Thank you EA for the Kofi. Here are your Kofi chapters. (1/5)
Changsheng Building
Chapter 211: Big sister, you are becoming more and more beautiful in my eyes.
The pitch-black staircase spiraled upward, its end immersed in a gray mist, and in the silence, footsteps echoed.
At the head of the group was a little girl.
“Captain, there’s someone squatting upstairs.”
One person leaned down and whispered in the little girl’s ear.
“I know,” the little girl said nonchalantly. “It’s not like the other side is trying to hide from us.”
The pale, long-faced man slowly furrowed his brow, subconsciously rubbing the thick bandages wrapped around his wrist, his murky gray eyes flickering slightly.
They were the second team to climb the stairs, which meant that the team waiting for them above could only be…
That was, their target in this instance.
But they shouldn’t have shown any hostility from the start, so why—?
“Didn’t expect this team to be so good at team battles. Is it really their first time participating?”
The little girl looked up toward the end of the stairs and laughed, “Blocking the entrance to wipe out new competitors coming upstairs, I’d do the same.”
She pouted and mumbled, “But this is only the second floor, the competition mode hasn’t even started yet, and they’re already preparing to strike first? That’s a bit too ruthless.”
“Let’s go, let’s meet them.”
The little girl cheerfully waved to her teammates behind her. “You trash, perk up, okay? Maybe we’ll get to fight early this time.”
The long-faced man’s gaze lingered on the captain for a moment, his brow furrowing even more.
Could it be… they really are going to start a team battle early, to strike first?
But it’s only the second floor, right?
Before entering this instance, he had researched this Dark Fire team. From the captain to the members, they were all seasoned veterans, and he could somewhat infer their playstyle from their past instances. They were by no means the aggressive type, so why would they make such an unexpected decision this time?
As he walked, he pondered, feeling a bit uncertain.
They quickly reached the end of the staircase.
Unexpectedly, what awaited them was not a well-trained assault team, but… a solitary person.
It was a young girl, wearing a spotless long dress, with a side profile as clean as white porcelain. She had a slender, fragile aura, and her amber eyes were extremely calm. Her long, slender legs were elegantly crossed, standing there in stark contrast to the gloomy building.
She stood there, maintaining a not-too-close, not-too-far distance from the staircase entrance, just at the edge of most players’ ability range.
She stood still, seeming to have been waiting for a long time.
The little girl squinted her eyes and slowly raised her hand, stopping her teammates from attacking.
The position the girl was in was very disadvantageous for them. Unless they entered the area the girl had left open, it would be difficult to take her out in one strike. However, her abilities were unknown, and rashly entering her attack range could be walking into a trap.
It seemed like a blitz attack was out of the question.
She put on an innocent expression and cheerfully asked, “Big sister, what are you doing here? Do you need our help?”
But everyone knew, no simple child could have survived until now, let alone become the captain of an experienced team.
Similarly…
No one dared to underestimate that seemingly harmless girl.
“Thank you, but I don’t need any help.”
The girl’s voice was as gentle as water.
“I came here just to say hello to you.”
Her gentle gaze swept over the team in front of her, accurately stopping on the bandage-wrapped long-faced man, her eyes pausing meaningfully.
“After the darkness falls, it might be difficult to meet again, so our captain sent me to greet you and say hello.”
She smiled kindly:
“Anyway, I hope to meet you again on the upper floors.”
“…!”
The long-faced man’s heart tightened, his hand at his side almost instinctively reaching for the small pouch tied to him, but he forcibly restrained himself.
When he looked again, the girl had already withdrawn her gaze.
“Goodbye.”
The girl gracefully, lightly brushed down her dress and turned to leave.
“Hey, hey, leaving so soon, beautiful big sister?” The smile on the little girl’s lips widened, almost with a hint of creepy madness. “You’re so pretty, why not stay and keep me company, okay?”
At the moment the captain spoke, all their teammates had already prepared for battle.
They knew their captain’s personality too well.
This kind of ambiguous, seemingly harmless probing never worked on this little lunatic. Those who weren’t targeted by her would avoid her like the plague, let alone someone who dared to touch the tiger’s tail.
Whether you have hostility or not, once you come, don’t think about leaving.
“Whoosh—”
A fierce whooshing sound suddenly struck, violently burning flames tearing through the air, carrying an astonishing force, fiercely attacking the one at the front!
