WTNL Chapter 379

Xingwang Hotel
Chapter 379: No infighting allowed in the hotel

At the same time, inside the banquet hall, the air was thick with a strong stench of decay. The lights at the front desk emitted a faint red glow. Outside the door, shadows of people stood in the corridor, seemingly waiting for something.

The darkness receded once more.

Another round of service was over.

The surviving anchors stumbled back to the front desk, but their numbers were far fewer than when they had left.

The clock on the wall continued ticking relentlessly.

Only eight minutes remained before the banquet ended. At most, there would be one more round.

After several rounds of service, both the red and black teams had suffered significant casualties. The people still alive were mostly seasoned anchors with exceptional abilities.

The atmosphere inside the banquet hall grew increasingly eerie and oppressive.

It wasn’t just because the number of guests in the hall had exceeded the limit. Even among the surviving anchors, anxiety began to stir, and the atmosphere became suffocating, making it hard to breathe.

“…Hey.”

After barely escaping death in the last round, several red team anchors exchanged glances and walked towards a female anchor wearing a mask with the number 【001】 on her chest.

Their voices were full of impatience and pressing questions.

“Where is your team leader?”

After the previous round of service, the red team leader, the one who had been overseeing everything, Number 008, mysteriously vanished.

And his teammates remained tight-lipped.

They didn’t say whether he was dead or alive, nor did they provide any useful information, instead, they tried to “maintain the status quo.”

“Stop lying to us, he’s dead, right?”

One of them gritted his teeth.

There was no other possibility.

During the service to the guests, he had disappeared into the overwhelming darkness, and no one saw what happened when he vanished. When the darkness lifted, everything was over. He was neither alive nor dead—just like all the other anchors who died under the guests’ attacks.

Even the most powerful anchors could stumble in seemingly ordinary instances.

“At this point, we should just surrender.”

Another person chimed in.

His face was covered by a mask, so his expression couldn’t be seen, but his voice sounded tense and anxious. “Anyway, the instance is almost over, we really don’t need to die here. Let’s just forgo the victory reward this time and give it to them…”

“I told you,”

A calm, emotionless female voice interrupted him, coming from behind the mask. She spoke with utmost certainty, “He’s not dead.”

Her eyes, glowing with a dark red light, gleamed from beneath her mask like daggers.

“If you keep saying that, I guarantee I’ll make my move before the black team does.”

“…!”

The person who had spoken was startled by her icy stare, instinctively quieting down.

Chen Mo stepped forward: “I also disappeared for a round, didn’t I? But I came back.”

He spoke calmly and rationally to smooth things over.

“My team leader saved me. I’m sure of it.”

“He’s not dead, just give him a little more time…”

But Chen Mo’s words seemed to provoke the other side.

“Not dead? Not dead?!”

The person’s voice unconsciously rose: “Then where is he?!”

“In the last round, the black team started attacking again. It wasn’t to steal people, but to attack! We already lost three brothers in the darkness, but the only thing that can revive a anchor, the Ghost Money, was in your team leader’s hands. Didn’t he promise to revive everyone who died because of this? Huh? So where is he now?”

With the disappearance of Wen Jianyan, the spot where the white-clad woman had stood earlier was now empty. Three bloody faces that had been placed there had also vanished.

The black team seemed to have picked up on this clue. In the second round of service, they cautiously adjusted their strategy and began to surround the red team anchors.

They had more experience in PVP and were more ruthless and underhanded. When Wen Jianyan was still around, he had constantly managed to recover their numbers, but now, with the leader gone, their advantage was lost.

The next round would surely be even more intense.

If things continued like this, the red team would suffer greatly in the next round of encirclement.

Now, with less than ten minutes remaining until the instance ended, no one wanted to die at this critical juncture.

Without obtaining the items, the black team wouldn’t easily stop, but the items were with Wen Jianyan, and they disappeared along with him.

Now, the only option left to stop the losses was to surrender and give up the competition with the black team.

As internal conflicts reached a boiling point in the red team, the black team was quietly observing.

“You were right.”

One of the black team anchors leaned in towards the gentleman and whispered, “The other side is definitely in trouble.”

In the previous round, their actions had been a test, and now their suspicions were confirmed.

