I Want to Enter the Maze

Feng Ling was pondering what excuse she could use to ask the other party out when Su Yuqing suddenly called—

She answered the phone.

Su Yuqing spoke at a rapid pace from the other end. "Are you Bean Paste, the one who posted on the Forum?"

Feng Ling: "..."

The Supervision Bureau had reacted that quickly?

That didn't seem like a good thing. Maybe she shouldn't admit it.

Feng Ling began to deny it. "N—"

Before she could finish, Su Yuqing added, "Our network technicians traced Bean Paste's IP address to Xiuyuan Mansion!"

"N—not that I have a choice," Feng Ling said sheepishly. "Your investigation was pretty accurate."

"Feng Ling!" Su Yuqing's voice carried the furious indignation of someone whose defenses had been shattered. "Why haven't you reported something this important to the Supervision Bureau?! Do you know how serious the consequences could be?!"

Feng Ling froze for a moment. "I don't know..."

"If I knew the consequences were serious, I would definitely have reported it. It's not like I was deliberately hiding it." She asked earnestly, "So what consequences will there be?"

"..." Su Yuqing nearly choked.

"Anyway..." He took a deep breath and calmed himself. "Stay inside the apartment and don't go anywhere. I'm coming over right now. From here on out, you'll follow my arrangements!"

"That won't work." Feng Ling refused. "I still have things to do."

On the other end of the call, Su Yuqing stood in his office with an extremely ugly expression, his blood pressure climbing steadily as he nearly crushed his phone.

After a full thirty seconds of calming down, he gritted his teeth. "Wait until I get there, then we'll discuss it!"

After all, she was living in his place, so Feng Ling gave him some face and replied, "All right."

The call ended.

Feng Ling returned to her chat window with Daoist Priest Li.

The other side had not sent anything.

After delaying this long, wouldn't bringing up a video call be a little abrupt?

Next time... When the mood of their conversation was more pleasant next time, she could naturally suggest meeting. She believed he would not refuse.

In a good mood, Feng Ling set down her phone and looked at the leftover takeout boxes and dishes covering the table. She went to the kitchen for a garbage bag, returned to the dining table, packed the leftover containers and bones one by one, then carried them downstairs to the trash bin.

Someone must have gone through a breakup. A large bouquet of roses sat in the trash bin, paired with fresh baby's breath and lovely wrapping paper.

They even smelled rather nice.

Feng Ling hummed a tune as she carefully selected a few flowers and brought them back to the apartment, where she placed them in a vase.

When Su Yuqing arrived, she was arranging the vase with an utterly leisurely air.

It made him look like an idiot for rushing over in such a panic.

With an extremely grim expression, he walked to the sofa and sat down!

Then Zhou Diao poked his head in through the door, looking delighted to watch the drama unfold. He found a chair in the dining room and sat down.

Then came three familiar faces from the Special Forces: Qin Liang, Xiao Li, and Cao Hongyi. Dressed in casual clothes, they entered, shut the door, spread out behind the sofa, and solemnly took guns from their bags.

Feng Ling looked at them in surprise.

Fortunately, the apartment's living room was spacious enough that it did not feel crowded even with so many people there.

"Why did all of you come?" Feng Ling asked. "Don't you need to stay at the Supervision Bureau and wait for assignments?"

Su Yuqing sat on the sofa with a grim face and said, "Waiting here is the same. If there's a mission, it will probably be related to you."

Feng Ling smiled. "Captain Su, that sounds a little stereotypical."

"Get to the point already." Zhou Diao was impatient. He asked Feng Ling curiously, "Lao Su rushed me over here but didn't explain anything on the way. What exactly is this Hidden Boss thing? We're both Card holders, so why are you a Boss while I'm only an Elite Monster?"

"Don't slap those Xenomorph labels on yourself!" Su Yuqing snapped irritably, his tone awful. "Having a Card makes you C-rank. Having a high-tier Card and completing one digestion makes you B-rank. Having a high-tier Card and completing more than three digestions makes you A-rank!"

"Fine, fine, what I mean is, why am I B-rank..." Zhou Diao raised his hands in surrender, unusually obedient before the enraged Su Yuqing. "Which of A, B, and C does a Hidden Boss belong to? Feng Ling can't be S-rank, can she?"

What he truly cared about was why Feng Ling's rank was higher than his.

"It seems to be related to the Card's skill." Feng Ling looked around, found a tablet, and handed Zhou Diao the Forum post translated by Huangfu Miaomiao.

"I only found out recently myself. According to the Xenomorphs, the Hive Card was supposed to be a powerful support, but it was accidentally acquired by a human, so its skill mutated. The system wants to eliminate me, an anomaly, as quickly as possible, so it gave me the title of Hidden Boss to attract Xenomorphs into killing me."

Zhou Diao nodded after hearing that. "So it's not because you're stronger than me..."

Feng Ling said with a smile, "I admit your burst power is pretty good, but your endurance really isn't much to look at. Your burst duration is way too short, Deputy Captain Zhou."

Zhou Diao stubbornly retorted, "As long as I run into a Xenomorph, that amount of time is enough."

Su Yuqing got up and walked over, taking the tablet from Zhou Diao. He skimmed through it at a glance.

His frown deepened and deepened.

"There's an Inspector at Headquarters who can possess Xenomorphs and use their Forum function. They don't monitor Forum activity around the clock, but Headquarters will find out about this sooner or later. The higher-ups will definitely send people to Qingjiang to investigate the Hidden Boss."

Su Yuqing sighed. "When that happens, I might even get a written reprimand for failing to report it despite knowing."

He looked at Feng Ling and said, "For the next few days, don't go anywhere. I'll have Zhou Diao and the Special Forces members stay behind to protect you. Once Headquarters sends someone over, we'll see how to arrange things for you."

Zhou Diao crossed one leg over the other, a trace of mockery appearing on his face. "How else would they arrange her? They'll definitely recruit her directly, then transfer her to Yanjing or Yunhai City."

Feng Ling listened to them going back and forth, her expression deeply speechless.

"I don't have time to wait for them to arrange me." She emphasized again, "I still have things to do."

Su Yuqing no longer had the energy to get angry. He earnestly advised, "At a time like this, can't you put whatever it is aside for now?"

"No." Feng Ling shook her head.

Su Yuqing was frantic. "What could possibly be more important than your own personal safety?!"

Feng Ling pressed her forehead with some difficulty.

She had not wanted to tell them...

For one thing, she was used to making all her own decisions. For another, she was not close enough to the people from the Supervision Bureau to that extent.

But the trip into the Maze might not go smoothly, and she might not even find the Idol. Everything was unknown.

Her wishful thinking last time had already made her suffer the consequences. She should be more cautious this time...

"Damn," Zhou Diao muttered, staring wide-eyed. "Lao Su, look at that expression. It's like she's about to give her last words."

Feng Ling: "..."

Well, that was not far off.

If she failed to lower her Corruption Value and could no longer remain rational, she would have to hope these people would give her a quick death, rather than let her cause a catastrophe and become a sinner condemned for eternity.

Sigh. The lifelong nightmare of East Asian children—always afraid of causing trouble outside.

Feng Ling cleared her throat and told them, "I want to enter the Maze."

Ah, today is the last day of the PK! I wonder if I can advance. I'm so nervous!