Chapter 140

Chapter 140

The smooth lines were drawn on slightly yellowed parchment, depicting the exact design of the Ziye earrings, even down to the details of the skull, which were nearly identical to the original. It could be said that the artist was both skilled and meticulous.

After finishing the earring design, Xi Yu let out a slight sigh of relief, lowering his eyes and softly saying, “Although everything in the village is mysterious, this task is actually quite simple—there are no materials in the human body that can synthesize metal, so using tools to craft a pure silver pendant should be an unquestionable step. What we need to solve first is how to craft silverware. Secondly, the only part of the human body that can be used as a white pearl, apart from bones, is probably teeth. So…”

Hearing this long-winded explanation, Su Ziyan was too scared to cover his mouth and interrupted, “What? Pulling out your own bones? That’s too cruel, it must be teeth, right? But even if it’s teeth, I don’t want to rip them out of my mouth! Before, the game planners tried to test our intelligence, but why do they have to torture us so blatantly now?”

While waiting for the drawing, Luo Xi had been thinking quietly by the side and suddenly spoke up, “It might not be so simple. If today’s task requires us to sacrifice bones or teeth, the streamers would definitely choose to kill each other, and the consequences would be unimaginable. I’m afraid there wouldn’t be many streams left to continue, which isn’t good news for the company.”

Xi Yu nodded. “So, there’s another possibility: the material can no longer be obtained from ourselves.”

“Then who can be exploited?” Su Ziyan immediately became distressed.

Zhi Shan, who had been silently watching, suddenly spoke up, “Do you remember… yesterday after Gu killed Fei Ling and Ma Ruofei, Xipo gave him a strange necklace made of teeth? Could the teeth be taken from that?”

Luo Xi gave a half-smile, “Maybe, but you want to steal something from Gu? Impressive, but I sure couldn’t do it.”

Zhi Shan could only keep quiet and, after a while, said, “There’s only one chance to complete the task. Until we have solid evidence, I think it’s best we don’t act rashly…”

Su Ziyan sighed deeply.

At that moment, Luo Xi finally decided, “I think Xi Yu analyzed it clearly. Xipo will only provide information based on the two points he mentioned, so now we’ll split up. Two of us will go look for tools to make silver jewelry, and two will retrieve Ziye’s body.”

Regarding the splitting up, only those in love or the weak were particularly nervous.

Su Ziyan resisted, “Don’t! What if Zhi Shan and I run into those people? Wouldn’t we be eliminated?”

Xi Yu glanced at him coldly, “Of course, we can’t rely entirely on you two. I’ll go with you to find the silver jewelry tools. After all, Luo Xi has been searching for the body for a while and has more experience with its location.”

Without Xi Yu’s company, Luo Xi preferred to go alone.

Having others with him was already a burden, let alone someone like Zhi Shan, whom he really didn’t want to face.

Zhi Shan clearly noticed Luo Xi’s rejecting gaze and quietly suggested, “Xi Yu, how about I go with you to find the silver jewelry tools? After all, I’m a girl and I have some knowledge about jewelry-making things.”

Xi Yu, being indifferent by nature, didn’t hesitate and agreed, “Alright, we’ll set a two-hour limit. Before Xipo releases another helpful hint, we’ll meet back here, regardless of whether there’s any progress.”

Luo Xi, never one to procrastinate, simply gave Xi Yu a light hug and a soft kiss on his forehead: “If we can’t find anything, it’s fine, just make sure to stay safe.”

Xi Yu finally gave a faint smile, “Got it.”

Luo Xi couldn’t help but punch Su Ziyan lightly and urged, “What are you staring at? Come with me.”

Su Ziyan snapped out of it and happily followed his protector, Luo Xi.

After they had moved a bit further from the empty house, Su Ziyan curiously asked, “Luo Ge, if you got first place tonight, would you eliminate Mu Yuan?”

Luo Xi snorted, “Why not Ying Zhixing? They’re both equally bad.”

Su Ziyan quickly flattered him, “Anyway, you and Brother Xi Yu will definitely win, I’ve never seen you two lose.”

“Losing once in Yuntai means there’s no turning back. Have you lost before? I just don’t want Xi Yu to be uncomfortable, so I’ll make sure to do what needs to be done,” Luo Xi countered, then strode forward with unwavering determination.

Since the jewelry shop had already been burned to the ground, Xi Yu had no choice but to search for other jewelry stores or hardware shops, completely ignoring Zhi Shan who was following behind.

Zhi Shan, as if not daring to disturb him, remained completely silent.The paper figures on the street quietly appeared and then quietly disappeared.

None of them spoke to the NPCs.

It wasn't until Zhi Shan, with sharp eyes, spotted a hardware store covered in many small advertisements in the distance, that he spoke up: "Maybe there are tools there. Although the crafting process in the game will be simplified, we still need a vessel to melt the silver, engraving chisels, and welding tools. Maybe we'll find something useful there."

