CH 107

Chapter 107 – Without a Key 19

Lian Qiao was in such a hurry to save RenDong that his lame leg didn’t seem to hurt anymore. He ran wildly for a while, mindlessly chasing the big snake down several floors.

From time to time, people would pop up to block him along the way. Lian Qiao thought that these people were deliberately ambushing him at first but soon found out that something was wrong. They didn’t seem to be targeting him specifically but would beat anyone that they come across. If they couldn’t beat, they would try to bite, completely having lost their minds.

Although he can’t name them, Lian Qiao knows that these people are the players this time. It seems that RenDong is not the only one being controlled, but why was he the only one who was not affected?

Could it be that…

Lian Qiao felt that the longevity lock on his chest was faintly hot. He somewhat understood RenDong’s previous strange behavior.

The situation was urgent and he didn’t have time to think about it. He picked up the crowbar and swung it down fiercely. The metal hit flesh and made a dull sound. The other party fell down and couldn’t stand up again.

However, when one person fell, more people gathered to take their place. These background chess players were weak chickens even when they were conscious. Lian Qiao went on a rampage with a ruthless energy, blocking and killing Gods and Buddhas, knocking over a dozen people along the way, before finally running out of steam.

“Damn it! This is endless!” Lian Qiao was panting against the wall. He was surrounded by a group of people and he watched with anxiety as the big snake swept away Xu RenDong.

Just when he was about to go out and kill out a blood path, he suddenly heard a scream from behind the crowd. Everyone was shocked and when they looked backwards, they saw a man frantically waving his limbs around, his face full of horror. Behind him, a big black bird flapped its wings and a gust of wind blew up, literally grabbing the 100-pound adult man right off the ground!

“Help!” Although the man lost his mind, he still knew how to call for help. He waved his hands and feet in the air in vain, trying to escape from the claws of the giant bird. The giant bird was shaken by him and suddenly made a strange cry. Immediately afterwards, the man let out a terrifying scream.

“Ahhhhhhhhh—”

The giant’s birds claws had swept out and actually completely pierced the man’s shoulder. The man’s shoulder blades were nailed to the claws, and the blood instantly stained his shirt!

When everyone saw this, they couldn’t help but tremble and they all shrank back a few steps. Although Lian Qiao was equally astonished but, because he was more worried about RenDong, he took the opportunity to run away. There were a few more screams from behind him, accompanied by the flapping of wings. There was no need to look back to know that some other people had been taken away by the black giant bird.

Lian Qiao ran downstairs anxiously and looked around in a hurry but did not see the shadow of white snake and Xu RenDong. He turned his head and ran to the next floor. As soon as he got out of the stairs, he saw something falling from the air.

The thing fell so fast that Lian Qiao didn’t see it clearly for a moment. After half a second, another thing fell from the sky.

This time he saw it clearly and the blood all over his body instantly condensed into ice.

That was—half of a man—

It was the man who had just been dragged into the sky by the giant bird. At this point, he had been torn in half while alive and each half thrown down one after the other. The one that fell first was the left half of his body, and the one that fell at this moment was the other side.

A head was attached to a bit of flesh and it hung down crookedly from the neck. He was not completely dead yet and even briefly glanced at Lian Qiao when he was falling rapidly.

Seeing his tragic death, Lian Qiao felt his throat tighten and his hands and feet stiff. The blood filled the air instantly, making him almost breathless.

No, he can’t stop here.

He had to go and save RenDong!

Lian Qiao forced himself to move, clenched the crowbar and moved his legs again. However, as soon as he turned around, he heard an ominous sound of wings flapping behind him.

He is being stalked by that strange bird!

Without even looking back, Lian Qiao turned around and ran towards the stairs. But suddenly another strange bird flew in front of him and landed in front of him. The huge wings shook off the rain and the dark bird eyes stared at him coldly.

