As expected, the "communication" resumed after leaving Xu Xiuer's boudoir, and he once again sensed Little Goofball's presence.
He calmed his emotions and allowed his consciousness to flow along the connection between Master and Spectral Servant, descending into Little Goofball's body.
Zhang Yuanqing "opened" his eyes, and the sight before him startled him. The distorted, dim vision revealed turbulent currents swirling with countless impurities.
In water?
Why is Little Goofball in the water?
After a few seconds of bewildered thought, he decided to take control and guide Little Goofball's body.
But his attempt failed.
Little Goofball was in an unusual state, currently activating his Treasure Hunting Skill. Instinctively controlling his body, he resisted any external influence.
A similar situation had occurred during the night they ambushed the Black guard of Impermanence.
Is there treasure in the water? Zhang Yuanqing's heart quickened, but he didn't stop trying to influence Little Goofball, gradually attempting to disrupt his state.
Little Goofball's nascent intelligence and weak self-control made him unable to suppress his instincts, but as his Master, Zhang Yuanqing possessed that ability.
The last time at Songhai Elementary School, he had refrained from interfering with his Spectral Servant, mainly wanting to see what treasures he would discover.
But now, with Guan Ya and the Queen in mortal danger, he couldn't allow Little Goofball to remain "out of control."
After a dozen seconds, Zhang Yuanqing regained complete control and yanked Little Goofball's head out of the water.
His vision shifted, revealing the clear river surface, the Green Stone embankment on the opposite bank, and the moss-covered shoreline.
Queen's desperate voice reached his ears:
"I... I'm feeling increasingly dizzy. My heart is racing. I might collapse at any moment. Guan Ya, you're losing too much blood. Can you hold on? Give me the rifle. I'll cover you for a while."
Guan Ya is injured? Are things really this dire? Zhang Yuanqing's heart clenched with anxiety.
Then Queen sighed, "Five minutes have long passed. It seems Primordial and the others aren't coming to rescue us. They might be in trouble themselves. I was counting on him to save us..."
Zhang Yuanqing paddled around, turning to face the source of the voice.
About seven or eight meters away, Guan Ya stood against a white wall, rifle raised, her face ashen. A black garment was wrapped around her lower leg, likely covering a wound that prevented her from standing steadily. She leaned against the wall for support, her complexion growing paler with each shot she fired.
Queen, her smoky eye makeup and silver earrings accentuating her haggard appearance, shielded Guan Ya. She threw herself in front of any Infant Spirits that lunged forward, acting as a human shield while Guan Ya fired to repel them.
Notably, she wore only a black sports bra, which accentuated her deep, white cleavage and voluptuous figure. Below, her waist narrowed sharply, leading to a flat, soft abdomen.
This contrasted sharply with Guan Ya's slender waist, defined by V-cut abs and faint abdominal muscles.
Guan Ya had tied a blood-stopping strip of cloth around her calf—the very shirt she had removed earlier.
Six Infant Spirits surrounded them, probing and attacking like hyenas hunting prey.
So many Infant Spirits... and they're actually Infant Spirits? Zhang Yuanqing quickly changed his mind, relinquishing control to Little Goofball and issuing the command: "Fight!"
This situation presented an ideal opportunity to train Little Goofball's combat abilities.
Bang!
Guan Ya fired, repelling the Infant Spirit clinging to the Queen's ankle. The creature shrieked shrilly, its form twisting violently.
The Queen shuddered, her energy draining further. Finally, she collapsed limply, her fair face paling. "I... I can't hold on any longer."
Adding to her despair, the Infant Spirit that had been washing its hair by the river had vanished. It was now crawling toward them, seemingly joining the siege.
Moreover, perhaps it was her imagination, but the Queen felt the dead child's gaze remained fixed on her chest.
The round, adorable Infant Spirit moved with surprising speed, closing the distance in an instant. Guan Ya tensed, swiveling her gun to aim at Little Goofball.
Guan Ya's expression turned grave as she observed the Infant Spirit. Its strength and speed far surpassed those of the surrounding dark-blue Infant Spirits.
Suddenly, the round, adorable infant bared its fangs, its expression turning ferocious. With a sharp "Aow!" it pounced on the dark-blue Infant Spirit ahead, pinning it to the ground.
Guan Ya's finger, which had been poised on the trigger, abruptly relaxed, her beautiful eyes flashing with astonishment.
So, the little guy wasn't after us after all?
"It's... they're fighting among themselves!" The Queen, who had been sinking into despair, saw this and her ashen eyes lit up with a brilliant spark of hope.
