Witch

After making a round of the Second Floor, Ji Xun and the Mechanical Arm Girl returned to Room 2013.

This was where they planned to ambush and kill the Fallen Witch.

His teammate had no intention of risking other floors, and neither did Ji Xun.

Their plan was to lie low here after killing the monster.

This Alternate Dimension was in "survival mode." They could leave after three days.

First, they had to survive the night.

"Finally done."

The Mechanical Arm Girl placed the last card in the room and muttered to herself, "If it weren't for all these Space Limitations, I wouldn't have needed to set up such a troublesome barrier."

The most important thing was finding a suitable bait. Once they did, that Calamity would surely come to this room.

Ji Xun silently watched her arrange card after card in specific positions around the room without asking any questions.

Including 2013, she had set up nine rooms in total: 2022, 2034, 2045, 2066, and more. One hundred and eight cards altogether.

A few other rooms were obviously just decoys, likely so no one could see the full extent of her arrangement.

Ji Xun noticed but did not expose it.

He was more interested in the cards themselves.

These cards, covered in mysterious rune patterns, were the source of the "magic" he had seen before.

They were cards imbued with miraculous magical power.

Ji Xun had heard the girl mention the term "Spell Card Master" more than once. It seemed this world's power system was related to cards.

And it was not just those magical cards. The physical capabilities of humans in this world were also extraordinary.

Earlier, Ji Xun had quietly observed the girl's every movement.

She could easily push and pull open iron doors that took all his strength to move. Her reflexes were absurdly fast, and her stamina was abnormal too.

Ji Xun estimated that her Strength Value alone was at least above "5.0," several times his own "0.71."

Even professional athletes from his previous life fell far short of that level.

And judging from what the girl had said, this was not some inborn supernatural strength. It was an ability that humans in this world could normally possess.

Extraordinary Power, magic cards, Calamity monsters, steam-powered equipment.

Piece by piece, the puzzle formed an increasingly bizarre picture.

Only then did Ji Xun gradually realize what an unusual world he had come to.

After finishing everything, the girl sat cross-legged on the floor.

Her cloak concealed her from head to toe, making her seem even more mysterious.

There was nothing left to explore on the Second Floor. All they needed to do was wait for nightfall and wait for the witch to come to them.

Then, as though recalling something, she glanced at Ji Xun sitting on the bed, took out a test tube filled with red liquid, and said, "This is an Energy Potion produced by Heidre Alchemy Factory. Drinking it will improve your condition. Of course, it costs 8,500 per vial. If we get out, the money will be deducted from your share of the loot."

"Fine."

Ji Xun did not stand on ceremony. He caught the vial she tossed over, hesitated not at all, pulled out the oak stopper, and drank it in one gulp.

It tasted cool going down. His withered, straw-like body suddenly felt nourished, and a wave of comfort washed over him.

When he checked his physical attributes again, he found them slowly recovering at a visible rate.

Seeing him drink the potion so decisively, the Mechanical Arm Girl asked with slight surprise, "Aren't you afraid it's poison?"

A faint, unconcerned smile flashed through Ji Xun's eyes as he asked back, "Is it really poison?"

The Calamity had drained him to half his life last night, and now he was panting after just one trip. If he did not drink the potion in his current condition, then if something went wrong, he doubted he would even have a chance to run.

When there was no choice, hesitation was nothing but a waste of time.

Caught off guard by the question, the girl paused for a moment before replying flatly, "No."

The Gas Mask concealed her face, making her expression impossible to read.

Still, she felt that a decisive teammate like this would take less effort to work with.

Not bad.

Ji Xun did not dwell on the subject and instead asked, "Right. How do you need me to cooperate tonight?"

At the mention of business, the Mechanical Arm Girl immediately perked up and explained carefully, "The Fallen Witch excels at mental control. Its shell is impervious to blades and bullets, and even if damaged, it can repair itself. So don't act recklessly when fighting it. Once it needs to absorb a person's essence, it will expose its vulnerable feeding appendage. That will be the best time to kill it."

"..."

As expected, he needed to cooperate to kill the monster. Ji Xun was not surprised in the slightest.