The person was shocked and quickly retreated, barely avoiding the terrifying fiery arrow.
The marble floor of the building cracked, molten rock splattering everywhere.
The blinding flames illuminated the gray corridor, lighting up the girl’s fair side profile, finally reflecting in her calm, deep eyes.
She still maintained an extremely calm and gentle demeanor, as if she had anticipated this situation, her expression unchanging.
“Captain, it’s an ambush!”
One teammate’s face changed slightly, whispering, “That should be the attack-type player, An Xin.”
A well-known senior Dark Fire guild player, An Xin’s ability was known for its explosive damage, renowned far and wide.
“Is that so?”
The little girl’s smile remained unchanged, seemingly eager, not frightened by the ambush. “I’ve long wanted to get to know him better…”
But before she could finish, her arm was grabbed by the long-faced man beside her.
“Captain, don’t be impulsive,” he said in a hoarse, stiff voice. “Now is not the time to clash with other teams.”
As he spoke, he stared intently at the girl not far away, a cautious look in his murky gray eyes.
The girl seemed to notice his gaze, turned to look, and gave him a shallow smile, nodding in acknowledgment.
“…”
The long-faced man’s fingers tightened.
He knew it.
That look the girl gave him was definitely not an illusion.
If the Dark Fire team really came to strike first against the next team coming up, the long-faced man wouldn’t worry much, at most allowing a fight. In close combat, he believed this captain wouldn’t lose to anyone.
But…
For him, the most undesirable thing had happened.
“Captain, it’s likely there are more than two people in the ambush…”
Due to his partner’s recklessness and strong desire to attack, the thin-faced man tried to dissuade her from the fight from a rational perspective.
The little girl’s expression darkened, her gaze falling on the hand gripping her arm:
“Let go.”
The thin-faced man paused, realizing his inappropriate behavior, and quickly let go.
At this moment, another section of the wall not far away revealed a pitch-black staircase once again. The dense sound of footsteps came from below, indicating that another team was climbing up.
Now, everyone knew that the opportunity for an attack had vanished and couldn’t be regained.
“If there’s nothing else, we’ll take our leave.”
Not far away, Wen Jianyan spoke up at the right moment.
He waved to the moody little girl and said with a smile, “See you next time, cutie.”
The little girl stood still, suddenly smiling sweetly. “Big sister, you are becoming more and more beautiful in my eyes.”
Her smile carried a chilling malice:
“See you next time.”
Watching the girl’s departing figure, the thin-faced man slowly exhaled.
He turned to the captain beside him and said:
“You were right not to make a move this time. That girl just now was sent by the Prophet to warn us. Our target this time is more troublesome than we imagined.”
As a prophecy-based player, he didn’t really care about the overall strength of the Dark Fire team. The only one who could make him wary… was the Prophet.
The very target of this operation, the only one who had successfully escaped his assassination and was known as the “strongest prophet.”
Having spent a long time in Oracle, the thin-faced man knew the vast difference in strength among prophets.
And how terrifying a team could become in the hands of a truly powerful prophet.
This was what the thin-faced man feared the most.
In fact, not long after entering the instance, he had figured out how to clear the first floor through his own abilities but had never acted on the prophecy results, just to gauge the other side’s capabilities.
And the results reassured him.
The speed at which the other team cleared was fast, but not fast enough.
If it were him, he could have had his teammates leave the first floor in the first round instead of waiting until the second round to act.
In other words, the other team’s prophet was good but not as godlike as rumored.
However, what had just happened made the thin-faced man start to doubt his judgment.
The girl waiting at the staircase, this seemingly “friendly” probe—was actually the Prophet sending them a message:
“Be careful, I know your plans.”
“I’m watching you.”
This meant that the other team’s actions had nothing to do with striking first or starting a team battle early.
This so-called “ambush” was actually a calculated move by the mysterious Prophet, catching the thin-faced man off guard, even making him question his previous assessment of the Prophet’s abilities.
Realizing this, he knew he couldn’t afford to clash with them.
He had no idea what preparations the other side might have, aside from the few players possibly hiding in the dark.
The thin-faced man’s eyes narrowed, glinting with caution.
Even the planned second-floor assault needed to be reconsidered.
