"Wait... wait a minute!"
Seeing the man with a single horn on his forehead about to pay, Xu Weizhou couldn't stop himself from stepping out of the back of the line, halting the transaction.
Hearing this, the one-horned team leader and the woman with the pleasant voice both frowned and looked back, wondering what Xu Weizhou meant by it.
Feeling everyone's gaze land on him, Xu Weizhou couldn't help but tense up.
"Um... Brother Mian, I think... maybe we should just eat at the Golden Sand Tangyuan stall instead?"
He was referring to the Golden Sand Tangyuan stall to the right of Elephant BBQ. Its food granted a five percent experience boost and increased one's Mental Immunity Value by ten points for the duration of this Dungeon.
While the effects were quite good, they still fell short of Elephant BBQ, which provided permanent buffs that carried over to the Surface World.
The one-horned man named Lin Mian frowned even deeper.
"Why? Give me a reason."
He hated when others questioned his decisions."Well... the reason is..."
Xu Weizhou's mind raced. He obviously couldn't say that Yan Jing had told him.
Just as he was scrambling for an excuse, the purple-haired man at the back of the group stepped forward.
He spoke up loudly. "Xu Weizhou, don't tell me that brat Yan Jing put you up to this?"
"No! Of course not!"
Xu Weizhou reflexively denied it.
He knew Lin Mian loathed dealing with ordinary people who lacked a strong background, and right now, Yan Jing undoubtedly fell into that category.
Sure enough, a clear look of disgust crossed Lin Mian's face at the mention of Yan Jing's name.
But the purple-haired man pressed on, wearing an irritating "I've-got-you-figured-out" grin.
"You've been acting out of sorts ever since you bumped into Yan Jing today. He definitely told you something."
Lin Mian's gaze turned as sharp as a knife, locking onto Xu Weizhou as if trying to read his reaction.
"What the hell? I already told you that guy wasn't Lao Yan!"
In the nick of time, Xu Weizhou managed to spot the verbal trap the purple-haired man had set for him.
He had never admitted to running into Yan Jing today, and the purple-haired man hadn't found Yan Jing either.
The best move now was to pretend Yan Jing hadn't entered this Dungeon at all.
If he had replied with "Yan Jing didn't tell me anything," he would have walked right into the trap.
When Xu Weizhou finished speaking, Lin Mian pulled his gaze away and said calmly, "Since you can't come up with a reason, Weizhou, we'll stick with Elephant BBQ. Does anyone have an objection?"
His gaze was indifferent, but as his eyes swept over the group, everyone else lowered their heads slightly, avoiding eye contact.
Everyone knew Lin Mian was one of the key talents being groomed by the Lin Family in this generation. He was leagues above marginal figures like them.
Even their presence in this Dungeon was only possible because of information leaked by Lin Mian's family.
As for their own parents, who knew what heavy prices they had paid just to get them on board.
"Brother Mian, I do have a reason. It's actually because—"
Xu Weizhou wanted to keep arguing, but Lin Mian had already turned his back with cold indifference.
"That's enough. I've made up my mind."
Left with no choice, Xu Weizhou looked over at An Ranran, who was standing beside Lin Mian. They had once been classmates for a time, yet their current statuses were worlds apart.
"Sister Ran—"
"Xu Weizhou!"
Lin Mian snapped, his voice several degrees colder than before.
He was the leader here, and Xu Weizhou's behavior was a direct challenge to his authority.
Perhaps Xu Weizhou really did have a valid reason, but a leader had to maintain command.
"If you're that desperate to eat tangyuan, you can leave my team! I can pull in any random person and still make up a party of nine."
"I imagine quite a few people would jump at the chance."
"Remember, it was your father who came and begged my father over and over again just to squeeze you in."
"If you casually question my decisions again, you can get lost. My team doesn't need trash who can't follow instructions."
With those cold words, Lin Mian stopped looking at Xu Weizhou entirely.
He usually projected a gentle facade, but that was by no means his true nature.
To stand out in a fiercely competitive family, he naturally couldn't be some docile lamb.
Across from them, several other team leaders wore amused expressions. Infighting within the one-horned man's team was a good thing for them.
However, this amusement was aimed entirely at the one-horned man; from start to finish, not a single person so much as spared Xu Weizhou a glance.
The transaction resumed.
Noticing the mocking expressions of the people around him, especially the piercing sneer on the purple-haired man's face, Xu Weizhou clenched his fists over and over.
It wasn't that he lacked a temper.
But when he remembered all the stifled years waiting just for this single opportunity, and how he had knelt down to beg and grovel before his own father for two whole days and nights to earn it...
His clenched fists slowly loosened.
Maybe Lao Yan isn't too sure about this either...
It was the only way he could comfort himself.
Maybe...
During all those lonely, lightless nights, he had comforted himself with that word countless times.
The transaction concluded, and everyone took their seats.
Elephant BBQ's decor was quite exquisite. Compared to the stalls in the back half of the market, where heavy grease and cumin smoke stung the eyes, this place felt practically like a high-end restaurant.
With clean wooden tables, elegant vases, and even complimentary hand towels and breath mints, it was indistinguishable from a Surface World restaurant, save for its lack of walls and a storefront.
There were nine seats in total, all arranged individually.
Following the earlier incident, Xu Weizhou was naturally relegated to the very last seat.
The angle of this seat gave him a diagonal view of the back half of the market, allowing him to watch the interactions between the vendors and customers.
Just as he was yawning in sheer boredom, a glimpse of something out of the corner of his eye instantly changed his expression.
He rubbed his eyes hard to make sure he wasn't seeing things. It really was Yan Jing.
