Jiang Ye didn't feel relieved by You Ziyu's so-called "helping hand."

On the contrary, his nerves tightened even more!

In truth, this replica of his was physically stronger than Ding Deng.

However, since Ding Deng attacked first, Jiang Ye had to hastily defend himself. His legs were bent, and his upper body was leaning backward—clearly an inefficient posture for exerting force.

As a result, resisting Ding Deng took far more effort than it should have.

If this deadlock continued, Jiang Ye could hold out, but he needed time.

Yet You Ziyu's sudden intervention made him extremely uneasy!

He wasn’t sure if You Ziyu genuinely wanted to help him or had ulterior motives.

He couldn't let the situation spiral further out of control—he had to make a decisive move!

Just before You Ziyu reached out to "snatch the knife"—

Jiang Ye let out a sharp shout.

But he didn’t tell Ding Deng to let go. Instead—

"Golden Light Technique!"

Whoosh—

A golden beam shot straight at Ding Deng’s twisted face!

Jiang Ye aimed for his forehead, but his accuracy was off—the golden light pierced through Ding Deng’s cheek instead, instantly leaving a rice-sized hole in his face!

Ding Deng let out a sudden, agonized scream.

But Jiang Ye wasn’t done!

Taking advantage of Ding Deng’s momentary loss of strength, he twisted the short knife in his grip and plunged it back into Ding Deng!

And that still wasn’t enough!

He then pulled out his own Poison Blade Blood Dagger and viciously stabbed it into Ding Deng’s body!

"Puchi!"

"Puchi!"

The dark-colored dagger was instantly stained with slick, crimson blood!

It was Jiang Ye’s first time killing someone—of course, it wasn't a clean, precise kill.

Instead, he stabbed again and again, his hands trembling violently as he gripped the knife!

You Ziyu had been prepared to kill, but even he had never witnessed such a scene!

He stood there, frozen in shock, unable to react for a long moment. When he finally snapped back to reality, he shouted at Jiang Ye in horror—

"Stop! Jiang Ye, stop right now! Ding Deng is going to die!!"

【Ding! You have killed a Level 0 Player. Congratulations, you have earned +1 Survival Point!】

Jiang Ye was jolted back to his senses by the notification.

"Clang!"

His hand went limp, and the dagger slipped from his grip, clattering to the ground.

But almost instantly, he snatched the Poison Blade Blood Dagger back up, his gaze wary and alert as he turned toward You Ziyu.

Seeing Jiang Ye’s mental state, You Ziyu didn’t dare approach him.

The thought of "accidentally killing Jiang Ye" vanished from his mind immediately.

After all, in a direct confrontation, he had no certainty of winning.

Moreover, Jiang Ye had just gained a Survival Point, which meant he now had the chance to resurrect.

If he killed Jiang Ye now, there was a good chance Jiang Ye would come back, just like Yang Wenchao, and might even turn the tables on him!

At this realization, You Ziyu not only abandoned the idea of killing Jiang Ye but even began to fear him.

He took a few steps back before speaking again in a sharp voice—

"What? Are you planning to kill me too?"

At that moment, the group chat exploded with messages.

【Holy sh*t! The member list just shrank again! Ding Deng from Class 2 is dead!】

【No way! So Ding Deng wasn’t lying when he said Jiang Ye was going to kill him? We just learned the secret of resurrection, and now Jiang Ye already killed someone?!】

【Could it be someone else who killed Ding Deng and framed Jiang Ye? I don’t think Jiang Ye is the type to kill someone unprovoked…】

While the chat buzzed, Jiang Ye kept his eyes locked on You Ziyu as he typed—

【Just now, after Yang Wenchao revealed the secret of resurrection, Ding Deng suddenly ambushed me. I fought back in self-defense and ended up killing him.】

【You Ziyu was at the scene—he can vouch for me.】

You Ziyu, of course, saw Jiang Ye’s message.

After a moment of contemplation, he responded—

【That’s right, I was there. Ding Deng did attack first.】

The chat went silent for a brief moment.

But soon, doubts emerged—

【Still, self-defense doesn’t mean you had to kill him, right? Isn’t this a bit too brutal?】

【Jiang Ye, are you seriously claiming that when you 'defended yourself' and killed Ding Deng, you weren't thinking about earning a Survival Point for resurrection?】

Clearly, Survival Points were at the forefront of everyone’s minds.

The conversation quickly shifted back to that topic.

