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Bonus chapter! Thank you to Selkae for the donation! ^^
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His combat power was practically negligible, unable to compare to even an ordinary person, let alone contend with such an eerie entity.
Even if he struggled desperately, it was akin to a mantis trying to stop a cart.
Although fear and dread occupied Ruan Qing’s mind, he was well aware that this body wouldn’t survive.
In his mind, Ruan Qing spoke, ‘System, in the instance, we can’t purchase items, right?’
The system’s cold voice echoed in Ruan Qing’s mind, [That’s correct. Purchases can only be made during non-game hours.]
Ruan Qing didn’t say anything more. He directly activated the ‘Illusion Soul Bell’ item in his hands, prepared to abandon his body and enter the body of the player he had chosen.
[Item: Illusion Soul Bell (Grade A Item).
Function: Allows entry into someone else’s body.
Limitation: The higher the target’s mental strength, the shorter the time of entry, and if it exceeds ten times, entry will fail.
Usage: 2/3 (Note: Can only be used once per instance).]
The item activated successfully.
Ruan Qing chose a player who seemed to be a newcomer deceived by the Yong’an Guild, someone who didn’t appear very intelligent and mostly followed the instructions of the player with a crew cut.
This identity actually made it easier to obtain clues from the player with a crew cut.
It’s not that Ruan Qing didn’t want to choose the player with a crew cut or the man who seemed to be a high-ranking member of the Yong’an Guild.
These two individuals were not ordinary newcomers; their willpower seemed unshakable.
Choosing them might mean not even staying in the instance for seven days, and most of the time, there would be no opportunity to take control of the body.
So choosing a newcomer closer to these two was the most sensible option.
After entering someone else’s body, he couldn’t look into their memories like Wang Qing, nor could he share the host’s perception.
However, he could share the host’s line of sight.
While controlling the body, the host wouldn’t be aware of his presence or share his vision.
This aspect satisfied Ruan Qing considerably.
But regret settled in as soon as he entered the player’s body.
Because he chose this player, the willpower displayed by the player was completely different from what Ruan Qing expected, and it seemed unusually strong.
Ruan Qing had almost failed just now.
This person was definitely not a rookie player!
Either this person was a high-ranking member of the Yong’an Guild, or he was disguising himself as a new player to infiltrate the guild and manipulate things from within.
Ruan Qing had considered the possibility of other players pretending to be newbies, but he thought that advanced players would have their pride and wouldn’t be willing to bow down to other players, taking orders without question. They would also have to constantly guard against exposing their true identities.
Therefore, it was reasonable to assume that those pretending to be newbies would choose to stay away from ordinary players and high-ranking members of the Yong’an Guild. That’s why Ruan Qing deliberately chose to get close to an ordinary player and obediently follow their lead.
Who could have anticipated that someone would go against the norm?
It was truly a case of being clever but mistaken for being foolish.
If he had known this would happen, he might as well have boldly chosen an ordinary player.
But now, regrets were pointless.
Ruan Qing took a deep breath, silently giving up on trying to assert control over the body.
Perhaps he would have to wait until this person fell asleep or lost consciousness before considering his options...
After all, he was sure to die if he stayed in the original owner’s body for too long, and if his mental strength wasn’t enough to sustain him within this person’s body for seven days, he would still die.
So, he had to ensure the stability of his mental state at all times.
The male player that Ruan Qing had entered was currently standing against the wall, staring into the mist.
Even though he couldn’t see anything, he had been staring for a minute, as if contemplating something.
Ruan Qing didn’t know what he was looking at, and he had no interest in analyzing it.
Interestingly, although Ruan Qing had entered the player’s body, he could still clearly sense his own physical condition. The perception was as if he was still inside his own body.
The vines had already bound his limbs, and the cold sensation still sent shivers down his spine. It even crept slowly from his wrists towards his heart.
‘...Is it going to start eating from the heart?’
Ruan Qing gritted his teeth, anticipating the excruciating pain of being chewed apart.
However, the sensation of intense pain didn’t come. Instead, there came...
Ruan Qing’s breath directly halted as a ludicrous thought emerged from the depths of his mind.
It seemed like the vines didn’t want to devour him but instead wanted to...
Without thinking, Ruan Qing returned to his own body, which was under the control of the vines, and desperately began to struggle, trying to break free from the entwining vines.
However, the bonds of the vines were too tight.
Moreover, the force of the vines was absurdly strong, as if iron was being pulled against steel. Ruan Qing couldn’t budge the vines in the slightest.
Adding to his recent attempt to escape, his body was now firmly ensnared by the vines.
Not only could he not break free, but he couldn’t even manage to commit suicide.
And in the midst of his struggles, his T-shirt had ridden up a bit, leaving vibrant traces of blood-red on his fair skin.
It was unclear whether these marks were stained by the blood-red color or caused by the force of the vines.
Ruan Qing glanced at the scissors lying not far from him, making a strenuous effort to muster all the strength in his body to reach for the scissors on the ground.
His clothes were already in disarray, almost unrecognizable due to the blood-red stains.
Holding his breath, Ruan Qing extended his slender fingers as far as possible, desperately trying to reach for the scissors.
Just a bit more.
Just a bit...
However, when Ruan Qing’s fingers were about to touch the scissors, his hands were entangled by the vines, lifted high above his head. He couldn’t move an inch.
The scissors were nowhere to be seen, dragged away by the vines.
Ruan Qing’s current posture was extremely embarrassing. His hair, disheveled from the struggle, slightly scattered, and the vines had dragged him into a sitting position against the corner of the wall. His hands were bound by the vines, restricting him above his head, and his clothes were already stained red.
Even his face had taken on a significant amount of blood-red color.
His clothes had also tightened a bit from the struggles, revealing a delicate and fair waist.
The blood-red color accentuated on his skin, which was entangled by the vines, gave the appearance of a splendid red plum blooming proudly on the branches in the winter snow, incredibly beautiful.
The enchanting seduction, incredibly captivating.
Moreover, the struggle just now was too strenuous, almost akin to intense physical activity for Ruan Qing. He found himself short of breath.
Ruan Qing could only slightly part his lips, making an effort to regain his breath and strength.
His own voice usually carried a chilly tone, but now, due to the exertion, it had a hint of breathlessness, a touch of urgency.
It sounded as if someone had been pushed to the point of only being able to gasp for air, the voice inexplicably revealing a seductive quality.
