Seized and Instantly Refined

Whoosh-whoosh-

A figure strode swiftly through the corridors of the Pill-Refining Cauldron's secret room.

Logically, in a place this deathly quiet, even the most careful steps would produce some sound. Yet the only noise coming from Wu Wang was the faint rustle of his clothes.

It had been the same when he was wandering the courtyard of the players' quarters earlier.

【Big Dipper Seven Star Steps】!

【Effect 2 (Silent-Step Backstab): The user can completely conceal their footsteps. No cooldown, no cost.】

This was the reason he could be so brazen.

Before long, Wu Wang's figure appeared inside the chamber. Near the cauldron in the center, two new, half-man-high transparent jars stood where there had been none before.

Even from a distance, Wu Wang could see what was inside them.

A crimson heart, beating at an extremely slow pace.

An empty torso, devoid of limbs and a head.

It was obvious where these two items had come from.

On the other side of the room, the troupe leader was rummaging through a wall cabinet, searching for medicinal ingredients.

"Back from the Nuo Opera Garden? When are you going to make a move on the remaining three?" Troupe Leader Yu said without turning his head. "Or do you even plan to act? The deaths of the first two don't seem to have anything to do with you."

His tone held not a trace of surprise, as if he had been certain all along that Wu Wang would return safely.

Wu Wang's gaze swept casually across the room. Finally, he leaned against the large cauldron.

"Of course I'll act, but I have a question for you first."

"No need for formalities. Speak freely," Troupe Leader Yu said, rising and turning around. He held an insect that looked like a cricket, except this one had a long, flexible, snake-like tail. It was clearly a creature unique to this Instance world.

"Just how many 【Five-Flower Melody】 dolls have you created?"

The moment these words were spoken, the secret room fell silent.

The insect in Troupe Leader Yu's hand slipped from his dazed grasp and fell to the floor, trying to scurry away while its captor was distracted. The little creature was incredibly fast, reaching a cabinet in the blink of an eye and attempting to squeeze into a crack in the floor.

But in the next second, a Ghostly Shadow shot out from the crack first. It seized the insect and handed it back to Troupe Leader Yu.

This was one of the Ghostly Shadows he controlled, which were always hidden around the Pill-Refining Cauldron.

"How did you find out?" Troupe Leader Yu's voice was cold, carrying a hint of icy killing intent.

Seeing his expression, Wu Wang couldn't help but shrug.

See, people are just so contrary. You act all high and mighty telling me to speak my mind, but when I actually do, you get pissed.

"Never mind how I found out. I just want to know…"

Wu Wang's voice became playful and mysterious, his gaze exceptionally scornful.

"Have you ever succeeded?"

Crack-

The instant he finished speaking, the insect in Troupe Leader Yu's hand was crushed, dying in agony. Potent venom from its body dripped down his palm and onto the floor, corroding the wooden planks and leaving behind a series of small, dark holes.

After a moment, Troupe Leader Yu spoke in a low voice.

"This time, it will succeed."

"In past years, it was only because that fool, Prince Xiang, was obsessed with reviving himself. He never stopped to think. He already has the body of a Jiangshi."

"He is a Yin World existence living in the Yang World, so how could he possibly answer the Yin World's call from the 【Five-Flower Melody】? He is essentially stuck between the realms of Yin and Yang."

"But this time is different. I won't let him be the one to drive the 【Five-Flower Melody】!"

Whoosh-

As he said this, two Ghostly Shadows suddenly materialized behind Wu Wang. With lightning speed, they seized his arms, pinning him firmly against the Pill-Refining Cauldron and immobilizing him.

The killing intent radiating from Troupe Leader Yu was pure and thick. It was so tangible that an ordinary person would feel their legs go weak just by standing before him.

"I will save Lou Yu! That self-righteous Prince can go to hell!"

"When the time comes, she and I will fly away together. This Opera God's Righteous Garden won't need to exist anymore."

"I've been performing for so many years. I'm tired."

He walked up to Wu Wang, holding his hand, dripping with corrosive liquid, right before Wu Wang's eyes.

"You Descenders will witness the happy ending of two destined lovers," he said softly. "If it weren't for the fact that I cannot be stained by blood for the sake of the 【Five-Flower Melody】, you would already be a corpse."

"Mo Hun will complete everything you failed to do."

"You can just wait here in this Pill-Refining Cauldron forever."

