I Became the Most Popular Character by Acting as a Villain in the Manga

Chapter 22

Two tourists saw their wristbands extinguish, cried tears of joy, and embraced each other, then released their hands after realizing they were strangers.

“Excuse me, where are you going next?” the young lady asked a little shyly, clutching the lace of her skirt with both hands. “Can I come with you?”

She probably felt that following the protagonist group gave her a sense of safety and that she could be saved if they encountered any danger.

The man with glasses next to her also quickly followed up with a question: “I... I also want to, is that okay?”

Zhou Chenhao hadn't yet decided where they would go next. He had just received a message from SAIDB asking them to hold on and await reinforcements. The Level 6 special ability user outside the park was temporarily unable to break open the air wall outside, always just falling short. Therefore, it was estimated that the park's special ability level was currently between Level 6 and Level 7, and the reinforcements dispatched by the Bureau were on their way.

“It's possible, yes,” Zhou Chenhao said, raising a hand and scratching his head, then casually swept his damp bangs, which had been hanging over his forehead, to the top of his head. Because of his nullification special ability, he couldn't be dried along with everyone else when Bai Xuechao helped them drain the water earlier. He was the only one in the entire area who was still soaking wet.

Bai Xuechao: ‘Hmm, I did that on purpose. After all, I’m only “Level 4” right now.’ (laughs)

Anyway, their current mission had become to wait for reinforcements and to help other tourists to the best of their ability. So, agreeing to take two tourists along was fine.

Zhou Chenhao continued, “We haven't decided where to go next.”

“Let's go over there,” Bai Xuechao said, taking the initiative to continue his sentence, pointing at a white hot air balloon lit up in the distance.

The moment everyone followed his fingertip to look, the hot air balloon, which had been glowing with fire, suddenly extinguished. The bright yellow flames vanished into the pitch-black night and the hot air balloon became hidden in the night sky, making it unclear if it was still floating there.

However, as special ability users with enhanced bodies, the three members of the protagonist group could still vaguely see that the hot air balloon was still floating steadily even without a visible fire heat source.

—Something was wrong.

The force keeping the hot air balloon afloat was very likely a special ability.

Bai Xuechao feigned a slightly puzzled expression and said, “I remember it wasn't in that position at first? So I want to go and see.”

Hearing this, the young lady nodded and replied, “Yes, this hot air balloon was originally above the Sea King's Palace in the land section of the park. Its position should have been fixed. I don't know how it drifted over there. I saw the hot air balloon about half an hour after the Great Escape event started, and it was still above the Sea King's Palace then.”

Generally speaking, to prevent a hot air balloon from drifting away, it would be tethered with ropes.

Ling Feng thought for a moment and said, “Should we go check it out?”

Zhou Chenhao and Xia Xiaoxi, of course, wouldn't refuse and agreed, “Sure.”

The six of them returned to the front desk of the Magic Horror House to return their items.

The protective gear had all been worn by the tourists and wasn't lost. However, some pieces of protective gear were worn by the deceased tourist and were currently in the Witch's Wooden House. The walkie-talkie was lost and couldn't be returned, but since it was lost inside the Magic Horror House anyway, it didn't matter if it wasn't returned.

After they informed the two Staff Members that their colleague, who was playing an NPC, had died, they bid farewell to the two and set off towards the location where the hot air balloon had been before it extinguished.

Along the way, the protagonist group also rescued several tourists who were being chased by ghosts.

As they walked, the hot air balloon also continued to drift.

By the time they reached the Raging River Rapids attraction, the hot air balloon had already drifted to the marine area of the park and was still drifting. Judging by its direction, it seemed to be heading towards the Underwater Park.

Originally, the protagonist group had planned to continue chasing the hot air balloon, but they found many tourists queuing in front of the Raging River Rapids who were taking turns to swap positions. Tourists who reached the front immediately turned around and moved to the back of the queue, like reverse queue-jumping. The person who became first after being second also started walking to the back.

Meanwhile, about ten meters away from the tourists, several ghosts were circling, as if waiting for something.

As for the tourists they had rescued, because they had been chased by ghosts all the way, they joined the queue as soon as they saw an amusement ride. They were now also in the Raging River Rapids queue, moving forward with the rest of the queue with blank expressions, asking the people in front what was going on.

The group listened nearby for a while and understood.

Because the ghosts wouldn't capture tourists queuing in front of an amusement ride, someone came up with this idea to have everyone maintain a queuing state.

It sounded quite good, but this kind of bug could only be exploited for a short time. The ghosts were already waiting.

Ling Feng frowned as he watched the ghosts wandering in the distance. They were already getting closer and closer to the tourists. He believed it wouldn't be long before they would be squatting nearby and pouncing once the time was right.

He said, “This won't do.”

The tourists naturally also noticed the ghosts. With the carousel queue as a previous lesson, they knew what this meant. However, as soon as they left the queue, they would be attacked by ghosts. Therefore, they could only grit their teeth and queue here to buy time, hoping to delay it for as long as possible, as no one wanted to die.

