Humans Really Are Interesting Creatures

As time passed, night quietly fell.

The entire city fell silent, shrouded in darkness.

Standing at the hotel entrance and looking outside, all you could see was darkness, with heavy rain forming a long curtain of water under the eaves.

After carefully examining the layout of the hotel's first floor once more, Bai Zhi and OriginDeficit returned to the eighth floor.

Although the power supply was still working, they climbed the stairs just to be on the safe side.

When they returned to the eighth floor, everything in the room that had been combined from two rooms had been basically cleaned up, and all the broken stones and tiles had been cleared out and piled up in Room 8601.

The Curtain inside the room were drawn tightly, and outside the window, the increasingly heavy rain pounded against the glass, making a dense and complex sound.

Apart from the two people in the very center who were bound hand and foot and closely guarded, the other seven Player were scattered throughout the room, most of them on high alert.

Meanwhile, just to be on the safe side, a fire was lit early on in the very center of the room where the two rooms were combined.

It's common knowledge that Survival Quest get harder as you progress.

Given the current global upheavals, no amount of preparation is excessive.

What are your thoughts on this temporary, unexpected mission?

After putting down the Hotel Guide in his hand and pondering for a moment, West Pavilion Gardener had also triggered the quest, looked up at Bai Zhi and asked him a question.

"How else can we see? We just use our eyes."

Bai Zhi pursed his lips and took a bite of the Compressed Biscuits in his hand.

"There's only one Quest Reward, and there are ten of us in total. The [Dim Ark Heart] is at least a Perfect- Level Item. I don't think anyone would pass up this opportunity, right?"

"How about we draw up some rules here?"

After a moment of contemplation, West Pavilion Gardener made a suggestion.

"Whoever among us completes this task in the end, no one else should try to steal it out of Envy or under any pretext; otherwise, they will face a united attack from the rest of the team."

"And what about [Gelina]?"

Sitting cross-legged on the bed, Li Tong pursed his lips.

"If she completes this task, does that mean we should just give the other one to her?"

"Of course, she's not included."

West Pavilion Gardener shook his head with a smile.

"She's a complete Madman; nobody can figure out what she's thinking. And she attacked members of our team for no apparent reason from the very beginning, so naturally we can't tolerate her."

"That's right, kill that guy!!"

Li Changyu, who was locked inside the box, spoke up indignantly.

"I didn't provoke her, I didn't do anything to her, and yet my throat was inexplicably slit. That kind of Player is a complete cancer!!"

"That's natural. I have some past grievances with her, so now that I've run into her, I certainly won't let her go back alive."

Turning his head to look at Li Changyu, West Pavilion Gardener smiled and spoke.

"In addition, I have another personal request. If any of you complete this task, I am willing to represent the [Blood Cross Society] organization to purchase that Item from you at a high price, even at a premium. The price will definitely satisfy you. What do you all think?"

"Uh, that..."

"Hmph, not so great."

With a cold snort, Li Tong interrupted OriginDeficit was just hesitating to speak.

"I'll also put it this way: if any of you manage to acquire this Item, the Relevant Department are willing to purchase Item at a high price, even at a premium."

"You are... in the face of Anomaly, there are no national boundaries."

Turning his head, West Pavilion Gardener saw Li Tong and frowned slightly.

"The appearance of Noah's Ark in Binhai City already gives your Relevant Department a huge advantage, so why do you have to compete with me for it?"

"Before you say that, if you could get those people in your organization to stop always trying to do things behind your back, then maybe there's still room for discussion."

Li Tong wore a cold smile.

"The Noah's Ark incident in Binhai City was leaked by your people, wasn't it? This kind of thing should normally be a secret shared among a few Large Organization, but you extended that right to know to the entire Player community. Don't you know the consequences of doing that?"

"This kind of thing..."

"The recent Explosion at the docks, the large-scale smuggling invasion, and the various casualties caused by the exposure of Noah's Ark's location—a total of 172 civilians and 36 Player —how do you plan to explain these?"

Li Tong's voice grew increasingly cold.

"Also, the reason why the previous operation to wipe out the [New Humans] failed at the last minute was partly due to your secret help in their escape, right?"

