Chase Game

Nothing unexpected happened on the way back.

After spending only half a day on the task, the results were not satisfactory.

After the group climbed out of the cave, they immediately questioned their informant, who told them that only Zhou Jie had come up before them, and they had not seen Wang Yun.

Considering that the informant was merely a mortal and that Wang Yun might have used some method to evade surveillance, Meng Dong even made a special "visit" in the name of the young master of the family.

The reply was that Wang Yun was out of the house and had instead visited Zhou Jie, for the same reason.

Upon questioning his informant, he learned that Zhou Jie had returned dressed in tattered clothes, changed his clothes, and rode away at full speed with a horse.

This is practically telling Ling Yi openly, "I have a problem."

In other words, the situation facing Ling Yi now is—

After Wang and Zhou followed them down to the underground palace, they engaged in a battle for unknown reasons and with unknown opponents. The outcome of the battle remains unknown.

Then Zhou Jie fled in panic after he came out, and Wang Yun could not be found.

"Holy crap, that means they're both missing now?"

After listening to Ling Yi's deduction, Zhang Qiang summarized it as follows.

Meng Dong frowned slightly and pondered for a moment before reminding him, "It's too hasty to draw conclusions based solely on what we see. There's no other evidence to corroborate the conclusion that he's 'missing.'"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Qiang pulled up a grand chair and sat down, sighing, "Sigh, there are just too many things to consider, too many troubles. Are all S-rank dungeons this difficult?"

Zhang Qiang's complaints prompted Ling Yi to reflect on something as well.

Are S-rank dungeons really that difficult?

One thing that particularly puzzled him was that, logically speaking, single-player missions should be simpler than main missions.

But now, the main quests all have at least one clue, so why don't I have any clues at all for my own single quest?

Are you setting me up?

Ling Yi mentally grumbled this, venting his resentment.

Despite his complaints, he still carefully reviewed the information from beginning to end and felt that he hadn't missed anything.

Since there's nothing wrong with me, I should start thinking about external factors.

He looked up at Zhang Qiang and Meng Dong, and the two of them, sensing his gaze, also looked in his direction.

Ling Yi uttered three words: "Chosen One!"

Zhang Qiang: "What 'chosen one'... wait, are you talking about the special circumstances of our [Stolen Items] instance?"

Ling nodded, and Meng Dong frowned, saying, "You mean, there are Chosen Ones participating in this instance now?!"

Ling Yi nodded again, emphatically.

If it weren't for the Chosen One's interference, he couldn't think of any other reason why his single-line quest was so difficult to complete.

Zhang Qiang exclaimed, "Ah!" and said, "The original D-rank dungeon became B-rank after the Chosen Ones were added. So, what level will our S-rank dungeon be upgraded to? SSS-rank?"

Meng Dong shook his head and explained to him, "The highest level in the game is only S, and the highest rating is also S. There is no such thing as SSS level."

Ling Yi added: "The dungeon level is linked to the difficulty. The participation of the Chosen Ones increases the variables, which in turn causes the game system to determine that the dungeon is more difficult, thus raising the level accordingly."

"This is the principle behind the changes in dungeon levels. Once the Chosen Ones are added to an S-rank dungeon, its level reaches its cap and will not increase further."

"However, the uncertainty brought by the Chosen Ones still affects the players' judgment, and the increase in difficulty is a real phenomenon."

Zhang Qiang slapped his thigh and said angrily, "This game is already difficult, and now they've added a Chosen One to mess things up."

Hearing the crisp sound, Ling Yi couldn't help but click his tongue in surprise: Doesn't it hurt, brother?

Compared to Zhang Qiang, Meng Dong was much calmer. He comforted him, saying, "Since we've run into this, there's nothing we can do but deal with it as it comes."

Ling Yi also said, "The Chosen Ones have their own goals, and they generally don't make special contact with us players."

"Regardless, our game must continue."

Zhang Qiang's eyes lit up. "You have another idea?"

"There's a skill I can't guarantee I'll be able to use, but I at least have to try."

What skill is it?

It is indeed the [Ten Directions Grand View • Observing the Sun]!

The cost of using it last time was "one hand", and the cost of using it this time is a ten-hour cooldown.

More than a day has passed now, so it should be usable long ago.

Ling Yi first went through the process and listed out the difficulties she was currently facing.

In general, the task is to select one of the following people and objects—"the dancer, the oil lamp, the head of the household's jade pendant, Wang Yun, Zhou Jie, and Ding Guifang"—and inquire about their whereabouts.

Therefore, to advance the main quest and remove the restriction, we must first find the patriarch's jade pendant.

So he silently recited the question in his mind while activating his skill.

A moment later, Ling Yi heard a series of "bang, bang" sounds.

"Is that... the sound of a heartbeat?"

He seemed to sense something and looked up at a certain place.

"how?"

Meng Dong asked softly.

Ling Yi's gaze fell on the tallest building, and he said calmly, "Heavenly Pavilion."

Zhang Qiang: "Huh? Right here in Tiange? No way?"

Ling Yi turned to Meng Dong and asked, "Can we go inside the Heavenly Pavilion?"

Meng Dong frowned: "I can, but outsiders are absolutely forbidden from entering."

The outsider, of course, refers to Ling Yi.

"Unfortunately, I can't share my senses with you because of this skill."

Ling Yi felt a little regretful, but then he suddenly remembered Du Hengbo's skill. His skill was incredibly beneficial to the team, and Ling Yi gave it a perfect score.

Unfortunately, Du Hengbo was not there, so Ling Yi had to use his own methods to infiltrate the Heavenly Pavilion.

His methods are [silence] and [invisibility], which are enough to deal with a group of ordinary people.

Meanwhile, after escaping the Meng residence, Zhou Jie rode his horse at breakneck speed to a secluded courtyard in the suburbs.

There were two reasons why he fled the Meng residence in such a hurry.

Firstly, he attacked Wang Yun, but Wang Yun managed to save his life, so naturally he could not stay in the Meng residence any longer.

At the same time, his role as "the confidant of the acting head of the family" and his separate storyline are rendered invalid.

The second reason was that he needed to heal his injuries.

The "steel body" grants him a level of endurance and tolerance beyond that of normal people, but that is merely endurance; endurance will not improve his injuries.

That's why he desperately needed a safe place, along with some healing tools, to repair his battered body.

Actually, he didn't have anywhere else to go. After thinking it over, he came to the meeting place he had previously discussed with Ding Guifang.

The contract between the two remained in effect, and he was not worried that Ding Guifang would harm him.

At the same time, if Ding Guifang were also there, she might be able to help him keep watch.

The horse was tied up, the door was pushed open, and the house was empty.

He wasn't disappointed; after all, it was something he had expected.

Without saying a word, he took out a prop called the "Return to Origin Futon".

He spread the cloth on the ground and sat cross-legged on it. If it weren't for the blood covering him, he would have looked quite like a monk meditating.

The 【Return to Origin Futon】requires no other operation; simply sit on it, clear your mind, and it will automatically restore your stamina or heal your injuries.

The more empty your mind is, the better the recovery will be.

Clearly, giving this prop to Zhou Jie is a waste.

Given his personality, how could he possibly calm down?

Not to mention that he is now in an unfamiliar environment and needs to devote some of his attention to vigilance, so the recovery process is naturally much slower.

"Ah, if only I had another Heart-Piercing Pill."

Zhou Jie couldn't help but sigh.

At that moment, a cold snort came from outside the door:

"Hmph, do you think the Crimson Heart Pill is some roadside concoction that you can just get whenever you want?"