The fourth floor’s Stargazing Platform was quite small, with only a few paths leading from the third floor to the fourth, all of which converged before the Stairway to the fourth floor.
It was here that Xue Wan and Xu Miaomiao, among others, encountered each other.
Meanwhile, the unorganized group was hiding behind another nearby Stairway. The strength of Manjusaka was too overwhelming, so they dared not be too conspicuous and had agreed with “Yan Wei” to wait for his signal once everyone had arrived. This was why they had no idea what was happening when “Yan Wei” led Xu Miaomiao here.
By the time “Yan Wei” sent them the signal, Yan Wei had already instructed Yan Mingguang to throw the Man in Black Robe to Xu Miaomiao.
Now, hiding in the shadows, the unorganized group was ready to seize the opportunity—the chance “Yan Wei” had given them was too tempting to resist.
The leader of the unorganized group was a woman named Yu Hua, whose physical stats and Perception were average for a player in their thirties. However, her unique skill allowed her to disguise herself as another person for a short time. She couldn’t replicate the target’s strength, only their appearance, which made her skill somewhat underwhelming in other instances where those with slightly higher Perception could easily see through it. But in this castle filled with Good and Evil Puppets, Yu Hua’s skill became a powerful tool for confusion.
Additionally, they had two twins who had entered with them, and with the Good and Evil Puppets, there were now four identical individuals—a perfect setup for coordination, which had propelled this unorganized group to the fourth floor.
However, their strength was no match for organizations like Morning Star and Manjusaka.
At the beginning, when there were many players and Puppets, they could still maneuver among them. But as the game progressed, this group had accumulated Points but lacked the strength to back it up. Once separated, they became easy prey for other organizations.
For them, the Man in Black Robe was a perfect advantage.
Rather than trying to earn Points to exchange at the Stargazing Platform or simply hiding, capturing the Man in Black Robe and laying low would ensure their safety and maintain their ranking.
Yu Hua was tempted.
But she wasn’t blinded by the opportunity. She remained behind the Stairway, waiting to observe the situation between Morning Star and Manjusaka before making her move.
She whispered to her teammates, “Xue Wan only wants Points and won’t let the Man in Black Robe go. Xu Miaomiao won’t back down either. They’re bound to clash. When they do, some of us will go out to cause distractions—be careful, none of us are a match for them—while others will follow me to steal the Man in Black Robe.”
Meanwhile, in the room where Yan Wei and the others had hidden, five people were now crowded together.
Aside from Lin Zhen’s True Self, their Blackbird team was complete.
Yan Wei listened to Lin Zhen’s voice over the communication Item. The man sounded as carefree as ever, with no trace of the earlier danger: “I really just fought them a bit, nothing serious. I even injured one of them. You’re just trying to play the ‘two tigers fight, one benefits’ game, right? When I lured Xue Wan away, I noticed their team is indeed strong in combat. Xu Miaomiao won’t fare well in a direct confrontation.”
Yan Wei frowned, “You still didn’t follow the plan.”
“Hey, hey, why so harsh? I’m already on my way back. Nothing happened, and I even weakened Xue Wan’s team.”
Before Yan Wei could respond, both Yu Feizhou simultaneously said, “Yan Wei is just worried about you. He’s just not saying it.”
Yan Wei: “…”
Lin Zhen: “…”
After a few seconds of silence, “Yan Wei” was the first to speak, “…Sometimes, it’s not necessary to be too honest.”
Yu Feizhou nodded, “Alright.”
Yan Wei: “…”
“Yan Wei”: “…”
Lin Zhen: “…”
Outside, there was a sudden loud noise, as if a heavy blade had struck a wall. Yan Wei closed his eyes, focusing his Perception carefully to avoid Xu Miaomiao and Xue Wan’s positions, sensing the surrounding situation.
Xu Miaomiao’s voice, filled with rage, distorted her otherwise clear tone, “Xue Wan, are you only good at fighting!?”
Xue Wan merely chuckled, “You teamed up with others to trick me. Did you not expect me to fight back?”
It seemed Xue Wan wasn’t paying attention to Xu Miaomiao’s words. Every few sentences Xu Miaomiao spoke, Xue Wan’s actions interrupted her. Yan Wei listened as the rest of Morning Star’s members closed in, forcing Xu Miaomiao to retreat while fighting, looking quite disheveled. She excelled in strategy, but even with two of herself, she was steadily losing ground.
Despite this, Yan Wei could hear from the commotion that one of the Xu Miaomiaos was moving heavily, clearly still carrying the Man in Black Robe.
Yan Wei’s eyes remained closed, a slight smile forming on his lips.
Everything was going as he had planned. Even though Xu Miaomiao had various speculations about the sudden appearance of the Man in Black Robe and had directly confronted Xue Wan because of it, she wouldn’t return the Man in Black Robe to Xue Wan.
It wasn’t because she was foolish, but precisely because she was too smart.
The moment she received the Man in Black Robe, she must have known someone had stolen him and then tossed him to her to divert trouble when they encountered Xue Wan. She knew it, but she would swallow her frustration and accept the blame.
