Red Eyes and the Scavenger (Eight Thousand Words)

Seeing Xiao Xiao raise his glass to him with a smile, Old Man An's feelings were actually a bit complicated.

Logically, he should be happy. Having served as the guild leader of City of Rest for nearly forty years, he never believed that the young guild leader of Black Gate City could have any real skills, that he was just trying to attract attention. But what he saw now seemed to confirm his opinion. Judging from these few knights, Black Gate City was simply a disorganized mess. The knights had no respect, loyalty, or trust for the guild leader, only fear and suspicion. How could such an organization possibly survive in this chaotic and crazy world?

But strangely, he had a vague feeling that something was wrong, and a bad premonition was creeping into his heart.

Although the knights of Black Gate City were clearly not respectful or loyal to their guild leader, each of them displayed a rather tough attitude.

And now, even Mingming is not yet settled, Xiao Xiao's laziness and anticipation are making him uneasy as well.

It's like when you're in the underworld, you kidnap someone's wife, threaten him that if he doesn't sign a contract, you'll have someone take advantage of her, and then you even post a video saying, "Watch this, it's about to start."

Instead of being worried, the threatened guy asked with an expectant look, "Can the video be clearer?"

... It may not be the most accurate way to put it, but that's really how it is.

Old Man An knew that many plans might encounter Xiao Xiao unexpected events, and he always had enough patience to deal with all of them. But this time, he seemed a Xiao Xiao uneasy, and the reason was...

... Could there really be something wrong with this young guild leader of Black Gate City?

In contrast, in the City of Rest, while there was mutual suspicion among the people, they maintained a facade of peace and an uncomfortably friendly atmosphere.

In other places, however, bloodshed had already broken out.

Red Eyes Ling Ping, held Reversal Poker. He flipped the cards in the air with his left hand, and all twelve cards fell to the ground as if held up by an invisible hand.

His red eyes and black playing cards gave him an eerie air.

After releasing the cat, he remained calm and composed when faced with the ambush of knights from City of Rest. In a way, he even seemed to have a hint of contempt and dominance.

"You're courting death!"

His composure also made his opponents feel uncomfortable. Someone gave a cold, deep shout, and a buzzing sound filled the air. Then, a black shadow left several afterimages and instantly rushed in front of him.

A cold, sharp dagger tore through the air and grimly sliced into his throat.

Faced with this seemingly fatal blow, Ling Ping neither dodged nor evaded. Instead, he tilted his head slightly and caught a playing card in mid-air, putting it in his mouth.

"Laugh!"

While his action of holding the playing card in his mouth was somewhat stylish, it was ultimately not as fast as his opponent's throat-slitting move. Before the playing card even reached his mouth, a bright red line of blood had already been drawn across his neck.

The wound was about to burst open, and blood gushed out.

But at that very moment, Red Eyes Ling Ping caught the playing card in his mouth, and then, in the next instant, some strange force suddenly took effect.

Reversal Poker.

Class B Special Items

Each of the twelve cards can achieve some form of superficial rule distortion.

The moment Ling Ping bit the playing card, the wound on his neck suddenly disappeared. Immediately afterward, a gash appeared on his back, and blood instantly soaked through his shirt and dark suit.

He moved the wound to his back.

The same wound, the same length, width, and depth, but appearing on the throat and the back, have vastly different degrees of damage.

Ling Ping endured the pain in his back, and even his movements remained as free and stylish as ever. He gripped his right hand in reverse and rested it on the cane on the ground. A cold light flashed, and a slender sword appeared in his hand. Then he took a step forward and thrust straight in.

The posture is standard and aesthetically pleasing, a starting slash with a Western fencing stance, Royal Rose Thorn.

"Hmm..."

The man who had just slit Ling Ping's throat hadn't even recovered from the joy of killing his opponent when he realized something was wrong.

Before he could retreat, he saw a flash of cold light appear in front of his throat. Ling Ping's swordsmanship was elegant and beautiful, but equally vicious, and it was about to pierce his throat.

