The hazy fog drifted over, shrouding the ship in a somber and dull aura, yet the rmaid remained as dazzling as ever. She was akin to a lustrous pearl erging from the mud, incomparably beautiful, and the tears welling up in her eyes were aphrodisiac that roused the dormant greed and lust in the NPCs’ hearts.
They were utterly unable to take their gazes off her, like a pack of ravenous wolves eyeing a piece of fragrant at after a prolonged period of starvation. Fervent whispers arose within the crowd, "I heard that a rmaid’s tears can turn into exquisite pearls... is that true?"
"Their blood can cure illnesses..."
"Their flesh grants eternal youth..."
"I–It seems like I have really heard about this sowhere."
Humans’ pursuit of life mainly revolved around beauty, wealth and longevity. And now, all of those goals were compressed into the mystical creature before them. It was as if the pinnacle of life was just within a hand’s reach. How were they supposed to keep their composure at bay? Their eyes burned with desire, and they couldn’t wait to pounce on her and proved their theory. They wanted her, they wanted this enchanting rmaid all for themselves!
Gu Luoxin keenly sensed the restlessness in the air. Sothing was clearly wrong here. The NPCs looked on the verge of losing control and transforming into rabid dogs that acted purely on instinct. The tension in the air was thick enough to be cut with a knife.
The stalemate stretched on like a tightly drawn bowstring, and the slightest touch was all it took for the fragile peace to shatter.
Gu Luoxin did not even dare to breathe too loudly. Instead, he lowered his head to whisper, so anxious like ants frying on a pan. "W–What should we do, Xiao Shen, Da Shen? Should we break through and take her away?!"
Shen Nianzu shook his head decisively, "Watch."
If it were up to Gu Luoxin alone, he would have acted at once and whisked the rmaid to a safe place first. Everything else could co later, the most important thing was to secure the core NPC’s well-being! Alas, he had a blind faith towards Shen Nianzu, his leader and the top 50 players in the leaderboard, and when he saw Shen Nianzu’s vigilant yet composed look, for so reason Gu Luoxin found himself calming down too.
As for Jin Jiuchi, there was no need to ntion him. His soul was not even here. He was still busy cursing the Nightmare inside his head, who had gone radio silent on him since dropping such a vague task.
Shen Nianzu’s decision turned out to be correct.
The paper thin harmony among the guests was torn apart when one of them stepped forward, claiming, "I have the right to decide what to do with her!" He was none other than the NPC who had first spotted her.
In an instant, the atmosphere exploded as if cold water had been splashed into burning oil. One after another, the NPCs surged forward and roared their desire to possess the rmaid at any cost. They were so frenzied that the crew mbers were unable to hold them back.
An NPC broke through the crew’s barrier and lunged toward the rmaid with a deranged grin on his face.
Seeing that, the NPC Ariel let out an ear-piercing shriek and recoiled in horror. In the next mont—
SLASH!
The NPC’s grin froze on his face. His eyes were wide in disbelief as he looked down at the thin line etched on his neck, blood trickling forth. Within seconds, he collapsed to the ground, convulsed a few tis and died.
In front of the rmaid stood three players, whom Jin Jiuchi had identified at the lobby last evening, with one of them being Duan Jie, who were showing obvious signs of alienation.
It was Duan Jie’s companion who had killed the NPC. Firmly protecting the rmaid behind him, he snarled ferociously, "Anyone who dares to approach will et the sa fate! No one is allowed to touch her!"
A brief stillness hung in the air before terrified screams pierced through the fog in the air. "M–Murderer! Soone has been murdered! Help—!"
The guests scrambled away like headless flies, yet so of them remained unreconciled to let go of the rmaid just like that. They gritted their teeth and glared at the players angrily, but then their expressions abruptly morphed into one of horror when their gazes shifted to the side. "M–Monster!!"
The fear and panic in their eyes were so vivid that the two players whipped their heads around in reflex. Then, they saw a scene that caused their eyes to widen in disbelief.
Their teammate, Duan Jie, had changed beyond recognition. Blue scales rippled across his skin, fins erged from his ears, and his eyes dilated into slits. Right now, those eyes were filled with fiery greed as he stared at the rmaid.
He tried to pounce on her, but his teammate kicked him away in the nick of ti. "Duan Jie!" He shouted in fright. "What the hell is wrong with you?!"
