Chapter 143: Memory Wax Museum (Part 2)

Chapter 143: Memory Wax Museum (Part 2)

To tell the truth, it wasn't unusual to see Jiang Dao'an adopting this sarcastic tone, he would sometimes talk to Nie Shuangshuang like this in the past.

Nie Shuangshuang was rather obtuse, often failing to notice the sarcasm in his remarks, only finding his tone a bit strange and wondering if he had come up with some new ideas.

But while she might be oblivious, Qi Chanyang was someone with keen senses!

Moreover, the pointed remarks from Jiang Dao'an were highly targeted, leaving others puzzled but Qi Chanyang understood them swiftly.

They had interrupted a date, hadn't they!

Qi Chanyang promptly offered, "After we leave this dungeon, let me treat you both to a meal!"

Although a meal might not be a big deal for individuals with the wealth of Jiang Dao'an and Jie Fangcheng, it still served as a courteous gesture of apology.

Jiang Dao'an jabbed at him once more in a subdued manner: "Sure. I hope we can enjoy that meal without any sudden summons this time."

It's over! It seemed like Brother Jiang hadn't let go of his resentment at all!

Qi Chanyang looked to the sky with tearful eyes, lost for words.

Meanwhile, Jie Fangcheng had already exited the storeroom with another player.

The wax museum spanned roughly two hundred square meters, seemingly renovated from an old residential house. The uneven gray-white mud plastered on the walls was unpainted. The high triangular roof seemed to indicate a year-round use of a furnace inside, leaving a layer of greasy soot on the beams, giving off a discomforting sticky appearance.

The storeroom and the employee living quarters were situated on the second floor. Looking down from there, the first floor was packed with a plethora of wax figures with a yellowish hue.

The figures, both male and female, old and young, stood lifelike and silently, their faces displaying an eerie calmness.

It was sunset, and the golden-red light filtering through the narrow windows cast a bloody hue onto some of the wax figures.

In this bizarre-looking wax museum, tourists were now entering from the front door.

Of the five players including Qi Chanyang, two were “welcoming” in the second floor storeroom, while the other three were introducing the museum to the visitors.

"The Genuine Wax Museum was established twenty years ago. Over these two decades, it has been renowned for crafting high-quality wax figures, which are of extraordinary value whether purchased as gifts for friends and family or as personal collectibles."

The eleven individuals who arrived seemed a bit odd, with five appearing to be together and the other six forming another group.

Xie Fangcheng cast a glance and involuntarily let out a soft "eh".

He didn't bother lowering the volume of his exclamation, causing the people who were initially engrossed in the first-floor exhibition and commentary to lift their heads unanimously.

So green!

The three players were quite unaffected; when Qi Chanyang had mentioned calling for reinforcements earlier, although he didn't specify who he would be summoning, everyone had at least envisioned a remarkable candidate in their minds.

Now, with their fantasies realized, the expressions of the trio instantly relaxed.

Among the remaining eleven tourists, six appeared visibly astonished.

However, their surprise seemed not solely due to Xie Fangcheng's vibrant green attire, but seemingly spurred by another underlying reason.

These six exchanged knowing glances quickly, reaching some kind of mutual understanding, shifting their attention away from Xie Fangcheng to scrutinize the surroundings of the wax museum.

As for the cluster of remaining five tourists...

"Damn! The Green Light big shot?" someone blurted out.

The three players on the first floor swiftly turned towards the speaker, their faces a canvas of shock.

Recognizing the significance of Xie Fangcheng's green hue, could these five "NPC tourists" actually be fellow players?

A few individuals on the first floor exchanged bewildered glances, just as Jiang Dao'an also stepped out and happened upon this scene.

"Are those five below also players?" he inquired.

"Mhm." Xie Fangcheng nodded in affirmation.

Qi Chanyang's expression shifted immediately upon hearing this.

"A PvP dungeon..."

In a standard dungeon, once players enter together, they all share identical conditions for clearing the level.

However, in a select few dungeons, players are automatically divided into two factions upon entry.

In such circumstances, it is highly probable that the dungeon is a player versus player (PvP) type, where the conditions for victory for the two groups are not only different but diametrically opposed, essentially a zero-sum game.

With the general decrease in dungeon difficulty levels, how could a PvP dungeon emerge?

Qi Chanyang's brows furrowed deeply.

Jiang Dao'an silently observed the situation downstairs before retracting his gaze after a long pause.

Xie Fangcheng nudged him with his elbow, "Notice anything?"

Jiang Dao'an nodded slightly, "Somewhat, but it's still uncertain."

After saying this, he turned to Qi Chanyang, "What are your conditions for clearing this level?"

Qi Chanyang quickly replied, "To guard the wax figures and create five new ones."

Initially, there were six of them, leaving one person to spare, but now with exactly five people, it's one task per person.

However, speaking of which, there are also five players on the other side...

Qi Chanyang pondered from one thought to another, whereas Jiang Dao'an slightly furrowed his brows after listening, "Are you certain?"

"Huh?" Qi Chanyang hurriedly accessed the system notification, scrutinizing the message earnestly once more.

[Dungeon: Memory Wax Museum (Level 2)]

[Introduction: Hello! Welcome, new employee of the wax museum! Please grab your employee handbook and thoroughly go through the content to learn the artistry of creating wax figures. Although the museum harbours many works of art, the ones crafted by you are the best!]

[Content: In the wax museum, wax figures are akin to life! Protecting them is the duty of every employee, but remember, a competent staff member doesn't only guard but innovates as well! Take note! Seize every opportunity, you are still required to create 5 wax figures to be qualified!]

