"There's no doubt about it." Gu Mian raised his head slightly, casually tossing the number three key to Guigu. "Have you seen the green lettering above my head? It says 'Doctor'."
Before Guigu could say anything else, Gu Mian looked around and interrupted him, "And the other one?"
Guigu, of course, knew who Gu Mian was asking about. He stumbled over his words, "The Lieutenant is up ahead, in that direction…" As he spoke, he pointed.
Following Guigu's gesture, Gu Mian saw that this area was likely the activity's hub.
Guigu, who had been sitting on the ground, pushed himself up against the wall. He stared at Gu Mian and asked, "How did you do it?"
"Do what?" Gu Mian retorted.
"Killing it…" Guigu glanced at the headless corpse on the ground, then continued, "And just now, you were definitely in the building next door. Did you just walk straight over?"
What else could I do, fly over? Gu Mian thought.
"Enough. Let's not talk about useless things." Gu Mian glanced at the two of them. "What are you hiding here for? It seems like you've been here for quite some time."
I think my question is quite useful! Guigu screamed internally.
However, he didn't show his true feelings and instead answered Gu Mian's question first, "Unfortunately, I got injured. The Lieutenant saw some sneaky people heading that way, so he left us here and followed them."
Gu Mian glanced at Guigu's bandaged arm.
"Your Lieutenant sure has a lot of nerve, leaving two injured people here while he runs off," Gu Mian said.
Guigu protested, "I'm not badly hurt. I stayed behind to look after Night of Roses. Besides, the Lieutenant left us the door bolt."
He spoke as if wanting to pull it out as proof, but then he remembered the door bolt had already been used.
"Besides, those people were very suspicious, like the ones who were chasing you earlier. And it looked like they were plotting something." Guigu, having fumbled for the bolt and found nothing, quickly continued his explanation.
Just then, Chu Changge and Fatty also arrived on this floor. The five minutes had passed, and the two of them could finally move. Earlier, only Gu Mian had been able to rush out. Although he could deal with ghosts, if a group of them discovered him, they could still overwhelm and badly injure him.
"Huh?" Fatty was the first to see Night of Roses sitting on the ground. "Little bro, you're here too."
Night of Roses forced a smile; his face, pale from the earlier scare, hadn't recovered its color.
"You've used up your door bolts. Do you plan to continue hiding out here?" Gu Mian asked.
Guigu looked troubled. "I want to find the Lieutenant. He should be in danger all alone…"
Coincidentally, Han Shan was in the direction of the activity's hub. After a brief discussion, they decided to travel together.
Guigu hoisted Night of Roses onto his back. Although his arm was injured, it didn't seem to be too severe.
As they went downstairs, Gu Mian noticed that Mr. Green had, at some point, started following them again from a distance. He had even retrieved the lantern they had left behind. Seemingly noticing the two new people in their group, Mr. Green kept his distance, staying far away with the female ghost.
"I feel like he's always so busy…" Fatty muttered.
Gu Mian knew Fatty was talking about Mr. Green. He had slipped away for a while when he was braiding the little girl's hair, and he'd done it again this time. Gu Mian had no idea what he was really up to.
Along the way, Guigu seemed to want to ask something several times, but he never voiced it.
The strings holding the lanterns overhead grew increasingly dense. Gu Mian glanced up occasionally; they were getting closer to the center. Fatty also checked the time frequently.
It was 10:49 PM. There was a little over an hour left before this event would conclude. He hoped no accidents would occur in that remaining hour. Thɪs chapter is updatᴇd by 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝✦𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖✦𝕟𝕖𝕥
Perhaps because the lanterns were more concentrated here, there were relatively more players around. Gu Mian occasionally saw the figures of one or two players flash by in the distance, but they would quickly vanish into the darkness.
"Have you found your Lieutenant yet?" Gu Mian asked Guigu beside him.
Guigu shook his head, looking lost. He carefully scanned the surroundings but saw no familiar figures.
Chu Changge looked ahead and said softly, "The area up front is where they're most concentrated."
Gu Mian saw it too. A tower, roughly a dozen meters high, stood where the lines were most concentrated. Among the ancient-style buildings, it was an undisputed high-rise.
Looking at the tower ahead, Fatty recalled the little girl's green room, "This is like that green room, isn't it? Both are things derived from the event, right?"
Thinking about it more carefully, the tower was likely the heart of the entire event. Next to the high-rise, apart from the lanterns, there was only a vast open area. Nothing else there could serve as the event's heart.
"Let's go." Gu Mian strode forward. "Let's go see those lanterns. The rewards for the riddles there must be substantial."
Just as Gu Mian's group approached the tower, a shout suddenly echoed from the distance. It was a human voice. Gu Mian clearly heard a few words—words that sounded like someone wanted to capture them.
"The one in the military uniform is over there! And the Doctor is next to him! Quick, grab them!"
Hearing this, Guigu froze for a moment, instinctively wanting to look in the direction of the voice. But before he could fully turn his head, Fatty grabbed him and started to run. "Don't look! Let's run first!"
Having spent so much time with Gu Mian, Fatty's reflexes in emergencies had indeed improved significantly.