The Order Management Bureau officer watched with some curiosity as Yan Jing walked out of the confinement room.
In his experience, being locked in such a cramped space without room to move for several hours would leave an average person's legs completely numb. Yet Yan Jing looked entirely relaxed.
"Maybe he just wasn't locked up long enough. What a lucky guy..."
The officer shook his head.
Who could have guessed that the real culprit would be caught so soon after this guy was thrown into confinement?
It could only be chalked up to luck.
As soon as Yan Jing reached the lobby at the entrance of the Order Management Bureau, he spotted Old Master Liu and Chen Nian squatting face to face on the floor, both wearing solemn expressions.
He froze for a moment before walking over. "What are you two doing squatting here?"
"There are no seats in this lobby!"
Old Master Liu replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Realizing who had just spoken, he eagerly twisted his head out from his military overcoat. "You got released?!""Yeah, I heard the real culprit was caught."
Before Yan Jing could finish, Old Master Liu leapt to his feet and excitedly yanked Chen Nian up. "What did I tell you? How could reporting the case be useless? That guy was injured, and we provided the clues. All they had to do was follow them to find him! You really do have to rely on this old man."
"What exactly happened?"
Yan Jing was completely lost.
Chen Nian struggled hard to break free from Old Liu's grasp. He watched the old man shake his head frantically at him, then finally let out a sigh.
In the end, he recounted exactly how they had set up the ambush.
"Then we came to report it, but the Bureau just said they couldn't verify our story yet, so they couldn't release you. They never put much faith in witness testimonies."
"Where is Mantou?"
Yan Jing knew why the Bureau hadn't released him.
Aside from their low trust in testimonies, there was another reason: if they started conducting a sweeping search, they would likely be beating the grass to scare the snake. That would trigger the Disguiser to enter its killing and disguising mode prematurely, just like what happened in Sleepland a few years ago.
But right now, he cared more about where Mantou had gone.
According to their story, Mantou's injuries seemed severe. While he didn't know what exactly was hidden inside her body to cause them, he figured they wouldn't be easy to treat. Plus, Rotten Vegetable Village didn't exactly have a hospital...
"Did something happen to Mantou?" he asked.
Thinking of that frail figure who had repeatedly stood in front of him to protect him before he was taken away, his voice inexplicably tightened.
"No, Nizi just went to the restroom."
Old Liu wrapped his military overcoat tighter and triumphantly started chattering at Chen Nian again. "I told you, didn't I? Reporting it would definitely work..."
Chen Nian sighed once more.
The old man's attempt to change the subject was painfully blunt. He was obviously trying to skip over the part where they used the mentally challenged girl as bait, but how could Yi Ji not see through it—
"As long as she's fine. Thanks to you and Chen Nian this time, Old Liu! I was wondering why they let me out so fast!"
Yan Jing stepped forward and patted them both on the shoulder.
Chen Nian shot Yan Jing a strange look. He didn't believe for a second that Yan Jing hadn't realized his release had absolutely nothing to do with them.
Yet the expression on the camera atop Yan Jing's head looked perfectly normal, and his tone was incredibly sincere. "I won't say any more. I'll treat you guys to a meal in a few days. If either of you ever needs anything, I'll be there whenever you call."
With that, he turned and headed toward the restrooms.
Chen Nian watched Yan Jing's retreating back in silence for a long moment before helplessly turning to Old Liu, who was still rambling. "Stop acting. He's already gone."
The chattering stopped instantly. Old Liu peeked shiftily at Yan Jing's back. "Do you think that kid Yi Ji figured it out?"
"Do you take him for an idiot?"
Chen Nian coughed a few times and rolled his eyes at Old Master Liu.
Unfazed, Old Master Liu shoved his hands into his pockets, reverting to his usual roguish old man demeanor. "I don't care. The kid offered to treat us to a meal himself. I'm taking him up on it tomorrow."
Seeing the smug look on Old Master Liu's face, Chen Nian let out a helpless smile beneath his mask.
...
Trembling, Mantou scooped up some water from the sink, splashed it over her face, and stared at her reflection in the mirror.
After making sure there was no dirt left on her cheeks, she forced a bright smile at the mirror.
Grandfather Liu and Big Brother Chen Nian had both said that Yi Ji would be coming out soon. She couldn't go see him looking so miserable.
[That kid isn't coming back out.]
A voice seemed to echo from the shadows behind her.
"Yi... Ji... definitely... he'll definitely... come out..."
As if she hadn't heard it, Mantou clenched her fists to cheer herself up.
Leaving the restroom, she turned the corner of a corridor. As she hurried along, limping with her head down, her right shoulder suddenly bumped lightly into someone.
"I-I'm... sorry..."
Mantou quickly apologized.
"It's okay."
The voice, carrying a gentle smile, made Mantou freeze for a moment.
In disbelief, she looked up and actually saw that familiar figure.
"Yi... Ji...!!"
In an instant, her brown eyes turned red. She stood there trembling, wanting to step closer but hesitating.
She was a bit dirty, so she couldn't get Yi Ji's clothes all...
But a pair of warm, large hands reached past her arms and pulled her gently into an embrace, giving her a hug unlike any she had ever known.
"Thank you for saving me this time, Mantou."
"Y-you're... welcome..."
Muffled against his white shirt, her voice grew wet and choked.
[Favorability +1]
[Favorability +1]
[Favorability +1]
Famous director Liu Fu, hiding and watching from a distance, offered his critique: "Now that is a genuine reaction. No wonder that guy saw through it earlier."
...
The group walked out of the Order Management Bureau.
After everything they had been through, everyone was exhausted and ready to head home for a good rest.
Yan Jing scrounged a few eggs off of Old Liu and stuffed them into Mantou's hands to help her recover her strength.
