Chapter 588: A Perplexing Gathering
The players dispersed in different directions. Xu Huo, Guan Sheng, and Qian Xuwen followed behind a few black-robed players. After passing through a narrow passage, a small garden appeared before them. In this season, it was actually in full bloom, with a rich fragrance filling the garden. A masked person in a gray robe walked over and announced that the prayer had officially begun.
At the center of the garden stood a twin serpent bronze statue. A group of people gathered around. The gray-robed figure raised his hands high to salute the statue, then began reciting prayers intermittently. He would stop midway to remind everyone how to pray or to state their requests to the statue, as if the cheap bronze statue placed there was not a mere ornament but a universal wish-granting machine.
However, this rather meaningless activity did not last long. After it ended, the gray-robed figure announced that free trading could begin. Players could either trade in the garden or leave to find other players. Then he disappeared into the flower bushes.
There were quite a few people here. The players did not rush to leave. The black-robed figures brought food and drinks, and everyone started chatting in this friendly atmosphere, exchanging small items or taking out some rare and strange things to auction publicly. The process was fairly pleasant.
Guan Sheng and Qian Xuwen stood behind Xu Huo. The two checked the food and drinks but found no problems. During this time, some people came to sell items to them, but Xu Huo refused them all. He stood silently in the corner, as if waiting for something.
Halfway through the trading, a player asked the black-robed figures whether the Twin Serpents organization would sell potions and items to outsiders.
"The Twin Serpents organization only accepts barter exchanges," said a black-robed figure. "If anyone wants to exchange items, they can go to Mr. Ding's lounge. However, only one person can trade at a time, and it is limited to invited players. Accompanying players cannot go."
This made some players reluctant, but a few still agreed. The black-robed figure led that person out of the garden. About ten minutes later, the person returned, called his two companions, and hurriedly left.
"Don't tell me they got something good and are afraid of getting ambushed," another player said, feeling itchy with curiosity. Soon, a second and third person followed. The difference was that some returned to the garden, while others did not. When the black-robed figures informed them that these people had already left through another door separately, the accompanying players without invitations all left in a huff.
"Are we going?" Qian Xuwen asked Xu Huo.
Xu Huo left the two behind and stepped forward alone. Guan Sheng and Qian Xuwen quickly tried to follow but were stopped by the black-robed figures. Guan Sheng hurriedly called out to Xu Huo, but Xu Huo merely nodded at them and walked straight ahead.
Guan Sheng and Qian Xuwen waited outside for about ten minutes before a black-robed figure came out and told them that Xu Huo had left on his own and that they could do as they pleased.
As soon as they heard this, they knew something was wrong. They pushed past the black-robed figures and ran out of the garden. There were several rooms behind the garden. They kicked open each door one by one to search, but to their surprise, every room was empty. Looking out the windows, the entire resort showed no sign of anyone.
When they returned to the garden, the players who had been trading were also leaving one after another. The black-robed figures ignored them and instead gave directions to other players, making it clear that they would not escort anyone out.
Guan Sheng and Qian Xuwen stared at the coming and going players, unsure of what to do now. They were responsible for cooperating with Xu Huo, but they didn't know whether Xu Huo had truly left on his own or if there was another reason. They wanted to find him but were afraid of calling out and ruining things. They thought about looking for Sima Xiao'er and Zhou Ning, but everyone in sight was wearing black robes and masks. They couldn't tell who was who, let alone whether they were even in the garden.
On someone else's turf, they didn't dare cause trouble. They had to hastily leave the garden to check other prayer halls.
The people in the garden had mostly dispersed. A black-robed figure who had come from outside walked over to his companion and said, "They went to other prayer halls. Could this cause trouble? Maybe we should finish the job..."
"They're from the Special Defense Department," the gray-robed figure suddenly appeared in the garden. "Falling out with the Special Defense Department won't do us any good."
"Mr. Ding," the black-robed figure said respectfully, walking behind him.
"Lead them to the living room," Mr. Ding added. "Don't let them out until things are over."
The black-robed figure nodded and left the garden.
Meanwhile, Guan Sheng and Qian Xuwen had just left the garden when they ran into another group of praying players. As soon as they approached, they were grabbed. A white-masked player tried to sell them potions.
"Which prayer hall number is this?" Guan Sheng quickly asked.
"Number three," the player replied.
Qian Xuwen looked around and said, "There are a lot more people now."
"Players from other numbers have been coming over to trade too," the white-masked player said. "This whole floor is a trading area. Everyone's mixed together."
Now that the wristbands no longer showed numbers, with so many people, it was impossible to tell who was originally from hall number three. This made the two, who had originally come to find Yan Jiayu, quite anxious. They couldn't leave, and while being pulled around, Guan Sheng accidentally knocked off a player's mask. He was immediately grabbed and a fight broke out.
Some people from hall number two had gone out to trade privately with the gray-robed figure, and the same happened in other halls. Some left, some wandered around. The players on this floor quickly became as chaotic as a playground after morning exercises.
In such a situation, even if twenty or thirty people went missing, no one would notice. Amid the noise, the members of the Twin Serpents organization who had been mixed in with the crowd gradually withdrew, disappearing into the dimly lit shadows.
At the same time, the activity room at the end of the recreational area two floors below had its door wide open. Black-robed figures and masked players were busy coming and going, dragging bodies out of the room and pushing them into a hidden door panel nearby.
These bodies were also wearing black robes, but their masks had been removed. Most of their heads were tilted and drooping on their shoulders. A few had bloodstains all over, with cuts from sharp weapons on their necks or chests.
The activity door panel flipped open. A masked player threw a body down. Two seconds later, the sound of a heavy object hitting the bottom was heard. A nearby black-robed figure looked at the blood on the ground impatiently and said, "How many times have I told you? Don't make such a mess. How are we supposed to clean up all this blood?"
The masked player dragging the body quickly apologized, "Black Envoy, these people were on guard. The anesthetic didn't fully take effect, so we had to hack them to death. If they had gotten out, it would have ruined the Twin Serpents' plans. Don't worry, we'll clean it up thoroughly later!"
The black-robed figure snorted coldly. "You almost messed up with just a dozen people. If the higher-ups find out, you won't get any benefits this time!"
The dozen or so masked players bowed their heads and took the scolding. Only when the black-robed figure was satisfied did they throw the last body behind the activity door, clean up the traces on the ground, and leave through another passage.
Not far from the activity room, the door of a small venue opened silently. A masked player poked his head out, made sure no one was around, then slowly walked out. He pushed open the activity door panel and jumped down the hidden passage.
(End of chapter)