Someone cried with a long face, “We also know we can't hold on for much longer, but we have no choice. You don't know how dangerous this ride is…”

A tourist next to them continued, picking up on what the person said, with a terrified expression on their face: “The first batch of people who rode this are still drifting in the sea right now, who knows if they're alive or dead.”

“That serious?” Xia Xiaoxi was a little surprised.

Zhou Chenhao raised a hand and put it around Ling Feng's shoulder, smiling, “If that's the case, why don't we just go on the ride?”

…As expected of the male lead.

Half a minute later, when Bai Xuechao, the three members of the protagonist group, and the two tourists they were accompanying stood at the very front of the queue and didn't move backward, everyone looked at them as if they were crazy.

In the tourists' eyes, their actions were no different from seeking death.

One tourist couldn't stand it and kindly urged them: “Are you idiots? Go to the back! Do you actually want to ride this?”

“Yes, we do,” Zhou Chenhao said calmly.

After he finished speaking, he noticed that the ghosts, who had originally been gradually approaching the tourists, stopped their advance.

After Bai Xuechao noticed this, he said, “This trick works. As long as someone rides the attraction, the ghosts won't continue to approach. They might even walk away.”

What they discovered, the tourists weren't stupid, they would also discover.

Finally, a couple moved to the front of the queue and after hesitating for a long time, said, “We're on the school swimming team, we're not afraid of water… We should be able to try it, let's go together.”

Two more older men came over. One of them, with a determined look, said, “Both of us are lifeguards at the swimming pool, so even if we fall into the water, we're not afraid. Let's go on the ride with you all, otherwise, queuing like this indefinitely won't last much longer.”

Raging River Rapids required 42 people per ride, but they only had 10 people so far.

However, the tourists saw that not only did the ghosts not approach, but after more people decided to ride the Raging River Rapids, they even walked a bit further away.

Clearly, as long as a group of tourists went on the ride, the ghosts would leave. Then they could continue to buy some more time.

@ For endless good literature, visit Jinjiang Literature City

But who would be willing to go on the ride?

Among the hundreds of tourists queuing for the Raging River Rapids, there were always some with a surge of courage willing to take risks for everyone. Subsequently, more than twenty people emerged from the queue, all of them young, and each of them could swim to some extent and understood water conditions.

To the delight of the tourists, the ghosts walked even further away.

The Raging River Rapids' gate opened. Bai Xuechao, the protagonist group, and the more than twenty tourists who had stepped forward all boarded the Raging River Rapids boat together.

Bai Xuechao, the protagonist group, the young lady, and the man with glasses all sat in the first row. One row could fit exactly six people.

After everyone was seated, the boat didn't depart. Instead, it continued to wait. It seemed it wouldn't start until all 42 tourists were onboard. @ For endless good literature, visit Jinjiang Literature City

Moreover, because no one was boarding the boat, the ghosts started to approach again. This made the tourists increasingly anxious.

Finally, a few more people gritted their teeth and boarded the boat, making up the full complement of 42 people.

The safety harnesses lowered. The boat slowly started and moved along the track.

The ghosts, however, completely dispersed after the boat started, moving away from the area and didn't approach again.

Only then did Zhou Chenhao turn back and say loudly, “Everyone, don't worry, we will definitely do our best to protect you!” He showed a smile full of sunshine.

He hadn't said this earlier. He probably wanted everyone to board the boat of their own free will.

No one took Zhou Chenhao's words seriously.

The row behind them was filled with young people. One person forced a smile. Perhaps they were too nervous and wanted to say something: “How are you going to protect us, unless you also have superpowers?”

“Hey, don't you say it,” Zhou Chenhao turned his head and smiled at him, “We really do have superpowers.”

That tourist's face turned ashen and he smiled at Zhou Chenhao again.

The young lady turned back and said, “It's true!”

Although these tourists had already encountered unscientific things like ghosts, they still couldn't quite believe that there were special ability users sitting with them on the ride.

But they would soon believe it.

Kunpeng Marine Floating Island Park's Raging River Rapids was famous nationwide, located between the park's land and marine areas. Once it started, the boat would pass through constructed caves, go through two pools, one small and one large, and finally, the boat would climb a twenty-meter-high slope and plunge directly into the sea.

In national rankings of the most thrilling and longest Raging River Rapids, Marine amusement park always had a spot. However, the originally popular attraction had now become a terrifying game of life and death.

After the boat entered the cave, fake treasure chests were placed on the rock platforms on both sides, along with skeletons dressed as pirates.

These skeletons, under everyone's horrified gaze, climbed up and approached the boat.

The boat was moving a bit slowly and the skeletons were about to catch up to them.

Xia Xiaoxi whipped a vine at them. The skeletons fell apart with a crisp “Kala” sound and slowly started piecing themselves back together. While it was reassembling itself, the boat had already departed.

“You really have superpowers?!” the tourist in the back row exclaimed in surprise.

Zhou Chenhao grinned and said, “Yes, I wasn't lying to you.”

“Help me…” A faint cry for help rang out.

Bai Xuechao, as an 8th-level special ability user, had better hearing than the protagonist group and heard the almost imperceptible cry for help.

