Changsheng Building
Chapter 259: I dub you ‘The Sly!’
The light from the oil lamp enveloped the counter, and Qi Qian and his companions anxiously waited.
The Orange Candy Squad had taken the red candle, Wen Jianyan had taken the candlestick, and their squad’s spare lamp oil had been added to the oil lamp. It could be said that they now had no other portable light sources.
Even if they did, there weren’t many people left who could move.
All Qi Qian’s group could do now was wait.
In the dark, deathly still shop, every minute and second passed extremely slowly.
With their vision obstructed, every slight sound from not far away, every anomaly, tightly gripped their nerves.
They didn’t know how much time had passed…
Suddenly, a hurried sound of footsteps came from the darkness.
“?!”
The group was startled, quickly turning their heads towards the direction of the sound, only to see two figures rushing in, one after the other, crashing behind the counter.
It was Wen Jianyan and Wei Cheng.
Both of them were pale, panting heavily, as if they had just gone through something extremely dangerous and terrifying.
Just a few steps after rushing behind the counter, Wen Jianyan, who was in the lead, staggered and collapsed as if he had lost all strength.
“Wen Wen! Are you okay?”
An Xin was startled, hurriedly reaching out to support him, preventing him from falling directly to the floor.
“…” Wen Jianyan propped himself up with the help of An Xin’s hand, shaking his head while gasping for breath, indicating he was fine.
In the light of the oil lamp, his face had no trace of color, as pale as paper, looking even worse than before he left, as if he had lost half his life.
“Thank goodness, you’re still alive.”
Qi Qian let out a long sigh of relief.
It had to be known that before leaving the counter, Wen Jianyan had already served as a sacrifice once. Although he seemed to have regained some mobility, anyone could see he was forcing himself. His face was pale as paper, and even walking, he stumbled every few steps. In such a condition, going to the incense burner as a sacrifice for the second time was unlikely to leave him alive.
Even if he didn’t complete the task, simply surviving and returning was already an extremely difficult feat.
Moreover…
Qi Qian raised his head, looking around the shop in front of him.
At some point, the darkness surrounding them had begun to gradually dissipate, and the outlines of the shop started to become clearer.
The oil lamp’s burning rate became more stable, and its faint yellow light spread, dispelling the darkness.
It seemed Wen Wen and the others had indeed completed the task.
Su Cheng, who had rested behind the counter for a while, was feeling a bit better. He pushed himself up by the wall and helped An Xin move the weakened Wen Jianyan to sit behind the counter, thoughtfully handing him a bag of energy drink.
As Wen Jianyan was being helped to rest, the others turned their attention to Wei Cheng, who seemed in better condition, and started questioning him about what had just happened.
Wei Cheng briefly recounted everything that had happened, from realizing the “customer” hadn’t followed them, to splitting up to uncover the talisman, and finally throwing the candle.
Qi Qian frowned. “What about Orange Candy and Zhang Yu…”
Wei Cheng shook his head, worry appearing on his face as well.
“I don’t know about the captain and the others either—”
While they were exchanging information, an irritated voice suddenly sounded from not far away.
“Hey, what are you doing?!”
Everyone was stunned, quickly looking in the direction of the voice.
The light in the shop was gradually increasing, returning to normal brightness.
Out of the darkness, two figures, one tall and one short, limped toward them.
It was Zhang Yu and Orange Candy.
Both of their faces were pale, showing a weakness they didn’t usually display. Orange Candy quickly moved a step to the side, a look of extreme disgust on her face, while Zhang Yu awkwardly retracted the hand he had intended to use to support her, smiling bitterly.
“Captain!!!” The members of the Orange Candy squad perked up, rushing toward them.
“Stop wailing like someone died. I’m not dead yet.”
Orange Candy rolled her eyes, clearly unimpressed by her teammates’ excitement and concern.
Qi Qian’s group surrounded Zhang Yu, nervously inquiring about his condition.
As the darkness faded, the foul, cold smell in the air also began to disappear. The large shop felt much more spacious, and the figures of the “customers” had completely vanished.
The atmosphere, at long last, began to relax.
Wen Jianyan leaned against the wall, gulping down several bags of energy drinks, but perhaps the consumption this time had been too great. The deep feeling of emptiness and cold in his body hadn’t eased much.
After this ordeal, his body was nearing its limit.
Wen Jianyan raised his hand, wiping his face forcefully, trying to shake off the dizziness, but it didn’t help much.
Just then, the sound of footsteps approached from behind.
“Hey.”
Wen Jianyan looked up.
It was Orange Candy.
“You look like you’re about to die.”
She stopped a few steps away, looking down at Wen Jianyan with a mocking tone and a grin.
“Thanks for the concern,” Wen Jianyan smiled slightly in response.
Orange Candy: “I’m not—”
She suddenly realized something and abruptly stopped talking, frowning deeply.
“Anyway, what do you want from me?” Wen Jianyan, sensing her gaze that seemed sharp enough to throw knives, tactfully changed the topic. He glanced at her face, which looked just as bad as his. “It seems that uncovering the talisman comes at the cost of life force as well. You should probably rest too.”
“…Here.”
