Chapter 1032: Leaving the Instance
Only the numbers of the lip ring player, the spotted player, and Ding Xiang had not appeared yet.
Of course, the numbers of the first two might have appeared, possibly taken by someone else, but to allow everyone to clear the instance, the slips numbered 2, 4, and 11 were still needed.
These three slips, along with the deceased long-haired female player's number 6, were the only player numbers that had not yet appeared.
"We each got one slip." Ding Xiang said with a grim face. "There's no one left to get more slips. Will new ones appear?"
It was hard to say. It was already the morning of the third day. The night environment of Zone 002 inevitably blurred the players' sense of time. Two days without sleep, with nerves on edge, had left everyone exhausted. With no change in the outdoor light, everyone had the illusion that the night had not yet passed.
The contrast between mental excitement and physical fatigue was even more draining.
"Let's wait a bit longer." Liang Zong held her hand. "It's unlikely that someone won't be able to clear it. Normal instances don't completely block the players' path."
Normally, that was true.
The other two who hadn't gotten slips were slightly more patient than Ding Xiang, but their situation was worse. There was a fifty percent chance no more slips would appear, and a fifty percent chance the slips had already been taken by other players who would never give them up. It seemed almost certain that one person would be unable to clear.
Of the several who had cleared, only the number 1 local zone player had left. The other three showed no intention of leaving yet.
Chi Minghong's goal was simple: wait a bit longer to see if new slips appeared, perhaps coinciding with the instance name's "last one."
Their presence was good for those who couldn't clear yet. At least the lip ring player and the spotted player might find the person who killed the long-haired female player.
For a moment, each of them harbored their own thoughts, their eyes meeting with vigilance and wariness.
Xu Huo planned to stay for a while. He greeted Chi Minghong, then grabbed a book and found a new room on the first floor, slipping into "101 Emergency Shelter" to sleep.
After taking the Perfect Evolution Potion, his recovery ability was stronger than an ordinary player's, but like the glasses-wearing man, stronger recovery didn't mean he was immune to the injury process. He had to guard against Dong Qifeng's side sending other players to ambush him. Resting inside the instance was the safest.
Setting a timer, he slept a full eight hours before getting up. When he opened the door, Chi Minghong was in her room playing a game. She looked up and greeted him, "You're up? Now it's just the two of us left in the instance."
"Everyone else cleared?" Xu Huo asked casually.
"Liang Zong cleared. Number 4 was killed by number 2. Number 2 and Ding Xiang were both killed by Zhou Yuanzhu. I didn't expect that round-faced little girl to be so tough. She's a Super Evolver." Chi Minghong said. "The special weapon marks left at the scene where the long-haired female player was killed—turns out they were made by her fingernails! Tsk tsk, in the blink of an eye, her nails grew longer than her fingers!"
"But I think she only specializes in her nails. I didn't see anything else."
Liang Zong was forced to clear. The others were eaten by the big fish until Zhou Yuanzhu took them all out. Chi Minghong surviving showed she was quite capable.
"Did Zhou Yuanzhu clear too?"
"Not yet." Chi Minghong pointed outside. "I cut off two of her nails and she ran away. She hasn't come down for a while. She's probably upstairs looking for the last slip. She still wants a high rating."
Xu Huo placed the book he had brought out on the table and took out the number 7 slip. "This instance is actually a low-difficulty game. If you think like a child, besides the slip number and the order of slip appearance, there should also be the book's reading order."
"I've looked through all the books that cleared. The earliest dates on the reading notes are all from the same year, likely bought in one batch. The dates on the books you used are a mix of old and new, but some of the notes in this one are later than the others. It might have been read last. Try this one."
"If it's not this one, then there's no point wasting more time."
Chi Minghong took it happily. A few seconds later, she exclaimed in surprise, "It really is!"
"Old Xu, you're amazing! How did you think of that?"
"But it's true—it's like being blinded by a leaf. I've been doing high-difficulty instances for so long, I never thought there could be such a simple mode. I can hardly believe this is a C-level instance."
"If you tried to clear it based on the initial understanding, this instance would be just as hard." Xu Huo opened the door and walked out.
"That's true. If everyone killed each other and no one cleared, it would be hell-level difficulty." Chi Minghong followed behind him. "The game is really insidious... Are we ready to leave?"
Xu Huo nodded. When he reached the hall, he looked up at the stairs. Zhou Yuanzhu, who had been about to come down, vanished the moment their eyes met.
"She's pretty fast." Chi Minghong chuckled, then added, "The area is open now."
"I plan to stay in Snow City for a few days. I've already packed the items I promised to share with you." She pulled out a trash bag stuffed with some smaller items, then casually added another item inside. "You helped me get a high rating, so I'll give you an extra B-level item. Don't think it's too little—I'm pretty broke too."
Xu Huo took it without changing his expression. "I'll be staying in Snow City too. I have some business to take care of."
Chi Minghong knew he was traveling with someone from one of Snow City's families, so she said, "Alright then. If you need me to run any errands, just say the word. I'll do my best."
Xu Huo didn't hold back. "I actually do have one thing I can't handle myself. I'd like to trouble you."
"As long as it's not asking me to fight a B-level player one-on-one, no problem." Chi Minghong laughed heartily.
Xu Huo gave her an address. "Please look into the information on this laboratory. Try to find a list of people who have close dealings with it, especially anything related to children, like psychotherapy, orphanages, and charitable sponsorships."
"No problem." Chi Minghong gave a reassuring gesture. "We'll still communicate through the Communicator."
After they agreed, Chi Minghong headed for the center of Snow City, while Xu Huo used the small tunnel to return to the Dong family's estate.
When he appeared in the annex building, the female player Zeng An was watching Xiao Dou eat. She looked surprised, probably not expecting him to return, but quickly gave him the information he needed:
"Mr. Xu, have you had dinner? Young Master Xuan has been waiting for you for the past two days. He only left an hour ago."
"Today is the final vote reveal for the beauty pageant. The results will be announced tonight. Young Master Xuan and the other young masters and ladies of the family have gone to the Entertainment Building. Would you like to go and watch with him?"
(End of Chapter)