This time, the players were transported into the instance together. Nine players in total, five male and four female. Two were new players, while the others had more or less experienced a few instances.

Zhuang Yu and Shen Hanxiao were among the players.

The two looked at the other players and found no familiar faces.

Standing next to Shen Hanxiao was a handsome man with a cold aura that kept people away. He was half a head taller than Zhuang Yu and a full head taller than Shen Hanxiao.

This was Shen Hanxiao’s senior brother, who would rather use his fists than blabber (talk) – Zhao Jiuquan.

Zhao Jiuquan had the air of an immortal sage. He looked about 25 years old. Although he wore casual clothes instead of a Daoist robe, his entire being exuded a Daoist aura.

Just standing there, his presence was strong and impossible to ignore.

The other players couldn’t help but frequently look at him. This instance was called “Jiangshi Town,” and this player looked very skilled at catching Jiangshi!

But why haven’t they heard him speak? Could he be mute?

Not only had they not heard Zhao Jiuquan speak, but Zhuang Yu hadn’t either.

Outside the instance, Zhuang Yu had met Zhao Jiuquan. The man had only nodded at him from beginning to end, without saying a single word.

Zhuang Yu wasn’t embarrassed, just curious. He secretly asked Shen Hanxiao, “It might be rude to say this, but could your senior brother be…” He chose his words carefully, “…unable to speak?”

“No, he just doesn’t like talking,” Shen Hanxiao said, though it was unclear if he was telling the truth. “My senior brother cultivates the Modern Path of Emotionlessness. If he can say one word, he absolutely won’t say two.”

Modern Emotionless… What the hell?

Zhuang Yu paused: “…What if he has to speak? There must be times when he has to speak, right?”

Shen Hanxiao: “Oh, he uses hand gestures.”

Zhuang Yu: “…?”

Is he joking?

He thought Shen Hanxiao was kidding, but Shen Hanxiao looked quite serious.

Prefers fists over blabbering… could it be he prefers gestures over talking?

Zhuang Yu: “…………”

Zhuang Yu gave a dry laugh: “But, your senior brother is quite good-looking.”

Shen Hanxiao nodded: “Our Master is a face-con. He says if his disciples are ugly, looking at them every day will harm his Dao heart. Finding good-looking disciples is for the sake of his own eyes, more conducive to ascension.”

Zhuang Yu: “…”

Have three weirdos gathered together?

The sky was gloomy, looking like it could rain at any moment.

The players were transported onto a street in Jiangshi Town. Pedestrians hurried along, and vendors were hastily packing up their stalls.

Looking at the townspeople’s attire and the architecture, it seemed to be in the style of the Republic Era.

Several players introduced themselves to each other.

Thanks to Gu Rong, Zhuang Yu, and Shen Hanxiao had also become famous. Players who knew about the little top streamer from the forums recognized the two immediately.

“Aren’t these the Big Brother and Little Brother of that NPC cub?” A stocky man with a buzz cut said, his voice rough, looking at Zhuang Yu and Shen Hanxiao with playful disdain, his tone mocking and unpleasant.

The buzz cut man looked about thirty, with a sleazy appearance and shifty eyes. As he spoke, he rubbed his chin while scanning Zhuang Yu and Shen Hanxiao up and down.

Zhuang Yu and Shen Hanxiao both frowned. Even Zhao Jiuquan, beside them, glanced at the buzz cut man.

The other players’ gazes also shifted between them.

Shen Hanxiao crossed his arms and sneered: “None of your damn business.”

The atmosphere suddenly froze, undercurrents surging.

The buzz cut man’s eyes darkened, but perhaps because it was the beginning of the instance, the situation was unclear, and the opposing side had three people while he was alone, it wasn’t good to start a conflict. He shrugged and stepped aside.

The tense atmosphere dissipated instantly.

The other players breathed a sigh of relief.

They entered the instance to do tasks, not to provoke each other. Truly unable to distinguish priorities.

Zhuang Yu said, “Could that Little Jiangshi cub be Rongrong?”

Shen Hanxiao smiled: “Most likely. Needing to be carried, needing a custom bamboo basket – surely it’s meant for carrying him. Who else is that lazy besides that little ghost?”

Livestream Chat: …You’re such a dog.

Zhuang Yu: “…You’re right. We just don’t know where Rongrong is now.”

–

Gu Rong was currently in front of the roast chicken shop, sneakily eating roast chicken.

The cub was solely focused on the roast chicken, unaware that Big Brother and Little Brother had entered the instance, nor that Huang Daoren was frantically searching everywhere for him.

Roast chickens hung in front of the stall, enticing customers, their aroma filling the air.

Gu Rong was too short, not even reaching the height of the stall. He had 006 buy a stool from the system store, climbed onto it, and bit directly into the roast chicken.

So tasty!

When the shop owner came out, Gu Rong ducked his little head below the stall. When the owner went back inside, Gu Rong popped his head out and took another large bite of chicken meat.

Soon, he had gnawed a large chunk off one roast chicken.

[Wait, isn’t this too blatant? As the saying goes, ‘you can tell a person’s character by age three’. Starting to steal food at such a young age?]

[Oh my god, has the morality police dispatched here too? Zaizai is an NPC, and now he’s a blood-sucking Little Jiangshi! If he doesn’t eat chicken, what should he eat? The shop owner?]

[…]

[Dying laughing, family! Zaizai cleared two instances without going on a killing spree. He should achieve sainthood, halo and all! You should kowtow to Zaizai!]

