Chapter 100: Stage B Ends

In the silent stairwell, Yan Jing headed down alone, pools of dark blood staining the floor around his feet.

The corpse that had laid here was now chewed beyond recognition, leaving behind only a scattered pile of white bones.

This was the Domain of Gluttony.

There would always be lowly "vultures" unable to resist a delicious human, even a corpse.

Because of the strength Yan Jing had displayed earlier, those "vultures" had hovered and watched for a long time before finally snatching away the rotting flesh.

"Come out."

Yan Jing suddenly paused, turning toward a shadow at the corner of the stairs with a smile.

As he spoke, the shadow trembled like a black cloth. A slender hand reached out from within, lifting a corner of the darkness.

The heavy shadows seemed to fade significantly in an instant. A slim woman stood in the darkness, looking at Yan Jing with a complicated expression.

"Thanks for stepping in on the stairs earlier."

Yan Jing kept his smile.

He was referring to when he was sitting on the steps, and the Eye Blades unleashed by that Inner World member of the Order Pathway had plunged into the shadows, completely blocked by the woman before him.

"You did that on purpose."

A trace of resentment flashed in the woman's eyes.

At the time, she had thought this man was scared witless by the four-person pincer attack, which was why she struck from the shadows to help him block those Eye Blades.

Because of that, her Shadow Screen had been slashed open in several places.

But Yan Jing's subsequent one-on-four battle made her realize she had been completely wrong.

This guy had clearly feigned weakness just to force her out.

Evidently, the woman in front of him was the person Shen Youran had arranged to secretly help him.

"I wouldn't call it intentional."

Yan Jing blinked. "But I figured the task was almost over, and you needed to be of at least some use so you could report back to Shen Youran."

His lips curled into a faint smile.

"She told me that you had a difficult personality, but your strength was quite good."

"So I wanted to see if she was telling the truth."

"Looking at it now, your strength might be a bit inflated."

He pointed at the tears left by the Eye Blades on the black cloth.

Hearing this, the woman's face fell, making her displeasure obvious.

"If you look down on me, why did you agree to let me come?"

She still remembered what Shen Youran had said when calling her.

That phrase, "he agreed," had stuck in her craw ever since.

Entering the Dungeon this time, she had fully intended to see exactly how powerful this man was to dare look down on her.

Only to find out...

He really was quite powerful.

Yan Jing smiled faintly.

"For the sake of her sleep."

"If I hadn't agreed to let you come, she probably wouldn't have had any peace of mind."

"Also, please do me a favor and brag about me to Teacher Shen when you get back, so we won't have to trouble you to come again in the future."

He agreed to let me come just so that Shen woman could get a good night's sleep?!

Hearing Yan Jing's words, the woman felt deeply insulted.

Yet, she also knew she genuinely hadn't been of much help in this Dungeon.

The man before her had performed flawlessly in both the task and his display of strength.

Before she could come up with a strong retort, Yan Jing added:

"Of course, if you really want to run Dungeons with me, please work harder."

"Your current strength is still a bit lacking."

With that said, Yan Jing politely thanked her again for her earlier assistance, then turned and walked away.

He left the woman standing there blankly. When she finally snapped back to her senses, she was both angry and annoyed.

"Who wants to run Dungeons with you?! You jerk!"

For a moment, she felt the urge to teach Yan Jing a lesson, but recalling the fate of the group that had just tried to cross him, she fell silent again.

Forget it, she would endure it.

After descending the stairs, Yan Jing walked toward the lobby.

By now, the Inner World Residents in the lobby had long since scattered, leaving only two solitary figures squatting on the floor.

"Ah—ah—ah—"

Rose babbled at One-Eye beside her.

One-Eye sighed.

"Now you're blaming me? Weren't you mesmerized too? You didn't see where the boss went either."

"Ah—ah—ah—"

Rose gestured wildly.

"Yes, yes, yes, you're the patient,"

One-Eye said slowly. Suddenly thinking of something, he let a slightly smug smile appear on his lips.

"But I'm just a kid."

"I'm not necessarily a step below you."

Rose's expression froze. She clearly hadn't expected One-Eye to find such a novel angle for debate.