Hearing these words, the smile on Wu Wang's lips remained.

Just as I thought.

This Troupe Leader Yu had known about the players' existence for a long time. Back in the Nuo Opera Garden, during his "in-depth discussion" with the long-haired female ghost, she had tearfully told him they weren't the first batch of Star Actors to enter the garden.

Almost every year, Troupe Leader Yu would summon players to the Nuo Opera Garden for various reasons. In most cases, they would suffer casualties or even be completely wiped out. Only then would Troupe Leader Yu personally come to take their bodies away.

From this, Wu Wang had guessed that this was not the first time the Instance 【Anecdotes of the Pear Garden】 had appeared. It must have surfaced before, but no one had ever cleared it; all the players who entered had died.

That would explain Troupe Leader Yu's initial impatience. For a man who loved opera to his very bones to become so indifferent to the deaths of his Star Actors, it could only be because he had seen it far too many times. Killing seven players every year to perform the 【Five-Flower Melody】 had long since made him numb.

This was also why, on the first night, his 【Vision of Truth】 had seen so many souls imprisoned within the Dilapidated Opera Building. Those people were all former famous Star Actors of the Yi Garden. Or rather, they were players who had come to this Instance in the past.

Each time the creation of the 【Five-Flower Melody】 failed, the survivors would die in the Prince's rage. Then, their souls would be imprisoned in the Dilapidated Opera Building by Troupe Leader Yu. His so-called "resurrection" trick came from this as well. Those failed dolls were also hidden there by him.

The person killed by Bai Sha had not been Troupe Leader Yu himself at all. It was a failed 【Five-Flower Melody】 doll left over from a previous Instance.

Not only that, but Wu Wang had learned another interesting piece of history from the long-haired female ghost, something that might very well touch upon the truth of the entire Instance.

But he still needed to verify it.

To repay the long-haired female ghost for her honesty, he had agreed to undo her iron chains and get close to her. Then he let the Abyss God's Mark eat its fill. From now on, that bewitching figure would no longer haunt the entrance of the Nuo Opera Garden. She had indeed wanted to eat Wu Wang. Her mistake was biting his right wrist first.

"Honestly, her tearful words of gratitude are still echoing in my ears," Wu Wang said with a helpless sigh.

"I'll kill you!" Troupe Leader Yu's curses echoed through the chamber.

As Wu Wang spoke, his entire body vanished from the grasp of the Ghostly Shadows like melting ice. In the next second, he reappeared beside the transparent jars containing the heart and torso, pressing the 【Elemental Gun】 against them.

Beneath his Joker makeup, a familiar, crazed smile appeared. He took the nearly withered rose from his chest and placed it gently on one of the jars.

Wu Wang chuckled.

"I know you're in a hurry, but don't be."

"I never said I would reveal any of this to the other Descenders."

"On the contrary, I'd like to make a deal with you."

Troupe Leader Yu looked at him with a complicated expression. He truly hadn't expected this person to be able to escape the grasp of his Ghostly Shadows. Most importantly, nothing could happen to that heart and torso, or the 【Five-Flower Melody】 could not be completed.

He forced himself to calm down, gritting his teeth.

"What kind of deal?"

An incredible plan flowed from Wu Wang's mouth.

"I want to kill the Prince to verify something."

"Once the Prince is dead, you'll be the only one who can use the 【Five-Flower Melody】. How about it?"

Hearing this, Troupe Leader Yu laughed dismissively. He pointed a finger at Wu Wang's nose and cursed.

"Do you take me for a three-year-old? Let's not even discuss how to kill the Prince. If you're willing to let me craft the 【Five-Flower Melody】, how do you plan to get away?"

"Don't think I don't know that you Descenders also need the 【Five-Flower Melody】 to clear this."

Wu Wang's gaze sharpened. Evidently, some players had tried this method before. And since 【Anecdotes of the Pear Garden】 had yet to be cleared, it meant that players using the 【Five-Flower Melody】 could not clear the Instance.

In that case, his idea of killing the Prince to test his theory became all the more necessary.

So, he shook his head.

"No. What I need is the 【Five-Flower Melody】 of the present."

"What you will possess is the 【Five-Flower Melody】 of the future."

Troupe Leader Yu was no fool. He immediately understood. The meaning was obvious.

Kill the Prince, and Wu Wang would use this round of the 【Five-Flower Melody】. With the Prince out of the way, the next time Descenders appeared, Troupe Leader Yu would be able to control the entire situation himself. At that point, he could create as many dolls as he wanted.

