
He increased complexity.
Multiple overlapping failures.
Emotional instability trigger.
Environmental hazard miscalculation.
System interference baiting.
Then—
He died.
[DEATH EVENT REGISTERED]
Condition: HIGH COMPLEXITY FAILURE
Result: SUCCESS
DEATH CRIT ACTIVATED
Reward Multiplier: ×7.4
NEW DROP: "RULE FRACTURE SEED"
A small black fragment appeared in his hand.
It pulsed like it didn’t want to exist.
The Bride stepped closer.
"...you just turned dying into optimization math."
Shen Yu nodded.
"Yes."
"That’s not a skill set. That’s a disease."
"Efficient disease."
She groaned.
"I hate you."
But she didn’t leave.
The system then reacted.
Not calmly.
Not slowly.
Aggressively.
[WARNING]
USER BEHAVIOR CLASSIFIED AS: RULE EXPLOITATION ENTITY
COUNTERMEASURE: ACTIVATING OBSERVATION LAYER
The world flickered.
Then—
Something else appeared.
At first, Shen Yu thought it was a glitch.
Floating shadows.
Fragments of eyes.
Unstable silhouettes forming around the edges of reality.
Then voices arrived.
Not from the system.
From outside it.
"...is that a live instance?"
"...why is it moving like that?"
"...this human is bugged."
"...report him."
The Bride stiffened immediately.
Shen Yu tilted his head slightly.
"...audience?"
And then it became clear.
They were watching.
Not NPCs.
Not system constructs.
Something closer to spectators.
Ghosts.
Real entities from the horror realm.
Observing the dungeon like a broadcast.
A livestream.
A grotesque entertainment feed.
One voice laughed.
"This one keeps dying on purpose."
Another responded.
"Report behavior: non-standard gameplay."
A third added:
"...why is he enjoying it?"
The Bride looked around sharply.
"This is new."
Shen Yu nodded. freewёbnoνel.com
"Yes."
The system confirmed it.
[OBSERVATION MODE ACTIVE]
Horror Realm Audience Connection Established
Spectator Sentience: ENABLED
One ghost leaned closer, its face glitching in and out.
"He just revived again."
"...no cooldown?"
"That’s cheating."
Shen Yu frowned slightly.
"...I am not cheating."
Silence.
Then multiple voices at once:
"Yes you are."
"Definitely cheating."
"Ban him."
"Ban him twice."
The Bride muttered:
"I suddenly understand why you were classified as anomalous."
Shen Yu ignored them.
Then died again.
The audience went silent.
Then exploded.
"...HE DID IT AGAIN."
"WHY WOULD HE DO THAT ON PURPOSE?!"
"IS THIS A NEW META?!"
"THIS HUMAN IS STREAMING HIS OWN DEATH?!"
The Bride stared at him.
"...you’re entertaining them."
Shen Yu blinked.
"That was not intentional."
"It never is with you."
Another death cycle.
Then another.
Each time—
The system reacted differently.
The audience reacted louder.
At first mocking.
Then confused.
Then uneasy.
"...this is not normal gameplay."
"He’s breaking pacing."
"He’s ignoring fear mechanics."
"He’s smiling during death events."
The Bride frowned.
"He is not smiling."
"He is slightly satisfied."
"That’s worse."
Shen Yu triggered another rule fracture deliberately.
The world bent.
The system stuttered.
Then—
[DEATH CRIT + RULE FRACTURE COMBO DETECTED]
Reward Multiplier: ×12.9
NEW ABILITY DROP: "BLINK EXTENSION — PHASE STEP"
His body flickered.
For a moment, he wasn’t just moving through space. freewebnøvel.com
He was skipping rules that defined space.
The Bride took a step back.
"...you’re starting to cheat reality."
Shen Yu corrected her.
"I’m negotiating with it."
"That’s not better."
The ghost audience began shifting tone.
Not amused anymore.
Concerned.
"...why is he getting stronger every time he dies?"
"...this is supposed to punish him."
"...he’s farming punishment."
"...report system integrity."
A larger ghost appeared at the edge of the observation layer.
Its voice was deeper.
Less playful.
"Stop watching him casually."
Silence.
Then:
"...what do you mean?"
The entity replied:
"That is not a player."
"That is a system exploit."
The Bride glanced at Shen Yu.
"...you’re scaring them."
Shen Yu looked at the flickering audience.
"I am not doing anything new."
"That’s the problem."
Another death.
But this time—
The system hesitated before reviving him.
A delay.
Then—
[RECALIBRATION REQUIRED]
USER DEATH VALUE: NON-LINEAR ESCALATION DETECTED
Shen Yu returned.
He blinked once.
"...it’s adapting again."
The Bride narrowed her eyes.
"So is the audience."
Indeed—
The ghosts were no longer laughing.
No longer reporting.
They were watching carefully.
Quiet now.
Like predators evaluating something that might bite back.
One whispered:
"...why is it learning faster than us?"
Shen Yu closed his eyes briefly.
Then spoke softly.
"I think I understand the rule now."
The Bride looked at him.
"What rule?"
He opened his eyes.
"...the system doesn’t reward death."
"It rewards interpretation of death."
A pause.
Then:
"And I’m rewriting how it interprets me."
The Bride stared at him.
For once—
She didn’t have a sarcastic response.
The ghost audience went completely silent.
Then one final comment appeared.
Small.
Uneasy.
"...this human is not farming the system."
A pause.
"...the system is farming him back."
Shen Yu looked at the interface one more time.
The cursed inventory flickered at his side.
The Death Crit icon pulsed faintly.
And beyond everything—
The watching ghosts began to whisper something new.
Not mockery.
Not curiosity.
Fear.
And the Bride, quietly, for the first time—
Did not tell him to stop.
