Chapter 184
June 6th, 2018, 1 a.m.
In the quiet Beijing, several black figures crossed the buildings at an extremely fast speed, quietly heading in the direction of Dongcheng District. Their figures were also integrated with the night. A breeze blew and they disappeared in the blink of an eye. By 5 a.m., there were more than 30 players gathered near the Temple of Heaven in Dongcheng District.
Starting with the black tower 2.0 version update, the black tower would release an assembly instance almost every month.
Most assembly instances weren't life-threatening. The assembly instances released by the black tower were different every time, with different missions, different bosses and different rewards. Tang Mo had participated in two assembly instances, one in Shanghai and one in Beijing.
The assembly instance this time was a bit different.
Located in the heart of Beijing, the Temple of Heaven Park was a flat area with few buildings as cover. A week ago, the black tower released this assembly instance and Tang Mo and Fu Wenduo had unanimously agreed to participate. They would've chosen to enter even without Bai Ruoyao's deliberate provocation. It was because there was a condition to enter this instance.
"The entrants must've received the 'Christmas tree branch' from the Christmas surprise instance six months ago."
In the past six months, of the assembly instances that Tang Mo participated in and heard of, only the Strange Circus assembly instance in Shanghai had restrictions to enter. According to Tang Mo's experience, this type of instance with an entry threshold would generally be very rewarding. The instance content would also be related to some secrets of the Underground Kingdom and players could come into contact with more advanced black tower monsters. Tang Mo called these assembly instances a 'special instance.'
The sky was becoming clearer as Tang Mo's group of four hid in a small building in the Temple of Heaven Park, staring quietly at the Temple of Heaven not far away.
Tang Mo and Fu Wenduo had seen Santa Claus. The gap in strength was very big and neither of them dared to be careless. Fu Wenduo handed his gun to Tang Mo and Tang Mo also brought the king's gold coin.
"A special instance is different from ordinary assembly instances. There is a high probability of death." Tang Mo whispered. In the Strange Circus instance, there was a total of 23 players and only nine survived. "In this instance, it is important to keep your life. Based on previous experience, you won't die if you fail." Thus, the most important thing was to save their own lives.
Chen Shanshan and Fu Wensheng nodded.
Time passed and it got closer to 6:06.
Fu Wenduo's body was close to the window as he stared at the entire Temple of Heaven Park. The park was quiet. The dark trees swayed slightly in the wind and there was no sound. Fu Wenduo stopped for a moment on a tree and then two other buildings.
Fu Wenduo grabbed Tang Mo's hand and wrote the number '9' on it.
Then he wrote the same numbers on the back of Chen Shanshan and Fu Wensheng's hands.
Tang Mo looked at him with surprise.
Fu Wenduo raised his index finger to his lips in a 'shh' gesture and pointed to the ceiling. Tang Mo instantly understood his meaning.
Tang Mo took his phone from his pocket and typed:
[Is there someone?]
Fu Wenduo took the phone. [They came earlier than we did. I just discovered their existence.]
Tang Mo's expression sank.
Chen Shanshan took a pen and paper from her bag and wrote: [The ones who are qualified to come here are players who have received the Christmas tree branch reward. The returnees shouldn't be involved in the Christmas instance. Many players who received the reward would've died. There shouldn't be more than 50 people in Beijing who can enter this assembly instance.]
However, this meant that every player in the instance had strength that exceeded the average level.
Fu Wenduo's number '8' meant that he found nine people hidden in the Temple of Heaven Park. They also knew that there were more players who hid very well and even Fu Wenduo couldn't discover them.
Tang Mo thought about it and typed: [Wait.]
Everyone nodded lightly.
The morning sun completely emerged from the horizon but the Temple of Heaven was still empty. There was only one minute left until 6:06 when a black shadow jumped from a big tree towards the square in front of the Temple of Heaven. The next moment, more than a dozen figures jumped and landed on the square.
In the last 10 seconds, a total of 25 players stood in front of the Temple of Heaven, staring vigilantly at the people around them.
Tang Mo heard the sound of wind above them and knew that the person hiding above their heads had also set off.
It wasn't too late. Tang Mo cried out, "Go!"
The four people leapt from upstairs. Tang Mo carried Chen Shanshan and Fu Wenduo carried Fu Wensheng. The two people arrived in front of the Temple of Heaven at a terrible speed. Tang Mo arrived and saw Bai Ruoyao's disgusting smile towards him and Fu Wenduo.
Tang Mo narrowed his eyes. At this point, there was only one second left.
Suddenly, Tang Mo saw a person who shouldn't be hear. He looked at the other person with astonishment but couldn't see their face before a white light flashed in front of his eyes. The black tower's childlike voice was heard.
