Chapter 345: A Dangerous Night

Faced with Ren Tongtong's questions, Qi Ming's eyes filled with sorrow. Finally, his lips trembled.

"I'm the one who let you down, Tongtong."

A long silence filled the room.

Qi Ming's eyes reddened slightly as he turned to leave.

He would be staying in Rainbow City from now on; there would always be opportunities to clear the air.

But just as he was about to head downstairs, Ren Tongtong's trembling voice came from inside the room:

"When we disbanded five or six years ago, I told you to take me with you, and you just stayed silent, exactly like you're doing right now."

"In your heart, even after it disbanded, Zhoulin will always be more important than me."

"You told me you would take me to the summit with you, but you forgot. You told me only the weak dwell in the past, and you forgot that too. I know you've long forgotten everything between us."

"I thought I was holding you back. So, after waiting for you for a year, I came to find Shen Youran. I thought that without me around, you would eventually pull yourself together and start over."

"Shen Youran and I are no different. I also have someone I dream day and night of seeing reach the summit."

"But she is the lucky one."

At those last words, Qi Ming shuddered violently.

He looked back, hoping to hear Ren Tongtong say something else, but no further sound came from the room.

Finally, he left, taking Pan Yue with him to Rainbow City.

And carrying the determination to start anew.

[Peace Heavenly Kingdom Stage A Complete]

[Dungeon Evaluation in Progress...]

[Quest "Assassin of the Peace Era" evaluated. The player's party successfully assassinated two candidate councilors. Based on a comprehensive assessment of player contribution, the quest rating is: S (Maximum rating is S)]

[Overall Dungeon Rating: S]

[Calculating Rewards]

[Base Rewards: 3% Experience, 10,000 Eerie Coins]

[S-Rating Extra Rewards: 20% Experience, 10,000 Eerie Coins, Mental Immunity Potion (Bound Item) x1, Item Quality Appraisal Ticket x1, Lucky Scratch Ticket x1 (Bound Item)]

[Now Issuing Stage B Quest]

[Quest: The Framer]

[Quest Description: In the Peace Heavenly Kingdom, there is a notorious group of seven criminals. They operate throughout the Peace Heavenly Kingdom, targeting corrupt officials and ruthless plutocrats. Every strike they make causes a massive uproar in society. Among these seven is a criminal named Tianji.]

[As the one most adept at large-scale crimes among the seven, Tianji has planned an unprecedented operation. They are determined to use Muke District—the area with the highest concentration of the Peace Heavenly Kingdom's lower-class citizens—as a starting point to unleash a wave of madness across the Heavenly Kingdom. An essential link in this incident is you, humans with completely untraceable backgrounds. Please stop this crime and clear your names.]

[Stage B will officially begin in 36 hours.]

[Dungeon Exit Countdown: 00:05:00]

Yan Jing looked at the dungeon rewards. They were fairly standard, nothing particularly special, but the true "reward" this time had long ceased to be within the dungeon itself, so he accepted them gladly.

What he hadn't expected, however, was that the Stage B quest would be related to Seven Stars again.

"Tianji,"

Yan Jing muttered.

Yaoguang from last time had left a rather deep impression on him; he wondered what kind of opponent this new one would be.

Once the dungeon countdown finished, he immediately exited the Inner World.

After calling Shen Youran and explaining the general situation, he said, "Teacher Shen, I have some things to take care of over the next couple of days. Let's talk again after the dungeon is completely finished."

He said it casually, but it sounded completely different to Shen Youran's ears.

"Xiao Yanzi, this was my mistake—"

Flustered, she wanted to offer some reassurances, but after a few seconds of silence, she merely replied softly, "Okay."

Then, she hung up the phone.

After meeting with Qi Ming, she had rushed back without stopping, only to find the lights in Yan Jing's house already out.

In the end, after pacing outside Yan Jing's door for a long time, she still lacked the courage to knock and returned to her own room. Under the dim light, she hugged a stuffed toy on her bed, crystalline tears slipping down in the dark.

As she saw it, Yan Jing was definitely angry. Even his tone of voice had changed; he simply didn't want to see her.

Meanwhile, inside Yan Jing's Inner World.

Director Cat was currently instructing the actors below:

"What is the most important thing in acting?"

"Acting skills!"

Grandpa Zhang was the first to raise his hand.

"Wrong!"

Yan Jing waved his paw.

"Emotion?"

Li Zhiyuan guessed tentatively.

"Incorrect!"

Yan Jing waved his paw again.

"Birdies!"

Li Ya, wearing her white dress, happily raised her hand.

"Also wrong!"

Yan Jing put on a serious expression.

"It's immersion."

"You must have a sense of immersion that comes straight from the heart. Imagine you truly are this character."

"You share their personality. What reactions would you have when encountering different situations? How would you interact with the people around you? Based on that, how do you integrate your own thoughts—"

As Yan Jing's words trailed off, the crowd sitting on the small stools began shaking their heads.

"Too hard—" "Don't understand, I just don't get it." "Director Cat, can you give us some simpler concepts—" "Isn't it time to eat..." "Bird— birdies—"

Yan Jing sighed.

'It shouldn't be that hard, should it?'

Watching the crowd chatter and gradually grow noisy, he picked up his pointer and rapped it hard against the small blackboard.

"Quiet, quiet!"

Everyone immediately stopped talking. Even Li Ya reached up and covered her mouth.

