Chapter 260: Everyone is Gathered
Liu Xingquan was sitting at his desk handling official business.
His desk was piled with written messages from various branches. A small octopus was lying on the desk, flipping through the pages with its tentacles. Then it turned to Liu Xingquan and said, "Sure enough, Wei Jingjing's father was also pulled in. We finally found him."
"Not the king?"
"It's not the fake one, it's the real Uncle Wei Hongzhuo in the real world." The little octopus looked at the document and said, "Ah, there's Choi Mingzhi too."
"Cui Mingzhi is coming in too?"
"Yes." The little octopus exhaled, "Based on our intelligence investigation these days, it seems that everyone should be gathered."
"Wei Jingjing..." Liu Xingquan said worriedly, "What's wrong with her?"
"Reject the mutation." The little octopus said, "Compared to us players who were pulled in, Wei Jingjing was the first person to illegally invade the game. And there is something else in her body."
"What does it mean to reject mutations?"
"Once a virus has invaded your body, your body will automatically fight and eliminate it. Wei Jingjing is a poison to this game world in a sense." The little octopus' tentacles quickly turned to the next page. "It is worth noting that this game system is always misleading players intentionally or unintentionally."
"Ah. I thought we had gone too far."
The little octopus waved his tentacles and said proudly, "Hehehe. We have gathered all the people. Now it is finally the decisive moment."
Liu Xingquan nodded.
Although the Octopus Cult exuded an unsettling sense of weirdness, they did keep their promise and provided Choi Myeong-ji and his group with the fastest horses.
Cui Mingzhi and others immediately rode their horses and rushed to the royal capital without stopping.
At noon on the third day, Cui Mingzhi, Wei Hongzhuo, Ren Anzhi and others arrived at the royal capital.
The capital in the game was very different from the towns they had lived in before. There were tall towers everywhere in the city, and streets of all sizes divided the houses. There were signs everywhere on the streets, and there were taverns and shops everywhere. The clothes of the people were obviously brighter than those in the towns they had lived in before. The whole city had a lively and noisy feeling.
They first stayed in a new tavern in the capital called White Goose and Fairy. Cui Mingzhi said that in the game, taverns and hotels are the best places . They can collect intelligence here now. Wei Hongzhuo and Ren Anzhi both agreed.
After Wei Hongzhuo and Ren Anzhi inquired several times, when they asked about the princess, most of the drinkers mentioned the rumors that the princess had been seriously ill recently. Some said she had smallpox, some said she had tuberculosis, and some said she had a strange disease that made her faint when she saw a stranger.
"Princess? She's a charming and pretty little girl, but I feel like I haven't seen her for a long time." A drinker said, "I don't know what disease the poor little girl has."
"I heard it's an infectious disease." Another drinker took a sip of his wine. "Instead of talking about the princess, let's talk about the recent popular octopus cult."
"They say that the Octopus Cult preaches that there should be no nobles in the world. Is this true?"
"How can there be no nobles in this world? Without those wise gentlemen to handle things, the world would be a mess. Ignore such heresy , or the king will chop off your head!"
"The prince is in charge now because the princess is ill and the king has no time to handle government affairs." The drinker shrugged.
Most of their stories were similar. Wei Hongzhuo rolled his eyes, took out his gold coins and asked for a few barrels of good wine, claiming that it was his treat. He had always been a businessman, so it was natural for him to persuade others to drink. After a few rounds of toasts, a customer who was happy with Wei Hongzhuo's words revealed a piece of news.
A gardener named Old Gretel knew something, and they could go ask that man.
Wei Hongzhuo got the information and returned to Cui Mingzhi. At this time, Ren Anzhi had already finished asking the waitress in the tavern, and the waitress left with a plate blushing. Ren Anzhi said that he had found out that the prince of the Emerald Kingdom was carrying a holy sword called "Day Sun" made of meteorite. It was said that the sword could drive away monsters, but he did not carry the sword.
