Chapter 54: A Heavy Blow Under the Moonlight

The entire map of Rotten Vegetable Village was carved into the Cameraman's mind.

Under the cover of night, Yan Jing moved as fast as a shadow.

He wasn't overtly sprinting, but his pace was blistering. In no time at all, he arrived at the doorstep of the Golden Sand Tangyuan stall owner's house.

It was a small wooden cottage with intricately carved windows and a door that carried the faint scent of sandalwood, conspicuously standing out among the surrounding brick-and-tile houses.

Without a key, no one could enter a house in Rotten Vegetable Village. Yan Jing's only option now seemed to be waiting.

And that was exactly what he did.

According to a forum post about overnight quests, the Golden Sand Tangyuan stall owner had a habit of taking out the trash every night at midnight.

This was exactly why Yan Jing had chosen this particular stall owner.

Even if he happened to skip the chore tonight, tomorrow was the competition. He would definitely wake up at five in the morning to prepare his tangyuan ingredients.

Yan Jing didn't need much time to cause a little sabotage—a few seconds would be more than enough.

The general contents of that forum post surfaced in his mind.

'{...After paying around 80,000 Inner World currency, I earned the right to stay overnight at his house...}'

'{...The rules were simple. I wasn't allowed to disturb him while he prepared his tangyuan...}'

'{...That wasn't a hard requirement... I figured I'd just sleep through it...}'

'{...Not long after, the sound of the door opening woke me up. I sneaked a glance at the wall clock. It was exactly midnight. Below the clock, a little mechanical bird was chirping...}'

'{...I held my breath, thinking he was about to start making tangyuan. He didn't. He just went out to take out the trash and came right back. Soon enough, I fell back asleep...}'

'{...I woke up again. This time, it wasn't the door opening, but a heavy pounding sound...}'

'{...He was finally making the tangyuan. It was five in the morning. I wanted to go back to sleep, but the pounding just kept getting louder...}'

'{...Unable to sleep, I gathered my courage and peeked. He was standing in the corner of the room. He grabbed a chunk of meat from a pile over there, threw it into a mortar, and started pounding...}'

'{...I started to feel a little hungry. That was when I realized something was wrong. If I kept getting hungrier, my stomach would start growling...}'

'{...I couldn't hold it back anymore. I was so hungry...}'

'{......}'

'{...I survived...}'

'{...He was right. There are many ways to stop a stomach from growling...}'

'{......}'

'{...You can do just fine without a stomach...}'

It was almost midnight.

Yan Jing crouched in the corner to the right of the door, waiting patiently.

A few minutes later.

"Cuckoo— Cuckoo— Cuckoo—"

The sound of a bird echoed from inside the house.

"Creak—"

The door was pushed open.

'Now.'

Yan Jing narrowed his eyes.

But just as the phantom image of a seed materialized in his palm and weird energy surged...

The figure stepping out the door suddenly stopped and spoke in an even tone:

"You came after all."

He had been spotted!

Yan Jing's heart skipped a beat, and he accelerated his hand movements.

"Swish—"

He flicked two seeds precisely into the corner just inside the door.

The man in pajamas standing in front of him continued, "The three of us discussed it. We know you wouldn't back out of this competition. The only reason you closed your shop was to make one last desperate gamble."

'Wait... did he mistake me for someone else?'

Yan Jing, who had been about to retreat, paused and stayed put.

The plan had changed.

The man seemed to care deeply about his image. Even this late at night, he still maintained his usual slicked-back hair, his tone indifferent:

"We all know that the banquet at the Sun-Swallowing Tower is a chance to pick a side. The chaos in Old Sin City will very likely end because of it, so we need to plan ahead."

"Don't blame us. Everyone wants to be the first to board the ship. Even if there's only a sliver of a possibility, we have to try."

"We know you went to see Old Man Yu yesterday. You couldn't win him over, so your only option was to come and try to divide us."

"And I was confident that, out of the three of us, you'd come to win me over first."

"I'm not wrong, am I?"

'Is he done talking?'

Yan Jing blinked. Why did it feel like he had left out the most crucial details?

Whatever. If he was done talking, it was time to strike.

Seeing no response from the person behind him, the man frowned.

"Why aren't you saying—"

His voice abruptly cut off.

Activating his time-freezing ability, Yan Jing used his last seed to conjure a sharp thorn.

Under the full moon.

A pair of hands raised high, casting a long shadow in the moonlight.

"Thud!"

With a muffled thud, the man collapsed to the ground.

Yan Jing snapped his fingers. Inside the house, dark thorns instantly sprouted, wildly piercing through all the ingredients in the corner, sending flour and chunks of meat flying.

After a moment of thought, Yan Jing wrapped his hands in his clothes and dragged the man's body back inside.

He waited for the thorns to dissipate, then used weird energy to wipe away all traces of his power in the room, just as the Cameraman did in his memories. Finally, he grabbed a mortar resting on the table and stuffed it under his clothes.

Then, he shut the door and bolted!

