Chapter 85
According to the instance’s settings, the guide NPC, Qiao Ke, would wake up at dawn. At this thought, Jiang Liu’s expression instantly turned grave. She reached out and pressed down on Zhang Xiaochen’s shoulder. “Then what about you?”
Zhang Xiaochen had, in a sense, betrayed Qiao Ke. Given that man’s vengeful nature, he would definitely not let him off easy.
In contrast to Jiang Liu’s tension, after saying what he had to say, Zhang Xiaochen let out a long sigh of relief, as if a long-held tension had finally been released. He suddenly stretched his arms wide, as if he hadn’t heard Jiang Liu’s question, and muttered to himself.
“I’ve finally said it all. You know my personality; I was about to suffocate all this time. So what’s the deal between you and Sister Yang? How long have you been alive?”
He stared at Jiang Liu curiously, as if studying an object, eager to dig out all her little secrets.
Jiang Liu shook her head and confessed, “I don’t know.”
Zhang Xiaochen shrugged. “It doesn’t matter anymore. Qiao Ke is determined to get rid of you. He hopes to guide you into remembering many things. I don’t know his reasons for doing so, but I hope you’ll persevere.”
He mimicked Jiang Liu’s past actions and patted her on the shoulder, something he would never have dared to do before.
“Help me take care of Jiang He. He has a bright future ahead of him when he gets out. He can’t be held back in this godforsaken place. There are many things I can’t explain in a short time. I’ve recorded them all in my memo. You should study it carefully.”
These words coming from him didn’t sound like a good sign at all. Jiang Liu keenly sensed the implication behind his words. She didn’t answer his statement but instead stared at him intently and pressed, “Then what will happen to you?”
Zhang Xiaochen didn’t speak, but his gaze looked deeply downward. Jiang He had run downstairs at some point and was anxiously kicking the door.
A light smile suddenly appeared on his lips, and his eyes grew moist. “He’s always been a great runner, much better than me.”
After saying this, as if his mission was completely finished, he slowly stepped back from Jiang Liu. “You should go back. This instance is about to end.”
As his voice fell, a series of clanging sounds suddenly entered Jiang Liu’s ears. It was the points being settled.
The only opposing faction had given up the mission. Jiang Liu had won, and the instance was automatically settling.
Realizing this, Jiang Liu’s expression changed drastically. She quickly reached out to grab the receding figure. “What will be the consequences for you?”
Zhang Xiaochen remained silent, his figure just growing more distant. No matter how fast Jiang Liu ran, she couldn’t catch up to him.
With the help of the various props Qiao Ke had provided him, her efforts were futile.
The entire sea surged, and the roaring waves were about to crash ashore. The immense sound couldn’t drown out the cheers of the players. They didn’t know what had happened, only that this seaside journey was finally coming to an end.
Amidst the clamor, Zhang Xiaochen was just a blurry figure, seemingly walking towards the sea.
Jiang Liu gave up the chase. Everything before her was rapidly retreating. The two-story building beneath her was even gradually becoming transparent. She could clearly see all the lab personnel standing frozen in place like disconnected robots, with only a single figure turning to look in her direction.
A white lab coat and a familiar pair of gold-rimmed glasses. It was Qiao Ke.
He was smiling at her.
Jiang Liu felt her hands and feet turn cold, as if her whole body had sunk into the icy depths of the sea. Suddenly thinking of something, she stopped looking at Qiao Ke and instead ran wildly towards the iron cages.
The system had already finished calculating the points and was mechanically announcing the results. Jiang Liu ignored the voice and just charged forward like a madwoman.
All the Mermaids by the sea had already returned to the ocean under Lin Sa’s lead, leaving only a group of players staring at her figure with heads full of question marks. Jiang Liu hurriedly scanned the area, finally stopping, out of breath. She grabbed Gao Yuan, who was lying by the sea, and strode towards the iron cage.
Gao Yuan, who thought his mission was complete, was bewildered. “??? Wait, what are you doing?”
Jiang Liu didn’t speak. She grabbed him by the collar and practically dragged him into the iron cage, slamming the gate shut with a clang.
She ignored the shocked and surprised gazes of the crowd. Under everyone’s watchful eyes, she tilted her head up slightly towards the sky. Although beads of sweat were falling from her forehead and her breathing was still unsteady, her voice was calm.
“I want to report a bug.”
Jiang Liu took a couple of breaths and pointed at the distraught Gao Yuan behind her, her voice resounding. “A Mermaid has not been fully rescued. The mission is not complete. The NPC for this instance, Qiao Ke, has made an error.”
As her voice fell, the electronic voice that had been settling the score was interrupted. It quickly responded, “Player report detected. This Mermaid is not part of—”
Before it could finish, the electronic voice suddenly fell silent. A piercing sound of static screeched in the players’ ears, as if the microphone had been snatched by someone. After a series of stumbling, strange noises, the electronic voice returned.
But what it said was the complete opposite.
“Player report detected. Number 082’s race is: Mermaid.”
“Report confirmed. The supervisor of this instance is requested to report to the Inspection Team for investigation immediately. Players, please continue the game.”
