A Strange Encounter in the Calamity Lair

“Master… Master…”

“Wake up! It looks like Xiezhi is coming out of the complex.”

“Where is he going this late at night?”

Hearing the shout from his apprentice, a young man with a long wolf cut, the master with the buzz cut groggily woke up.

Their current location was no longer the taxi from before. Instead, they had switched to a private car that had been parked on the roadside for several days. After all, they had to keep up appearances.

As the master sat up, he saw Xiezhi walk out of the complex and into the distance, just as his apprentice had said.

Rustle, rustle…

The master was still wondering where Xiezhi could be going when the cigarette box in his pocket suddenly began to rustle, as if someone were writing on it with a pencil.

As a veteran with extensive experience in Instances, he reacted instantly. With astonishing speed, he whipped off his jacket and threw it out the window.

However, the attack he anticipated never came. Only the cigarette box fell to the ground.

The landing allowed them to clearly see the words that had been written on it.

“Do you two need me to buy you more cigarettes?”

Looking at the writing, the two men exchanged a stunned glance.

When they looked up again, they saw Xiezhi already walking back, holding two identical packs of cigarettes in his hand. Just like during the day, he walked straight toward their car.

Knock, knock, knock.

With a light tap on the window, the glass rolled down. Xiezhi skillfully handed over the cigarettes.

The buzz-cut master took them and sighed.

“An expert is truly an expert. Are we supervising you, or are you supervising us?”

When the two of them had changed cars and clothes, they had even used disguise props. Yet, the other party had still found them at a glance. It was a clear show of strength.

“Not at all. It must be tough for you brothers, coming all the way down here to work,” Xiezhi said with a smile. “Don't be a stranger. You can't buy any good cigarettes in a small place like this anyway.”

After handing over the cigarettes, he turned to go back.

Just then, the buzz-cut master spoke up unexpectedly.

“Brother Xie, you don't remember me? I fought against you during the qualifying selections for the recent 【Relic Scramble】. It's a pity I was just one move short, otherwise the level 27 spot would have been mine.”

“Heh, it was just a fluke. Your strength is impressive, big brother. I almost suffered a major loss myself,” Xiezhi replied without turning his head.

His retreating figure then strolled back into the complex. He returned to his home and closed the door.

At that moment, the buzz-cut master's expression became subtle.

He looked at the cigarettes in his hand, then at his apprentice, who looked like a complete fool as he took out a cigarette and took two deep drags.

The apprentice even gave a thumbs-up.

“Yo, this Xiezhi guy is really humble! A hundred yuan a pack and he calls them ‘not good cigarettes'? We can't even afford to smoke this kind back in the capital.”

A moment later, the old master sighed. He also took a cigarette from the box and lit it.

He said, seemingly to himself, “Don't worry, brother. I won't ruin your plans. I hope you don't disappoint us either.”

Watching his master's cryptic behavior, the apprentice asked in confusion, “What are you doing, old man? Getting all sentimental over a cigarette?”

“Sentimental my ass. Just smoke yours,” the master said grumpily. “I was just thinking about some bad luck from the past.”

This piqued the apprentice's interest.

“Tell me about it. What happened?”

The master's eyes truly grew sentimental this time. After taking a deep drag, he slowly began, “Alright, I'll tell you… It's not like we're short on time. Nothing's going to happen tonight anyway…”

Rustle, rustle…

Just as he finished speaking, he saw two words slowly appear on the cigarette box in his hand.

【Thank you】

The master said nothing, nor did he let his apprentice see the words. He simply pocketed the cigarette box and began to recount an old story. He told him about the recent selections for the 【Relic Scramble】.

He recounted how he was narrowly defeated by an expert in the level 29 bracket.

Yes, he was level 29, not level 27.

This meant that during the recent selections, he and Xiezhi had never even crossed paths.

The person who had just handed them the cigarettes was not Xiezhi.

He had recognized it. And he hadn't exposed it.

The ability to silently make the cigarette box in his pocket write on its own meant that they could just as easily make it explode. The person helping Xiezhi hide his tracks was very strong, and his own chances of winning were slim.

What's more, he had a low-level apprentice with him. In a battle of this caliber, the boy would be a complete liability.

The other party was using this method to tell him they didn't want to resort to violence.

Besides, he knew Xiezhi's character very well. For him to sneak away like this, it had to be for something important, perhaps related to being framed for having connections with the 【Calamity Cult】.

