Ten minutes later.
Zhu Zeyu carried his empty tray toward the dish-return conveyor belt, watching the red words that had suddenly appeared before him.
“Dear [Hunter], congratulations on completing the first phase of the [Preliminary Mission].”
“You have successfully implanted the [Connector] in the central control room of the Western Suburb Shelter.”
Yes. That had happened a short while ago.
Zhu Yan was still somewhat on edge.
The strand of [Mist] had not immediately returned to the puppet’s body. Instead, it had split into two strands again in the crowded public areas, drifting around in all directions.
Over the past few days, Jin Rongxu had stayed out of sight to avoid the spotlight, remaining cooped up in his suite every day.
Zhu Yan had checked on him twice now and then, confirming that the man had not caused any trouble. He had merely met with that metal expert from time to time.
Even so, Zhu Yan still felt uneasy.
He had to keep an eye on Jin Rongxu, Director Jin, and the Seer all at once.
The Seer was, in general, a fairly righteous person. If she happened to notice something and sent Jin Rongxu a private message without thinking through the consequences, who knew what kind of trouble she might cause?
“Don’t worry, Mr. Urban Legend.”
The red words before him took on a teasing tone.
“It seems you have something more important to worry about.”
“What?” Zhu Yan asked inwardly.
The [Mist] had already found the Seer.
After several days apart, her appearance had become much more low-key. She was dressed in loose athletic wear, without a trace of makeup on her face.
At that moment, she was sitting in a corner of the cafeteria, speaking anxiously to her female companion.
“…I saw it again… It was the same place as before.”
Just as expected.
The [Mist] drifted down with great interest.
Her companion merely shook her head helplessly, clearly showing that she did not believe her very much.
“Stop overthinking it,” she said. “You know you caused a huge mess… You’re not still thinking of reporting this to your superiors, are you?”
This time, however, the Seer lifted her head proudly and shook it.
“Of course not.”
Her answer stunned Zhu Yan.
“I’m saying those people are far too arrogant. They deserve to be taught a lesson,” the Seer said disdainfully. “Besides, I know the dungeon’s descent is an unchangeable outcome.”
“If the ending can’t be changed, then no matter how hard I try, it’ll all be futile.”
Floating in midair, Zhu Yan stared at the Seer for a while.
Her companion shook her head again. Judging from her expression, she clearly thought the Seer’s words were absurd.
“Forget it,” her companion said impatiently. “The shelter’s defenses are extremely secure. Nothing is going to get inside.”
“My friend is in charge of testing that system. Besides, all the [Connectors] have already been removed.”
The Seer pursed her lips stubbornly.
She looked her companion up and down with contempt, then ultimately chose to remain silent.
“You see, Mr. Urban Legend? I told you there was no need to worry about that.”
The red words shifted again before Zhu Zeyu’s eyes.
Zhu Yan patiently asked inwardly once more, “What do I need to worry about?”
“You need to worry about the dungeon that is about to begin,” the red words replied. “As a newly appointed Boss, unfortunately, we cannot directly designate territory for you.”
“Please resolve this issue yourself.”
Zhu Zeyu headed toward Director Jin’s office. He was on duty there that afternoon.
“What do you mean by ‘resolve this issue yourself’?” he pressed inwardly.
The red words flickered, then quickly provided an answer.
“[Wildland of Revelry] permits…and even supports, an ecosystem governed by the survival of the fittest.”
“You may choose an empty area as the location of your dungeon. If your level is high enough or your paperwork is in order, you may also drive away another dungeon Boss and claim its territory.”
“We permit both approaches.”
All right.
But the dungeon had not even begun yet, and he had not received his Boss abilities. Had he?
If that was the case, then there was nothing to worry about—for worrying would not help anyway.
“Mr. Urban Legend, before you think that way…”
The red words bounced restlessly.
“A colleague has asked me to pass along a message to you.”
…A colleague’s private request?
“Of course, sir,” the red words replied mechanically. “It enjoys watching you clear dungeons and has always looked forward to you recognizing its true identity in the next dungeon—whether you live or die.”