The howling waves stopped, and the two-story building that was about to collapse returned to its original state. The sea became calm, leaving only Gao Yuan with a head full of question marks.
Jiang Liu hurriedly apologized, but didn’t explain much. She just glanced around and looked at Xu Shu. “Where’s Xiao Si?”
Xu Shu was completely bewildered by her actions, but having dealt with Jiang Liu before, he wisely chose to trust her. Hearing her question, he was stunned for a moment before quickly shaking his head. “I don’t know. That young man ran off. She was just here a moment ago.”
Now that Jiang Liu mentioned it, it seemed he had also just realized Yang Caisi was missing.
Jiang Liu frowned. She told him to calm the players and have them wait a little longer, and to also keep an eye on Gao Yuan and not let him out, before hurriedly running in another direction.
That was the seaside where Zhang Xiaochen had disappeared.
When Jiang Liu arrived, Zhang Xiaochen and Jiang He were sitting on the beach talking. At this distance, she couldn’t hear what they were discussing, only that the two of them, for once, were not bickering.
Seemingly sensing Jiang Liu’s arrival, Zhang Xiaochen did something, and Jiang He suddenly slumped to the ground. The former stood up helplessly. “I knew you were the most troublesome one. Why aren’t you leaving when you can?”
It was a good thing she could think of a way to keep the mission going. Who knew how her brain was wired.
This person was just like when they first met, with a messy mop of yellow hair and a face that looked hard to mess with. His tone was fierce and his speech was vulgar, but he was genuinely trying to help.
The apprehension in Jiang Liu’s heart finally settled. For once, she didn’t rebut his words but instead walked over to check on Jiang He. “What did you do to him?”
Zhang Xiaochen pursed his lips and looked towards the distant sea. “I’m a despicable person. I can’t let him know what I’ve done.”
As long as Jiang He thought he was dead, he would forget his existence forever after leaving, forget what had happened here.
He was still young and had a bright future ahead of him. He shouldn’t be held back.
After speaking, he turned to Jiang Liu. “You can’t delay for long like this. I’ll be taken away by Qiao Ke eventually. But that’s fine. I just remembered something I forgot to tell you.”
“As NPCs, Qiao Ke and Yang Caisi clearly have more power in the system. Have you noticed?”
Jiang Liu nodded, patiently listening to him finish.
Zhang Xiaochen grinned, revealing his signature smug expression. “I secretly inquired. The two of them have deep connections with the system, possibly related to you.”
The strange stutter of the electronic voice from before flashed through Jiang Liu’s mind.
Although the voice sounded identical, she had a gut feeling that the two voices speaking before and after were two different people.
“And,” Zhang Xiaochen’s voice continued, “there’s a hidden gallery in my phone. It contains photos of the players Yang Caisi has supervised. You must see it.”
[Bug has been fixed. Players, please gather at the exit as soon as possible.]
[Congratulations, players, on successfully completing the mission. This settlement…]
The system’s electronic voice sounded almost simultaneously with his. The once calm waves surged again, making Zhang Xiaochen, standing by the sea, look even more solitary, as if he would be swept away by the waves in the next moment.
“What can I do?” Jiang Liu’s throat felt tight. She wanted to step forward and grab him but was pushed back by the howling sea wind. The wind seemed to have a mind of its own, trying everything to prevent her from getting close.
In the time it took to say a single sentence, she had been blown about three meters away from Zhang Xiaochen. She could only see him turn his head and open his mouth, but she didn’t know what he said. In an instant, a shark that came with the waves pounced on him, its bloody maw clamping down on half his body. His legs struggled for a moment before going still.
A cold sweat broke out all over Jiang Liu’s body. She shouted his name loudly, but the life-filled wind had already blown her to the iron cage. Gao Yuan, who had been locked inside, had already regained his human legs and was waving at her with a team of players behind him.
“I…” Jiang Liu kept looking back, wanting to say something more, but she saw Gao Yuan shake his head at her, motioning for Tang Rui to pick up the unconscious Jiang He and lead them away.
As he moved forward, the surrounding scenery flew by. They seemed to be shuttling between countless islands, and when they stopped, they had already arrived at the entrance to the public area.
Jiang Liu’s throat felt a little dry. She subconsciously turned her head to look, but all she saw were churning waves, faintly tinged with blood.
The public area was dark, and the air was filled with the damp smell of earth. A light rain was falling from the sky, the raindrops hidden in the mist, casting a soft glow around the streetlights.
It wasn’t until she was registering that Jiang Liu finally recovered from her unspeakable emotions. Facing a grave-looking Gao Yuan, she opened her mouth. “Where’s Xiao Si?”
Gao Yuan shook his head with a bitter smile. “It’s a bit complicated. You need to rest well now. We’ll talk tomorrow morning.”
It wasn’t just Jiang Liu; even he, after the series of events by the sea, looked somewhat dejected. A green stubble had already appeared, and he had an air of unspeakable exhaustion about him.
Jiang Liu rubbed her temples and had no choice but to agree.
Watching Gao Yuan finish his instructions and turn to plunge into the rain, a flash of inspiration struck Jiang Liu. She felt like she had forgotten to remind him of something. She stared at the raindrops for a long time but couldn’t remember what it was, so she had to let it go.