After finishing the performance, Lin Yu once again deceived the Flame Monster named "Shuo" before closing the glass jar and putting it away again.

Shuo was different from the other NPCs Lin Yu had already "collected." There was no strong subordinate relationship between it and Lin Yu, so Lin Yu had zero trust in it.

Furthermore, Shuo itself was also kept in the dark by Lin Yu—it was currently firmly convinced that Lin Yu was a Rakshasa!

Moreover, Shuo was also completely unable to see the light of day right now.

After putting Shuo away, Lin Yu wasn't in a hurry to contact other players either.

The performance regarding "fraud" had now reached a "critical threshold." There was no need for him to take any further actions.

Or rather...

Any further action would seem like gilding the lily.

"Leaving blank space" was also an important part of the performance.

Lin Yu clearly knew that all he could do now was wait patiently, letting those rumors and gossip ferment.

The Blood Rakshasa, the Barbarians, the Players—none of the witnesses at the Healing Station would remain silent about this.

Those who appeared at the Healing Station were all severely injured—the fact they could appear there proved they were likely "sent over."

This meant they might have "teammates" from the same tribe.

Such news was impossible not to share with their teammates.

As for the Players...

In such a large-scale dungeon, the amount of resources was sufficient for all players combined to clear it. This meant that while on the surface this was a dungeon where one could either cooperate or compete, most players would naturally choose cooperation in the end.

Sharing news like "a Rakshasa has appeared" was something most players would be happy to do in passing.

Furthermore...

Lin Yu had reason to believe that Fern would take the initiative to help spread this news.

Even though he hadn't asked that Fraudster to do so.

The only problem was, when the news reached the "arbitrators'" ears, the rumor about "the Rakshasa clashing with an arbitrator, an arbitrator dying at the Healing Station" might make those arbitrators suspicious.

After all, this was a plan made on the fly, adapted to local conditions. Rushed as it was, perfection was impossible.

But this "loophole" wasn't too big either.

Since Shuo was still alive, those arbitrators would most likely just think it was hearsay and rumor-mongering.

Even taking the worst-case scenario, if an arbitrator really felt something was off and started investigating, as long as they didn't immediately suspect the authenticity of the "Rakshasa's" existence, everything would be fine.

In Lin Yu's view, regardless of whether their heads were normal or not, or whether they possessed the simple-minded traits of the Black Marsh world, those arbitrators, since they were sent by the gods of this world to oversee a major festival event, were definitely not illogical lunatics.

As long as they weren't lunatics, upon hearing this news, their first suspicion, even if they were suspicious, would only be "is someone plotting some conspiracy?" and not "could someone be impersonating a Rakshasa?"—that simply wasn't a line of thought any creature with a brain would have.

Lin Yu's "Rakshasa" was a deception born from nothing... Choosing to impersonate a Rakshasa under the circumstances of this Glory Festival having no existing elements related to Rakshasas was, for the entire Black Marsh world, the Blood Kingdom, and all participants of this Glory Festival, a "deus ex machina," completely untraceable.

But precisely because of this, when "the appearance of a Rakshasa" emerged as a kind of "rumor," even if suspected, it wouldn't be considered part of some conspiracy.

Because its abruptness and illogical nature made it hard to imagine as a premeditated fabrication.

And even if there was a one-in-ten-thousand chance that an arbitrator became suspicious... it didn't matter.

Because in Lin Yu's final expectation, by the time the news truly reached the arbitrators of this competition, the breadth, scale, and scope of influence of this rumor would be beyond imagination.

The amount of 『Belief』 obtained by then would also be beyond imagination.

"Anyway... what needs to be done now is to wait."

However, even while waiting, Lin Yu didn't plan to just wait idly.

Such a waste of time was not Lin Yu's style.

"Let's go hunting first, gather some trophies."

Although to complete the 『Promotion』, Lin Yu was required not to obtain the "Warrior Credential" by submitting trophies to clear the dungeon, but to accomplish everything through fraud.

However, these requirements also didn't mean that Lin Yu's efforts to collect trophies beforehand would be considered a failure.

The fulfillment of this Promotion condition was judged solely by the final result.

So...

Until the final decision was made, Lin Yu could prepare two sets of plans simultaneously.

"Although everything has gone smoothly so far, I can't be too optimistic."

"I need to be prepared to abandon the 『Promotion』 at any time."

Lin Yu thought to himself.

He had always been good at making trade-offs.

Although 『Promotion』 was important, the purpose of 『Promotion』 was ultimately just to survive.

Only by improving his own strength could he remain composed under the gaze of increasingly numerous factions and powerful experts.

For example, if he were at the 『Third Tier』 or even higher, when that Twenty chased him in, he would definitely feel much more confident—if he had the certainty, Lin Yu would definitely confront him head-on and kill him with sheer strength.

Unfortunately, Lin Yu didn't have that, so he could only take a more roundabout route.

Therefore, Lin Yu wouldn't give up any opportunity to 『Promote』 as soon as possible.

After all, not every time he was targeted by "Twenty" would be in such a large-scale dungeon with a buffer.

But on the other hand, if the risk of the 『Promotion』 itself was too great, Lin Yu would also abandon it without hesitation.

After all, as his understanding of the game's current situation grew, Lin Yu also knew his own situation wasn't that bad anymore.

Joining 『Order』, maintaining good relations with the 『Free Alliance』, gaining the favor of the gods...

And his senior Shen Bingmiao, who was currently in an "accomplice" relationship with him and in charge of an entire forum.

All of this was enough to keep Lin Yu in a relatively safe environment for the time being.

So, while improving his strength was important, it wasn't that urgent anymore.

"To put it bluntly, I mustn't put the cart before the horse."

In the Dense Forest, Lin Yu slowly pried the fangs from the mouth of the dead, large hyena-like beast in front of him and put them into his bag.

Moreover, there were other ways to make himself "safe" besides improving his own strength.

For example...

Nipping the source of danger in the bud.

The sky gradually darkened, ushering in the second night of the Glory Festival—dark clouds drifted by, covering the high, distant sky of the Black Marsh world.

Lin Yu wiped the beast's blood from his hands, feeling the increasing amount of 『Belief』.

"It's about time. After collecting a bit more... I should take the initiative to go find that guy Twenty's hiding place."

If possible, he planned to leave that guy in this dungeon forever.