The nurse’s footsteps approached from a distance. A player was also about to step out of a ward.
Zhao Sanxun’s face was ashen. If he had even five minutes to spare, he was confident he could maneuver to keep the universal keycard.
An unsolvable open plot.
Who would have thought that his earlier strategy of appearing at the last minute in the morgue would now become a boomerang, circling back to hit him?
“Fine, fine…” Zhao Sanxun said “fine” twice in a row. Looking at the detestable smiling face in front of him, he appeared exasperated and threw the keycard over.
Zhou Qi’an, however, retracted his arm and caught it with his other hand, which was hidden behind his back and wearing a glove.
Zhao Sanxun’s expression returned to its initial impassiveness, dark and gloomy.
From the way his face had darkened another shade in an instant, Zhou Qi’an knew he hadn’t been wrong to be cautious. The keycard had most likely been soaked in the other’s poison mist.
Such a dark heart.
Even at this critical juncture, he was still thinking of trying to trap him again.
With his own keycard returned to its rightful owner, Zhou Qi’an didn’t bother bickering with him further. Maintaining a decent smile, he quietly retreated to his patient’s room.
Just you wait.
Zhao Sanxun sneered inwardly at the young man’s departing back.
To go to such lengths to disguise his appearance, there must be someone among the players who wanted to harm Zhou Qi’an. Once he found them and they joined forces, it would be four against one. The other would have plenty of bitter fruit to eat.
On the other side, Zhou Qi’an, having just entered the ward, let out a sigh of relief.
It had gone relatively smoothly.
“I hope Zhao Sanxun knows what’s good for him.”
Smart people are best at using alliances and strategies. If there really were players scheming for the holy artifact, he would have to trouble Zhao Sanxun to dig them out from the shadows for him.
A terrifying low pressure filled the ward.
It was too late to switch identities now.
The female patient sat on the edge of the bed, her head slightly bowed, her messy hair draped over her face. Through a gap in her hair, an eye with an abnormally large white part stared fixedly at the door.
Zhou Qi’an noticed one of her hands was hidden under the blanket, and a small section of the steel pipe from the wheelchair in the corner had been broken off.
Zhou Qi’an, who had just played the “keep one card up his sleeve” trick: …
Was she waiting for him to approach so she could slowly flay and dismember him with her makeshift weapon?
Taking out the universal keycard, Zhou Qi’an walked over as if he hadn’t noticed anything.
“I’ve got the keycard. Are we still far from killing Dr. Z?”
The moment she saw the keycard, the female patient’s body suddenly convulsed violently.
The palm-sized object had completely stimulated her. One second she was thinking of murder, the next she was desperately banging her head. The hidden weapon also fell off the bed during her violent movements.
“Special inpatient department… no blood draws, die, take medicine, all die…”
Her words were gibberish, and towards the end, the word order was even reversed.
Zhou Qi’an sighed.
As expected, the woman’s own memories were confused. She didn’t know the true location of the special administration department and had a strong stress reaction to things like taking medicine and having blood drawn.
A cold wind rushed at his back. Zhou Qi’an immediately dodged. The nurse strode in from behind and pressed down on the frantically struggling female patient with one hand.
She was incredibly strong. Her other hand moved with an inhuman flexibility, easily fastening the restraints.
Just like yesterday, the nurse had no extraneous words or actions.
Zhou Qi’an, who was about to explain, simply shut up and cooperated with the nurse to have the patient take her medicine.
After taking the medicine, the female patient finally calmed down, her gaze fixed fiercely on her accomplice.
The nurse, in turn, took out the opinion book.
Zhou Qi’an’s eyelids twitched.
“…” The lives of those in the service industry are lives too.
As expected, the woman, having recovered after taking her medicine, directed all her anger at Zhou Qi’an.
A simple pen was almost crushed in her grip.
Her eyes rolled up to stare at Zhou Qi’an as she pressed down on the paper and heavily ticked a small box.
[Very Dissatisfied]
When it came to the second question of whether she wanted this orderly to continue providing service, the woman, with her only free hand, deliberately hovered between “I’ll think about it” and “Very unwilling.”
Just as the woman was about to make a black dot on “I’ll think about it,” at the last moment, she ticked [Very unwilling].
The nurse took back the opinion book. As she passed by Zhou Qi’an, she opened her mouth and gave a grim reminder: “If the patient is dissatisfied with the service twice in a row, you will be asked to leave.”
The female patient on the bed followed up with a throat-slitting gesture.
This was a show of force.
A warning to Zhou Qi’an to hurry up and switch identities back.
Zhou Qi’an watched her quietly for a few seconds, then glanced at the deadly thin steel pipe on the floor and slowly walked over. As the woman waited for him to untie her restraints and beg for mercy, Zhou Qi’an meticulously fastened the restraints on her free hand.