And so, the two of them immediately began a new round of aba-aba arguing.

Yan Jing watched their childish behavior and gave a helpless smile.

Just as he was about to find a place to switch back to his original body, a familiar wisp of Weird Energy suddenly drifted over from a distance and spiraled around his fingertip.

The Weird Energy circled his finger, seemingly trying to convey a plea for help.

Yan Jing looked at the Weird Energy and recalled the dense, scale-like wounds covering Mo Nagu's arms earlier. He sighed.

"Wei Zhou, you didn't take my things last time, so I'll consider helping you out this time as compensation."

A moment later, in the stairwell, the woman was hiding in the shadows, pondering how she should phrase things to Shen Youran once she got out. Suddenly, a hand peeled back the darkness veiling her.

Her pupils shrank. A Folding Fan instantly materialized in her palm as she prepared to face the enemy, but when she looked up, she found Yan Jing wearing his mask.

He was currently carrying an unconscious figure over his shoulder.

Upon seeing the figure's face clearly, the woman's eyes widened.

Fan Jue.

How did he end up like this...

At this moment, Fan Jue was covered in blood with his eyes shut tight. A small section of his chest had caved in, and with every breath he took, it rattled like a broken bellows.

"You brought healing items, right?"

Yan Jing looked at the woman. "It's impossible for you to be entirely useless, right?"

Despite his words, his eyes were brimming with suspicion.

The woman was completely frantic on the inside.

Then, right after she took out her healing items and took Fan Jue off his hands, Yan Jing simply left.

Before leaving, he nodded and left one last remark:

"I take back my previous assessment of you."

"If you can bring seven slots of items with you every time you enter, you're actually quite useful."

The woman stood stunned for a long time before she realized what he meant.

He was treating her like an Inventory?!

For a moment, she grew even more frantic. In the end, she could only vent her anger on Fan Jue in her arms, viciously pinching his arm a few times.

Yan Jing switched his identity and returned to the lobby. Looking at the two still bickering, he shook his head helplessly and called out:

"Time to go home and eat!!!"

Hearing his voice, the two turned their heads in unison. Upon seeing him, they immediately ran over.

"Ah—ah—ah—"

Rose tearfully complained to Yan Jing about losing her argument with One-Eye.

"Heh heh, the boss can't even understand what you're saying."

One-Eye deployed his ultimate move—refusing to translate.

"Ah, ah—ah— (You're despicable!)"

"Hehe, you got that right."

"Wuu wuu wuu—"

Rose's tears streamed down. She made up her mind; she was going to eat one less bowl of rice tonight.

To show her intense protest against One-Eye!!

Early the next morning, Yan Jing, having switched back to his original body, received a notification from the Inner World System.

[Dungeon Sun-Swallowing Tower Stage B Completed]

[Dungeon Evaluating...]

[Task 'Building That Could Explode at Any Time' evaluated. Based on the Player's degree of injury and their role in the event, the task rating is: S (Maximum rating is S)]

[Task 'Become a Qualified Bodyguard, Waiter!' evaluated. The employer protected by the Player suffered 0 injuries. The task rating is: S (Maximum rating is S)]

[Task 'Hunting Game' is not included in the final evaluation]

[Overall Dungeon Rating: S]

[Calculating Rewards...]

[Base Rewards: 5% Experience, 20,000 Eerie Coins]

[S-Rating Extra Rewards: 20% Experience, 20,000 Eerie Coins, Mental Immunity Potion (Bound Item) x1, Dungeon Postponement Voucher x1, Ritual Blessing Coupon (Bound Item) x1, Inner World Gold Box]

[Task 'Hunting Game' Extra Reward: Your performance has been recognized by the VIPs in the Tower. They have already left your extra reward at the front desk.]

Yan Jing checked his status window:

[Player Name: Yan Jing]

[Player Title: None]

[Player Level: First Tier, Experience (78%/100%)]

[Ritual: Fear Sapling (Purple)]

[Mental Immunity Value: 100]

[Eerie Coins: 326,466]

Yan Jing nodded.

Soon. He wasn't far from the Second Tier now.