Alas, it was as if Duan Jie could no longer recognize anyone. He was set dead on capturing the rmaid, who huddled helplessly in the corner. As a result, the two players were tangled in a fierce fight to stop the alienated Duan Jie, while the crew mbers seized the advantage to rush forward and tried to apprehend them.
Infuriated, the two players retaliated in the heat of the mont. "Get lost!"
They killed the crew mbers who dared to confront them as easily as cutting down tofu. For veteran players like them, NPCs were no different than a flock of weak chickens they could slaughter at will. Chaos intensified, screams filled the air, and blood mingled with rain as the ship descended into destruction and turmoil. It was as if doom had arrived to leave nothing but ruin on its wake.
Amidst the pandemonium, Shen Nianzu, Jin Jiuchi and Gu Luoxin remained standing on the inconspicuous corner, fulfilling their duties as the observers. But unlike the calm Shen Nianzu and the distracted Jin Jiuchi, Gu Luoxin’s anxiety almost bordered on insanity.
"Xiao Shen, Xiao Shen, Xiao Shen!" He urged Shen Nianzu restlessly. He could not take his eyes off the core NPC, whose face was getting paler and paler as though she might breathe her last at any mont. A pool of blood ford around her lifeless body. If this continued, she would die of excessive blood loss!
However, Shen Nianzu remained unmoved, though his brows were furrowed. "Just a little longer..."
His focus was fixated on the two players sward by the crew mbers. Corpses fell one after another under their feet, then all of a sudden...
"W–what is happening?!" One of the players panicked as his entire body felt paralyzed. "I can’t move!" The sa phenonon also occured to the other player. Now that they could not resist, they were easily subdued and caught by the crew, their hands and feet bound.
Duan Jie, on the other hand, jumped down from the ship before the NPCs could grab hold of him, creating a resounding splash as his body plumted into the water.
Shen Nianzu’s gaze sharpened at once, "I will distract them! You two, take the rmaid and escape from here!"
"What? No!" Jin Jiuchi refused outright. "How can I leave you alone to deal with these NPC, Nian’er?! I’m staying!"
Angry veins throbbed on Shen Nianzu’s forehead and he grabbed Jin Jiuchi’s collar, hollering, "It’s urgent! Can’t you listen to for once?!"
On the side, Gu Luoxin caught sight of Noir across the deck, walking straight toward the rmaid with a black cat perched on his shoulder. His pace was neither fast nor hurried, as though he was passing through an ordinary garden. Amidst the bloody scene, he was akin to an immortal who had walked out of an oil painting, untouched by the filth and disorder. Gu Luoxin was stunned for a second before he shouted at the other two, "I–It’s okay, I will take her away first!"
After saying that, he dashed straight toward the rmaid. From two different directions, both of them t in the middle. Noir calmly lifted his eyelids and gazed at Gu Luoxin.
Gu Luoxin had no idea whether it was the tension or the running, he felt slightly breathless as he proposed, "L–Let... Let us work together!"
Noir replied lightly, "Okay."
An ear-deafening rumble suddenly echoed in the far distance. The overcast sky darkened, and the churning waves rolled. Despite the surrounding fog, it was not actually thick enough to obscure their vision and thus, the NPCs witnessed a massive body of water rising on the horizon, towering as high as a five-story building, and it was surging right toward them!
"I–It’s a tsunami!!" They shrieked in panic. "Oh God, we are going to die! What should we do?!"
This ti, not only the guests but the crew mbers also quickly rushed back into the ship. Captain Rick’s face was particularly gloomy, "Why was there no report of this?! Change the course of the ship!"
Saving their own lives ca first. Even if they obtained the rmaid, it would be pointless if they lost their lives before reaping the benefits! At that mont, everyone focused on fleeing and no one paid attention to the area where the rmaid was huddling into a pitiful ball.
Hence, Gu Luoxin and Noir successfully stole the rmaid away.
On the now deserted deck, Shen Nianzu glared at the foolish husky who stuck to him like glue, challenging, "I can’t deal with the NPCs by myself?!"
Jin Jiuchi stared at the mighty tsunami on the horizon, then he glanced down at Shen Nianzu whose fur was bristled. After a mont of silence, he honestly admitted his mistake, "...I was wrong."
.
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Mini theater
JJ: Nian’er is so domineering, what to do? *blush*
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