"Ding dong! Player Tang Mo has successfully entered the assembly instance of 'Santa Claus' Quirky Commercial Street'. As of 6:06 on June 6th, 2019, a total of 31 players have successfully entered the instance. There are 20 official players, 1 reserve player, 7 stowaways and 3 returnees."
The voice of the black tower was transmitted to the ears of all players. There was a white light in front of him but Tang Mo could hear a startled cry to the side.
There's still a reserve?
…There were returnees?
Then that really was Ning Zheng just now?
"Ding dong! A tip for the Santa Claus' Quirky Commercial Street instance: Santa Claus has never experienced such a a bad Christmas. A good holiday for children to receive gifts was shamelessly destroyed by the black tower monsters. This matter made Santa crazy and he hasn't slept well for six months. Thus, today Santa has decided to give a real reward to the good kids who were cheated by the bad bosses. All children who like Santa Claus and like to play Santa Claus' games are honest and good children. This time Santa Claus won't mess up the 'special surprise for Christmas.'"
Tang Mo suddenly felt the sharp sensation was falling. He was about to hit the ground when he subconsciously held out a hand and steadied his body. The place that his fingers touched was soft and very elastic. Tang Mo looked down with surprise and saw that the ground was a large trampoline separated into pink and white squares. His body bounced a few times before settling down.
Tang Mo stood up and quickly checked the situation around him.
He saw Fu Wensheng!
Fu Wensheng was slower than Tang Mo. He had just steadied his body and also saw Tang Mo, showing an expression of surprise. Tang Mo wanted to see who the other people were when the black tower's mechanical voice filled the room.
"Ding dong! Players have officially entered the Quirky Commercial Street. Violence is prohibited in the commercial street. The use of abilities and all props are also prohibited. In the magical Quirky Commercial Street, players no longer have special identities such as official players, reserve players, stowaways and returnees. All players are tentatively reserve customers. Friendly tip: Please find the right way to become an official customer of the Quirky Commercial Street."
These words finished and Tang Mo finally saw the other two people in the room.
This was a candy-like room with a rubber candy trampoline as the ground, the walls were made of biscuits and the windows were made of rock candy. The ceiling was a giant dome of chocolate and there was no furniture in the room. The sweet smell pierced Tang Mo's nose, making him frown.
There were a total of four people in this candy room.
Tang Mo, Fu Wensheng, a strange woman in black and Ning Zheng.
That's right, it was Ning Zheng.
All four people stood in four corners and calmly looked at the others.
Fu Wensheng was very happy when he first saw Tang Mo but he quickly got rid of his expression after seeing the other people in the room. He acted as if he didn't know Tang Mo and stared vigilantly at the three adults in the room.
Ning Zheng hadn't expected to fall into the same room as Tang Mo. He suddenly felt that his neck was a bit painful as he remembered his Eve's apple. He stared coldly at Tang Mo but didn't start anything. He started observing the room.
The young woman looked curiously at Tang Mo and Ning Zheng. Then her eyes fell on Fu Wensheng and she smiled. "There is a young boy?"
Tang Mo raised his eyebrow. A Cantonese person?
The woman noticed Tang Mo's gaze and smiled at him before turning to find clues in the room.
Tang Mo and Fu Wensheng didn't communicate as they both observed the room.
Presumably, the 31 players had entered different rooms after entering the game. Tang Mo walked around while aware of Ning Zheng and the young woman. However, they didn't act. The four people walked around the room before heading back to the centre of the room.
Ning Zheng silently watched Tang Mo and didn't open his mouth.
Fu Wensheng pretended not to know Tang Mo and also didn't speak.
Tang Mo thought about it and wanted to speak when a clear female voice was heard. "It seems that everyonen has looked around?"
This person seemed to be in a good mood and his tone was very pleasant. Tang Mo looked at the woman with a strange expression. It was the first time he had seen a player with such a good attitude after entering the black tower game. It felt like she was just here to play the game and wasn't afraid of failure. Wasn't she afraid of death?"
Fu Wensheng nodded. "I've seen it."
The young woman smiled. "This child, are you 13 years old this year?"
Fu Wensheng reflexively replied, "I am 12 this year." Then he remembered that this person was a complete stranger and he didn't have to answer the question. Fu Wensheng was a bit annoyed but he was completely unprepared for this woman's tone of speech.
"So young.” The woman in black touched her chin.
Ning Zheng interrupted their chat. "Tang Mo, what is Eve's Reward?"
The young woman looked surprised and stared at Tang Mo.
Tang Mo frowned.
Ning Zheng's words were full of resentment. He casually asked but it was actually very tricky. Previously, Xiao Fu wasn't present when Tang Mo and Fu Wenduo seized Ning Zheng so he didn't know that Tang Mo and Fu Wensheng knew each other. Now that he said this, the young woman discovered that Tang Mo had Eve's Reward.
