WTNL Chapter 8.2

Decai Middle School
Chapter 8.2

Before one of the eyeballs rolled in their direction, Wen Jianyan swiftly shut the crack, blocking her line of sight.

His palm rested soundlessly against the freezing door panel; he could practically feel the heavy vibrations brought on by the footsteps outside.

Seriously…

She truly had nothing to do with looking human anymore.

As the primary target of her aggro, Wen Jianyan’s eyelid twitched ominously.

Time ticked by, minute by minute.

Finally, after an unknown amount of time, the footsteps loitering outside the door gradually faded into the distance until they disappeared entirely.

Wen Jianyan let out a sigh of relief.

Once the greatest threat had temporarily departed, his mind began spinning rapidly.

His most urgent task next was to complete the mission of finding the face. If he failed to find Xu Yuan’s face before the deadline, he didn’t know what would happen, nor did he want to gamble on that possibility.

However, the current situation was exceedingly unfavorable to him.

Whether it was the mutated NPC whose aggro was completely locked onto him, or that group of veteran streamers who wanted to track him down, take his items, and sell him out to the NPC to save their own skins, he had been pushed straight into the eye of the storm. One wrong step, and he would be utterly doomed.

Operating alone at this juncture was extremely unwise.

Wen Jianyan turned his head to look at the streamer he had just saved.

It was a rather lean young man.

Black hair, brown eyes, proper features that lacked any aggression, carrying a refined, quiet student aura instead. In the real world, he was the exact type to be praised as a stylish, handsome guy.

Wen Jianyan narrowed his eyes thoughtfully, his gaze sweeping over the other’s pale, sweat-soaked, panic-stricken face.

He remembered this person.

He had watched the incident in the cafeteria from the sidelines earlier, and this streamer had caught his attention back then.

A rookie.

Inexperienced, yet possessing decent powers of observation and analysis.

Calm under pressure, not prone to screaming recklessly.

More importantly, since he was wandering the corridors right now, he was definitely trying to complete the newly issued main mission.

—Either he had the ambition and desire to seize greater benefits, or he was forced by circumstances to take risks.

Either way, there was an angle to exploit.

A faint smile brushed past Wen Jianyan’s lips, like a breeze causing fleeting ripples.

For some reason, Su Cheng suddenly shuddered.

?

What was that?

Clearly, the NPC outside should have already left.

Puzzled, he rubbed his nose.

Just then, the young man by the door turned around and walked over, step by step.

As the distance closed, Su Cheng couldn’t help but widen his eyes slightly.

The other had long taken off his glasses, completely shedding that gentle, green persona. Without the barrier of lenses, a pair of light-colored eyes appeared sharp and clear.

At this moment, those eyes were looking straight at him unblinkingly, inexplicably conveying an open, upright sincerity.

Su Cheng stammered:

“Y-you are…”

The young man stood ramrod straight like a pine, gazing directly at him with solemn earnestness.

He pulled out a palm-sized leather wallet from his breast pocket, flicked it open before Su Cheng’s eyes, his voice carrying an unhurried sense of authority:

“Xu Wen. Badge number 598405.”

“…?!”

Su Cheng was utterly flabbergasted.

In the dark, the credential in the young man’s hand flashed by.

After freezing for two seconds, Su Cheng finally snapped back to reality.

The other man seemed not to notice his reaction. Frowning, he stuffed the wallet back into his pocket and continued:

“Over the past five years, the number of violent deaths and disappearances at Decai Middle School has been abnormally high. Yet every investigation ended up unresolved, as if some invisible force was constantly obstructing our efforts. That is why I came undercover as an intern teacher. However, I didn’t come on an official assignment this time. In truth, I…”

The young man paused, taking a deep breath:

“I came to find my sister.”

“Sister…?” Su Cheng froze, his eyes widening slightly.

“Xu Yuan. She went missing at Decai Middle School three months ago.”

The young man lowered his eyes, concealing a flash of pain deep within: “All my efforts yielded nothing, so I had no choice but to hide my identity and infiltrate the school to search. But then—”

He swept a glance toward the closed door, speaking with lingering dread:

“Just now… what on earth was that thing?”

—A sick product cooked up by some perverted livestream to torment us.

Naturally, Su Cheng wouldn’t say that to the NPC before him.

He merely shook his head: “I… I’m not sure either.”

However, since the old witch had been brought up, Su Cheng naturally remembered something. Pondering for a moment, he asked tactfully: “By the way, Teacher Yang said downstairs earlier that she seemed to have lost something? Could it be…”

He had originally prepared himself for the other party refusing to disclose anything, but unexpectedly, Wen Jianyan nodded calmly and replied openly: “That’s right, it was me.”

He pulled out an old key from his pocket:

“This is currently my only clue.”

Su Cheng: “!!!”

Based on his years of experience playing puzzle-solving games, whether it was the background story displayed or the special item held, this person was definitively a key NPC!

“Let me help you!” he volunteered eagerly.

The young man was startled: “No.”

He furrowed his brows tightly, refusing flatly: “This matter is far too dangerous, not something middle school students like you should be involved in. I cannot drag you into peril.”