The female patient’s eyes widened instantly.
“Do you want to die?” she spat out four hoarse words.
Ignoring the female patient’s threat, Zhou Qi’an didn’t even provide any other orderly services. He turned and walked away.
Not long after pushing open the door, Shen Zhiyi also came out from a ward three rooms away. Neither of them spoke, and they both walked towards the restroom in tacit agreement.
Arriving at a relatively enclosed space, Zhou Qi’an checked to make sure no one was there and was about to use an anti-eavesdropping item.
Shen Zhiyi shook his head. “With me here, there’s no need.”
Seemingly guessing what the other wanted to say: “Yesterday’s listening device doesn’t work near the wards.”
At that time, Zhou Qi’an had emphasized not to bother him at night, clearly having another plan, so Shen Zhiyi hadn’t alerted the enemy.
He didn’t say much more, as if Zhao Sanxun was just an insignificant little thing in his eyes. Shen Zhiyi changed the subject: “Ying Yu and that stupid college student should be in this building.”
Hearing this, Zhou Qi’an’s expression immediately became more focused. “What did you find?”
Shen Zhiyi: “Poison Bug…”
Zhou Qi’an took a moment to process, then coughed lightly to correct him: “Poison Dragon.”
“Oh,” Shen Zhiyi accepted the correction and continued, “I broke Poison Bug’s bone and threw him in front of a passing doctor. At first, the doctor didn’t react.”
“I then made him cough up blood…”
At this point, Shen Zhiyi shook his head lightly. “Qi’an, the doctors here are truly cruel. They all refuse to save the dying.”
Zhou Qi’an’s eyelids twitched.
“I had no choice. I hit him a bit harder, causing excessive blood loss,” Shen Zhiyi said. “This time, more than one doctor appeared on their own initiative, saying they were taking him to the intensive care unit.”
Zhou Qi’an immediately understood. This was also a rule. If a player was injured to a certain extent, they would be taken away by NPCs.
He immediately used Zhao Sanxun as a reference.
Last night, Zhao Sanxun was stabbed, but not in a vital spot. As long as the knife wasn’t pulled out immediately, it wouldn’t cause too much blood loss. About ten hours had passed since last night, proving that there was likely a safe period within twelve hours of infection.
After twelve hours, it was hard to say.
Thinking of this, Zhou Qi’an suddenly realized something.
The current instance difficulty was still at two and a half stars. Shen Zhiyi had most likely contributed to this. But when Ying Yu and the others went to the morgue, there was definitely no one artificially controlling the difficulty.
At a difficulty of two and a half stars, they still had to herd 999 corpses. If it were higher, it would probably be hell-level difficulty, during which players would also fight for the universal keycard.
Even if they came out alive, the survivors would inevitably be injured. Once severely injured, they would be dragged to the ICU, creating a vicious cycle.
“Where was Poison Dragon sent?”
“Upstairs. I’m not sure which floor.”
Shen Zhiyi mentioned the two locked floors: the tenth and twelfth. He reminded him, “These two doors cannot be opened by external force.”
Zhou Qi’an smiled, a small white card appearing in his hand. “The universal keycard that Zhao Sanxun earned for us this morning. It can open all doors.”
Shen Zhiyi asked gently, “Want to go up and take a look?”
A trick question.
Zhou Qi’an’s nerves instantly tensed.
One second Shen Zhiyi was talking about the effects of excessive blood loss, the next he was asking if he wanted to go over. If he happily said yes, he felt something terrible would happen.
Everything behind the door was unknown. Limiting blood volume was equivalent to locking out the use of the holy artifact in this battle. The danger level was imaginable.
There was another, more crucial point.
If the universal keycard was the way to the special inpatient department, then there would be no need to set the condition that only excellent orderlies could be transferred there.
One keycard could bring all the players in. The authority was too great.
Zhou Qi’an had a gut feeling that this card also had a trap.
In the last side quest, the universal keycard was used for escaping. This might be a reminder, suggesting that this thing was best used for getting out, not getting in.
Its value lay in [escaping].
Of course, this was just his guess. It still needed to be verified.
The light from above shone down. In Zhou Qi’an’s brief silence, Shen Zhiyi’s shadow quietly darkened a little.
He had been going along with the young man’s ideas, but deep down, he always felt that the predator’s path was more suitable for him. Why not take the shortcut?
“Directly swiping the card to enter is too high risk…” Zhou Qi’an pursed his lips. “But Ying Yu and the others can’t afford to wait.”
Shen Zhiyi’s shadow grew even darker.
“I suspect the qualification to be selected is related to that satisfaction survey,” Zhou Qi’an took a deep breath. “It’s too hard to be an excellent orderly. I work from dawn to dusk, and the patient is still not satisfied with me… Let’s take another path.”