In that instant, he was filled with terror, and a muffled cry escaped his throat. He brandished his dagger to parry the sword, and at the same time, he retreated swiftly.

"Whoosh!"

At the same time, people attacked from both sides of Ling Ping, trying to force him to withdraw his Ling Ping to protect himself.

Ling Ping gritted his teeth and ignored the attacks from both sides, fighting for his life with his sword, seemingly willing to die to kill his opponent.

"Puff..."

The result was that blood suddenly gushed from both sides of his body. Large pieces of flesh were torn off one side, and a bloody hole that revealed his ribs was opened on the other. Despite this serious injury, his sword finally pierced the throat of the person opposite him. Just as he was about to pierce him through, the person's shadow flickered slightly, and his body turned into a phantom. His real body shifted thirty centimeters to the upper right, his face still showing an expression of panic and unease.

But it was precisely in those thirty centimeters that Ling Ping's sword missed its mark, and his life was rapidly fading away.

Before the knights of City of Rest could feel any relief, Ling Ping, who was on his last breath, suddenly reached out with his left hand and grabbed another playing card.

The moment his fingers tightened around the playing card, the surrounding scene shifted and reorganized.

Rewind one and a half seconds.

At this moment, Ling Ping had just transferred his wound and thrust his sword forward. The person in front of him retreated quickly, while someone attacked heavily from both sides.

This time, however, Ling Ping did not force his sword forward. Instead, he suddenly tilted his body to the side, took a step forward, and barely dodged the attack from both sides. Then, he suddenly thrust his thin sword upward.

"Puff..."

The sword tip pierced the City of Rest knight's throat in an instant, making it look as if a slender rapier had impaled him in mid-air.

"How is that possible?"

Those present felt a moment of disorientation, unaware that Ling Ping had stolen a second and a half of their time. They only saw Ling Ping engage the Knight of City of Rest in combat. In the blink of an eye, the opponent slit his throat, but Ling Ping seemed completely unaffected. Then, he suddenly thrust his sword forward. This strike didn't even have any Enhancement Element; it was truly just a simple forward thrust. Yet, the Knight of City of Rest couldn't dodge it and was pierced through the throat by the sword...

The death was too easy.

What kind of person can kill their opponent in the simplest way?

Someone whose strength far surpasses that of their opponent!

This unexpected scene caused everyone present to have their hearts pounding, and even a vague sense of dread crept in.

Ten knights of City of Rest surrounded him, but instead of subduing him instantly, they lost one of their own in the very first exchange.

Just how strong are the knights of Black Gate City?

"Heh, so City of Rest only sent people of your caliber to assassinate me?"

As everyone's hearts pounded, Red Eyes Ling Ping's bloodshot eyes grew even more sinister, a cold smile on his face, "Do you know Mr. Tao, the Vice Captain of the third ship of the Hell Organization's three most powerful fleets?"

"He's known as the Ghost of the Third Ship. For those who are enemies of the Hell Organization, his existence is more terrifying than the captain of the Third Ship. Legend has it that he can transform into thousands of forms and appear in various different places simultaneously. He can spy on any intelligence and assassinate any troublesome enemy in incomprehensible ways. Although he is only the Vice Captain, it's only because he prefers to stay in the shadows and didn't run for the captain's position. His strength is among the best in the Hell Organization..."

"But that's exactly who he is!"

"..."

As Ling Ping spoke in a low voice, his eyes grew increasingly bloodshot, as if dyeing the surrounding air red. Many people thought of the person he had mentioned and knew that such a person existed.

Ling Ping, certain they remembered this person, paused slightly, then smiled elegantly, "He's dead."

"Such a cautious person only made one mistake: he was guided by Mysterious Source and participated in the attack on our Black Gate City."

"I met him, and then, with a single sentence, I killed him!"

"..."

"What?"

Even in such a tense situation, Ling Ping's words still made countless people present feel a sudden chill.

