WTNL Chapter 537

Thank you @Mari for the Kofi.

Anchor Hall
Chapter 537: It’s a pleasure to work with you

Looking into those familiar golden eyes, Wen Jianyan let out a sigh of relief.

Darkness wrapped firmly around their figures. Although it was a formless existence, it clung tightly to their skin like some kind of fluid, bringing with it a strange sense of constraint.

Seemingly sensing the disappearance of the unfamiliar presence inside the cockpit, the footsteps outside suddenly paused and ceased to advance.

“…”

Wen Jianyan involuntarily held his breath again, his heart, which had just settled, suspending once more.

His shoulder suddenly sank; Wu Zhu had rested his chin there. A cold nose tip touched the shell of his ear. The sudden weight and sensation made Wen Jianyan shudder, nearly causing him to jump.

He turned his head and glared warningly at Wu Zhu.

But Wu Zhu seemed not to see it. Instead, he pushed his luck by extending an arm to encircle Wen Jianyan’s waist, pulling him closer into his embrace.

The other’s spine pressed against his chest, their curves fitting together seamlessly, without a single gap.

The gathering darkness became even denser, sealing off all their aura tightly.

Finally, the footsteps outside the cockpit rang out again.

However, this time, the footsteps turned and began to fade away, until finally, they could no longer be heard.

“Phew…”

Only then did Wen Jianyan finally let out a long breath, the tense muscles all over his body relaxing bit by bit.

The darkness obscuring his vision gradually dispersed.

Wen Jianyan looked toward the entrance. The cockpit door was tightly closed, and outside was a dead silence with no further movement.

Still feeling a lingering fear, he couldn’t help but ask, “Just now… what exactly was that?”

“I don’t know.”

Wu Zhu shook his head.

Cold, long hair brushed past his ear, causing Wen Jianyan to subconsciously shrink his neck. Only then did he abruptly realize that the two of them were still maintaining their previous posture. Startled, he immediately broke free from Wu Zhu’s embrace.

Even though he had thoroughly distanced himself from the other’s side, the sensation of being touched seemed to linger on the skin of his waist and back.

Wen Jianyan was secretly alarmed.

Not good.

I seem to be getting a little too used to this guy’s proximity.

“Ha,” Wen Jianyan let out a laugh, “Is there actually something even you don’t know?”

He put on his habitual business smile.

Although his tone was intimate and familiar, it seemed to push people a thousand miles away.

“Of course.”

As if completely unaware of the subtle change in Wen Jianyan’s attitude, Wu Zhu raised his head, looked around, and frowned slightly:

“My power is limited here.”

“…”

Wen Jianyan frowned.

Power is limited, huh…

“Anyway, I probably know the reason,” Wen Jianyan raised his hand and pinched the bridge of his nose, saying, “This ship… is soon going to turn into an instance.”

He slowly exhaled.

“The core of the Lucky cruise ship is the casino. The money gamblers lose in the casino becomes the fuel that drives the cruise ship forward. In other words, as long as the casino continues to operate like this, the cruise ship will soon sail out of the Anchor Space.”

“Once it sails out, the instance will take form.”

Wen Jianyan’s expression was grim.

“The real reason the Nightmare is hosting a reality show is probably exactly for this.”

Previously, in the [Xingwang Hotel] instance, he had already realized that the existence of the audience was crucial to the Nightmare live stream—they were the observers.

Only when observers exist do the observed objects exist.

This is the prerequisite for the live stream’s operation.

Therefore, the reason the Nightmare needed to introduce a “Reality Show” into the Anchor Space was to introduce observers and create a new instance under their gaze.

Even worse…

This would be a brand new instance that had never appeared in the live stream before, and no anchor had ever entered.

This meant there would be no hints, no precedents. All previous experience might be invalid, and any level of loss of control could occur.

Thinking through all the connections, Wen Jianyan felt a chill run down his spine.

He had thought that by no longer entering instances, he could stop being targeted by the Nightmare, but now it seemed…

He was wrong.

To achieve its goal, the Nightmare would not hesitate to create an instance within the Anchor Space just to drag him into it.

Its malice was simply heinous.

“…So that’s how it is.”

Wu Zhu spoke at this moment, his voice pulling Wen Jianyan out of his thoughts.