For some reason, Yan Jing had actually come to the front half of the market.
Thinking of the one-horned man's attitude, he quickly raised a hand beside his ear, covertly waving Yan Jing off to signal that he shouldn't come over.
But the moment he made that gesture, he stared in a daze as Yan Jing accelerated into a sprint right toward him.
One minute earlier.
Because he had taken a detour elsewhere, Yan Jing had lagged a bit behind, but he finally managed to reach the front half of the Rotten Vegetable Market.
He looked toward the steel-framed archway.
Using the gate as a boundary, a layer of grayish-white light shot into the sky, blurring the world outside and making it difficult to see clearly.
Faintly visible through the light, a towering skyscraper stood directly opposite the market's front gate, resting like a dormant, crouching beast.
This curtain of light marked the boundary of the Dungeon.
Inner World Dungeons offered a high degree of freedom; this boundary wouldn't stop you from stepping out, but leaving the current Dungeon perimeter would instantly drop your Mental Immunity Value to zero.
That meant any Inner World resident could launch an attack against you at any moment.
Yan Jing recognized that skyscraper because he had caught a distant glimpse of it while disguised as the Cameraman.
The high-rise was called the Sun-Swallowing Tower. According to the Cameraman's memories, it seemed to be an upscale restaurant catering to the wealthy and powerful residents of the Inner World.
Yan Jing lingered on the sight for a moment before pulling his gaze back to search for Xu Weizhou.
If his guess was right, Xu Weizhou's group would definitely choose one of the four highest-tier stalls to consume a destiny meal.
Sure enough, it didn't take long to spot Xu Weizhou.
He frowned upon catching sight of the Elephant BBQ sign.
It seemed Wei Zhou didn't hold much status in this team, otherwise they wouldn't have ignored his advice.
Then again, other possibilities existed. From Xu Weizhou's perspective, the credibility of a suggestion coming from his current down-and-out self was naturally questionable.
Just as he was pondering this, Xu Weizhou spotted him as well.
The fellow even started waving at him, seemingly beckoning him over.
Seeing that Xu Weizhou's team included quite a few faces familiar to his body's original owner, Yan Jing hesitated for a moment.
Ultimately, he picked up his pace and jogged toward Xu Weizhou anyway.
"Wei Zhou, oh Wei Zhou, we truly share a gentleman's friendship," he muttered to himself.
Even for the sake of five thousand Eerie Coins, he couldn't just stand by and watch Xu Weizhou die.
A short while later, he arrived right in front of Xu Weizhou's team.
By this time, Lin Mian and the others had also noticed Yan Jing.
Lin Mian's gaze instantly turned as cold as ice, and he whipped his head around to look at Xu Weizhou behind him.
Xu Weizhou helplessly covered his forehead.
Though Yan Jing didn't understand exactly what had happened, he could glean a few clues from everyone's expressions.
He came to a halt, stepping no closer, and offered the group a smile.
"Long time no see, everyone. What a coincidence."
Nobody answered. Lin Mian didn't even lift his eyes, and even his former classmate An Ranran wore a cold expression.
In their eyes, Yan Jing showing up right now meant only one thing: he wanted to beg them to remember past ties and help him clear the Dungeon.
After all, the rumors of Yan Jing being cast out by the Yan Family had already spread through their circle, and most of them had caught wind of it.
Seeing that not a single person would speak up, Xu Weizhou actually stood up right then and there.
Just as everyone wondered what he was up to, he enthusiastically called out to Yan Jing.
"Long time no see, Lao Yan! Fancy running into you here. What a coincidence... haha."
After saying it, even Xu Weizhou felt a bit awkward.
Yan Jing, however, didn't seem to feel it at all, smiling back as he spoke.
"Quite a coincidence indeed. Wei Zhou, it's been so long—how about I treat you to a meal?"
"A meal?"
Xu Weizhou paused in surprise, then smiled as he stepped away from his seat.
"Sure... to be honest, I've been running a bit hot lately, and barbecue is too greasy for me. You guys go ahead and eat, I'll be right back."
He was just about to step away when several strands of purple hair suddenly blocked his path.
The purple-haired man grinned.
"Xu Weizhou, even if you're in a rush to catch up with this bottom-feeder trash, there's no need to leave the table in the middle of a meal, is there? The food hasn't even been served yet."
"You—"
Xu Weizhou shot a dark look at the purple-haired man before forcing a smile and stepping back.
"Fine. I'll wait until the food is served, then."
If he left his seat now, the headcount would drop below nine, and the vendor wouldn't serve the food.
He genuinely didn't want to eat it, but there was no need to ruin everyone else's meal.
Before long, the vendor came over, carrying all nine plates at once.
He was a remarkably fat man; even his loose chef's robes failed to conceal his towering belly.
His rolled-up cuffs gripped the flesh of his arms so tightly they looked like two segments of sausage.
All nine plates rested securely on his right hand. Despite his wobbling gait, he remained perfectly steady as he distributed them to each person.
"Consume within ten seconds, or it will lose its exquisite flavor."
With that, he turned and waddled back to the grill, leaving the nine diners to their meal.
Xu Weizhou stared down at the whole sizzling chunk of roasted meat on the plate before him. The black pepper and coarse salt danced in the rising heat, releasing a faint aroma of rosemary.
He fell completely into hesitation.
The people around him had already dug in, appearing to relish every bite, while he had only ten seconds to make a choice...
Tap— A crumpled paper ball landed right in front of him.
Perplexed, he glanced at Yan Jing across the way and unfolded it.
It was a yellowed newspaper. The header read: Old Sin City Daily - Rotten Vegetable Village Column.