CH 151

Now that Mrs. A is dead, B Sister Xiao abstains outright.

As agreed by the three, the Blessing of Aphrodite and the Pandora's Box already belong to Xiao Lan.

B Sister Xiao was a bit reluctant to do so, but out of her aristocratic pride she was not yet in a position to renege.

Xiao Lan reached for the Pandora's Box.

It is only on closer inspection that one realises that the box is intricately decorated with floral motifs, not the usual botanical and floral motifs, but a pattern composed entirely of lines, esoteric to the point of incomprehensibility.

The sensation of being so cold to the touch that it seems to freeze the blood is still the same as remembered.

Although he could not tell the difference, Xiao Lan had only seen it once back then, and he could not remember all the details of the box he had seen at his father's place, so he could not be sure if this was the same one he had seen before.

Because it's still in the playground, this prop again shows everything as unknown.

Xiao Lan decided it was better to leave it open for the time being in order to avoid any unpleasant surprises.

If you really want to study it, just wait until you get back to the players' quarters.

He pointed to the Pandora's Box and asked B Sister Xiao, "Do you know anything about it?"

B Sister Xiao's jaw dropped, "I won't tell you, that wasn't included in our bet."

She had deliberately left a loophole in the bet, presumably in case she lost, and was surprised when Xiao Lan cut her off.

Xiao Lan thought for a moment when he saw the appearance of B Sister Xiao.

Then, his finger pointed to [Av Luo Dieter's Blessing], "How about this in exchange? You tell me about the [Pandora's Box], and this will be yours."

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B Sister Xiao's eyes couldn't help but drift to the side, clearly smitten with the gorgeous necklace.

Xiao Lan added, "You see, I'm not interested in jewellery either, so I'd probably just sell it to someone else. And about the Pandora's Box, no one but me would probably be interested in it either."

"How about, now, we reciprocate for a bit? That way no one loses out."

Of course he wouldn't tell the other guy that it was because he would be docked poverty value for taking it, plus there was that FLAG-like prop description, and Xiao Lan didn't want the flashy necklace at all.

B Sister Xiao thought about it and decided that she was not losing out at all on this deal.

Not only did she not lose out, but she was able to get Lady A's bet and even take care of this Bitchi in the process, which was simply a huge profit.

So she nodded dryly, "Good."

B Sister Xiao began to recall, "[Pandora's Box] is something I got a few months ago, when a strange guy came to me for a trade, and I heard he had traded some strange things with quite a few people."

"Because the box was really nice and the price he wanted was low, I kept it. But after that I couldn't open it no matter what I tried, so I put it up as a decoration ...... You can't blame me if you can't open it either."

"No." Xiao Lan finished and had asked another question, "Do you remember what that person looked like?"

B Sister Xiao: "Of course, that's a male ...... Huh? Is it a man or a woman again? Height? Body type? I ...... Why can't I remember what the guy looked like?"

When B Sister Xiao searched her memory, she could not remember the person she had dealt with.

It was as if everything in my memory was covered in a mist, I could not recall the other person's face or the shape of the other person, I was not even sure what the other person had said at the time.

B Sister Xiao looks confused: "Strange ......"

She explained to Xiao Lan again, "I'm not lying."

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Xiao Lan was relieved to hear this.

If it had been Xiao Chengyan, and given his status as a master illusionist, Xiao Lan guessed that he would have made some sort of disguise for his appearance.

But he didn't expect Xiao Chengyan to be able to go this far.

B Sister Xiao may have unknowingly fallen under Xiao Chengyan's illusion, but she was unaware of it.

The first of the senior players is really more than he could have imagined.

Xiao Lan gestured to B Sister Xiao and indicated the [Blessing of Av Luo Dieter] on the dais: "It is yours."

B Sister Xiao took the necklace nonchalantly, a smile all over her paper face.

She examined the necklace in her hand and waved perfunctorily at Xiao Lan: "Well, I've got things to do later, so I'll see you later."

As the words of B Sister Xiao fell, the surroundings changed instantly.

Xiao Lan feels like a giant who has grown taller in a hurry, his sight leaping higher and higher in an instant.

In tandem with this is the shrinking of the surroundings.

When the changes stop, Xiao Lan finds herself in a room with a large collection of dolls.

The décor of the room looks very much like a circus stage.

The dolls are of different styles and materials, clay, carved wood, ceramic or paper, and each set has a scene corresponding to them, with a dustproof glass cover over each scene.

But without exception, the dolls are meticulously crafted and delicately constructed, and appear to be a carefully sourced collection.

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Placed together, they are like little suspended worlds.

Xiao Lan speculated that perhaps each player entering this room would randomly enter the world of one of the dolls.

Each world has a different level of drama and danger, and some of these scenes just look bad.

Of course it doesn't exclude the likes of Mrs A and B Sister Xiao, who look calm but are committed to letting all the players who enter go out sideways.

Xiao Lan took out the Ming Yue Pavilion and found that another frame had been lit on the cover.

There's nothing new in the book, and it doesn't appear to have died at the hands of a raven, but rather the handiwork of a ghost or a player.

The cover is now lit up with eleven squares, just two to go.

In order to light up the cover as quickly as possible, Xiao Lan moves between the dolls, looking for the scene with Mrs A and B Sister Xiao.

