Chapter 121

The next morning, when Jiang Liu entered the dining hall, the first thing she saw was not chaos and panic. Players were gathered in small groups of two or three, their anxiety from the previous night gone. It was as if they had completely relaxed, convinced that the monsters couldn’t get into the hotel.

Tang Ruo and Xu Meng sat beside her. Both women looked somewhat haggard, with faint dark circles under their eyes. They probably hadn’t slept well and appeared listless. Even so, when they heard Jiang Liu’s proposal to go outside and take a look, their first reaction was still to frown and try to dissuade her.

“I still think it’s too dangerous outside. Should we observe the situation a little longer?”

Tang Ruo looked at Jiang Liu with some concern. “At the very least, the hotel is completely safe. We don’t need to be in such a hurry.”

Her voice was a bit hoarse as she spoke, and it seemed it wasn’t just from a lack of rest; it sounded strangely grating.

Jiang Liu took in her expression, unable to help but recall Xu Meng’s strange behavior the night before. She raised an eyebrow slightly and looked at her probingly. “Don’t you want to leave the game sooner?”

Tang Ruo was taken aback by the question and subconsciously tapped the table. “Of course I want to leave, but…”

She stopped mid-sentence, suddenly hesitant as if she didn’t know how to express herself. She could only mull over her words, stumbling for a long while before finally saying blankly, “Can you guarantee your own safety?”

Although her words and actions were strange, the concern in her eyes didn’t seem fake. She was genuinely worried about Jiang Liu’s safety.

A warmth bloomed in Jiang Liu’s heart, and she subconsciously broke into a smile. It was faint, but she nodded with exceptional certainty. “Don’t worry, I’m confident.”

Tang Ruo and Xu Meng exchanged a glance, as if they had finally made up their minds, and said in unison, “Alright, then you go ahead and…”

Before they could finish, they were interrupted by a shout that grew louder as it approached.

“Make way, food’s here!”

The three of them looked in the direction of the voice and saw Zhao Ziming and his companions squeezing through with several plates. Seeing their gazes, he even raised his eyebrows quite smugly.

“There are too many players, you have to fight for breakfast. Good thing I’m quick.”

Zhao Ziming chuckled, and he and Tang Rui placed the plates down, taking seats opposite them. He casually glanced at the three of them and asked, “What were you all talking about just now?”

Everyone at the table was hungry and busy distributing the steamed buns, so no one answered immediately. It was Jiang Liu who replied casually, “I’m going out to take a look later.”

Zhao Ziming let out an “oh” and eagerly raised his hand. “Then I’ll go with you. Let’s not go too far.”

This was something the two had agreed on last night, so there was no need to discuss the details. The strange thing was, as soon as Zhao Ziming finished speaking, Tang Ruo, who had just been supportive of Jiang Liu, abruptly changed her mind.

“That’s not a good idea. There are too many monsters outside. It’s better to just stay here obediently.”

Jiang Liu’s hand, which was reaching for a bun, paused as she glanced at the person beside her in surprise.

Was this self-contradictory person really the same decisive and straightforward Tang Ruo from before?

“We can’t just sit here and wait for death. Don’t you trust Sister Jiang’s abilities?” Zhao Ziming scoffed, assuming she was just scared, and patted his chest proudly. “Don’t worry, we’ll be back soon.”

Tang Ruo exchanged a look with the others and reluctantly agreed.

No one else at the table, aside from Zhao Ziming, spoke again. They just ate in silence, which immediately created a strange feeling.

Jiang Liu felt someone kick her under the table. When she looked up, she saw Zhao Ziming winking at her, his expression seeming to say, ‘See, I told you there was something wrong with them.’ She pretended not to see and instead studied the food on the table, lost in thought.

She had heard from Gao Yuan before that the hotel’s dining hall was run by members of the Logistics Team. All the dishes could meet the players’ demands, which was a way of giving players a comfortable environment in the public area. But that was before. Now that monsters were at their doorstep and all the NPCs were nowhere to be found, could they still serve meals on time?

Jiang Liu pondered this in silence, staring blankly at the meat buns and white porridge. Then she heard Zhao Ziming’s voice again. “Sister Jiang, why aren’t you eating? You’ll have to fight monsters later, you know?”

He was already half-full and was leaning against the wall, resting contentedly. Seeing Jiang Liu motionless, he considerately pushed a few side dishes toward her. The food here had always been good. Even the cold dishes for breakfast could be described as perfect in color, aroma, and taste. Laid out so plainly before her, it was indeed very appetizing.

Having not eaten for a whole day yesterday, Jiang Liu was already starving. Hearing his words, she thanked him and took a bite of a bun.

Before she could swallow, her phone suddenly vibrated in her pocket. She took it out and saw it was a call from Yang Caisi. Surprise showed on her face, but she was quickly overwhelmed by joy and hurriedly answered.

The other end was silent. All she could hear was a crackling static sound that seemed to echo from a vast, empty space, reverberating in her ear.

Was the signal bad?

She glanced down at her phone and quickly walked out of the dining hall to the entrance of the first-floor lobby.

The signal displayed on the screen was back to full bars, but there was still no sound from the other end of the line. Jiang Liu tried softly calling the person’s name, but there was no response. At some point, the call had been automatically disconnected.

She tried calling back, only to be met with a female voice repeatedly saying the user was unavailable.

