Sitting in a Row, Eating Fruit

The door to the Art Appreciation Room was ajar, with a crack through which the dim light inside could be faintly seen.

Yu Xing licked her slightly dry lips, a hint of excitement in her eyes. She was about to reach out and push the door, but when she touched it, she paused and instead turned her hand to the door and tapped it with her fingers.

As an art exhibition viewer, one should be polite to the renowned painters and exhibition organizers one is about to meet.

"Knock knock knock."

With his knock, the red wooden door creaked a few times, and a man's voice came from inside. "Come in."

Yu Xing withdrew his hand and suddenly felt an unusual sensation on his knuckles. He looked down and saw a faint red mark left where he had touched the mahogany door.

It was a little sticky. He put his finger under his nose and smelled it; it really did smell like blood.

The paint on the door of the Art Appreciation Room is blood? No wonder it has such a dark, ghostly color.

Yu Xing pursed her lips, this time deliberately avoiding the paint on the door, and put her strength into the doorknob, which was practically useless. With a gentle push, she opened the red wooden door.

The dark gray hue spread out from behind the door, and he squinted to make out what was inside.

The furniture and furnishings were nothing special. The space was large, and there was only a crystal wall lamp in front of the door, which seemed to make no difference to him. After that, all he could see was a black carpet with white patterns on the floor. He took a step forward, turned his head to look further inside, and finally saw the outline of a person.

Inside, there are sofas, coffee tables, a large round table, and thirteen chairs surrounding the round table. In the very center of the round table stands the brightest thing in the entire Art Appreciation Room: a large, glowing red crystal ball.

In the dim red light, the people inside sat around a round table. They were of varying heights, some over two meters tall like the ghost observers, and others similar in stature to outsiders like Yu Xing. Ms. Linda, whom Yu Xing had met once on the first floor, was among them.

Regardless of their size, they were now like shadows hidden in the darkness, their outlines blurred at first glance. Only their faces, illuminated by the red crystal ball on the table, appeared a dark red, almost like small apples.

When Yu Xing looked over, he found that the little apples were also looking at him. Their eyes, which were no different from those of living people, were looking at him with an indescribable eeriness, as if the apples had become ghosts.

Zhao Yijiu followed him in, and paused when she saw this scene. It looked like a meeting in the underworld... It was definitely not a good look.

"You are the first visitor to bring us a fake painting." The young man sitting at the round table closest to the inner wall spoke; his voice was the same one that had told Yu Xing to come in.

This person could be considered a man, after all, his voice sounded quite deep and resonant, with an air of authority. Yu Xing guessed that this should be the person in charge of the art exhibition, and the seat he was in could be considered the head seat.

The atmosphere in the Art Appreciation Room was clearly designed to intimidate outsiders, or to instill a sense of dread, as if they were thinking, "What kind of lunatics are sitting here? Will they kill me at the drop of a hat?" Judging from the overall color scheme, visibility, temperature, and the indistinct, shadowy figures, anyone who entered this room would unconsciously become tense.

Yu Xing, Yu Xing had already seen through their trick and remained calm, replying to the man who was speaking to him, "Yes, this is the answer we found after our search."

"Come in, close the door, come closer. Oh, by the way, you haven't introduced yourself yet. I'm the person in charge of this art museum." The man's voice was persuasive, making Yu Xing unconsciously think of certain charlatans posing as gods, and that feeling of déjà vu of "Please allow me to praise our great so-and-so."

He raised an eyebrow, suddenly realizing that the way this group of people sitting around the table with Little Apple products did resemble a gathering of certain religious sects—the atmosphere was just similar. Could these art museums really be connected to Wizard Cult?

Although many thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant, he obediently walked around Zhao Yijiu who was holding the oil painting, closed the door, and then led Zhao Yijiu toward the round table, stopping a few steps away from it.

From this distance, he could clearly see the face of the person closest to him; it was the fat man who was waiting for Ms. Linda on the first floor.

The man he was talking to was seated at the head of the table, flanked by two men in suits who appeared to be members of the art museum. Below them were painters dressed in various strange clothes. The fat man sat at the bottom of the table, suggesting he didn't hold a high position in the museum. Of course, it was also possible that the person in charge at the head of the table had deliberately placed his subordinates at the bottom to show respect for the painters.

