Chapter 75: There Won't Be a Murder in the Tower, But There Will Be...

As time ticked by, the players at the table gradually felt an immense pressure bearing down on them.

The methods they had employed worked at first, but each had its flaws.

For example, the team using their own food as bait found their rations running low.

The team relying on coordinated crowd control inevitably made mistakes, causing their Mental Immunity Values to drop steadily.

Even Mu Rao's gaze turned grim.

This was the Domain of Gluttony, after all. Seduced by plate after plate of food, the two female Gluttonous Weirds beside him were gradually shaking off the effects of his Ritual and growing wary of his movements.

The Squint-Eyed Man sitting across from him wasn't faring much better.

Snatching food midair was bound to fail eventually, and every time he brushed against a Gluttonous Weird's arm, his Mental Immunity Value dropped.

Eventually, the Squint-Eyed Man stopped.

His Mental Immunity Value had fallen to a critical level. To play it safe, he couldn't take any more risks.

Although Mental Immunity Values would reset in Stage B, he still had to survive an entire night before then.

He had to leave himself a margin for error.

It was only then that he noticed Yan Jing.

His squinted eyes instantly flew wide open.

All the Gluttonous Weirds surrounding Yan Jing had fallen fast asleep.

Meanwhile, Yan Jing was unhurriedly picking at the food on the table with his chopsticks, wiping his mouth with a napkin after finishing each dish.

What the hell?!

He stared at the scene in disbelief.

A Ritual from the Laziness system?

The thought flashed through his mind.

But he immediately dismissed it.

It was impossible. The Pillow had already appeared at an underground auction; everyone knew that.

Moreover, putting this many Gluttonous Weirds to sleep simultaneously should have severely drained Yan Jing's Mental Immunity Value.

So... what the hell was going on?

At the same time, the others also noticed the anomaly at Yan Jing's table.

Shock rippled through the crowd.

Soon, a few grew restless.

Yan Jing couldn't possibly finish that mountain of food by himself, and he was completely alone...

Although they knew this man—who had acted so abnormally all afternoon—was no pushover, the pre-formed Fifth Team was the first to cave.

Having exhausted their own food supply, they slowly approached Yan Jing.

"Hello, mind if we join you?"

The Fifth Team's leader, a woman dressed like a college student, offered a bright, sunny smile.

"As long as you pay."

Yan Jing wiped his mouth and smiled.

"..."

The woman took a deep breath. Still harboring a trace of wariness, she kept her smile and asked, "About how much would that be?"

"Forty thousand Wanli currency a head."

Yan Jing picked up a fresh bite of food served by Tiger and placed it in his mouth. "There are six of you. I'll round it down—two hundred thousand."

The moment the words fell, the group's expressions shifted.

A man standing behind the woman darkened with anger and snapped, "Who the fuck do you think you are, asking us to pay?"

With that, he reached out and snatched at the food on the plates.

But before his hand could reach the plate, a terrifying force clamped down on his wrist like iron tongs, halting him completely.

Then, the force shifted, dragging his arm violently downward.

"Ahhh!!!"

The man screamed in agony as his wrist snapped.

Before his teammates could even react, a dark blur flashed through the air like an artillery shell and slammed into the man with a heavy thud.

Amid the kicking dust, a fist rose, then hammered down.

Bang!

The screaming stopped.

Taking a direct punch to the face, the player lay unconscious with his eyes rolled back, blood streaming from his nose and mouth.

It all happened in a flash. Many players didn't even catch what went down before they saw Yan Jing back in his seat, smiling.

"One hundred and sixty thousand."

Yan Jing picked up his chopsticks and smiled at the pale woman. "Of course, if you want to pack his portion to go, it's still two hundred thousand."

After a moment, the woman quietly swallowed hard and nodded.

"One hundred and sixty thousand. We'll pay."

The transaction concluded, and the five took their seats.

Yan Jing resumed eating.

Right then, a bold voice rang out.

"I'll pay forty thousand. Can I join?"

Yan Jing looked up at the standing Chen Dalang.

He wore coarse cloth garments and cloth shoes. He had a massive build, but unlike Mo Nagu's bulging muscles, Chen Dalang kept his limbs covered in a long-sleeved shirt and pants. Even so, he looked incredibly robust.

"Sure."

Yan Jing nodded.

As far as he was concerned, money was money.

"Thanks."

Chen Dalang nodded, found a gap between the Gluttonous Weirds, and squeezed his way in.

The Gluttonous Feast had twenty dishes in total. Yan Jing had missed the first two. After tasting the sixteenth, he stood up and turned to leave.

The onlookers were puzzled.

As it stood, the Gluttonous Weirds showed absolutely no sign of waking. Yan Jing just needed to wait and he could sample every remaining dish.

If he did that, his rating for the task would naturally skyrocket.

However... his departure was undeniably a stroke of luck for the crowd.

Soon, people from other tables began getting up and heading for this table.

With Yan Jing gone, the food on that table had become "ownerless."

Seeing this, Chen Dalang considered mimicking Yan Jing's method, but to his surprise, both Mu Rao and the Squint-Eyed Man stood up at that exact moment.

Within minutes, the third table descended into total chaos.

Consequently, no one noticed that the remaining four dishes for this table were never served.

Yan Jing silently tracked the time before walking over to a table near the kitchen.

Four plates sat waiting here.

Each plate held just enough leftover food—neither too much nor too little.

Tiger was a reliable guy, indeed.

Then again, it might have been because Yan Jing was still holding onto his Zipper Button.

After taking a bite from each of the four dishes, Yan Jing dumped the plates into a nearby trash can and walked away.

...

That night, in the main reception hall on the first floor.

Yan Jing resumed his role as the "perfect waiter," steadily racking up five-star reviews.

Suddenly, he spotted a familiar figure.

Old Liu had changed into a black tunic suit and stood with his hands behind his back next to a woman who looked to be in her fifties or sixties.

Judging by his demeanor, he was clearly acting as the woman's bodyguard.

Yan Jing remembered this woman's profile—she was a very wealthy VIP.

The corners of Yan Jing's mouth curled up.

No wonder the Old Man had been acting so secretive these past two days. He'd run off to cozy up to a rich patron.

A short while later, Yan Jing watched the woman speak to Old Master Liu.

Instantly, Old Master Liu grew visibly excited, his long silver-white hair trembling slightly.

Knowing Old Master Liu as well as he did, Yan Jing recognized this as a state of extreme thrill.

Next, Yan Jing saw Old Master Liu retreat to a corner, digging through his pockets and glancing around.

Yan Jing withdrew his gaze, moved to a different corner, and pulled the Cameraman's Walkie-talkie from his pocket. He hid it in his cuff, waiting for Old Master Liu to transmit.

The Old Man must have gotten some good news and wanted to use the Walkie-talkie to show off.

He needed to be ready to applaud the moment it happened.

Beep! Beep!

Sure enough, the Walkie-talkie buzzed.

Yan Jing pressed the button, and Old Master Liu's suppressed, thrilled voice drifted out.

"This is 'Old,' this is 'Old.' I have major news to announce!"

Just as expected.

Smiling, Yan Jing raised his hands, ready to clap on cue.

"Boys, it's reliable intel."

"There's a bomb in the Tower!"

There's a bomb... Heh, not bad, not bad.

At first, it didn't register. Yan Jing kept his genial smile, ready to applaud.

But a second later, his hands froze midair. His smile vanished, and his eyes widened.

Wait a minute...

There's a... a what?!