Chapter 111

Chapter 111

Witnessing this, Liu Buhua felt that those who made it to the latter stages of this competition must have exceptional mental composure. Had these been two novices, they might have started arguing by now. Even if not, their expressions surely wouldn't be this calm.

Yet, the woman in the yellow skirt still had a radiant smile. At least based on her current demeanor, it appeared she didn't take the young man's provocation seriously. As for her inner thoughts, no one else could truly know.

She focused on the bamboo stick in her hand, looking at the number and asking Kulte, "Commander Kulte, this bamboo stick has a '3' written on it. Does it signify anything special?"

Kulte provided the answer: "It means you'll be paired up with the veteran labeled '3'."

As soon as his words ended, a woman from among the veterans stood up from her cushion.

She had a beautiful face, and her alluring figure was accentuated by the silver-white military uniform she wore. However, her personality seemed to contrast with her striking appearance. She spoke in a gentle and delicate manner, with a hint of eagerness, "I'm number three. Hello, my name is Mengni."

The woman in the yellow skirt walked towards her with a smile, reaching out for a handshake, and confidently said, "Hello, I'm Mu Yuji."

With that, the two had introduced themselves.

After them, a man in a suit also stepped forward, ready to draw.

Liu Buhua wanted to ask Xie Yinxue when they would draw, but he noticed that Xie Yinxue was intently staring at an unfamiliar man among the veterans.

The man, like them, wore a silver-gray military uniform, had jet-black hair and a handsome face. He wore no expression, but when he noticed Xie Yinxue's gaze, he slowly raised his eyes, revealing a pair of unusual-colored irises— they resembled the vast, desolate gray of ashes after a fire. Even from the side, Liu Buhua felt the cold and sharpness from those eyes, making it hard to meet his gaze.

Yet, the icy depth in those eyes melted into a soft warmth the moment he saw Xie Yinxue, as if the harsh winter snow couldn't bear to freeze the newly blossomed pear flowers in early spring.

Liu Buhua noticed this abrupt change in the man's expression and, seeing Xie Yinxue's unblinking stare, asked her, "Godfather, do you know him?"

To Xie Yinxue, Bu Jiuzhao's face remained as familiar as ever, but to others, it might not be the same.

Without revealing anything, Xie Yinxue countered Liu Buhua, "Don't you recognize him?"

"I haven't met him before," Liu Buhua said, his brow furrowed in confusion. He absentmindedly ran his fingers through his hair, adding, "But the way he looks at you... it reminds me of someone."

Xie Yinxue provided the answer, "Bu Jiuzhao?"

"Exactly," Liu Buhua nodded, his expression growing serious. "Their gazes are both filled with desire, a kind of desire to see just how pale Xie Yinxue's body really is..."

"...Enough, stop it."

Xie Yinxue interrupted, gesturing for Liu Buhua to remain silent.

On the other side, Bu Jiuzhao's lips twitched upward, seemingly amused. Xie Yinxue ignored his teasing glance, calmly walked over to the wooden table, and drew a bamboo slip from the container, stating, "My number is 1."

Liu Buhua assisted, asking, "Where's number 1?"

But even without Liu Buhua's help, Xie Yinxue could easily deduce who his partner would be.

As expected, the next moment, the man with the deep-set eyes rose with one hand on his knee, took a step toward Xie Yinxue, looking down at him, and said in a deep voice, "I am number 1."

Xie Yinxue: "..."

What kind of awkward conversation was this?

The man's towering frame cast a shadow that almost engulfed Xie Yinxue entirely, producing an overwhelming sense of pressure. Coupled with the bizarre exchange, Xie Yinxue couldn't help but look down, only to inadvertently catch a glimpse of a distinct contour on the man's uniform.

After a brief pause, Xie Yinxue looked up at Bu Jiuzhao, feigning their first meeting, and introduced himself warmly, "Xie Yinxue."

But Bu Jiuzhao quirked an eyebrow, a smirk forming, "Mu Xue."

Xie Yinxue echoed with a similar playful raise of his eyebrows, "Mu Xue?"

"Yes," Bu Jiuzhao leaned in, close enough for only the two of them to hear, whispering, "Mu, as in admiration, and Xue, from your name, Xie Yinxue."

Xie Yinxue responded with a smile, "Nice name."

The man in the suit interjected, "Isn't that a pseudonym?"

"Why care about his name? Just use the number," the girl in the white T-shirt who had earlier mentioned the cyberpunk theme said. Holding her bamboo slip towards the veterans, she introduced, "I'm Xie Aqi, and my number happens to be 7."

"My number is also 7, so we're a pair." Another girl stood up from her cushion, her peachy cheeks and almond eyes radiating beauty. She waved at the girl in the white T-shirt and introduced herself, "My name is Xiao Xingxi."

Xie Aqi complimented, "You have a lovely name."

"Thank you," Xiao Xingxi said, jogging over to stand beside her. "And about the style here, it's not cyberpunk, is it?"