Wen Jianyan took a deep breath: “Anyway, this ship might undergo some unpredictable changes next. You’d better not…”

“Ask me for help.”

Wu Zhu said.

“?”

Interrupted, Wen Jianyan froze, subconsciously looking up at Wu Zhu.

…What?

In the darkness, the other’s face was not very clear; only a pair of burning golden eyes could be seen.

Then, the other spoke again:

“Ask me for help.”

Wen Jianyan frowned:

“I won’t…”

However, before he could finish, the other suddenly leaned in. In the dim light, darkness abruptly blocked his vision.

Wu Zhu pinched Wen Jianyan’s chin and planted a solid kiss on his lips.

“Fine.”

Before Wen Jianyan could react, Wu Zhu had already retreated, his golden eyes narrowing slightly:

“I agree.”

Why is this guy talking to himself?!

Wen Jianyan stood there, staring at Wu Zhu in a daze for two seconds, then suddenly started to get angry, but for a moment didn’t know what to be angry about: “You, you—”

“Deposit.”

Wu Zhu said.

The darkness surged, gradually swallowing his tall figure.

“After it’s over, I will find you to collect the remaining payment.”

The other’s voice was low, carrying a hint of a barely noticeable smile.

“…My help is not cheap.”

Since he didn’t know if those footsteps would return, Wen Jianyan didn’t dare to stay there much longer. After Wu Zhu left, he also left the cockpit as quickly as possible.

Soon, he was standing in the brightly lit corridor and began to retrace his steps at top speed.

While walking briskly, Wen Jianyan sent messages to his team members.

[Emergency Assembly.]

The instance was forming, and the safest and most conservative solution was to leave before it formed—but this was very tricky. To decipher the black box obtained from the [Yuying Comprehensive University] instance, Wen Jianyan had to participate in this auction. Once he missed this time, he might not have a second chance.

Then it would be best to persuade everyone else except him to get off the ship…

So, to achieve this goal, what should he do?

Threats? Lies?

For the old members, these methods seemed insufficiently effective…

When Wen Jianyan returned to the outside of the cabins, he ran into Chen Mo and Chang Feiyu, who were rushing back from outside, as well as Ji Guan and the others walking out of their cabins.

“What happened?” Seeing the hurried looks on everyone’s faces, Ji Guan looked surprised. “Is it this urgent?”

Wen Jianyan panted for breath:

“Let’s talk inside.”

Chen Mo: “…”

Although he didn’t know why his room had become the meeting place for everyone, he still took out the key and silently opened the cabin door.

The group walked in.

Wen Jianyan looked around. Basically, everyone had arrived. The only one missing was Wen Ya—but she had already messaged him earlier. As the female companion of the protagonist of tonight’s banquet, she obviously couldn’t leave freely like them.

He composed himself and got straight to the point: “You all are getting off the ship tonight.”

“…?”

As soon as these words came out, everyone present was stunned.

Ji Guan frowned and said, “Didn’t we discuss this before? —We are not getting off the ship.”

“I know,” Wen Jianyan nodded, “but now there are new variables.”

He looked at the crowd in front of him, took a deep breath, and slowly said, “I suspect that this ship is gradually turning into a new instance.”

“What—?!”

Hearing this, everyone present couldn’t help but be shocked.

Chang Feiyu furrowed his brows: “Wait a minute, Guild Leader, are you sure?”

A cruise ship located in the Anchor Space turning into a new instance? …This was too sensational. Even though everyone had experienced many storms, it was really hard to imagine such a thing happening.

“Seventy or eighty percent sure,” Wen Jianyan said, pinching the space between his eyebrows.

This number was even a bit conservative.

Based on the various anomalies that had appeared on the ship before and his understanding of the Nightmare’s style of doing things, Wen Jianyan could even be ninety percent sure.

Suddenly, the entire cabin fell silent.

Dead silence descended, pressing down so hard it made people breathless.

Obviously, everyone present knew the gold content of “seventy or eighty percent”—especially when this probability came from Wen Jianyan’s mouth.

His judgment had always been terrifyingly accurate, which had been proven countless times in previous instances.

Finally, someone broke the silence first.

Ji Guan’s attitude was a bit agitated: “If what you said is true, then we can’t get off the ship even more!”