“Didn’t the wealthy woman say that the special inpatient department is a place for rich people? Let’s pay for the patient.”
Let the patient upgrade first, and the orderly follows the patient.
Shen Zhiyi was silent for a moment.
The ninety-nine percent blackened shadow secretly turned white again.
————
After coming out of the restroom, Zhou Qi’an continued to maintain his ‘single’ persona and moved around alone.
There were fewer medical staff in the lobby than before. Each person exuded a strange smell. From not far away came a woman’s light sigh—
“He seems to have offended an NPC and was taken away.”
Enemies on a narrow road. Zhou Qi’an saw Zhao Sanxun, who was talking to A’ling, presumably asking about Poison Dragon’s whereabouts.
When Poison Dragon had his accident, Kerr was not on this floor. The player who witnessed the event gained a clue about the intensive care unit for free and was naturally not foolish enough to easily offend Shen Zhiyi.
Zhao Sanxun’s gaze shifted. “Is that so?”
With Poison Dragon’s strength, he shouldn’t have inexplicably offended an NPC.
A’ling said perfunctorily, “This instance is full of fog. While the NPCs are still around, we should trigger side quests as soon as possible.”
Zhao Sanxun’s composure was truly impressive. He agreed with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. When he turned and saw Zhou Qi’an, his skin stiffened again.
Zhou Qi’an raised an eyebrow. This old scoundrel really could endure.
The other players’ attitudes were normal when they saw him, which meant Zhao Sanxun had not revealed that the keycard was with him. He was probably thinking of withholding the information source and finding a way to snatch it back from him later.
In his dreams.
There were quite a few players in the lobby at this time. Everyone was once again focusing on the side quests.
Ignoring the other players, Zhou Qi’an’s gaze swept around. There was a staff member at the payment window!
His eyes lit up instantly. No longer paying attention to Zhao Sanxun, he rushed straight over.
The woman at the payment window was using a computer to register emergency information. Hearing the sound of running, she minimized the window.
Twisting her long neck bit by bit, the woman, with sunken eye sockets, looked over at a strange angle.
“Hello, I’d like to ask, how much money do I need to deposit into a patient’s medical card to transfer them to the special inpatient department?”
NPCs would play word games to trap people, but they wouldn’t lie.
Since the wealthy woman said only rich people could go, then the instance script must contain related information.
Probably not expecting anyone to ask this question, after two seconds, the cashier’s throat made a strange gurgling sound, as if blocked by a lot of blood.
“No less than, five hundred thousand.”
The surrounding players’ mouths twitched upon hearing this.
They had originally thought Zhou Qi’an had made a discovery, so they had also discreetly moved closer. Some had even used items to hear more clearly, and now they were all rather speechless.
Many high-level players had [Blood-stained Hell Money], but everyone had a limited amount.
Zhou Qi’an was also silent upon hearing this number.
He hesitated for a moment, but after a moment, he still decided to try. He took out the black card he had obtained from the last instance. “Card.”
Since I’m here. Even if the balance was insufficient, he could at least check the recent revenue of the ghost market shops. He wondered how Miss Qi and that group of poor ghosts were doing.
The cashier’s limbs moved very uncoordinatedly as she took the card and swiped it casually.
Zhou Qi’an asked, “How much am I short?”
A full two seconds passed before the cashier’s stiff lips said, “Three million.”
“Huh?”
A trace of fluctuation appeared on the cashier’s numb face. “There are… three million on the card.”
Zhou Qi’an: “!”
Players: “!!!”
Someone unconsciously muttered, “There must be a mistake.”
The cashier manipulated her stiff limbs and swiped again. “Three million one thousand two hundred.”
She swiped again.
“Three million one thousand three hundred.”
It was even growing in real-time.
Zhou Qi’an’s eyelids twitched. What on earth did Miss Qi and the others do in the ghost market?
He had never managed a business. Four shops… with so much profit, it should be normal, right?
After three seconds of silence, Zhou Qi’an took a deep breath.
Normal my ass!
If it were just revenue, it would be normal.
But according to the black card’s description, what was deposited into his card was only eighty percent of the net profit. The remaining twenty percent was probably split between Miss Qi, the others, and the game. Otherwise, Miss Qi wouldn’t be working so hard.
Zhou Qi’an quickly calmed down. Since he was facing away from the crowd, no one could see the surprise on his face.
When he spoke again, he had an air of someone who didn’t need to be surprised, his tone casual. “Then let’s charge five hundred thousand for now.”
The players had various expressions.
The most spectacular expression belonged to Zhao Sanxun.
