Chapter 1283: Leading the Way
Among the four, the broad-faced man and the one responsible for the transaction sat opposite, while the short man was beside Jiao Cheng. The moment Xu Huo was spotted, the two in front launched an attack, Jiao Cheng sidestepped to dodge, and the short man lunged forward, immediately creating distance.
Props and weapons nearly flew into his face. Xu Huo waved his hand, quickly erecting several barriers in front of him, then smiled at the group. "Don't be nervous. I just want to chat with you."
The four across from him didn't listen to a single word. Props continuously flew at him. The broad-faced man was clearly the rearguard, his attacks the most ferocious, while the other three prepared to flee as they fought.
Time-space props had the characteristic of being incompatible with each other. During use, higher-level props with larger coverage could weaken or completely nullify the effects of lower-level props with smaller coverage. For time-based props, merely wearing them could avoid the influence of similar props to a certain extent.
Super props varied in type, and their range of effect wasn't fixed. However, "Three Seconds of Life" could rewind time by three seconds. Xu Huo hadn't specifically verified this, and his three uses had been in instances and on the train, so he couldn't determine the exact coverage. But at least during the times he'd used it, there were no discrepancies in time—meaning it was enough to alter all time within a space.
This was during prop use. Under normal circumstances, the influence range of a super prop might not be that large, but it was still enough to affect a city. So unless necessary, Xu Huo wouldn't directly wear "Three Seconds of Life" on his person, especially in an environment like Fresh Flower City.
Thus, he didn't use "Three Seconds of Life" to seal off this space. Instead, he used Cube Space and the Spiritual Realm to cut off these people's escape routes—perhaps he had underestimated them. None of them directly used a space prop to run away, and by the time they reacted, those precious few seconds of escape time were gone. Each of them took a shot of freshly made "Friendly Interrogation."
This was a type of interrogation potion, a reward from the Maze Instance. It could cause full-body paralysis in an extremely short time without losing consciousness.
Half a minute later, the four bruised and swollen people had their hands tied behind their backs, kneeling in a row, propping each other up to keep from falling over.
Xu Huo pulled over a nearby chair and sat down. He casually picked up a fruit from the table, peeled it, and fed the flesh into his mouth piece by piece in front of them.
He ate the fruit in silence, but his cold gaze remained fixed on them, as if contemplating how to deal with them—or perhaps he had already figured out how to dispose of the bodies... In any case, there would be a result once he finished the fruit.
Jiao Cheng couldn't hold back. "Big brother, what happened today was our fault. We'll return your money and pay you an extra hundred thousand White Notes. What do you think?"
Xu Huo didn't speak. Jiao Cheng couldn't gauge his attitude and hesitated before adding, "We brothers are really poor. Otherwise, we wouldn't have come out to scam. How about you make a decision? As long as we can do it, we'll give it our all!"
Tossing the fruit peel into the trash, Xu Huo finally said, "How long have you been in Fresh Flower City?"
The others didn't answer. It was still Jiao Cheng who spoke. "I've been in Fresh Flower City the longest. I moved here with my cousin when I was ten or so. The other three came later. Are you looking for information?"
"I heard Fresh Flower City has a mineral vein that produces precognition-type props. They're not sold publicly, but they circulate on the black market." Xu Huo paused. "Judging by your looks, you don't do that kind of business. Acting as a middleman again shouldn't be a problem."
Hearing this, Jiao Cheng's expression relaxed a bit. "Alright, no problem. I happen to know a runner who can take you. But..."
"What?" Xu Huo raised an eyebrow.
"The quality of the ore on the black market isn't good. To put it bluntly, it's just scraps. Forget making precognition props; it might not even be usable as raw material for props." Jiao Cheng said carefully. "If you're trying to get a precognition prop, I think the chances are slim..."
"'Slim chances' is a euphemism," the short man said with a hint of sarcasm. "I don't think you're trying to get a prop. You have other plans!"
Jiao Cheng's seemingly helpful words were actually a test. Buying props on the game backend would be more convenient. Why come to the black market? Anyone with half a brain would know it wasn't for those inferior ores. There had to be another purpose—they just didn't know if that "purpose" would implicate them.
"Do you have any other choice?" Xu Huo looked down at the four. "Even if you take the potion, your bodies won't recover immediately. Or do you want to try your luck at the station?"
The faces of the group showed varying degrees of regret, but it was too late. Jiao Cheng quickly proposed a condition. "I can take you to the black market, but you have to let the other three go."
"No problem." Xu Huo agreed readily. "Once I meet the person, you can all leave."
He took out the picture frame.
"World Within the Painting" was a gift from the museum director. It could hold up to two people for thirty days at a time. The last time he left the high-risk instance, Xu Huo had stuffed Jiang Wenzhang inside. After returning to Zone 014, he hadn't bothered with him, but the man was still alive.
"You promised to let me go!" As soon as he came out, the abstract face in the painting struggled forward vigorously, but couldn't leave the frame. In the limited space, his already ugly face became even more hideous.
Xu Huo remained expressionless. "Isn't this letting you go?"
Jiang Wenzhang in the painting was stunned for a moment, then said suspiciously, "You really mean to let me go?"
Xu Huo blocked the view of Jiao Cheng and the others, opened a door to a nearby street, and then tipped the person out of the frame.
The Jiang Wenzhang who tumbled out didn't disappear, meaning he had entered a non-native wormhole point as a blacklisted person. Nominally, he was still a wanted criminal, but as long as he no longer used his ticket, he could avoid entering instances.
"Haha! I'm so lucky..." Jiang Wenzhang laughed and turned around, but there was no one behind him.
Xu Huo returned to the room where Jiao Cheng and the others were, placing the empty picture frame in front of them. "Who's going in?"
The short man was about to speak when the broad-faced man beside him suddenly lunged forward. In the next instant, the broad-faced man was sucked into the picture frame, becoming a simple portrait.
"Old Song!" the short man shouted. The man in the painting said, "Don't worry about me. At worst, I'll die!"
Xu Huo put the painting away and said with a smile, "Don't worry. Once things are settled, I'll let him out."
(Chapter End)