“Once this ship really turns into a instance, do you think we would leave you to survive alone?” His expression was somewhat gloomy. “What kind of people do you take us for?”

Blond nodded from the side.

“And… didn’t Vice President Chen say before?” he whispered, “We won’t be much safer if we get off the ship. It’s better to gather together for a greater chance of winning.”

This time, Wen Jianyan shook his head: “No, unfortunately, the situation has changed.”

If this were within the Anchor Hall, then naturally this theory would apply. However, once this ship completely turned into a instance, all previous conclusions would be wiped out.

In a instance, any level of danger could occur.

—Especially since the Nightmare already had a similar criminal record.

“However, you don’t need to worry too much about me. I talked to Dan Zhu earlier. As a VIP guest invited to the auction, I have certain immunities on this ship, but you guys might not,” Wen Jianyan looked at the crowd in front of him and said seriously, word by word, “So, get off the ship, please.”

Ji Guan: “No—”

But before he could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by Chen Mo: “The Guild Leader is right.”

Everyone present was stunned and turned to look in his direction.

Chen Mo stood aside and said slowly:

“If things are really as the Guild Leader says, then getting off the ship might be the wisest method for us.”

Ji Guan glared at him: “What?”

“You didn’t go to the banquet, you don’t know,” Chen Mo’s voice remained calm and rational. “The number of high-level anchors on this ship is too high.”

“If this ship really turns into an instance, the difficulty will likely be at least S, maybe even SS. Even the legendary SSS is not impossible.”

He took a deep breath and said:

“With our abilities, I’m afraid we are insufficient to cope with this type of instance. Rather than staying and causing trouble, it’s better to leave as soon as possible.”

Ji Guan: “So we leave the Guild Leader to face it alone?”

“You speak so righteously,” he sneered. “Aren’t you just acting like a coward?”

The smell of gunpowder in the room suddenly escalated.

The newcomers watched their noses and hearts, trying hard not to get caught in the crossfire.

“Um…”

Suddenly, Chang Feiyu spoke up cautiously.

Instantly, all eyes in the room turned to him.

“Cough, although it seems I don’t have a place to interrupt in this matter, but…” Chang Feiyu cleared his throat and said cautiously, “Have you guys looked at the disembarkation application interface for the Lucky cruise ship?”

Hearing this, everyone was startled.

That’s right, to leave the Lucky cruise ship, one had to submit a disembarkation application. Generally speaking, the application would be answered within three hours, and then it would send them back to the dock just as it had picked them up.

They exchanged glances, took out their phones one after another, and opened the disembarkation application interface.

“Ah!” Ma Qi exclaimed from the side, “What is going on?”

On the disembarkation application interface, a small line of red text was floating impressively.

[Applications will be answered within 24 hours]

…24 hours.

Staring at that extra line of text, Wen Jianyan’s face darkened slightly.

This is bad.

However, it wasn’t necessarily a trick by the Nightmare—after all, if it were its doing, it could simply close the application window completely.

Based on the information Wen Jianyan saw in the cockpit, after nearly four days of heavy gambling by everyone on the ship, the mileage had accumulated to a terrifying number. Even if they hadn’t completely left the Anchor Space yet, they had sailed very far. Under these circumstances, sending anchors back to the dock would definitely take longer than before.

24 hours, would they make it in time?

Wen Jianyan wasn’t sure.

He turned his head to look out the window. It was completely dark outside. Thick, ink-like blackness shrouded everything outside the ship, the massive unknown pressing down so hard it was breathless.

Wen Jianyan took a deep breath and turned to look at everyone: “Regardless of whether we can make it in time, apply first.”

Ji Guan: “But…”

“No buts.” Wen Jianyan’s voice was cold. “Or do you want to be removed from my guild?”

Even though he was unwilling, Ji Guan still lowered his head in frustration and clicked the disembarkation application.

The others did the same.

Although everyone followed his instructions, Wen Jianyan didn’t feel any relaxation in his heart—in any case, 24 hours was too long.

Under the Nightmare’s deliberate catalysis, the anchors on the ship would only gamble more and more heavily… Wen Jianyan could control his own people not to gamble, but could he control the whole ship?

The answer was naturally negative.

Moreover, the application would only be processed after 24 hours. What about after it was processed? Would it be approved?

