HI Chapter 173

“May I ask a presumptuous question?” Song Cheng’an suddenly spoke up.

Yan Wei had already taken a few steps back, but upon hearing this, he paused and turned his head slightly to glance at Song Cheng’an. He simply nodded slightly without saying a word.

Song Cheng’an, having received permission, finally relaxed a bit. He asked, “What is your purpose for reaching the top this time?”

He didn’t ask the usual ‘why’ questions, as their current relationship didn’t warrant such discussions. Moreover, those questions were no longer necessary. Only the purpose and outcome mattered now.

Ahead, Yan Wei’s eyes curved slightly as he smiled, “To exchange for Pandora’s Box, wish for an end to everything, and use the Tower’s own power to destroy it.”

Song Cheng’an was momentarily stunned—this was exactly the same goal Yan Wei had during his last ascent to the top.

He had watched Yan Wei walk past him years ago, moving further and further away until he reached the end. After several twists and turns, he now found himself at the end, unexpectedly walking towards it alongside Yan Wei once again.

After saying this, Yan Wei turned and continued walking back. The secluded path was rarely traveled, and he left footprints in the soft snow, resembling a quiet passerby.

Song Cheng’an stood still, watching Yan Wei’s retreating figure. After a while, he sighed with a smile.

He wasn’t sure if he had arrived at a fortunate time or an unfortunate one. Originally, those who entered this instance were high-level players who believed they had a way out and possessed some ability—he was one of them. But now, it seemed that there had been some struggle between the Tower and Yan Wei, and Yan Wei had ultimately entered this instance.

At this point, whether the descent path could be found was uncertain, and what this instance would ultimately become was another matter. Others thought it was just about defeating the opposing faction, unaware that the greatest struggle in this instance wasn’t between players, but between players and the greatest force in this world.

He wasn’t sure if it was luck or misfortune.

He had entered to survive, but now he faced the greatest life-and-death consideration.

The Tower had specifically arranged for factions to confront each other, likely to wear Yan Wei down.

Yan Wei aimed to perform a great good, to find an end for everyone, but before that, he had to step over the bones of others, abandoning the smaller good between individuals. Had such choices been made during V’s grand first ascent?

Song Cheng’an shook his head, dismissing these thoughts, and prepared to carry out Yan Wei’s instructions meticulously.

Meanwhile, within the Tower’s projection, Yan Wei’s statement, “Wish for an end to everything, and use the Tower’s own power to destroy it,” caused a huge stir.

Song Cheng’an’s question, seemingly aimless, sounded to others like a simple inquiry into Yan Wei’s intentions.

—What he intended to do was challenge the Tower itself.

“Does he really have such ambition!??”

“The Tower won’t tolerate it… Although the Tower seems to merely maintain the operation of instances, I heard that last time when V reached the top and challenged the Tower’s authority, he was targeted.”

“Different, right? Who is V? This can’t be compared.”

Xue Wan chuckled, “Ambition is one thing, ability is another.”

Xiang Ying said, “We’ll see.”

Elsewhere, where Ding Xiao and Xu Miaomiao were, no one dared to discuss anything—Ding Xiao stood at the front, smiling as he held a dagger.

Except around Ding Xiao, the rest of the Tower was in an uproar.

High-level players mostly didn’t care about lower-level matters. Most of them had never seen Yan Wei, and even if they heard a few words from lower-level players, they wouldn’t watch Yan Wei’s previous instances during the top-level projection. And they, standing high, were the least likely to believe that someone could suddenly rise higher.

On the outskirts, where non-high-level players gathered, the discussions were entirely different from those in the inner circles.

“Such bold ambition. I remember him; he ascended quickly when he first appeared, then disappeared for half a year at the 49th level. How did he reach the top so fast…”

“I lost a bet on his first instance.”

Ning Yi stood in the crowd, looking up at the distant projection in the sky, her cold expression slightly moved. She thought of Yan Wei in the 9th-level instance—in the blink of an eye, he was already in the 99th-level instance, declaring such bold words to destroy the Tower.

She also found Yan Wei’s words unbelievable, but for some reason, watching his retreating figure from Song Cheng’an’s perspective, she couldn’t help but smile slightly.

Further away, Gao Ming squeezed through the crowd, muttering to the person in the projection, “Good luck.”

Yu Zhengqing sat in a small pavilion, staring at Lin Qing for a while. He saw Zhong Bufan still sorting out his logic, while Lin Qing calmly waited for Yan Wei and the others to return.

He was puzzled.

Song Cheng’an was extremely cold towards him, but treated Yan Wei with utmost kindness. This Lin Qing wasn’t in a hurry to resolve the trust issues with the Blackbird and their group, instead leisurely waiting for Yan Wei and the others?

There seemed to be something he didn’t know among these people.

Yu Zhengqing immediately sat up straight.

This worried him more than just Lin Qing having issues—to survive in this instance, dealing with ghosts wasn’t enough; they also had to deal with opposing faction players. If there were secrets within the same faction, the consequences could be significant.