"Alright, putting aside all that theory, just express your true feelings. You can do that much, right?"

"Just think about your first impression of our sanitarium. Think about your gratitude toward our organization, think about—"

Bzz! Bzz!

The vibration of his Information Component interrupted Yan Jing's speech. He glanced at the caller ID and looked up.

"I have to take this call. Review on your own for now."

Then, ignoring the crowd that had started chatting again, he walked to the side and answered the call.

"Hello? Third Brother, what's wrong?"

"Fourth Brother, come over here. Something happened at the Guanglin Anthill. I'm at the Punan Tavern. Bring some Hemostatic Potions—"

Hu San's voice sounded incredibly weak.

Yan Jing nodded.

"Alright, wait there. I'll be right over."

Hanging up, he looked at the crowd—who had instantly sat up straight on their stools again—and threatened viciously:

"When the interview happens later, you all better answer properly, or else everyone gets a punch."

He waved his paw.

"Okay!!!"

The crowd replied in unison, well-behaved and obedient.

During this period, the group had already accepted several interviews. As a result, the Tianque Sanatorium had gained quite a bit of attention, and the name "Mao Si" had appeared in the public eye.

This was also intentionally orchestrated by Yan Jing.

If Luo Sheng's identity was a shadow spreading among the higher-ups, then Mao Si was meant to be the conspicuous figure parading in front of the masses.

Accomplishing a task like changing the bottom rungs of society required time and groundwork.

Sometimes, even Yan Jing himself felt a bit uncertain.

He started his car and drove toward the location Hu San had given. Before long, Xiao Xin, who had headed over a step ahead of him, returned with a report: Hu San was indeed in trouble, and his chest was covered in blood.

It looked like he wasn't going to make it.

As soon as he parked the car on the outskirts of the Anthill, Yan Jing noticed something was wrong.

There were figures everywhere, carrying knives and axes, searching the streets. Shouts rang out from time to time:

"He's not over here!"

"Keep looking!"

After parking, Yan Jing's figure blinked repeatedly. Soon, he spotted the dilapidated little tavern Hu San had mentioned.

The instant the door opened, Hu San rushed straight out from behind it. The sharp edges of his right mechanical arm gleamed with a deadly light as he swung toward the doorway. It was only when he saw it was Yan Jing that he pulled his punch, grabbed Yan Jing by the sleeve, and yanked him inside.

"How did you end up like this?"

Yan Jing looked at Hu San's current state.

His entire chest looked as if it had been hollowed out by a sharp weapon, exposing fractured bones and mechanical nerves. Wire-like components dangled loose, occasionally sparking with a faint blue light, and the suit he wore was completely soaked in blood.

"It was Xiong Er."

Hu San said weakly.

"Impossible."

Yan Jing outright rejected the idea.

"Second Brother doesn't have the guts."

If Papa Rat found out Xiong Er was trying to kill Hu San, it was uncertain whether Hu San would survive, but Xiong Er would definitely be dead meat.

"It really was him."

Seeming to know that Yan Jing wouldn't believe it, Hu San let out a miserable laugh.

"Do you think I don't know that? But it really was him. I saw his face."

"Is it possible someone was impersonating him?"

Yan Jing asked.

"Impossible."

Hu San coughed a few times, a trail of blood seeping from the corner of his mouth.

"I saw the tattoo on the lower side of his chest. He almost never shows that to outsiders."

"Plus, his fighting style was exactly the same as always."

...

Yan Jing didn't know what to say. He really didn't have much of a say in this matter.

'What grown man spends his days staring at the lower side of another guy's chest?'

At the very least, there was no such thing in Mao Si's memories.

"Where's the Hemostatic Potion?"

Hu San held out his hand.

Yan Jing pulled out a spare vial of Hemostatic Potion he had grabbed from the car and tossed it over.

"A Hemostatic Potion isn't going to cure a wound like this. You need to go to a hospital."

"There are people everywhere outside." Hu San pressed a button on the Hemostatic Potion, extending a needle, and jammed it straight into his own neck.

After taking the shot, he visibly rallied quite a bit.

"You knew there were people everywhere outside, and you still called me here?" Yan Jing's eyes widened in exasperation.

"Where's Pops?"

"I can't reach him." Hu San wiped the corner of his mouth.

"That's also why I came looking for you. You were the only one who could come—"

"Hello? Pops, yeah, I'm outside right now."

Yan Jing spoke to Papa Rat, who appeared on the Holographic Screen projected from his Information Component:

"I'm with Third Brother right now. Yeah, he said he couldn't get through to your phone."

Yan Jing turned the Information Component on his wrist toward a dumbfounded Hu San.

"Third Brother, it's for you. It's Pops."

At this moment, Hu San felt an intense pain in his chest, and it wasn't just because of the wound Xiong Er had clawed out.

Taking a deep breath, he looked at Papa Rat.

"Pops."

"How did you end up like this?" Looking at Hu San's state, Papa Rat's face immediately darkened.

Hu San recounted the whole story. Unexpectedly, Papa Rat didn't appear particularly angry or surprised.

"Come back to headquarters first. That was probably indeed Second Brother, but there was an incident. He must have had an adverse drug reaction."

"An adverse drug reaction?"

The two of them blinked.

"Fourth Brother," Papa Rat said.

"Present!" Yan Jing placed his paw next to his head.

"Bring your Third Brother back safely."

"Yes, sir!" Yan Jing replied.