Eve's Reward was something that caught the attention of senior players. It was like Pandora's Box. Everyone thought there was a treasure waiting inside. These players wouldn't believe it even if Tang Mo told them he lost his memory and had no idea what Eve's Reward was.
Ning Zheng's words placed Tang Mo on the opposite side of the three players inthe room.
Tang Mo thought for a long time but only a few seconds passed. He calmly replied to Ning Zheng, "A very good prop. However, it is forbidden to use any props in Santa's assembly instance and I also didn't bring it with me. Ning Zheng, how can you be here? You are a returnee. Do you also have a Christmas tree branch?"
The young woman looked at Ning Zheng with surprise.
Players in Beijing knew that Ning Zheng was the last remaining returnee on the time leaderboard in Beijing. Tang Mo's reputation was very loud in China but Ning Zheng wasn't lacking compared to him. Tang Mo had Eve's Reward and this made him the public enemy of players. Ning Zheng was a returnee and his identity itself made him the enemy of Earth's survivors.
Killing Ning Zheng would give them a good prop. This was a game rule for the time leaderboard.
Ning Zheng wanted Tang Mo to be singled out by the players in the room and Tang Mo did the same.
The woman in black saw the faint hostility between the two people and laughed. "Tang Mo, Ning Zheng, i didn't expect to be so lucky as to meet two famous senior players. You seem to know each other so no introductions are needed. My name is Mo Xue. What is the name of this small friend?"
The reaction of the woman in black was beyond Tang Mo and Ning Zheng's expectations.
…She just accepted it?
Fu Wensheng told her, "My name is Chen Chensheng."
The woman in black smiled. "The black tower recommended that we find the right way to become regular customers faster. What do you think of this?"
Based on Ning Zheng's careful personality, Tang Mo kew he wouldn't start anything here. Neither side could use abilities and props and there was no certainty of winning against Tang Mo. In the same way, Ning Zheng knew Tang Mo wouldn't act.
Ning Zheng stated, "There are four windows in this room. There are two to the left and two to the right, as well as a door. I just tried to open the door but it didn't open. The door is locked. Looking out from these four windows… there are four stores."
The four people walked to one side with windows and looked out. There were four identical stores outside the window. Each store had beautiful glass windows and there were exquisite gifts in the window, along with cake and biscuits. They went to the other side and there were the same four identical stores.
There were eight stores with this house as the centre. The stores on the left were a cake store, a candy store, a cookie store and a gift store. The four stores on the right were the same.
The four stores had colourful neon lights used to spell out the names of the store.
“Santa’s Cake Shop, Santa's Candy House, Santa's Cookie House and Santa's Gift Shop." Fu Wensheng read out the four names.
The door couldn't be opened and the windows were sealed.
The Quirky Commercial Street prohibited violence but it black tower didn't say if it prohibited violence between players or all violence. Therefore, Tang Mo didn't dare violently open the door. He could only quietly wait for the black tower to announce new rules.
Apart from the woman in black whose details were unknown, the other three were senior players who had experienced many games. They weren't in a hurry.
The black tower would never give inexplicable puzzles. They had found all the clues that could be found and there must be other clues that haven't been released yet.
Before this, Tang Mo had asked Ning Zheng a question and Ning Zheng hadn't answered.
Tang Mo lowered his gaze towards Xiao Fu and gave him a look.
Fu Wensheng didn't have the same tacit understanding with Tang Mo as his brother and only understood Tang Mo's meaning after a while. At this time, he seemed to be a curious and timid child. He stared nervously at the 'returnee' Ning Zheng, his body shrinking back towards Tang Mo. His behavior didn't arouse NIng Zheng's suspicion. After all, Tang Mo was an official player and Ning Zheng was a returnee. It was obvious who the child would choose.
Fu Wensheng whispered, "How can returnees enter this game?"
Tang Mo followed his words and asked bluntly, "How did you enter? Did the returnees also experience the Christmas surprise instance?"
Ning Zheng was leaning against the rock candy window when he heard Tang Mo's words. He asked coldly, "Christmas surprise instance?"
Tang Mo wondered, "How did you get the Christmas tree branch without experiencing the Christmas instance?"
Ning Zheng looked at Tang Mo with strange eyes before sneering. "You don't want to know what Christmas instance we experienced." He didn't say anything else and kept observing the four stores outside the window.
Tang Mo captured the key information.
The returnees had also experienced the Christmas instance.
The Christmas instance that the returnees experienced didn't seem to be a good memory.
Tang Mo looked at Ning Zheng's neck. "You have become an official player now?"
Ning Zheng didn't have the string of gold numbers at his neck.