Lian Qiao felt cold all over. These strange birds were huge. It can easily lift an adult man into the air, tear it apart and throw it down. It was a natural-born killer. Lian Qiao can’t even deal with a single strange bird so don’t talk about being boxed in by one in the front and one in the back.

Lian Qiao clenched the crowbar tightly and quickly glanced outside the tulou. He estimated that he was on the second floor of the tulou and so if he jumped from here, there might be a chance of survival. But when he looked down, he couldn’t help but be shocked.

His guess wasn’t wrong. He was indeed on the second floor. But downstairs was not a flat and open hall but instead a deep pool!

No, it wasn’t a deep pool. It was the rainwater that had accumulated in the lower hall and had nowhere to drain and so actually merged with the pool in the center of the lower hall!

Lian Qiao didn’t realize until this moment that the rain was astonishingly heavy. In just a few minutes, the rainfall reached dozens of centimeters! If things go on like this, flooding the second floor will happen in a matter of blink of an eye!

What to do?!

If he rashly jumped into the pool and couldn’t move conveniently, then the strange bird could catch him as easily as catching fish. But if he doesn’t jump, the two monster birds that are pressing step by step will tear him to shreds on the spot!

But he still didn’t know if RenDong was alive or dead! So he can’t die here!

Lian Qiao involuntarily touched the longevity lock hidden on his chest. The small and delicate longevity lock, with a slight body temperature, lay firmly on his chest.

He must save RenDong and return the longevity lock to RenDong!

Thinking of this, Lian Qiao gritted his teeth, threw away the crowbar and quickly reached into his backpack with one hand.

The two strange birds on the left and right seemed to sense something, raised their heads and screamed strangely. They then flapped their wings and rushed towards him! In an instant, a bloody storm rushed towards his face, with a ruthless savagery that would kill with one blow  and countless dead souls under its claws!

At this moment of life and death, Lian Qiao finally touched something in his backpack. The thing was firm in the palm of his hand, giving people an inexplicable sense of security. Lian Qiao’s palm was a little hot and he took a deep breath, feeling that something was being pulled from the depths of his body.

Suddenly, his waist felt cold.

Lian Qiao opened his eyes in astonishment and looked down to see something snowy white on his waist. Before he could react, his entire person was dragged forward and straight into a guest room. The two strange birds on the left and right fluttered in the air, then flapped their wings and turned around to chase after them.

Lian Qiao felt his vision go blurry and he fell to the ground. There was a bang behind him and the two wooden doors closed together!

“You?!” Lian Qiao turned around and saw a person he could never have imagined, “Shi JianChuan?!” 

He saw the man in a black Tang suit sitting on the big carved bed. The man seemed to have no bones all over his body, leaning against the bed rails lazily and idly. He turned his head when he heard the words and smiled slowly: “En?” 

Before Lian Qiao could express his doubts, he heard two bangs from the door. It turned out that the two strange birds were chasing after them, using their huge bodies to hit the door hard!

Lian Qiao hurriedly got up from the ground and was about to find something to block the door when he heard Shi JianChuan say lazily, “Don’t move.”

Lian Qiao was puzzled. The next second, he suddenly felt the danger approaching and subconsciously retreated three steps.

Woosh.

A sharp arrow penetrated the wooden door and nailed to the bluestone floor tile with a sonorous force!

Lian Qiao was shocked and could not help but take a few steps back. He instantly heard the sound of sharp weapons flying through the air from outside and thousands of sharp arrows shot from all directions, immediately nailing the two strange birds to the wooden door!

The strange bird died before they could even let out a scream. But the sharp arrows kept coming and, within an instant, hundreds of arrows were nailed to the door, not only piercing the strange bird into a specimen but even knocking down the entire wooden door!

Lian Qiao stood cautiously against the wall, not even daring to let out the air. He glanced at Shi JianChuan with a lingering fear and finally understood why Shi JianChuan was sitting on the bed.