It remained an unknown.

Wen Jianyan raised his hand and pressed it against his cold forehead.

Unconsciously, the prophecy Su Cheng had made at the banquet earlier replayed in his mind.

—”You can no longer stop it.”

Dammit.

Wen Jianyan clenched his teeth and cursed silently in his heart.

Just as the atmosphere in the entire cabin dropped to freezing point, there was a knock on the door. Chen Mo walked over and silently opened it.

It was Wen Ya.

The banquet was over, so naturally, she had returned.

As soon as she entered, Wen Ya immediately keenly felt the oppressive atmosphere in the room. She looked around and frowned:

“What’s wrong?”

In brief words, Chen Mo recounted what had just happened.

The more she listened, the graver Wen Ya’s expression became.

As a veteran anchor herself, she naturally knew exactly what these conclusions represented, and gradually realized why the atmosphere in the room was so gloomy.

After listening to Chen Mo’s account, Wen Ya took a deep breath: “…I think I understand.”

“I don’t know if this will help, but—”

Wen Ya paused, looked at Wen Jianyan aside, and said, “Before leaving the banquet, Su Cheng gave me this.”

…What?

Now, Wen Jianyan was stunned.

Wen Ya stepped forward and handed a napkin to Wen Jianyan—it was the same kind he had used to write down the prophecy at the banquet earlier.

Wen Jianyan paused, reaching out to take the napkin.

Drawn on it with very scribbled strokes was a stick figure drawing.

…A scythe.

Wen Ya: “I checked it. There’s only this on it, nothing else. He didn’t say anything either. I didn’t know what it meant, so I just brought it back.”

Wen Jianyan stared at the stick figure on the napkin. Suddenly, a flash of lightning struck in his mind, and a figure instantly crossed his thoughts.

An exquisitely dressed, handsome man with a pair of cunning fox eyes. Wen Jianyan had witnessed his talent with his own eyes in the previous instance; it was precisely a giant grim reaper’s scythe.

…Ah.

Suddenly, some previously ignored clues connected in his mind. Wen Jianyan’s eyes widened slightly, and he abruptly stood up from his seat.

“?!” His sudden movement startled everyone present.

“W-What’s wrong?” Blond asked, stammering.

“I think… I have a way.”

Wen Jianyan said slowly.

Hearing this, everyone was stunned.

“The success rate isn’t high,” Wen Jianyan raised his eyes to look at the crowd in front of him and said, “But… it might be worth a try.”

Hearing this, everyone couldn’t help but get excited.

“Do we need to do anything?” Chen Mo asked.

Wen Jianyan: “Not for now.”

He stood up: “Alright, everyone, rest for tonight. I will notify you when there is news.”

After speaking, Wen Jianyan hurriedly left the cabin.

“…”

Watching his retreating figure, the crowd looked at each other in confusion.

What was the situation?

Wen Jianyan returned to his own cabin.

He hesitated for a moment, but finally reached out and pulled that business card from the pocket of yesterday’s clothes.

It hadn’t changed since the last time he saw it. The surface was empty, with only a few small golden English words engraved in the corner—Shylock.

On the back of the card was contact information.

Wen Jianyan picked up the card and examined it against the light.

Soon, he took a deep breath, took out his phone, and after a brief contemplation, sent a message to the other party.

The message was not replied to immediately.

Wen Jianyan knew that all he could do at this time was wait.

He lay on his back on the bed, staring at the ceiling in the darkness, combing through his thoughts over and over in his mind, like a seasoned gem cutter patiently polishing every step.

Is it feasible?

If it is feasible, what should be done to increase the success rate?

What if it fails?

What backup plan should there be?

If the path with Figaro doesn’t work, then…

Wen Jianyan lay in the darkness and reflexively pursed his lips.

Obviously, quite some time had passed, but the sensation on his lips remained vivid. That memory even became clear and alive again due to his movement.

Wen Jianyan frowned and stopped his current behavior almost immediately.

Clearly, what they had done before was far more excessive than now, but… for some reason, this current state made him feel upset and restless.

…No need to care too much.

Wen Jianyan told himself.

Based on his behavior when facing the portrait on the negative seventh floor earlier, it was obvious that this ship had a deep connection with him as well. To achieve his own goals, Wu Zhu would definitely continue to stay on the ship.

