The Consequences of Discarding Milk Tea Cups Randomly

Outside the gate.

Guan En bent down and picked up the inconspicuous milk tea cup beneath the flowerbed.

The cup was covered by shadows; if he had knocked on the door directly, he wouldn't have seen it.

However, driven by his professional instincts, Guan En habitually observed his surroundings.

He held up the cup, his gaze focused.

It was a 500ml milk tea cup.

To be more precise, it was a fruit tea that had been drunk down to the very bottom.

Fresh condensation clung to the cup's wall, and the thermal paper label attached to it displayed the order time, the name of the drink, and its flavor.

Refreshing Guava Tea - Zero Calorie Sugar - No Slush.

The order time was 8:50 today, at the Anwu Wanxiang Plaza Center branch.

Wanxiang Plaza was where the [Hall of Mourning] was located, and a tragedy had just occurred there not long ago.

Who would come all the way here from the [Hall of Mourning]?

Guan En hid the milk tea cup behind his back and rang the doorbell.

...

Upstairs.

Zhu Yan wanted to say more, but the timing seemed unfortunate.

A crisp doorbell rang from the garden, and a somewhat familiar voice called out loudly.

"Is anyone there, please?"

The landlord raised its head as if it had met its savior.

"Madam, it's a player!" it said hastily. "I'll go open the door right away. I promise, I promise I'll make up the rent today, I'll definitely feed... feed you full—"

"Get lost," Zhu Yan said concisely.

He looked down, playing with his fingers, and instructed the landlord, who was rushing out, "Come back up after the player comes in, idiot."

The landlord left submissively.

The moment the room door closed, Zhu Yan immediately pulled that bottle of [Panacea] from his pocket.

It was no longer an itch now, but an intense pain.

Fortunately.

Fortunately, he had bought this bottle of potion from the shop in advance!

Gritting his teeth, Zhu Yan poured all the potion onto his back and injured arm, taking a glance at the unlit room in passing.

It seemed that his [Roleplay] had also deceived this house.

The mouth that should have been in the center of the room had disappeared, looking just like an ordinary, dusty carpet.

The potion slid over the injured areas, emitting a sizzling sound like boiling water.

Zhu Yan felt the unbearable pain vanish, replaced by the itch of flesh and skin growing rapidly.

He breathed a sigh of relief and walked briskly to the window, watching the hunched landlord slowly open the front gate.

Outside the gate stood a familiar figure dressed in casual clothes.

The streetlamp at the entrance illuminated the person's face clearly, making Zhu Yan's heart skip a beat.

It was actually his old friend, Guan En.

There was no way the police department was unaware that this guy had come here to participate in the instance.

Zhu Yan subconsciously adjusted his position and glanced further away.

He wondered if the female broadcast voice had explained any background reasons before Guan En entered the instance.

If Guan En knew that the other player in the instance was the exact person the police were looking for...

Zhu Yan raised his vigilance internally, watching Guan En, who followed behind the hunched landlord and observed the surroundings all the way.

No.

He not only had to survive but also had to find a way to escape completely intact right from under the police's noses!

Thinking of this, Zhu Yan pried the tightly shut glass window open a crack, leaned closer, and tried to hear the commotion downstairs.

"A player?" the landlord asked hoarsely, leading Guan En as it hobbled through the garden.

Its face was terrifyingly gloomy, feeling as if a ball of fire was burning in its shriveled chest, overwhelmed with anxiety.

"Before entering, I need to check your left hand!"

Guan En didn't reply immediately, silently assessing the house and garden before him.

Obviously, this landlord was the boss.

If it used the left hand as the criterion to test players, then...

Guan En recalled the scene of himself wiping that person's palm with makeup remover.

Would this acquaintance transform into the appearance of a pseudo-human or an ordinary person, just like before?

"I am a player," Guan En said cautiously, observing the landlord's reaction.

He showed his left hand, revealing the mark of a caged bird.

The monster gave a slight shudder, not out of nervousness, but rather as if it were breathing a sigh of relief—

It then turned its body, an impatient expression appearing on its face that reeked of decay.

"Come in quickly." The landlord reached out, firmly clamping onto Guan En's arm, dragging and pulling him toward the door.

This scene was seen clearly by Zhu Yan upstairs.

Maintaining his terrifying creature form, he retreated, carefully stepping over the carpet that had accumulated a thick layer of dust, and silently twisted the wooden door open.

Just like in the previous instance, Zhu Yan had no idea what Guan En's stance and mission were.

But with the experience of the previous two instances, Zhu Yan knew that their stances were very likely opposed.

However, Guan En had already crossed paths with him, witnessing his ability [Roleplay] and his usual tactics.

The dim yellow light in the corridor was still on. Perhaps the Man-Eating House had recovered some strength, as the old green lampshade began to emit a faint creaking sound again.

"Shut up," Zhu Yan threatened softly, activating the ability [Complain].

"I was just telling the truth before, and you have a problem with that? You really can't even see yourself clearly in your own piss. If you're sick, go get treated."

The lampshade stopped making noise.

Zhu Yan's mind raced.

He absolutely could not let Guan En see him at this moment, when he hadn't obtained any information yet.

He dared not underestimate a police officer, especially one who had seen him capable of [Roleplaying] a pseudo-human.

He knew nothing about this house, and he had no trump card to directly confront a level-five landlord.

If Guan En exposed him, it would be a huge trouble.

Zhu Yan tried to twist the door of the opposite room, and as he expected, it was locked.

...He had to use his current [Roleplay] identity to hide himself well.

Then, taking advantage of the time Guan En was talking to the landlord, he would see if he could find more clues.

Of the three rooms on the second floor, except for the room where the [Man-Eating House]'s mouth was located, which the landlord had opened, the other two were tightly locked.

Downstairs, the sound of the front gate being opened could be heard.

Guan En's voice sounded somewhat distant: "Am I the first player from here, Uncle?"

Zhu Yan chuckled.

He was now an advanced terrifying creature, and the landlord firmly believed this, so it wouldn't expose his existence in front of another player.

Zhu Yan paid attention to the movements downstairs, walking nimbly and lightly toward the stairs at the end of the corridor.

That connected to the attic—

He clearly remembered that the monster landlord was very fast when it came down to open the gate for him.

It very likely hadn't had time to lock the attic!

There should be more information in the place where the landlord usually sat, right?

Where was the [Lease Contract] mentioned in "Coexisting with Taboo Objects"?

"No," the landlord's sticky, blurred voice came from below. "Sit here and don't move. I'll pour you a glass of water..."

Zhu Yan climbed the old wooden stairs quietly.

The end of the wooden stairs connected to a small platform, and the bare carpet was covered with dark stains.

Behind the platform was a slightly open wooden door. The wooden door was already very old, not even having a modern door handle like downstairs, but merely fastened with a heavy brass lock that had been twisted open.