The carved queen bed is located in the deepest part of the room. Although the arrow was aggressive, it could not hit the large carved bed due to the limited range.

With sharp eyes, Lian Qiao suddenly realized that there was still someone lying on the bed behind Shi JianChuan. With a tall physique, you can tell who it is at a glance. Just at this moment, the arrow formation stopped and Lian Qiao shouted “RenDong!” and ran towards the big bed.

Shi JianChuan didn’t stop him. Instead, he got up leisurely and generously moved out of the way.

Lian Qiao threw himself in front of RenDong and checked his situation up and down. RenDong’s eyes were blood red and he still hadn’t regained his senses. Fortunately, he was tied up with climbing ropes so he only struggled and couldn’t escape. Lian Qiao felt distressed when he saw that his clothes were in tatters and there were bruises everywhere.

Lian Qiao wanted to ask Shi JianChuan what was going on. When he turned around, he saw a small silver-white snake crawling out of the dark, with a circular object hooked onto its tail. Shi JianChuan bent down and stretched out his hand towards the little snake. The little snake rubbed his head affectionately against his hand and then handed over the ring into his hand.

Lian Qiao recognized at a glance that this snake was the same type as the giant python that stole RenDong and couldn’t help but get furious: “Shi JianChuan! What are you trying to do?!”

Shi JianChuan ignored him, just turned his head and glanced outside the house at a glance. It was a mess outside and there were corpses everywhere. Some strange birds and some players were all pierced by long sharp arrows and nailed to the ground. The blood flowed into rivers, and the stench of blood that could not disperse from the majestic and heavy rain rushed to the face, making people want to cough.

A jet-black feather floated before his eyes. Shi JianChuan took it with a hand and with the wiggle of two fingers, the feathers instantly turned into powder and dispersed with the wind.

“It’s a Gu eagle…” Shi JianChuan sighed softly, suddenly withdrew his gaze, turned his head and said to Lian Qiao, “Time is running out.” {Gu is a type of witchcraft/poison associated with the Miao tribal people of China.}

Lian Qiao saw Shi JianChuan walking towards them and subconsciously protected RenDong behind him. He said with wide eyes, “What do you want?!”

Shi JianChuan said, “He asked me to take you away.”

Lian Qiao was stunned: “He?”

Shi JianChuan smiled and pointed to the bed from a distance: “Yes, Xu RenDong, he asked me to take you away.”

“What… what do you mean?” Lian Qiao felt that his brain was down and he couldn’t react for a while. “He asked you to take me away? …You have formed an alliance? Then why did you kidnap him?”

“This was his plan.”

Lian Qiao immediately retorted: “You lied! If he had such a plan, why wouldn’t he discuss it with me in advance?

“Naturally there is a reason why I can’t tell you.” After Shi JianChuan finished speaking, he glanced outside the house again. The rain outside seemed to be a little heavier than before. Looking at the rain that day, Shi JianChuan suddenly sighed leisurely and said to Lian Qiao, “He originally pledged his wealth and life to me, and asked me to take you away. But just now I saw what you have in your hands and I suddenly feel pity for him.”

Lian Qiao narrowed his eyes. The thing he took out from the backpack just now was still clutched firmly in the palm of his hand. He couldn’t help tightening his fingers and gripped it tightly.

Shi JianChuan said with a smile: “Don’t be nervous, I won’t rob you. That’s your key and it’s useless for me to take it.” 

Lian Qiao’s expression changed when he heard these words: “So you also…”

He only needed to say this much. Shi JianChuan already understood what he meant, smiled and nodded.

The tension in Lian Qiao’s heart eased a little but his face turned cold. He opened his fist and what lay quietly in the palm of his hand was the brass key.

It was the key they found in the matryoshka instance with the words “Lian Qiao” engraved on it.

Lian Qiao put the key in his backpack and put it away. Seeing his cautious look, Shi JianChuan shook his head and sighed, “I feel pity for him because it’s clear he doesn’t understand what this key means.”