Lu Shen spoke up—

【Jiang Ye, did you actually get a Survival Point? And did you receive a notification confirming that Survival Points can be used for resurrection?】

Jiang Ye pondered for a moment before replying—

【I did receive a +1 Survival Point notification, but I’m not sure if it can actually be used for resurrection.】

【In fact, before Ding Deng attacked me, I already had doubts about Yang Wenchao’s claims.】

【It’s entirely possible that he made up the idea that Survival Points can be used for resurrection just to manipulate us into killing each other.】

As soon as Jiang Ye said this, the academically gifted students—Wang Lingling, Lu Shen, Xu Yuewan—immediately had a realization.

Resurrection couldn’t possibly be that simple!

There was a real chance that Yang Wenchao had been lying!

But not everyone had a scholar’s mind.

Most of the classmates, already blinded by greed, responded with sarcastic sneers—

【Ha! So now that you’ve earned a Survival Point, you’re pretending it’s useless? That’s like a billionaire saying they don’t care about money!】

【Exactly! You already got the benefits while leaving us to starve—how is this any different from rich people telling us to "work harder"?】

【If we really want to know if Survival Points can be used for resurrection, it’s simple—

Just kill Jiang Ye and see if he comes back!】

Jiang Ye stared at these messages, utterly dumbfounded.

Just yesterday, his classmates weren’t like this at all!

It was obvious—Yang Wenchao’s revelation had stirred up their deepest desires.

Their words were growing more vicious and full of hostility!

And just then, the very person who had arrogantly told everyone not to @ him—Yang Wenchao—suddenly tagged Jiang Ye.

【Hah, accusing me of lying? Do you really understand the consequences of challenging me? @Jiang Ye】

【Since you've already opened a package and gained a Survival Point, who knows when a monster might come after you?】

【Rather than getting killed by some random monster, why not just hand over your life to me?】

【What do you say, Jiang Ye? Want to do me a favor? @Jiang Ye】

Clearly, Yang Wenchao was stirring the pot, enjoying the chaos!

His words instantly fueled the fire.

【Wait, Jiang Ye opened a package? That means he’s going to be hunted by monsters?!】

【Even if he isn’t, he can’t pay his rent—he’s dead either way!】

【So really, Yang Wenchao has a point! If Jiang Ye is doomed anyway, why not let us use him for resurrection?!】

Just as public opinion was overwhelmingly against Jiang Ye—

Wang Lingling stood up and spoke.

【Everyone, calm down!】

【Today, you might justify killing Jiang Ye for a so-called "chance at resurrection." But tomorrow, someone else will use the same excuse to kill you!】

【Put yourselves in his shoes—what if you were the ones labeled as "the ones who should die"?】

【Don’t just focus on the idea that killing could earn you a "resurrection opportunity." What you should be worried about is that you might become someone else's tool for resurrection!】

【We cannot start down this path!】

【We don’t know whether Jiang Ye will be killed by monsters or not.】

【But we absolutely cannot use that as a reason to kill him!】

【And it’s not just about Jiang Ye—every member of the mutual aid group should be protected in the same way!】

After these messages, the chat fell silent for a long time.

Then, after a while, a few female students spoke up in agreement—

【Sister Ling is right! "Do not do to others what you would not want done to yourself!" If we do this to Jiang Ye today, we could be in his position tomorrow!】

【Agreed! We’re human—we’re higher beings! We can’t let ourselves turn into beasts, losing all sense of morality!】

【Supporting Sister Ling! Honestly, having someone like her backing our mutual aid group is our greatest fortune!】

In an instant, Wang Lingling gained widespread support, and her reputation soared even higher.

Of course, words were just words.

No one could say for sure what their classmates were really thinking.

Jiang Ye, seeing that he was no longer the prime target of public outrage, let out a sigh of relief.

He quickly used his fear of being hunted by monsters as an excuse to say his goodbyes to You Ziyu.

At the same time, the looming threat of a monster attack spurred him into action.

He quickly accepted a cleaning task on the 20th floor and took the elevator back up.

However, he didn’t start working right away.

Instead, he first returned to his apartment on the 20th floor.

Inside the apartment, Jiang Ye’s main body and his replica shook hands.

The 1 Survival Point that the replica had earned automatically transferred to his main body.

And at that moment, Jiang Ye received a system notification—

【Would you like to consume 1 Survival Point to create a new replica?】

【Yes / No?】