In that moment, he suddenly worried. What if it wasn’t just Lin Qing who might have issues? The last method they used only allowed them to verify, but couldn’t completely confirm. What if both Yan Wei and Song Cheng’an had issues?

“I’ll go check other parts of the academy. Zhong Bufan, don’t wander off, lest Lin Qing takes advantage.” He stood up, planning to secretly see what Song Cheng’an and Yan Wei were discussing, perhaps even finding an opportunity to take Yan Wei aside for questioning—after all, Yan Wei seemed the easiest to break among them.

Zhong Bufan, preoccupied with Lin Qing, naturally didn’t stop him. Lin Qing also wouldn’t hinder him.

Yu Zhengqing got up and headed in the direction where Song Cheng’an and Yan Wei had left.

Guanyin Town had been in a state of panic for so long. When the academy first opened, many outsiders came, making it lively, but these days, even the outsiders noticed the atmosphere. Plus, someone had died mysteriously today, so there were hardly any people on the streets.

Yu Zhengqing walked for a while, thinking of quietly finding Yan Wei, when suddenly a white figure appeared ahead.

Yan Mingguang, dressed in a pure white robe, his cold demeanor blending with the snow, seemed to merge with the surrounding whiteness. Yet, the chill around him was more oppressive than the snow itself. Even though he stood still, Yu Zhengqing abruptly halted.

He blustered, “Why are you here?”

Yan Mingguang turned his head to look at him, his pitch-black eyes reflecting the snow, chilling to the core.

Yu Zhengqing instinctively took a step back.

In the next moment, Yan Mingguang suddenly stepped forward, his long whip slicing through the air!

Yu Zhengqing, in shock, quickly pulled out an item to defend himself, but Yan Mingguang’s speed and strength were overwhelming. In that instant, with data that seemed to crush him, Yan Mingguang’s whip struck him with such force that it sent Yu Zhengqing sprawling to the ground.

Yu Zhengqing groaned as he fell into the snow. In the blink of an eye, Yan Mingguang was already in front of him. His expression unchanged, it seemed the action hadn’t cost him any effort. He effortlessly bent down and took one of the sealing talismans used to suppress the female ghost from Yu Zhengqing’s person.

This item was crucial to the instance’s success, and now it had easily changed hands. Yu Zhengqing’s face turned pale.

Yan Mingguang simply retracted his whip, glanced at the sealing talisman in his hand, and said calmly, “You sneaked out alone, planning to find an opportunity to take action against Yan Wei. Drop that idea. If you become a burden to him, I won’t mind violating my principles…”

The sealing talisman stayed in Yan Mingguang’s hand for only a moment before he tossed it casually into the air.

The talisman floated at an angle, and Yan Mingguang disappeared from sight.

Yu Zhengqing quickly got up and grabbed the talisman, glancing around before hurriedly hiding it back in his sleeve. He took a few deep breaths, pulling himself out of the oppressive presence Yan Mingguang had exuded. Once he regained his composure, Yu Zhengqing had completely lost any intention of causing trouble for Yan Wei.

Yan Mingguang, who had always been by Yan Wei’s side, rarely spoke and seemed like just a slightly cold ordinary player. But when he acted, Yu Zhengqing didn’t even have a chance to react!

Although Yan Mingguang didn’t finish his sentence about violating his principles, Yu Zhengqing could already imagine the consequences if Yan Mingguang were truly angered.

If Yan Wei were truly from the opposing faction, and Yan Mingguang could so easily take his item, why would he bother with such thankless tasks?

Though Yu Zhengqing felt indignant, he knew Yan Mingguang’s move had intimidated him and directly made him realize that the Blackbird’s players couldn’t possibly be from the opposing faction.

He brushed the snow off his clothes, grumbling, “I don’t know what’s so great about this Yan Wei, that everyone…”

Yan Wei walked a short distance before seeing Yan Mingguang waiting for him ahead.

“I thought it wasn’t convenient for you to come in?” he approached.

Due to the mission, he hadn’t seen much of Yan Mingguang these past few days. Now seeing him suddenly appear, Yan Wei quickened his steps, reaching out to grab Yan Mingguang’s sleeve.

But Yan Mingguang was faster; before Yan Wei could grab him, his hand was already held in Yan Mingguang’s palm.

“Mr. Bai has returned,” Yan Mingguang said, “I sent him a visiting card and came in.”

Yan Wei nodded, and they walked together towards the entrance of Guanyin Academy. Not long after, Song Cheng’an sent him a message, saying he and Zhong Bufan had planned for Yu Feizhou and Yu Zhengqing to investigate the opposing faction’s players, while Lin Qing and Lin Zhen would take on the roles of one acting openly and the other intercepting opposing players in disguise to confuse them.

Before he could even leave the academy, Song Cheng’an had already arranged everything. Yan Wei was somewhat surprised—Yu Zhengqing and Zhong Bufan didn’t trust him much, especially Yu Zhengqing, yet Song Cheng’an had managed to sort things out so quickly.