Zhao Sanxun had thought he had already given the other enough importance, but it seemed he had still underestimated him. A ruthless person who could rake in millions of hell money in the game, how could he be a novice?
He narrowed his eyes. Could the Whaler Association have hidden some key information?
A moment later, Zhao Sanxun’s gaze turned sinister again. No matter what the situation was, they were already enemies. Switching sides now would please no one.
“Today’s exchange rate is one to five. Five points can be exchanged for one hell money. Those who want to buy a spot, do it early.”
Zhou Qi’an suddenly turned around and said with a smile, “Pledging items is also acceptable.”
His every word was full of temptation. “…A chance to fast-track to the special inpatient department, first come, first served.”
He was mainly looking at Zhao Sanxun as he spoke.
The latter glanced at the card, and something flashed quickly in his eyes. Don’t show your wealth. He didn’t believe the others wouldn’t be tempted.
A’ling and the others were indeed tempted. As long as several people joined forces, even the most powerful player could be taken down.
The atmosphere invisibly became tense.
Zhou Qi’an smiled lightly, his pair of azure eyes seeming to see through everything. When his peripheral vision glanced at a certain spot, he suddenly lowered his voice, his whole person seeming much softer. “I felt an instant connection with this older brother and am willing to give him a spot for free.”
He had always gone for an androgynous style. Even when deliberately showing off his voice, there was no trace of affectation, but rather an unexpected freshness.
One “older brother” made the shadow’s soul leave its body.
Shen Zhiyi, who was walking over, also looked as if he were dead, fitting his current coffin-like face even better.
Han Li and Shen Zhiyi were now ostensibly in a cooperative relationship and were walking behind him.
Zhou Qi’an stood at the payment counter and waved. The reason for proactively offering a spot was very sufficient: find a temporary bodyguard to fend off the covetousness of other players.
Of course, the excuse was for outsiders to see. The direct access spot was naturally reserved for his own people.
Shen Zhiyi walked over, his blood-red eyes almost glued to the young man. His tone was indifferent as he said, “Two spots. Before we go to the special inpatient department, no one can touch you.”
Zhou Qi’an appeared to be struggling a bit.
A’ling shook her head at the young man who wanted to step forward to compete. She had witnessed Shen Zhiyi’s strength when he beat up Poison Dragon. They might not have the upper hand in a head-on confrontation.
Over there, Zhou Qi’an was very decisive. Having already made up his mind, he said to the cashier:
“Charge one for the patient in Room 3 and Room 10 as well.”
He was also looking at the glass window on the side, mouthing: Poor bastard.
Zhao Sanxun, who was habitually observing Zhou Qi’an from behind, happened to see it through the reflection in the mirror.
Damn it!
This kid’s greatest skill was probably pissing people off.
A black card and a white card.
Possessing both wealth and the universal keycard, Zhou Qi’an was happy again. It perfectly washed away the displeasure of going to the morgue early in the morning, especially when the young man’s voice came over, wanting to negotiate.
The two walked to the side, and the young man used an anti-eavesdropping item.
No one could afford to exchange for points.
The point conversion for equivalent substitute items was also not enough. Zhou Qi’an was asking for an exorbitant price just to better drive up the price.
Both sides were clear about this in their hearts. The young man got straight to the point: “Six thousand points plus a lucky item.”
A normal lucky item would cost thirty thousand points. Normally, it would take three four-star instances to get that many points.
“Mine is not one of those lucky items that only adds eight percent. It can amplify… eighteen percent of luck value!”
Mind-blowing!
The moment he heard “lucky item,” for some reason, Zhou Qi’an already felt very unlucky.
“…Such a rare item, where did you get it?”
Zhang Zhuzi: “Killed and looted.”
Hearing the fate of the previous owner, Zhou Qi’an’s temples throbbed.
He began to have a headache and feel conflicted.
The risk in the special inpatient department was not small, and a bit of luck was indeed very important. The last time he used it to become the group leader, although everyone wanted to trap him at first, using his identity as the leader, Zhou Qi’an had indeed lived quite comfortably for the first two days.
“Deal!”
Hell money was just a string of numbers to him. If he raised the price any higher, the players would rather choose to continue dealing with the patients step by step.
When they were trading items, Zhou Qi’an stared intently at the young man. “Remember, if something happens to me, I won’t let you go even if I reanimate as a corpse.”
Zhang Zhuzi: “?”
Are you being reasonable?
What does your death have to do with me?
Zhou Qi’an only planned to sell two spots. Any more would be variables.
Not long after he finished the deal with the young man, A’ling also came over and said, “I have a lucky item.”
“…”
__
Author’s note:
Zhou Qi’an: Fighting and killing is not good, we must be civilized.
Young man: Want a lucky item? Do you want a lucky item?
Zhou Qi’an: What the f*%&%￥@@…
