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Bonus chapter! Thank you to --- for the donation! ^^
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Ruan Qing had never met the three men before, but one glance was all it took to confirm their identities—their overwhelming, dangerous aura was enough to make anyone’s blood run cold.
His entire body stiffened, his expression freezing momentarily. Fortunately, the black cloak hid him completely, leaving no trace of his unease.
But while the other players were gathered near the entrance, Ruan Qing stood conspicuously alone, with no one around him.
Beneath the cloak, his slender, pale fingers tightened slightly. He pressed his faintly colored lips together, suppressing the urge to turn and flee. Instead, he decided to keep walking as if he hadn’t noticed them.
Yet the moment he lifted his foot, a voice as smooth as a gentle breeze sounded behind him.
"Since you’re already here, why not go inside and take a look?"
The man’s voice was mesmerizing—deep, magnetic, like the resonant notes of a cello, carrying a warmth that could lull one into a false sense of security.
But to Ruan Qing, it sent a jolt of icy dread down his spine. Every fiber of his being screamed at him to run, his hair standing on end.
He recognized that voice all too well. It belonged to the male player from that dungeon—the one who had used that same charming tone to coax other players into their own demise.
The dungeon itself had been brutal, with slim chances of survival, but this man’s words had hastened their deaths, coldly snuffing out any hope of clearing it.
And all because they had dared to stand in his way.
Ruan Qing stopped in his tracks. The man was clearly speaking to him—if he kept ignoring them, he’d risk provoking them outright.
The speaker was none other than Lu Xiuyuan. By the time Ruan Qing paused, Lu Xiuyuan had already closed the distance between them. His gaze lingered on the cloaked figure, whose delicate presence was palpable even beneath the heavy fabric. His smile took on an unreadable edge, his eyes darkening with something predatory.
Lu Xiuyuan’s lashes lowered slightly as his gaze swept over Ruan Qing, then he schooled his expression back into one of polite warmth.
"Now that you’re here, you really should go inside."
What had been a question before was now an order—firm, leaving no room for refusal.
This wasn’t a request. It was a command.
Ruan Qing knew he had no choice. If he resisted while they were still playing nice, things would only get worse.
He had no option but to comply. After all, he had been the one to toy with them first.
Nothing was more dangerous than tricking someone and then getting caught by them.
If he had known from the start that these men were targeting him, he would never have made the group public. But regret was useless now.
Ruan Qing took a deep breath in his mind, then turned to face Lu Xiuyuan behind him. Politely, he said, "Hello."
"I wasn’t planning to leave. I just got thirsty from waiting and wanted to grab a drink across the street." He offered his explanation smoothly.
Directly opposite the meetup location was a café with large glass windows that provided a clear view of the gathering spot. Since only group members were allowed inside, many players had opted to wait at the café instead.
Lu Xiuyuan glanced at the café, then smiled faintly, as if accepting Ruan Qing’s excuse.
"Funny—we’re thirsty too. Let’s go together."
***
Hundreds of players were still gathered excitedly at the meetup spot, waiting for the high-level players to appear. None of them could have guessed that the very players they were waiting for were now sitting in the café across the street.
The five of them occupied a corner table, the atmosphere inexplicably tense and heavy, causing other players to instinctively avoid the area.
In the end, the five group members had reunited—just under circumstances no one could have predicted.
None of them had actually come for coffee, but since the excuse had been made, they all played along and ordered a cup.
Ruan Qing included.
After the waiter served their drinks, the stifling mood eased slightly.
Lu Xiuyuan studied the figure who still hadn’t removed his hood, even while seated, and asked amiably:
"You’re not in the group chat anymore?"
Ruan Qing lowered his gaze to the coffee in front of him and shook his head slightly. He answered truthfully:
"No. I got kicked."
The group: "…"
So he had actually been kicked.
Their expressions turned indescribably complicated for a moment before they all took a sip of coffee to mask their emotions.
Lu Xiuyuan glanced at the others, then chuckled lightly. "Then rejoin the group. I just sent you an invite."
Ruan Qing pulled out his phone and, sure enough, found the invitation notification. He accepted it without hesitation.
Rejoining the group chat meant his previous chat history would reload—including every message he’d ever sent, all visible in the member records.
The men immediately opened the chat history to see what message had gotten this person kicked.
When they saw the record, their expressions became more than just complicated—they twisted in a way that distorted their handsome features. Even Lu Xiuyuan froze.
The message read:
"Excuse me, have any of you had girlfriends before? Would you ever date a man? @Lin @Shen @Qin @Lu."
They remembered this post vividly.
While sorting through kicked members, most players had been hard to judge—except this one, which they'd dismissed without hesitation.
And if they recalled correctly, the sender had been kicked on the very first day.