This Red Eyes guy, is there any need for him to brag at such a critical moment?

Moreover, many people present could tell whether he was bragging or not, but those few who could tell all looked very ugly.

In other words, what he just said was actually true?

Even a figure like him in the Hell Organization was killed by him so easily?

And those of us from City of Rest...

Some distracting thoughts and negative emotions are completely beyond their control; they can't help but think about them. And once they start thinking about them, they feel that Ling Ping's eyes are becoming increasingly eerie.

Mr. Taylor, who had lured Ling Ping there, also felt extremely nervous and terrified.

He hid in the shadows under the streetlights, his mind growing increasingly panicked. In his mind, Ling Ping should have been easy to deal with.

After all, he was just a lowly knight from Black Gate City, not the guild master himself.

However, Ling Ping did not lose ground in his fight with the Knights of City of Rest. In addition, his words made Mr. Taylor's horror even stronger, and he even subconsciously turned his head away to avoid looking at his bright red pupils.

However, just as he turned his head, he suddenly saw another pair of eyes.

It was Ling Ping's cat. It had somehow slipped behind him and was staring straight at him, its eyes also blood red.

A strange emotion instantly seeped into Mr. Taylor's heart. He felt as if the air around him was becoming distorted and blurred, as if countless illusory faces were smiling at him.

In that fleeting moment of disorientation, he suddenly saw all these illusory faces rapidly overlapping. As these faces merged together, the cat ceased to be a cat and transformed into an elegant, handsome, and young man—the infamous guild master of Black Gate City. With a gentle smile, he slowly approached him, occasionally raising the hand holding the red plastic-handled dagger and licking the blade with his tongue. At the same time, his eyes darted sideways at him, his smile growing increasingly malevolent...

"Ah..."

He was so panicked he almost cried out, but the sound got stuck in his throat.

Opposite him, the fat Orange Cat looked completely bewildered, licking its paws as it watched the guy go crazy.

"It's done, we have a chance of winning..."

On the other side, Ling Ping, who was fighting the knights of City of Rest with a cold and noble demeanor, noticed a subtle change. The panic in his heart subsided slightly, but the blood vessels in his eyes became even more prominent.

Reversal Poker is the strongest weapon he redeemed, but it's not his ultimate move.

Red Eyes are the real deal!

[Special Dangerous Item: Ominous Red Eyes]

[Level: Class C]

[Ability: To trigger ominous events and arouse negative emotions deep within the mind and spirit]

[Note: When she was born, the moment she opened her eyes, she terrified the nurses, doctors, and her parents, causing them to scream. She was born with blood-red eyes, eerie and terrifying. The doctors and nurses were so frightened they couldn't hold their scissors, and her mother, overwhelmed by the emotional distress and weakened by prolonged malnutrition, died on the delivery table. Her father called a doctor, who diagnosed a retinal condition that wouldn't affect her vision. But no one believed him; everyone thought she was born with ominous eyes.]

These eyes were a curse that killed her mother at birth.

From childhood to adulthood, no one in her family liked or was afraid of her. The children and teachers at school also disliked her because children who got close to her would catch a cold or fever, and teachers who got close to her had their boyfriends cheat on them and their bonuses canceled.

[She was born with an ominous aura, until one day when she was almost grown up, her teachers and classmates were happily camping by the lake, while she could only stay by the tent.]

No one knows where that torrential rain came from. A fierce storm swept through the valley, and a flash flood swept away all the teachers and students by the lake. Only she survived, huddled in the tent.

Countless people angrily condemned her, cursed her, and wanted to gouge out her ominous eyes.

She wept bitterly, deeply blaming herself, and felt a fear of the world. She didn't want to be alone anymore, she didn't want her classmates or teachers, and even when they were dying together, they didn't want to take her with them...

Just then, a refined-looking man with a cane approached her and asked in a low voice if she would be willing to give him her eyes.

She agreed, so the man took her to an expensive hospital and brought in the world's best doctors. They performed the surgery, and when the bandages were removed, she looked at herself in the mirror and smiled gratefully, because her eyes were healed.