While he was still processing this, Yan Mingguang asked beside him, “What did you find out today?”

“I received a side quest related to the origin of the female ghost. I think this side quest is essential; we need items to suppress the female ghost, and knowing more about her is definitely beneficial. Moreover, completing this side quest will also reveal the numbers of both factions, which is crucial for our current situation. I really don’t want to waste too much time and energy on internal conflicts among players.”

His greatest enemy was the malevolent force parasitizing the Tower, not just the few players before him.

They had already reached the entrance of Guanyin Academy.

For some reason, Yan Mingguang paused slightly and said, “Know the numbers of both factions?”

“Yes, according to the prompt, it should tell me how many of the 25 people who entered are on our side and how many are in the opposing faction.”

Yan Mingguang looked at Yan Wei, his gaze deep and his expression unchanged.

They had now reached the academy entrance, and Yan Wei’s attention was completely drawn to the people at the door.

Outside the academy, a luxurious carriage stood on the street, surrounded by faint heat waves, indicating that someone of considerable wealth was inside, with a large stove even in the carriage. In front of the carriage, besides the coachman, there was a servant-like person talking to the academy’s page.

As Yan Wei and Yan Mingguang walked out, he listened carefully.

The carriage seemed to be from a place called Shen Residence, clearly a prominent family in Guanyin Town. The master of Shen Residence had heard that Mr. Bai had returned and had come to pay a visit. But the page’s words were somewhat hesitant, and after a while, he politely declined the request, indicating that Mr. Bai wasn’t keen on meeting.

Yan Wei glanced at these people, his perception slightly extended, but didn’t detect the presence of any other players. The person in the carriage wasn’t a player.

He simply noted the existence of Shen Residence and continued with Yan Mingguang towards Wanhua Tower.

Guanyin Town had been quite unsettled in recent years, with fewer people willing to go out unless necessary. Many small theaters and brothels had closed down, and Wanhua Tower was one of the few brothels still operating. So Yan Wei didn’t have much trouble; after asking a local, he easily found his way to Wanhua Tower.

Wanhua Tower was located near the seaside, but fortunately not right by the sea, surrounded by streets. From Wanhua Tower, one couldn’t see the pitch-black seawater, so the Black Sea didn’t affect its business much. As Guanyin Town’s largest brothel, even in this snowy weather, several hostesses stood at the door, their exhaled breaths mingling in the cold air.

Yan Wei had originally only intended to investigate the female ghost’s matter. Today, he was in his normal state, and it was safer to act with Yan Mingguang. He hadn’t thought much beyond that.

But when he and Yan Mingguang approached the entrance of Wanhua Tower and saw the scene, Yan Wei suddenly felt something was off.

To investigate the female ghost, they needed to find the hostess related to the Phoenix Flower Card.

To find that hostess, they had to enter Wanhua Tower.

To enter Wanhua Tower, they had to tell the hostesses at the door that they wanted to go in and pick some hostesses.

Yan Wei: “…”

…He was bringing Yan Mingguang to pick hostesses.

Beside him, Yan Mingguang remained composed, standing straight, while Yan Wei’s eyes darted around.

He suddenly regretted it, wanting to find an excuse to do something else first and come back to Wanhua Tower alone later to investigate. But as he and Yan Mingguang stood on the path, far more conspicuous than the passersby, the hostesses at the door immediately noticed them and approached, smiling, to lead Yan Wei and Yan Mingguang inside.

Yan Mingguang stepped forward first, walking through the threshold without a glance.

Yan Wei had no choice but to follow resignedly.

It was still daytime, but the brothel was already filled with music and singing. On the central stage, several hostesses in bright red dresses were dancing. The area in front of the stage was bustling, with colorful lanterns hung all around, creating a bright and dazzling atmosphere.

Yan Wei wore a smile, his eyes exuding a charming aura, his long fingers holding Wanhua Tower’s flower card, carrying himself with the air of a young master out for a good time.

Yan Mingguang, in his white robes, stood out starkly amidst the vibrant colors. His expression remained unchanged, exuding a coldness that made the hostesses dare not look directly at him, no matter how handsome he was. In such a place, Yan Wei was clearly more approachable.

A hostess approached them, looking directly at Yan Wei and asking, “What kind of hostess does the young master prefer? Let me find one for you.” With that, she gave Yan Wei a soft, inviting smile, leaning in closer.

Yan Wei maintained his smile but subtly stepped back.

This wasn’t his first time entering such a setting in an instance, nor was it his first time in a brothel. But in the past, he usually sneaked in during the night to do some covert tasks, at most climbing through windows. He had never entered so openly.

For a moment, Yan Wei didn’t respond.

The hostess asked again, coyly, “Young master? Does the young master like someone like me? Or does the young master have a preferred type? We have all kinds of hostesses here, let me find one for you…”

Beside them, amidst the music and singing, a man’s voice, steady and cold like snow-covered pines, suddenly spoke, “He likes someone quiet, taller than him, strong, and able to protect him.”

Hostess: “?”

Yan Wei: “.”