A sense of loss crept into her heart. Jiang Liu subconsciously pursed her lips, her fingers clutching the phone tightening.

If this was an Instance, then the fact that Xiao Si’s number could get through proved she must be here somewhere. In that case, her goal was simple: find her.

No matter where she was, as long as she found Yang Caisi, they would find a way out.

Recalling Xiao Si’s face, a smile bloomed on Jiang Liu’s lips, and she strode back into the dining hall.

“Let’s go. Time to check things out.”

She patted Zhao Ziming on the shoulder and had already turned to leave.

Zhao Ziming was startled by her swift and decisive manner. His brain hadn’t caught up yet, and he stared at her blankly for a couple of seconds. “Just go out like this? You haven’t even finished your food!”

“I’m not hungry,” Jiang Liu tossed back, her figure already fading into the distance.

Seeing that she had already left, Zhao Ziming couldn’t be bothered with anything else and quickly trotted after her.

The two stood inside the door, their expressions grave.

“This won’t work. The moment you open the door, they’ll try to rush in,” Zhao Ziming said, crouching down to peer through the crack in the door, a troubled look in his eyes.

Jiang Liu ignored him, her eyes narrowed as she looked outside. Her tone was exceptionally calm as she gave the command, “I’ll go out first and clear a path. You find the right moment to slip out.”

The moment she finished speaking, without waiting for Zhao Ziming’s reply, she had already pulled the door open. Before the nearby monsters could react, her body shot out with a swoosh.

Zhao Ziming was speechless.

Seriously, did you have to be that fast?

He rubbed his face, once again lamenting that Jiang Liu was on a completely different level from ordinary people like them. He gathered himself and crouched by the door, waiting for his chance.

As for Jiang Liu—

As her figure flashed out, the surrounding monsters seemed to sense something and turned in unison to stare in her direction. She chuckled and raised an eyebrow, already gripping her dagger as she charged forward.

To be honest, these things were similar to most of the ghosts and monsters in the Instances. They weren’t difficult to deal with, but their sheer numbers were overwhelming. However, as her blade danced through the air, Jiang Liu soon discovered they weren’t very intelligent. They would only notice and attack when she entered a specific range.

Jiang Liu kicked and broke a Skeleton’s leg bone, using it as a stepping stone to pierce a Female Ghost’s chest. She then shouted to the not-so-distant door, “Come out!”

Zhao Ziming knew his chance had come. Jiang Liu had cleared an open space outside. He mimicked her actions and slipped out, not forgetting to shut the door tightly behind him.

He had just taken a breath of fresh air and hadn’t even steadied himself when he heard something whistling through the air. He vaguely heard Jiang Liu say, “Catch.”

He looked up and saw a blackened leg bone flying straight at his head.

Zhao Ziming wanted to cry but had no tears, thinking to himself, couldn’t she give him a normal weapon?

Grumbling aside, it was still necessary to have something for self-defense. He could only catch the bone club, weighing it in his hand. It was heavy and looked very sturdy.

With a weapon in hand, his courage naturally grew. Zhao Ziming brandished the bone club with dazzling speed and soon rushed to Jiang Liu’s back.

“Where do we go first?”

He smashed a monster’s head with the club and took a moment to shout at Jiang Liu.

Jiang Liu didn’t answer immediately. Her eyes scanned the surroundings before finally landing on the mall not far away.

“Into the mall first!”

She shouted and was already moving swiftly, kicking away a few monsters along the way. Although she wasn’t injured, the bloodstains covering her were a shocking sight.

While running, Jiang Liu also paid attention to the nearby houses and shops. Without exception, their doors were shut tight, looking long deserted.

Did every single NPC really disappear?

Jiang Liu had her doubts, but she didn’t have the mental energy to investigate further right now. She fought her way to the entrance of the mall.

The usually bustling Lost Way Mall was now unnaturally silent. Fortunately, the door wasn’t locked. With quick hands and sharp eyes, Jiang Liu pulled Zhao Ziming inside and yanked down the roller shutter from the inside, instantly shutting all the monsters out.

The moment the roller shutter fell, Zhao Ziming plopped onto the ground, panting heavily. His right hand, holding the bone, was already sore. He shook it a couple of times, but the ache didn’t completely subside.

Jiang Liu turned to see his state and found it amusing. She nudged him with her foot, her tone laced with laughter. “What, been too long since you moved? Can’t handle this little bit of exercise?”

Zhao Ziming rolled his eyes subtly, his tone miserable. “You think everyone’s a freak like you?”

He finally caught his breath and slowly got up from the ground, frowning as he observed the empty mall.

“Not a single person. It’s so strange,” he muttered under his breath. “Sis, if this is an Instance, do you think it’s a post-apocalyptic survival type?”

Jiang Liu shrugged. “How would I know?”

However, it was now basically confirmed that all the buildings could serve as shelters. As long as she cleverly used the buildings to move around, she might be able to make a trip to the NPC Area before dark to see if there were any clues.

As she was calculating in her mind, she casually picked up a chocolate bar from a shelf to tide herself over. Unexpectedly, before she could even unwrap it, a sound suddenly came from outside—

Thump, thump, thump… THUMP, THUMP!

It sounded like something was pounding on the door. The thuds were dull and heavy, but they successfully made Jiang Liu freeze on the spot.

At almost the same time, her phone in her pocket began to vibrate rhythmically.

It was identical to the rhythm of the monster pounding on the door.