New Disappearance, Analysis, and Arrangements

"Another person has gone missing."

Upon hearing Old Zheng's words, Lin Yu did not hesitate and immediately reminded everyone.

The scene instantly became somewhat chaotic again.

"Another person has gone missing?!"

Yue Zhenqiao frowned and spoke, completely unaware of when it had happened.

Lin Yu also turned his head at the same time, carefully looking at the bodyguards behind him.

Without Old Zheng's reminder, Lin Yu was able to identify the missing person based solely on his Memory.

There were two men, one carrying a sword and the other with a wound on his left arm.

Although none of them were important figures in the escort team, there are now twenty-six escorts in the stone house, excluding the two who went missing at the beginning.

Lin Yu could tell at a glance that two were missing.

He strode to where the two men had just been—there were even traces of blood on the ground.

Lin Yu looked at the few bodyguards closest to him. "They were just here a moment ago, do you remember them?"

As Lin Yu spoke in a cold voice, the faces of the bodyguards showed confusion and fear.

"No..."

Is it right here?

Are you kidding me?

Lin Yu frowned, calling out to Old Zheng in his mind, "Old Zheng, what about them...?"

Before Lin Yu could speak, Old Zheng had already assessed the situation based on their reactions. "Their minds haven't been tampered with."

Lin Yu let out a sigh of relief.

"No? Then why is that?"

"Old Zheng, what about the two who went missing? Any clues?"

Old Zheng answered again, "No, it just disappeared with a 'pop'... One second the person was here, the next second they were gone."

"Of course, because my perception beyond Mental Power isn't that accurate, if those two guys hadn't realized what was happening, I might not have noticed their disappearance either."

Li Nian quickly came to Lin Yu's side, squatted down and wiped the ground with her fingers. Besides the bloodstains, there were also traces of people stepping on and sitting on the uneven stone bricks.

"The dust is thinner than elsewhere, and there are some broken spider webs," Li Nian twirled her fingers and looked at Lin Yu, "Sister Zhu Ming, how did these two grown people disappear?"

"Since all the Player are here, it must have been the work of Yaomo," Lin Yu said, turning to look at the three newcomers who were drawing their swords and preparing to fire their guns, and the Fei Dao that were trying to hide under the table to avoid the strange power that could make someone disappear instantly. "I don't think any of them has that kind of power."

Li Nian nodded. "That's true..."

After speaking, Li Nian stood up and then pulled out a shield and a pistol from the air.

"Hey you three over there—the situation is getting worse, we're returning your things!"

As Li Nian spoke, she threw the Item back from a distance.

After catching the shield, Little Fire Dragon instinctively said, "Thanks."

Deadshot interrupted Little Fire Dragon: "Why are you thanking her? Are you stupid? This was originally yours."

Squirtle laughed out loud, "Yeah, Little Fire Dragon... but I think I can brag about it a bit when I get out!"

"I've seen the Master Thief, and I haven't lost any [Item] yet..."

Before Squirtle could finish speaking, Li Nian magically produced a stack of scrolls.

"This is yours."

As Li Nian spoke, Squirtle's expression changed slightly, and he touched the sleeve of his robe.

"When did you get it?!"

Li Nian tossed the scroll back, grinning, "It was with the two of them, but you hid it well enough that you didn't even notice it yourself."

Lin Yu looked at Li Nian, filled with admiration, but also Bu Wang making a teasing remark.

"Impressive, but don't you dare steal my things."

Seeing Lin Yu's wary expression, Li Nian spoke with a grin.

"Then be careful, Sister Zhu Ming! Hide all your things well!"

After Li Nian returned all the stolen items, she looked at the trio who remained on high alert and couldn't help but remind them again.

"Hey, this Yaomo can make people disappear without a trace; you can't defend against it like this."

The Little Fire Dragon said somewhat discontentedly, "Then what do you suggest we do?"

Although only the bodyguards are missing so far, four people have already disappeared in less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn...

It's still long Noon; it's only a matter of time before the Player disappear.

In particular, too many of these bodyguards cannot go missing... in fact, the disappearance of most of them would be unacceptable.

After all, the six of them combined only had half a incomplete map. Without these escorts, it would be difficult to know how to get to Liu Town.

Lin Yu Leng Jing said, "Of course, we should analyze the existing information. You bunch of hopeless idiots... The common point we can come up with about the four missing people is that they are all relatively 'healthy,' at least there are no seriously injured people missing so far."

"Secondly... I don't know about the two from last time, but the two who went missing this time must be the type who are rather taciturn and don't interact much with others," Lin Yu said again. "The fact that these bodyguards instantly Oblivion their existence indicates that this Yaomo has some kind of means to alter people's perceptions... Although I have some knowledge of Mental Power abilities, so I can be certain that this phenomenon is most likely not achieved by directly tampering with the mind, the existence of 'perception modification' is an indisputable fact."

"The fact that people with simple interpersonal relationships tend to disappear first aligns with the pattern of this 'phenomenon'—the connections between people are like a net; the more connections a person has with others, the more gaps need to be filled when they disappear."

Lin Yu said this, and the other players and escorts were also confused.

"So, we should now focus on monitoring the members of this caravan who have the fewest friends and are the most taciturn?"

Deadshot She spoke, Lin Yu nodded.

"Yes, but after finding the similarities, we also need to find the differences... Let's find the differences among the rest of us."

"What I'm more curious about now is why these bodyguards experienced cognitive dissonance, while the six of us didn't?"

A simple explanation is the difference between Player and NPCs.

But...

Why is it that this difference allows him to clearly remember the appearance of those two bodyguards, while his colleagues with whom he spent every day have forgotten?

The fact that Li Nian clearly remembered those two people proves that this "cognitive modification" is indeed different for Player and bodyguards.

This... Lin Yu found it very strange, but he had no clue what to do about it for the time being.

While Lin Yu was struggling with his decision, Yue Zhenqiao understood Lin Yu's advice.

"Alright, everyone come over here... Those who are new to the business, those who don't usually drink with us, and those from out of town, come to me—let's all keep an eye on them and try our best not to give that Yaomo another chance to strike!"