"... I can only guarantee that I did not interfere in those matters."

After a moment of silence, West Pavilion Gardener spoke in a low voice.

"The Blood Cross Society isn't the only foreign force that has entered Binhai City. Why pin all the blame on us? I genuinely wanted to come and help."

"I can trust your character, but I can't trust the character of the other people in your organization. Can you guarantee that the Blood Cross Society isn't involved in these matters?"

Li Tong spoke coldly.

"If you can't do it, then don't take on so much. Just be your Tool Person and do it well. Why try to please both sides and make things difficult for yourself?"

"..."

"Humans are truly fascinating creatures..."

Holding a pillow, Chang Xi sat against the corner of the wall, watching the conversation between the West Pavilion Gardener and Li Tong in the arena. With one hand on her lap supporting her chin, Chang Xi's eyes were full of curiosity.

"What?"

While enjoying her melon, Fireworks of Romance suddenly heard voices coming from the side and turned her head with a slight puzzlement.

"I say, humans are very interesting creatures."

Holding up a finger, Chang Xi began to speak with a serious expression.

"They clearly share a common, powerful, and invincible enemy, and they're currently in an extremely dangerous situation, yet they manage to argue over all sorts of things at a time like this. Don't you find that interesting?"

"May I make a request to you?"

After thinking for a moment, Fireworks of Romance turned to look at Chang Xi and asked her with a serious expression.

"Hmm? What is it?"

"I'll transfer you 100 yuan. Take back what you just said and let me say it."

"Well..."

Before the other party could respond, Fireworks of Romance quickly turned around and assumed a pose. Then, mimicking the other party's earlier gesture, she rested her chin on one hand and uttered a sentence with a profound expression.

"As expected, humans really are... uh?"

Before she could finish her sentence, she saw someone staring at her speechlessly, their eyes filled with pity.

"Silly child, that's not how you gain authority. Do you expect me to break my scepter to show my loyalty to you two?"

Fireworks of Romance: "..."

"Alright, stop arguing. I'll handle this."

Turning around, Bai Zhi looked at West Pavilion Gardener and Li Tong, who seemed to still want to continue arguing, and began to speak lazily.

"Isn't it just for the Quest Reward of a task that hasn't even been completed yet? Is it worth it for us to start fighting amongst ourselves now?"

"I don't care about anything else, but I won't allow this kind of thing to fall into their hands."

With a soft hum, Li Tong turned his head away.

"If I complete that task, are you going to try and steal it too?"

West Pavilion Gardener frowned.

Don't you think you're being a little unreasonable?

"Reason? Might makes right."

Li Tong clenched his fist.

"I won't steal it, but I'll pay for it. That should shut you up, right?"

"... I won't sell it."

"Then let's force a sale!!"

"You..."

"Hey, hey, hey, do you really want to start a fight here?"

Seeing the duo about to say something like "humans are so interesting" again, Bai Zhi rolled his eyes in exasperation.

"I have a great solution that will prevent you from arguing again. How about you calm down and listen to me?"

"What method?/How to handle it?"

Since the previous escape from the Closed Loop was almost entirely due to him, Bai Zhi's words still carried weight. As soon as he said this, West Pavilion Gardener and Li Tong immediately stopped talking and turned to look at him in the same direction.

In fact, it wasn't just the two of them; everyone else in the room was also looking at him, curious about what perfect solution he could come up with.

After all, the point of contention between West Pavilion Gardener and Li Tong contained an inherent and irreconcilable conflict.

"It's very simple. Since the conflict between the two of you is irreconcilable, then just solve what's causing the problem."

Under the gaze of eight pairs of eyes filled with various emotions, Bai Zhi snapped his fingers.

"If I give this to any of you, you'll all have complaints, so I'll reluctantly accept it. Don't worry, I'll be the first to complete this task. I happen to need this thing too. What do you think?"

West Pavilion Gardener / Li Tong: "..."

"Indeed, humans are quite a fascinating species."

Leaning slightly forward, with one hand supporting his chin on his leg, Fireworks of Romance nodded with a profound expression.

Chang Xi: "..."

Just as West Pavilion Gardener and Li Tong were both speechless, a polite knock suddenly came from outside the door.