Chapter 1334: Target Person
Ignoring those few people, Xu Huo stopped at the street corner.
Qiu Ming shot him a suspicious glance, but when he saw Cao Qinglin driving over, he got out first and switched places with her.
Xu Huo stood outside for a while before getting into the car. "No rush to leave. I'll give directions; you drive."
Not understanding what he was planning, Qiu Ming started the engine. "Is there a problem?"
"That man just now was lying." Xu Huo said flatly. "They did hire players to protect Dr. Duo Er, but they didn't send him away. The information he gave was just to lead us off track."
Qiu Ming was slightly stunned. "He's just an ordinary person. Can he fool a lie-detecting prop?"
"Fooling a lie-detecting prop is simple," Xu Huo gestured for him to turn left. "Just believe what you're saying is true. However, that staff member probably used a potion or prop beforehand, so the final result came out as true."
"I really don't get it. Since they don't trust the mission players, why did they generate such an instance? Are they going to wait until everyone leaves before sending him away?" Qiu Ming said.
"That's not impossible," Cao Qinglin, who already knew the situation, said. "Now so many players are looking for Dr. Duo Er. Not to mention there might be people with other motives mixed in, even without that, the risk of so many players fighting over him is very high. It's better to lie low for a while."
"Unless the players coming to pick up Dr. Duo Er can join forces, otherwise, they might lose a bunch of people before even reaching the Stairway to Heaven."
"So we're going to follow that old man now?" Qiu Ming asked. "Will he go find Dr. Duo Er? Under normal circumstances, contacting him through a communicator would be better than going directly."
"Isn't he going right now?" Xu Huo signaled him to change direction.
After about ten minutes, the staff member, after taking a long, winding route, finally entered an old shopping mall. In a closed basement of that mall, several players were playing cards around a middle-aged man with brown hair. The white-haired elder rushed in and said urgently, "You need to change places immediately. You can't stay here anymore!"
The players put down their cards upon hearing this. The man with slicked-back hair said, "No one followed you."
"I know. If it weren't for that, I wouldn't have come here," the white-haired elder said. "Several more groups have found the lab. It might be discovered any time now... I told you from the start not to hide so close by, but you wouldn't listen. Now the city is full of mission players. Who will guarantee Dr. Duo Er's safety?"
"Aren't we protecting him right now?" the slicked-back man said. "If you look down on us brothers, you can find someone else."
"Or, you could just find someone to send the doctor to the secondary city."
The last sentence was clearly laced with malicious sarcasm. The white-haired elder was furious. "Since you agreed to protect the doctor, why won't you send him to the secondary city? The price the lab offered is high enough! And you don't have to go through the Stairway to Heaven; you can take a detour!"
The slicked-back man tossed the cards in his hand, his eyes following their rise and fall as he said, "No matter how high the price, it's not worth more than our brothers' lives. Do you think only the Stairway to Heaven is dangerous? There are plenty of people waiting to ambush us halfway. Taking a detour isn't safe either. The only reason we agreed to protect the doctor for a while is out of respect for his significant contributions to Twin Cities."
He paused, then added, "You'd better find a way to hand the doctor over to the mission players. The situation in the secondary city isn't optimistic. The sooner the doctor gets there, the sooner he can save people. And don't underestimate those mission players; they're not that easy to fool."
"Throw in a few more twists and turns, and they're easy enough to fool. No one has suspected me so far. I don't think those people are very bright. How could I hand the doctor over to people like that?" The white-haired elder grabbed his hair, extremely anxious.
"Has the emergency injection been sent to the secondary city?" At this moment, Dr. Duo Er, who was sitting nearby, finally spoke.
The white-haired elder showed him great respect, calmed his expression, and replied, "It has been sent, but the condition of the disease in the secondary city has shown new changes. The original potion isn't very effective."
Dr. Duo Er sighed softly. "We can't delay any longer. The next group of players who find the lab, bring them directly to me."
The white-haired elder disagreed. "Doctor, the risk isn't worth it. If something happens to you, who will save Twin Cities?"
Dr. Duo Er was silent for a moment, then said, "It's a pity I'm just an ordinary person."
The white-haired elder echoed his sentiment. "If I were a player, I would risk my life to get the doctor out!"
The several players in the room remained silent.
"Knock, knock, knock!" Someone knocked on the door outside.
The players reacted instinctively. Three of them moved to protect Dr. Duo Er. When they reached the door, not only had they failed to sense anyone approaching beforehand, but even now, with someone knocking outside, they couldn't tell if there was anyone out there, or how many—at this moment, they felt as if they were isolated in this small basement, completely cut off from everything outside!
Realizing the visitor was formidable, the two players at the door retreated to Dr. Duo Er's side and signaled the white-haired elder to speak.
"Who is it?" The white-haired elder was very tense.
"I've come to pick up Dr. Duo Er." Xu Huo said from outside the door. "The mission time is only fifteen days. The sooner we set out, the sooner we can arrive. It's beneficial for both sides."
The white-haired elder and the players remained vigilant, but Dr. Duo Er was very pleased and immediately said, "Come in!"
The door, which had been bolted from the inside, opened by itself. Xu Huo stood right in front of the door, making no attempt to enter the basement.
"You're alone?" Dr. Duo Er looked somewhat disappointed upon seeing this.
"I have two companions outside," Xu Huo said. "With you here, Doctor, it won't be hard to find a few more friends."
"Can you and your friends really protect the doctor?" the white-haired elder asked. "For you, the doctor dying just means failing the instance. But for Twin Cities, the doctor's fate is tied to everyone's destiny."
"Do you have any other choice?" Xu Huo swept his gaze over the group. "The local players are unwilling to escort him, and you don't trust the foreign players. Are you planning to wait until the instance disappears? If this instance can't end unless Dr. Duo Er reaches the secondary city or dies, what are you going to do then?"
The white-haired elder was stumped. Dr. Duo Er, however, stepped out from behind the others. "Since you were able to find me here, it proves you have the strength. I'll go with you."
"Doctor..." The white-haired elder wanted to say more, but Dr. Duo Er smiled and said, "Every day I stay here, more people die."
Then he thanked the players and walked towards the door.
"Wait." The slicked-back player suddenly stepped forward. "I'll go with the doctor."
He looked at Xu Huo. "Since your mission is to escort the doctor to the secondary city, having an extra bodyguard along shouldn't be a problem."
(Chapter End)