Deadly Game: Almighty Boss’s Guide to Making Money

Chapter 1247. The Book at Night (35)

Xia Jin's knuckles turned white as she gripped the hourglass, the silvery-blue sand swirling wildly inside the glass chamber like stars trapped in a storm.

She stared at the blurry figure on the monster's chest, and Uncle Zhang's sleeve was still stained with familiar ink.

Those were marks left by old pine soot ink when I was organizing ancient books last week.

"Don't believe it!" Lin Xi suddenly stepped forward, spinning the hammer in his hand. "The Shadow of Oblivion is best at using weaknesses to blackmail people; handing over the hourglass will only make it stronger."

Her gaze swept over the glass box on the wall.

"The book in the glass box might be related to the pages of memory."

The orange flames in Bai Yueming's palm shot up high, and the heat wave forced the monster to shrink back.

"I'll keep it occupied, you guys look for clues!"

He flicked three flames from his fingertips, striking the monster's limbs precisely with a piercing "sizzle" sound, and faint groans of Uncle Zhang could be heard coming from the hole in its chest.

Xia Jin's heart clenched, and the warmth in her palms suddenly became rapid, as if responding to something.

Following her senses, she looked down and discovered that the golden feathers integrated into her skin were faintly glowing. The light spread along her veins to her wrist and finally stopped where it touched the hourglass of time.

The silver-blue light of the hourglass suddenly intertwined with the golden light of the feathers, casting a complex pattern on the ground.

It was actually the spine pattern of a book inside the glass case!
"Xiao Qin, the third glass box on the left!" Xia Jin shouted.

Xiao Qin understood and quickly ran over, discovering that the spine of the book in the glass box resembled the pattern on the ground.

Just as she was about to reach out and touch it, the monster suddenly flew into a rage and swung its dark claws at her.

With lightning speed, Ouyang Xichen drew the dagger from his waist and precisely stabbed the monster's claw. The black mist exploded instantly, emitting a pungent, burnt smell.

"Quickly turn the page!"

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Huang Jingjing rushed to Xiao Qin's side and carefully opened the glass box.

The book inside had a yellowed cover, and on the title page were a few faded lines of small print: "The pages of memory, neither paper nor feather, reside in the hearts of the forgotten, and are revealed in the thoughts of the guardians."

She looked up at Xia Jin: "It's Uncle Zhang's memory! The scene you just saw was a fragment of the page of memory!"

Xia Jin suddenly realized what was happening, and the warmth in her palms grew even stronger.

She walked up to the monster, raised the hourglass of time, and a beam of light, interwoven with silver and gold, shone directly into the hole in the monster's chest.

"Uncle Zhang, wake up! You said you would protect the bookstore, and we're still waiting for you to organize the ancient books!"

Her voice trembled, yet it was full of power.

Uncle Zhang inside the hole suddenly moved, his fingers curling slightly.

The monster let out a painful roar, and the black mist began to fluctuate violently.

"No—" It tried to swat Xia Jin away with its claws, but was held back by Bai Yueming's flames and Ouyang Xichen's dagger.

Lin Xi, Xiao Qin, and Huang Jingjing surrounded Xia Jin, using ancient books to block the black mist emitted by the monster.

"Uncle Zhang, do you remember this?"

Xia Jin pulled a crumpled bookmark out of her pocket.

It was a gift from Uncle Zhang last week; it had the bookstore's old sign printed on it.

The bookmark suddenly glowed, resonating with Uncle Zhang inside the hole.

Uncle Zhang slowly opened his eyes, his gaze gradually clearing from confusion.

“Xiao Jin…” he said softly.

The monster's black mist was instantly torn open. A golden light floated out from Uncle Zhang's body and landed in Xia Jin's palm.

That was the true page of memory, as thin as a cicada's wing, recording Uncle Zhang's every little detail about the bookstore.

Without Uncle Zhang's support, the monster's black mist quickly dissipated, eventually turning into a wisp of green smoke.

Uncle Zhang slowly descended from the air and was caught steadily by Ouyang Xichen.

Xia Jin held the Page of Memory, the warmth in her palm mingling with the light of the hourglass. Suddenly, all the glass boxes in the room opened, and the books inside lit up, the sound of pages turning rising and falling, as if celebrating their victory. Xia Jin breathed a sigh of relief, looked at her companions beside her, and then at Uncle Zhang who had awakened, a long-lost smile appearing on her lips.

"Look."

Following Bai Ye's gaze, everyone saw several lines of text appearing on the screen:

"Please proceed to the Hall of Literature to find the literary runes."

"Come with me," Uncle Zhang said, and started to walk forward.

“Uncle Zhang, let me go first!” Xia Jin said. “I have a spiritual light in my palm.”

Although she wasn't entirely sure, the warmth in her palms must have been the insightful clue the owl had initially asked her to find.

Pushing open the door to the Hall of Literature, you are greeted by the fresh scent of paper and the faint smell of ink.

The bookshelves here are curved and arranged around the central circular stage, where a crystal chandelier hangs. Under the light, several translucent figures are wandering around.

The light from the crystal chandelier suddenly flickered, and the translucent figures hovering on the stage abruptly solidified.

The shadow at the very front gradually took on a physical form.

Her slender figure was wrapped in a plain-colored ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), and a silver hairpin was tucked behind her ear. Her face was beautiful, but it was also filled with lingering sorrow.

As soon as she steadied herself, her fingertips gripped the hem of her skirt tightly. When her gaze swept over Xia Jin and her group, a hint of wariness flashed in her eyes, but more than that, she felt aggrieved.

"You...are here to insult me ​​too?"

"Who are you?" Qingqing asked, puzzled. "Why are we cursing you?"

"My name is Pan Jinlian."

——Holy shit!
—Pan Jinlian?

—The one who poisoned her husband?
—Right, no one else will use that name except her.

—I must say, she is quite pretty.

—Not alluring enough.

—She looks quite pretty on the surface, but maybe she's seductive to the core.

“It seems you’ve been trapped here for a long time,” Lin Xi said calmly.

"Trapped?" Pan Jinlian gave a bitter smile, raising her hand to touch her temple. "I'm nailed here by the spittle of the world."

"Tell me more," Xiao Qin said simply.

"They only know that I 'poisoned my husband,' but they don't know that I was sold into the Zhang family when I was a child, and because I didn't want to be humiliated by Zhang, I was forced to marry Wu Dalang..."

—I think I know that.

—I know that too.

Thinking about it this way, Pan Jinlian does indeed have aspects that deserve sympathy.

Who would like a short, ugly, and poor Wu Dalang instead of Ximen Qing?
Her biggest mistake was poisoning Wu Dalang.

—Wu Dalang already knows about her affair with Ximen Qing. If she doesn't poison him, she might be subjected to domestic violence.

—Due to environmental limitations, divorce would be possible in modern times.

Even if they divorce, Ximen Qing probably won't marry her!

—It was acceptable to have concubines in that era, but not in modern times.

The warmth in Xia Jin's palm suddenly turned scalding, and the light of her interpretation drifted from her fingertips toward Pan Jinlian, forming a pale golden band around her.

Fragments of images appeared in the band of light: young Pan Jinlian diligently embroidering in an embroidery shop, saving money to buy her freedom; she stayed up all night brewing medicine for Wu Dalang when he was sick...

"Are these your real memories?" Xia Jin asked softly.

As Pan Jinlian looked at the images in the light band, tears finally streamed down her face.

"Did the Shadow of Oblivion alter your story?" Ouyang Xichen asked.