Changsheng Building
Chapter 206: With this level, you’re still trying to flirt? Isn’t that embarrassing?
Behind them, the flickering oil lamp emitted a dim light, illuminating the small shop.
The thin clothes were held high above their heads, serving as the only barrier between the darkness and the light, fragile and easily shattered.
Everyone was under immense mental pressure, but they couldn’t do anything except maintain their current positions, hold their breath, and wait quietly.
Through the slightly ajar glass door, they could smell the suffocating stench of decay seeping in through the cracks.
There was a dead silence in their ears.
Suddenly, the sound of shoe soles scraping the ground began, making their hearts leap into their throats. Blood flowed rapidly, muscles tightened instinctively, and they almost couldn’t resist the urge to run—
The next second, footsteps could be heard again from outside the door.
“Tap, tap, tap…”
This time, the sound was gradually getting softer and farther away…
Which meant that the “person” in front of the door seemed to have turned and was walking in another direction.
Realizing this, Qi Qian’s shoulders instantly relaxed. Although he still held the clothes up, his whole body loosened up.
He blinked, wiping the cold sweat from his arm that was about to drip into his eyes.
He had gambled just now.
After all, activating the prophet’s ability took time, and the danger outside was too close. He didn’t expect it to actually work…
“Stay in your positions.”
Tong Yao’s voice came from behind, “I’ll secure it from the back.”
She quickly exchanged for some strong, transparent tape from the shop, then stepped forward swiftly. While everyone maintained their positions, she secured all the clothes, sticking them firmly to the wall.
Soon, a large curtain made of clothes formed, covering the entire glass door completely.
After ensuring there were no leaks, everyone let out a long breath, released their hands, and stepped back from the door.
The footsteps outside had disappeared, leaving only endless silence.
Once they realized the danger had temporarily passed, An Xin’s face relaxed from tension, returning to his previous nonchalant and glib expression: “Wow, I was really starting to worry just now.”
As he spoke, he looked at Wen Jianyan beside him again, smiling and leaning closer:
“See, I told you, as long as the captain is here, nothing will go wrong.”
The dim light painted the other’s fair profile, making his already striking features even more prominent. His long eyelashes looked as if they were dusted with gold, and tiny fragments of light flickered deep within his amber eyes.
He turned his head, gazing thoughtfully at the oil lamp on the counter not far away.
In just a few minutes, the tears on his face had long disappeared. The fragile, delicate beauty like a slender flower was replaced by a deeper, more meaningful expression.
An Xin couldn’t help but be momentarily stunned.
The next second, the other person heard his voice and turned around.
“Yes,” the girl smiled at him, her warm-colored eyes filled with post-crisis joy and genuine relief and shyness: “I’m sorry, I was really scared just now… Please forgive me.”
“…”
Su Cheng’s expression twitched.
Damn…
“Integrity First” live broadcast room:
[…]
[I just want to say one word: ugh!]
[I bet he figured out the lamp’s role early on. Qi Qian’s actions were completely manipulated by him, and he’s still pretending to be weak… ugh!]
[Ugh!!!]
“No way! A beauty in tears is still beautiful.”
Seeing the other person smile brightly at him, An Xin instantly threw the fleeting sense of incongruity to the back of his mind and shook his head repeatedly:
“Besides, you did great just now.”
Faced with such a tense situation, the moment Qi Qian finished speaking, this girl, who had just been crying like a delicate flower, acted without hesitation, even faster than him!
An Xin liked beauties, but he liked smart and capable beauties even more.
He smiled flirtatiously and raised an eyebrow:
“And even if something really broke in, so what? I’m here, right?”
Wen Jianyan: “.”
With this level, you’re still trying to flirt? Isn’t that embarrassing?
On the surface, the girl lowered her eyes slightly at his words, seeming a bit shy. She gently tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear with a hint of shyness, looking even more endearing and stirring a strong protective instinct in people.
An Xin moved closer, ready to say more, but was interrupted by Zhang Yu behind him:
“Hey, An Xin, the captain is talking. What are you daydreaming about?”
Not far away, Qi Qian frowned slightly, staring in their direction.
Under his somewhat grim gaze, An Xin shrugged his shoulders, raised his hands in a surrender gesture, and said, “Got it, got it, you talk.”
Qi Qian gave him a glare before withdrawing his gaze:
“That was probably just the first wave of attacks. After that thing makes another round, who knows what will happen next?”
In those few minutes, the screams outside had sounded again.
