Area B of the Ark Laboratory.
Everything was business as usual when he came today. Rong Jie never expected that such an earth-shaking change would happen in the blink of an eye.
At this time, he was breathing heavily and leaning on the door of one of the rooms. He just had to listen carefully and he could clearly catch the rustling footsteps in the distance.
Thick blood dripped from the sword in his hand. Rong Jie instinctively reached out to catch it, feeling that the movement of it dripping to the ground would attract the attention of the alienated people outside.
He had just escaped from a fierce battle and his chest was still heaving violently. There were no obvious scars on his body but his pale face was enough to show that his current overall condition obviously wasn’t very good.
As a player on the ranking list, Rong Jie had exclusive items and definitely wasn’t weak in terms of personal combat strength. The problem was that this instinct contained a setting that gave all combat-type players a head—mental pollution.
Rong Jie had already been in Area B for a few days, and it took a lot of energy to resist the irreversible changes in his body. Combine this with the fight just now, and his alienation suddenly decreased by a full 5%.
The sudden increase in a short period of time made Rong Jie’s eyes fill with a cloudy aura.
However, in such a chaotic state, the instinct of an old player still made him aware of the current dilemma. In such an environment, the more that the personal ability was used, the easier it was to promote alienation.
This discovery made Rong Jie burst out laughing.
He tried hard to stop the world in front of him from spinning. He shook his head hard and pressed his sword against the ground, forcing his shaky body to stand up.
After noticing the fading footsteps outside, he took a sharp breath, opened the door, and rushed out.
In this environment, every extra second would undoubtedly be more dangerous. However, from the direction in which Rong Jie rushed out, it could be seen that he didn’t choose to run toward the exit of Area B. Instead, he ran directly up the stairs around the corner without hesitation.
It was the Database No. 10 on the third floor in Area B where Lan Pengyue was located today.
The location was almost at the deepest part of the area. It wasn’t known what the current situation was like, but judging from the current situation of no players dying in the instance, it might not be very safe but Lan Pengyue should at least be alive.
Rong Jie prayed in his heart while his footsteps were fast.
He wanted to rush straight to the third floor in one go, but as soon as he returned to the second floor and turned around, he saw a huge figure falling in his field of view. He couldn’t help cursing. “D*mn!”
The two meter tall alien apparently noticed Rong Jie’s presence as well. As if attracted by the smell of food, his bloated arms like pillars suddenly swung over.
At the same time, water blades appeared layer by layer as Rong Jie raised the sword.
Like the sharpest blade, the huge arm was instantly twisted into scattered minced meat.
The soft flesh still squirming on the ground didn’t ease Rong Jie’s expression.
After a moment of concentration, he realized that the situation here had obviously attracted the attention of more alien species.
The footsteps from the upper floors gradually converged. It was clear that it was impossible for him to rush directly to the third floor from here.
The hand holding the sword shook slightly. As he shook off the thick blood on it, Rong Jie endured the more severe fainting sensation caused by the bloody smell. He turned around without hesitation and ran into the corridor of the second floor.
Facing more and more alienated species, Rong Jie could only use his sword to kill them one after another. In the solemn atmosphere, his gradually blurred vision made him smile helplessly.
If he was destined to die here, he could only hope that Lan Pengyue could have the great luck to run out.
This kid always had good luck as long as he wasn’t with Rong Jie. Perhaps Lan Pengyue could really live well, right?
If he could get out of Area B and find Song Xuefeng’s group, they just had to find a way to clear the level and leave the instance. Then the name of the Watchtower team could continue in the rankings after changing the captain.
Rong Jie’s body shook slightly after continuing a group of monsters again. He felt a surge in his chest and a faint smell of blood in his mouth.
It was obviously different from the feeling of nausea before. At this moment, he actually felt that this smell was very delicious and attractive.
His eyes slowly passed over the bloody massacre scene. He vaguely felt an extremely strong appetite for the struggling and squirming soft meat on the ground.
He stumbled forward two steps. Just as he was about to reach out to grab it, Rong Jie suddenly came back to his senses and endured the strong desire.
There was no need to look at it to know that the degree of alienation on his current panel was astonishingly high. This made the smile on his face even bleaker.
He was really a bit unwilling.
Even if he died here, he didn’t want to become a complete monster.
The soles of his feet were covered with scattered pieces of flesh. Rong Jie stepped on them slowly and walked over without notice. Under the heavy breathing, scars were inevitably left on his body. This seemed a bit shocking.
He found a relatively clean scientific research room nearby. Rong Jie leaned against the wall and slowly fell to the ground. The waves of dizziness caused by the slow passage of losing consciousness made him look more embarrassed than ever before.
Suddenly, the sound of footsteps entered his ears.
The pursuit was so tight that he didn’t have the slightest chance to breathe.
Rong Jie could only smile bitterly at this.
Under normal circumstances, he could completely sweep through these alienated people in Area B by himself. But in this state where he was also infected, these things were simply taking advantage of his illness to kill him. They lingered around as if they weren’t ready to give up until he stayed here.