If Xiezhi could clear his name, he would be happy for him. He could even earn a favor in the process. Later, when this foolish apprentice of his went to train under Xiezhi, this favor might just be exchanged for a greater return.

As for the Bureau's mission to report Xiezhi's abnormal behavior? Give me a break. The elder who assigned this mission knew Xiezhi's character better than anyone. The people who framed Xiezhi knew how innocent he was. He wouldn't dare do such a thing against his conscience.

The martial world wasn't about fighting and killing. It was about human relationships and social grace.

“Keep talking, why'd you stop?” his apprentice asked, confused.

The master laughed in exasperation. He gave the boy a knock on the head.

“You brat, you're truly blessed and don't even know it!”

Meanwhile, Xiezhi walked along a country path, heading toward a van parked in an out-of-the-way corner. As soon as he pulled open the door, he heard Book Boy's voice from inside.

“Brother Xiezhi, your reputation is really impeccable.”

After getting in, he saw Book Boy in the back seat pull out a paper figure identical to Xiezhi.

“That buzz-cut guy supervising you seems to have noticed you left,” Book Boy explained. “But he still chose to help you, which means they'll act as if nothing happened tonight.”

With that, Book Boy recounted what had just happened outside the complex.

Xiezhi hadn't known what transpired, because he had already slipped away. The master and apprentice had seen him, the real him, walk out of the complex. But the moment the master's attention was diverted by the rustling cigarette box, the person who bought cigarettes and returned was no longer Xiezhi. It was a paper figure folded by Book Boy.

As for Xiezhi himself, he had used the cover of night to rush over to the van. It was a classic switcheroo.

After listening to Book Boy's account, Xiezhi nodded.

“Mm, understood. I will remember this favor…”

Before he could finish, an impatient voice came from the driver's seat.

“Are you two done? Why are two grown men dawdling like this? Are we going or not? If we're going, shut the door!”

Bang!

Xiezhi obediently slammed the door shut.

Through the partition, he saw a woman sitting there with a cigarette dangling from her mouth. Her wheat-colored skin, tanned to a dark hue, made Book Boy look pale by comparison. Aside from her high ponytail, she seemed more like a man. Her hands were wrapped in boxing bandages, and a blood-red rose was tattooed on her upper arm. Her whole demeanor exuded capability.

“Let's go, Sister Ying,” Xiezhi said helplessly.

He was well aware of how explosive her temper could be. If he kept dawdling, she might actually kick him out of the van and go investigate the 【Calamity Lair】 by herself.

Vroom, vroom, VROOOOM!

The seemingly ordinary van, under Sister Ying's control, let out the roar and screech of a race car burning rubber. With a flick of the steering wheel, the entire van drifted out of the parking spot at a terrifying speed, charging toward the end of the road like an untamed wild horse.

After they had been driving for a while, Book Boy, who was desperately gripping his seatbelt, suddenly turned to Xiezhi.

“Oh, one more thing. You owe me three hundred yuan.”

“Okay,” Xiezhi said with a deadpan expression.

This left Book Boy a little confused.

“Aren't you curious why I'm asking you for money?”

Hearing this, a rare, schadenfreude-filled smile lifted the corners of Xiezhi's mouth.

“You realized when you were leaving that he didn't pay the bill and even packed up a lot of stuff to go, right?” he said teasingly.

Book Boy was speechless.

That bastard did it on purpose!

At eight o'clock, he had used a paper figure to meet the legendary 【Yan Shuangying】 in Xiezhi's place to discuss their meeting time. In the end, even though Yan Shuangying was the one who had chosen the cafe, he had made Book Boy's paper figure pay the bill. The kid had even secretly packed several slices of cake and coffees to take with him.

By the time he realized what had happened, Yan Shuangying was long gone.

Xiezhi clearly knew the other guy would pull such a dirty trick, yet he didn't warn him in advance. He had to know the paper figure didn't have a single penny on it. In the end, he, the esteemed manager of the 【Continental Hotel】 and one of the richest people in the entire Spirit Calamity Game, had to resort to pickpocketing someone in the shop just to pay the bill and leave.

That old rascal Xiezhi just wanted to see him make a fool of himself!

“Brother Yan's behavior is indeed a bit baffling, but he's a good person otherwise,” Xiezhi said with a laugh. He would never admit that he, too, had paid for Yan Shuangying before.