No matter how you looked at it, his help was just a matter of convenience.

There was no need to hold out any hope for this, let alone get wrapped up in this guy’s logic.

Wen Jianyan frowned. He climbed up and felt under the pillow with some annoyance.

The magazine was still sitting there properly.

—Truly strange.

Wen Jianyan wiped his face with his hand, expressionlessly making a secret determination.

In any case, this kind of thing must not happen again.

Suddenly, the phone by the pillow buzzed twice, breaking the silence in the room and pulling Wen Jianyan out of his thoughts.

It’s here.

His heart sank, and he grabbed the phone.

The lit-up screen displayed a message from that mercenary.

[Figaro: Meet at the bar.]

Attached was a location.

Wen Jianyan stood up and left the cabin.

Soon, he arrived at the location sent by the other party.

This was the bar in the first-class lounge area. The environment here was very quiet. Whether it was because there were too few people in first class, or because all the anchors had been absorbed into the casino, there were rarely any figures walking around here, only melodious music flowing quietly in the air.

Walking into the bar, Wen Jianyan saw Figaro sitting not far away at a glance.

Figaro sat upright by the porthole, wearing a reddish-brown suit, holding a long-handled cane topped with red agate, and a handkerchief of the same color tucked in his pocket. Even though he was in a bar, a cup of coffee was placed in front of him.

He narrowed his slender eyes slightly, his gaze landing on Wen Jianyan.

Wen Jianyan walked up and sat directly opposite him.

“Good evening.” Figaro smiled. “What, did you not attend the celebration banquet? Or did you leave early?”

He looked at Wen Jianyan and said pleasantly, “The espresso here tastes good, would you like some?”

Unfortunately, Wen Jianyan had no interest in Figaro’s pleasantries.

He went straight to the point:

“I have a commission for you.”

“…So direct?” Figaro was somewhat surprised.

Wen Jianyan revealed a fake smile: “After all, time is tight.”

Every minute and second they spoke, the casino was running. Caught in this vortex, even normal people would become crazier and crazier. The mileage was increasing at a speed he couldn’t calculate. Wasting one more minute would reduce the probability of survival.

“Alright then.”

Figaro sighed.

He leaned forward slightly, sitting upright. Although the smile on his face hadn’t changed, the aura around him seemed to have undergone an earth-shaking change—that was the bloody look only a mercenary would reveal:

“Please speak.”

“I want to go to the second floor of the casino,” Wen Jianyan said calmly.

“Hmm?” Figaro showed genuine confusion on his face. “I don’t understand what you are saying?”

“Fine,” Wen Jianyan leaned back slightly, his posture lazy and relaxed. He laughed, “Let me rephrase that… I want to see the owner of the casino.”

“…”

The air was quiet for a moment; only the faint music flowed in the background.

The innocent smile on Figaro’s face gradually disappeared. He narrowed those cunning fox eyes, his face rarely expressionless.

Wen Jianyan smiled and looked at him, allowing the other to scrutinize him.

That’s right.

The owner of the casino.

At that time, Bai Xue said someone upstairs was watching him.

Wen Jianyan didn’t understand what Bai Xue meant at the time—the second floor of the casino was covered by glass that blocked the line of sight; anything could be inside. After all, big customers like Dan Zhu existed here; that place might be some kind of private, higher-level occasion that only received VIPs.

—Until this afternoon.

When Wen Jianyan was playing Blackjack at the gambling table, someone stopped the dealer from dealing cards.

It wouldn’t be the Nightmare.

The Nightmare’s methods were more recognizable. It was better at restricting anchors by adding rules or issuing missions, rather than directly stopping the dealer from dealing and asking him to leave.

Wen Jianyan believed he understood dealers relatively well.

And the other party’s performance at that time was something he could say he was very familiar with.

It was just like in the real world, when management detected a gambler with ulterior motives through surveillance and remotely issued instructions to the employees.

After connecting all this, Wen Jianyan finally realized what this represented.

The footsteps wandering outside the cockpit, the waiters with weird temperaments underground, Carl Bell outside the auction venue…

Various signs indicated that between ordinary gamblers and the Nightmare controlling the entire Anchor Hall, there might be a hidden power class—just like the hidden second floor of the casino that only appeared after boarding this time—and they controlled the entire casino.