As she happily embarked on her new life, the man with crutches silently left the hospital, his eyes gradually turning red.

[...]

Ling Ping had forgotten why he decided to help that Red Eyes girl when he first met her.

Fortunately, for some reason, he only helped the girl heal her eyes, but he himself received such a precious gift.

These eyes aren't of a high level, yet they seem to possess magical abilities.

It can evoke negative emotions in people, whether it be malice, sadness, pain, anger, or fear.

So, he tried to use the power of these eyes from the beginning. However, these eyes were not so magical that they would control the other party just by looking at them. They needed to be guided. So, he deliberately said a lot of things, and finally planted the shadow of fear in the hearts of these people. And when he successfully planted this shadow, he gradually gained the ability to control this battlefield.

Of course, we have to thank our own president.

His reputation was just... too good, so good that I only teased him a little, and Mr. Taylor was so frightened that he lost his composure.

"No, no, that won't do..."

The shadow under the streetlight was trembling, drenched in cold sweat. "I think I really made the wrong choice..."

"That monster from Black Gate City will come looking for me..."

"I must make amends, I must gain Black Gate City's favor, so I have no choice but to..."

"..."

"..."

"Ling Ping seems like a low-key and honest person, but..."

In City of Rest, Xiao Xiao only watched Ling Ping's situation for a short while before losing interest, silently thinking to himself, "He's both a braggart and cunning..."

"I never realized he was so unreliable..."

"... Speaking of which, was he really the one who killed that expert from the Hell Organization back then?"

"... I knew there was such a person, but I never saw him appear from beginning to end."

"..."

"..."

The performance of Red Eyes Ling Ping, was only unexpected to Xiao Xiao, but it was Old Zhou Under the Bridge that truly surprised him.

Facing the drizzling rain around him, Old Zhou Under the Bridge and placed his hand on his black top hat when he suddenly felt a sharp killing intent coming from all around him.

He couldn't see anyone, but he could feel something passing through the rain curtain and instantly rushing towards him.

One of the four enhancement routes in City of Rest:

The Lost Ones Path!

Those who embark on this path will gradually lose themselves and integrate into their surroundings. But losing oneself also means that everything around us is a reflection of ourselves.

Almost every one of the City of Rest knights who made the move had reached the third stage of the Lost Ones Path.

Their figures disappeared into the drizzle, nowhere to be found, nowhere to be seen, yet they were everywhere in the drizzle.

In the blink of an eye, the killing intent had already reached him.

But all Old Zhou could see were scattered raindrops; he couldn't even see where they were, how many there were, or the trajectory of their attack on him...

But Old Zhou didn't dodge at all. He simply pressed his black top hat down and then shrank his neck. He was already wearing a tattered black overcoat, which immediately covered him completely. The killing intent that drifted in through the rain hit him solidly. However, some people hit his chest, some hit his back, and some even slashed at his neck with a knife, but these were all blocked by the high collar of his black overcoat.

Ding ding dong...

These attacks landed on him, but there was no sound of flesh being torn apart. Instead, it was as if they were being struck through a bag of garbage.

At the same time, as Old Zhou moved, a pile of garbage did indeed fall out from under his coat, including plastic bottles, cans, unfinished canned food, and even half a rotten durian.

None of these items had bullet holes or knife marks, as if they were hidden inside the coat, shielding Old Zhou from a fatal attack.

No one can explain how Old Zhou managed to hide all these things inside his trench coat, nor how much he actually concealed. What is certain is that it makes perfect sense for a scavenger to have such items on him...

The City of Rest knights, hidden in the shadows, were about to launch their next attack.

In this situation, there are only two ways to deal with Old Zhou: one is to force him to expose his neck or other vital organs.

Another approach is to relentlessly attack, refusing to believe that the trash he carries is inexhaustible and will eventually run out, at which point you can kill him with a single shot.

"Bang!"