The three people and Gin discussed it and decided that since there was no clue about the holy sword, they could only go find the gardener, old Gretel.
The gardener, Old Grete, lived in a low and old house in the old town. He was an old man with gray beard and haggard face.
When I saw him, the old man was pruning the branches of his shrub.
"Princess? I don't know anything. What I said was just nonsense." Old Gretel didn't turn his head.
"Please tell us, we are here to solve the problem." Cui Mingzhi said.
"Old man, it took us three days to get here. We came here to investigate the truth of this rumor." Wei Hongzhuo looked at the gardener and said, "I just want to know what happened in the palace."
“…”
"My daughter is in the palace." Wei Hongzhuo added, "Someone said something bad happened to the princess in the palace. I am very worried about my daughter."
The old man turned around and said, "Come in and sit down and talk."
…
…
"Princess? She really turned into a monster." Old Gretel said, "My poor son works in the palace. He told me that he saw the monster with his own eyes. She had sharp fangs, three rows of teeth, a pair of twisted horns on her head, and eyes like rotten tomatoes. Even the Night Demon is prettier than her. The first time you are caught in her evil eyes, you know that your life is over."
"Then may I ask if your son is still..."
"That day they brought back my son's body, claiming that he had accidentally fallen from a high wall. But how could he be disemboweled and his intestines gone if he fell from a high wall?"
"You mean the princess..."
"I don't know. But my son once told me that the princess turned into a bloodthirsty monster. At first I thought it was another one of those rumors about the princess."
Wei Hongzhuo was stunned. “Has there been such talk about Princess Jingjing before?”
"Our king has a good wife." Old Gretel lowered his voice. "I heard that the queen went out for a walk and accidentally entered a witch's house in the woods. The witch asked the queen to eat a fruit, and then the queen became pregnant after returning. There have been rumors among the people that the child is the devil's child."
"This is nonsense..." Wei Hongzhuo suppressed his temper, "This sounds like nonsense made up by the tabloids."
"This rumor has been around for a long time, and the princess is so sweet and charming that no one took it seriously. But more than fifty days ago, my son said that screams were often heard in the palace. Since then, the princess has turned into an ugly and terrifying monster. She went crazy and bit everyone she saw. The king and queen had no choice but to order the princess to be imprisoned in the Lion's Tooth Castle."
Ren Anzhi's eyes widened: "What on earth happened?"
Cui Mingzhi whispered: "Wei Jingjing is not a monster."
Wei Hongzhuo kept silent.
"That's the princess of the king and queen. Although it's obvious that she is the product of some demon as rumored. At first, the king and queen suppressed the matter, hoping that nothing had happened. But in recent days, the monster has become more and more violent, and the casualties have increased. The king ordered the cancellation of the engagement with the prince of the Emerald Kingdom. I guess he didn't want the other party to find out that the princess was a monster even though he was under pressure from the severance of diplomatic relations between the two countries." Old Gretel's voice was like a heavy lead block. "I'm not interested in those things between countries. My son is dead, killed by that monster. The princess should die. The king should burn the monster to ashes."
Wei Hongzhuo said with difficulty: "So has the king sought any solution?"
"This matter cannot be made public. My son said that the king has actually been secretly looking for someone to try to change the princess back to her original appearance. But the wizard warriors who were found were all scared and fled after seeing the princess for the first time, or they did not run fast enough and were torn into pieces by the princess. But the king and queen were like possessed and refused to give up. They still believed that the monster who was no longer in human form, tyrannical, and always wanted to hurt people was their daughter. The queen was obsessed with the belief that one day her princess would turn back into that sweet little girl. She would not allow anyone to hurt her daughter. The king was the same. They were all crazy, all crazy!"
