Soul Patch

Chapter 241 We've fallen into their trap!
Old Luo led Xiao Yi and Awei out from the third floor and looked around the open area below, where they saw two men walking together.

One was tall and the other short; the tall man was thin, while the short man was chubby.

The two men were muttering something to themselves when they saw three people appear in front of them, and they stopped talking.

He secretly sized up the three people in front of him.

His gaze slid from Old Luo to Awei, then past Awei and finally settled on Xiao Yi.

Seeing the two men's malicious gazes, Xiao Yi glared at them without hesitation and said with a sneer, "What are you looking at? Haven't you ever seen a woman before?"

Just as the tall guy was about to say something, the chubby guy stopped him. The short, fat guy winked at him and then gestured towards the doorway with his chin.

In the blink of an eye, the two groups of people were about to pass each other.

But Xiao Yi suddenly stopped and looked ahead.

The two men, one tall and one short, listened attentively.

These actions by the three people confirmed Elder Luo's identity as the patch carriers for the two individuals.

Old Luo glanced at Awei and saw that the kid's hand was reaching into his pants pocket. It seemed that Awei was about to make a move on the patch carrier!

He stopped Awei with a look.

Ah Wei glanced at Old Luo with slight surprise, then looked at Xiao Yi.

Xiao Yi shook her head gently, seemingly disapproving of his actions. He relaxed and took his hand out of his pocket.

With his hands behind his back, Old Luo quickened his pace.

Xiao Yi and Awei followed closely behind.

In no time, the three of them had distanced themselves from the two men.

Old Luo glanced at the building behind him and saw that the two figures, one tall and one short, had disappeared. It seemed they had gone inside.

He then slowly asked, "Xiao Yi, what notification did the system give just now?"

As he asked this question, he glanced at the metal bracelet on his wrist.

Puzzled, why didn't Awen send the system notification from headquarters?
Without real-time system messages, they are essentially blindfolded and mouthless, which is extremely dangerous in mission scenarios.

Xiao Yi's face showed the same puzzled expression as before: "Elder Luo, the system just notified us that someone has used a hidden identity."

Old Luo noticed Xiao Yi's confusion and asked, "Do you think there's a delay in the system messages?"

These words struck a chord with Xiao Yi, who said urgently, "Yes, I couldn't say it in front of Andy, the patch carrier. She said she hid her identity during the conversation, but the system didn't send any notification."

The system only just started displaying a scrolling message showing that someone had redeemed a hidden identity.

After hearing this, Elder Luo understood:

Andy did not reveal her hidden identity; she said that only because she didn't want these people to know that Andy was her true identity, and that this was her true self.

Andy simply assumed they were all hackers who had infiltrated the system, lacking patch carriers and therefore unable to receive real-time system updates.

The system has now issued a notification, which means that someone else has redeemed the hidden identity.

Ah Wei pondered for a moment and said, "Could it be that she enabled some kind of status privacy setting, so the system doesn't announce when she changes her identity or uses items?"

"Status confidentiality? Such items are rare. I've never encountered one in all the system missions I've hacked." Xiao Yi retorted.

Ah Wei nodded hesitantly. Xiao Yi was right; the possibility was indeed slim.

“That could also be because other patch carriers participating in the mission redeemed hidden identities. System announcements are usually within a minute, there would never be such a long delay.” The two discussed for a moment, but neither could convince the other, so they turned their gaze to Elder Luo.

Old Luo listened silently to their back-and-forth conversation, but he couldn't concentrate, as if he had forgotten something more important.

The two young men in front of him finally quieted down. Old Luo's gaze swept solemnly across their faces, and he pondered, "What is Awen doing?"

After being reminded by Elder Luo, the two suddenly realized that the metal bracelet had not received any information for quite some time.

Ah Wei pressed the force quit button several times in a row.

After a while of silence, he tilted his head, stared at the metal bracelet for a moment, and muttered, "Could mine be malfunctioning? Xiao Yi, why don't you try it?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yi raised her left hand and placed it on the red button on the bracelet. Just as she was about to press it, Old Luo stopped her.

Old Luo grasped Xiao Yi's left arm, shook his head, and gestured for her not to press it.

Frequent use of external devices can trigger the system's self-check function, and all three users might be detected and removed by the system as viruses.

They all understood that the bracelet was their only way to communicate with the real world.

After hacking into the system, they wouldn't easily press the push button for their own security, because every interaction with the real world would increase the likelihood of their hacking identity being exposed.

They will only choose to force quit when they encounter a life-threatening situation within the system...

So... could something have happened to Awen?
Thinking about this, both Awei and Xiaoyi panicked a little.

They looked at Elder Luo, eagerly hoping he could explain what was going on.

Old Luo stood opposite them, silent.

Behind him, the moon was obscured by dark clouds, the night sky became dim and dark, and even the night wind seemed to grow colder.

Time ticked by, and their anxiety grew.

Finally, Elder Luo said, "The system has activated security mode, in which all communication channels with the real world are blocked."

"What? Safe mode?" Xiao Yi stared wide-eyed at Old Luo in disbelief.

"So that means we're trapped?" Awei gasped.

“Yes, we’re trapped in the system,” Elder Luo said thoughtfully.

Xiao Yi's expression instantly fell, and her voice changed with anxiety: "After the mission is over, will we return to the real world from the system like other patch carriers?"

When Xiao Yi asked this, a look of horror appeared on Awei's face: "What? We can't go back even after the mission is over?"

Their eyes then fixed on Old Luo's face.

Old Luo glanced at the bracelet, then at Xiao Yi and Awei, as if verifying something. He pulled a miniature walkie-talkie from his pocket, pressed the green button for transmitting sound, and spoke slowly and clearly into the receiver: "Patch carrier Andy, respond if you hear me!"

He sent it three times in a row.

We have not received any response.

His anxiety was no less than that of Xiao Yi and Awei in front of him. He dejectedly released the green button and threw the walkie-talkie into the flower bed in front of the mental hospital building.

As the walkie-talkie landed with a thud, the three exchanged grave glances. Old Master Luo said in a deep voice:

"Maybe something happened to Awen too, we've fallen into their trap!"

(End of this chapter)