However, Qi Qian guessed that with the increasing number of attacks, this “screening” should end soon.
Whether or not they had a prophet’s help, the remaining teams that hadn’t been attacked should quickly figure out the attack pattern and use various methods to block the light.
Once all the teams with lights were dead, the thing outside would likely lose its threat.
However, Qi Qian didn’t think this instance would let them off so easily.
After this wave, more threats would definitely await them.
“Not only is there dangerous darkness outside, but that thing is still lurking around. We definitely can’t leave the shop for now, so we need to use the time before the next attack well.”
Qi Qian said methodically,
“Pair up and search. Report any clues you find immediately.”
“Yes,” Tong Yao nodded briefly.
“Pair up?” An Xin’s eyes lit up, and he turned to Wen Jianyan beside him: “Why don’t we…”
Before he could finish, Zhang Yu interrupted:
“Hey, An Xin, you pair up with me.”
An Xin’s face fell instantly: “Huh?”
“Come on, come with me to check over there.”
Zhang Yu stepped forward, placing a hand on An Xin’s shoulder and pulling him away firmly:
“I noticed something while pulling down the clothes—”
“No!” An Xin struggled while turning his head to look at the girl in the white dress, full of reluctance:
“I want to team up with the beauty…!”
Under Zhang Yu’s firm tugging, An Xin’s unwilling screams gradually faded away, mixed with Zhang Yu’s helpless voice:
“She’s a serious teammate. Why are you butting in?”
Soon, the two figures disappeared into the darkness behind the store, and all sounds ceased.
Wen Jianyan’s eyelids twitched.
Although he chose this appearance to reduce his threat level and create a stark contrast with his original image— the bigger the contrast, the better to avoid being recognized, and of course, to take it easy later on…
He never expected to encounter such a comedic character.
At this moment, Qi Qian walked over. He glanced at Wen Jianyan and said, “I’m sorry, but I might need to talk to your teammate alone. Do you mind?”
Su Cheng’s shoulders instantly tensed up.
Wen Jianyan narrowed his eyes and smiled slightly, “Of course, I don’t mind.”
He turned around and gave Su Cheng a meaningful look before heading toward the counter.
Wen Jianyan wasn’t worried about Su Cheng and Qi Qian’s private conversation.
Qi Qian’s coming to Su Cheng at this time was definitely to probe for information about the prophecy’s activation, its frequency, how it was triggered, and its accuracy…
After all, this was their first collaboration, and mutual trust and understanding hadn’t been established yet. Wen Jianyan fully understood Qi Qian’s behavior in sending him away to try and extract more information from Su Cheng.
He took a few steps and quickly arrived at the counter.
Wen Jianyan looked down at the brass oil lamp in front of him, his long eyelashes casting deep shadows on his cheeks. Most of his face was illuminated by the dim yellow light, with a slight smile on his lips.
To ensure authenticity, this appearance shared about four or five features with his original face. His current facial lines were deeper, with sharper eyebrows and lips, though these traits were not easily noticeable under his skillful disguise.
But…
Whether the other party could achieve their goal was another matter.
Wen Jianyan had already instructed Su Cheng on how to answer such questions before entering the scenario.
After all, the title of “the strongest prophet” was just a marketing gimmick he had exaggeratedly created.
On the surface, Qi Qian was the team’s leader, holding all the control, but for Su Cheng, Wen Jianyan was the one truly giving orders.
Therefore, Wen Jianyan had to enter the scenario to silently and discreetly control the situation from a closer angle, flexibly and selectively revealing limited information based on the unfolding circumstances.
When alone, the false fragility and delicate demeanor vanished.
The practiced disguise dissipated like a thin mist.
His soft, harmless white face lowered, a faint, elusive smile on his lips, unexpectedly tinged with a sinister charm under the lamplight.
“Integrity First” live broadcast room:
[Help…]
[Is it just me, or is there something creepy all of a sudden…]
[Why do you look so much like a villain?!!]
***
Meanwhile.
Zhang Yu dragged An Xin to the back of the shop, where the light from the oil lamp gradually weakened as they distanced themselves.
He relaxed his grip.
“Hey,” An Xin took the opportunity to free himself from Zhang Yu’s arm, frowning as he massaged his slightly numb shoulder. “What’s wrong with you…”
Before he could finish, Zhang Yu interrupted:
“Stop hovering around people.”
“What? Jealous of my good luck with girls?”
An Xin teased, winking and leaning closer.
“Be serious.”