"Later, this news was known by several nobles, and they hired some people to try to break in and kill the monster. Oh, don't think these nobles have any good intentions. They just want to secretly kill the princess and seize the position of heir. As a result, the people they sent were killed or eaten by the princess. Now the king and queen no longer trust anyone. They stopped looking for ways to save the princess and just locked her up. The nobles are for their own interests, and the king and queen only think about their daughters. Who cares about us ordinary people?"
Ren Anzhi glanced at Wei Hongzhuo, who bowed his head and said nothing, and said to Old Grete: "Let me ask you a question. If your son suddenly turned into a monster one day, would you give up on him?"
"My son has done nothing wrong. He is completely different from the child who was contaminated by the devil!"
"I just assumed..."
"There are no assumptions. I just hope that the king can think clearly and kill that monster someday."
They left the home of old gardener Gretel.
Wei Hongzhuo walked in front without even a glance.
After returning to the room in the tavern, Wei Hongzhuo told about his next plan.
He was not sure whether the monster in the palace was his daughter Wei Jingjing. Although the princess' name was Jingjing, considering the existing king and queen, this Jingjing could be someone else. What they had to do now was to confirm whether the monster was his daughter Wei Jingjing.
"The idea is right." Gin said while sitting on the table, "but your level is too low. Oh, this is all thanks to someone's relationship."
"Yes, it's my fault." Wei Hongzhuo nodded, "I've thought about it. We're only investigating this time, not confronting anyone head-on."
"Oh, tell me about it?"
"I saw something like this in the prop store." Wei Hongzhuo spread out his hands, "A scroll to teleport back to the city."
Cui Mingzhi's eyes lit up, "Oh, that's it!! This can help us escape from the battlefield!"
"Yes. This is the key to our investigation." Wei Hongzhuo looked at Cui Mingzhi and Ren Anzhi, "I also want to ask you for something."
After listening to Wei Hongzhuo's plan, the two people and the cat in the room looked at him silently.
Gin said, "I don't know if it's my illusion, but I feel that you are very different from a few days ago." Cui Mingzhi and Ren Anzhi also nodded.
"I always felt like I was dreaming. These days, I was very upset when I heard the news about Jingjing, and then I didn't want to think about anything or face the world. I just thought it was a dream. But it turns out that I was sleepwalking like a living joke. I said I would go find my daughter and save her, but so many days have passed, and I haven't made any progress at all."
Gin licked his paw and said, "Yeah, you're right. I still remember that we were put in jail for fifty days."
"I just saw that old man. His son died, killed by the monster that looked like my daughter. He hated the king and queen. I know the sadness in the old man's eyes is real. Those deaths that we don't know about are also real. If I could confirm the truth earlier and solve this matter earlier..." Wei Hongzhuo clenched his fists and was silent for a moment, "So, I must confirm and investigate whether that is my daughter."
The two people and the cat looked at him in silence.
"Will you help me?"
Cui Mingzhi said: "Of course! We are teammates!"
Ren Anzhi said: "Boss Wei, please rest assured, I'm fine."
Gin said: "Well, that's what makes you humans so adorable. Stop dithering and let's get going."
…
…
Three people and a cat squatted on the hillside outside Lion's Tooth Castle.
This is a dark gray castle, which looks even darker after the rain, like a huge and heavy black iron.
Outside the castle's high walls, a team of well-trained guards were patrolling the gate.
Behind the guards, a tall iron gate was closed.
According to the information obtained from the investigation, the king and queen imprisoned their daughter in this castle. The princess had become a monster, and her parents had no choice but to imprison her and shed tears.
"Remember, each of us has a scroll to return to the city. This scroll can only be used once within a certain period of time, so please be careful when using it." Wei Hongzhuo looked at Cui Mingzhi and Ren Anzhi, "If you find something wrong, use the scroll to transfer immediately. We are not here to fight head-on and die, we are just investigating."
“I remember.”
"Don't worry."
Wei Hongzhuo stared at the captain of the guard who was dressed the most gorgeously and nodded to Cui Mingzhi.