Lian Qiao’s expression was indifferent. There was such an extreme difference on the face that usually had curved and expressive eyebrows and eyes. If Xu RenDong saw it, he would have been extremely surprised.

“He doesn’t need to know.” Lian Qiao said coldly.

Shi JianChuan sighed again, “Whatever.” He bent down and took off another ring from the tail of a little white snake that appeared out of nowhere. At the same time, there was an unusually dull creaking sound from the floor below. Lian Qiao’s face changed and he subconsciously protected Xu RenDong beside him. Shi JianChuan was calm and took out a few more rings from his sleeves.

Lian Qiao looked at it coldly and suddenly said, “Nine linked rings?”

Shi JianChuan nodded with a smile, but his hands kept moving: “Yes, Nine linked rings. In Ancient China, this was also called ‘scheme to keep guests’ . It was often a toy that the host family used to keep their guests entertained. It somehow traveled to Venice and gained an interesting nickname…”

He flipped his fingers and his fingers that were as white as jade shuttled between several rings, and, after a while, he put the nine rings on the base in an orderly manner. At the same time, the voice fell.

“A lock without a key.”

Lian Qiao’s heart skipped a beat when he heard it. The lock without a key originally referred to the Nine Linked Rings. It’s just such an obscure knowledge, how could Shi JianChuan know?

Shi JianChuan seemed to see through what he was thinking, and smiled slightly: “Yes, I am the key player in this instance. This is also my last instance.”

Lian Qiao was greatly surprised. He suddenly had a lot of questions to ask but saw a flash of silver light in Shi JianChuan’s hand and the perfectly spliced ​​nine chains had disappeared. In its place was a small round metal button and a brass key.

The key and Lian Qiao’s are the same shape, the only difference is that the words “Shi JianChuan” was engraved on it.

“How could you—” Lian Qiao blurted out, “There is a second key?!”

Shi JianChuan looked a little surprised: “Second key? What do you mean?”

Lian Qiao asked suspiciously, “If you haven’t gotten the key yet, how did you know the origin of the key? Did someone tell you this secret?”

Shi JianChuan squinted at him and then seemed to understand something. He asked with great interest, “Could it be that you don’t know what you lost in the end?”

Lian Qiao was stunned for a moment. He only felt that his head was in a daze and he didn’t understand at all. Shi JianChuan looked at his face and already obtained the answer in his heart. Thus he stopped chatting with him, just waved his sleeves with a smile: “Let’s go, go and open the exit. I’ll take you two to leave.”

Lian Qiao had ten thousand doubts in his heart but seeing that the entire tulou was rumbling and shaking, he was afraid that it was soon about to collapse. He quickly carried Xu RenDong on his back and followed Shi JianChuan out of the room.

The rain was pouring and the stagnant water had overflowed the railing from the second floor, almost pouring in. Shi JianChuan jumped onto the railing and looked about to jump into the pool. It looked like the exit was under that pool of water.

Lian Qiao suddenly remembered what Xu RenDong had asked him a few hours ago: Can you swim? How long can you endure?

Could it be…

“What are you doing? Let’s go.” Shi JianChuan opened his mouth lazily, waved his hand and a giant python suddenly wrapped itself around Lian Qiao and RenDong and dragged them into the water.

The icy pool water instantly wrapped the two of them. Lian Qiao held his breath, holding Xu RenDong with one hand and pinching his nose in the other. RenDong was not awake yet and was still struggling. Fortunately, the snow-white python was tightly wrapped around his waist and he could not break free.

Shi JianChuan was not far below. He hooked the snake’s head with both hands and was led down by the giant python. Suddenly, a black shadow appeared in the water. Shi Jian didn’t even look at it and, with a wave of his hand, several white snakes emerged from his sleeves and bit the black shadow head on.

The black shadow struggled with the white snake and soon fell behind. The giant python was still swimming towards the depths with the three of them. Soon, a silver-white elevator appeared in front of him.

