Chapter 579: Who’s Really the Boss in This Area?

Chapter 579 Who's Really the Boss Around Here?

Shen Que and Fu Yanqi moved quickly through the empty orphanage, which was completely abandoned. Trash and spiderwebs were scattered everywhere, giving the place a dilapidated appearance.

Pushing open the dormitory door, dust billowed up, and a rotten, musty smell filled their nostrils.

Fu Yanqi asked, "Wu Yue stayed in an orphanage until she was 18—was it really like this?"

Shen Que replied coldly, "Yeah."

Fu Yanqi understood, "So you’re eager to go in and be with her—you’re worried she’ll be triggered by old trauma."

Shen Que nodded silently.

Fu Yanqi said, "Then you’ll probably have your points reset this round."

Shen Que, "That stuff doesn’t matter to me at all. All I care about is Wu Yue."

Fu Yanqi grew serious, "I understand that, but it’s been 19 years since the incident. This place is so decayed, it’ll be hard to find any useful clues."

Shen Que, "I’ll fill you in on the plot. If your points get reset this round, I’ll help you unlock the monster beast in the next one."

Fu Yanqi scoffed, "What are you talking about? Wu Yue is an important partner to me too—you think I care about that?"

Shen Que glanced sideways, and the two exchanged a knowing, murderous look.

Fu Yanqi provocatively laughed, "Shen Que, if Wu Yue had come to me to practice Arcane Arts together back then, there might not have been a place for you. Why did you, the latecomer, end up on top? Only because I didn’t fight for it."

Don’t think he didn’t know—Shen Que had been giving him the side-eye for ages. Rather than keep pretending, might as well lay it all out.

Shen Que, secure in his position, didn’t even regard this former rival as a threat.

"Why do you think my wife never asked you to spar? Don’t you get it? Right from when she met you, Wu Yue never had any feelings for you—she just saw you as a teammate."

Not like him. The moment Wu Yue saw him, she was at a loss for words. [smug smile]

They were destined, a match made in heaven, meant to be together.

Fu Yanqi was speechless. "...Shen Que, you’ve got a nasty mouth. If you’re so amazing, how come you let your wife enter the instance by herself?"

Shen Que’s expression instantly darkened. Spiritual thunder crackled around him as he and Fu Yanqi silently exchanged blows with sword intent three times.

Fu Yanqi asked, "Did you complete the instance yesterday?"

Shen Que, "The trickiest part of this instance is the growth path—you have to resist the orphanage’s control while searching for an escape route and saving the infant ghost. You can only complete the full path by initiating the encounter at the right time. To avoid affecting today’s instance rewards, I didn’t complete it or get the full storyline. Based on my speculation, the infant ghost’s true form is hidden among those 60 children."

Fu Yanqi, "...No wonder, then—whoever took Wu Yue was probably the final boss, the infant ghost."

Shen Que nodded, "Yeah. Based on what you said about finding the child’s item, can you sense who the infant ghost is?"

Fu Yanqi, "If the yin energy is strong... or... hold on! Let’s just go straight to the rooftop."

"If the negative energy is strong enough to connect with the same source of power as the Infant Ghost, we might be able to establish a portal even without a medium."

Shen Que snapped, "Let's go!"

...

Wu Yue propped her chin in her palm, her mind drifting. Back in the orphanage, she was frequently locked in the punishment room.

Regardless of who was right or wrong, or who started the trouble, if she was involved, she always ended up being the one scolded and punished.

She was such a poor kid—never had enough to eat or warm clothes, never receiving any special favor in the orphanage.

Every time she was locked in the dark, gloomy confinement room, she would peer out the window, hoping someone would suddenly appear to rescue her.

As she grew older, her heart grew colder, and she stopped expecting anything from anyone.

Suddenly, faint noises came from outside the door. Wu Yue turned her head calmly and saw a child slightly older than her. The fleeting hope in her eyes instantly faded.

She began observing the little boy, wondering who he was to her.

"Yue Yue! I sneaked here while the teacher was napping. Here, have something to eat!"

A hard, stale bun was tossed in. Wu Yue quickly picked it up and stuffed it into her pocket.

This thing wasn’t bad—it could work as a weapon in a pinch.

Kid Bro, thanks for having my back! It’ll give her an extra edge when she confronts the orphanage teacher in their final confrontation!

Wu Yue looked at Kid Bro’s teary eyes and waved her hand. "You should go. I don’t want to drag you into this.

I own my mistakes. I'm loyal to my friends and would never implicate a brother."

Kid Bro was even more moved. He wiped his tears with the back of his hand. "Yue Yue, I know you picked a fight with Da Zhuang because of me. He’s seriously hurt this time—I heard his whole head was bandaged.

The teacher said they’re sending him to the hospital, and we might never see him again.

Yue Yue, if it weren’t for you, I would’ve been bullied to death by Da Zhuang."

Wu Yue’s eyes flickered, her face dark and silent. Kid Bro sobbed for a while but got no response from Wu Yue, and his sobbing trailed off.

Until he suddenly lifted his head and stared at Wu Yue with a sinister expression.

"I’m crying so sadly. Why aren’t you comforting me?"

Wu Yue said, "You cracked too fast." So young, yet so lacking in subtlety.

Wu Yue added, "Are you afraid that if I hurt someone, you’ll be implicated? Do you think it’s safer for me locked in here than for you out there?

Why don’t you go bash someone’s head in too? Then we can be lockup buddies."

Kid Bro sneered, "Do you think I’m an idiot? Getting beaten up outside is one thing, but being locked in this confinement room means you’ll be visited by ghosts."

He gave Wu Yue a creepy smile. "Just wait. When night falls, a ghost will come for you.

No one who’s entered this confinement room has ever made it out alive."

Wu Yue asked eagerly, "Does this ghost need any specific trigger to come find me?"

Kid Bro’s expression turned cold and grim. "Just stay here, and it will come for you!"

Wu Yue realized that meant this confinement room was certain death.

But she wasn't afraid of ghosts—perfect!

That meant this confinement room was an absolute safe zone for her!

Eagerly, Wu Yue waited and waited... She even took a quick nap in between, but no ghost appeared.

Wu Yue, "..." Kid Bro, are you even reliable, seriously? How can someone so young be so full of hot air? He got her hopes up for nothing.

Wu Yue looked around and shouted for show toward the confinement room door,

"Let me out!"

"Quick, let me out!"

Her voice echoed continuously in the narrow confinement room until Wu Yue suddenly felt it sounding near and far.

The way the sound traveled seemed to have changed slightly, as if someone had suddenly appeared behind her, blocking the sound from reaching the wall.

A gloomy, chilling presence spread from the back of her neck. The sudden cold made her hairs stand on end, and goosebumps covered her body.

Wu Yue slowly turned her head. A pale, sickly bluish infant ghost with no pupils, floating in mid-air, was right beside her face, staring fixedly and grinning at her, its mouth stretched all the way to its ears.

In an instant, Wu Yue reached out and grabbed the infant ghost by the neck, trying to shove the [hard, choke-inducing bun] into its mouth.

When she realized the infant ghost was intangible and the bun fell to the ground, Wu Yue immediately picked it up and stuffed it back into her pocket. Resources were scarce—not a single thread or crumb should be wasted. Who knows, it might come in handy!

Struggling wildly under Wu Yue's tight grip, the infant ghost's pitch-black pupils widened until they seemed to crack, its mouth gaping wide and pitch-dark, as it tried desperately to bite Wu Yue.

Wu Yue pinned the infant ghost to the ground and stepped on its head with her foot.

Leaning close to its ear, she said, "From now on, I'll show you who's really the boss around here."