Skill activation: [Mark Teleportation]!
Feng Yi only saw Mu Li’s face get covered by the umbrella before his entire figure vanished, and the umbrella disappeared along with him.
In the blink of an eye, the youth reappeared right beside him.
Feng Yi gave a violent start, after which his tightly wound nerves finally relaxed, and he immediately broke out in a cold sweat.
“Is this your ability?”
He finally understood why Mu Li had insisted on carrying that umbrella all this time; it was an item capable of saving one’s life in moments of mortal peril.
With new injuries layered on top of unhealed old ones, Feng Yi feared that Mu Li might succumb to pain and collapse again, so he stubbornly insisted on supporting him.
“No need, I can walk by myself.” But Mu Li had no power to resist, and was thus escorted and protected all the way off the train like a fragile porcelain doll.
Before stepping off, however, he cast an intentional yet casual glance toward the train’s conductor’s cab.
The roof of the train was already teetering precariously, yet the two of them were still nowhere to be seen.
“That youth is definitely done for.” The sharp-mouthed man crossed his arms and let out a cold snort. “Death is coming for them all anyway; getting killed off by those ghost passengers would at least be a clean end. Now that they have run into such a massive monster, won’t their fate be even more miserable?”
“Are you talking about me?”
Who would have thought the youth’s voice would ring out right behind him? The sharp-mouthed man spat out a curse in sheer fright.
“Why are you out? Uh, I mean…” The moment those words left the female student’s mouth, she realized she had slipped up, because the youth had climbed down alongside the red-haired man. “Could the train window really have been shattered?”
The others pondered this and decided it was the only possible explanation.
Upon laying eyes on these people, Feng Yi clenched his fists so tightly they cracked. They had even been malicious enough to curse someone else’s death behind their backs. He gnashed his teeth and growled:
“Listen up clearly: if any of you dare lay a finger on him again, the fate of the ghost passengers will be your fate!”
The crowd’s expressions flickered as they scrambled to defend themselves: “We just didn’t want to die.” But the moment they caught sight of the red-haired man’s terrifyingly gloomy countenance, their words choked off in their throats.
The bespectacled passenger felt a surge of genuine delight upon spotting Mu Li, though the very next moment, in the blink of an eye, he saw the youth being supported as he walked down.
He lunged forward, shoving the red-haired man aside, hiked up his shattered glasses, and burst into tearful sobs: “Those ghosts are so terrifying! Thank goodness you are safe!”
“Hey!” Feng Yi was shoved back a few staggered steps, a look of distinct displeasure crossing his face. “What are you putting on an act for? Weren’t you hiding away just fine earlier?”
Without missing a beat, the bespectacled passenger sniffled, pulled a roll of gauze from his pocket, and set to work bandaging Mu Li’s wounds, casually stabilizing his broken arm in the process.
Judging by his practiced, fluid movements, this was clearly not his first time doing this.
Feng Yi wanted to step in, but the thought that he had no idea how to clean someone else’s injuries forced him to back down.
This bespectacled guy was the only one who hadn’t tried to stop him from saving people; compared to the rest of them, he was vastly superior.
Feng Yi shifted his focus to observing their current platform. The characters spelling “Zhunan Station” were still emblazoned on the pillar; the only difference was that the female reporter standing next to the pillar was nowhere to be seen.
Suddenly, a woman’s figure dashed past them at breakneck speed, scaring the wits out of the bystanders nearly out of their chests.
Judging by her attire, she looked identical to the female reporter from the previous station; there could be no mistake, as they were both carrying the exact same bags.
Simultaneously, a mysterious figure wrapped in a hooded cloak walked past from the opposite direction.
Tap, tap, tap.
The sound of footsteps echoed through the platform.
Frowning deeply with a solemn expression, Feng Yi wondered: if every single stop brought them right back to Zhunan Station, would this train genuinely never reach its final destination?
“I am going after that reporter; there has to be a clue on her.”
“Then I will go after that mysterious person.” Mu Li raised his hand.
“No, you are injured. Stay right here.” Feng Yi blocked the youth, then swept a threatening glare across the rest of the group. “If you run into any trouble, come find me.”
The others shrank back, lowering their heads one by one under his gaze.
The moment Feng Yi’s figure faded into the distance, Mu Li pivoted and set off after the mysterious person.
The bespectacled passenger let out a sigh. He had known this would happen. Reaching out, he grabbed the hem of Mu Li’s clothing and whimpered with a terrified expression: “Do not leave me all alone here. I am coming with you.”