Zhang Yu glared at him.
“This Wen Wen isn’t simple.”
An Xin: “Huh?”
“First of all, someone who has survived till now and was sent into the instance by their team leader to protect their valuable prophet isn’t a simple character,”
Zhang Yu paused, frowning, and hesitated before speaking,
“I don’t know if it’s my imagination…”
An Xin scratched his head: “What?”
Zhang Yu: “Remember when we hadn’t entered the shop yet, Tong Yao sensed something wrong with the darkness inside.”
An Xin: “Yeah, so what?”
Zhang Yu: “Before Tong Yao spoke up, that girl had already stopped and looked down.”
“Wait, so you think she noticed something before the medium did?” An Xin was first stunned, then showed a look of incomprehension towards Zhang Yu.
“Aren’t you overthinking?”
“Not just that.”
Zhang Yu shook his head, “Before our captain realized the significance of the matchbox, she had already glanced at his hand.”
“Plus, when the captain entered the door to test the effect of the match, you all were nervously watching him, worrying about his safety, but this Wen Wen, she was using the match light to search around the door.”
In other words…
Before anyone else, this seemingly silent, harmless person had not only first realized the function of the match but also predicted that there would likely be a “lamp” inside the store, probably near the door, even before Qi Qian.
“…”
An Xin gave him a “you can’t be serious” look:
“Zhang Yu, you used to be suspicious, but not to this extent.”
Zhang Yu sighed, “Anyway, for your own good, you should keep some distance from that girl.”
After all…
He thought about it and swallowed the last sentence.
Because, if his suspicions were correct, this seemingly gentle and harmless pretty girl was actually a tougher and more formidable character than their team leader.
“You’re overthinking. Wen Wen is probably just cautious.”
An Xin shrugged casually:
“And even if she is, so what? She’s our teammate. Isn’t it better to have a strong teammate?”
Zhang Yu opened his mouth but finally conceded under An Xin’s twisted logic:
“…Fine.”
An Xin’s live broadcast room:
[Hahaha, An Xin: What? A femme fatale? Isn’t that better?]
[Lol, he’s totally blinded by beauty!]
[Came from the other side, can’t wait for the anchor to find out the truth!]
[Wait? What are you guys talking about? I’m confused.]
[Me too!]
[How to explain… The other anchor is really bad but also really beautiful, except… except it’s a guy! Hahaha!]
[?]
[???]
Instantly, question marks filled An Xin’s live broadcast screen.
[What??? You’re kidding, right?? Right?!]
“Is that all you wanted to say?”
An Xin looked back towards the light, his face showing eager anticipation, “If there’s nothing else, I’ll go back to Wen Wen…”
Zhang Yu grabbed him expressionlessly: “Forget it, you’re teaming up with me this time.”
An Xin: “Huh?”
“And I wasn’t lying,” Zhang Yu pointed to the shadow-covered area behind the shop, “Look there.”
An Xin looked in the direction Zhang Yu was pointing.
The clothes rack was in disarray, with many clothes pulled off and some lying on the ground, likely caused by Zhang Yu hurriedly grabbing clothes to block the door earlier.
Behind the noticeably empty section of the clothes, something seemed to be hidden.
An Xin’s expression grew tense as he turned to meet Zhang Yu’s gaze.
The two of them cautiously approached, using the clothes hangers on the floor to carefully move aside the remaining clothes. By the faint light of the oil lamp not far behind, they peered behind the clothes.
There, hidden, was a half-closed door.
“In a typical shop, this should be the direction of the storage room.”
Zhang Yu frowned deeply and said:
“And this smell…”
The door was ajar, leading to an impenetrable darkness within. A faint but persistent stench of decay wafted through, making the air unsettling.
***
At the counter.
Wen Jianyan lowered his eyes and deftly opened the oil lamp’s cover, peering inside at the light.
It was an old-fashioned oil lamp, with the interior mostly blackened by soot. A small round copper container sat at the bottom, the wick soaked in oil, and the light flickered gently in Wen Jianyan’s view.
Was there a smell…?
Wen Jianyan frowned, leaned closer to the lamp, and sniffed.
There was a faint, heavy, rotten smell.
This strange stench, unnoticed when the lamp was first lit, began to spread from the lamp after it had burned for a while.
…Corpse oil.
A term jumped into Wen Jianyan’s mind.
He squinted, straightened up, and stared fixedly at the oil lamp he had just opened.