Orange Candy pursed her lips, reluctantly raised her hand, and tossed a dark green talisman toward him. It was so light that it floated down, landing just short of Wen Jianyan’s feet.
Watching Wen Jianyan stretch his arm to reach, Orange Candy let out an unceremonious laugh.
“…” Wen Jianyan, with the politeness of an adult, ignored this harmless provocation.
He took the dark green talisman in his hand and carefully examined it.
Having been used once, the originally thick, blood-red lines on it had faded to a dull gray, clearly indicating it could not be used a second time.
Wen Jianyan flipped the talisman over and saw a lock of hair stuck to the back—fine, soft, pitch-black long hair.
It looked somewhat familiar.
“I guess that’s your hair,” Orange Candy coolly added.
After all, among the two teams, the only “female” with long hair was Wen Jianyan. Although Orange Candy also had long hair, as someone who hated others getting close, it would be exceedingly difficult to obtain a lock of her hair, so that option was ruled out.
Wen Jianyan glanced at the silver-white hair draped over his own shoulder.
Since activating the Holy Infant item, his hair had turned this color, while the lock of hair in his hand was black. Thinking it over, the only time it could have been taken was when he was unconscious after being kidnapped at the beginning.
Wen Jianyan studied the talisman and said, “It seems the black talisman isn’t just used to lure customers to other shops. If you have something belonging to someone else, you can also direct a monster toward them.”
A perfect tool for sinister deeds.
“He really wants you dead, huh?” Orange Candy eyed the girl in front of her with a strange expression.
She narrowed her eyes and added with a smile, “Of course, maybe not just you.”
Their earlier negotiation in the corridor hadn’t been concealed from others. Although Mu Sen had used some item to hide himself and found new protection, he was surely aware that the two teams had formed an alliance.
This move targeted not only Wen Jianyan but also Orange Candy’s team.
Clearly, Orange Candy’s earlier threat had given Mu Sen a strong sense of crisis.
After realizing the alliance had broken down, Mu Sen’s escape during the chaos wasn’t just about knowing when to retreat. He likely also had the intent to strike first and eliminate all future threats.
If Wen Jianyan hadn’t known this nightmare instance, “Changsheng Building,” so well—far beyond what others could imagine—Mu Sen might actually have succeeded.
Although an extra customer wouldn’t pose much threat, it could effectively diminish their living forces and deplete their resources. In such a high-difficulty instance, wasted effort was the most dangerous thing. If Mu Sen had succeeded, they might have been wiped out without even knowing how it happened.
It was truly chilling to think about.
Orange Candy wrinkled her nose, showing a look of disgust.
“It seems that guy really doesn’t plan on keeping his life for the next instance.”
Suddenly, something seemed to occur to her. She stopped in front of Wen Jianyan, grinning as she said, “Hey, how about you hire me?”
Wen Jianyan: “Hm?”
“Though it might not seem like it, I actually have a strong sense of professionalism. I rarely take two jobs at once—especially from opposing sides.” Orange Candy, still pale, had a hint of madness in her eyes as she smiled and said, “But that guy really pissed me off. So, I’m willing to make an exception for him.”
She tilted her head. “How about it? Want to hire me to kill him? I’ll give you a 50% discount.”
“Integrity First” live broadcast room:
[!! Wow, this is the first time I’ve seen Orange Candy asking to be hired!]
[Same… I remember it’s usually people begging to hire her, not her marketing herself!]
[Mainly because Mu Sen went too far. But also, let’s be real, even though Orange Candy won’t admit it, she’s kinda fond of our anchor!]
[Woo woo, team up and take down Mu Sen! I support it!]
Wen Jianyan: “No.”
His response was so clean and decisive that it left the air in silence for several seconds.
In the “Integrity First” live broadcast room:
[…]
[…Huh?]
Orange Candy: “…”
She narrowed her eyes and said coldly, “Hey, do you know how hard it is to hire me? Don’t refuse a good offer.”
Wen Jianyan, weakly leaning against the wall, smiled up at her and said, “I know.”
“But…” His pale eyes, as light as molten honey, revealed a fox-like cunning. “Even if I don’t hire you, you guys won’t let him go, right?”
“So, I have a different proposal.”
Wen Jianyan smiled, his eyes curving as he tucked a lock of his silver-white hair behind his ear. “I don’t need you to kill him. I just need one of the items on him.”
“As for payment, it won’t be points.”
Wen Jianyan explained, “If you kill Mu Sen, your relationship with Oracle might turn sour. I know you usually don’t need a seer, given your strength and methods, but you never know.”
“As payment, I’ll join you as a teammate in the next instance, free of charge.”
The girl’s face was pale and fragile, but her eyes were bright, with a subtle smile. She hinted, “We do have the strongest prophet on our side.”
In the “Integrity First” live broadcast room:
[It sounds fair, but something feels off!]
[Wait, you’re not even a seer! So, in a way, doesn’t that mean you’re just getting an item for free and hiring them for the next instance?]
[…I get it. The anchor doesn’t want to hire them; he just doesn’t want to pay! You’re really good at saving points!]
[…]
[…I dub you ‘The Sly!’]
Woo glad we’ll be seeing more of orange candy I’m liking her a lot
LOL