Book Boy didn't respond. He just sat there puffing his cheeks in anger while folding paper cranes.

The rest of the way, aside from the loud, tacky DJ music Sister Ying blasted from the stereo, the three of them barely exchanged a word. They were all familiar with each other and were just here to help Xiezhi out of a jam. Not much needed to be said.

Before long, under Sister Ying's furious driving, they arrived at an orphanage in the suburbs.

【An'nuan Children's Welfare Home】

This was the location of the 【Calamity Lair】 Xiezhi had mentioned.

To be honest, even he was surprised by its appearance. Normally, a 【Calamity Lair】 would be located far from the city. And while this was the suburbs, it was still quite close. Most urban Lairs were dealt with long before they could fully form.

Furthermore, perhaps it was a protective measure from the 【Spirit Calamity Game】 for ordinary people. Real-world Instances appearing within cities were already few and far between. Those that could leave behind a 【Calamity Lair】 were even rarer.

“Is that our fourth teammate?” Sister Ying asked, puffing out a cloud of smoke as she pointed to a figure at the orphanage entrance.

Just then, the figure turned its head.

Its deathly pale face was devoid of color, but around its lips was a ring of bright red liquid that dripped slowly to the ground. It was also holding something round. In the glare of the car's headlights, it looked chillingly like a human head. The figure was hunched over, as if enjoying some grand feast.

The sight made everyone turn pale. Sister Ying slammed on the brakes so hard that she nearly sent Xiezhi and Book Boy flying from the back seat.

The three of them quickly got out of the car and assumed a defensive stance. Just then, the zombie-like figure holding the “human head” spoke.

“Yo, you're right on time. Want some melon?”

Crack!

Then, right in front of them, he broke the “human head” open, revealing the rosy-red flesh of a watermelon inside.

Xiezhi immediately lowered the talisman paper in his hand. He looked with a complicated expression at the guy whose face was pale from vampire makeup. He was wearing a Baroque-style noble's attire, draped in a high-collared cloak that was black on the outside and red on the inside.

“Brother Yan,” Xiezhi said faintly. “What's going on with your mouth? Watermelon juice isn't that red.”

Hearing this, Wu Wang spread his hands and took out a packet of ketchup.

“I'm eating my melon with this. Is there a problem?”

Book Boy stared.

Sister Ying stared.

Even though he had just met the man a few hours ago, Book Boy was certain there was something wrong with his head. Who stands at the entrance of a 【Calamity Lair】, holding a watermelon and dipping it in ketchup? What kind of twisted taste was that?

Looking at their complicated expressions, Wu Wang took out a tissue and wiped his mouth. He carefully placed the watermelon on the van's hood.

“If you want some, now's the time,” he said with a serious expression. “Don't say you don't want any now and then secretly steal my watermelon after we come out.”

No one is going to steal your watermelon!

For the first time, Sister Ying felt so helpless when facing another player. She opened her mouth several times but couldn't manage to say a word. In the end, she chose silence.

It was Xiezhi who stepped forward to make the introductions.

“This is the 【Yan Shuangying】 I mentioned.”

“And this is 【Book Boy】 and 【Ying Luo】.”

As he spoke, Sister Ying's ID and her level of 28 also appeared above her head. As for Book Boy, Wu Wang already recognized him. He was a bit surprised, not expecting Xiezhi to know such a prominent figure. It seemed he would have to be careful not to let Book Boy figure out he was also Pending Death.

“Thank you all for coming to help me,” Xiezhi said, his tone turning serious. “Let me first explain the situation. I used a divination item and found out that the person who hid the clues related to the 【Calamity Cult】 in my home and office has appeared in this 【Calamity Lair】.”

“If we can catch him or find evidence that I was framed, I can prove my innocence.”

“If he himself is a member of the 【Calamity Cult】, that would be even better. It would prove there's a mole in the Bureau, and I will personally go to headquarters to purge them.”

Everyone nodded. As veteran players, they didn't need any more preparation.

One by one, they approached the orphanage entrance and cautiously stepped through the gate.

Shua—

Wu Wang froze in place.

The instant he entered, his teammates vanished. In their place stood three blurry figures.

When he turned his head to look, his expression gradually stiffened.

“Dad… Mom…”

“And… Eldest Sister?”