Chapter 56
Chapter 56
Only three Grotesque Game players remained. The two who had died were Number Two and Number Four.
The contaminated Number Four had killed Number Two. Number Four had been gravely wounded in their fight, then ambushed by an NPC during the riot and killed.
The survivors were the male captain, Number One, the male squad member, Number Three, and the female squad member, Number Six.
Exactly five hours had passed since the riot began.
A heavy atmosphere hung over the players. Even after using items to clear their minds, they felt sick at heart. Zimu City’s contamination seemed to amplify the negative emotions within human beings.
The players could control their feelings, but they couldn’t stop caring altogether. They could only keep using shielding and cleansing items.
Number Six, the female player, recorded everything that had happened. “We can now confirm that the dark green door releases mental contamination.”
“Players and NPCs alike become irritable and quick to anger when near the door. They lose their reason and become aggressive.”
“The players have experienced it firsthand and suffered heavy losses. The green door’s mental contamination alters players’ perceptions. They believe themselves clearheaded, but their emotions control them.”
“The three players have now reached a safe area. The hostages captured are: key NPC Huang Jinsheng, key NPC the Longhu Society’s Incense Master, and key NPC Huang Jinsheng’s daughter, Zixuan.”
“There are ten unimportant NPCs.” As she narrated, Number Six turned a spherical instrument resembling a hovering camera toward the gang members they had captured.
“The players are in the Longhu Society’s Incense Master’s temporary residence, the penthouse suite of Xiuli Palace.”
“There is ample food, ample water, and ample weaponry here.”
When players weren’t sure they could successfully open up an instance, they recorded their experiences with an instrument. If they died, they couldn’t return, but the instrument could be sent back.
The three players had expended considerable effort to capture the important NPCs. They had even generously used items to cleanse and shield the NPCs from mental contamination.
So, for the moment, the NPCs weren’t displaying confused, crazed behavior. But they were still far from cooperative.
Except for the little girl, every NPC was tightly bound. Neither Huang Jinsheng nor the Longhu Society’s Incense Master knew the players before them.
Both wore calm expressions. With their hands and feet bound, they leaned against the sofa and watched the players’ movements.
The gang members had been tied up and dumped on the floor, guarded by the male player Number Three.
Number One sat before Huang Jinsheng and the Longhu Society’s Incense Master, meeting their gazes without ceremony.
In his thirties, Huang Jinsheng retained his elegance, though his complexion looked poor. With his hands bound, he couldn’t hold his handkerchief, and could only stifle his coughs in his throat.
He wore a tailored suit that hadn’t even been dirtied during his escape through the chaos.
The bodyguards had protected Huang Jinsheng and his daughter Zixuan well. Beside them, the Longhu Society’s Incense Master looked much more bedraggled.
The Incense Master was older than Huang Jinsheng and nowhere near as handsome, but his bearing was imposing, with the air of a bandit.
The Longhu Society’s Incense Master had single-lidded eyes. He too wore a suit and looked like a businessman, but the open neckline exposed tattoos and knife scars on his chest, proclaiming a life lived on the edge of a blade.
His face had been injured in the tea room gunfight. A cut at the corner of his eye was seeping blood.
The blood trickled to his mouth. He licked it away unconcernedly and spoke first. “What country are you from?”
“The technology you’re using isn’t available here yet. What have you come to Zimu City for, and why have you kidnapped me?”
For an instant, Number Six, who was recording, and Number Three, who was guarding the hostages, were startled. Had the NPC seen through their identities as players?
They quickly realized they had misunderstood. The Longhu Society’s Incense Master named several developed foreign countries. “If you’re here to discuss business, everything can be negotiated.”
“Coming from abroad, you may not understand our rules. I wouldn’t recommend taking over the management of Zimu City yourselves.”
“Having a local boss like me manage it for you is much more convenient than doing it yourself.”
Huang Jinsheng sneered beside him. “You’ve only just killed the Tianding Society’s Incense Master, and you’re already after all the power?”
“Though I wouldn’t call this taking all the power. You’ve just been kidnapped by three people, and you’re already rushing to be their dog?”
The Longhu Society’s Incense Master hadn’t wanted to trade insults with Huang Jinsheng. But Huang Jinsheng’s mouth was too vile, so he retorted, “I can’t compare with you.”
“Even if I become a dog, at least I’ll be a human’s dog. What about you?”
“I fought my own way to where I am today. Unlike you, Huang Jinsheng, I didn’t sell my ass to an anomaly.”
Huang Jinsheng coughed in anger. He looked at the little girl sitting in an armchair, holding a cup of water and staring blankly.
When the child showed no reaction, he snapped, “What nonsense are you talking? Can’t you see there’s a child here?”
Number One stopped their bickering and said, “Actually, we’re the mainlanders Liu Wenhe brought in.”
Whether from shock or something else, Huang Jinsheng coughed even harder.
The Longhu Society’s Incense Master frowned. “You don’t look like mainlanders from the countryside. It seems our information was true. You’re really masters?”
“Masters from where? What sect? Are you priests, or…”
However he looked at them, none of the three players seemed like practitioners of superstition. His suspicion was almost palpable.
Number One didn’t falter in the slightest. “You can call us masters.”
“But we’re rather different from the masters you’re thinking of. We capture anomalies scientifically.”
“Anomalies are born from human souls and energy. Human research into the soul has continued for a very long time.”
“Many countries have corresponding secret research departments that keep investigating these unknowns. I’m sure you’ve heard something about them.”
The Longhu Society’s Incense Master’s face said, You’re trying to fool me. He refused to believe it and asked Huang Jinsheng, “These are the masters you found?”
Huang Jinsheng looked again at his dozing daughter. “Ah?” A few seconds passed before he responded. “Liu Wenhe doesn’t lift a finger unless there’s money in it.”
“Every time I ask him to do something, I have to throw money at him. Until I pay the balance, I don’t know a thing.”
“Besides, I wanted masters because I’ve been sleeping badly lately. It has nothing to do with anomalies.”
Huang Jinsheng looked utterly shameless. The Longhu Society’s Incense Master was so angry he wanted to headbutt him.
Number One had lost the surveillance footage from the tea room. He could only produce the test video they had made at the Spirit Medium Hall.
A screen appeared in midair before Huang Jinsheng and the Incense Master. It showed six people in white uniforms gathered around Granny Snake, dealing with the spirit possession she had invited upon herself.
An odd look came over Huang Jinsheng’s face. The Longhu Society’s Incense Master said, “I may not have had much schooling, but I’ve never seen a device like this.”
“How do I know whether it’s real or fake? Your things are high-tech. What if it’s fabricated? Do you have a witness here now?”
The players hadn’t expected the NPCs to be so hard to fool. They produced an anomaly detector. “Then have a look at this.”
“If there’s an anomaly nearby, the red light comes on.”