“Oh, of course. This isn’t that text message.”
Zhu Yan waited.
This time, it took a little longer. More than ten seconds passed before the red words finally changed.
“Because this dungeon’s descent is occurring suddenly, and because the Western Suburb Shelter contains a unique type of horror creature, we hope that Mr. Urban Legend will heighten his vigilance and remain alert—especially in situations where everyone is focused yet relaxed.”
“In addition, please find an opportunity to activate your Boss ability as soon as possible.”
The red words revealed nothing more.
Zhu Yan silently committed the message to memory, though he could not help feeling puzzled.
Vigilance? Alertness?
Was he not vigilant enough already?
And that line about activating his Boss ability as soon as possible felt inexplicable as well.
“Forget it, forget it.” Zhu Yan sighed. “I’ll know when the time comes…”
…
The [Mist] did not let its guard down. Every day, it went to the central control room to look around.
Then, one day around noon, after some time had passed, the [Connector] was still firmly attached to the underside of the tabletop, looking exactly like an ordinary plastic alarm.
Everything was peaceful and orderly.
“Zeyu.”
As usual, Yang Zhanbai came over to take over the shift. While he was at it, he passed along some fresh gossip from the cafeteria.
“Director Jin is going to the school tomorrow. Do you know what that means?”
Zhu Zeyu shook his head, his mind still occupied with the dungeon’s descent.
“What does it mean?”
“It means things have more or less settled down. He can put on a show by attending the children’s open class, demonstrating just how stable life is in the Western Suburb Shelter.”
Zhu Zeyu nodded and smiled amiably.
“What does that have to do with us?”
Yang Zhanbai’s face darkened. “Zeyu, how can you be so dense? Of course we’re going too. Jin Rongxu is going too!”
Zhu Yan suddenly remembered the seemingly pointless warnings the red words had given him earlier.
“A situation where everyone is focused yet relaxed.”
Nothing seemed more likely to fit that description than an open class.
Judging by the timing, the open-beta dungeon should be descending soon.
According to Chen Zhaoxing and Qi Yinming, both the small shelter and headquarters were peaceful, with no sign whatsoever of a dungeon descending—just like the Western Suburb Shelter.
Could the change happen tomorrow…?
“Oh. Oh, all right.”
Zhu Zeyu nodded, deciding to bring all his worldly possessions with him when they left the next day.
An open class.
What kind of horror creature would descend, and by what means?
Zhu Yan felt that he desperately needed some rest.
“I’m going to ask Captain Zheng for leave,” he said. “I don’t feel very well. I think I’ll go back and sleep this afternoon.”
he colors of other people’s emotions. Light red meant anxiety. Gray meant exhaustion. Orange meant excitement. Yellow... meant repression. At the same time, he could gain unlimited control over one of those colors. Pale cyan: relaxation. Using this ability, he started offering “two-yuan hugs,” spending an afternoon exchanging emotional-color experiences with others. Then came his final female customer of the day— a girl whose emotional color was pure black... —— A week later, Xu Chuan had become skilled at using pale cyan—Relaxation—treating it like a bottle of menthol balm whenever he needed it. That was when he discovered he had unlocked another unlimited emotional color: Purple, the color of fear. So these emotional colors refresh every week? Fine, I take it back—I’ll never call you useless again... —— Much later, after Xu Chuan had accumulated countless emotional abilities, one night, he suddenly found himself inside someone else’s dream. There, he could use the emotional colors he possessed to paint. And in her dream, he painted her a shower of pink shooting stars, spreading across the depths of the night sky...
Cheng's father told him he was getting remarried—to a wealthy woman. Cao Cheng realized his time had finally come: he was about to become a second-generation rich kid. Sure, it might be a watered-down version, but hey, at least he'd have status now, right? The wealthy woman also had four daughters!! Which meant, starting today, Cao Cheng gained four stunning older sisters?? But that wasn't even the whole story... "My name is Cao Cheng—'Cheng' as in 'honest, smooth-talking gentleman'!"
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
