Chapter 319
Chapter 319
After Qin Nan finished, the room fell into a cold silence.
The past two nights had already been extremely difficult. If something even more destructive appeared now, how were they supposed to keep playing?
“The situation isn’t actually that bad,” Jian Fan said.
Qin Nan nodded. “True. These are only theories. Maybe the wooden carving wasn’t suppressing anything at all.”
Everyone stared at Qin Nan speechlessly.
If it suppressed nothing, then what purpose did it serve? Besides, even if their theory was wrong, had Qin Nan not been the one muttering all those possibilities? He had said everything there was to say, only to remind them now that it was all speculation?
Hah.
They answered him with cold laughter.
“I meant that no matter how powerful the enemy is, it can’t overcome the Security Lock.” Jian Fan had not expected Qin Nan’s remark to send everyone’s thoughts astray, so he helplessly explained again.
Only then did realization dawn on them.
Yellow Hair slapped his forehead. “How did I forget something so important? It doesn’t matter how strong or destructive they are. We couldn’t beat the ghosts in the first place. The two sides were never evenly matched. Adding a few more powerful ones changes nothing, because we already couldn’t win.”
Lin Junruo nodded. “All we have to do is survive!”
They only needed to use the Security Lock and keep the ghosts outside.
Well, that was not the only thing.
“What we need to guard against is their saliva. Next time, we should find something higher to stand on. If the ghosts grow stronger, the saliva may spread faster,” Yellow Hair said.
That was a crucial point.
“Then we need to choose our hiding place in advance.” Lu Jing nodded. This was a topic he could contribute to.
“From our last two experiences, low stools aren’t enough. A normal chair’s height worked, but if the saliva speeds up, we should choose something at least as high as a table to be safe,” Mu Xin said, recalling what had happened.
Qin Nan nodded. “But we don’t know how much faster it’ll become. What if it rises extremely quickly? If it reaches higher than a table, we’ll still be in danger.” He sighed. “Too bad we can’t hide on the roof. That seems like the safest height.”
Obviously. It was the highest point. What could be higher than a roof?
The problem was that once they climbed onto it, they would be exposed on all sides.
“What about the crossbeams?” Lu Jing suggested.
At his words, everyone except Yang Zhen looked over.
“The crossbeams?” Even Qin Weiyi was surprised. “Can you climb up there?”
Lu Jing nodded. “Is it difficult?”
Qin Weiyi fell silent.
Lu Jing continually redefined his understanding of physical prowess. It had indeed been a foolish question.
Lu Jing turned to Yang Zhen. “Do you think it’s difficult?”
“No,” Yang Zhen answered simply.
Everyone fell silent.
All right. Never mind.
“Can you climb up while carrying people?” Qin Nan asked the more important question.
Yang Zhen considered it. “I’ve never tried, but it should be fine. To be safe, I can take them up one at a time.”
Lu Jing nodded. “For someone like Xiao Qin or Jian Fan, I could carry two at once.”
Jian Fan stared at him.
Qin Weiyi stared at him too.
“Then we hide on the crossbeams tonight?” Yellow Hair asked.
Lu Jing did not answer, instead looking toward Jian Fan and Qin Weiyi.
Qin Weiyi shrugged. “I think it works. What about you?”
Jian Fan nodded. “All right. It will be safer.”
“Fine, but if we’re choosing crossbeams, it has to be in the Xie Residence,” Lu Jing added. He feared that if ten people climbed onto the beams in an ordinary home, the building might collapse. A well-constructed estate like the Xie Residence would not have that problem.
Qin Nan laughed. “We’ll be searching the Xie Residence for clues anyway. Of course we’ll choose somewhere nearby.”
Lu Jing gave a simple, sheepish smile. “True.”
He looked around and began discussing assignments with Yang Zhen. “You take Mu Xin, Lin Junruo, and Zhou Jingying–the three girls.”
Hearing that, Zhou Jingying slowly began to wonder.
Girls?
How kind of Lu Jing to acknowledge her youth.
Lu Jing noticed nothing wrong. After looking over everyone else, he added, “Take Shi Chen too. I’ll handle the rest.”
Yang Zhen glanced around and did not object. “All right.”
The two assigned everyone between them. Xia Zeqin was obviously excluded from their considerations; he certainly had his own means of staying alive.
After the discussion, they talked about a few other things, and each rested for a while in between.
Time slowly passed.
Soon, another night arrived.
As the sky darkened, Jian Fan’s group entered the house. Lu Jing lit the candles with practiced ease, and they waited for darkness to fall and the NPCs to appear.
Before that, however, Jian Fan had something to arrange.
His gaze first landed on Lu Jing, then shifted to Yang Zhen. “I need you to do something.”
Yang Zhen raised an eyebrow. “Me?” She pointed at herself, clearly surprised.
Jian Fan nodded.
Lu Jing was his preferred choice, but Lu Jing had to protect Qin Weiyi, so the two could not be separated. That left Yang Zhen as the only person with suitable combat ability.
But sending Yang Zhen alone would be too dangerous. Jian Fan worried not only that she might be harmed, but that she could be replaced instead of erased and then return to hurt them. He also worried that even if she discovered something, she might be unable to relay the information.
Of course, Yang Zhen had a whip capable of restraining the ghosts, giving her every chance to escape. The likelihood of her being killed was relatively low. Since she would remain within the courtyard, she could return and they could use the Security Lock.
By comparison, Jian Fan was more concerned that Yang Zhen might not share what she learned.
After all, she and the others had not established complete cooperation.
So Jian Fan swept his gaze around and settled on Mu Xin.
Mu Xin looked surprised too. “Me as well?”
Jian Fan nodded again.
“What do you want us to do?” Yang Zhen asked.
“The red clothes. Watch the NPCs from the shadows and find out where the clothes come from,” Jian Fan said.
Yang Zhen raised an eyebrow.
“You have the whip,” Jian Fan added.
Yang Zhen nodded. “Fine.” Then she pointed at Mu Xin. “What about her?”