While using the trash to shield himself from a fatal attack, Old Zhou took a steady step forward, suddenly scooping the snakeskin bag in front of him. It was impossible to tell what he scooped in, or even if he touched the hem of the lost souls of City of Rest, but Old Zhou looked as if he had already grabbed them. After scooping, he immediately gripped the opening of the snakeskin bag tightly, then slammed the bag horizontally on the ground, clenched his fist, and slammed it down hard.

Click.

The bag emitted the sound of bones being smashed, and seemed to contain screams of agony.

Old Zhou just gritted his teeth and kept punching, the sound of bones cracking and garbage being crushed echoing continuously, and even blood dripping from the snakeskin bag.

"I know your Lost Ones Path ..."

Only after smashing the person in the bag into a bloody pulp did Old Zhou slowly raise his head, his chin splattered with blood, his eyes beneath the black top hat gazing coldly into the misty rain.

"Since you are everywhere, why can't you exist in my bag?"

"Heh, are you, City of Rest, trying to force Black Gate City to abandon what you're doing by targeting a few of us?"

"Then I can only congratulate you..."

"..."

As he spoke, he slowly rose, carrying a garbage bag in one hand and pressing his hat down with the other, and walked slowly forward through the rain. His voice was low and chilling.

"There are rumors circulating that our Black Gate City's guild leader is a Collectors..."

"Heh, he only has a few special items, and he can call himself Collectors?"

"The real Collectors is me..."

"..."

As he spoke these words, the black top hat on his head became even more prominent, as if it had become the center of the entire city.

[Special Dangerous Item: Scavenger's Black Hat]

[Level: Class C]

[Ability: To collect and find forgotten abilities and things]

[Note: No one could understand his happiness. He was just an old man scavenging under the bridge, spending his days surrounded by garbage. He had no family, no friends, no home. When others saw him, he was always scavenging. At night, he slept in the garbage heap under the bridge. But he smiled every day, possessing a joy that others could not understand. Because he had a secret: he had a brand-new black top hat. He didn't know why such an elegant and clean black top hat would appear in the garbage heap, but he picked it up.]

Every night, when he returned to the bridge, he would put the hat on his head and feel like a millionaire, a gentleman of high society.

He slept in his own treasure trove, scavenging everything others discarded from the garbage heap, as if he owned the entire city, as if he lived forever amidst dazzling jewels.

[...]

[...]

"So... what route is Old Zhou taking?"

Even Xiao Xiao, in City of Rest, couldn't help but change his expression slightly when he saw Old Zhou with his hand on his black top hat, carrying a snakeskin bag full of garbage, and single-handedly enduring the storms of the entire city.

He subconsciously looked at Ruan Ruan beside him and asked the question.

Black Gate City has three established routes: Strong Soul, Insightful, and Hunter. But Xiao Xiao suddenly realized that he seemed to have no idea which route Old Zhou Under the Bridge took. This guy had never made a move in front of him.

Faced with this question, Ruan Ruan was clearly taken aback. "You're the president, why are you asking me?"

Xiao Xiao had a slight toothache. He hated it when people asked him questions like this: Does the president have to know everything?

Should the guild leader be concerned about the knights under his command?

... That seems to be the case, but I really don't have that habit!

But now, witnessing Old Zhou Under the Bridge, his heart sank slightly. He wasn't physically present to fully grasp the situation, but his keen observation revealed the terrifying nature of Old Zhou Under the Bridge.

This guy seems to have carved out his own path using his scavenging abilities...

... The Scavenger System?

Just moments before, during the brief exchange between Old Zhou and his opponent, Xiao Xiao noticed that Lao Zhou had used four or five different Enhancement Element. Each element was weak, but they combined to form a strange and terrifying power within him.

That shouldn't be...

Could it be that Red Eyes Ling Ping and Old Zhou Under the Bridge were deliberately hiding their strength from me?

Xiao Xiao had this suspicion, but he quickly realized that he was overthinking it and that the truth was not so.

