TTGOL CH78
by AriaChapter 78: Human World (1)
Black Hat not only possessed the Fifth Movement but had also somehow managed to acquire the Twelfth completely undetected. Using both simultaneously was truly astonishing.
At this point, Jin Cheng couldn’t temporarily grasp Black Hat’s intentions, so blindly confronting him was out of the question. He made a prompt decision—they would first go to the Ruby Tavern to find K.
Just like Black Hat’s Grocery Store, the Ruby Tavern was a chain, so naturally, there was one in Zone E.
The waiter recognized Jin Cheng’s face and respectfully approached him, but when Jin Cheng asked about K’s whereabouts, he shook his head and said, “I apologize, sir, but my boss is not currently in Zone E.”
Jin Cheng raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure he’s not here?”
“He really isn’t.”
“Alright.”
As the word “alright” fell, before the waiter could even breathe a sigh of relief, a tangible, suffocating pressure descended upon him. “Go tell your boss I will wait for him for fifteen minutes.”
With that, Jin Cheng led Tang Cuo straight into the nearest private booth.
Door closed. They took their seats.
Tang Cuo stated plainly, “K is clearly avoiding you.”
Jin Cheng: “That’s perfectly normal. His relationship with Black Hat is much deeper than with me. But that doesn’t necessarily mean he’s on the same side as Black Hat. He might know about the Twelfth Movement, but he might not know exactly what Black Hat plans to do with it.”
“Black Dragon Scale, Pale Heart, Drake Gem, Spark of Forgiveness. What are these four items used for?”
“I don’t know either.”
“You don’t know?”
“I’ve only been in Yong Ye City for three years.”
Jin Cheng spread his hands. “The only certainty is that these four items are absolutely crucial and possess functions we are unaware of. Moreover, judging by their names, they likely drop from Western Fantasy instances.”
Tang Cuo immediately thought of the Kingdom Hidden in Moonlight. Truthfully, what bothered him most about this Black Hat incident was the timing. It wasn’t Black Hat’s first day holding the Fifth Movement, so why choose now to issue the edicts?
A few days ago, the news of Tang Cuo and Jin Cheng triggering a hidden instance had conveniently been leaked to K, and only then had K brought them information concerning Lin Yandong.
K interacted with Black Hat, and Black Hat just happened to mention four items whose names sounded like they came from a Western Fantasy instance. Was there a connection between these events?
Jin Cheng shared this suspicion, but without solid proof, saying more was useless. Furthermore, since these items were instance drops, for Black Hat to be willing to use the Twelve Movements in exchange for them meant they were definitely extremely rare, so they could put that aside for now.
However, the advertisement he placed using the Twelfth Movement was highly problematic.
“The Twelfth Movement couldn’t possibly be used just to run an advertisement. This Dream Infinite Market is most likely an item trading system reliant on Yong Ye City,” Jin Cheng stated.
“Why would Black Hat open a grocery store?” Tang Cuo suddenly asked.
“Around seven years ago. But he didn’t become a civil servant right upon entering Yong Ye City; he only changed professions after reaching Zone A.”
“He knows Lin Yandong.”
“Exactly.” Jin Cheng snapped his fingers. “Whether they are ordinary players or Official Players, there must be existences closer to the truth than we are. Compared to Lin Yandong, Black Hat, and K, the things we know are still far too few. There’s also a reclusive fortuneteller in Zone B; that person is very eerie.”
“A fortuneteller?”
“He’s also an Official Player, and his ability is prophecy. He opened a divination room, but it only opens once every three months, and he only serves three people each time. I went there once, and she told me that in April of this year, my life would encounter a major turning point.”
April? Wasn’t that exactly when Tang Cuo arrived in Yong Ye City? It was the beginning of everything.
Tang Cuo couldn’t help but recall their unfinished conversation in the movie theater, but he knew now wasn’t the time to bring it up. Right at that moment, someone finally knocked on the booth’s door.
“Yo,” K walked in, his flashy purple suit almost his trademark attire. He glanced left and right, instinctively moving to sit next to Tang Cuo because he absolutely did not want to sit next to Jin Cheng.
But just as he was about to sit down, Jin Cheng stretched out a long leg, blocking his path. He then stood up directly, sat next to Tang Cuo, and with a cold face, signaled for K to sit across from them.
“Is this really necessary?” K was speechless.
“Very.” Jin Cheng crossed his legs, resting an arm on the back of the sofa, looking every bit like a loan shark boss here to collect a debt. Knowing his temper, K helplessly spread his hands. “You can’t pin Black Hat’s actions on me.”
