Chapter 94

Chapter 94

Chapter 94

Having twelve streamers who are enemies with each other travel together through the fog is really not a pleasant thing.

Especially players like Du Li and Su Ziyan, whose physical fitness isn’t great and who could become someone else’s unlucky prey at any moment, deliberately stayed far behind, walking nervously.

Fortunately, the game didn’t intend for them to “survive in the wild.” After about twenty minutes, a stone wall vaguely appeared from the mist not far away, as if someone lived inside.

But as they hurried closer, they saw many bloody bamboo spikes stuck on the stone wall, and the gate was covered with bloodstains. Even if people lived there, it couldn’t be very safe.

Just as a burly man in the team was about to slam the door hard, Luo Xi quickly stopped him: “Wait, so much blood must mean something happened, but there isn’t even a piece of corpse nearby. That’s strange.”

Du Li sniffled: “There’s a smell of something burning. Could it be that the NC burned the corpses after the battle?”

Actually, Luo Xi was asking rhetorically; he was worried that something like zombies might jump out from behind the door and they’d be defenseless. So he only smiled when hearing this, picked up a big stone, smashed it against the door, then immediately protected Xi Yu and stepped aside.

Fortunately, what broke the silence behind the door was a rational voice.

“Who goes there?”

Du Li answered boldly, “We are refugees who escaped from our hometown, looking for a place to stay!”

The male voice inside was very cautious: “Refugees? You’re not injured, right?”

Du Li put her hands on her hips: “Of course not, why don’t you come out and see?”

They waited for a full two or three minutes before the gate barely cracked open. A man in armor stuck out a spear and coldly said, “Come one by one, let me check and say a few words.”

With the intelligence from Rabbit beforehand, Xi Yu and Luo Xi easily understood this—NC feared players might carry the virus and cause disaster.

But for most streamers, this was a very strange request.

However, after fighting in all kinds of bizarre games, they didn’t complain much. Su Ziyan even sang a couple of popular songs for NC.

Only then did the tightly closed gate slowly open. The NC nervously said, “Come inside quickly, don’t linger outside.”

The wheat-colored-skinned female streamer was very aloof. After entering, she frowned and asked, “What happened? We’re just passing by. What kind of place is this? Did a battle happen here?”

NC cautiously closed the door behind them, then propped it with a stone cart, sighed slowly and said, “Wait a moment. I’ll report to Captain Situ. If anything happens, it’s better for you to discuss it with him. I don’t have the authority to let you stay.”

“Okay, hurry up,” the female streamer urged.

NC grabbed the spear and ran off.

At this moment, the streamers finally took a good look around—in fact, the small town inside the stone wall was no more decent. Thin mist still covered dilapidated wooden houses, burn marks were everywhere, the ground was covered with sewage, bloodstains, and broken household items, but not a single person could be seen. If night fell, some might even believe it was a ghost town.

Just when the atmosphere was awkward, the unique worn-out broadcast voice of this instance finally sounded, stingily telling some information about the instance.

[Brave streamers, welcome to the distant and mysterious Taoyuan Township.]【Among the fog spreading everywhere, countless bloodthirsty monsters are hidden】

【Surviving here is not an easy task】

【I advise you not to rely on anything except money】

【And the source of money...】

【Can only come from exchanging your limited belongings at equivalent value】

As the broadcast ended, everyone inevitably looked at each other.

Du Li flipped through her tattered clothes again: “Equivalent exchange? We don’t have anything...”

Su Ziyan laughed beside her: “Could it be that they want us to sell a kidney?”

“If that were true, I wouldn’t find it funny at all,” Luo Xi frowned and interrupted them, then saw the new NC approaching and strode forward to greet him: “Are you Captain Situ? Nice to meet you.”

The new NC’s stern face was hidden behind a beard. He looked imposing and spoke firmly: “First meeting. Where are you all from?”

Du Li lied: “Ah, our hometown is called Yuntai. It was struck by lightning, and nothing grows there anymore. We had no choice but to come to Taoyuan Township. Please, we beg you to take us in.”

The other streamers: “........”

Captain Situ was half skeptical: “I see. But taking you in isn’t an easy matter.”

Xi Yu immediately asked, “There’s bloodstains all over Taoyuan Township inside and out. What exactly happened?”

“To be honest, Taoyuan Township was still a rich and peaceful place last year, but for some reason, a strange disease suddenly broke out in winter,” Captain Situ said worriedly, frowning deeply. “Those who get sick go mad and become bloodthirsty within days. They attack and bite others recklessly. Those bitten also get the same disease! We call these crazed patients 'corpse ghosts' because they’re scarier than corpses—like fierce ghosts risen from the underworld!”

Xi Yu glanced discreetly at Luo Xi. It seemed the hard training to improve physical fitness these past few days was not in vain.

However, Du Li was somewhat uneasy, muttering, “Zombies… these are really hard to deal with…”

Su Ziyan was also anxious and no longer acted cocky.