The pattern should be right there with them.

Finally, he found it.

It was a small palm-sized table, and in that scene two paper figures were sitting at an elaborate table and chairs, surrounded by the gorgeous backdrop of Luo Coco style.

Originally they were supposed to be sipping afternoon tea and chatting at the same time.

But now B Sister Xiao is still sitting there, moving leisurely, with a smile on her face, only with an extra strand of delicate pearls around her neck that is just the right size for her body and a piece of her light blue dress missing from the corner.

Across the room, however, Mrs A in a pink dress had been torn in half and was lying on the floor looking miserable.

Xiao Lan carefully picked up the small scene and, sure enough, saw the same design on the bottom as on the cover of the book.

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At the same time, the cover of the book lights up once more, but this time with only one frame.

A total of twelve squares are now lit up, with only one to go.

How come only one is lit?

Xiao Lan is a little confused.

But it suddenly dawned on him as he returned his eyes once more to the paper figure in his hand.

Probably because Mrs. A was destroyed and only one of the two paper figures was left.

Xiao Lan exclaims, "Ms. Crow is really strict. ......"

If he accidentally broke both paper figures, wouldn't he be doing a wasted job?

It's a bloodbath to think about.

At this point, Xiao Lan suddenly remembered that he hadn't eaten or drunk anything since he entered Ming Yue Pavilion, except for dinner on the first day, but he didn't feel hungry or tired from the lack of energy.

Is it a special ability of the advanced field, or is it the crow's?

It always felt like the advanced field bosses were more than a little better than the beginner and intermediate bosses in terms of how strong their grip on the game was.

The invisible, yet omnipresent feeling of the crows is particularly unsettling.

He's probably one of the strongest bosses Xiao Lan has ever encountered in terms of his control over the playground.

"Too bad there's one more to go." Xiao Lan says softly, as he walks towards where the door is.

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I just don't know how this one progressed, and in what way it was achieved.

Xiao Lan was about to open the door to go out when he felt a change in the Ming Yue Pavilion again.

That last grid lit up in that short period of time.

No new text appears inside the book either, and it is clearly not the work of the Raven.

Two players died in such a short space of time in quick succession.

Who is it?

Is it a spook fest, or are players with ulterior motives killing people, or is Qi Ning doing the harvesting?

The entire pattern on the cover is now fully illuminated and is glowing.

I'm afraid the game should also move on to the next stage.

Taking a deep breath, Xiao Lan opened the door to the room.

The outside of the door looks the same as before, with that ancient charm of East meets West unique to Republican era buildings.

But all is not the same again.

The original corridor was quiet, as if Xiao Lan was the only person left in the world, except for the occasional spatially overlapping player.

In the corridor at this time, Xiao Lan could clearly hear the sound of running from upstairs and, even further away, the sound of something heavy hitting the ground, wondering what was going on.

The sensation is like a myriad of divided spaces finally overlapping.

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Also, it shows that players are probably able to meet each other by now.

Naturally ...... can also attack each other.

The next threat to Xiao Lan is likely to be doubled.

Xiao Lan takes a few steps forward.

Suddenly, his eyes froze on a corner of the corridor.

It was a very unassuming corner.

It was empty and there was nothing special about it.

But that's when the corner began to fade with a speed visible to the naked eye, right in front of Xiao Lan's eyes.

The faded sections look like old photographs, turning a yellowed black and white colour that is unremarkable because of its position.

Xiao Lan's eyes searched the area and found several more such faded areas in quick succession.

The locations are hidden and the fading is not too fast.

But without exception all of them have turned out to be coloured like old photographs.

Obviously, if the entire Ming Yue Pavilion had faded to this state, something would have happened.

But Xiao Lan wasn't really keen on experiencing it first-hand.

Most of those with a spirit of exploration die quickly, is it bad to live?

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Xiao Lan watched the changes in the corridor: "Looks like it's time to get out of here before the colour fades completely."

He thought of the room on the top floor with the same progress on the door as the cover of the book, which had once been Raven's study.

By now, that room should have changed, and perhaps it is no longer accessible.

With his decision made, Xiao Lan was ready to head upstairs.

He took out Luo's envelope and was ready to talk to the other man and find a place to turn.

But suddenly a familiar low voice was heard not far away, "I've found you, sir."

Xiao Lan turned back to see a man poised and graceful not far from him.

Fitted with a black three-piece suit and a tall figure, the visitor was walking towards him on long legs.

His posture as he approached was still good-looking, but the pace was a little hurried, showing that the visitor was not in a calm mood.

With just one glance, Xiao Lan could tell that this man was the real Luo.

Nothing like the previous counterfeit products.

When she saw Luo, Xiao Lan's heart was suddenly filled with an emotion called longing.

It was clear that they had only not seen each other for about two days and had been in contact via envelope during that time.

But ultimately, it is not the same.

There is no substitute for the hidden joy and satisfaction of actually seeing each other in person.

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Clearly in the middle of a dangerous game and into a situation where the risk of death is doubled.

Xiao Lan's heart can't help but feel a tinge of joy.

Xiao Lan couldn't help but smile, "It's been a long time."

Luo walked up to him and smiled back, "It's been a long time."