The Same Old Routine? No, That's Not Right!

Although JK and the short-haired woman had only mouthed their words, Xu Kai had seen them clearly. He was an "Evil" now, and in the instance, he had extraordinary senses and pain.

But Xu Kai gave no reaction. He sat quietly in the back, silently observing his surroundings and watching for danger.

After some discussion among the players, the car set off. JK looked delicate and frail, like a girl, but he drove with confidence.

He handled the steering wheel with precision. No matter how sharp the bend, he judged it in a single turn of the wheel, keeping the car firmly between the lines. It was a smooth ride. Xu Kai had to admit he couldn't drive that well himself.

He watched the road closely, thinking about where he would set an ambush if he were the Stone Statue Weird.

The best place was probably the stretch by the cliff. That was where it had happened last time, too.

Sure enough, when they reached the cliff, Xu Kai felt a thick layer of Weird Energy descend over the windows. The entire car fell silent.

Gulp.

The short-haired woman sat in the passenger seat, swallowing hard as she stared fixedly ahead. She held up much better. If Wang Hua had seen it, she would have started screaming already.

"Why did you all stop talking? Weren't you having a nice chat just now?"

JK sounded puzzled. His voice was still sweet and feminine, but no one answered him, not even Yellow Hair, who had secretly felt his heart stir.

Yellow Hair and the short-haired woman were both trembling. They stared fearfully ahead, their eyes slightly unfocused, as though lost in terror.

Only Xu Kai understood. So this was why the short-haired woman had arranged for JK to drive: JK could resist the illusion.

"Y-you can't see the Weirds up ahead? There are so many bloody handprints..."

Yellow Hair couldn't help asking. There were too many of them on the windshield. Even sitting in the back, he felt a chill down his spine and a crawling sensation all over his body.

"What are you mumbling about? I just think this bend is a little long. Don't worry, we'll be out of it soon."

With that, JK immediately turned the wheel. He was a newcomer and had indeed felt a cold gust just now, and he had been a little nervous. But after his talent made him immune to it, he immediately grew cocky. He didn't forget to show off, speeding up around the bend.

They made it around the bend smoothly, but afterward, JK saw a white light. It was an absolute white, and he couldn't see the road ahead at all. Yellow Hair and the short-haired woman covered their eyes. The short-haired woman murmured in terror,

"What is that? Why hasn't my talent given me any advice... No! Everyone, unbuckle your seat belts and buckle them again, quick!"

The short-haired woman didn't explain why, but Xu Kai had already done as she said. Afterward, he felt a wisp of black energy escape from the buckle, and a realization flashed through his mind.

So that was how the Stone Statue Weird had tampered with things in the previous instance, too, unbuckling the seat belts as the car went flying.

The white light drew closer and closer. Xu Kai could see it in his black-and-white vision, and he could also sense exactly what was ahead.

A speeding semi-truck! And the one driving it was an "Evil." The stench of Weird Energy coming off him made Xu Kai want to cover his nose.

Bang!

The moment everyone had refastened their seat belts, the semi-truck slammed into them head-on. The Funeral Car crumpled like a flimsy paper box, its front end rapidly flattening before it flew straight toward the cliff. The semi-truck didn't stop after hitting the Funeral Car. Instead, it followed the Funeral Car over the edge, intending to inflict a second blow.

Rumble, clatter, clatter.

The Funeral Car tumbled down the slope, shedding parts all the way. At last, it crashed down vertically, flipped onto its roof, and came to a stop at the bottom of the valley.

The group suffered heavy casualties; nearly everyone had at least minor injuries.

Xu Kai unbuckled his seat belt, pushed open the side door, and managed to crawl out. The short-haired woman was alive too; her airbag had protected her, keeping her from hitting the rocks at the side. JK wasn't so lucky. As the car rolled down the slope, a thick branch had pierced it and struck his neck. He was bleeding heavily, and it was already too late to save him.

Yellow Hair had been sitting beside Xu Kai. The back seat had fared a little better than the front, but not by much. His leg was broken, and a large patch of skin had been torn from his arm. He managed to tear up his clothes to staunch the bleeding, then struggled out from under the car.

[Mission complete. Reward: Weird Energy quality increased by ten percent]

At that moment, the game's voice rang out, like a piece of dark humor.

Hearing the same announcement as in the previous instance, Xu Kai understood the game's hellish joke of a ruling. It had determined that the players would not get out again, and neither would Xu Kai, so his role-playing mission had ended, as had the mission to seriously injure or kill the players.

It knew Xu Kai was about to die, yet it still gave him a reward. How touching.

"W-we survived?"

Yellow Hair was injured, but there was a trace of joy on his face. He felt he had escaped death. Survive a great disaster, and good fortune was sure to follow!

Only the short-haired woman looked despairing. She had been through two instances and naturally knew where they were. This was the slaughter zone!

They already had one foot in the grave; all that remained was to sign the papers.

Clearing the instance was even more unthinkable. The short-haired woman consulted her talent, but it could no longer offer any advice on clearing it. The coffin was also in the Killing Zone, and to clear the instance, they had to take it out with them.

Taking the coffin out from under a Weird's nose? What kind of war god would it take to do that?

Clang, clang, clang!