Cui Mingzhi held Gin's little paw and whispered, "Come and give me a European Emperor Buff, European Emperor Cat."
Gin's little paw gently patted Choi Ming-chi's palm three times, "Then I wish you never miss."
After getting Gin's BUFF, Choi Ming-chi used the "Invisibility" skill. This is a unique skill for thieves. As long as he doesn't attack, the opponent will find it difficult to detect him .
"Xiao Cui, if you fail, teleport immediately." Wei Hongzhuo reminded.
"Don't worry, Uncle Wei."
Cui Mingzhi's entire body disappeared into the air. In the eyes of Wei Hongzhuo and Ren Anzhi, his figure was still a little bit thin and transparent. In the eyes of the people in this world, he had completely hidden his figure.
He tiptoed up to the captain of the guard and cautiously extended his hand.
Wei Hongzhuo broke into a sweat.
Choi Ming-chi used the "Steal" skill.
Choi Ming-chi successfully stole the key from the guard captain Holm.
Wei Hongzhuo and Ren Anzhi exhaled at the same time. There is a certain chance that a thief's stealing skill will miss. If Cui Mingzhi had missed the stealing skill just now, his stealth state would be invalid and he would be discovered by the guards on the spot.
Cui Mingzhi came to the iron gate silently.
Next is the moment for Ren Anzhi to appear.
Ren Anzhi recalled what Wei Hongzhuo had said to him. According to intelligence information, he, as a prince, should be equipped with the Sun Sword. But he did not have any information about this holy sword, and the level was too low. Wei Hongzhuo thought that it was not the time for Ren Anzhi to fight. So Ren Anzhi was responsible for the task of bait.
"If they catch up with you, teleport away immediately," Wei Hongzhuo warned.
"I know. I'm waiting to use the holy sword to save the princess." Ren Anzhi said. Wei Hongzhuo glared at him, and Ren Anzhi smiled cheekily.
Seeing the invisible Cui Mingzhi already standing at the iron gate, Ren Anzhi jumped out with a swagger.
As he walked, he shouted, "Ah, is this where my princess is imprisoned? I'm here to pick you up, princess!"
The captain of the guard stared at him: "Who? Who are you?"
"I am Princess Jingjing's fiancé, Ren Anzhi from the Emerald Country." Ren Anzhi shouted in the same tone as he would speak to fans on stage, "Beautiful princess, I'm here to pick you up."
"The king has cancelled your engagement with the princess, and he has also ordered you to leave immediately!" The captain of the guards shouted, "Come on, catch him!!"
The guards surged forward.
Ren Anzhi ran away, shouting "Princess, I'm here...", and the guards followed him.
The invisible Cui Mingzhi made an OK gesture to Wei Hongzhuo. Wei Hongzhuo took advantage of the chaos and ran over from the side. When everyone's attention was attracted by Ren Anzhi, Cui Mingzhi had already opened the iron gate.
He sneaked into Lion's Tooth Castle.
Wei Hongzhuo will confirm with his own eyes whether that is his daughter.
When I entered the castle, I saw that it was empty and dark.
At this time, Cui Mingzhi followed Wei Hongzhuo silently and remained invisible.
They shuttled between the stone pillars of the castle. There were only a few pine oil lamps lit in the huge castle.
The dim lights cast dark shadows, like a ghostly dance.
Is this where Princess Jingjing is imprisoned? Wei Hongzhuo thought to himself, how cold, dark and lonely it is here. Jingjing has always been afraid of the dark...
It's all my fault.
They walked forward and saw sculptures standing next to the pairs of stone pillars leading to the hall. In the dim light, Wei Hongzhuo saw the faces of the huge sculptures.
These sculptures all look like Uncle Wei, Cui Mingzhi thought to himself.
Wei Hongzhuo looked up, and under the flickering dim light, he saw faces that looked like his, staring at them as if startled by their footsteps.
Why, why do these faces look so much like me?