“Mu Sen,”
The little girl flexed her arm and turned to the thin-faced man beside her, saying with a smile, “If you do that again, I’ll chop off your hand next time, got it?”
Hearing this, Mu Sen’s heart tightened.
He knew she wasn’t just threatening; she would really do it.
This partner, though strong, had a terrible and dangerous personality, completely uncontrollable, making her a liability to his plans.
But no matter how much he cursed inwardly, he couldn’t show any of it on his face.
Mu Sen forced a dry smile. “Sorry, it won’t happen again.”
After distancing themselves from the hostile team, An Xin emerged from the darkness. He quickly approached, grabbing Wen Jianyan’s wrist and asking anxiously:
“Are you okay? Are you hurt?”
“No.” Wen Jianyan subtly withdrew his hand from An Xin’s grip.
“To be honest… I didn’t expect we’d actually bluff our way through.”
An Xin breathed a sigh of relief, but his heart still pounded in his chest. He looked at Wen Jianyan with a mix of astonishment and said slowly, “You played that empty city strategy (bluff) quite well.”
“No, no,”
The other had already reverted to his gentle, harmless demeanor, smiling softly and shaking his head, “It’s thanks to your abilities. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have known if I could leave alive.”
An Xin, fed a few sweet words, was momentarily dizzy:
“Heh, heh heh, heh heh heh.”
Wen Jianyan smiled, but his eyes remained clear and sharp.
To An Xin, this seemed like a risky move, but only Wen Jianyan knew how much information he had on his opponents, which gave him the confidence to act.
Outside the instance, Wen Jianyan had spent considerable effort to understand the Prophet working for the Oracle, the one who had once tried to assassinate Su Cheng. He knew how cautious, suspicious, and timid the Prophet was, so he used this method to restrain his teammates and protect himself.
And he also completed his own mission in the process.
Although Wen Jianyan knew information about the Prophet, he knew nothing about this team.
He didn’t know if the Oracle would send its own team into the instance or hire other players from outside. He also didn’t know the team’s style or the composition of its members.
This brief probe allowed Wen Jianyan to get all the information he wanted.
For the Dark Fire team, it was a win-win.
The words he said to An Xin earlier weren’t baseless guesses. An Xin didn’t know how malicious the other team was, but Wen Jianyan did.
So, if he hadn’t shown up and left directly, Wen Jianyan believed the other team might have keenly sensed their weakness and ambushed them on the second floor.
At that point, the situation would have been very unfavorable.
“Let’s go, we need to leave here and return to the shop.” An Xin said, “We need to report this to the captain.”
In Shop No. 03.
After listening to An Xin’s summary, Qi Qian’s expression gradually became solemn: “You said the other team’s leader is a little girl?”
“Yeah,” An Xin asked, “Why?”
He seemed puzzled: “Is she famous?”
“Hard to say about fame, but I know her.” Qi Qian’s expression was particularly grim. “Orange Candy.”
“That name… sounds familiar.”
Wen Jianyan blinked.
It seemed he had heard it somewhere before when he was out eating, drinking, and having fun.
Su Cheng looked confused: “Huh? Who’s that?”
“She’s ranked eighth on the points leaderboard, but unlike the others in the top ten, she’s not very famous,” Qi Qian explained slowly. “Because she rarely participates in solo instances, preferring team instances, most players don’t get a chance to encounter her.”
Anyone unlucky enough to meet her…
Had a very low chance of survival.
A cruel madwoman.
After Qi Qian’s words, everyone felt a sinking feeling in their hearts.
Surviving in the “Changsheng Building” instance would likely be even more difficult than they had imagined, not just because of the instance’s inherent challenges, but also due to the presence of such a formidable enemy…
“Regardless, these are not the issues we should be focusing on right now,” Qi Qian took a deep breath and brought the topic back, “Our immediate priority is to survive on the second floor.”
Wen Jianyan lifted his head and glanced at the clock on the counter.
There were less than five minutes left until six o’clock.
Darkness was about to descend.
“So, did you find anything useful in the shop?” An Xin asked.
Qi Qian: “Yes, but not much.”
He gestured for everyone to follow him to a clear area behind the counter.
Wen Jianyan peered over.
He saw seven or eight square radios of various sizes lined up on the ground, some as small as a palm, others as long as a forearm, all painted black and heavy.