"It's just a few eggs! Take 'em! Grandfather Liu isn't short on eggs. If Grandfather Liu ever gets to go back to his hometown, never mind chicken eggs, getting you phoenix eggs wouldn't be out of the question."
Old Liu waved his hand grandly, looking incredibly generous.
"Thank you... Grand... Grandfather Liu..."
Mantou thanked him politely, instantly making Old Master Liu beam with joy.
Yan Jing shot Chen Nian a questioning look.
The old man hadn't been like this a few days ago.
Chen Nian sighed. "Just assume he's found a second spring. He might be wanting a granddaughter."
???
As they walked down the street, Yan Jing suddenly caught sight of a few familiar figures.
"Brother Mian, no sign of him here."
A tall, skinny man hurried over to the Black Robe-clad Lin Mian and reported.
"Brother Mian, didn't find him here either..."
"Brother Mian, nothing on my end..."
Several people came over in succession to report. They were all members of the expedition team Yan Jing had seen last time.
Lin Mian clenched his fists, veins bulging on his forehead. "Keep looking! This Dungeon is only so big. I refuse to believe he just vanished into thin air!"
Who were they looking for?
Something stirred in Yan Jing's mind, and he stopped walking.
Because he had found the culprit who murdered the Cameraman, he had satisfied the first reward condition, unlocking the function to switch roles while in the Dungeon.
When the Inner World System issued its announcement earlier, he had already transformed into the Cameraman. He didn't even realize his own name had been broadcasted in the announcement.
However, it wasn't hard to guess who Lin Mian was searching for.
"Where's Xu Weizhou? Where did he go?"
An Ranran asked from the side, but the others shook their heads, indicating they hadn't seen Xu Weizhou return.
"He must be trying to find Yan Jing first so he can run cover for him," An Ranran concluded.
Lin Mian's expression grew terrifyingly dark as a result.
Finally, he spoke coldly, "It's fine. Let him search. Once he finds him, we'll deal with both of them together. I'll make them wish they were dead!!"
With that, the group scattered again.
Yan Jing watched all of this unfold with an amused glint in his eyes.
"What's up with you, kid?"
Old Liu looked at Yan Jing, who had abruptly stopped, in confusion. "Do you know those humans?"
Yan Jing smiled and shook his head. "I don't. Just looking around."
"By the way, Old Liu... that method you mentioned last time to make the halos around humans disappear, is there a faster way to do it?"
...
...
The single horn on Lin Mian's forehead flashed as he darted swiftly through the alleys, heading in a specific direction.
He had just received word that someone had spotted Yan Jing in that area.
Unable to wait, he and An Ranran had set out first, swearing to be the ones to grab Yan Jing.
He knew the other two teams were also on their way to hunt down Yan Jing right now. Only by getting their hands on him first could they avoid losing the initiative.
He had already made up his mind. Once he found Yan Jing and stripped him of his belongings, he would kill him on the spot to eliminate any future trouble.
As for that Xu Weizhou, since his father had some resources backing him, his life could be spared.
At the thought of this, a ruthless smile surfaced on his face.
Suddenly, the fluorescent light flashing on his horn dimmed, instantly putting him on high alert.
"Hold on, Ranran. Something's wrong."
He called out to stop An Ranran. The two immediately pulled out the items their Family had given them and gripped them tightly.
In his hand was a Green-Quality Dagger covered in eyeballs. Its effect was that it automatically deflected toward a target's weak points when swung.
Meanwhile, what An Ranran held was a piece of Moldy Bread. Eating it would soften the body, increasing her strength while reducing incoming physical damage.
Although their quality was only Green, these two items were genuine combat artifacts. In a fight, the head and Pillow that Yan Jing had acquired would fall far behind.
Lin Mian's expression was dead serious as he kept a vigilant eye on his surroundings.
The horn on his head was a foundation that his Family had expended massive effort to forge for him. It could distinguish the strength of the surrounding weird energy and would grow alongside him.
Since the day he was born, the elders in his Family had fed him a sliver of weird energy daily. They had to ensure he wouldn't step onto the Inner World's power Pathway, while simultaneously using that weird energy to continuously reconstruct his body. That arduous process was what eventually formed this single horn.
For the horn to dim right now meant that the weird energy in the air had thickened to a substantial degree.
Suddenly, his eyes narrowed. Looking at the surrounding scenery, he got the distinct feeling that he had been in this alley before.
Beside him, An Ranran also quickly realized that they had already passed through this exact alley moments ago before traveling much farther ahead.
After a brief discussion, the two immediately decided to turn back.
However, when they turned around, they discovered that the path they had come from was gone.
Behind them now stood a massive wall dozens of meters high, looming over them like a pitch-black storm cloud.
Mustering their courage, the two turned back to look ahead. Without them noticing, a thick fog had suddenly rolled in.
The heavy, swirling mists shrouded the path forward, drifting toward some unknown destination. Spectral figures repeatedly flickered into existence in the middle of the road, making it look like a direct path to the underworld.
Instantly, cold sweat broke out on their foreheads.
In a hidden corner somewhere, Yan Jing pulled out three thousand Eerie Coins and handed them to Old Liu.
"Are you sure this guy you found is reliable?"
"Don't worry."
Old Liu spat, then counted out ten bills from the thirty Eerie Coin notes, handing them to a little old man beside him whose back was hunched at a near ninety-degree angle. Right now, the old man's eyes were pitch black. As his hands shifted and weaved through the air, the scenery around Lin Mian and An Ranran began to change once more.
"Old Zhang is a professional. For all these years, he's only ever known how to do this one trick."
"If the other side had weird energy, it'd be one thing. Using weird energy to break through anomalies is the simplest and most effective method. But if they don't have a single drop of weird energy on them, then the halos around them will definitely disappear."