Another Teammate, Another Collaboration

The mouse was bewildered.

It didn't expect that as soon as it emerged, it would be met with a sharp silver light.

Looking from the tip of the blade to its tail, and recognizing that the person wielding it was a knight...

Huh? Wait a minute!

Why is that knight wearing Prison Helmet?!

The mouse stared wide-eyed, its tiny eyes, no bigger than mung beans, at its "teammate" who could kill it at any moment, and excitedly raised its paw.

But as soon as it raised its claw, Cheng Shi used another Scalpel to pull its claw away.

"If I were you, I wouldn't move around like that. If it happens again, I won't hit your claws, I'll hit your head instead."

Attention, my good teammate, Mr. Beast Tamer.

"...?"

The mouse was confused again. It squeaked twice in a hurry, as if it wanted to say something, but how could a mouse speak human language? So it tried to raise its paw to gesture, but it silently put its paw back down halfway.

There's no other reason than fear of death.

Cheng Shi watched as it raised its paw again, and then thrust the Scalpel forward, piercing its fur and squeezing out a small drop of blood from beneath its skin.

"Squeak! Squeak!"

Seeing the rat's anxious look, Cheng Shi frowned.

He knew that Beast Tamer had a talent for speaking animal language, but he wasn't sure if Beast Tamer had transformed into beasts had the talent to speak human language. So he stared at the mouse in front of him, which was stomping its feet anxiously, for a moment, and then suddenly asked:

"You're not Su Wu?"

The mouse nodded vigorously!

"Are you Li Yi?"

The garlic was mashed even more vigorously!

"..."

Holy crap, Li Yi Beast Tamer?

No, he really is a Magician. Although the Purification Card looks a bit off, the Honesty card should be fine. So, how did Li Yi turn into a mouse?

Cheng Shi frowned and thought hard but still couldn't figure it out. The little mouse looked at Cheng Shi confusion and kept squeaking anxiously.

It stretched out its paw and pointed at the ground. Cheng Shi raised an eyebrow and smiled, "You only have one chance."

The mouse nodded and carefully wrote a few Chinese characters, each the size of a fingernail, on the ground with its toes.

"I am Li Yi, Soul Parasite."

I see!

Cheng Shi suddenly realized that the so-called "Purification Card" in Li Yi's hand were not Purification Card at all, but rather Soul Parasite cards originating from Mage!

No wonder the "Light of Purification" on that card was green back then; it wasn't the Light of Purification, but the Light of Soul Parasite.

However, Li Yi wasn't lying. The Soul Parasite talent, which is related to death, does indeed purify the host's low-level negative influences before parasitizing, making it easier for his own soul to take over the host's place.

It turns out that Li Yi had this plan all along. He never intended to exchange himself with the other prisoners. Instead, he was waiting for someone to die so he could possess their corpse and then escape by dying, just like Gao San did.

But the explosion probably killed his target group to death... no, or maybe it rotted away, leaving him with no choice but to parasitize that dead rat.

This also proves that he was not responsible for the explosion.

Interesting.

The plan is quite well-thought-out, but there's one thing...

Cheng Shi's gaze sharpened, and he thrust the knife forward, coldly snorting:

Why should I believe you?

"..."

The mouse stood there dumbfounded. After thinking for a long time, it wrote a few words with its paw.

"Help me find a corpse, and I can turn back."

After it finished writing, it carefully tore open a small tuft of hair under its belly, where a tiny, slightly glowing card of Soul Parasite was hidden.

It really is Li Yi.

To be honest, Cheng Shi had a much better impression of Li Yi than Su Wu. He couldn't quite put his finger on where this goodwill came from, but he just found him pleasing to the eye, even though both of his teammates were hidden under their Prison Helmet and their faces were obscured.

Perhaps it's because Li Yi is more like the Magician he imagined?

"So, you're begging me?" Cheng Shi laughed.

After hesitating for a long time, Li Yi wrote down two words: "Cooperation".

"Tch, are you kidding me, bro?"

"You're just a rat now, why should you cooperate with me?"

Cheng Shi neither refused nor accepted, and this attitude usually represents only one need:

You'll have to pay more.

After a moment 'Li Yi stated his price, writing:

"I know the way out. It's down there. There's an unfinished sewer that connects to another space, which will most likely get us out of this predicament."

With limited space, the mouse had to write and erase as he wrote in order to express himself clearly, but before he finished writing, Cheng Shi laughed.

"Oh, is that so? So if I just follow the trail you came from and dig my way through, can I escape?"

"..." The mouse stiffly stopped writing with its paws.

"Keep writing! Why did you stop? Did I tell you the right thing?"

You don't doubt my stamina, do you? You know I'm a Clown who Lies Like Yesterday, and I even stole the [War] Faith to become Battle Marshal. As long as you give me enough time, my healing power and potion reserves are enough for me to dig through the Isle of Hope.

At this point, what use are you?

The mouse stared at Cheng Shi with gleaming eyes for a while, then wrote four more characters on the ground:

"Master of Deception."

"..."

Now it was Cheng Shi's turn to freeze; his smile froze on his face.

I was careless...

I was fooled by the mouse's small size...

What happened?

Has Master of Deception become a standard skill for scammers?

How come I encountered a Master of Deception today after just bumping into a conman?

You should have said so earlier, were you just waiting to see me make a fool of myself?

Heh, it's me, the Clown.

Cheng Shi grinned, making his stiff smile even wider, and then smacked Li Yi on the head with the hilt of his knife, instantly making him dizzy.

"This is punishment for your dishonesty. It's been a pleasure working with you."

"..."

"I hope this isn't just your anger," Li Yi thought, covering his head with one paw and reaching out towards Cheng Shi with the other.

Cheng Shi was taken aback, but instead of reaching out, he simply handed over the tip of the knife.

The rat gripped the back of the knife with its paws and shook it solemnly.

"Are all Magician so focused on ritual?"

The mouse nodded emphatically.

Cheng Shi shook his head and chuckled:

"Alright, the terms of the collaboration are that you guide me to find my way out, and you need to act as my external 'Master of Deception' for a period of time. When someone lies, I hope you won't lie to me."

And I...

I'll let you go when the time is right and find you a corpse to parasitize, how about that?

Okay, it seems you agree. That's settled then. I happen to have a mousetrap...

What kind of look is that?

We're partners now, you have to believe me, am I the kind of person who abuses... animals?

"Clang—"

Li Yi was locked in a rat cage with no way to resist.

"..."

His claws gripped the cage bars, and his shocked gaze seemed to remind him of the moment the Trials began.

This time, however, he wasn't wearing Prison Helmet.

"Hey, tell me, if I used a Soul Parasite Card like you, could I take this helmet off?"

"..."

Li Yi and resigned himself to his fate.

He nodded, and then used his sharp fingernails to carve two more words on the bottom of the cage:

"Cooperate."

The meaning is clear: when he regains his true form, he can naturally help Cheng Shi remove this troublesome helmet.

Cheng Shi smiled and nodded, then hung the rat cage on his waist.

"Hold on tight, the Warrior Tunnel Boring Machine is about to start digging!"