UWP - Chapter 86 - Heh, Mediocre Mentalities

"The clue... was there from the beginning?"

As he repeated the words which had been delivered over walkie-talkie in a matter-of-fact tone, Traveler turned to look at the shadowy figure a dozen or so meters away, trying—and failing—to find the clue that Bai Zhi was referring to.

"Oh yeah, you were just overcomplicating things... Simply a matter of having a mediocre mentality."

The remark coming from the walkie-talkie was as unhurried as ever.

"Come to think of it, a shadow that slaps the wall with its hand... Wouldn't it hurt after a while?" Bai Zhi continued.

Traveler and Viridescent were nonplussed.

...who the heck cares about how the shadow feels?!

"...Well, since our being trapped here must have something to do with the shadow, I presumed that the slapping could be some kind of ritual that activates its powers. But the fact that we've been unable to harm the thing in any way is what we need to focus on here. Over," said Traveler, sounding exasperated as he gave his glasses another nudge.

"Didn't you also mention that the shadow looked blurry, even up close? Over."

Instead of responding to Traveler's comments, Bai Zhi started on another line of questioning, clearly uninterested in having a conversation.

"...That's right."

"Then there you have it; it's a ghost-wall*~"

"Uhh—?!" Something clicked in Traveler's mind and for a moment, his jaw literally dropped at the surprising realization. "You mean... So that's what it is?! This, this—"

Traveler seemed to be having a mental breakdown of sorts.

"It is what it is~ Don't overthink things, is what I say. The shadow-thing really only has one ability, after all. If it truly had all the abilities you say it does, you'd all be long dead by now, y'know?"

Crunch—

A sound like someone biting into an apple was heard over the walkie-talkie. "Heh, mediocre mentalities..."

"Are you both just about done with your Punch-and-Judy show**?" Viridescent yelled. "That thing is coming for us again!"

The sneaky shadow had inched its way back to within ten meters of them

…

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Translator Notes

*Apologies for the tenuous connection. The original text built this enemy around a pun, which was first mentioned in Chapter 81—鬼打墙, translated in that context as ghostwall. Literally, it reads "ghost-hit-wall", but it means to get turned around when trying to get somewhere, only to end up in the same place. In this case, the shadow is the "ghost" and it's literally "hitting the wall" which, according to Bai Zhi, is the key to resolving the encounter.
P.S. I had considered "spirit-to-wall being" initially (-__-|||)
P.P.S. To make a properly equivalent pun would be to rewrite the whole encounter around something like Lost Bear Rings (lost bearings), do you guys want that? Comment your thoughts!

**A puppet show having a conventional plot consisting chiefly of slapstick humor and the tragicomic misadventures of buffoon Punch and his wife Judy. Used here as a metaphor for the inane exchange between Bai Zhi and Traveler.
The word used here in the original literally translates to "charade" but the meaning does not translate, as "charade", when not referring to the game, is typically understood as "an act or event that is clearly false".

Novel Notes

This chapter was made possible in part through the support of my Patrons, olivertwisted, Bob Oakley, KoonSquad_Doge, PikaPower, Kenny Calderon, and Radical Dragon. Thank you!

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Underworld Player Chapter 86 - Heh, Mediocre Mentalities

Translator Notes

Novel Notes

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