Ning Zheng stared at Tang Mo. After a moment he asked, "Did Xu Yusheng say something to you before she died?"
What was she supposed to say? Tang Mo replied, "Yes."
Ning Zheng stiffened. He carefully observed Tang Mo's expression before snorting. He sighed with relief, "She didn't say it."
Tang Mo's heart tightened.
There were only four people in the room.
Tang Mo and Ning Zheng definitely weren't friends and Fu Wensheng didn't dare be close to Tang Mo. The woman in black called Mo Xue stood by and didn't participate in the conversation. She looked like she didn't care about Tang Mo and Ning Zheng as she reached out to touch the biscuit wall. She broke off a piece and chewed on it.
"Um? It is sweet."
Tang Mo, "…"
Ning Zheng, "…"
This world was full of wonders! How could such a player appear here?
The next moment, Tang Mo saw the woman's hand grasp a small piece of rock sugar at the window and she used this force to flexibly jump towards the ceiling and take a piece of chocolate. Her movements were beautiful, as if she could freely move on this elastic rubber candy trampoline.
Tang Mo and Ning Zheng realized that this woman's strength wasn't simple.
The strange and stagnant atmosphere lasted for five minutes before a familiar voice broke the silence.
"Ding dong! All 100 virtual customers are in place."
“The 31 reserve players, please be prepared. In five minutes, the Quirky Commercial Street will usher in the first wave of customer frenzy. Please carefully observe to find the store that really belongs to Santa Claus. After three waves of customer frenzy, players can choose the store they want to enter."
"Please note! You can only turn into a regular customer by walking into the right store."
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Chapter 185
The black tower didn't give people reaction time and its tip caught Tang Mo's group of four off guard. In this room, Tang Mo and Fu Wensheng were cooperating but they pretended not to know each other. Thus, all four people were aware of each other.
Once the black tower gave the game tip, they didn't immediately communicate with each other and did their own thinking.
Time passed and the young woman in black spoke first. "The rules that the black tower said just now, do you have any ideas?"
Ning Zheng stared coldly at the woman and didn't speak.
Tang Mo shook his head.
Fu Wensheng followed Tang Mo and said without hesitation, "I don't know."
The three people in the room obviously didn't have the intention to cooperate and the young woman raised an eyebrow. She didn't force them and just looked through the windows at the four stores outside.
Five minutes later, faint vibrations were heard outside the room. Tang Mo's heart thumped and all four of them immediately moved to the window. They saw four doors made of light appear on the road between the candy house and the four stores. The four doors happened to be facing the doors of the stores and a bright red light shone from the door frames.
Tang Mo suddenly thought of something and immediately turned to the other side of the candy house, looking out the windows on the other side.
Sure enough, there were also four light doors here!
"Eight stores, eight doors made of light… each door corresponds to a store." Fu Wensheng was surprised.
The sudden appearance of the eight doors made the players puzzled but the black tower soon gave an answer.
The vibrations increased and the red light on the door frames became brighter. Once the vibrations and light reached the apex, everything came to an abrupt end. Suddenly, a light-coloured figure stepped out of a door.
It was a figure covered with a red light and the appearance was completely invisible. They could only vaguely tell that it was a grown man. He walked with a bag of coins in his hands and went into the gift store on the right side of the candy house.
A few words instantly popped into Tang Mo's mind.
"Virtual customers?!"
The four people cried out with astonishment.
This red light man was just the beginning.
Immediately afterwards, another red light person emerged from one of the eight doors. The door they came from didn't mean they would approach the store facing that door. At the same time, they didn't necessarily enter only one store. After coming out of the first store, they might enter a second or third store, or they might disappear directly into the light door.
Countless virtual customers came in and out of the eight stores and the entire commercial street was lively. Tang Mo was stunned as his eyes quickly swept over the four stores on the left. He looked at the left but he couldn't see the right side.
The customers were very fast. They walked in and out, bought good things and then returned to the light doors one by one.
Five minutes passed and all the customers disappeared into the light door. If it wasn't for the shaking of the earth that hadn't completely dissipated, Tang Mo wouldn't be sure if he had truly seen the red light people just now. His spirit soon recovered and he looked at the other people in the room.
Ning Zheng tried to hide his astonishment but he exposed the fact that he was also dazed. The black woman called Mo Xue frowned. She looked at the eight stores on the left and right sides before saying to the three players in the room. "The eight doors haven't disappeared."
The group immediately looked again.
Tang Mo stated, "All the people have disappeared but the doors are still there. So… are they going to come back?"
Ning Zheng added, "When are they coming back and will it be the same people?"
The next second, the child's voice was heard.
"Ding dong! Please be prepared. After five minutes, the second batch of virtual guests will arrive."
