Chapter 1 Xing Hechou, supporting a Zhanren Zhanma Modao (horse-slaying saber) as tall as a man, extended his other hand, gloved in metal, and accepted four towels from the middle-aged man. He didn't distribute them to his teammates (presumably the others didn't want to use them either). He stared at the man and asked, "May I ask who you are?"

"I am Shi Qi, a servant of Ren Fa, Ren Yuanwai (wealthy man) of Shisong Village."

The middle-aged man's attitude was unexpectedly mild and simple. "Master Ren sent me to wait for guests by the lake."

Xing Hechou frowned and asked, "Ren Yuanwai knows we're coming?"

Shi Qi naturally replied, "Yes, Master Ren is holding a grand banquet in the town, inviting the villagers to welcome his son, who has returned from Longhu Mountain after mastering his skills and come down the mountain to visit his parents.

According to the young master, some of his friends from all over the world, who are proficient in arcane arts, will also visit Shisong Village in the coming days, using techniques like shrinking the earth into inches and communicating with the netherworld.

The location is near this Volong Pond.

We have been waiting here for seven or eight days, and have received many guests."

Seven or eight days? Many guests?

An ominous premonition faintly rose in Xing Hechou's heart. From the time the players in the real world lay down to sleep, to the time they cracked the blessing deity's house and entered the second layer, only less than ten hours had passed.

How could it have been several days?

There were three possibilities.

The time for Xing Hechou and the others was normal, and this Shi Qi character had been waiting here and entertaining other natives.

In other words, Shi Qi regarded the players as native residents.

And the other natives had also suddenly landed in the lake—in that case, it would prove that there was a problem with this lake.

The flow of time in the second layer of the Shengnan King's dream was abnormal. Players who entered from other entrances were several days ahead of Xing Hechou and the others, and had arrived in the town Shi Qi mentioned.

Shi Qi was lying.

The four players silently sized up the simple and honest servant in front of them, who emanated an aura of rotting flesh.

At this moment, Miss Chai had already returned to Li Ang's body. She looked at Shi Qi and said softly to Li Ang, "How strange. This person is clearly surrounded by an extremely dense aura of death, but he is still a living person who can breathe and has a heartbeat."

"Could he be a Mojin Xiaowei (grave robber) who lives when united and dies when separated?"

Li Ang silently said in his heart, "Isn't that how it's written in novels? Tomb raiders who steal graves all year round are contaminated with too much death aura because they often enter tombs.

In the eyes of ordinary evil spirits, they are no different from dead objects, so they can save their lives."

"Brother, the aura of death is not the same as death energy. No matter how much you accumulate, it will only cause your body to age prematurely. How could it possibly hide you from evil spirits?

Unless it's really a stupid zombie or demon that is unintelligent and acts entirely on instinct."

Miss Chai rolled her eyes. "In the eyes of a high-level demon like me who has already passed the period of confusion, a person full of death energy is as conspicuous as a fly on a bald donkey's head.

It has no concealing effect at all."

"Okay."

Li Ang humbly asked, "What kind of person could be contaminated with so much death energy and still remain alive?"

"Uh..."

The homebody Miss Chai was instantly stumped. Her face flushed slightly as she thought for a long time before finally muttering, "Maybe, maybe he sleeps in tombs day and night, sleeping with skeletons and monsters?

Or has he eaten something special?"

So you don't know either.

Li Ang couldn't help but roll his eyes. Although Miss Chai was a demon, her knowledge was not much higher than his.

After all, after she became a demon, she basically stayed in the Guhan Temple and didn't go anywhere else.

The only source of information was eavesdropping on the gatherings of monsters.

She was a severe homebody with too little knowledge.

Shi Qi seemed completely unaware of the players' vigilance, and was still honestly and simply saying, "It's getting late. It's still a long way from here to Shisong Village.

We have prepared carriages, so please, esteemed guests, move your noble steps..."

As he spoke, Shi Qi slowly closed his mouth—the four players' expressions gradually turned cold, and the ice blades in their hands seemed to rise a little higher.

Thud.

Shi Qi's entire face slid off his cheeks and fell to the ground. Among the blurred flesh and blood, only the eyes and a mouthful of white teeth could be distinguished.

"Oh dear,"

Shi Qi exclaimed in surprise. He squatted down, picked up the face from the ground, reached out and patted off the dust and weeds, blew on it, and then unhurriedly put it back on his face, carefully smoothing out the wrinkles with his fingers.

"I was in a hurry when I went out, and didn't sew up the old wound on my face."

Shi Qi said with a smile, "How embarrassing. I've made you laugh."

As he spoke, his face slid down again, and the skin and flesh on his forehead fell down, reaching near his lips.

"What exactly, are you."

Xing Hechou clenched the Modao, his face as cold as iron.

As long as the other party's answer was slightly different, the blade would come down on his head.

Shi Qi smiled slightly and was about to answer when his face changed again. No longer with the frivolous look from before, he said in a deep voice, "Xing Hechou?"

Huh?

The four players had just landed on the second layer of the Shengnan King's dream. Unless this Shi Qi had the ability to read minds, how could he know Xing Hechou's name?

Lao Xing narrowed his eyes, "You are..."

"Hey, one of us."

Shi Qi's upright body instantly loosened, and he stood leisurely, scratching his head and casually saying, "I'm a bounty hunter registered with the Qushi Special Affairs Bureau. This is my external puppet.

I'm currently with your colleague, Xun Zi'an, the leader of the sixth team of the Yinshi Mobile Task Force.

Did you bring identification?"

"Zi'an?"

Xing Hechou was a little surprised. He took out a piece of metal from his backpack that seemed to be covered with densely packed strange characters.

Shi Qi didn't hesitate. He stretched out his dark fingernails and diagonally cut open his waist and abdomen.

From his empty belly, which had no organs, he took out a piece of iron of the same shape and size, and slightly wiped off the blood on it with his sleeve.

He put it together with the piece of iron in Xing Hechou's hand.

It was unknown how the iron pieces were made, but once they were put together, the characters on them automatically began to flow and change.

After a moment, Xing Hechou removed the iron piece and held his own piece up to his eyes to observe it for a while before nodding to Shi Qi. "Zi'an explained the situation on it. Are you here to meet us?"

"It's both a reception and a precaution."

Shi Qi spread out his hands. "We arrived on the second layer eight days earlier than Captain Xing and the others.

We've collected a lot of information in these eight days.

According to the deduction and speculation of Zhu Xuemin, the cultivator from the Different Society,

This area should be one of the entrances from the third layer to the second layer, so they specifically sent me here to wait.

If it's our own people, then I'm responsible for receiving them.

If it's other forces with ulterior motives, then...hehe."