Or, the entire cruise ship?

When the cruise ship was just a cruise ship, they were almost imperceptible to ordinary passengers, but they definitely existed.

It was precisely because of this that this cruise ship could turn into a new instance.

In the live stream, every instance has its blueprint. If this were just an ordinary yacht, even the Nightmare couldn’t create a instance out of thin air.

“But, why do you think I have this ability?” A smile rose on Figaro’s face again.

This time, he didn’t deny the existence of the second floor or the casino owner.

This was a conversation between smart people. If he continued to play dumb, it would be a bit impolite.

—Because your former subordinate sold you out.

Wen Jianyan didn’t say this aloud; he just took the business card out of his pocket and threw it on the table.

If it weren’t for Chang Feiyu, he certainly wouldn’t have known that Figaro was so closely connected to the underground auction, not just as a customer, but even as one of the suppliers.

However, what really made Wen Jianyan certain that Figaro had a secretive relationship with the upper levels of the casino and the cruise ship was another small detail.

“Your contact information.”

Wen Jianyan tapped the table lightly with his fingertips, his light-colored eyes narrowing slightly, looking like the deep sea under the light.

“It’s the same Yin seal script as on the underground auction invitation.”

Just the difference in engraving style didn’t represent anything, but combined with Chang Feiyu’s information and Su Cheng’s prophecy…

Everything was understood without words.

Figaro’s gaze fell on the business card, and he suddenly laughed: “Oh my.”

He raised his hands and sighed in a dramatic tone:

“You caught me.”

Wen Jianyan stared at him, the oppression in his eyes no longer hidden:

“My commission, do you accept it?”

Figaro scrutinized him intently for a long time. Finally, he slowly smiled:

“Of course.”

The fox-eyed man stood up, brushed off nonexistent dust from his body, and smiled as he extended his hand to Wen Jianyan:

“Happy cooperation, my employer.”

“Don’t forget.”

Wen Jianyan shook his hand and said very seriously:

“20% off for the first order.”

Figaro: “…Fine.”

At this moment, somewhere in the first-class cabins.

The Gentleman sat on the balcony with his legs crossed.

He examined the ink-like sea in front of him, leisurely sipping the red wine in his glass, allowing the cold sea breeze to blow his coat and hair, his expression peaceful.

The color of the sky and the sea had completely merged, turning into a rich pitch-black with no distinguishable boundary. Among the waves approaching the hull, a few pale faces lying under the water could be faintly seen from time to time.

This scene was so eerie that just one look would make one feel uneasy.

But the Gentleman sipped his wine, seemingly turning a blind eye to it.

Knock knock. The door was gently knocked.

The Gentleman: “Come in.”

The door opened, and Su Cheng walked in from the outside, wrapped in a chill.

He was still wearing the suit he wore at the banquet, but his hair was slightly messy from the wind.

“Back a bit late,” the Gentleman smiled at him. “Were you delayed by something?”

“No.”

Su Cheng clearly didn’t want to say more about this.

He went to the balcony and leaned against the sliding glass door. The trace of emotion revealed at the banquet earlier had completely disappeared. His deep black eyes were lowered, and there was no extra expression on his face.

“I’m still a bit surprised,” the Gentleman took a sip of red wine, narrowing his eyes. “The one who finally became the tenth was that kid Chen Cheng from Eternal Day, not you.”

He looked at Su Cheng and smiled, like a venomous snake hiding under a proper human skin revealing its fangs: “After all, you received full support from Oracle.”

Su Cheng answered calmly as before: “No choice, just inferior skills.”

“Forget it, the current ranking isn’t low anyway.”

The Gentleman shrugged and didn’t continue to question.

“Besides, that kid from Eternal Day really has good strength… it’s just somewhat of a pity.”

He drained his glass, got up, and left the balcony.

“So, how is tonight’s progress?” The Gentleman walked into the room and looked at Su Cheng: “Was the clue given to your former guild leader?”

Su Cheng raised his head, looking at the Gentleman with a pair of pitch-black eyes, and slowly gave a “Mn.”

“Of course.”

__

Author’s Note:
Wen Jianyan (pulling out the 20% off card): Only a bastard wouldn’t take advantage of a bargain.

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