He understood it too. He was supposed to use himself as bait, wait for the monster to reveal its true form, then strike?

The risk sounded considerable.

The girl already had a complete plan, so there was no need for him to interrupt.

But he was more curious about something else.

After pondering for a moment, Ji Xun voiced a question that had been in his mind for some time, his meaning clear. "You seem to know this monster very well."

His teammate knew far too much.

It was like playing a game. There was no way someone could come up with such a mature killing strategy without having killed it many times before.

But she had said earlier that no one had killed this monster. And almost everyone who had seen it had died.

Cooperation required a certain degree of trust, so the question was not unreasonable.

The Mechanical Arm Girl had clearly expected this question and said directly, "Although records in Sinless City are scarce, I happened to read about this rare Calamity in one of the books I'd seen. Earlier, I got information from an Information Broker that there was a Fallen Witch in this Alternate Dimension, so I came in to take a look."

Sinless City?

It sounded like a place name.

Ji Xun silently committed it to memory.

He smiled noncommittally, but he did not believe that was the whole truth.

Though they had known each other only briefly, small details were enough to reveal much about a person.

The girl was well-equipped and could casually hand an apparently expensive potion to a stranger. She clearly was not short of money.

Though she deliberately hid it, the bearing she unconsciously revealed in her movements was not something disguise could conceal.

Wealthy, knowledgeable, well-bred—why would someone like that personally risk her life to hunt monsters?

Unless she was completely confident she could get out, or had some other unavoidable reason to come.

She was full of mystery.

Still, Ji Xun did not think that was a bad thing. The stronger his teammate was, the better it was for him right now.

After all, the Mortality Rate in this Alternate Dimension was nearly seventy percent.

Ji Xun wisely did not ask any more questions. The two sat quietly in the room, each keeping to themselves.

Before long, he noticed that the girl across from him had sat cross-legged, and an invisible energy field gradually began to surround her.

Was this some kind of Breathing Technique, or a secret cultivation method like meditation?

Ji Xun watched in silent amazement.

They stayed quietly together for several hours, tacitly agreeing not to speak again.

That Energy Potion was a huge help. After several hours of recovery, Ji Xun's various physical attributes had recovered by around twenty percent.

Though the "Weakened" label remained on his Attribute Panel, he was far stronger than before.

At the very least, his hands no longer trembled while holding that oversized revolver.

Finally, night fell.

Inside Room 2013.

Before they knew it, the familiar metallic sounds of clack, clack rang out.

The iron doors throughout the Second Floor locked shut.

Night had arrived.

This was when the monsters became active. They would roam the corridors, and any human not hiding inside a room would be killed.

The Mechanical Arm Girl checked the pocket watch on her Mechanical Arm, then turned to look at Ji Xun, who was lounging casually on the bed. Her tone held a trace of surprise. "You're calmer than I expected."

A B-Class Calamity was about to attack. She did not know why the man before her could remain so composed.

Ji Xun sat up as well and answered casually, "Panic is an unnecessary negative emotion for humans. Other than disrupting hormone secretion and causing poor judgment, it does nothing to solve the problem."

"..."

The Mechanical Arm Girl gave no comment.

She knew full well that his calm was not an act. During those hours of waiting, she had noticed his gaze observing her.

And she had been observing him as well.

In an Alternate Dimension with a Mortality Rate as high as seventy percent, ordinary people would find it difficult to remain so composed, especially when facing a B-Class Calamity.

She simply could not understand how someone who seemed so rational had rushed in so recklessly.

Thinking of something, the girl added, "When the monster comes, if you're still conscious, stay as calm as you are now. Monsters don't like food with strange smells."

"Mm."

Ji Xun chuckled. Was she worried he'd piss himself in fear?

But before they could exchange another word, the girl suddenly seemed to sense something. Her expression instantly turned serious. "Get ready. The witch is here!"

Ji Xun sensed it too.

Because he had also seen the familiar Revelation:

Mental Erosion Immunity

The distance was too great for the Mental Pollution to cause any substantial harm.

But clearly, the monster was right outside the door.

And getting closer.

PS: The new book is setting sail. I'm begging for all kinds of support, brothers—help me out~

Give me those votes!