Tang Mo closed his eyes and took a deep breath, calming down his violently beating heart. Xiao Fu noticed his abnormality and looked at him with concern. Tang Mo threw a reassuring look at him and Fu Wensheng removed his gaze, pretending to be unfamiliar with Tang Mo.
Tang Mo looked calmly at Ning Zheng and the young woman before saying, "I counted it just now. There were a total of 100 light people, which is consistent with the 100 virtual customers that the black tower said."
The four people in the room weren't ordinary players and they did the same thing as Tang Mo.
Ning Zheng refused to reveal the information he found but the young woman was very generous and said directly, "I remember 67 of them. This small friend looks surprised." She laughed. "These people have no face and no clothes but their heights are different. If you look carefully, there are some differences that you can use to identify them."
Tang Mo also glanced at the woman with surprise but she was only staring at Fu Wensheng and didn't seem to notice Tang Mo.
She could remember more than 60 people who were almost identical in appearance in such a short time. The strength of this woman was probably stronger than imagined.
The woman gave her information, glanced at the group and asked again, "Have you found any clues this time?"
Ning Zheng was silent as he stared at her vigilantly.
Fu Wensheng thought that Tang Mo would also refuse and said, "No…"
"What would happen if I said I have a clue?"
The smile on the young woman's face froze and she turned to look at Tang Mo. The surprise in her eyes wasn't difficult to hide. It seemed she hadn't expected Tang Mo to say this. Her bright eyes gazed quietly at Tang Mo and he looked back at her. The two people stared at each other before the woman smiled slightly. "What a coincidence, I have a clue as well. Then… Tang Mo, do you want to work together?"
Fu Wensheng hadn't expected that in a game where he and Brother Tang were assigned to the same team (room), Brother Tang didn't choose to cooperate with him and picked the woman instead!
What exactly did this woman have to do with Brother Tang?
What was this?
Tang Mo and the woman in black headed to a corner of the room and quietly discussed the information. Ning Zheng stared at them with narrowed eyes. Fu Wensheng wanted to run over but he weighed it repeatedly and decided to keep concealing his relationship with Tang Mo. The child was started to doubt life when Tang Mo looked up at him and gave a signal. Fu Wensheng was stunned before reacting.
Brother Tang definitely had a reason for doing this and he chose to believe in Brother Tang.
Tang Mo and the young woman whispered many words that Ning Zheng and Fu Wensheng couldn't hear. They walked back together. Then the woman stopped beside Ning Zheng and asked, "Ning Zheng, do you want to join our team and work together?"
Ning Zheng hesitated for a moment before replying, "No."
The young woman shrugged and went to Fu Wensheng's side. "I haven't seen a child in a long time. I'll let you pass."
Fu Wensheng didn't understand the meaning of her sentence. Once he reacted, he stared up at Tang Mo with astonishment.
Tang Mo opened his mouth. "It is beginning."
The ground shook again and the red light doors glowed brightly.
It felt like customers really came out from the doors to go shopping as noisy voices flowed into the ears of every player. The group of red light people gradually entered the stores to buy what they wanted.
Their speed was even faster than the first round.
Like red leaves, they slammed into the eyes of the players in a dazzling manner. Fu Wensheng stared with wide eyes. He wanted to see how many light people he could identify as possible but he only recognized six people before his head felt like exploding and his eyes dried up.
The light people rushed in batches and disappeared in batches.
Tang Mo's eyes were bloodshot. The last light person held the gift bags and disappeared into the light doors. Then he closed his eyes and thought about it. Tang Mo looked at the young woman and the other person nodded at him. The two people quietly exchanged information before Tang Mo whispered, "Sure enough…"
Ning Zheng's fingers tensed.
The woman in black said, "It is better to reconfirm it the third time."
"Okay."
The young woman in black went to Ning Zheng's side again but didn't stop. She just walked past when she looked back, "Do you still not want to cooperate?"
Ning Zheng was silent for a long time before turning to stare at Tang Mo.
In the current situation, Ning Zheng would have to temporarily put down his hostility with Tang Mo if he wanted to cooperate. He could cooperate and then as soon as he left this room, team up with Bai Ruoyao to sell Tang Mo. However, Ning Zheng couldn't do this. It wasn't good to ignite Tang Mo's desire for revenge. He didn't want to shake hands with Tang Mo because this was a simple game without danger. There were still many things he wanted to do.
Ning Zheng replied calmly, "No."
The young woman asked, "You really don't want to?"
Ning Zheng became alert. "What are you trying to say?"
The woman smiled. "Nothing. It is just that Santa Claus is one of the most powerful bosses in the black tower world and it is better to be careful in his game."
Ning Zheng was about to open his mouth when the ground shook again.
Tang Mo interrupted, "They're coming."