"Can you be sure this painting is a fake?" the person in charge asked again.

"Since it has brought confidence, it's about 80% there. But I'm really curious, what will happen if we pick the wrong painting?" Yu Xing knew that if bringing a fake would guarantee a spot, then failure would definitely come with a penalty.

The penalties in this kind of instance are anything but lenient.

"If you've chosen the wrong painting, then it depends on which artist you're referring to. Every artist would find it hard to accept having their hard work questioned as a forgery." The person in charge spoke with a smile. "We prefer that the artist whose work you've questioned decide how to resolve this matter."

Upon hearing this, the nine painters sitting on either side nodded in agreement, seemingly eager to "punish" someone who had questioned their abilities.

"I understand." Yu Xing seemed oblivious to the hidden horror in Zhao Yijiu's words, and took the painting from her. "So, shall we begin the verification this time? Actually, I'm quite curious why there are fake paintings in this exhibition. After all, I paid for my ticket to get in, and to be told that the paintings in the exhibition are fake only after I'm inside is really irresponsible, isn't it?"

He spoke with such confidence that he paid for the tickets that Zhao Yijiu, who was standing next to him, almost believed that the two of them had legitimately visited the attraction.

The person in charge smiled upon hearing this, not avoiding the topic, clearly indicating that such inquiries were permitted in this instance. "Of course, if it's proven that the painting you have is indeed a forgery mixed in with the exhibition, we would be happy to inform you that the cause of this incident was that you were the only one involved."

"Oh? You can't tell my companion?" Yu Xing glanced at Zhao Yijiu, who was standing right next to him. Did this mean that if these things were brought up later, he'd have to be the only one left behind?

"Of course, we will only tell the secret to those who have made the contribution. As for whether you choose to relay it to your companions afterward, we will not interfere." The person in charge spoke calmly. "Oh, of course, before that, I need to confirm with you whether you found this fake painting or the person next to you? Your enthusiasm for these questions makes me subconsciously feel that finding this painting must be your achievement."

Zhao Yijiu frowned. He thought for a moment. The painting was definitely a fake, but the person who handed it over would be kept behind for a private discussion. He wondered if this was a trap.

However, just a second later, he stopped caring about the issue, because he realized that if it wasn't a trap, then Yu Xing should have been the first person to have a spot and receive the reward he deserved.

If it's a trap, judging from the current situation, Yu Xing's ability to deal with danger is definitely stronger than his own before he found the Stop Killing, making him more suitable for facing danger. Yu Xing definitely thinks so too.

Forget it, he's useless; he can't do anything right.

Zhao Yijiu said directly, "He found it."

Yu Xing nodded in agreement. "It's me."

The person in charge clapped his hands twice. "Then let's begin to determine whether this painting is truly a forgery. Please bring the painting here."

Undeterred, Yu Xing approached with the oil painting frame, then squeezed into the space between the fat man and a male painter, placing the painting on the table.

"Whose works are these paintings on display?" asked an old man Yu Xing had never met before.

"I found it at the Crodir booth," Yu Xing replied with a smile, maintaining impeccable politeness under the watchful eyes of this table of people, some of whom were clearly malevolent.

"Pfft." A tall woman laughed out loud, her tone laced with schadenfreude and a hint of mockery. "Hey, Crodir, they found the forgery in one of your landscape paintings. I don't even know whether to hope it really slipped in right under your nose or that it's one of your failures."

Clearly, the painters were not united in their hatred of the enemy; there were many intricate internal conflicts. Yu Xing glanced at the woman and figured that the only one who would mock a fellow landscape painter like Shirley would do so.

In the exhibition hall, he had been forced to listen to many of the discordant remarks between the two painters, because they were both landscape painters, one skilled in lines and the other in color, and each claimed their strengths as the essence of landscape painting, resulting in a direct conflict in their philosophies.

In contrast, a middle-aged man sitting opposite Shirley's expression changed upon hearing this. His face darkened, and he stared at Yu Xing with an almost terrifying look. "You'd better not have misjudged, or I'll show you the price of questioning a painter."