All three of them had departed.
The female student spoke up: “Should we go too?”
“That reporter turned into a pile of white bones; are we even looking at a living person right now? Go if you want, but I am staying put.”
The mysterious figure was not walking fast, his face entirely concealed beneath a black hood, making his features impossible to discern.
Mu Li caught up to him and yanked the hood right off his head.
When the figure turned around, Mu Li received a massive jolt, the player’s skin breaking out in goosebumps from fright.
The mysterious person glanced at the youth before him, betraying no reaction whatsoever as he simply turned back around and continued walking straight off the platform.
He failed to notice that a badge had slipped out of his pocket and fallen onto the ground.
Mu Li stood frozen in place.
With nobody else around, the bespectacled passenger stripped away his disguise and rested a hand on the youth’s shoulder: “What did you see?”
“I saw myself.”
Pei Kanyan fell silent for a brief moment.
“What you saw was merely a phantom projection.”
Mu Li picked up the fallen badge to inspect it. Inscribed across it were the words “Tianxin Orphanage,” which felt vaguely familiar.
Oh, wasn’t that the player’s newbie starting village?
Pei Kanyan caught sight of the badge as well, a flicker crossing his eyes.
Abruptly, he posed an entirely unrelated question:
“Knowing full well that I was on that train, why did you refuse to press that button?”
“Huh?” Mu Li blinked, somewhat bewildered by the inquiry.
“Or were you doing it for Feng Yi? Did you choose not to open the door because you did not want him to get hurt?”
“Hmm.” Mu Li blinked. Why did phrasing it that way sound a bit strange? “Because I figured you must have had a reason involving a disguised identity, and I did not want to ruin your plan.”
Pei Kanyan had to be executing some special quest, and covering for him so others wouldn’t discover his identity had to be the player’s hidden quest!
Heh heh, he had already figured out the game’s patterns.
Pei Kanyan: (The NPC is speechless.)
It him a good long while of adjusting before he finally spoke: “Are you an idiot?”
Going through all that trouble and getting yourself beaten into such a miserable state just for a reason like that?
Crossing the line, this was going way too far!
How could an NPC just go around calling people names?
The player was about to bite someone!
Since the mysterious person had already left the platform, staying here served no further purpose, so the two of them returned to where the others had disembarked.
Upon seeing the pair return empty-handed, the rest of the group made no effort to conceal their disdainful, mocking looks.
The fitness coach fixed his gaze on the bespectacled passenger, eager to settle old scores: “Were you doing that on purpose back on the train?”
If this guy hadn’t plowed into him, the red-haired man wouldn’t have been able to get up and break free from their grip.
“I just tripped.” Pei Kanyan reverted back to his timid bespectacled persona, waving his hands frantically.
The sharp-mouthed man kicked a trash can, venting his pent-up frustration on the cowardly fellow: “I knew you did it on purpose!”
With that, he grabbed the bespectacled passenger by the collar, cocked his fist, and aimed a punch straight at his face.
Mu Li stepped forward, clamped a hand around the sharp-mouthed man’s wrist, and let a chill radiate from beneath his sunglasses.
This guy had quite the nerve, actually trying to take a swing at a high-level boss.
The man tried to yank his arm free, only to find it locked in a vice grip. A jolt of astonishment coursed through him, how on earth did a youth this frail possess such immense strength?
He didn’t dwell on it, figuring a delicate student like this couldn’t possibly stir up any major waves anyway. Wearing a sinister grin, he sneered: “The red-haired punk is not around right now.”
Mu Li’s expression remained completely unperturbed: “Tell me, which hand did you use to press the door button?”
At that question, a singular thought flashed through everyone else’s minds.
This youth is finished!
They mentally handed down a death sentence for him; knowing that the sharp-mouthed man could press that button without a shred of hesitation proved he was not someone to be trifled with.
For this youth not to run far away, but to actually bring it up proactively? He was purely seeking his own demise.
Ah!
A miserable shriek rang out, entirely as expected.
Yet none of them could have anticipated that the scream came straight from the sharp-mouthed man’s mouth.
He collapsed onto the ground, clutching his arm in agonizing pain, and glared furiously at the others: “Why are you all just standing there, help me!”
Right before their eyes, the youth executed a clean twist of his wrist, effortlessly dislocating the man’s arm.
Noticing that the fellow still wouldn’t behave, he promptly grabbed his other arm and snapped it as well.
Mu Li stood back up, flashing an innocent, beaming smile toward the rest of them: “Which of you held down Feng Yi?”
