Chapter 36.2: Horror Livestream Room (36)

The balance was no longer 50 yuan as before, but had turned into a surprising number.

It seemed that there were indeed many “kind-hearted people.”

After transferring the rent that should be paid into the account previously used by the original owner, Ruan Qing opened the task again.

The status of Side Quest 2 had changed; it had become “completed.”

The viewers in the livestream were initially indulging in a bunch of nonsense, but when Ruan Qing took out the phone, they were a bit stunned.

[Family, did I miss something? Wasn’t Qingqing’s phone taken by that guy with the chainsaw?]

[I don’t know either... Could it be that these two phones are not the same?]

[I was watching all along, and I’m certain that my wife had only one phone, and I’m also certain that this phone should be in the possession of the guy with the chainsaw.]

[Well, that’s not necessarily true. Maybe my wife has two phones, but we just didn’t know.]

The viewers in the livestream were perplexed, but fortunately, many of them had recorded the screen and quickly went to watch the playback.

However, they still couldn’t find the answer; it was as if the phone had magically appeared out of thin air for Ruan Qing.

The viewers didn’t give up and slowed down the playback speed to search for any clues, attempting to find the key to the problem.

The phone should have been in Xu Ze’s hands, but it ended up in the hands of the young boy. They remembered the two times this phone had appeared.

The first was when Xu Ze picked up the phone, and the second was when the two of them were together.

Therefore, the viewers in the livestream focused on these two time periods, but they still couldn’t figure out the reason. They could only assume that the young boy himself had two phones.

After all, although they saw the young boy putting something in his messenger bag, it didn’t mean that there was nothing in the bag from the beginning.

Maybe there was already a phone in the young boy’s messenger bag from the start.

Only a very few people felt that something was off when the young boy was being held hostage by Xu Ze.

In the beginning, the young boy’s hand reached into the messenger bag, as if he wanted to take something out, but then he pulled it back and seemed to grab onto his own clothes.

The young boy was too slender, his figure almost completely blocked by Xu Ze. It was night, and with the absence of light, it was impossible to clearly see what the young boy was doing with his hands.

His position as a hostage at that moment would be the most appropriate time to take the phone back.

But how could that be possible?

Resting on his neck was a chainsaw, capable of severing his head at any moment. Even an average person would find it impossible to remain calm.

How could the young boy retrieve his phone at that moment?

The answer was more believable if the young boy had two phones, but no one mentioned this possibility.

After completing the mission, Ruan Qing put the phone back into his bag. Then, after ensuring that there was no one around, he slowly left the artificial lake area.

After all, it was not safe here.

At present, Xu Ze only assumed he was dead temporarily. If he knew he was still alive, he would surely come back.

Ruan Qing speculated that hunters were probably not allowed to do any action in front of ordinary people while hunting their targets.

That’s why Xu Ze didn’t even let him go to the convenience store.

So, as long as he walked among the crowd, it should be much safer.

Ruan Qing decided to go to the main street first.

What he needed most now was rest, because there might be a tough battle ahead.

He hoped that someone among the group of players could understand the hints he wrote on the paper.

Because if they didn’t understand, he would have to take action on his own.

The situation was not yet too bad. Ruan Qing guessed that some players had understood his hints, considering that Wen Li hadn’t shown up even after he was chased by Xu Ze.

It should be noted that Wen Li could see the livestream, and his absence implied that someone was holding him back.

And the fact that someone could hold back Wen Li likely meant that those players went to the hospital following his hints.

Ruan Qing slowly walked towards the main street. Just as he was about to reach the street, he suddenly received a message.

[Run quickly. There are two killers. I might not make it. Thank you for saving me earlier.]

Ruan Qing looked at the message and saw that it was sent by Su Xiaozhen.

They had exchanged contact information when they fled the rental house earlier.

After reading the message, Ruan Qing turned around immediately without hesitation and entered the alleyway again.

The alleyway was complex and intricate, like a small maze to unfamiliar individuals.

Even though Ruan Qing was familiar with the layout of the alleyway, it was still difficult for him to find Su Xiaozhen’s location all at once.

Su Xiaozhen’s location was hard to find, but that’s not necessarily the same for the hunter.

The night was relatively quiet, and even the slightest noise would be amplified. Ruan Qing kicked a trash can, making a significant sound.

Then he immediately turned around and swiftly entered another alleyway.

He kicked another trash can next to him and entered another alleyway once again.

After repeating this process about three times, he could finally hear someone approaching.

On this silent night, besides him and Su Xiaozhen, only the hunter remained.

Ruan Qing stopped kicking the trash cans and started making quick turns left and right, changing countless routes. During this time, he occasionally made a sound, luring the hunter to follow his footsteps.

He was exhausted now, and a direct confrontation would undoubtedly result in death. This was the only way he could create an opportunity.

Ruan Qing wasn’t leading the hunter aimlessly; instead, he was leading him towards the main street.

Once they reached the main street, the hunter would be unable to make any further moves.

However, fate had never favored Ruan Qing.