In that moment of stunned silence, Little Goofball had already pinned the dark-blue Infant Spirit firmly to the ground. No matter how fiercely it struggled, it couldn't break free from its kin's oppressive grip.
Little Goofball lowered its head, bit into the dark-blue Infant Spirit's neck, and gently sucked.
A wisp of black smoke transformed into a thin thread, surging into Little Goofball's mouth and nostrils.
His body suddenly swelled, his aura growing noticeably stronger.
Having tasted this power, Little Goofball no longer needed Zhang Yuanqing's guidance. With a self-assured "Aow!" he lunged at the remaining five Infant Spirits.
While the dark-blue Infant Spirits would fight to the death against a powerful enemy, they seemed suppressed by their own kind, immediately scattering in panic.
Little Goofball pursued them, quickly vanishing from sight.
"What's going on? Why did that Little Infant Spirit save us?" The Queen, overwhelmed by relief, remained utterly bewildered.
Guan Ya looked both bewildered and suspicious, shaking her head slightly to indicate her confusion. "Regardless, we're safe now. We didn't need some stinky man to rescue us."
"True. We finally made it through the crisis," the radiant and commanding older sister collapsed against the wall, her chest heaving violently as she gasped for breath.
As they spoke, both women simultaneously heard hurried footsteps approaching from the distance.
Accompanied by Primordial Heavenly Venerable's frantic shouts: "Guan Ya! Queen!"
Queen's face paled slightly. Summoning her last reserves of strength, she urged urgently, "Clothes, clothes!"
Though her style leaned toward a mature, commanding older sister aesthetic, she wasn't quite bold enough to parade around in her underwear before men.
Queen hastily unbuttoned her outer robe, pressed herself against the wall, and slipped into the narrow alleyway. Ignoring the sticky bloodstains, she quickly pulled the robe over herself.
Just as she finished dressing, her teammates arrived. Before Queen could even speak, the men, seeing her haggard appearance, exclaimed in unison:
"Were you drained too?"
"Tch!" Queen spat. "What nonsense is that?"
Her gaze then fell upon Chi Ou, who was being carried on Huode Star General's back. "Who's he?" she asked, startled.
"Chi Ou!"
"What happened to him? How did he lose so much weight in just half an hour?" Queen's shock was tinged with envy.
As the group conversed, Zhang Yuanqing knelt beside the Veteran Driver, carefully extracting the bullet fragments from her wound.
"Your injury is severe," he said, his brow furrowed. "You've lost too much blood. You can't fight anymore."
Guan Ya lowered her gaze, her lips curving slightly as she observed his worried expression. "An experienced driver always keeps a backup plan," she murmured.
Under Zhang Yuanqing's puzzled gaze, Guan Ya opened her Inventory and retrieved a syringe.
"You still have diluted Life Elixir?" the Queen exclaimed in surprise.
Fu Qingyang is truly extravagant, Zhang Yuanqing thought, secretly marveling. He's giving strategic-level resources to his cousin like they're nothing. When we get back to reality, I'm going to work hard to lick his boots.
"This is the last vial," Guan Ya replied, "for emergencies." She pierced her wrist vein with the needle and injected a third of the elixir, then administered another third to the Queen.
The Queen's complexion brightened, her skin regaining its plump, hydrated glow. She whispered, "Guan Ya, are you the daughter of one of the elders?"
Strategic-level resources could only be requested and allocated by Deacon Level members; Level 2 Scouts lacked the authority to use them.
Guan Ya shook her head.
The Queen's expression shifted, and she probed, "A mistress, then?"
Guan Ya turned to Huode and said, "Huode, bring Chi Ou over here."
"I don't need it," Chi Ou replied weakly. "Don't waste your precious Life Elixir on me. We Earth Fiends can absorb the earth's energy to sustain ourselves. Fortunately, I'm only suffering from yang deficiency and essence depletion, not a serious injury. The earth will restore my stamina."
The Huode Star General quickly set Chi Ou down, laying him flat on the ground.
"Yang deficiency and essence depletion..." The Queen finally had a moment to inquire about what had happened earlier, scrutinizing the four men. "What did you all encounter?"
Zhang Yuanqing succinctly recounted the events to Guan Ya and the Queen. "When we arrived at Widow Xu's boudoir, Chi Ou had already been discarded like medicinal dregs under the bed. If we'd been even a moment later, he would have died from yang depletion. So, young man, abstinence truly is good for you—it keeps you free from trouble."