The four people walked to the windows as fast as they could. Tang Mo and Fu Wensheng stood on one side and the young woman and Ning Zheng stood on the other side, each of them looking out one window. This time, the virtual customers appeared faster and they bought things faster. It was as if someone had pressed the acceleration key. The red lights overlapped and it was difficult to discern how many people there were.
Fu Wensheng stared with dry eyes and managed to survive the five minutes. Then he heard the black tower coldly say,
"After one minute, all reserve customers will be asked to enter the right store."
"Please note that entering the right store is the only way to become a regular customer."
Fu Wensheng asked, "What if we can't enter the right store?"
As if hearing his words, the black tower replied, "The game will fail and the player will immediately leave Santa's Quirky Commercial Street."
Then they wouldn't die?
These words rang in the heads of the four people at the same time.
Once the words of the black tower finished, two red dots of light appeared at the marshmallow door of the candy room. The lights disappeared and reappeared in front of everyone as a small turntable made of two sweet syrup. The upper turntable was divided into two pieces, with the word 'left' on the left and the word 'right' on the right. The other turntable was divided into four pieces, with a small version of a lollipop, chocolate, cake and gift drawn on it.
The turntable could be turned so that the pointer aimed at any small block.
Fu Wensheng said, "These two turntables are for us to choose one of the eight stores to enter."
The first turntable divided the eight stores into two teams while the second turntable allowed the player to select a specific store. Time was short and Fu Wensheng nervously glanced at Tang Mo. He had an answer in his heart but he wasn't sure. The young woman had long said that she wanted to help Fu Wensheng pass the instance so Tang Mo held the child turn the two turntables.
Once he finished turning, the turntables returned to their original positions. A light flashed on the marshmallow door and a line of words appeared.
"Asking all reserve players to choose the store they want to go to. Once the selection is complete, the door will open."
Next was Tang Mo and the young woman.
The two of them had clearly cooperated but they didn't communicate. Each of them blocked the view of the turntable and turned it.
Only Ning Zheng was left.
Ning Zheng stood quietly and watched the three people at the door and the marshmallow door. He stepped up to the door and calmly reached out to touch the first turntable. He was just about to turn it when a female voice was heard. "The candy store on the left."
Tang Mo looked at the young woman with surprise.
Ning Zheng was also surprised and looked at the woman with strange eyes. A long time passed before he asked quietly, "Do we know each other?"
The woman in black smiled. "I don't know you but I've heard your name. There aren't many Chinese players on the time leaderboard. You are very good."
Ning Zheng wondered, "Why are you helping me?"
"You are a returnee."
Tang Mo was startled and realized something.
Ning Zheng cried out, "Are you also a returnee?"
“Did I say I was a returnee?" The woman in black raised an eyebrow and laughed. "Are you hostile to Earth survivors because you are a returnee? That isn't necessary. We are all humans. Why should there be a distinction between us. And… maybe I didn't help you."
Ning Zheng's eyes narrowed and he coldly declared, "I also guessed the candy store on the left." Then he quickly moved the turntable.
The marshmallow door exuded a tempting sweet smell once he finished choosing. Amidst this rich fragrance, the black tower's cold voice was heard. "One minute has passed. 19 reserve customers have successfully turned official and 12 reserve customers have failed the game. Santa Claus believes that only dishonest and bad children won't know that he operates the best candy store in the entire Underground Kingdom. The bad kids will receive the punishment they deserve as Santa's reindeer sticks out their hooves with a smile."
The voice finished and the door opened."
"Ahhhh!"
The moment the door opened, more than 10 shrill screams could be heard. Tang Mo looked in front of him and saw 11 muscular reindeer sticking out their hoovers and kicking the buttocks of 11 players. These players howled in pain as they were kicked into the light doors by the reindeer and disappeared from the commercial street.
Tang Mo's group of four turned their heads and finally saw where they were.
This was a narrow and long street. The start off the street had a colourful neon door with coloured lights spelling out:
Santa Claus' Quirky Commercial Street.
In the middle of the street, the eight red light doors gradually disappeared and the seven fake stores vanished with them. From the room, Tang Mo hadn't realized that Santa's candy house was so big. It was like a palace standing by the side of the road with a huge lollipop hanging as the store sign. In the middle of the road, there were eight small candy houses.
Compared to Santa's candy house, the eight candy houses were as small as toys.
These were the candy houses the players had just been stuck in. They thought they were playing along but they were actually playing the game at the same time. They saw the same red light people and at the end, 12 people didn't pick the right store while 19 people entered the next game.
Tang Mo looked at the crowd and saw Chen Shanshan and Fu Wenduo.
