The instant Cheng Shi spotted the familiar face, his lips curled upward.
But he didn't greet the person. Instead, he suddenly halted, changed direction, and strode directly toward them. Then, under their bewildered and confused gaze, he casually sat down — right in the seat directly below.
Row 8, No. 135.
The acquaintance sat in Row 9, No. 151.
In this venue, the overwhelming majority wouldn't dream of sitting so openly beneath a stranger. Yet Cheng Shi just dropped into the chair without a care in the world.
As if he was absolutely certain the other person would never harm him.
The bizarre move drew stunned looks from those nearby.
Clearly, in their eyes, either Cheng Shi knew this person or he had enough confidence to back it up.
But judging by the expression of the person behind him, they obviously didn't know each other. So...
A consensus began forming among the surrounding players: this man was strong. He radiated an almost arrogant confidence!
But there was one person even more confused than everyone else — and that was the one sitting behind Cheng Shi...
Cui Qiushi.
Yes — the Torchbearer Order Knight. Son of Old Cui, Cui Dingtian.
The Torchbearers had evidently obtained a few diocre Person Society invitation cards.
No one knew how the cards appeared. But lately, many seed to be chasing them.
The Torchbearers had been lucky enough to "find" a few. For intelligence purposes, they'd dispatched several mbers to investigate — Cui Qiushi among them.
When a stranger suddenly appeared in his line of sight, deliberately changed course to sit in the seat below him, Cui Qiushi first assud he'd run into a disguised "ally."
But after studying the man closely, he confird this was no ally — just an unfamiliar man he'd never seen.
Sche, or coincidence?
Tensing instantly, Cui Qiushi clenched his fist and subtly shifted backward.
He glanced toward a companion not far away, calculating his response zone and how quickly he could reach his teammate — ensuring he could shield them if anything went wrong.
His companion had likewise noticed the oddly behaved man. Their gaze sharpened, and they began assessing Cheng Shi carefully.
anwhile, the man who'd caused all this tension? He'd already settled contentedly into his seat with his eyes closed, resting.
In Cheng Shi's mind, Cui Qiushi couldn't possibly recognize him. But that didn't stop Cheng Shi from knowing Cui Qiushi — and knowing that this Order Knight was a genuinely righteous person who'd never kill an innocent.
So — as long as he didn't reveal his "true villainous nature" — safety was assured.
Thinking this over, Cheng Shi's lips twitched into a smile.
'Tsk. Not bad. Found myself a bodyguard right out of the gate.'
'Today's going to be a good day.'
While Cui Qiushi continued observing the man in front of him, more and more players filtered in.
Most reacted the sa way: scanning strangers, tiptoeing upward, drifting toward less populated areas.
Cheng Shi observed for a long ti. The vast majority of players here didn't seem to have particularly high scores. Only a few had the composure of high-level competitors.
He even spotted a handful of crafty types faking nervousness. Whether they were fellow practitioners of deception would require further observation.
All in all, the venue was lively — eerily silent, yes, but the undercurrents beneath that calm surface ran as fierce as any psychological warfare inside a trial.
Of course, with this many attendees, "mavericks" were bound to appear. A few minutes later, two people who clearly didn't care about the eerie atmosphere or others' opinions simply strode to the first row and sat down.
Cheng Shi glanced their way. One took seat No. 7 in his own column; the other sat at No. 9. And the one in seat 9 — he knew him too.
Another familiar face!
This acquaintance had actually spotted Cheng Shi the mont he'd pushed through his own door.
Upon seeing Cheng Shi's position, he'd raised an eyebrow, started to wave — then suddenly recalled sothing. His face darkened, and he forcefully lowered his half-raised hand.
Witnessing this, Cheng Shi nearly broke character and laughed aloud.
'Once bitten, twice shy. From now on, this big bro of his would probably never greet him as cheerfully as before.'
'At minimum, he'd need to confirm Cheng Shi wasn't Zhen Yi first — only then might a "genuine" smile appear.'
That's right — this acquaintance was the Chosen One of War, Cheng Shi's "generous" big brother, Grand Marshal Hu Wei.
The instant he pushed through the door, his heavy footsteps shattered the venue's silence, drawing every eye.
But he showed zero interest in the attention. Frowning, he found his seat and dropped into it — looking for all the world like the diocre Person Society's chairman.
After he sat down, another man who also sat in the first row pushed through his door.
He and the Grand Marshal exchanged a knowing smile upon entry — clearly acquainted.
Cheng Shi silently noted the man's face, then quickly averted his gaze, letting his eyes wander.
With Hu Wei having broken the silence, rustling sounds gradually filled the hall.
Perhaps so had found old friends. Perhaps others had stumbled upon hated enemies. Either way, Silence withdrew His gaze at so point, and the noise in the venue grew steadily more complex.
A few more minutes passed. The atmosphere grew rowdy. Then another person pushed through a first-row door. The instant he appeared, Cheng Shi noticed his gleaming bald head.
A genuine baldhead!
But this was no laughing matter. Because Cheng Shi distinctly caught — from the side profiles of Grand Marshal Hu Wei and the other first-row man — the mont this bald man appeared, both their expressions turned deeply uncomfortable.
The last ti Cheng Shi had seen the Grand Marshal this flustered was when Cheng Shi had let out that "hee~" right to his face.
So...
'Is he Zhen Yi?'
"..."
'No, no, no — he's not Zhen Yi!'
This wasn't because Cheng Shi deduced the bald man's identity. It was because he caught the man's na from the hushed exclamations around him.
"The Prisoner?! What is he doing here?"
"Bro, who's The Prisoner?"
"He's... forget it. You're better off not knowing..."
'The Prisoner?'
Cheng Shi's gaze sharpened, recalling what Big Cat had once told him:
The Chosen One of Silence is an ascetic monk who's even poorer than you.
So this baldhead was the Silence Chosen One Big Cat had ntioned?!
'Dude, your class is Ascetic Monk and you actually went and shaved your head for the role?'
He looked toward where The Prisoner had appeared, curious where this Silence Chosen One — who was allegedly poorer than himself — would choose to sit. But what happened next surpassed everyone's expectations.
The "genuine bald Chosen One" first rubbed his shiny do while surveying the room. Upon spotting Hu Wei, he broke into a cheerful grin, spat out the gum in his mouth, rolled it casually between his fingers, and stuck it on the corridor wall.
Then, hands in pockets, whistling a tune, he sauntered with peak nonchalance toward the Grand Marshal's seat. Under Hu Wei's increasingly thunderous expression — he plopped himself down, with total nonchalance, on...
Hu Wei's lap.
"..."
"..."
"..."
...
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