Jin Cheng smiled. “Are you saying you had no part in the Twelfth Movement?”
K: “I’m a businessman. Whoever buys intel from me, as long as they can afford the price, I’ll provide it. You never even asked me if I had clues about the Twelfth Movement, so how can you blame me?”
Jin Cheng: “So it’s my fault?”
K spread his hands, a smile lingering at the corners of his mouth.
Two smiling tigers confronted each other across the table, neither able to see through the other’s true intentions. Suddenly, Jin Cheng said, “Do you dare guarantee you didn’t leak my intel to Black Hat?”
K: “That would violate my professional ethics.”
Jin Cheng: “But K, Black Hat’s two edicts are not a matter of ethics or not. You should know what consequences this will bring. Even if you don’t care what happens to ordinary players, and you don’t need to care, are you really going to oppose me for Black Hat? Who do you think the remaining seven Movements will fall to—me, or Black Hat?”
K’s smile faded slightly, a trace of coldness seeping into his gaze.
Jin Cheng remained perfectly at ease, his eyes lowered as he watched his fingertips lightly tap against the tabletop. “Destroying him is just a matter of using one Movement. Do you honestly think that because I used the first two Movements to do good deeds, I’m actually a saint?”
A naked threat.
For K to establish himself in Yong Ye City running an intel business, he naturally possessed unique abilities; even Lin Yandong wouldn’t dare move against him lightly. Looking across all the zones, only a madman like Jin Cheng would dare threaten to kill him right to his face.
But K had to admit, Jin Cheng had the strength to back it up.
“I truly did not intentionally leak any intel about you to Black Hat, nor did he ask. I was just as surprised by his stunt today,” K’s tone softened. “I asked Black Hat in the past what he planned to do with the Fifth Movement, but he didn’t answer. To catch you off guard like this, he definitely wouldn’t let any information leak beforehand. If you want to ask around, you might be better off asking the boss lady.”
Jin Cheng: “What are those four items used for?”
K raised an eyebrow. “Now that’s going to cost you points.”
Jin Cheng countered, “Do you actually have intel on that?”
“Well, no.”
“Then put it on my tab.”
Two people putting things on a tab, each sounding more self-righteous than the last—Tang Cuo finally understood exactly how these two had connected.
“What about the Dream Infinite Market? If you don’t even know about this, just close your business.”
“Tsk.” K started mimicking Jin Cheng. He found this sound perfectly expressed his inner emotions. However, he couldn’t smash his own signboard; he still had to do business with Jin Cheng.
He organized his thoughts and said, “Consider this one a freebie. The Dream Infinite Market is actually a gambling table. You can also view it as a special instance located entirely within Yong Ye City.”
Jin Cheng remained silent, but Tang Cuo spoke up instead. “The players are the gamblers. What are they betting? Who are they betting against? And who is the dealer?”
K looked at Jin Cheng’s little disciple, who had remained exceptionally calm from beginning to end, feeling quite intrigued. “You bet everything you own. You can bet against the system, or players can bet against each other. The dealer is Black Hat. He takes a cut of the profits from every game as his commission.”
Tang Cuo: “He doesn’t participate himself?”
K chuckled. He noticed that Tang Cuo managed to hit the nail on the head every single time. “I wouldn’t rule out that possibility.”
Jin Cheng, however, asked him, “Is your face cramping?”
K: “???”
Jin Cheng: “If it’s cramping, go get it treated.”
K: “Is there something wrong with you?”
I’m cooperating this much, and you’re saying my face is cramping?! K was absolutely infuriated. Rolling his eyes, he wanted nothing more than to kick the man out.
Jin Cheng wasn’t exactly thrilled to stay here either. This flashy, flamboyant guy in his purple suit didn’t look straight at all, and he kept smiling at Tang Cuo. Furthermore, Jin Cheng didn’t completely believe everything K had just said.
Players in Yong Ye City were all lying ghosts.
Finally, Jin Cheng tossed down some points for the tea and said, “Tell Black Hat not to provoke me.”
Leaving the bar, Jin Cheng’s face was grim. The smile on his lips was barely there, terrifyingly cold, and his gaze looked ready to kill anyone who crossed his path. Rarely seeing him like this, Tang Cuo asked, “Is the situation that bad?”
Jin Cheng: “Extremely bad.”
Tang Cuo: “?”
Jin Cheng: “Delaying someone’s major life event will get you struck by lightning.”
That damn old dog Black Hat! Of all the times to pull a stunt, he had to pick the exact moment I was confessing. He deserves to be dumped by his lover and stay single for the rest of his life!
Tang Cuo was rendered speechless.