The strength of the two wasn't due to Red Eyes Ling Ping or Old Zhou Under the Bridge, nor to the amount of points they secretly accumulated for enhancement. Rather, it was their inherent nature. The fact that they had survived from the Old Chairman's era demonstrates their inherent abilities. After assuming the chairmanship, the author's actions provided them with an environment to grow stronger, an opportunity to accumulate points during the war and unleash their potential. Thus, these two seized this opportunity perfectly...

Their strength has reached a surprisingly high level.

"Of course..."

Xiao Xiao couldn't help but feel a little dissatisfied again. "These two guys were able to grow up, and they benefited from it to some extent, didn't they?"

"But behind their backs, they're all so resentful?"

"Why am I not Collectors? If I'm not Collectors, then you're just a junk collector!"

"..."

Of course, compared to those two unpleasant remarks, the Serpent Sisters' performance was much more stable.

Xiao Xiao only glanced at it and noticed that after the three-headed hellhound appeared, the Serpent Sisters were clapping and cheering non-stop, and all that was left was to eat sunflower seeds.

He nodded helplessly. "It's confirmed, these two are still slackers!"

"I never imagined that Black Gate City would be teeming with experts these days..."

While Xiao Xiao could only accept all of this in astonishment, the old man opposite him, Old Man An, already had a grim expression. He could also judge the situation and had to admit that the performance of the four knights from Black Gate City far exceeded City of Rest's expectations. The outcome was still undecided, but the purpose of using them to threaten Xiao Xiao had already been achieved. City of Rest even felt a sense of defeat due to a miscalculation. Therefore, he looked up at Xiao Xiao with a piercing gaze. "Did Xiao expect this beforehand, which is why he sent those three out?"

"No."

Xiao Xiao turned to look at him and sighed, "I need to get those three items because they are the only three items I can find right now."

"The reason I sent all three of them was because I always felt that as the chairman, I did everything myself while they benefited from it, and I felt a little unbalanced..."

"..."

He appeared calm and his voice was sincere, but no one believed him.

Old Man An even scoffed at this. "You didn't intend to send these people there, did you? Were you sending them to their deaths?"

"No wonder it was so hard to convince you..."

He sighed softly and said to Xiao Xiao, "But I was talking to you with sincerity. Now that you've eaten and drunk, are you going to insist on a fight to the death before making a decision?"

"Of course not."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Xiao shook his head slightly, thinking to himself, "Ruan Ruan has eaten and drunk, but I don't have any chopsticks..."

While silently pondering the matter, he maintained a polite smile and said, "It would be best if you could ask your men to withdraw."

"Of course, I also have additional conditions."

"I just heard you say that you seem to know the whereabouts of the remaining four parts?"

"This whole mess was started by your City of Rest, but if you're willing to find the remaining four parts and give them to me, I can let City of Rest go..."

"..."

"Swish"

Hearing Xiao Xiao's words, the little knights beside the large round table suddenly turned their heads and looked over, their eyes flashing like lightning.

Is this Chairman Xiao so confident that he already believes Black Gate City has the upper hand and is even trying to negotiate with City of Rest?

But Old Chairman An was not flustered. He just smiled and said, "President Xiao, why are you in such a hurry? If even Black Gate City is gone, what use are these things to you?"

Xiao Xiao nodded slightly, withdrew his gaze, and looked at the last image.

Those were the three Grand Knights of City of Rest. They had already entered Black Gate City. Unlike the three knights of Black Gate City, who all encountered obstacles on their journey, these three Grand Knights were practically moving through empty land. They walked slowly onto the streets of Black Gate City. The streetlights around them gradually went out, and even the crowds on the road disappeared one by one. Behind them, dark clouds pressed down on the city, and the boundless ocean of spiritual power was compressed and trembled slightly as they moved forward.

No one stopped them.

They entered the city without being stopped, and even when they were almost in the city center, no one stopped them.

It seemed to them that Black Gate City was simply an empty city.

First day of the month, please vote!