He was stunned and blinked, asking, “Are these…”
“Yes.” A cold female voice sounded from nearby.
Wen Jianyan turned to see Tong Yao holding another brown portable radio, slowly walking out from one of the aisles.
“These are problematic items.” Her face looked somewhat pale, seemingly exhausted from using her abilities again. “This is the last one.”
She shook the radio in her hand.
Tong Yao blinked slowly, her eyes still seemingly covered with a layer of eerie white film, then placed the last radio on the ground with the other problematic items—these radios looked quiet enough, but in Tong Yao’s eyes, they were all shrouded in varying depths of black mist, emitting a nauseating stench.
“Finding these problematic items should significantly increase our chances of survival.”
Tong Yao said.
“Great job, Sister Tong!” An Xin bowed.
“Cut the crap.” Tong Yao glared at him. “Hurry and help move these to the front shelf.”
“Alright, alright.” An Xin, grinning, stepped forward. “Sister Tong, take a rest, we’ll handle the rest.”
Everyone began to move.
Wen Jianyan picked up one of the radios and placed it on the shelf closest to the shop’s glass door, which had just been cleared.
He paused and looked into the silent shop, frowning with some confusion.
There were so many types of items in this electronics shop, so why did Tong Yao identify the radios as problematic?
And… why were there so many of them?
For some reason, Wen Jianyan felt a vague unease.
“Also, one more thing.”
Qi Qian seemed to recall something and turned to An Xin, saying, “We found a new storeroom door at the back of the shop. If we’re right, there should be extra ghost money inside, just like on the first floor.”
An Xin perked up: “Did you go in?”
Qi Qian shook his head: “No.”
“Wow, Captain, I didn’t expect you to value me so much, not taking action until I got here…”
Before An Xin could finish, Qi Qian ruthlessly interrupted:
“Unlike the first floor, this storeroom is locked.”
Locked?
Wen Jianyan, standing by the shelf, lifted his head to look over.
At the same time, Su Cheng, who was moving a radio, also glanced at Wen Jianyan.
“Integrity First” live broadcast room:
[Hahahahaha DNA activated!]
[Lockpicking expert suddenly on alert.]
[Hahahahaha anchor: Isn’t this my old trade?]
However, Qi Qian continued, “I tried breaking the lock by force, but it didn’t work at all.”
Oh, so that’s it.
Wen Jianyan withdrew his gaze.
This indicated that the lock wasn’t an ordinary one. Since it couldn’t be broken by force, picking it wouldn’t work either. They would have to find the key or use a related prop.
Clearly, as the instance’s difficulty increased, simple and crude methods would gradually become ineffective. Under the instance’s constraints, players would have to face danger more directly.
While exchanging information and discussing strategies, time continued to tick by.
The clock on the counter slowly moved forward, with the second hand edging closer to the top.
Meanwhile, the last remaining player team was frantically running up the stairs: “Hurry!! Quick!!!”
The captain, running in front, was screaming hoarsely.
The oil lamp in his hand emitted a faint light, and the hazy stairwell ahead was the only exit in the darkness, like a lifeline for them.
“Run!! We’re almost there!!”
The end was getting closer and closer.
Finally—
With a “click” sound, the second hand reached the 12 o’clock position.
Six o’clock arrived.
Not a minute more, not a second less. The hazy stairwell was instantly engulfed in darkness.
Only the oil lamp in the captain’s hand remained faintly lit.
“It’s okay, even if it’s dark, we still have oil. We’ll get out soon!!!”
The captain’s voice, trying to sound calm, was tinged with fragile uncertainty.
What did darkness matter if their oil lamp hadn’t burned out? They could still find their way to the shop in the dark—
He clutched the key in his hand, his breathing trembling.
Until—
His forehead smacked against a cold, hard wall.
The captain froze.
He raised his hand, incredulous, and felt around in front of him.
What had been the stairwell just moments ago had now turned into a seamless wall, completely blocking all their escape routes.
“No… no… no!!!” The man’s scream was filled with despair, muffled against the wall, turning into a dull sigh.
In Shop No. 03.
Wen Jianyan and the others seemed to sense something, turning to look out the door.
Beyond the hazy glass door was pitch-black. An eerie darkness enveloped the entire world, with only the faint light of an oil lamp inside the shop.
Night had fallen.
The customers were about to arrive.