Zhang Yuanqing refrained from taking credit, knowing that claiming moral superiority would likely invite ridicule. After all, he hadn't exactly resisted temptation himself, leaving him with his own blemishes.
Rather than risk mutual humiliation, he decided to let Chi Ou's misfortune highlight the others' righteousness.
The Huode Star General and Li Chunfeng nodded in agreement. "Lust is a blade that scrapes the bone."
Chi Ou's face flushed crimson with shame, wishing he could crawl into a crack in the ground.
Guan Ya, though looking slightly pale, perked up at the mention of the topic, her smile widening.
"Little Fatty, you're quite the lucky one! Was Xu Xiuer... moist? How does she compare to real women? Share your experience with us!"
Chi Ou pleaded, "Stop, stop talking!"
Stop talking! I have some dignity!
Queen glanced sideways at the other four, smiling. "Did any of you four... get intimate with Xu Xiuer?"
"No, no!" the four men chorused. "Only Chi Ou couldn't restrain himself."
Chi Ou turned his head away, utterly despondent.
"What happened to you two? Why are you in such a state?" Li Chunfeng successfully changed the subject.
Queen recounted her harrowing encounter with the vengeful spirits.
As she finished, she frowned, her voice tinged with suspicion. "Then, that strange Infant Spirit suddenly drove the other vengeful spirits away."
The Huode Star General looked puzzled. "Did Widow Xu's Infant Spirits turn on each other? Or did that special Little Infant Spirit deliberately save you?"
Queen shook her head slightly. "I don't know."
She glared at Zhang Yuanqing, huffing. "You Nightwalker! Useless when we needed you! If that Little Infant Spirit hadn't suddenly gone berserk and driven off its companions, Guan Ya and I would have been in serious trouble."
Guan Ya glanced at Zhang Yuanqing, paused for a moment, then smoothly shifted the topic.
"Is that Little Infant Spirit your Spectral Servant?"
"Hmm?" The Queen abruptly turned her head, the silver rings dangling from her earlobes swaying as she stared blankly at Zhang Yuanqing.
Zhang Yuanqing snapped his fingers. After a few seconds, he glanced at the alleyway behind the group. The Queen followed his gaze, but saw nothing there.
Whoosh!
Zhang Yuanqing exhaled a burst of Lunar Power toward his companions' eyes.
A cold, stinging sensation immediately spread across their eyeballs. Then, they saw a plump, adorable infant spirit appear in the alleyway. Its sparse baby hair framed a pair of jet-black eyes that resembled polished buttons.
Its round belly bulged as it clumsily crawled toward Zhang Yuanqing, its limbs flailing.
How could this be...? The Queen was about to examine the spirit more closely when the stinging pain in her eyes vanished, and the infant spirit disappeared with it.
Not disappeared, but rather, she could no longer see it.
So it was Primordial Heavenly Venerable's Spectral Servant. The Infant Spirit had been here all along. That means he positioned it near Guan Ya and me from the start, just in case, to save us if necessary. The Queen's lingering resentment dissolved completely.
Then, a realization struck her, and her face flushed with embarrassment.
He must have seen everything through the Spectral Servant just now, didn't he?
The Queen felt a pang of embarrassment, realizing what had happened. Yet beneath the awkwardness lay a subtle confidence, suggesting she was quite pleased with her figure. The fact that she reacted this way to Primordial seeing her in her underwear indicated she didn't dislike him—perhaps even harbored some affection. Guan Ya, with her keen observation, instantly deciphered the Queen's complex emotions.
Zhang Yuanqing, oblivious to the women's silent drama, said, "Queen, I need your help with something."
"What is it?" she responded instinctively, her hand almost covering her ample chest.
"Dive down and check the riverbed. I suspect there's something down there," Zhang Yuanqing said, pointing to the water's surface.
The Queen paused, then let out a small sigh of relief and readily agreed, "Just a moment."
It was a perfect opportunity to wash the bloodstains from her clothes.
She strode to the riverbank and plunged into the water with a splash.
Zhang Yuanqing waited on the shore until the riverbed stirred up murky sediment, and the Queen emerged from the water, not a drop clinging to her skin.
"There's nothing down there," she said, flicking her silver earring. "I even stirred up the silt to check."
Nothing? That's impossible! Little Goofball's Treasure Hunting Skill never fails. Zhang Yuanqing pondered for a few seconds, then quickly formed a theory.
Little Goofball and the Queen hadn't met the activation conditions. That's why the former had been stuck on the shore, head down, searching in vain. He sensed treasure in the water but couldn't pinpoint its location.
The latter searched diligently for a long time, but found nothing.