Captain Situ continued narrating by himself: “Now, there are few living people left in Taoyuan Township. Those corpse ghosts have been driven out of town, but they seem to retain memories of their homes and run back at night. They’re very hard to guard against. I think even if you stay, you won’t be able to handle these dangers. Moreover... everyone’s luck is bad, prices in town have skyrocketed, and without silver coins, you won’t even get a sip of clean water...”

As he spoke, he began to size up the extremely poor-looking streamers.

Xi Yu calmly asked, “Then... if we work, can we earn silver coins? Or are there other ways to get silver? Please advise, Captain.”

“Even if you work for others, half a steamed bun is already good,” Captain Situ pointed ahead. “If you want silver coins, other than finding the pawnbroker Fox Aunt Si, there’s probably no other way.”

“Understood,” Xi Yu agreed decisively, “We’ll go right away.”

Captain Situ cupped his hands: “I still have to repair the protective fence. I wish you all good luck.”

With that, he turned and left.

At this moment, every streamer heard the system task notification:

【Within the time it takes for one incense stick to burn, go to the pawnshop north of Taoyuan Township and meet the owner Fox Aunt Si. No delays allowed.】

One incense stick doesn’t take long to burn. It seemed the system didn’t want the streamers to avoid each other.Moreover, no one felt the need to avoid each other for the time being. After looking at each other confusedly for a moment, they all started moving northward.

Captain Situ had indeed not lied. Living people in the village were truly rare to see. Even if a figure occasionally flashed by, they would disappear instantly like a startled bird. The atmosphere was very eerie.

Du Li nervously bit her fingernails, obviously thinking about the big battle against the zombies.

Su Ziyan quietly comforted her: “Don’t worry, every dungeon run is fair. If only fighters could pass, that wouldn’t make sense.”

Du Li nodded.

Su Ziyan grinned: “Besides, we’re pretty lucky.”

Hearing this, Xi Yu silently glanced at Luo Xi.

Luo Xi: “...”

Actually, Taoyuan Township wasn’t very large. It took less than ten minutes to reach the pawnshop, which was one of the rare places nearby that looked somewhat decent. Outside the shop were pots of blooming flowers and stone lions, which clashed with the dead city atmosphere around.

Du Li put her hands on her hips: “Huh? The pawnshop is just called ‘Pawnshop’? The planners couldn’t even bother to name it?”

By the third time meeting her, Xi Yu was already used to this girl’s unruliness. He quietly entered first and asked loudly: “Is Fox Aunt Si here?”

After a moment, a heavily made-up woman in red stood up from behind the counter, smiling sweetly: “Oh, dear guests, is this your first time in our Taoyuan Township?”

Xi Yu nodded and got straight to the point: “Yes, we need silver coins.”

“I am Fox Aunt Si.” The red-clad woman twisted her body as she came out, smiling deeper: “If you want silver, you’ve come to the right place. Not to brag, but everywhere in Taoyuan Township costs money, and my pawnshop is the only place that actually pays out.”

Su Ziyan was scared: “But we don’t have anything to pawn.”

“Who says you don’t? You have hands, you have feet...” Fox Aunt Si touched his arm, then swayed over to Luo Xi to appraise him: “You have a nose, you have eyes...”

Then she immediately rushed up to Xi Yu, showing off her snow-white teeth: “A pretty face, a smart brain...”

These words caused resistance and fear among the streamers, but also made them instantly understand the brutal price the game demanded from everyone.

Fox Aunt Si waved her handkerchief: “Anything useful can be pawned. I’ll be honest — without enough silver to settle and stay, you’ll definitely die when night falls! So, cherish the chance that I’m willing to do business with you!”

Xi Yu asked further: “What can we pawn? Can we pawn multiple times?”

“Dream on!” Fox Aunt Si gave him a flirtatious wink, then pulled out an iron box: “Inside here are all kinds of cards. Each card says what I want to accept. Whatever you draw, you have to sell. I only give you once per day, three chances total. You can’t refuse the first time; once drawn, you have to sell. For the next two times... you can refuse if you want. As long as your money is enough to survive, how about that? Am I fair? Am I considerate?”

Luo Xi felt annoyed at the lottery system and complained: “How do you calculate how much the sale is worth?”

Fox Aunt Si glared with her tiny, strange eyes: “Worth whatever it’s worth, that’s what I’ll give you. If you don’t believe me, you’re free to go ask around about the market price right now. Humph.”

Du Li and Su Ziyan exchanged a glance and immediately decided: “Enough talk, I want to sell!”

Fox Aunt Si smiled: “Young lady, I like your straightforwardness. Come on.”

Du Li looked at the iron box handed to her and reached inside to touch a card.

The card she pulled out had two characters written clearly — Fate.Fox Aunt Si curved her eyes into a smile: “Not bad at all. Looks like you want to sell your fate to me. Let me see... You are a very lucky person... Then I’ll offer 150 taels!”

Du Li didn’t expect this outcome and was instantly uneasy, stunned into silence.