"Hmph, absurd. How do I know if you will be the last batch of Descenders?" he snorted coldly. "I don't have the ability to see the future."

Hearing this, the corners of Wu Wang's mouth turned up slightly.

Heh, buddy, that's exactly what I was waiting for you to say!

He immediately put on a helpless expression, the Joker makeup on his face drooping sadly. He clutched his forehead in an extremely theatrical manner.

"Oh, my friend, if you truly cannot trust me..."

"Then how about this? You can use the 【Five-Flower Melody】 this time. No problem."

"But you must promise me that after summoning your beloved Lou Yu, you will stay and accompany me for one year."

"After one year, when the next batch of Descenders arrives, I will use the 【Five-Flower Melody】."

"If they don't come, you can leave on your own."

The offer was basically free labor delivered right to his door. It made Troupe Leader Yu suspicious.

"What are you after?"

"I'm after your body. Would you believe me?" Wu Wang quipped.

Then, he raised the 【Elemental Gun】 as if he were about to pull the trigger.

He sighed. "Besides, who said I was discussing this? I'm informing you."

"You see, if you don't agree, I've already offended you and will surely die anyway."

"Might as well fire a few random shots to ruin your plan and blow off some steam before I go."

"Without this heart and torso, you'll still have to wait until next year, and you'll face the same problem, how to snatch the doll from the Prince."

"Since it's a dead end either way, I might as well go for broke."

The troupe leader could sense that the other man was not joking. He really did intend to shatter the jars, and that strange object in his hand most likely possessed formidable power.

What Wu Wang said also made a lot of sense. No matter what, he still had to face the obstacle that was the Prince. Rather than face him alone, it was better to find a helper.

After a few seconds of deep thought, Troupe Leader Yu compromised.

He sighed and waved his hand, and the Ghostly Shadows vanished into thin air.

"How do you plan to get rid of Prince Xiang? With that ridiculous weapon in your hand?"

To be honest, Troupe Leader Yu didn't believe any weapon could take down the Prince head-on. In terms of martial prowess, the Prince was in a league of his own, and now he had the body of a Jiangshi.

"We'll use his own men," Wu Wang said mysteriously. "Remember the Human Refining Method?"

"You bring all his guards to me, and I'll refine them."

"Then I'll connect their minds to yours."

"You'll have a large force at your command, with the Ghostly Shadows to assist, and I'll have the other Descenders attack him together."

"The Prince will be all alone. What is there to fear?"

"Most importantly, don't forget this."

With that, he pointed to his own stomach. There's strength in numbers, after all.

Wu Wang's words made Troupe Leader Yu's face light up with joy. If all of this could be realized, killing the Prince no longer seemed like a fantasy.

Besides, the poisonous insect eggs were still a factor. Troupe Leader Yu had tested their effectiveness on previous Descenders, and they had never found a way to expel them. In other words, he believed the player's life was still in his hands.

"Good! I will agree to your request. I'll go summon the Prince's guards now. I hope you won't disappoint me."

With that, Troupe Leader Yu got up and left the chamber, leaving Wu Wang sitting alone by the cauldron, mulling over his plans.

He now had an extremely absurd theory in his mind. This place might not be the Yin World. And beneath the Prince's skin, something else was amiss.

Of course, to verify such a thing, he had to take down the Prince first, then dissect the body for examination. If he could confirm his theory, then he might have truly found the way to break the deadlock. This Instance wouldn't need five days at all; it could be cleared by tomorrow.

As for the poison bug… a mere fatal wound was nothing to be afraid of.

So what if I get poisoned to death? This bro has plenty of lives to give.

Before long, Troupe Leader Yu returned with a troop of guards. It was all thanks to him having previously demonstrated the marvels of the Human Refining Method to the Prince. When the Prince discovered he could truly command the guards with a single thought, he was even more eager than the troupe leader to have Wu Wang refine the remaining men.

Little did he know, these refined monsters were all carefully prepared traps.

Tonight, the blood-curdling screams of the guards echoed through the Pill-Refining Cauldron.

One after another, 【The Twisted Resentful Spirits】 were created.

Wu Wang remained silent, merely adding firewood to the cauldron.

Seized in an instant, refined in a moment!

His army of 【Resentful Spirits】 was complete.

Tomorrow morning would be the time for the mutiny.