With a scapegoat in place, he could afford to take things a step further.

Smashing the mortar in a random, secluded corner, Yan Jing ran all the way back home.

Sitting on his bed, Yan Jing mentally reviewed the entire process and didn't spot any glaring flaws.

After all, the Cameraman had a wealth of veteran "criminal" experience.

Even if he left a few loose ends, it wouldn't be a big deal. Take the Disguiser, for example. Even with traces of power left behind, the Order Management Bureau couldn't just arrest people indiscriminately, so it still took them a long time to track him down.

And there was one final layer of security: if it really came down to an investigation, his side might not be the one unable to withstand the scrutiny.

This was only a concern because they were in an Order Domain. In any other Domain, there wouldn't be nearly this much convoluted bureaucracy.

Who would care if you knocked someone out?

Rabbit and Lion had been reduced to miserable states, yet no one had stepped up to speak on their behalf.

"It's not a big problem."

Having sorted everything out, Yan Jing put the matter out of his mind. Instead, his thoughts drifted to what the Golden Sand Tangyuan stall owner had said.

It sounded like the upcoming banquet hosted by the Sun-Swallowing Tower was far more than just a simple political marriage between two factions.

And then there was this supposed chaos in Old Sin City...

What was that all about?

Yan Jing suddenly realized that the Cameraman's memories weren't just lacking when it came to Rotten Vegetable Village; they were incredibly sparse regarding Old Sin City as a whole.

Details like the city's history, the distribution of its factions, and its geography were almost entirely absent.

'Was this guy not even from Old Sin City?'

Unable to make sense of it, Yan Jing finally decided to ask his friends about it tomorrow.

...

The next day. There were nine days left before entering the Dungeon.

"No idea at all."

Breaking precedent, Old Liu wasn't wearing his signature green military overcoat and jacket today. Instead, he was dressed in an old-era long gown, though he still had his trademark sunglasses on.

In response to Yan Jing's question about Old Sin City, he simply shook his head.

This was normal, though. After all, a single glance was enough to tell that this old man wasn't a local.

Yan Jing turned his head to look at Chen Nian.

Under Yan Jing's gaze, Chen Nian remained silent for a few seconds before speaking.

"I don't know much about the history here, either."

"All I know is that this is highly likely to be a lost territory."

"The greater Domain of Old Sin City was likely once part of a gigantic Domain, but it was eventually lost."

After saying this, Chen Nian coughed heavily a few times.

He seemed much weaker today than usual, his voice carrying a faint, static-like electrical hum.

"As for the chaos in Old Sin City that you mentioned, my guess is that it has to do with the return of the Domain."

"In a lost Domain, its fundamental power is drastically weakened. For a Domain like Old Sin City, there shouldn't be any entities exceeding Grade C, which is to say, the Third Tier."

"This limit is dictated by the power of the Domain itself. To break past this boundary, they must find the path of return."

"As for how to find it, I'm not sure. However, rumors say that the first person to discover the method of return for a lost Domain will obtain authority over it."

It was just as Yan Jing had expected. Even though Chen Nian didn't look like a local either, his knowledge was far more detailed than Old Liu's.

"Alright, none of this matters! Once we go inside and take a look, we'll figure it all out, won't we?"

Old Liu slid his sunglasses down his nose slightly, looking at the two of them with one black eye and one white eye as he lowered his voice.

"Did things go smoothly for you last night?"

"It was alright."

Chen Nian nodded.

"There shouldn't be any problems."

Yan Jing also nodded. Suddenly, he noticed something.

"Old Liu, why do you have a bruise by your eye?"

"I fell while sleeping."

Caught out, Old Liu hurriedly shoved his sunglasses back into place and waved a large hand.

"Since we're all ready, let's head out!!!"

Standing to the side, Mantou was the only one looking back and forth, completely failing to understand what Yan Jing and the others meant by things going smoothly last night.

[You're so stupid. They definitely sneaked behind your back and practiced cooking last night.]

[It's because you're so clumsy that they didn't invite you.]

The voice inside her mind spoke with a mocking tone.

"I... I'll... work really hard today... I won't hold you guys back..."

Mantou quietly cheered herself on.

This time, she didn't refute the mocking voice, because she genuinely felt like she was a bit clumsy.

...

Arriving right on time, the group carried bags of all sizes into the Rotten Vegetable Market.

Given the limited space in Rotten Vegetable Village, this would serve as the venue for today's competition.

They had just reached their stall and hadn't even begun to set up when they saw a figure sprinting frantically toward them.

It was the Youth who usually followed the Iceberg Woman around. Megaphone in hand, he lunged toward them as if reuniting with long-lost relatives, his expression wildly excited:

"They're here! Finally, another group of contestants has arrived on time!!!"

"Judges, please remain patient for just a little longer."

"Let's interview this fifth group of arrivals and see if they have anything to say."

Hearing this, the group exchanged bewildered glances.

Didn't they just arrive exactly on time?

'Were there really only four groups here before them?'