The three quickly entered the elevator. The elevator door closed behind him, cutting off the cold and dark pool. Lian Qiao finally breathed a sigh of relief when he heard the low rumbling sound of the elevator running.

At the same time, his neck suddenly felt light. He reached out and touched it subconsciously, but the longevity lock was gone.

It turns out that this is also a one-time use, consumable item?

Lian Qiao was feeling regret when Xu RenDong suddenly let out a light hum behind him. Lian Qiao hurried to take a look and found that his eyes had finally recovered consciousness. Lian Qiao quickly untied the climbing rope on his body, carefully tore off the tape on his mouth and asked eagerly, “How are you? Are you okay?”

Xu RenDong nodded, turned to look at Shi JianChuan and said, “Thank you.”

“It was a mutually beneficial cooperation, there is nothing to be thankful for.” Shi JianChuan said briskly, “If it’s so destined, we’ll meet again.”

At this time, the elevator door opened and the sky was bright outside. They had returned to the real world. Shi JianChuan was about to leave immediately but Lian Qiao grabbed him and said, “Wait, I have something to ask you!”

Shi JianChuan ruthlessly shook him off: “I won’t tell you. “

Lian Qiao was stunned.

Shi JianChuan said confidently: “I have cleared all the instances and I won’t come in again. Whether you two are dead or alive is none of my business.”

Lian Qiao: “…” It made a lot of sense.

Xu RenDong coughed and said to resolve the embarrassment: “In short, thank you. Goodbye.”

Shi JianChuan was very satisfied with Xu RenDong’s reaction and nodded with a smile. He remembered something and said to Xu RenDong: “That’s right, the puppet is all used up. You were right. When it came to triggering all the debuffs in one go, it’s something even I can’t bear. I was too arrogant. So I can’t return the puppet to you. Instead, I’ll give you an amulet I drew  myself.” 

As he spoke, he threw a small bag over.

Xu RenDong took it, raised his head and said, “No, you are really strong. Without you, no one would be able to clear this instance.”

Shi JianChuan raised his eyebrows and smiled: “Have you ever thought that it is precisely because of my existence that this instance became so difficult?”

Xu RenDong was stunned. Shi JianChuan laughed, and with long legs, left the elevator.

Lian Qiao murmured in a low voice, “Who do you think you are, being all cryptic and shit.” He took Xu RenDong’s hand and stepped out of the elevator together.

The elevator door closed behind the two of them and then the entire elevator disappeared out of thin air. In front of him was a warm and familiar home. As soon as they came back here, it was as if all the cells in his body relaxed. Lian Qiao collapsed on the sofa heavily, hugging his calf and groaning. His crutches were thrown away during the instance and at this moment it was as though he suddenly remembered his leg was still injured and immediately began acting like a spoiled child.

RenDong coaxed him for a while and also felt quite tired. So the two of them washed up and fell asleep together. The two of them hugged each other tightly in the bed and their passions couldn’t help being aroused. The two people clung to each other and passed a sweaty night.

Early in the morning, Xu RenDong had a dry mouth. He went to the kitchen to pour water and suddenly caught a glimpse of the bag that Shi JianChuan gave him. Inside was a small wooden placard with a bunch of ghostly drawn symbols on it. He didn’t know what it meant. 

It was ugly as hell. It seems that it was really painted by Shi JianChuan himself.

Xu RenDong smiled slightly and put away the wooden placard. Suddenly he found that there was a note hidden in the kit, with a short line written on it:

“Lian Qiao has hidden secrets, you should guard against him.”

Xu RenDong threw the note away, rubbing his sore lower back. He thought: You’re indeed right, he does have a lot of hidden secrets.

I mean, for example you definitely can’t tell how big he is just by looking at his face. He was so big that Xu RenDong’s belly was almost pushed out of shape.

{T/N: Yes, it’s what you think it means! ^_^}