In fact, Xi Yu had some vague knowledge of jewelry-making, but he still agreed with Zhi Shan and finally spoke, "That's right. Actually, you've made it this far, so your abilities can’t be that weak. Why insist on sticking with us? Do you think a flimsy reason like that could make Luo Xi trust you?"

Zhi Shan answered concisely, "Of course there's no trust, but you and Luo Xi are... the two with the most conscience among everyone here."

Xi Yu couldn't help but laugh and shake his head, "Based on that? Just because we tolerate you?"

Zhi Shan shook her head, replying, "At least as long as you haven’t harmed others, that in itself is already rare."

Xi Yu gave her a complex look. He didn’t say anything more.

Pulling a body dressed in red from the deep red lake was not an easy task.

Luo Xi had completely overcome the harsh environment, diving multiple times into the murky water and straining to discern his surroundings.

Though the riverbed was a sea of corpses, fortunately, the water here was stagnant and didn’t flow.

So, with determination, he methodically searched one area after another and finally, near the position where Ziye had sunk, found a hint of a red dress buried beneath some white bones.

Luo Xi had been holding his breath for a long time and was now running out of strength.

But his urgency to complete the mission and secure the body resource drove him to forcefully drag Ziye out, first struggling underwater to retrieve Ziye’s earrings before pulling her towards the surface with all his might.

Perhaps only a few seconds passed, or perhaps a long time, but when Luo Xi broke through the water to catch his breath, his lungs felt like they might explode.

He gasped for air, pulling the body towards the shore, stumbling as he climbed up the pile of rubble.

Fearing that other streamers might appear, Luo Xi didn’t dare to waste a moment. He called out, "Su Ziyan, it's time to go."

But the only response was utter silence.

Luo Xi looked up in surprise, realizing that Su Ziyan, who had been waiting by the stone mill, was now nowhere to be seen.

He stood up and looked around the flat riverbank, but there were no suspicious traces left.

Had that guy run off? Or was he ambushed? Who would come to the riverbank at this time?

Luo Xi frowned tightly. He glanced at the body beside him, but there was no time to search for Su Ziyan, so he could only carry Ziye’s body and hurry into the night.

In contrast, Zhi Shan was more steady and clever. She didn’t dare to leave Xi Yu’s side for even half a minute. She helped him find some usable tools in the hardware store, and then quietly returned to the ruined house where they had been hiding.

The silver bracelet Xi Yu had picked up from the burned gold shop had completely melted. He then began clumsily crafting the terrifying skull earrings.

While busy, a tall figure entered, silhouetted against the red glow of the lantern.

Xi Yu raised his head warily at first, then relaxed when he saw the damp Luo Xi. He smiled and asked, "Did you find the body?"

Luo Xi raised an eyebrow, "How did you know?"Xi Yu said, "I can tell what you're thinking just by looking at your eyes."

Luo Xi then took out Ziye's earrings, showing them off as if boasting, "That bead is made of bone. I've examined it carefully."

Zhi Shan immediately became nervous, "Bone? Where are we going to find enough bones to grind into fake pearls?!"

Luo Xi paused for a moment, then pulled out a hand bone from his pocket. "Don't just sit around. If you want it, you better get to work."

Zhi Shan quickly took it. "Did you get this from the bride's body? Where did you hide her?"

Luo Xi naturally didn’t answer.

Xi Yu finally realized what had happened and noticed that Su Ziyan had disappeared. Anxiously, he asked, "Where did that guy go?"

Luo Xi shook his head.

The person who disappeared last night ended up as a sacrifice, and now Su Ziyan is missing... Could it be that once he lost all protection, he became someone else's prey?

Xi Yu stopped carving the skull for a moment.

Luo Xi tiredly sat beside him. "What's wrong? Do you want to go look for him?"

Xi Yu wasn't a bad person, and that trait was well known by many.

However, thinking about the advantages the winner would gain today, he just fell silent for a moment before softly saying, "Let's finish the earrings quickly. Make one for him too. After all, according to the rules, no one can kill anyone, and as long as we find it before the mission ends, it doesn't matter."

Luo Xi then put his arm around Xi Yu’s shoulders and said, "Sorry, I was busy looking for Ziye and really didn’t pay attention to that guy."

Xi Yu sighed in resignation. "Why do you need to apologize? No one is obligated to protect him. Besides, you’ve already done a lot of things you wouldn't have done before."

"That's right. I never used to be so kind," Luo Xi admitted openly. "But since we became partners, I want to leave together too. There's nothing wrong with that. It's just that when someone suddenly disappears, it feels a bit unsettling. You feel that way too, don’t you?"

A complex emotion appeared in Xi Yu's amber eyes, and then he said, "But do we even have the right to choose not to abandon anyone?"

Luo Xi calmly played with Ziye's earrings and responded, "There will always be a chance."