[Clearance Condition: Perfect Clearance.]

[No one has cleared this dungeon historically, the system will provide additional hints.]

[Hint: What is the true nature of the wax museum, do you care to know?]

After reading it, Qi Chanyang ran through the message in his mind once more.

"The system indicates that 'wax figures are life, and they must be safeguarded', while we also have to craft five new figures... and achieve a perfect clearance!" Qi Chanyang glanced at the first floor's wax figures, "Does this imply that we must ensure the safety of each wax figure to attain a perfect clearance?"

If their criteria for clearance is to take care of each wax figure, what could possibly be the clearance conditions for the opposing players? To destroy the wax figures?

What exactly is the “true nature of the wax museum” as hinted by the system?

The clues are just too scant!

On the first floor, the six NPCs seemed more like treasure hunters, busily examining everything around them since entering the wax museum, nonchalantly engaging in conversation without paying attention to others.

"...This one feels better than the last, so real."

"Touch this one, it's even more lifelike."

Their nonchalant demeanor created a disconcerting atmosphere.

It was apparent that these six NPCs were not particularly powerful, not even triggering Qi Chanyang's early warning skills.

Yet, in such a terrifying wax museum, their nonchalant exploration and pursuit of personal interests displayed a level of bravery, resembling the doomed protagonists in classic horror movies who wander alone in haunted houses.

As for the five players on the first floor... their faces were etched with distress and dread.

In this PvP dungeon, facing such a formidable entity on the opposing side, could they possibly secure any advantages?

Even without inquiring, all five players seemed to know, the chances were high that the opponents' clearance condition would be something along the lines of "Guarding the Wax Museum".

And their clearance conditions were: to uncover the truth behind the wax museum and to burn it down.

One glance and it's clear there's a conflict!

After huddling together for a while, they finally designated a representative.

Wearing a face of distress, the representative reluctantly managed a smile as he approached Xie Fangcheng on the second floor.

"Good day, boss. The five of us know we are no match for you. We just wanted to inquire if there might be a chance... you could possibly show us some leniency."

Saying this, the representative promptly pulled out about ten items from his backpack, pooled together by all five of them just a moment ago.

Randomly placed into a level two dungeon by the public dungeon system, these five players were relatively average in skill, having just graduated from the "newbie player" category.

But considering the items they had brought out, each person was essentially putting forth around two million on average.

Two million.

For Qi Chanyang, had he not participated in the [Digital Cruise] dungeon, the total value of his items and accumulated points would not even reach one million. A contribution of two million per person, clearly indicated their willingness to empty their coffers for a chance at survival, showing extreme sincerity.

It couldn't be helped, everyone was aware now that Ronghua wasn't the same as before, a few flattery words wouldn't suffice to request assistance.

Now, it required financial persuasion.

But given the current scenario, in a PvP dungeon, even if they handed over all their assets, it was highly unlikely to receive agreement.

They truly had no other choice, Xie Fangcheng had surpassed the ordinary player domain, did they, a group of level two players, intend to foolishly clash with such a person? Wasn't this sheer madness?

The representative arrived with an exceedingly humble tone, making Xie Fangcheng somewhat uncomfortable.

He uttered an "ah", reflexively turning his gaze towards Jiang Dao'an standing nearby.

Qi Chanyang keenly sensed that the resentful aura around Brother Jiang seemed to have dissipated.

However, these five players were truly at a loss, the PvP dungeon was a do or die situation, even with Brother Jiang present, there seemed to be no way out…

At this moment, Jiang Dao'an spoke, "Let me give it a try."

The player representative finally shifted his attention towards him.

Who is this person?

Clearly, not every player was keen on following the gossip, this representative had failed to recognize one of the top three formidable players currently trending on the forums.

Although he did not recognize him, seeing Xie Fangcheng's trustful demeanor, he chose to wait patiently aside.

Jiang Dao'an descended from the second floor, heading straight towards a tourist NPC.

With his gentle and cultured appearance, those unaware would assume him to be an erudite scholar, approachable and easily able to lower one's guard with his demeanor, if he so wished.

Since the other NPCs were currently chattering away, seemingly discussing plans for a meal together tomorrow, resembling a group of students visiting together, the buzzing environment made it impossible for the players on the second floor to hear what Jiang Dao'an was discussing with the NPC.

Before long, Jiang Dao'an returned.

"Boss, have you found anything?" the representative hastily inquired.

Jiang Dao'an simply looked at Qi Chanyang again, asking, "Is your mission truly 'protect the wax figures and create new ones'?"

Qi Chanyang couldn't understand why he was asking this, and for a moment suspected an issue with his own mission panel, quickly turning to another player beside him.

That player also nodded in confirmation, saying, "Yes!"

After a moment of reflection, Jiang Dao'an decisively took out a piece of paper and a pen from his bag and handed them to Qi Chanyang.

"Please transcribe the system notification you received without omitting a single word for me to see."

Is... is there really a problem?

Not understanding the rationale, Qi Chanyang could only comply, diligently starting to transcribe the notification.

Immediately after, Jiang Dao'an handed a similar set of writing materials to the representative who had arrived.

"You should do the same."

They both leaned their papers against the wall and began writing.

Xie Fangcheng became somewhat curious after a while, "What's going on?"

Jiang Dao'an directed his gaze towards the six NPCs on the first floor.

"I suspect, they are engaged in a game."

——"A game where one can save progress, resurrect, and restart."