He turned his head and looked at another row of sculptures opposite these sculptures. Their faces were the faces of his wife Sheng Shihua, and their faces were also staring at him.
There was sadness in their eyes, as if they were asking him: Why did you come only now?
Why did you arrive just now?
Because I have always been unwilling to accept reality.
Just like I have never dared to face Jingjing.
…
…
Suddenly they heard a sound of friction on stone slabs.
A dark shadow appeared right in front of them.
It trudged closer to them. Then Wei Hongzhuo saw its face, the face of the monster.
It was just like the description given by old Gretel, only even stranger and more terrifying than that.
Its pale skin was like fresh snow, and on its face were a pair of huge eyes like the black fire of hell and rotten jelly. Its strange teeth gleamed in the dark, and saliva flowed from between its teeth like tears. Its long raven-feather-like hair was scattered behind its strange limbs, and its twisted claws shone silver like metal.
The first second that this inhuman creature appeared, Wei Hongzhuo and Cui Mingzhi both stopped breathing.
It was like a creature born from a nightmare.
Then the monster pounced on them.
Just when the monster was about to touch Wei Hongzhuo, Cui Mingzhi, who was in stealth, suddenly launched an attack and stabbed the monster's waist with a dagger. The monster hissed and waved its claws.
No!!
Choi Ming-chi was knocked flying, and the boy tumbled and hit the wall.
The boy showed signs of [dizziness], [weakness], and [low health].
"Use the teleportation scroll quickly!" Wei Hongzhuo shouted.
The boy fell to the ground unconscious. Wei Hongzhuo then saw that during the knockback, the teleportation scroll fell from the boy's body and rolled to the other side of the hall.
The monster approached Wei Hongzhuo. It did not attack quickly, but approached slowly as if enjoying its prey.
Wei Hongzhuo immediately activated the "Rapid Scroll". He stared at it and calculated its pace. When the monster suddenly charged at him, he turned around and circled quickly to avoid it.
The monster that missed its target let out an angry roar and rushed towards him again. Fifteen seconds left, Wei Hongzhuo thought to himself, and he quickly circled again. Although his level was far from enough, he noticed that the running speed difference between high and low levels in this world was not that big, so he could use the "Speed Scroll" to make up for the level difference.
As long as you can avoid it, there is still a chance.
Wei Hongzhuo glanced at Cui Mingzhi who was lying not far away. It's almost there, it's almost there.
Six seconds left.
The monster pounced on him again.
Wei Hongzhuo accelerated again, and this time he finally got around Cui Mingzhi. He picked Cui Mingzhi up and activated his own scroll to return to the city.
The teleportation scroll can only teleport one person at a time.
His plan was to escape quickly after confirmation, but now the situation has changed, he can only send Choi Mingzhi away first.
As an adult, of course we have to send Choi Ming-chi away.
The unconscious Choi Ming-chi disappeared in the light of the scroll.
And now, he will face his daughter as a father.
Yes, he knew that the monster was his daughter Wei Jingjing.
Even though she looked so horrible, Wei Hongzhuo knew at the first sight that she was his daughter.
The BUFF light of the Speed Scroll disappeared on his body.
The sound of heavy breathing approached.
"Jingjing, Dad is here." He whispered.
Then a huge force hit him, and with the piercing pain, Wei Hongzhuo rolled on the ground. He felt that his blood volume was reduced by 80% in an instant.
The monster roared like a shashasha, raised its sharp claws towards him, and was about to strike him down——
Then, a red whirlwind blew up.
The monster's blood splattered in the air, and an axe was like a ray of light that cut through the darkness.
The monster let out an indescribable cry and leaped into the darkness of the hall.
A warrior appeared in front of him, the axe in her hand was faintly flashing with flames. The warrior took off her helmet, revealing a face that he was very familiar with. Her pupils were like the stars in the night, and she looked at him with contempt: "Wei Hongzhuo, why are you only level 4???"