Rong Jie’s eyes flashed sharply when the footsteps stopped at the door. He had a desperate mentality as he took a deep breath and abruptly opened the door.
Then he heard a vaguely startled voice enter his ears. “Huh?”
It wasn’t an alienated species?
Such things emerged in his chaotic mind, but Rong Jie had no time to stop his attack. Fortunately, after this moment of hesitation, the other party stretched out a hand neatly and held his wrist firmly.
The sudden action of getting up made a black halo faintly float in front of Rong Jie’s eyes.
Once he calmed down again, he finally got a clear look at the person at the door.
There was the meticulous white coat he saw before and the shoulder-length black hair at the back of his head that had been tied up neatly with a headband.
Apart from the hand that held Rong Jie, the other hand was very relaxed in his pocket.
Under the choker around his neck, the red exotic stone hanging in the center reflected a faint light under the light cast from overhead. The work badge next to it clearly read ‘Chi Ting.’
Just as Rong Jie was thinking that his alienation value was too high and he was completely delusional, he heard the person in front of him speak again. “Captain Rong, are you feeling okay now?”
It wasn’t his hallucination?
Rong Jie wanted to raise his head to see the other person’s appearance clearly. But as soon as the tense nerves in his body relaxed, a wave of exhaustion completely surged over him.
His body swayed, and he almost fell to the ground. Fortunately, Chi Ting grabbed him, and he didn’t collapse completely.
“You don’t look good.” Chi Ting lowered his eyes and looked at Rong Jie’s appearance. Without hesitation, he helped the person into the room and sat down. After that, he found Song Xuefeng’s bead among all the beads and summoned the phantom.
Rong Jie didn’t even react without happening, so he easily accepted the healing from ‘Song Xuefeng.’
Then he calmed down a bit.
After calming down, he pressed hard against his still aching head and finally remembered to ask, “Why are you here?”
“I heard there was a problem in Area B, so I came to check on you.” Chi Ting smiled slightly. “Now it seems I came at the right time.”
Rong Jie: “……”
The overly understated description made him a bit confused about where to start.
Soon, he checked again. “Are you here specifically to save people?”
“That’s right. In addition, I want to see if I can find other clues.” Chi Ting leaned against the door, seemingly not worried that the alien species would come after hearing the sound. He glanced back outside and said, “You guys have read the previous strategy. The previous instance groups probably shouldn’t have encountered this type of riot for no reason, right?”
Rong Jie replied, “…Yes, never.”
“We have really encountered a ‘good time’.” Chi Ting thought for a while before saying, “Judging from some clues found in Area C, it can be said that this instance really has a big problem now. I am thinking that if I could find the root cause of the problem and it is successfully solved…”
There was a brief pause before the two of them spoke at almost the same time.
Rong Jie said, “We can leave safely.”
Chi Ting said, “We can get enough achievement points.”
Rong Jie: “……”
Chi Ting cleared his throat. “Sorry, I sound a bit too utilitarian. However, we really need to rely on the achievements of this instance to get to the Sanctuary as soon as possible.”
After hearing this, Rong Jie remembered that the person in front of him was actually a new player from the 13th World.
He looked at his own embarrassed state and then the opponent’s state of ease. Then he couldn’t help smiling bitterly, “I understand, but we still need to pay attention. After coming here, our alienation value has increased too quickly.”
“Thanks for reminding me. I will pay attention.’ Chi Ting smiled slightly. He saw Rong Jie’s state and suggested very thoughtfully, “It seems that it isn’t too convenient for you to leave by yourself right now. Should I arrange for someone to send you out?”
Was there anyone else coming?
Rong Jie subconsciously looked out the door but saw no one else. He was stunned when he saw Chi Ting summoning two new phantoms one after another.
One of the shorter ones was very familiar. He was obviously the pink-haired guy who had been with those people before.
Chi Ting had already made some task assignments. “Meimei, please do your best to bring Captain Rong back to the exit. Little Bird will follow. If you encounter other alienated people, please help deal with them.”
Once these words came out, Rong Jie had a vague premonition. Before he could react, he saw that the graceful figure had come toward him.
Without any words, she directly picked him up and put him lightly on her shoulder. She carried him with great ease.
Rong Jie, who had been single for over 20 years and had no intimate contact with any women: “!!!?”
Chi Ting noticed his expression and comforted him with a smile, “Don’t worry, Meimei is very strong. It isn’t a problem for her to carry ten of you.”
Rong Jie opened his mouth to say something. Then he finally glanced at the phantom’s charming face and could only silently lower his steaming face deeply.
It took him a long time to adjust and say, “I accept your kindness, but Lan Pengyue is still inside. I need to go and save him.”
Chi Ting looked him over. “You shouldn’t be in a good enough state to save people, right? I just have something to do here, so tell me his location. I’ll go take a look for you.”
Rong Jie wondered, “Is there something you need to do?”
No matter how he listened to it, he felt like this was more of an excuse.