All the anchors who had died in the last round had not revived in the enemy’s camp as planned.

Furthermore, it seemed that internal strife had begun in the red team, and everything was turning in their favor.

The gentleman squinted slightly behind his mask and smiled.

“I understand.”

As one of the two anchors who knew the true nature of this instance, he knew Wen Jianyan wasn’t dead. If he had died, the instance would have ended right away instead of continuing as it had.

However, given the current situation, although Wen Jianyan hadn’t died, it was clear that he was essentially as good as dead.

While the gentleman didn’t know exactly how this had happened, he understood what he needed to do next.

Of course, he would take advantage of this situation and finish them off.

“In the next round, we’ll move with you to wipe them out.”

The gentleman said.

His voice remained gentle, but there was an unmistakable malice in it.

“We don’t need to bother with the guests. We just need to kill all the red team anchors.”

“Understood!”

The red light flickered in the corridor as countless guest figures stood silently, waiting.

Finally, the darkness that had enveloped the banquet table dispersed completely.

The final round of service began.

The guests, moving stiffly, slowly made their way towards the long table, sitting down one by one in the empty seats, just like in the previous rounds.

Both teams of anchors began leaving the front desk, heading towards the long table.

However, the contrast between the two teams was stark.

The black team, though not all members were active, had nearly everyone mobilized. Apart from the seasoned anchors, even Anis and the gentleman himself were taking part, which was the first time.

On the red team, things were much quieter.

Under the pressure of Chen Mo, Yun Bilan, and others, the red team anchors didn’t surrender as had been suggested, but clearly, they were not ready to leave the safety of the front desk without any guarantees. So, in this round, only Wen Jianyan’s core team and a few anchors who had received his help remained.

The gentleman had clearly noticed this.

A slight smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

This was exactly what he wanted.

With fewer red team members, their encirclement would be easier. Moreover, only these anchors truly mattered to Wen Jianyan, so it would be much more efficient for him.

Darkness descended once again.

The members of both the red and black teams who had not participated in the battle stayed at the front desk, quietly waiting for time to pass.

Time went from eight minutes, to seven minutes.

Six minutes.

Along with the spreading stench of decay, the scent of blood began to mix in the air.

No one knew exactly what had happened near the long table, but everyone was very clear about how urgent the situation was inside.

In the darkness, only the red light in the corridor remained illuminated.

Countless residents with stiff expressions stood motionless outside the door.

Tap, tap, tap.

The sound of footsteps approached from the distance.

Clearly, the red light in the corridor was still working, attracting more and more residents.

Everyone had gotten used to it.

Tap, tap, tap.

The footsteps continued, unceasingly drawing nearer and nearer, with no sign of stopping.

At this point, someone finally realized that something was wrong and turned to look in the direction of the sound.

Outside the door, the residents stood motionless like lifeless statues, and behind them, a figure was steadily walking forward, step by step.

He parted the motionless crowd of ghosts, walking toward the door.

“!!!”

Upon seeing this, everyone’s pupils contracted.

Bad news!

As expected, the most terrifying thing they had feared had come to pass: the ghost crowd outside the door had reached its numerical limit and was no longer constrained by the rules. They had begun to move on their own during the banquet!

“Hurry, get ready—”

Just as chaos broke out inside the banquet hall, the red team suddenly froze.

Wait a minute…

That figure… isn’t he somewhat familiar?

The narrow corridor had been dyed blood-red by the lights, as if it were flowing with blood, about to be spilled into the room at any moment. Under the terrifying, suffocating light, a young man was walking step by step, surrounded by countless cold and fierce ghosts.

His face was covered by a pale mask, the surface of which had been stained blood-red by the light, and his elongated figure looked like a dark silhouette tearing through the bloodstained curtain.

“It’s, it’s him! It’s Pinocchio!”

One of the red team members shouted in disbelief.

Indeed.

Because he wasn’t inside the banquet hall, the power that normally interfered with the staff’s ability to identify each other had naturally disappeared.

What’s more, this time, Wen Jianyan had made no attempt to hide his identity; he might as well have pinned a name tag with his name on it.

He walked forward in a relaxed and carefree manner.

Both the red and black teams took a sharp breath in.

How could this be?