Right there on the street, in broad daylight, Jin Cheng blocked his path. “Don’t you have anything to say?”
Tang Cuo: “?”
Jin Cheng: “For example, seeing that I’m in an extremely bad mood, shouldn’t you coax me a little?”
Tang Cuo looked around. There were even fewer people on the street now, everyone hurrying along. Some were even squatting by the roadside with their heads in their hands, unmoving, radiating pain and helplessness. He said, “The other players look like they’re in an even worse mood than you.”
“But only when I’m in a good mood can I better figure out how to solve the problem, right?” Jin Cheng saw the situation around them too, but he never let himself get bogged down by the suffering of others.
Tang Cuo felt this logic was truly flawless, but asking him to coax someone was impossible. He ruthlessly sidestepped Jin Cheng and kept walking, saying, “Wen Xiaoming is probably looking for you.”
Wen Xiaoming had indeed arrived in Zone E. Hearing the system broadcast, he immediately rushed over, bringing news about Black Hat.
“Before I came here, Miao Qi found me and said they were investigating Black Hat. He also said we shouldn’t make any moves for now; Lin Yandong will personally go meet him.”
This was unexpected. Jin Cheng hadn’t anticipated that Black Hat alone could draw Lin Yandong out from behind the scenes. These two must have known each other in the past. Perhaps Lin Yandong knew what Black Hat intended to do with those four materials.
Stroking his chin, Jin Cheng asked, “How many days has it been since you entered an instance?”
Wen Xiaoming: “Three days.”
Jin Cheng: “Don’t rush to enter one yet, just keep an eye on the time limit. Over the next few days, go find Chi Yan. Ask An Ning and her teammates to keep an eye on the grocery stores. Remember, I only want them to watch and record Black Hat’s movements; they don’t need to interfere with anything else. As for their payment, figure it out yourself.”
“Got it,” Wen Xiaoming agreed swiftly, then asked, “Do we need to watch the grocery stores in every zone?”
Jin Cheng: “Focus on Zone A and Zone E. Have Lily watch Zone A.”
Having received his orders, Wen Xiaoming left as fast as the wind. Jin Cheng and Tang Cuo then headed straight for the Central District, arriving once again at the somewhat inauthentic Izakaya.
The Izakaya’s business was as terrible as ever. When the two lifted the curtain and walked in, there wasn’t a single customer inside. The boss lady leaned against the sink, smoking. Her bright lipstick stained the cigarette filter, her figure as hot as ever.
Her eyes were downcast, and she seemed to be in a foul mood, not even greeting them when she saw them out of the corner of her eye. Only when Jin Cheng walked up close and tapped the counter with a smile did she finally look over.
“He’s not here.” Three crisp, clean words.
“Who’s not here?” Jin Cheng asked with a smile.
“Asking a question you already know the answer to.” The boss lady shot him a sideways glance, flicked her ash, and said, “The Twelve Movements business has nothing to do with me. You’d better stop bothering me with this crap, otherwise, even if you two are handsome, this old lady will still throw you out.”
Jin Cheng spread his hands, looking innocently at Tang Cuo.
Tang Cuo then said, “We’re not here to ask about that. We just want to ask you, Big Sister, about someone—Lin Yandong.”
The boss lady blew out a puff of smoke, raising her delicate eyebrows in slight surprise.
A faint smile touched Tang Cuo’s lips. “You know Lin Yandong, right, Big Sister? Lin Yandong said he can’t leave Zone A, yet he made a deal with us. We want to know exactly what happened between him and Yong Ye City. We’re afraid he might screw us over.”
“You’re quite interesting, little handsome guy,” the boss lady said, reaching out to touch Tang Cuo’s face. Her smile was alluring, her smiling eyes seemingly bearing hooks.
But halfway there, Jin Cheng intercepted her hand. “Boss lady, you’re playing favorites. After all the times you’ve complimented me in the past, you never once made a move.”
“Tch,” the boss lady swatted his hand away. “You? You’d be better off becoming a monk.”
It wasn’t that the boss lady hadn’t tried to flirt with him; it was just that this heartless, dead-straight guy was completely immune to flirting. Thinking about it made her angry, which made Tang Cuo look even more pleasing to her eyes. Look at this face—so proper, so handsome.
However, Jin Cheng’s protective intent was far too obvious. Not wanting to ruin the mood, the boss lady simply looked at Tang Cuo with a beaming smile and said, “I’ll accept you calling me Big Sister. Kids with sweet mouths get candy.”
__
Author’s Note:
Jin-ge: He’s never smiled at me like that. (Smiles)
0 Comments