Because she was too smart. In that instant, she could see the Man in Black Robe’s potential. She immediately understood that for Manjusaka to take first place and surpass Morning Star, taking the Man in Black Robe was a wide shortcut. Manjusaka had both strength and brains. Taking the Man in Black Robe, capturing more people, and then finding the right moment to rush to the Stargazing Platform to exchange Points would easily secure first place.
This was a pre-packaged disaster, but also a golden opportunity.
Xu Miaomiao had no idea that “Yan Wei” had brought the unorganized group hiding in the shadows, and with Manjusaka’s other teammates nearby, she naturally dared to try.
Xue Wan was too confident, Xu Miaomiao was too smart.
In the end, it was Yan Wei who benefited.
Listening to the commotion, Yan Wei knew his plan was on track—soon, Yu Hua and the twins from the unorganized group would make their move. After the two tigers fought, the fisherman would profit, and then he would play the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.
At this moment, aside from the sounds of battle outside, it seemed the surrounding players were moving away. These players either lacked the strength to intervene and fled at the first sign of trouble, or they knew the power of Morning Star and Manjusaka and wanted no part in the chaos. But as players scattered, a few others were rapidly approaching.
Morning Star’s members were already at the Stargazing Platform, so those approaching were likely from Manjusaka.
As for the unorganized group, they were still hiding in the back, probably waiting for the right moment.
They would have to wait a bit longer.
Yan Wei withdrew his Perception and looked up, just catching the gaze of the other Yan Wei—he had also just withdrawn his Perception. As identical copies of each other, they had been doing the same thing.
They waited for the collision of the three forces outside, and the room fell silent. Only then did Yan Wei have the chance to look directly at this identical version of himself.
The last time they had met, they were at odds. Back then, they hadn’t yet grasped the core of this instance, and their cautious natures had led them to immediately treat each other as enemies. Yan Mingguang had even nearly killed the other Yan Wei when the situation was still unclear.
Now, they stood facing each other, looking into one another’s eyes. Yan Wei couldn’t help but feel a sense of doubt—was he truly the real one?
Even though Yan Mingguang, for some reason, was so certain that he was.
Yan Wei looked at the other him, and the other him looked back at Yan Wei.
After a moment, they both thought of the same thing and simultaneously turned their heads to look at Yan Mingguang. Yan Mingguang’s gaze had been fixed on Yan Wei the entire time. Even with the appearance of another identical Yan Wei, there was no hesitation in his eyes, as if only Yan Wei existed in the room.
So when Yan Wei turned, his eyes met Yan Mingguang’s.
Through his glasses, Yan Wei saw the pure black pupils, devoid of any doubt. If he could see his own expression at that moment, compared to Yan Mingguang’s, he himself wasn’t as resolute.
“So—” the other Yan Wei spoke, “I’m the Benevolent Automaton.”
Not a question.
A statement.
Even though they didn’t know the basis for Yan Mingguang’s certainty, since Yan Mingguang was so sure and he fully trusted Yan Mingguang, then Yan Mingguang’s judgment was his basis. This logic, Yan Wei understood, and so did “Yan Wei.”
“So I’m a being born from the instance,” the Benevolent Automaton Yan Wei smiled, showing no shock or confusion upon learning his identity, but rather a sense of intrigue, “This feeling… is very novel, very useful.”
They were so clear about the Benevolent Automaton and the True Self. If it came down to a critical moment, Yan Wei’s greatest advantage over others was that he could sacrifice the Benevolent Automaton to protect the True Self.
The Benevolent Automaton said to Yan Wei, “You take the lead.”
If the Benevolent Automaton died, Yan Wei would be unharmed and could continue to solve the instance and escape. But if Yan Wei died, the Benevolent Automaton would lose all will, becoming a completely mindless Puppet in both body and soul. For the Benevolent Automaton existing within the instance, this was no different from death.
So now that they knew who was who, at the appropriate time, they could even make sacrifices.
The Benevolent Automaton Yan Wei understood this, but he harbored no negative feelings.
They didn’t need to say anything, because they understood themselves. Just a glance was enough for all their plans to run through their minds.
——Suddenly, there was a soft sound of the door opening.
Yan Mingguang and Yu Feizhou immediately drew their weapons, ready to strike, but the newcomer closed the door, lazily spinning a longbow, “It’s me, it’s me—oh, I should’ve masked my face. Then I could’ve fought Yan Mingguang.”
Both the True Self Yan Wei and the Benevolent Automaton Yan Wei spoke at the same time, “Did you run into any trouble on the way back?”
“Nope,” Lin Zhen’s attention was drawn to the two Yan Weis, “Well, well, two little pets. How come you and Yu Feizhou can get along so well? When I saw my Benevolent Automaton, I just wanted to beat that idiot pretending to be me to death.”
Yu Feizhou added, “And you did indeed try to beat him to death.”
Yan Wei: “…”
Sometimes, the honest words of an honest person sound more like sarcasm.
