Kill Them

"One ticket short?" Ye Chuan asked.

"Yes..." Tian Xiaotian's expression was grim. Behind her, the team members exchanged uneasy glances, all realizing the weight of those words.

One person could not board the train.

Staying here—how was that any different from waiting for death?

But boarding without a ticket meant exposure to the Death Train's continuous contamination, which was equally suicidal.

Someone had to be abandoned.

To Tian Xiaotian, Ye Chuan was undoubtedly worth a ticket. The team had suffered almost no losses thanks to him, so it was out of the question to leave him without one.

That meant one of the team members had to be sacrificed.

"Leave Ma Jiajun behind," someone in the group suddenly spoke up.

"He's been acting sneaky this whole time, and he's the weakest. In these supernatural instances, we can't guarantee everyone's safety. Cutting loose the dead weight is the priority."

The chubby young man named Ma Jiajun immediately roared in anger, "Hu Wei, you... what do you mean?! You're the one who deserves to die! I saw you find an item earlier and hide it for yourself!"

"Nonsense! I just picked up some gold coins!"

"So you admit it?! You took the gold coins!"

The atmosphere, which had been relatively harmonious, instantly dissolved into chaos. Ye Chuan watched the scene with the detached air of a spectator—in reality, he didn't actually need the ticket.

Possessing the Chaos Indestructible Body and the protection of Lilith gave Ye Chuan the confidence to ignore the contamination entirely.

However, he saw no need to volunteer that information.

There was simply no point.

The argument escalated until the two were brandishing weapons, ready to fight. Seeing this from a distance, Tian Xiaotian immediately shouted coldly,

"Both of you, stop it!"

Hearing their captain's command, Ma Jiajun and Hu Wei huffed coldly and finally released their grip on each other.

"I... have a Sanctuary Card item on me. It should be able to resist the contamination for a period of time," Tian Xiaotian announced.

"Since I am leading this instance, I will naturally ensure you all get on the train."

Ye Chuan was slightly surprised to hear Tian Xiaotian say this—

Has Xiaogua actually become this responsible?

Then again, in this supernatural world, abandoning a teammate wasn't exactly a rare occurrence.

"Alright, get on the train," Tian Xiaotian said.

Ma Jiajun and Hu Wei exchanged a glance before obediently boarding the Death Train. Survival was the only thing that mattered.

Ye Chuan followed them onto the train.

As the last person stepped aboard, the heavy, pitch-black iron doors slowly ground shut. A buzzing electric sound crackled over the broadcast system.

"Zzz... Next stop... zzz, Plague Town..."

The voice was intermittent, as if suffering from interference.

The train began to move—

The seats inside the train were still empty; no other passengers could be seen. Since there were plenty of seats on both sides, Tian Xiaotian and the others found places to sit.

Ye Chuan glanced toward the carriages on either side but didn't see any sign of Qiu Ya.

It didn't really matter, though. They were just strangers who had met by chance. Ye Chuan didn't need to worry excessively about her safety; leaving her a means of protection was already generous enough.

Tian Xiaotian chose to sit next to Ye Chuan. "Boss... I'm sorry you had to see that joke of a display."

"What are you referring to?" Ye Chuan asked with a faint smile.

"A team is supposed to be united to clear a supernatural instance, but what happened just now..." Tian Xiaotian sighed. It really hadn't looked like a team at all.

"Faced with a choice like that, it would be strange if they didn't fight," Ye Chuan chuckled.

After all, if you're being sold out, you can't be expected to stay silent.

However, the fact that Tian Xiaotian was willing to use her own item to actively resist the contamination intrigued Ye Chuan.

"That so-called Sanctuary Card of yours—how long does it last?"

Tian Xiaotian explained, "The Sanctuary Card only lasts for half a day."

"Half a day? So, do we reach the next stop in half a day?"

"No, it takes a day to reach the next stop."

Ye Chuan paused for a moment. "You intend to resist the contamination directly for the rest of the time?"

"No. Given the current situation, I won't be contaminated," Tian Xiaotian said. She paused, then suddenly changed the subject, speaking to Ye Chuan.

"Boss, can you tell me about your world?"

"My world is actually pretty similar to yours." Ye Chuan didn't feel there was much to tell, as their realities were quite alike.

"Is that so... I haven't been back to the real world in a long time," Tian Xiaotian said with a hint of regret.

Returning to the real world was too difficult, and usually, only those with the highest evaluation ratings in an instance were qualified to go back for a brief moment.

Tian Xiaotian hadn't been back for a very long time.

And...

"Boss, if I am lucky enough to clear this instance with you," Tian Xiaotian paused, her tone becoming slightly despondent, "will I have the chance to see you again?"

She didn't know why, but Tian Xiaotian felt like this was the last time she would ever see Ye Chuan.

The first time, the gap was ten years. The second time, thirty years.

And next time...

Would she even be alive by then?

Tian Xiaotian knew that cultivating the technique Ye Chuan gave her could extend her lifespan, but in this supernatural world, one had to constantly kill and constantly clear instances just to survive.

Maybe next year—no, maybe even tomorrow—Tian Xiaotian could die in this damn world.

"Boss..."

Hearing the inexplicable sadness in Tian Xiaotian's tone, Ye Chuan fell silent.

Perhaps because he had met Tian Xiaotian so many times, and realizing how large the time jumps were between each meeting, Ye Chuan also realized that he might not necessarily see her the next time he entered the supernatural world.

However, the fact that he bumped into Tian Xiaotian every time he entered was quite a fateful coincidence.

It wasn't that Ye Chuan lacked the means to take Tian Xiaotian back to his own world.

"..." But he didn't have the item on hand right now.

After all, he had already used it on Ye Yue.

"There will be a chance to meet next time, provided you cultivate diligently," Ye Chuan said.

"Okay..." Tian Xiaotian smiled suddenly, seeming to understand Ye Chuan's meaning.

There was a chance, but there was also a possibility of no chance.

But Tian Xiaotian had already made peace with it.

She was truly tired of this supernatural world.

Just then, the sound of arguing erupted in the train once again—

Many team members looked back, only to find that Hu Wei and Ma Jiajun were fighting again.

Not only that, but they had drawn their weapons once more.

"Sure enough, I knew it," Tian Xiaotian said calmly as she watched the scene.

Hearing this, Ye Chuan suddenly seemed to understand why Tian Xiaotian didn't care that her Sanctuary Card only lasted half a day.

"I see. So that is what you meant by not being contaminated."

At that moment, black veins suddenly began to crawl across Hu Wei and Ma Jiajun's bodies, and their expressions began to twist hideously.

"What's happening?!"

"What is that?!"

"Kill them! They're turning into monsters!" Tian Xiaotian shouted immediately.

Hearing this, the other players hurriedly drew their weapons.