[Maybe go watch scenes of other NPCs tearing flesh and blood apart to regain perspective?]

–

As a little zombie cub who had struggled to survive in the apocalypse, petty theft was commonplace. Gu Rong didn’t make human blood his staple food only because his short legs couldn’t catch prey, but not because he was a vegetarian.

Now, just stealing a bite of roast chicken clearly wouldn’t be constrained by morality.

In the previous two instances, Gu Rong hadn’t stolen food because he had plenty of points and could buy whatever he wanted directly from the system store. But this instance didn’t allow buying, so inevitably, he had to return to his old profession.

Gu Rong was most proficient when it came to eating. Seeing the shop owner hadn’t discovered him, he grew bolder, taking large bites of roast chicken.

Finally eating the roast chicken he longed for, Gu Rong happily shook his head, his little face beaming.

Gu Rong: [Zaizai loves roast chicken!]

006 smiled: [Little host, eat slowly, don’t choke! I see milk over there, take a bite, take a sip!]

Gu Rong: [Okay okay!]

Neither the cub nor the system felt any guilt about stealing food.

When the shop owner came out again, he heard a rustling sound, like chewing, very faint.

He thought it might be a small rat stealing food. Not wanting to scare it away, he moved quietly, sneaking closer.

006 was constantly monitoring the surroundings. Seeing the shop owner discover their theft, it quickly warned Gu Rong: [Little host, bad news! The owner found us! Run quickly!]

Hearing this, Gu Rong immediately grabbed a chicken leg in his mouth and ran.

As he ran, he even hopped twice. After hopping twice, he continued running.

The chicken leg in his mouth didn’t fall out at all; he held it very firmly.

006: …

Livestream Chat: …6

006 timed Gu Rong: Run for 9 seconds, then hop for one second. After hopping, continue running. The scene looked truly comical, even carrying a thread of absurdity.

The livestream chat burst into laughter but also couldn’t help feeling anxious, afraid Gu Rong would fall.

[Zaizai run quickly! Go go!!]

[Zaizai slow down! Careful falling!!]

[Then run fast and slow intermittently! The main thing is to be unpredictable!]

[…Does being witty make you seem humorous?]

By the time the shop owner poked his head outside the stall, Gu Rong had already run far away.

The owner saw no one, only a small round stool. He picked up the stool, puzzled. Turning his head, he discovered one roast chicken had been gnawed more than halfway, and both legs were gone.

“!”

This roast chicken was hidden behind two others, so the owner hadn’t noticed it before. Only now did he see the nearly devoured chicken.

WTF, someone actually stole chicken?

The owner looked left and right but saw no thief. Looking at the small round stool in his hand, he cursed angrily, extremely frustrated.

–

Gu Rong, holding a chicken leg, hopped back to the Yi Zhuang.

The main gate of the Yi Zhuang had been damaged by the Jiangshi, and the tables and chairs inside were also smashed. Not only were the Jiangshi gone, but Huang Daoren was also absent.

Gu Rong searched around. Besides the coffins filling the room, there wasn’t a single person.

Gu Rong wondered, in his milky voice: [Big Jiangshi all gone?]

006: [Maybe they left first?]

But looking at the mess of tables and chairs, it didn’t seem like it. And the collapsed door panel… it looked more like a robbery.

Gu Rong huffed: [Didn’t wait for Zaizai!]

He wasn’t angry, though. He had only met them halfway; he wasn’t in a hurry to find them.

The tables and chairs were dismantled. Gu Rong picked a nearby coffin, lay down on the ground, leaned against the coffin, and started eating the chicken leg.

He didn’t forget he had to play the role of a Little Jiangshi. Even while lying down, his little body remained stiffly straight.

Gu Rong held the chicken leg. He’d take a bite, then immediately straighten his little arms again. After each bite, he’d resume playing the Little Jiangshi role, ensuring any error lasted no more than 10 seconds.

As he ate, he occasionally kicked his little feet and shook his little head.

The livestream chat watched the cub’s eating broadcast (mukbang) from the coffin, showering donations.

As Gu Rong was eating the chicken leg, suddenly, the coffin behind him made two “Dong, Dong” sounds.

Gu Rong’s little ears twitched. He looked back, but everything was quiet again; he didn’t see anything.

But the livestream chat saw clearly: the coffin lid behind him had moved twice.

Could it be that the thing inside the coffin, annoyed by someone daring to eat while leaning against its coffin, couldn’t hold its lid down anymore?

Gu Rong paid it no mind, quickly turned back, and resumed eating his chicken leg.

After a short while, the coffin behind him made two more “Dong, Dong” sounds.

Hmm?

Gu Rong turned back again. The coffin lid was still again.

Gu Rong turned back around, and the coffin lid moved again.

Gu Rong was now a Little Jiangshi and possessed Jiangshi skills. He sprang up instantly from the ground, his big eyes fixed on the coffin lid.

Soon, the coffin lid moved violently several times. It shifted position, revealing an opening, as if something was trying to climb out from inside.

An eerie wind blew, and the air suddenly felt colder.

Anyone else would have screamed in fright long ago, but Gu Rong’s little face was calm, showing no fear at all.

He swept his little arm, pushing the coffin lid firmly back into place. After closing it, since he couldn’t speak, he just patted it twice with his small hand.

Naughty, get hit!

The coffin lid finally became still.

006: […]

Livestream Chat: […]

Awesome! Awesome!