Chapter 182

Chapter 182

Butler Yang seemed to turn his gaze toward Xiao Huai, but everyone knew he was merely locating Xiao Huai by sound.

For the briefest instant, his smile faded. Then he immediately resumed his kindly expression.

“How could a mere servant like me accompany our honored guests? I must remain here and prepare Master’s welcome banquet, so I won’t intrude upon your outing.”

The blonde woman timidly asked, “Um, do we have to go?”

After she spoke, Butler Yang lowered his head and remained silent for a long time.

At last, he said, “Of course not. How could a servant interfere with an honored guest’s wishes? If you would like to rest at the residence, an old man like me certainly cannot stop you. Should you desire anything to eat, drink, or amuse yourself with, please ask at any time.”

The blonde woman breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, he had not tried to stop her.

Jiang Wenmei looked at her instead. “Think this through. If all of us go out and leave you here alone, who do you think will be in more danger–you or us?”

Would the game’s rules choose to kill someone on their own, or a group moving together?

Perhaps staying alone in the Yang Residence was precisely what would trigger a taboo rule.

Goose bumps rose across the blonde woman’s entire body. She turned toward Butler Yang, though she did not know why.

Somehow, the smile on his lips now seemed even more sinister.

“I… Never mind. I’ll go with them.”

“As our honored guest wishes.” Butler Yang gave a slight nod, turned, and gestured for them to proceed.

The group exchanged looks, then decided they should see what the town was really like.

Although it was no longer raining and the sun was up, the players still froze for a moment when the front gate of the Yang Residence opened.

The fog outside was unnaturally thick.

Xiao Huai put on a pair of goggles. The others did not know why, but he had been to town the previous night.

Anyone with eyes could tell that something was wrong with the fog, so they all followed his example.

Standing at the entrance, Butler Yang cupped his hands in farewell. “Dinner will be waiting for you. Please return before sunset.”

In other words, sunset was a deadline.

For now, no one dared challenge it.

More importantly, they had to complete the main mission.

Find the missing man.

Whoever *he* was, they might as well follow the plot first.

Asking Butler Yang would probably yield nothing about the Yang Residence, but surely someone in town knew its true nature.

* * *

“Are we there yet? Where is the Jinlemen Club, anyway? Hey, hey, look over there.” Grinning, Chen Chong pointed at a roadside stall.

Apart from the heavy fog and the complete absence of pedestrians, the town did not appear very different from any other.

He reached the stall first. When he looked up and saw the white cloth covering the proprietress’s eyes, he blurted, “Whoa, is everyone here blind?”

He immediately covered his mouth. He had accidentally voiced his thoughts.

The woman’s lips curved upward, and she did not seem offended in the least. “You came from the Yang Residence, didn’t you?”

“Ma’am, I’m the only one talking to you. How do you know there are several of us?”

“Everyone carries an invisible aura. When someone comes near, blind people like us can sense it. And the aura around you is a little different from that of the people here.”

Chen Chong decided this was far too mystical for him to understand.

But she had mentioned the Yang Residence and likely knew a great deal. They could visit the Jinlemen Club later; spending a little time here would not hurt.

Xiao Huai approached the stall and lowered his eyes to the wares spread across it.
The peculiar assortment was what had drawn Chen Chong over in the first place.

There was yellow paper, yellow talismans, spirit money, children’s toys, and even a gun, though no one knew whether it was real.

Several boxes of rouge in one corner caught Xiao Huai’s attention.

Chen Chong was still firing questions at the proprietress when Xiao Huai spoke beside him.

“How much is this rouge?”

The proprietress arched a brow. “What would a man want with rouge?”

“Am I not allowed to buy it?” Xiao Huai countered.

Everyone else looked up at him.

Was he interested in makeup? Given Xiao Huai’s natural advantages, he probably did not even need sunscreen.

The proprietress lowered her voice. “It isn’t that you can’t buy it. It’s simply the most expensive thing on my stall. You’d better think carefully.”

Xiao Huai nodded but looked toward Lu Yuanshi.

When Xiao Huai deliberately met someone’s eyes, it was easy for them to surrender outright.

He was simply too compelling.

Lu Yuanshi did not even need to hear another word. His hand had already produced a heavy box of money of its own accord.

Xiao Huai accepted it with perfect ease. “Thank you.”

With funds in hand, Master Li made his return.

He looked at the proprietress. “I have money. Name your price.”

“Fifty a box.”

Chen Chong’s expression twitched. Naturally, they knew what that meant.

Expensive. Outrageously expensive.

In Survival Coins, that was a hundred thousand a box.

Why did she not simply rob them?

Xiao Huai checked Lu Yuanshi’s box. “There should be enough for three. Here.”

The proprietress accepted the wooden box and sat on her stool, counting each coin slowly and unhurriedly.

She was nothing like the avaricious woman in the qipao they had met before.

The other players had nothing else to do, so they stood there waiting for Xiao Huai.

A few minutes later, the proprietress said, “You’re two coins short.”

“Come on, ma’am. Your prices are already highway robbery. Can’t you round it down?” Even Chen Chong’s heart ached for Xiao Huai.

The proprietress said nothing.

Xiao Huai had already handed her two silver coins. “You get what you pay for. If she charges this much, she must have a reason.”

The proprietress laughed. This time, there was a hint of approval in her smile.

“Exactly. Of course my rouge is worth its price. Take it, use it well, and don’t waste it. This treasure can conceal a person’s aura.”

She handed all three boxes to Xiao Huai.

The instant she finished speaking, Chen Chong asked, “Hey, ma’am, do you know anything about the Yang–”

Before he could finish, his eyes flew wide. The stall in front of him was visibly receding into the distance.

He tried to chase it, but Xiao Huai caught him by the wrist.

In a mere three seconds, the stall that had occupied the roadside vanished into the fog.

“Holy crap, that was a ghost.” Chen Chong covered his face with both hands and stamped his feet. “Ahhh! I’m definitely having nightmares when we get back!”

Jiang Wenmei smacked the back of his head. “Oh, stop it. That woman was probably an immortal.”

“What did you say? An immortal?”

Jiang Wenmei said, “Yes. Didn’t you read the forums? Everyone who’s played the *Town of the Blind* instance says there’s a divine NPC who likes selling items to people. Most of the comments say the items they bought were inexplicably useless and insanely expensive, though. Xiao Huai, do you think this rouge will be useful?”

When Jiang Wenmei turned toward Xiao Huai, she discovered that he had already…