He wasn’t questioning Chi Ting’s ability. It was that in this Area B, every player was in the same dangerous situation. Based on his experience in this world, helping to save people in this situation often required very expensive rewards.
Of course, this was understandable.
Just as Rong Jie was ready to accept any big request, Chi Ting nodded. “Yes, I just thought of it. There are quite a few NPCs with a high degree of alienation in Area B right now. This type of irrational situation should be regarded as the cancellation of the researcher’s status, right? Isn’t this a ready-made new volunteer? If I catch one that is nearly 80% and go back to register this volunteer, I don’t know if it will be judged by the rules as eligible to enter Area A?”
Rong Jie: “……”
Rong Jie: “???”
Did he really hear a hallucination this time?
Rashly entering a dangerous area to catch a researcher NPC with a high degree of alienation?
Was he crazy!?
Rong Jie was stunned for a long time before looking up and meeting Chi Ting’s gaze. Chi Ting seemed a bit confused about the lack of reaction for a long time. “It doesn’t work? Is there any violation of the rules of the game?”
Rong Jie choked on this question for over ten seconds. He even followed this line of thinking. “…It shouldn’t be a violation of the rules.”
“Right.” Chi Ting received the affirmation of an old player and showed a satisfied smile. “Where is the Lan Pengyue you mentioned? Let me go over and take a look.”
Rong Jie replied in a daze, “He should be in the direction of Database No. 10 in Area B on the third floor. I will have to trouble you.”
“Don’t worry, just leave it to me.” Chi Ting made an ‘OK’ gesture, walked out the door, and looked left and right to determine his position. Then he walked in the direction of the stairs.
He had been looking at the massacre scene to follow Rong Jie’s route. Now he returned all the way to the stairs, glanced up, and walked upstairs.
After watching this figure disappear from sight, Rong Jie turned around and happened to meet the expressionless face of the shadow. He paused slightly before shifting his gaze with a red face.
This was the first time in Captain Rong’s life that he was being carried by a girl, and it was even a princess hug.
One of the great benefits that the 60% alienation degree brought to Rong Jie was that he temporarily lost a lot of human shame. After forcing himself to calm down, what he was more worried about was the rescue situation on Chi Ting’s side.
He returned all the way back. Just as he was about to reach the exit of Area B, Rong Jie suddenly felt a sense of danger and looked up.
It was just in time to see a tall figure entering his field of view.
The tingling sensation on his scalp caused Rong Jie to almost break free from the shadow’s arms. Then he noticed that the ‘pink-haired man’ next to him had no intention of taking action and realized something.
He looked up and it took him a long time to recognize who was in front of him. “You…”
Compared with Chi Ting, the feeling brought about by Yue Ren in a short time period was completely different from when they first met.
The shadow pattern extended from his collar had gone all the way from his neck to the side of his ears, as if carving out a blooming black rose.
If the previous Chi Ting he met didn’t feel much different, then the Yue Ren standing in front of him at this moment was enough for Rong Jie to realize the crazy operations he had experienced in order to enter Area B.
The rapidly increasing degree of alienation made it impossible to see the slightest ridicule in the pair of deep eyes.
Just the sinister aura emanating from the other person’s body made Rong Jie have no doubt that this man might be on the verge of losing control at any time.
He was endlessly inclined toward madness but was suppressed by unimaginable reason.
If this was Rong Jie, he would’ve already gone crazy.
Such a thought inexplicably appeared in Rong Jie’s mind for no reason.
Then with a flick of his eyes, Yue Ren’s gaze swept over the two familiar figures beside Rong Jie and settled back on him.
The man opened his mouth and asked in a low voice, “You saw Chi Ting. Where is he?”
The last note fell into the silence. The black shadows at his feet were like poisonous snakes waiting for an opportunity, ready to lock onto the prey in front of him at any time.
The strong sense of suffocation that hit his face made Rong Jie’s breathing stop for a moment. The subconscious feeling of surrender made him want to blurt out an answer, but in the end, he found a trace of reason and reminded, “Your current state is very dangerous. It is best not to go further inside.”
Yue Ren lowered his eyes and stared at Rong Jie steadily. Such words made a slight sneer appear on his expressionless face.
He repeated again with a sarcastic expression. “Where is he?”
This situation made Rong Jie have no doubt that if he didn’t answer, he would probably be torn apart by the shadows around him, “Captain Chi… he went to the Database No. 10 in Area B on the third floor.”
The dark shadows that had been gathering around Yue Ren finally stopped approaching. His eyes slightly lowered, and he passed by Rong Jie without saying a word.
Without looking at Rong Jie again, he walked straight toward the depths of Area B that everyone wanted to escape.
It wasn’t until he saw this figure walking away that Rong Jie realized he had been soaked in cold sweat without knowing.
The inexplicable feeling of escaping from death made him glance at the two phantoms in front of him again with lingering fear.
What was going on with the players from the 13th World? First, there was Chi Ting, and now this Yue Ren.
To put it simply, each one was crazier than the other.
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Thanks for the update
They’re fit for each other