Fu Wensheng was very clever and didn't look at Fu Wenduo. He ran straight for Chen Shanshan. Once the two children met, the other players looked at them with surprise and didn't take them seriously. Fu Wenduo found Tang Mo and strode towards him. As he walked towards Tang Mo, he discovered Ning Zheng and the woman in black.
Fu Wenduo gazed at Ning Zheng before finally focusing on the woman in black.
Once the group left the candy house, the restriction on their abilities and props were lifted and a sense of oppression that couldn't be ignored instantly pressed down on them. Tang Mo stood with Fu Wenduo and both of them watched this woman in black.
In the crowd, most players were observing the three famous players, Fu Wenduo, Tang Mo and Ning Zheng. Only Bai Ruoyao was staring at the woman in black. Slowly, the corners of his mouth went up. He burst out laughing, attracting the eyes of the people around him. However, he didn't care and kept laughing loudly.
Fu Wenduo stared at the woman in black for a long time before asking, "What are you called?"
The woman in black didn't answer and gave a name instead. "Fu Wenduo?" Then she observed everyone on the street, stopping when she saw Bai Ruoyao. She smiled and muttered, "Tang Mo, Fu Wenduo, Ning Zheng… this game is really surprising. Tang Mo, I found that man is looking at you with a very interesting expression. Do you know each other?"
Tang Mo followed the direction of her finger. Bai Ruoyao waved to him and called out, "Tang Tang."
Tang Mo's response was cold. "I don't know."
The woman in black suggested, "Why don't we make a bet? If you guess who I am then I'll tell you who he is. I kind of hate him. I don't hate many people but it is rare to meet such an annoying person. His relationship with you doesn't seem good. It would be nice to find out a bit of information about him. But if you can't guess, I want your most important prop."
Tang Mo asked, "Are you sure you want to make this bet?"
The woman in black replied, "Yes. You don’t want to make this bet? Okay, I never force people…"
"No, I'll make this bet with you."
The woman's voice stopped and she watched Tang Mo with interest. She never gazed at Tang Mo with such serious eyes. Before Fu Wenduo's appearance, Tang Mo thought this woman was interested in him and Ning Zheng since she never hid this interest. However, after Fu Wenduo appeared, a fierce flame ignited in her eyes. The fighting spirit that couldn't be hidden was burning in her eyes.
Yet they didn't know each other.
Now she looked at Tang Mo with the same eyes.
The woman in black smiled. "Do you want to think about it again? I can tell if the prop you give me is the most important thing to you."
“The first batch of virtual customers appeared and you could identify 67 people despite the unclear situation. In the second and third batches of customer frenzy, it was easy to observe and remember the features of the humans that entered the four stores."
Not far away, Xiao Fu was learning about the real way to clear the game from Chen Shanshan. The child exclaimed, "We have to remember the 100 identical light people that went into every store? Remember all of them?"
Chen Shanshan corrected. "They don't look exactly the same. There are differences. There are children and there are adults."
“That's too strong. 100 people in such a short amount of time and it is also hard to distinguish between male and female." Xiao Fu found suitable words.
Chen Shanshan discovered the confrontation between Tang Mo and the woman in black. She observed the situation over there while saying, "The second and third times aren't needed. You only need to look at the store that the children enter. Santa Claus likes honest children and children also like Santa Claus the best. In the first customer frenzy, if you discover that all the children went to the candy house then you can figure out a vague goal. Then you just need to test your guess and you can clear it."
She said it very easily but among all the players, she was probably the only one qualified to say this. Thanks to her super intelligent mind, Chen Shanshan knew the answer in the first customer frenzy and didn't need to check again because her brain could control such calculations at the same time. Even Tang Mo and the woman in black needed the second frenzy to determine the answer.
Chen Shanshan asked, "Xiao Sheng, who is that woman? Was she just in the room with you?"
Fu Wensheng nodded. "Her name is Mo Xue and she is very strange. Sister Shanshan, you said it is best to pass the game when two people cooperate. You don't know but Brother Tang chose to cooperate with that woman instead of me. That woman is also very strange. She seems to be Cantonese and she also helped Ning Zheng pass the game. Ning Zheng didn't show her any good feelings."
Chen Shanshan's eyes widened and she turned her head. "Wait, you said she is Cantonese?"
Fu Wensheng touched his head. "Yes, she spoke Cantonese in the room and seems to be Cantonese."
Chen Shanshan stared at the woman in black with astonishment. "Is she…"
At the same time, Tang Mo stared at the woman and spoke in a certain tone.
"Mu Huixue."
Mu Huixue's eyes narrowed before her lips curved. Her hand touched the whip at her waist and she suddenly threw it towards Fu Wenduo. Fu Wenduo moved sideways to avoid the whip and reached out to grab it. His hand had just touched the whip when the whip caught on fire.
