Prohibit Certain Players from Contacting the Dungeon NPC!

Chapter 22: The Misty Fishing Village

Lin Anqu's body stiffened like a stone. His gaze remained fixed on Si Qi, his voice calm yet slightly trembling. "You…get away from me."

Mu Miao was startled, not quite understanding.

He leaned closer to Lin Anqu, bringing Si Qi closer as well. "What did you say?"

Lin Anqu's breath hitched. He seemed to hear the snake's tongue flicking—the bright red tongue darting in and out of its mouth, making his scalp tingle.

Lin Anqu leaned back, the words forced from between his teeth. "I said, get off me!"

Mu Miao pouted, struggling to move Si Qi to the side, grumbling, "I didn't ask you to carry me. You rushed over yourself, and now you're yelling at me.  So annoying."

Lin Anqu, distanced from the snake, relaxed considerably, though the lingering shock still caused his heart to pound wildly.

He took off his glasses, rubbing his temples. "Can you please stop holding these strange and unusual creatures to scare people? Do you have some kind of fascination with the bizarre?!"

First, a bat, and now a Gaboon viper. If he didn't have strong mental fortitude, he'd have been scared to death before any monster could get him.

Mu Miao looked intently at Si Qi in his arms, then back up at Lin Anqu. "Strange and unusual? Nonsense. In my eyes, it's much prettier than you."

Lin Anqu took a deep breath. For the first time, he regretted capturing this NPC, bringing himself nothing but trouble.  He'd brought it upon himself.

Mu Miao mustered all his strength to lift Si Qi. The snake's scales were slippery, surprisingly smooth to the touch, but its weight was alarming—at least the weight of a grown man.

That's why Mu Miao had almost been unable to get up when he was unexpectedly pinned down.  Even now, he was breathless from holding it.

Ah, well, it's a sweet kind of trouble, I suppose.

Liu Xitu went to check the fallen object, his eyes widening in shock. "Su Hanxia?"

Su Hanxia was still wearing the same clothes she had on before—a short tank top and loose, light brown pants. The impact of her fall had twisted and contorted her body, revealing bone in places, a horrifying sight.

Mu Miao tilted his head, looking at the corpse. A sense of incongruity lingered in his mind. He noticed some flesh was missing from her exposed calf, the dark brown blood congealed on her pale skin.

Lin Anqu calmed his racing heart; his legs were finally steady again. He put his glasses back on and went to Su Hanxia's body, placing a finger on her pulse, his brow furrowed. "Dead? Impossible."

Su Hanxia dying so easily? Lin Anqu couldn't believe it. Who could have killed her?

No.

Lin Anqu immediately dismissed that conclusion. The system had announced four survivors after Er Yang's death; there had been no subsequent announcements of other player deaths. Su Hanxia must still be alive.

Mu Miao had also noticed this. His arms were aching, so he wrapped Si Qi around his neck, patting the snake's body. "Hold on yourself, don't fall."

Si Qi rubbed his head against Mu Miao's pale ear. "Sss~ (Okay.)"

Mu Miao gently touched Su Hanxia's arm, quickly withdrawing his hand. He blinked in surprise.  The person's soul wasn't in her body.

He closed his eyes, carefully sensing the presence of souls in this world.  He couldn't find Su Hanxia, which meant she was still alive.

However…

Mu Miao slumped, sitting down dejectedly, hugging his legs, his head resting on his knees.  His worst fear had come true; Yu Kai and the others' souls were adrift once more.

They were dead.

Mu Miao's eyes drooped. He thought he could save them in this timeline, give them a happy ending.

But, as Wu Ge always said, some things are predetermined from the start. No matter how much you struggle, it will return to its destined end after many twists and turns. All efforts are in vain.

Lin Anqu saw his listless appearance. "What? Scared?"

Mu Miao just stared at him silently, taking Si Qi off his neck, pretending to throw him.  Lin Anqu, predictably, jumped back in alarm.

Mu Miao, with his seemingly harmless face, repeated his words. "What? Scared?"

Lin Anqu laughed angrily. "I really thought you were easy to bully, you little maniac!"

Mu Miao ignored him, scratching Si Qi's chin. Si Qi contentedly closed his eyes, enjoying the attention.

Because of Si Qi, Lin Anqu stayed far away. Exhausted, he sat down to recover his strength.

Liu Xitu accepted the fact of Su Hanxia's death and asked Lin Anqu about Wen Fansheng and the others. Lin Anqu said he was on his way towards them, suggesting they wait there.

So Liu Xitu also sat down.

When Li Cong woke up, he went to find Mu Miao, almost fainting again at the sight of the snake in his arms.  Finally, overcoming his fear, he sat beside him.

The four sat in a row, all dirty and disheveled.  No one spoke; the atmosphere was strangely quiet.

[I'm screenshotting this!  Title: Shocking! Why have these handsome guys fallen so low?  Find out in the next episode!]

[I want to put a bowl in front of each of them.  The "Four Talented Gentlemen" begging in the streets!]

[Even covered in dirt, my wife is still the prettiest.  Come here, baby, let your husband clean you up.]