"Whether it's a mistake or not, you'll see for yourself. I'm sure you still have some recollection of your own drawing, right?" Yu Xing gave a forced smile, which, in short, made Crodir's teeth itch with anger.

The framed painting was passed from the table to Crodir. Crodir glanced at it, frowned, and said, "This is my painting, Dark River."

"It might resemble your underground river, but look closely—the lines of the river and the woman with half her head sticking out."

Yu Xing looking at this painting under the dim light of the red crystal ball was a bit of an strain on Yu Xing's eyes. He really couldn't understand why these painters would torture themselves like this, unless their eyes were structured differently than his.

He pointed out details in the painting to Crodir, leaving Crodir no room for rebuttal. "I love art and therefore admire you greatly. I know you never paint figures that overshadow the subject in your landscapes; presumably, your original painting would only feature an old man fishing. But this woman sticking her head out of the river clearly steals the show from the river itself, which goes against your style. And the lines in the river... perhaps that's Ms. Shirley's forte."

Crodir seemed speechless, his face flushed red from the sunlight, his complexion ashen. "You're right, this is a forgery of my work, ha, such a clumsy forgery."

Yu Xing curled the corners of her lips, thinking to herself, "Forgive my bluntness, but the painter who created this painting might have a stronger foundation than you, especially in terms of lines."

The fake, originally named Dark River, was passed around on the table. Every painter craned their necks, some curiously picked it up and glanced at it, then each showed a different expression—some were watching with amusement, while others were deep in thought.

Yu Xing also saw that a painter, who was probably the youngest present, couldn't wait to see the painting, so he tore off his head and presented it to another painter with both hands, admiring the work together. Blood dripped from his neck onto the table, and the mouth on his head was still clicking its tongue in amazement. "This painting looks quite interesting, but it's a fake."

"Yes, it's a real pity. I think the woman's head in the water is painted very realistically. Look at the makeup." Yu Xing joined the conversation among the painters quite harmoniously, leaning close to the head being held in two hands. "I have quite a good eye for art. I think if the painter who made this forgery were to one day paint in his own style, I would really appreciate it."

Watching this scene, Zhao Yijiu felt deeply out of place with these people.

Just then, he felt a gaze fall on him. Following his instincts, he turned his head and saw the person in charge sitting in the same spot, staring at him with a half-smile.

"Look how happy your friend is chatting. This spot is his. Are you really willing?" The person in charge's voice rang out in his head before he even opened his mouth. Zhao Yijiu subconsciously looked at Yu Xing and found that Yu Xing didn't seem to have heard the voice.

Was it meant for him alone?

"It seems you don't know what this spot can bring you. As the person in charge, I assure you that you will never regret having this spot that allows you to stay briefly after the art exhibition. Didn't you bring the oil painting all the way here? But when you got here, your friend just casually took it from your hand. Should your friend have done that?"

Zhao Yijiu sneered inwardly. Even he could tell that every word the person in charge said was meant to incite trouble. Things had come to this point, and the fact that the painting was a fake was a foregone conclusion. Instead of thinking about what to say to Yu Xing, this person in charge was secretly urging him to harm Yu Xing?

"Your friend has his back to you now, shh... right at your feet, there's a knife on the ground. Do you know what to do?" The person in charge's gaze softened and became encouraging. "For your own good, pick up the knife."

Zhao Yijiu glanced at the person in charge with the look of someone looking at an idiot, without moving. He felt that if he picked up a knife, his first action would be to throw the knife and turn the person in charge's head into a sieve.

However, he couldn't do that yet. Before the situation in the art museum instance became clear, if he were to kill an NPC, he didn't know if it would cause trouble for Yu Xing.

However, because of this incident, he became certain that these NPCs, led by the museum director, while needing help from outsiders, also harbored deep malice towards them.

Whatever secrets they might tell Yu Xing later, it's probably not something we can really trust.

"Didn't you understand what I said? Or is it because you have no idea how important the spots are?" The person in charge still didn't give up.

Annoyance was evident in Zhao Yijiu's eyes.

It's so fucking noisy.

He stared at the person in charge with a cold gaze, exuding an aura of gloom no less than that of a ghost. He even used a trace of the power of a vengeful spirit to make his eyes suggestive.

He gave the person in charge a subtle hint.

"Roll."