"Most likely, they tricked the information out of him," Qiao Qiao said. "It's a standard East District tactic. They do it every so often, whether you're a newcomer or an old member. If you're not good under pressure, it's easy to give yourself away."
"I didn't realize what had happened until after I got out. Thinking about it later, that therapist was just an ordinary person. How could he possibly see through a player's disguise?" Old Zhou sounded rueful. "But at the time, I didn't dare take the chance."
"Not necessarily," Qiao Qiao said. "From what I've seen, the East District has caught quite a few Outer District players this way. They even brought over a group from the West District yesterday."
"They're capturing Outer District players?" Xu Huo cut in. "Alive?"
"Alive." Qiao Qiao pointed at his wrist. "Have you seen those venomous-sting bracelets they use? They've got plenty of other devices like that. I've seen two captures. After the players were knocked out, they were taken away in stasis pods. I don't know where they were sent, but East District players took them away."
Old Zhou nodded. What he'd seen was much the same.
Qiao Qiao went on to describe his own mission. He'd chosen a free identity, something like a hitman who worked for pay. His mission was assigned by his employer: kill a therapist named Zheng Yuci.
"People in the East District take mental health very seriously. Agor Company employs a whole team of therapists, and Zheng Yuci is one of them. They usually stay at Agor Company's headquarters, where they also eat and sleep. The headquarters building is surrounded by several layers of barriers that aren't affected by space-time items or devices, so getting through them is difficult."
"I looked into the employer who posted