# Chapter 2683: Night Mode
"I'll think about it," Xu Huo had already made a decision but didn't directly agree to Zhu Bu. Instead, he said, "I want to move together with the Isle Country players."
"No problem," Zhu Bu didn't care at all. "As long as we're hitting the Box Carrier's lair, we're all friends!"
"Brother Zhu!" The female player reminded him again.
Zhu Bu brushed it off with a laugh and introduced to Xu Huo, "This is my adopted sister, Hongxi. The one you saved earlier is called Datou. That quiet one over there is Siqi."
"Among the people with you, there's one called Dai He," he added. "I'm not talking behind his back, but that kid is shady. Be careful he doesn't screw you over."
Xu Huo smiled but didn't pick up that thread. After agreeing on a method of contact, he left and went back to find the Painting Woman and the others.
Not to mention Dai He, Zhu Bu and his group weren't much better. Standing in Zone 039, ignoring the existence of the Super Instance, silently waiting for the Box Carrier to leave was the best strategy. If they really angered the Box Carrier, Zone 039 being wiped out wasn't impossible.
As the leader of Eternal Tower, Zhu Bu couldn't really be reckless enough to provoke the Box Carrier. Clearly, everyone here would only be feeding themselves to the enemy if they went up against the Box Carrier.
Yet he repeatedly invited Xu Huo to join him — not to escape. From the start, his goal was clearly to go to the Box Carrier's castle. Ten to one, he had another purpose.
As for Dai He, his reaction was a normal Zone 039 player's response.
Judging by the current situation, Xu Huo and Dai He were on the same side.
The number of puppets in the Circus City had already exceeded Xu Huo's expectations. There wasn't enough time to check them one by one. Taking a risk and going to the castle to try was a viable option. He hadn't agreed immediately, naturally because he was still considering Yan Jiayu.
The opportunity to get out might come and go in an instant. He couldn't possibly be fully prepared before finding her, or find her before finding a way out. He could only try to do both simultaneously.
But going to the castle was inevitable, so he had to be ready to face the Box Carrier head-on.
"You're finally back!" Qi Cong was almost crying with joy when he saw Xu Huo again. In the short time they'd been apart, he and Dai He and the others had picked up new injuries. The reason was that they'd been caught red-handed by a shop owner while secretly releasing balloons. As soon as the words "Thief! Thief!" came out, combat puppets immediately came to catch them. They'd run far away and then circled back.
Moreover, Dai He had discovered a small room full of bones. "These puppet people might really eat people."
"Those players have already been assimilated into props. Do they still have an appetite?"
"Maybe the assimilation hasn't been long enough, and they haven't completely turned into props yet." Xu Huo didn't care. He'd already tested it earlier. Whether he killed combat puppets or real puppets in an area, the other puppet people wouldn't leave their own activity range. Using them to create a big chaos was very difficult.
Besides, these trapped players might not cooperate.
"Isn't there a way to break free from the puppet props?" Qi Cong asked. "Then Little Fish is trapped in the prop forever?"
"Let's find the person first," Dai He said. He wasn't concerned about that problem. What troubled him was not being able to send word back. If the Isle Country sent more people because of their disappearance, they might not only fail to rescue them but also stir up big trouble.
"Pssst pssst!" Faint static sounds came from all directions. Street lights and shop signs everywhere lit up. The gradually spreading rainbow colors plunged the entire city into a hazy and cozy atmosphere. The sky that had just been bright seemed to dim because of the lights turning on.
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh!" Loud applause sounded from afar, accompanied by cheers. Some puppet people who hadn't been seen during the day suddenly appeared in small squares, dessert towers, and street corners. Some performed magic, some sang and danced, and some led out mutated animals like bears and tigers. The fierce roars of the animals also became part of the nighttime Circus City.
Seeing this, Xu Huo and the others' hearts sank.
An unopened Instance venue having so many active puppet people was already horrifying enough. Now it even had a "Night Mode," with so many strangely shaped puppet people and dressed-up mutated animals suddenly appearing. Even a fool could tell the nighttime Instance venue was definitely more dangerous than the daytime...
"Aren't you going to watch the show?" Two shop staff members passed by them, pushing them toward the animal performance area, smiling broadly. "Go take a look. That bear really knows how to perform!"
Qi Cong and the others originally didn't want to follow, but within two or three breaths, many puppet people had gathered around them. These puppet people were all exceptionally enthusiastic. Not only did they want to drag them to watch the show, but they also voluntarily gave up the front-row spots for them.
"I don't want to..." Qi Cong had already lost several chunks of flesh. He didn't know whether the mutated bear contained a person or a real bear. How could he dare to go forward? He was covered in rejection as he tried to back away. But then, a puppet person pulling him suddenly changed expression, asking without a trace of a smile, "You really don't want to watch?"
When it asked this, all the surrounding puppet people turned their heads.
Qi Cong didn't dare refuse anymore. He could only force a smile. "Watch... I'm tall. I can see from the back..."
But the puppet person pushing him didn't listen at all. It directly grabbed him and threw him to the front. Qi Cong abruptly landed outside the crowd. When he looked up, the mutated bear that could swallow a person whole was already standing in front of him, drool splattering all over his face.
"Damn it..." Qi Cong immediately raised an instrument to block above his head. When the mutated bear's teeth got stuck, it suddenly erupted, swatting him flying with one claw!
A puppet person caught him, but in the next second, it was about to throw him back. Fortunately, Xu Huo pulled him at the critical moment and kicked two puppet people out to replace him.
The mutated bear didn't care who it ate. It pierced through the puppet people with one claw each and stuffed them directly into its mouth. Crunching sounds came out. The two puppet people disappeared. In the next second, a large amount of confetti sprayed from the bear's mouth, scattering across half the street.
The puppet people watching the performance applauded. They cheered loudly, but their expressions were twisted. Everyone was forced to laugh under fear.
A new round of performance was about to start soon. Xu Huo and the others squeezed out of the crowd. Just as they turned around, they came face to face with a half-human-tall rabbit. The red-eyed rabbit stretched its neck and sniffed at them, then jumped up and shouted excitedly, "Living people! Living people!"
The performance continued, but some of the puppet people watching turned around and started running, laughing!
There was no way to leave quietly. Xu Huo swept the puppet people on the street to the other side with a Defense Barrier and shouted to the others, "Split up!"
"Take me with you!" Qi Cong yelled.
"Shut up!" Xu Huo barked, then plunged headfirst into a game tent. The first second he entered, he felt something was wrong. Sure enough, several human-sized roly-poly toys attacked him from all sides. When he leaped to dodge, two dolls pounced down from above. Their rapidly growing hair and skirts covered them in an instant!