[Lin Gou is actually afraid of snakes, hahahahahahaha (and many more ha's)]

[Did Su really die like that? It feels so unreal.]

[Just came from Su's livestream.  This big shot is amazing, directly following the NPC up the mountain.  I wonder what she did, got caught by that handsome guy. Before he even said anything, she jumped off a cliff, totally baffling him.]

[Hey, I think I saw Rong Shen next to that handsome guy. That striking green hair… it really looks like him.]

Zheng Ji arrived just as he saw the four in their dejected state. He held a Colby claw knife, the smell of blood strong on him, as if he'd just come from a fight.

Mu Miao recognized him as the man who followed Wen Fansheng, but he wasn't carrying a box.  The box was probably with Wen Fansheng.

As Mu Miao observed Zheng Ji, Zheng Ji's gaze fell on him.  He frowned. "Are you the stranded mermaid?"

Mu Miao had a good impression of Wen Fansheng, and consequently, he was friendly towards Zheng Ji. He was always warm towards those he liked.  He extended his hand. "It's me. Nice to meet you."

Hearing his sweet voice and seeing his smiling eyes, Lin Anqu turned his head away.

This double-standard fish.

Zheng Ji was surprised that he would greet him. He paused. "Nice to meet you."

But he didn't shake Mu Miao's hand. "Sorry, the snake you're holding is a Gaboon viper. Highly venomous. I can't touch you."

Mu Miao looked down at Si Qi, who was still sleepy. He pinched the fat snake's tail and shook it. "He's very well-behaved. Come on, say hello."

Mu Miao was inherently handsome. Even with dirt smudged on his face, his beautiful emerald green eyes remained clear and bright.

Zheng Ji chuckled softly. "You're really cute. No wonder the doctor likes you so much."

Mu Miao's eyes sparkled. "Wen Fansheng? Where is he? I want to find him."

Zheng Ji couldn't help but ruffle his head. "I got separated from him. I'll take you there."

Mu Miao nodded repeatedly. "Okay! You're such a good person!"

Seeing Mu Miao's easygoing and friendly interaction with Zheng Ji, his exceptional social skills, the other players felt a complex mix of emotions.

[Hahahaha, look at Lin Gou's sour face!  Serves you right for always yelling at him. Now he's not being nice to you.  Serves you right!]

[Actually, my wife is really double-standard. She's all cuddly and sweet with the people she likes, but a prickly hedgehog towards those she dislikes.]

[The disliked Lin Gou:  Are you being polite?]

There was a fifty-fifty chance they'd miss the box again. Lin Anqu had no choice but to activate the tracker once more and head towards another signal.

Mu Miao lowered his head and spoke to the fat snake. "I'm going somewhere else, I'm afraid I can't give you a ride, sorry."

Si Qi wrapped his tail around Mu Miao's slender waist. "Sss~ (No, I want to come with you.)"

He absolutely wouldn't give up such a fragrant mode of transportation. Si Qi rested his little head on Mu Miao's neck, extending his tongue to catch the scent in the air.

After sniffing for a while, he dizzily rubbed against Mu Miao's cheek, completely forgetting the task Belcher had given him.

Mu Miao couldn't help but continue holding him.

Lin Anqu put the small robot down again, but before it could reach Mu Miao, he pressed it down and slapped its head. Only then did the robot obediently start navigating.

Zheng Ji's brow furrowed, his gaze wary as he looked at Lin Anqu. "You installed a tracker on us?"

"No." Lin Anqu denied it outright, lying effortlessly. "It's a high-tech device that remembers the scent of those around it.  It's like a dog."

Zheng Ji looked doubtful, not saying whether he believed him or not.

Just as the group was about to leave, Li Cong caught sight of someone approaching.  Thinking it was someone from Yu Jia Village, he turned without hesitation and met a familiar face.

A bloodcurdling scream tore from his throat. Li Cong fell to the ground, then looked at the corpse and scrambled backward, his limbs flailing. "Ghost! There's a ghost!! Aaaaaaaaaah!!!"

Su Hanxia's eardrums hurt from his piercing shriek. She hadn't expected a boy to be able to produce such a perfect dolphin-like sound.

She sighed helplessly. "We've seen each other before. Why are you so surprised?"

Her corpse was still lying on the ground, yet here she was, alive and well. The scene was profoundly shocking.

Mu Miao was momentarily speechless, staring blankly.  The others were equally stunned.

Only Li Cong was in close proximity to the resurrected Su Hanxia. He was nearly terrified out of his wits, tears streaming down his face, repeatedly glancing at the corpse on the ground.  "This isn't scientific! This violates materialism! It's impossible!"

One moment he was spouting Marxist philosophy, the next he was praying to the heavens. "It's haunted! My Guanyin Bodhisattva, Jesus! Jehovah! Save me!"

Su Hanxia was extremely speechless. "Can you calm down?"

Li Cong's eyes were wet, his voice trembling. "Okay…I'm calm, I'm very calm. Then I ask you, how did you come back?"

Su Hanxia said, with a matter-of-fact tone, "I came to collect my remains. Didn't you see my body? Right next to you."

Li Cong completely broke down. "Aaah——!"