Just as Ruan Qing was about to make another turn and make some noise, he noticed a figure hiding in the corner.

But the hiding was ineffective since the ground was covered in blood, pointing in the direction where the figure was hiding.

The person’s shadow, needless to say, was Su Xiaozhen.

Su Xiaozhen was not in a good state at the moment. Her leg seemed to have been injured by a sharp weapon, and it was clear that she couldn’t walk.

Su Xiaozhen also noticed Ruan Qing at this moment. She waved her hand anxiously, silently saying something.

Hurry, go!

Ruan Qing had already led the hunter in this direction. If he left Su Xiaozhen behind, she would be in danger.

Ruan Qing glanced behind him and quickly walked up to Su Xiaozhen, helping her up.

Ruan Qing was struggling to support someone at this moment, let alone the fact that Su Xiaozhen’s leg was injured.

Su Xiaozhen also knew that she was a burden. With tears in her eyes, she lowered her voice and said, “Don’t worry about me, go quickly, otherwise neither of us will be able to escape.”

Naturally, Ruan Qing couldn’t carry Su Xiaozhen too far. He simply found a hiding place for her.

They moved to a dim alley where no bloodstains could be seen.

After putting her down, Ruan Qing crouched down and spoke in a low voice that only Su Xiaozhen could hear, “Walk straight along this alley until you reach the second intersection. Take a right turn and continue straight. At the third intersection, take another right turn, and you’ll reach the main street.”

“When you get to the main street, don’t pay any attention to anyone trying to take you away. If they insist on taking you forcefully, break things. Break whatever valuable item you can find. Unless it’s the police trying to take you, don’t go with anyone.”

After finishing his instructions, Ruan Qing stood up and turned to leave.

However, just as he was about to leave, someone grabbed his pants.

Su Xiaozhen had already listened to Ruan Qing’s words with tears streaming down her face. She silently held onto the young boy and handed him something when he turned to look at her. It was a... pocket watch. It immobilizes people, but its effect could only last for three seconds.

Ruan Qing took the item without asking anything and quickly left.

Because the hunter’s voice was already nearby.

The system, observing Ruan Qing leading the hunter away with his voice, couldn’t help but speak in the young boy’s mind, [Do you... like her?]

Ruan Qing’s response was very straightforward. ‘I don’t like anyone.’

The system paused for a moment and replied, [Well, you are truly kind.]

Risking one’s life to save others was no longer within the scope of kindness. In this instance, such a person was considered foolish.

Ruan Qing couldn’t help but laugh, and with a voice filled with amusement, he said, ‘I have always been kind, you know.’

How could he disappoint Su Xiaozhen? After all, she had specifically messaged him.

Moreover, if he didn’t come on this trip, how could he obtain the items produced by the game? He didn’t have enough points to exchange for them.

Even if it was just a three-second insignificant moment.

Of course, the most important thing was Su Xiaozhen herself.

If he guessed correctly, the strongest among this group of players wasn’t the three players who could fight against Ji Yan, but rather this seemingly delicate Miss Su Xiaozhen.

Although Su Xiaozhen’s acting skills were good enough, unfortunately, she encountered him.

In his eyes, she was full of flaws.

For example, she was clearly kicked by Ji Yan twice, yet she ran faster than him.

You should know that Ji Yan’s strength wasn’t much lighter than that of Xu Ze, who wielded a chainsaw. With one kick, there was a risk of ordinary people’s bones breaking.

However, after being choked and kicked by Ji Yan, Su Xiaozhen only had a slightly pale face and cried miserably.

Ruan Qing didn’t believe that Ji Yan was showing mercy.

It must be something peculiar about Su Xiaozhen herself.

Upon careful consideration, starting from the moment Ji Yan started attacking the group of players, she deliberately moved towards him.

Even when she fell from the fifth floor, it was probably intentional after seeing him.

Since the other party was putting in so much effort to make everything seem real, he naturally had to play along.

Due to the recent delay, the hunter was getting closer and closer. Even if Ruan Qing didn’t make any sound, the hunter had locked onto his position.

Hearing the footsteps getting closer and closer, Ruan Qing finally couldn’t care less about staying silent and started running quickly.

Because the hunter was right behind him.

The hunter was definitely not Xu Ze, so he wouldn’t temporarily spare Ruan Qing because of his eyes.

If caught, he might really die.

The sound behind him was getting closer and closer, and the speed was very fast.

Fortunately, Ruan Qing was not far from the main street.

Five meters.

Four meters.

...

One meter.

When the person behind Ruan Qing was almost within reach, he exerted all his strength and lunged forward, leaving the alley and falling onto the busy street.

Ruan Qing turned over and looked at the figure standing in the shadow of the alley, relieved.

The figure in the shadow seemed to give up and stood there, watching Ruan Qing.

Ruan Qing got up, patted his clothes, and was about to randomly choose a direction to walk when he looked up and saw a tall man holding freshly grilled skewers, looking at him from the crowd ahead.

It was Xu Ze...

Ruan Qing: “...”

 

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