He looked in the direction of the sound and saw a tourist whose arm had been torn open by a skeleton, lying in a corner of the rock platform. They were perfectly hidden in a very dark spot, completely invisible unless one looked carefully. Blood flowed around the tourist's body.

His eyes were somewhat unfocused due to excessive blood loss, but upon hearing the sound of the approaching boat, he still tried to call for help. Unfortunately, his cries were drowned out by the sound of water inside the cave and the chatter of the tourists on the boat.

If Bai Xuechao hadn't intervened, the protagonist group would very likely not have seen this tourist.

After a moment of silence, Bai Xuechao raised a finger and pointed to that dark corner and said, “It seems there's someone over there.”

Xia Xiaoxi and Ling Feng were on his left and right sides, respectively.

After he finished speaking, Ling Feng's wind blew towards that direction. Feeling the information transmitted back, Ling Feng immediately said, “There is someone!”

Upon hearing this, Xia Xiaoxi's vine immediately whipped out, and after a brief search, successfully bound and pulled the tourist back. The people in the first row shifted their positions, making space for the tourist. @ For endless good literature, visit Jinjiang Literature City

This section of the path was filled with skeleton pirates. Xia Xiaoxi swung her vines and made all the skeletons fall apart.

The skeleton pirates could reassemble themselves, but their speed was too slow. By the time they had completely reassembled, the boat had already departed.

The boat went up the first small slope and slid down, splashing water.

Bai Xuechao then spotted another tourist floating in the water. Of course, others had also noticed this tourist.

“There's someone over there!”

So Xia Xiaoxi continued to bind people and pull them back. The first row was simply too full, so they were squeezed into the second row. The people in the second row consciously squeezed sideways to make space for the tourist.

In the cave section of the second leg of the journey, there were still skeleton pirates on the sides, and massive jellyfish hung from above, their tentacles dangling over their heads.

This time, they rescued five more injured tourists from the rock platforms on both sides and from the tentacles above that were wrapping around tourists.

Have you ever seen Raging River Rapids overcrowded?

Well, now you have.

A boat originally designed for 42 people was now crammed with 49 people. Each row had an extra person squeezed in.

The boat went up the second slope.

This slope was noticeably several meters higher than the first. Just as the boat reached the very top and was about to slide down, everyone's safety harnesses simultaneously sprang open!

“Holy crap!!” Someone screamed.

Some people reacted quickly, using the popped-up safety harnesses as handrails and clinging on tightly.

Before Xia Xiaoxi could create more vines, Bai Xuechao acted, controlling the surrounding water to surge up like a splash and pressed all the popped-up safety harnesses back down.

He protected these people as they smoothly descended the water slope, splashing water even higher than the first time.

After passing the second pool, everyone's faces showed expressions of lingering shock. The splashed water made them look as if they had been caught in a rain shower, soaking them to the bone.

“I thought I was going to fall out…”

“My heart nearly gave out when that thing sprang up!”

“There's someone over there!”

Xia Xiaoxi looked over and used vines to pull two people out of the pool. Both were still alive.

So, a problem arose. Each row now had an extra tourist crammed in, and there really wasn't any more room. Everyone tried to make space, but the space they managed to squeeze out wasn't enough for even one person.

At this moment, the boat began to slowly ascend the third high slope.

This slope was over twenty meters high. There were no longer caves on either side, but rather an open drop. One could directly see the rolling waves of the ocean below, making it as thrilling as a roller coaster.

Xia Xiaoxi, carrying the two barely conscious tourists with her vines, was a bit anxious: “What should we do?”

She couldn't just keep carrying them like this. When they plunged down later, the vines might yank them like kites. They already looked like they were on their last legs, and with such a toss, she didn't know what would happen to them. So she still wanted to arrange a place for them to sit.

“Isn't this quite simple?” Bai Xuechao curled his lips, his delicate and beautiful eyes carrying a hint of a smile.

Zhou Chenhao quickly asked, “How do we do it?”

Bai Xuechao looked at him with blood-red eyes and smiled.

A few seconds later, a tourist was sitting in Zhou Chenhao's spot.

Zhou Chenhao himself was, however, hung outside the boat by Xia Xiaoxi's vines. His smile was so bright it was as if dark qi was emanating from his entire body.

To prevent Xia Xiaoxi's special ability from being nullified, the vine wrapped around Zhou Chenhao's waist over his clothes, without touching his skin.

Zhou Chenhao said with a laugh, “I think Ling Feng can take the other spot.”

Ling Feng: “...?”

I didn't provoke any of you.

Aside from special ability users with enhanced bodies, no one else could endure this ordeal.

Xia Xiaoxi was a girl and also had to control the vines. As for Bai Xuechao, his face was pale and his body was thin and weak, looking like a sickly person. They couldn't possibly hang him.

So, when the boat reached the peak of the twenty-meter-high slope, two youths were already hanging from the sides of the boat, one on the left and one on the right, suspended by vines.

Zhou Chenhao's waist was wrapped by the vine. With one hand, he gripped the vine through his sleeve like Tarzan. He raised his other hand, and with a beaming smile, waved to Ling Feng from a distance: “Hi——”

Ling Feng gave him a deadpan stare and silently looked away.