“You saw that monster just now. Do you think something like that would happen in a normal world? If you’re on your own, you will never find your sister,” Su Cheng said in all seriousness.

The eyes of the young man claiming to be Xu Wen flickered, a visible trace of hesitation crossing his face.

Seeing the other waver, Su Cheng hurriedly stepped forward, racking his brain to sell himself with all his might:

“Since things have come to this, there’s no need for me to hide anything from you. In truth, I’m not a student of this school either. I have channels to obtain various supernatural items. If push comes to shove, trust me, I… I will definitely be very useful to you.”

He appealed to emotion and reason, trying to persuade him:

“Coming here this time, you probably defied orders from your superiors, right? You two must have a very close bond. You definitely want to find her safe and sound, don’t you?”

Silence fell over the room.

Su Cheng waited on pins and needles.

Finally, after an unknown amount of time, the young man seemed to compromise, slowly letting out a breath and relenting:

“…No matter what happens later, you must follow my orders.”

“!”

Su Cheng’s eyes lit up, agreeing instantly for fear the other might regret it: “No problem!”

Inside Channel 789326qwk:

[…It’s been a long time since I’ve seen someone rush so eagerly to sell themselves out (.]

[Haven’t you noticed? From the very start, the streamer has been using conversation traps to guide the other streamer. Whether it’s about his identity or anything else, he reveals three parts and conceals seven. He even brushed off how he got the item from the old witch, and seamlessly guided him to where they need to go next… pure genius.]

[Yeah, yeah! To team up with this fake NPC, that streamer not only has to obey him unconditionally, but is also ready to offer up items from the system shop out of his own pocket. He practically just needs to sign a deed of sale!]

[Damn, I actually feel pity for him.]

[Such a pitiful streamer, hahahahahahaha I can’t even.]

[Hahahahahahaha dying of laughter, victim +1.]

Wen Jianyan let out a brief smile.

Placing a victim in an unstable mental state and manipulating them through external danger and high pressure was a common formula for fraud.

The livestream itself had already completed the hardest step for him.

By using the death countdown and the threat of ghosts, it had created a perilous slaughterhouse, making everyone inside high-strung and neurotic.

Theoretically, anyone caught in such volatile emotions would easily place blind trust in authority, becoming the easiest target to crack.

Just like just now.

The dim environment, an already validated NPC identity, and the other party’s habitual mindset regarding “game clues”—with just a little exploitation, he could easily make the other dance to his tune.

Su Cheng: “Then… where are we going next?”

Wen Jianyan: “To the teaching building.”

The locker number on Xu Yuan’s note was definitely an important clue.

He looked up, gently patted the other’s shoulder, and said softly, “I’ll go check the situation in the hallway.”

—Increase physical contact to cultivate subconscious trust.

—Proactively offer help so the other becomes accustomed to relying on him as the dominant party.

Wen Jianyan was long practiced in these little tricks; they were second nature to him.

Su Cheng’s expression noticeably relaxed, and he nodded: “Okay.”

Wen Jianyan pulled open the door and tiptoed into the corridor.

Watching the other’s figure vanish into the dark, Su Cheng exhaled as if relieved of a heavy burden and leaned against the wall.

He opened his own live broadcast room.

Seeing the viewer count, Su Cheng widened his eyes slightly.

The number, which had only been a few hundred earlier, had surged madly at some point and was now bordering on a thousand!

“Th-this many people? Thank you, everyone, for the support,” he said, somewhat flattered.

Unexpectedly, although the viewer count had multiplied, the comments were sparse, with only a few unrelated remarks drifting across the screen.

Su Cheng didn’t notice this.

Taking a deep breath, he analyzed with solemn earnestness: “I think I might be touching upon the deeper world-building of this instance now. That older brother’s storyline sounds crucial right off the bat…”

The comment section was filled with gloating laughter:

[Hahahahaha please, stop analyzing, I can’t bear to keep watching…]

[It sure sounds crucial, if you ignore the fact that the storyline was completely made up by the other guy… hahahahaha!]

Some viewers were exasperated:

[Damn it, the guy opposite you is a scammer! Wake up, streamer, don’t let yourself get completely bamboozled!]

[Some of the above user comments involve streamers from the same lobby and will only be visible to the audience.]

Su Cheng was completely oblivious to these comments.

After diligently analyzing the potential plot direction, he found that his room’s popularity had risen even higher. Inevitably feeling flattered, he became even more convinced that his deductions were correct.

Just then, Wen Jianyan silently leaned back in and gestured to him:

“It’s safe outside. Let’s go.”

The young man was tall and slender, his eyes clear, his expression calm and cautious, exuding an immense sense of security.

Staring at the other’s retreating back, Su Cheng turned to his live broadcast room and sighed with genuine emotion:

“This NPC is truly such a good person.”

Comments:

[……………]

[This isn’t just getting bamboozled; you’ve literally been sold out and are still happily counting the money for him!]

__

Author’s Note:

Not only infiltrated the NPC faction, but even successfully wrote himself a backstory

Xiao Wen: How is this called scamming? This is called artistic creation (righteous)

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