"What's hidden at the bottom of the river? Is it an item related to the hidden quest, or has another side quest been triggered? Based on the information revealed in this Instance, it's unlikely there would be another side quest.
"If it's related to the hidden quest, the treasure in the river is likely an Item left behind by the Yin-Yang Wanderer—the one the demon lord regretted missing."
With this thought, Zhang Yuanqing felt a surge of anticipation. "I'll go down myself," he declared.
"Going down yourself won't change anything. If it's not there, it's not there," Queen retorted, pursing her lips.
Splash! Zhang Yuanqing plunged into the murky river, paddling his limbs as he swam toward the bottom. At the same time, he summoned Little Goofball, hoping to utilize its Treasure Hunting Skill.
Little Goofball materialized on the riverbed, darting left and right like a headless fly, spinning aimlessly.
After surfacing twice for air, Zhang Yuanqing reluctantly gave up.
There was indeed nothing at the bottom of the river.
Impossible! If it's related to the hidden quest, I've already collected the Jade Pendant. By now, the plot should have triggered. It seems my line of thinking was wrong—the Jade Pendant isn't the key?
His mind raced as he wrung out his dripping clothes.
Amid the dripping water, inspiration struck him, and he realized where he had gone wrong.
"There's still one step of the hidden quest I haven't completed. I haven't fully deciphered the plot of the Yin-Yang Town Instance either. From the quest's perspective, it hasn't reached its conclusion."
With the remaining objective in mind, he resolved to complete the final step: deciphering the Instance's full narrative. He would return later to review his findings.
He rejoined the group at their resting place and announced, "Everyone, we need to start thinking about what the next challenge will be."
Queen stroked her silver ring and said, "There are only six people in town. We've already dealt with three. Logically, we should have completed the storyline by now."
Guan Ya shook her head. "That's incorrect. While there are six people, Granny Wang and the Cat Corpse count as a single narrative thread. That means Yin-Yang Town only has five storylines.
"We've already cleared the Curse Cat and Widow Xu Xiuer's scenarios. If the Evil Faction hasn't been slow, they've likely cleared two as well. The final storyline will probably be a contested objective."
Zhang Yuanqing said grimly, "The last character is the mage Squire Zhao hired."
Zhao Residence.
A thick mist enveloped the courtyard, its ethereal tendrils drifting slowly.
Suddenly, the gray mist shuddered, surging forward like a flood released from its dam.
As the mist thinned, its clarity sharpened.
Li Xianzong's figure gradually materialized. He held a butterfly knife between his teeth, a gruesome severed head in his left hand, and a carved wooden box in his right.
The box's lid opened, and the dense mist, like a school of fish returning to its nest, rapidly flowed into the container.
Moments later, the thick fog completely dissipated, revealing five companions lying in the inner hall. Four were unconscious, while one had his heart and liver gouged out.
During the recent battle, they had lost another comrade.
If not for Li Xianzong's quick thinking and timely use of the Item to trap his companions and Squire Zhao in the fog, allowing him to eliminate them one by one, the team would have suffered far greater losses.
The five survivors were Li Xianzong, the young man with a missing left ear, the gaunt middle-aged man, the man in a suit, and the taciturn buzz-cut man.
Their corresponding classes were Seductive Demon, Witchcraft Master, Witchcraft Master, Seductive Demon, and Illusion Master.
"This damn Instance! Two dead before the final battle even begins," Li Xianzong spat, tossing Squire Zhao's head toward the mountain of gold. He then strode over to his companions and kicked them awake one by one.
"You bunch of useless trash! More trouble than you're worth," Li Xianzong snarled, his anger flaring.
The teammates grimaced but dared not retort.
"Is that monster dead?" the gaunt middle-aged man asked, glancing around.
"Want me to fetch its head for you? You can make soup with it," Li Xianzong retorted sarcastically.
"Heh, I'd be sure to invite you to share," the gaunt man grinned. "What I really want to know is, what's the next challenge? I hope no more of us die. If we're already down half our numbers before the final battle, how are we supposed to win?"
"You think the Orderly Faction doesn't lose people?" the young man with the missing left ear said coolly.
Just as Li Xianzong was about to reply, the Spirit Realm's notification chimed in his ear:
[ Ding! You have successfully killed Squire Zhao. Proceed immediately to the town square to kill the evil mage and trigger the final battle. ]
Simultaneously, by the river, Zhang Yuanqing and his group heard the same notification:
[ Ding! You have successfully resisted the temptation of beauty. Proceed immediately to the town square to kill the evil mage and trigger the final battle. ]