While low-tier NPCs lacked high levels, they were exceptionally erratic and frequently disrupted players’ quests.
No matter, though. Rendering them entirely incapable of movement would do the trick.
The entire group stood rooted to the spot in a stupor.
This is wrong, completely wrong!
The impression the youth had consistently given off was one of frailty, wrapped in bandages, walking with a pronounced limp. Wasn’t he supposed to be the perennial victim of bullying?
They cast a glance at the fitness coach, easily the most physically imposing and muscular man among them.
“I had no intention of hurting you, but you simply fail to read the room.”
Who would have thought that while the sharp-mouthed man acted unhinged, he was actually all bark and bite, completely unable to beat even a battered student?
Filled with absolute confidence in himself, the fitness coach lunged forward to grab the youth by the neck.
“I remember now. It was both hands, right?” The youth lifted a foot.
Before the fitness coach could even brush against the youth, he felt himself struck by an overwhelming force, sending him flying several meters away to crash violently against a pillar.
Mu Li strolled forward at a leisurely pace.
Instead of staying down, the fitness coach dug a dumbbell out of his pack and hurled it fiercely at the youth’s head.
So he had been lugging around something that heavy the entire way. Mu Li caught the dumbbell mid-air and squeezed down with force; the solid piece of iron warped into two separate pieces before dropping with a heavy thud, thud right beside the man’s feet.
Both pieces punched deep craters straight into the concrete floor.
“How is that even possible?!” Terror flared across the fitness coach’s face.
That was genuine, solid iron, not some cheap foam prop. How could anyone crush it to pieces with just a squeeze?
The youth kicked aside the pieces of the dumbbell and casually stomped down on the fitness coach’s hand, snapping the bones.
Another blood-curdling shriek pierced the air. The youth covered his ears in annoyance, then turned his gaze toward the remaining three individuals.
Terrified out of their wits, those remaining people spun around and bolted.
This youth was absolute monster material; they had been completely deceived by his outward appearance!
Feng Yi had set off in pursuit of the female reporter, only to discover that while she was moving at lightning speed, she seemed to be running in circles as if searching for something.
“Who are you, and what are you looking for?” Feng Yi called out loudly.
The female reporter abruptly halted, muttering under her breath: “A pregnant woman stabbed multiple times, died on the spot. But the victim is missing, the victim is missing.”
With that, she sprinted off again in a frantic search.
Just as Feng Yi prepared to give chase, a miserable shriek echoed from the distance, coming precisely from the direction of where they had gotten off the train.
Trouble!
Glancing once more at the reporter’s retreating back, he pivoted and sprinted back toward Mu Li.
Upon arriving at the scene, he found five men sprawled across the floor howling in agony, all of their arms broken.
In precisely the same fashion as the youth’s broken arm earlier.
“Mu Li!”
A heavy stone dropped in Feng Yi’s chest as he frantically scanned the area for the youth’s silhouette.
“I am right here!”
Mu Li emerged from behind a pillar with his hands clasped behind his back, followed closely by the cowering bespectacled passenger.
Only upon seeing that Mu Li was completely unharmed did Feng Yi finally let his guard down.
“What happened here?” he inquired.
Mu Li fabricated a narrative on the spot: “While you were chasing that reporter, that mysterious person showed up and started attacking us out of nowhere.”
Hearing this explanation, a cold shiver ran down Feng Yi’s spine.
Once again, he felt profound gratitude that Mu Li possessed the ability to teleport.
Though…
“Hey, bespectacled buddy.” He picked up on a suspicious detail. “All of them got hurt, how come you are completely fine?”
“I am fast at running.” The bespectacled passenger answered timidly while shrinking behind Mu Li.
“I can prove he is telling the truth, because I literally teleported right next to him so he would be safe.” Mu Li expressed enthusiastic agreement with the boss’s assessment.
“So that was it.” Feng Yi nodded, harboring zero doubts regarding the youth’s words.
But a lingering thread of suspicion remained as he looked at the bespectacled passenger. How could this guy possibly run fast enough? Even the fitness coach hadn’t managed to escape, yet this fellow had emerged completely unscathed.
Before he could puzzle it out entirely:
“Hold on.” Feng Yi thought of another problem, fixing his eyes wide on the youth: “Why did you not teleport to my side?”
“Uh…”
Mu Li paused.
Before he could scramble to fabricate an excuse, Feng Yi wore an expression of sudden realization: “So your ability has limitations!”
“Huh?”