The person they'd been searching for had been removed by their own hands on day one... while they'd wasted three grueling days answering questions, trying to salvage their image in his eyes.
Their faces cycled through shades of green and white, settling into something almost vicious. The dark, dangerous aura they'd been suppressing now spilled out unrestrained.
Though the café was bustling, the air plunged into silence. The temperature seemed to drop several degrees.
A suffocating, oppressive tension spread, prickling at the skin like an unseen threat.
Nearby players, mid-laughter, instinctively hushed their voices. Within moments, the entire café had fallen into an eerie quiet.
Fortunately, the tension didn't last. The café gradually regained its lively atmosphere as if the incident had been a collective hallucination.
But every player knew better. Something terrifying had brushed past them—likely one of the four high-level players who'd organized this meetup.
One player swallowed hard, whispering to his companion, "D-did you feel that just now?"
The other, still dazed, nodded slowly. "...Yeah."
Another nearby member murmured in awe, "So that's the strength of a high-level player?"
"Too overpowered..."
That aura had rivaled some dungeon bosses—and it might've just been a passing glimpse.
None noticed that the very players they spoke of sat in a shadowed corner, far from "just passing through."
Though Ruan Qing was also a high-level player, his body couldn't be enhanced by any system shop items. Even after countless dungeons, he remained weaker than an ordinary person—utterly defenseless against these men.
The oppressive aura radiating from the men made it hard for Ruan Qing to breathe. He had intended to lift his coffee cup to mask his discomfort, only to discover his slender, pale fingers were trembling faintly.
Even though he tried his best to suppress it, the men noticed immediately. A flicker of surprise passed through their eyes.
This person... was this weak?
Becoming a high-level player wasn’t something achieved through luck alone. The promotion trials were hellishly difficult, claiming countless lives—even those of players whose skills were already on par with high-level veterans. Without real strength, survival was impossible.
...Unless, of course, one had clung to a stronger player, carried upward by someone else’s power.
No wonder this guy had asked that kind of question upon joining the group. No wonder he’d sought them out.
Normally, the men despised players like this—hence why they’d kicked him without hesitation. But as their gazes fell on the hand now exposed while lifting the coffee cup, their attention snagged.
Black wasn’t typically a color that accentuated fairness, yet against the dark fabric of the cloak, Ruan Qing’s skin seemed almost translucent, so pale it resembled delicate porcelain. The contrast between the inky cloth and his alabaster fingers was striking, impossible to look away from.
Perhaps the cup was too heavy; the pressure flushed his fingertips with a faint pink, a soft bloom of color against the pallor.
Delicate. Too delicate.
Even the simple act of holding a cup reddened his fingers. A little more force, and marks would surely be left behind.
Their expressions shifted subtly. Almost unconsciously, they reined in their oppressive auras, the twisted shadows in their eyes receding for now.
Shen Qifeng was the first to break the silence. "What do you all think about the recent fluctuations in the player rankings?" His tone was casual, the question directed at the group rather than Ruan Qing—a deliberate pretense of normalcy.
Last time, they’d been too eager, scaring their prey away.
But if he was this weak, his fear of them made sense.
Lin Yan understood the need for patience. His voice softened slightly, a low murmur. "Certain high-difficulty dungeons must have undergone changes, leading to veteran players being wiped out."
The boy was likely a victim of such circumstances.
Though in his case, it wasn’t him who’d died—it was the high-level player he’d been clinging to. Now, left unprotected, he’d be desperate to find a new patron.
Like a rabbit stripped of its shelter: small, vulnerable, hyperaware of every potential threat.
The slightest disturbance would send him scurrying back into hiding.
Lu Xiuyuan’s tongue pressed against the roof of his mouth. A quiet laugh escaped him. "Yeah," he agreed, smiling. "That’s exactly it."
"Previous game instances used to leave players some way out," Lu Xiuyuan remarked calmly, "but now it seems they don't. Players without real ability will probably just have to wait for death."
There was no intimidation in his words - he simply stated it as fact. Yet the others instinctively turned their gaze toward the figure shrouded in the black cloak.
Unfortunately, the cloak was far too large, completely obscuring its wearer. Not an inch of the person beneath was visible, nor could they discern any reaction.
Lu Xiuyuan's eyes flickered toward an approaching waiter. His slender fingers twitched almost imperceptibly.
In the next instant, the waiter's foot slipped. He lost his balance completely, pitching forward - along with the tray of coffee he'd been carrying - directly toward where Ruan Qing sat.
Ruan Qing's eyes widened in alarm. Instinct took over as he jerked sideways to avoid the flying coffee.
While he managed to dodge the spill, the sudden movement came at a cost. The violent lurch sent his hood tumbling back, exposing what had been hidden beneath.
this is too thrilling~ thank you for the chaps!!!
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