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Bonus chapter! Thank you to Samie for the donation! ^^
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The person by the bed and the person under the bed locked eyes, creating an unusually awkward atmosphere.
Shen Baiyue stood there, completely stunned, gazing blankly at the person under the bed.
Clearly, she hadn’t expected to encounter someone else here.
Especially not the person she least wanted to meet at this moment...
Ruan Qing had initially planned to pretend he hadn’t seen anything, but he didn’t anticipate Shen Baiyue suddenly lowering her head and looking in his direction.
After silently observing for a few seconds, he discreetly averted his gaze, as if he hadn’t seen anything.
Shen Baiyue also looked away, evidently preparing to act as if nothing had happened.
However, their embarrassment was soon forgotten because the sound of water in the bathroom subsided.
Apparently, the person in the bathroom had finished washing up.
If they could have hidden under the bed before, it was clearly not possible now.
After all, even though the clothes had been corroded to nothing, the ground still bore the traces of corrosion.
These marks were very conspicuous; anyone approaching would undoubtedly notice them.
Upon hearing the diminishing water sound, Shen Baiyue was startled. Without hesitation, she directly pulled Ruan Qing from under the bed and swiftly climbed out of the window.
Ruan Qing didn’t resist.
Because staying in the room at this point would undoubtedly be seeking death.
While climbing out, Shen Baiyue didn’t forget to grab the stick she had used earlier.
Outside the window was a balcony, and the two landed there after climbing out.
However, the balcony was not safe either.
After landing, they immediately descended from the fourth floor and quickly returned to the second floor of the villa.
This time, Ruan Qing didn’t lag behind.
Even if it’s not his body, he controlled it very proficiently.
Whether it was due to having done something they shouldn’t have or the previous awkwardness, as soon as they reached the second floor, the two of them, in perfect unspoken agreement, each went back to their respective rooms.
A few minutes later, the entire Yang family villa suddenly went on high alert.
There were rumors of a thief stealing the owner’s belongings.
There were even rumors of servants searching the premises, creating a tense and dangerous atmosphere.
The players were unaware of what happened afterward; they only assumed that their activities on the fourth, fifth, and sixth floors had been discovered.
Confronting the Yang family head-on was definitely not a wise move.
Without a second thought, the players left the Yang family mansion and hid elsewhere.
The Yang family estate was enormous, with villas for both the main and branch families, along with additional villas for the funeral attendees, resembling a colossal castle.
Even during the day, it was challenging to search the whole place.
Hiding was obviously something that Ruan Qing didn’t need to do personally.
If his speculation was correct, the player resembling the advanced male player would never abandon his puppet.
So, after hiding the tablet upon returning to the room, Ruan Qing lay back on the bed, temporarily giving up control over the male player’s body.
As expected, not long after lying down, the male player ‘woke up.’
He quickly left the room, presumably, like other players, to find a hiding place.
The male player was powerful, and Ruan Qing didn’t need to worry about him.
What concerned him more was how to sneak his own body out.
He didn’t have a puppet, and only had the body given to him in this instance. Once recognized as a vessel for the power of a ‘god,’ the game’s main system would undoubtedly classify him as non-human.
Therefore, he absolutely couldn’t let Yang Chenjin and Yang Chenyan’s plan succeed and couldn’t let his body perish.
But due to his previous indulgence, toxins had indeed spread throughout his body.
Moreover, the poison he was afflicted with wasn’t just the ‘Morning Dawn Flower’ toxin.
As the doctor mentioned, ‘Morning Dawn Flower’ poison was extremely stubborn, practically incurable.
Ruan Qing initially used another poisonous flower from the garden to counteract it, temporarily suppressing the toxins.
Taking medication would disrupt the balance between the two poisons.
Moreover, his body was too weak, leading to consecutive bouts of coughing up blood.
Previously, Ruan Qing didn’t care if his body would die, but now it was definitely not an option.
Trying to sneak his body out now and expecting to survive until the last day would be challenging.
After all, apart from the doctor’s place, there were no medications to be found in the Yang family villa.
Ruan Qing tried to return to his own body, but his body still couldn’t muster any strength. He couldn’t even open his eyes.
However, it didn’t hinder his perception.
Hearing and touch were still normal.
Currently, there should be an IV drip in his hand, and he could feel the cold liquid entering his body.
Presumably, he would be relying on this to sustain his energy for the next few days.
After assessing the condition of his body, Ruan Qing spoke in his mind, ‘System, are you there?’
System: [...I’m here.]
The system’s response did not surprise Ruan Qing; it seemed communication with the system could only happen within his own body.
‘Bring up the system store.’
Without hesitation, the system promptly displayed the system store.
Even though Ruan Qing hadn’t opened his eyes, he could vividly see it in his mind.
Ruan Qing searched for the word ‘puppet’ in the store.
Numerous items appeared, related to ‘puppet’ in various ways, with dozens of associated props.
There were over a dozen humanoid puppets alone, each serving a different purpose.
There were even puppets that could replace a player upon death.
The required points... one hundred thousand.
Ruan Qing checked his points and silently looked away.
He carefully examined the functions of most puppets. Except for those with a split/body type, most puppets didn’t share sensations with the user.
Some puppets had simple autonomy and could act independently.
But for others, the user had to be inside the puppet’s body to make it move.
It seemed the two puppets he found fell into the second category.
There were only three types of such puppets.
Although their functions were different, they shared a common point.
That was, when controlled by the user, the soul’s aura belonged to the user.
Ruan Qing’s gaze focused on the words ‘the soul’s aura belongs to the user,’ with a thoughtful expression.
In other words, if he was the one using it, then the soul’s aura belonged to him...
This instance didn’t have any side quests or specific objectives.
Clearing it would only get you three hundred points.
Changing bodies was currently not realistic, and even the points needed to strengthen the body were astronomical.
He only had 2300 points.
To earn more points, he must think of other ways.
But the NPCs in this instance were immortal; even if killed, they could regenerate.
Unless...
Just as Ruan Qing was deep in thought, faint footsteps interrupted his train of thought.
Someone was coming.
Was it a doctor?
No, this scent should be... Yang Chenjin.
What was he here for?
Ruan Qing quickly understood why Yang Chenjin came.
He came to give him water.