Xie Aqi's eyes shimmered slightly, though her expression remained unchanged. "If it's not cyberpunk, then what would you call it?"

Xiao Xingxi furrowed her brows, pondering for a moment. "Post-apocalyptic?"

Xie Aqi inquired, "You're familiar with the post-apocalyptic theme?"

"Of course. I've read plenty of novels in that style," Xiao Xingxi replied, looking puzzledly at Xie Aqi as if she didn't understand the necessity of the question. "Is it strange to know that?"

Cutting to the chase, Xie Aqi asked, "You all are participants?"

Xiao Xingxi replied with a hint of resignation, "What else?"

Having observed their conversation, Mu Yujin turned to Xie Yinxue and others who were previously with her in the sealed cabin and commented, "I thought we were the only participants."

"We thought the same as you did."

A broad-browed, sturdy man stood up from his cushion, his face filled with surprise. "What's the situation? Were the participants brought in in two separate groups?"

Mu Yujin responded, "From what we can see, it seems to be the case."

"Damn! When we entered this instance and opened our eyes, we found ourselves in this meditation room, and our clothes had changed into these...things." The broad-browed man grimaced, pulling at his nano-protective combat suit and cursing, "Then Kurt walked in, calling us experienced veterans and told us to wait here. He'd bring the rookies to meet us. I assumed you all were NPCs."

"I'm not entirely sure either," Mu Yujin admitted, shaking her head. "Kurt said you're veterans. Do you have any clues or background about this instance?"

"Veterans, my ass!" The broad-browed man spat out. "I don't know a damn thing."

Xiao Xingxi sighed in agreement, "Neither do I."

Xie Aqi, looking at Liu Buhua still drawing lots, suggested, "Let's wait for them to finish and discuss afterward."

Five minutes later, the drawing was over.

The team assignments were also revealed.

As everyone teamed up with participants of the same number, they briefly introduced themselves. By the end, everyone had a general impression of each other—there were sixteen in total: seven women and nine men. Among them, "veterans" and "rookies" each numbered eight. However, they all realized that no true novice would appear in this instance.

Among them, a silver-haired young man named "Zheng Shu" paired with Chen Ningmo, a girl named Yuan Sining teamed up with another girl, Pan Ruoxi. The burly-browed man is called Feng Jinshan, partnered with a man in a suit, Zuo Changdong. Besides them, two men, Ye Zhou and Cui Haocheng, form a duo.

Worth mentioning is that Liu Buhua's partner is a petite girl with pigtails, endearingly named Dangdang.

It sounds like a pseudonym, but in the instance, names are merely codes. Whether genuine or not isn't of particular concern to anyone; their main focus is on the initial clues provided by the guiding NPCs.

Thus, after the draw and pairing were concluded, all eyes turned to Kurt, awaiting further details about this instance—

"It seems everyone has found their partner."

Kurt's gaze sweeps over the group, emotionless like a scanner, yet he speaks in a firm, resonant voice, "You are warriors, handpicked by the empire. And our assembly here is not merely to hunt Busapa Cha."

"Busapa Cha?" Feng Jinshan, puzzling over this unfamiliar term, comments, "What is that? Such a tongue-twister!"

"Busapa Cha is one of the thirty-six malevolent spirits documented in the 'Right Dharma Sutra', a flesh-eating ghost. Born in alleyways and temples, with an ugly appearance and supernatural powers, it craves human flesh."

Mu Yujia, gathering her long black hair to her right shoulder and playing with its tips, replies with a hint of a smile after finishing, "But in this world of science, 'ghosts' quite clearly do not exist."

Kurt affirms her words, "Correct, Busapa Cha isn't a ghost. They are man-eating monsters. They emerged on Earth thirty years ago from a crashed alien ship in the Ris River. Within a mere week, they consumed three hundred million humans. We named them 'Busapa Cha' based on their bloodthirsty nature."

Cui Haocheng remarks, "Fond of human flesh? Sounds very ghoul-like."

"Then just call them ghouls." Feng Jinshan grumbles, "Why go with such a complicated name?"

While most were still focused on Busapa Cha, Xie Yinxue picked up on another significant detail. He asks Kurt, "So now, how many humans are left on Earth?"

Kurt looks at him, extending three fingers, "Thirty thousand."

Xiao Xingxi is taken aback by the figure, covering her mouth in disbelief, "…Only thirty thousand left?"

Xie Aqi calmly advises her, "It's just a background for the instance; don't get too invested."

Liu Buhua finds this instance background intriguing. He's heard about animals nearly hunted to extinction for their taste but never imagined humanity nearing extinction due to consumption. He inquires, "Commander Kurt, were all the deceased directly consumed by Busapa Cha?"

"No," Kurt states, "They became Busapa Cha."

Author's Note:

Liu Buhua: Ah, another fan smitten by my godfather's charm.

npc：？