At that moment, the semi-truck rolled down too. The cab was lucky enough to land upright at the bottom of the valley instead of overturning.

Clack, clack.

The twisted door opened, and two silent men stepped out. One was burly, while the other was skinny.

"Hey, brother, give us a hand..."

Yellow Hair still wanted to talk to them, but the short-haired woman grabbed him. Small as she was, she was very strong, and she pulled him down into a crouch beneath the car. Xu Kai had already hidden behind the car as well. Immediately afterward, an ethereal sound rang out.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Gunshots. The two "Evils" actually had guns! And they opened fire on Xu Kai and the others!

Only when Yellow Hair heard the gunshots did he tremble with fear and realize how much danger he had just been in. He looked at the short-haired woman with gratitude in his eyes, their earlier conflict forgotten.

He also woke from his gaming dream and fully understood how cruel and terrifying the instance was.

The short-haired woman had no idea Yellow Hair was thinking so much. She frowned, thought for a second, and quietly gestured to him.

"See the mirror? Don't you have a talent? Can you steal what you see in it? Get those guns over here!"

"Huh? Y-you really do have a way!"

Yellow Hair heard Short-Haired Woman's words and slowly calmed down. Through the shattered rearview mirror, he could just make out the two figures. With a thought, two handguns appeared in his hands.

Without hesitation, Yellow Hair tossed one to the short-haired woman. Both of them completely forgot about Xu Kai throughout, and they stood up. Yellow Hair said arrogantly,

"Now do you know who's boss? Shooting at us? Do you even know how to use a gun?"

Yellow Hair confidently blew on the muzzle, aimed at the burly man, and pulled the trigger. There was a click, but nothing came out. His face went awkward in an instant. The short-haired woman rolled her eyes and said,

"You haven't even racked the slide!"

With that, the short-haired woman racked the slide, sending a hot cartridge flying out. Gripping the gun with both hands, she aimed at the burly man and fired another shot.

Bang!

Her aim was true, and the shot struck the burly man in the head. Thinking she had dealt with one of them, the short-haired woman was about to reload and deal with the skinny man when she saw the burly man still charging forward.

The short-haired woman froze for a moment. Even after going through two instances, she exclaimed in surprise,

"Th-this doesn't make sense. They... they aren't human!"

With that, the short-haired woman quickly regained her composure. She immediately backed away, preparing to rack the slide and fire again.

But the burly man was too fast. He rushed right up to Short-Haired Woman, knocked the gun away with a raised hand, then drew a knife and slashed straight at her throat.

At that critical moment, the short-haired woman was ready to close her eyes and await death. After a second passed without pain, she opened her eyes and discovered that the knife in the burly man's hand was gone. Yellow Hair had stolen it again.

Seeing that the knife had been stolen again, the burly man stopped pretending. Chilling Weird Energy poured from his hand as he seized the short-haired woman by the throat. One hard squeeze, and she would die.

"Cough, cough, cough."

The short-haired woman thought she was really going to die. She couldn't breathe and was about to lose consciousness when she felt heat at her throat and the burly man released her.

She looked up and saw that his entire body had caught fire. He was no longer targeting her, but had turned toward Xu Kai, the driver.

Was there such a miraculous power in this instance world? This driver was no ordinary man.

The short-haired woman understood that the driver had saved her. She was about to help when she noticed how fast Xu Kai was moving. She gave up on helping, because she couldn't keep up and would only get in the way.

Xu Kai had hidden in a corner. While the burly man was on fire, he ripped off the car's bumper and smashed it into him. The blow was so powerful that the man's head rang and bright red liquid flowed out. But the man used the force of the blow to grab Xu Kai's hand, grinning fiercely as he said,

"After Lord Weird Duke modified me, that's no longer my weak point!"

With that, the burly man extended his Weird Energy to contend with Xu Kai. Because he had not completed the instance, his Weird Energy was weaker than Xu Kai's, but the difference wasn't great. Xu Kai and the burly man were locked in a stalemate; Xu Kai would need about another minute to completely suppress and kill him.

The other "Evil" was the skinny man, and he charged at Yellow Hair. Yellow Hair slashed at him with the knife, but the skinny man ignored it. Enduring the wound, he seized Yellow Hair by the throat. Weird Energy flashed, and he strangled him to death instantly, before even the short-haired woman could save him. The short-haired woman then fought the skinny man. Although he was strong and his movements followed a style all their own, he was unexpectedly evenly matched with her.

For a time, the situation reached a stalemate. Xu Kai still had a lingering worry, because this was the Killing Zone, and the Stone Statue Weird had yet to appear.

"Ah!"

The burly man's Weird Energy was nearly exhausted. With a roar, he abandoned the contest of Weird Energy and suddenly lunged at Xu Kai, holding him tight. Then Xu Kai felt an arm pierce through his heart.

Xu Kai turned and saw that the arm belonged to the Stone Statue Weird. The Stone Statue Weird smiled smugly and said,

"Wasn't your talent danger warning? How come you couldn't even sense a sneak attack from behind? Material, I said you would die, and you definitely will!"

The arm withdrew, and Xu Kai instantly crumbled to dust. The burly man crumbled to dust along with him.

Before he died, Xu Kai saw the short-haired woman caught by the Stone Statue Weird as well. In an instant, everyone from the car was dead.