Fu Wenduo frowned and threw the whip away.
The whip returned to Mu Huixue's hands and changed back to its original form.
Mu Huixue didn't give him time to react. She threw the whip against the ground and borrowed the force to jump into the air. The nimble whip smashed a crack in the ground and headed towards Fu Wenduo at a speed beyond what was visible to the naked eye. Tang Mo didn't think much. He quickly read the spell to open the small parasol and blocked the front of Fu Wenduo. He had just raised the umbrella when he felt a chill from his soles and realized that the parasol was likely to be pierced by the whip!
Fu Wenduo moved the parasol to the side and his right hand turned into a black weapon that blocked the long whip.
The two collided, causing a harsh metal sound.
Mu Huixue was excited as she stared at Fu Wenduo's right hand that had changed into a weapon. "This is your ability? Come again!"
No one knew what the woman was suddenly doing but they could see that the battle between her and Fu Wenduo wasn't something that ordinary players could participate in. Other players avoided this scene but Bai Ruoyao's eyes brightened. Fu Wenduo and Mu Huixue weren't alone, Tang Mo was also there. Bai Ruoyao found an opportunity to seize the flaws revealed by Tang Mo.
"Hehe, let me find out, Tang Tang."
Two silver flashes emerged as the sharp butterfly knives cut through the wind. Tang Mo had to be careful of Bai Ruoyao's sneak attacks while dealing with Mu Huixue. His expression sank and he struggled to block the knives. Unexpectedly, the red whip changed directions in the air and firmly tied up Bai Ruoyao's wrists.
Bai Ruoyao was shocked and lost his smile for the first time.
Mu Huixue used the whip to pull the baby-faced youth to her side and kicked his legs.
"The luckiest person is the circle is hated by the first place on the leaderboard. Today you don't seem very lucky. Am I the first person to catch you?"
If Bai Ruoyao moved then his wrist would be broken by the whip. Fu Wenduo directly took out a prop and tied him up with the causality rope.
Bai Ruoyao, “…”
Damn it, weren't these three people just fighting?"
Tang Mo glanced at him. "Don't yell at me in your heart."
Bai Ruoyao, “…”
Mu Huixue told them, "There has been no one who caught you in all these years. The lucky slippery one, this nickname makes me want to catch you. Thus, I put on a play and the effect seems to be good. I seem to have talent for acting."
Bai Ruoyao tried but couldn't escape from Fu Wenduo's prop. He didn't worry too much and smiled again. "Mu Huixue, we don't seem to be familiar with each other."
Mu Huixue refuted, "Not being familiar doesn't mean that you aren't annoying."
Bai Ruoyao wanted to refute these words but found himself speechless.
…He did seem to be hated by many people.
Mu Huixue wanted to catch Bai Ruoyao but like Bai Ruoyao said, they didn't have any deep hatred towards each other. Thus, she turned to look at Tang Mo. "What are you going to do?"
What was he doing to do?
Tang Mo didn't blink. "Kill him."
Bai Ruoyao, “…”
A moment later, the baby-faced youth made a wronged expression. “Tang Tang, how are you so willing to kill me? We are good friends. You can't be impulsive and do something you regret. You should think about it and perhaps find someone to discuss it with?"
Tang Mo made a meaningfully sound and looked at Fu Wenduo to discuss it. "What do you say?"
Fu Wenduo didn't hesitate. "Kill him."
Bai Ruoyao, "…" He soon expressed his dissatisfaction. "Hey, you will really regret it if you are so hasty, Tang Tang."
Mu Huixues smiled. "It seems that you aren't lucky today."
Bai Ruoyao's eyes swept over the three people before raising his head to look at Ning Zheng not far away. He was about to open his mouth when he heard the familiar 'Christmas song' play from the end of the commercial street. The cheerful song got closer and closer, filling the entire commercial street. Santa Claus rode a sleigh pulled by reindeers and laughed happily, "Hohoho, Merry Christmas!"
Santa Claus quickly arrived at the door of the candy house and smiled at the 19 players outside the door. "My dear children, are you here to visit my candy store? The children who come here are honest and kind children. You aren't allowed to fight."
As soon as he finished, the black tower's mechanical prompt was heard.
"Ding dong! In Santa Claus' Quirky Commercial Street, abilities, props and all violent acts are prohibited."
Tang Mo, "…"
Fu Wenduo, "…"
Mu Huixue, "…"
In an instant, the ability that had returned to their bodies were suppressed again.
The prop tied around Bai Ruoyao's wrists returned to Fu Wenduo's pocket. The baby-faced youth was a bit stunned before he smiled. "Hey Tang Tang, I told you from the beginning that my nickname is Lucky Yao."
…Are you the black tower's illegitimate child?
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