In this scenario, using oil refined from corpses to light lamps wasn’t particularly surprising. What concerned Wen Jianyan was something else.
If the oil in the lamp was special…
Then the protection in the darkness might not come solely from the “light,” but from the specific conditions under which this light was produced.
In other words, once the oil in the lamp was exhausted, it couldn’t be replenished.
This realization made Wen Jianyan’s heart sink.
The challenges they faced in this team battle instance might be even more severe than he had imagined.
The time left before the oil ran out was limited.
If they didn’t find a way to break the stalemate before the lamp oil ran out, even if the things lurking outside the shop couldn’t get in, they would still die inexplicably once darkness fell.
Footsteps sounded from behind.
Wen Jianyan calmly closed the lamp cover and turned his head.
It was An Xin and Zhang Yu.
“Captain, there seems to be a storage room at the back of the shop. I think you should come and take a look,” Zhang Yu said quickly, looking at Qi Qian.
Qi Qian squinted: “Storage room?”
“Yes, and it’s very dark there. I think we should bring the lamp,” An Xin added, recalling something.
Soon, the group, carrying the oil lamp, headed to the back of the shop.
As the light moved away, the front of the shop fell into a deepening darkness again. Shadows thickened, and the silhouettes cast on the walls by the distant lamp seemed to suggest some eerie presence lurking in the growing darkness, beginning to stir.
Creak, creak.
In the empty shop, faint plastic rustling sounds echoed.
In the deepening darkness, mannequins dressed in clothes stood still, maintaining their original poses.
Their heads slowly, gradually turned towards the direction the group had disappeared into—
Creak.
The blank faces sank into darkness, the shadow-filled eye sockets seeming as if they were…
Watching.
***
Under the protection of the oil lamp’s light, the group reached the back of the shop.
An Xin turned to the side and pointed at the cleared clothes rack not far away: “Over there.”
Amidst the hanging clothes, a half-open door appeared in their view, and everyone caught the unpleasant stench of decay.
Wen Jianyan frowned and raised his hand to cover his nose and mouth.
“Zhang Yu,” Qi Qian called out.
“Yes, Captain.” Zhang Yu, seemingly familiar with the procedure, stepped forward cautiously, under the lamp’s light, and pushed the storage room door open to reveal a crack—
Creak.
The door opened, and the dim light from the lamp spilled inside.
Qi Qian turned to look at Tong Yao.
Tong Yao nodded.
“Let’s go in and take a look,” Qi Qian said, retracting his gaze.
Under his leadership, the group cautiously entered the storage room.
Wen Jianyan, bringing up the rear, subtly observed the room before him.
This was no different from a regular shop’s storage room, quite small, probably only about five or six square meters, now appearing somewhat cramped due to their intrusion.
There were no windows; it was a completely enclosed space with tall shelves piled high with neatly folded clothes.
The foul stench was even stronger now.
Ahead, a sharp intake of breath was heard.
“Captain, look at this—”
Upon hearing this, Wen Jianyan instinctively looked up, peering forward through the gaps between people.
In the depths of the storage room, beneath a pile of clothes, a human figure sat silently against the wall, head bowed. Its body was almost entirely decomposed, with blackened corpse fluids forming a puddle on the ground and releasing an overwhelmingly suffocating odor.
“A corpse?”
Qi Qian frowned.
“It seems like it,” Zhang Yu said cautiously.
In the lamp’s light, his gaze swept over the corpse and finally landed on its tightly clenched fist.
…It seemed to be holding something.
“Captain, the corpse appears to be holding something in its hand,” Zhang Yu said.
Qi Qian: “Open its hand, be careful.”
Zhang Yu nodded and crouched down in front of the corpse.
Since there had been no trouble outside earlier, the chance of something happening now seemed low.
He reached out towards the corpse—
Creak, creak.
A clear sound of bones grinding together echoed.
In that instant, Zhang Yu’s pupils contracted, and his heart skipped a beat.
He jerked his head up, meeting the face of the corpse.
A bluish-white, half-decomposed face, with lips and nose missing, revealing underlying bones. The eyes and eyelids were gone, leaving only two dark, hollow eye sockets—
Creak, creak.
The grinding sound echoed again.
The corpse slowly and gradually turned its head, fixing its hollow eye sockets on Zhang Yu.
“Zhang Yu!” Qi Qian’s shout came from behind: “Back off!”
In the flickering lamplight, the decayed, blue-white face of the corpse twisted, the rotten flesh pulling into a slow, eerie smile.
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