He had disappeared from the banquet hall—why was he now walking back from outside, wearing a mask and returning with the residents?

What exactly had happened?

What on earth was going on?!

As everyone stood frozen, barely believing their eyes, Wen Jianyan had already reached the door.

Unlike the residents who were constrained by the “rules,” as a human, there was no such invisible restriction. He simply took a step forward and naturally entered the area.

The banquet hall fell into a deathly silence, with only the sound of Wen Jianyan’s footsteps echoing in the quiet.

Under everyone’s gaze, Wen Jianyan walked toward the red team’s territory.

The two captains from the red team, having just woken up from the shock, reacted first and hurriedly approached him. “You—”

Before they could finish speaking, Wen Jianyan interrupted them.

“Wait.”

The young man with the mask raised his hand to stop them from speaking.

He turned his head, his gaze slowly sweeping over everyone in front of him.

Though they could not see Wen Jianyan’s face behind the mask, for some reason, their hearts raced as if he had completely seen through them.

“Haha.”

A light laugh escaped from under the mask. It sounded a bit muffled because of the obstruction, with the trailing sound lingering in the air, but it caused a sharp pang in everyone’s chest.

Wen Jianyan turned his head and looked at the two team captains.

With a nonchalant tone, he said, “So, you let them go?”

“!”

Their eyes met, and in that moment, they couldn’t help but feel as if their every thought had been laid bare before him. His voice held no particular emotion, yet it seemed strangely relaxed, sending chills down their spines.

“You don’t need to explain to me,” Wen Jianyan said in a calm, gentle voice. “I understand.”

“After all, when I disappeared, you weren’t sure if I was dead, or if I would return. So, in order to ensure the survival of the team at the last moment, it seemed like the best choice.”

He seemed incredibly understanding.

But strangely, all the red team anchors felt their nerves slowly tighten, the atmosphere in the air pressing down on them, making it hard to breathe.

“I won’t dwell on what you did before,” Wen Jianyan continued in his still soft voice, “as long as you cooperate with me from here on out, that’s enough, right?”

“Of course, of course.”

The red team anchors hurriedly nodded.

Although their previous decisions had all been made with rational considerations, upon seeing Wen Jianyan, and after hearing his few words, they easily felt guilt and unease, completely handing over control to him.

Wen Jianyan glanced at the wall clock, estimating the time.

“Last round, huh? Well, the black team’s main force should have left by now.”

In just a brief moment, he had basically grasped the current situation.

“Well, controlling the remaining people shouldn’t be too difficult now.”

Wen Jianyan spoke thoughtfully.

Mu Bai furrowed his brows. “Wait a minute, are you planning to fight the remaining black team members? But, in this front desk area, we’re not allowed to engage in conflict.”

“I understand.”

Wen Jianyan nodded and turned toward the front desk.

“???”

Mu Bai and Xi Zi stared at his retreating figure.

Hmm? So what exactly do you understand??

Wen Jianyan arrived at the front desk and looked at the manager in front of him.

The manager’s face was pale and stiff, a strange smile twisted at the corners of his mouth, frozen in place.

Sensing Wen Jianyan’s approach, he slowly turned his head, his black hollow eyes looking at him. “Do you need any help?”

“Nothing.”

Wen Jianyan smiled, his eyebrows and eyes glistening beneath the mask.

“I just need a brief moment of time.”

Without warning, he suddenly took a step forward, quickly shortening the distance.

Not far away, the red team anchors who had been watching this scene froze. Under the dim, blood-red light, they vaguely saw something glinting in Wen Jianyan’s hand.

Sharp and dazzling.

Like… a short copper knife.

What happened next was so sudden that no one could react in time.

The blade of the knife was driven deep into the hotel manager’s chest—quick, ruthless, precise—but no blood flowed from the wound. Wen Jianyan stared at the manager’s face.

Pale, smiling, unchanged.

But slowly, it began to spread and melt like bread soaked in water.

The manager disappeared.

The strange red sticky liquid remained on the blade.

Wen Jianyan pulled back his hand, wiped the knife clean on his clothes, and calmly returned it.

If I can kill a god, I can certainly kill you.

“Infighting, huh?”

He turned his head, looking at the other stunned red team anchors, a faint smile forming under the mask.

“It should be fine now.”

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