Volume One: Entering the City for the First Time Chapter Thirty-One: Arrogant Warriors

Lu Yi propped himself up. Since there were no surveillance devices, all that remained was to check for any hidden eavesdropping equipment.

He was about to start searching when he caught sight of Li Xinran and felt his heart skip a beat.

Lu Yi leaned down again and kissed Li Xinran’s lips. Her body trembled slightly as she slowly opened her eyes, only to see Lu Yi’s face drawing ever closer.

He gently kissed her forehead. “Good girl, this is your reward,” he said, brushing her hair with his right hand.

Li Xinran rolled her eyes at him with a flirtatious look. Laughing softly, she said, “You’re just taking advantage of me. How is that a reward?”

“What’s wrong? Isn’t my Xinran satisfied?” Lu Yi smiled as he looked at her.

Li Xinran sat up, her cheeks flushed, and punched the sofa playfully. “Not satisfied, of course not.”

“Alright.” Lu Yi responded, kissing her deeply and pressing her down onto the sofa once more.

After about thirty seconds, Li Xinran frowned and pushed him away.

“What’s the matter?” Lu Yi asked, puzzled.

Frowning, Li Xinran reached under her shoulder and pulled out a phone that had been accidentally trapped underneath.

She rolled her eyes at Lu Yi, who responded with an awkward laugh. Then his expression shifted as he sensed something amiss.

But Lu Yi was no longer the same person who had first entered this assignment. Though he sensed danger, he quickly concealed his emotions and, in a princess carry, lifted Li Xinran.

“Come, let’s continue in the bedroom,” he said, carrying her into his room and closing the door firmly behind them.

“Xinran, I see you’ve changed your phone. What happened?” As Li Xinran struggled internally, Lu Yi suddenly asked.

“Huh?” She was caught off guard by his abrupt question.

“This is important,” said Lu Yi, looking at her seriously.

Seeing his solemn demeanor, Li Xinran began recounting her day. It turned out her native friend had invited her to go shopping. Coincidentally, a newly renovated mall was opening that day, offering enticing discounts.

Her friend dragged her inside. The crowded streets were exhausting, and Li Xinran didn’t want to be in such a chaotic environment.

Unable to resist her friend’s persuasion, she decided to send Lu Yi a message. But just then, a store clerk accidentally bumped into her, causing her phone to fall to the ground and get trampled by the crowd.

The clerk apologized profusely, and eventually a mall manager stepped in and decided to compensate her with a new phone.

Listening to her story, Lu Yi began searching for information on the mall’s opening. As expected, it was under Dong Xing Teng’s name.

“What’s really going on, Lu Yi?” Li Xinran asked with concern.

“Xinran, I think everything you experienced today wasn’t a coincidence. Someone orchestrated it,” Lu Yi said gravely.

“Really? Why would anyone do that?” Li Xinran was shocked.

“If I’m right, that person is Dong Xing Teng. This phone was probably prepared in advance, with surveillance software pre-installed.”

“Impossible…” Li Xinran’s face paled at his words. If so, then everything that just happened had been watched. The thought made her blush even deeper. “Should we check?”

“No. Fang Hao and I have a plan. You just need to play your part,” Lu Yi said calmly.

Together, they carefully set up the room, timing their actions. Lu Yi opened the door.

He handed Li Xinran her phone, and she fiddled with it for a moment.

Meanwhile, several figures sat in a dark room. One had three screens in front of him, displaying images from Li Xinran’s phone’s front and rear cameras, as well as the phone’s screen content.

The other screens showed scenes around other newcomers—Xiao Wen, and others…

On the front camera, Li Xinran fixed her hair. But when she saw news about the park incident, her expression changed dramatically. “Why didn’t you tell me what happened?” she pointed at the news photo, questioning Lu Yi.

This wasn’t part of their plan, but it showed how concerned she was for him.

Lu Yi set down his glass and quickly stepped out of the rear camera’s field. Soon, an arm wrapped around Li Xinran’s shoulder, and Lu Yi appeared in the front camera. “See? I’m fine, aren’t I?”

Li Xinran twisted in his arms and looked at him. “Lu Yi, another person died.”

Upon hearing this, Lu Yi hugged her tightly.

Li Xinran tossed the phone aside—luckily, it landed on a pillow and wasn't pointed at the ceiling.

To the watcher, Lu Yi was holding Li Xinran, and his loose sleeve shielded her face completely.

“Lu Yi, is this really okay? Living day by day, not knowing if we’ll die tomorrow…” Li Xinran’s voice came through the phone. The shadow listening suddenly perked up; he sensed crucial information might be revealed and immediately shared the footage to another computer.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t see Li Xinran’s face. Her expression no longer matched her words.

Lu Yi kissed her forehead. “Don’t worry. While I don’t fully understand this assignment yet, I have found some clues.”

“Clues? Will clues save our lives?” Li Xinran squirmed in his embrace, as if sulking.

“I’ve noticed the Reaper is a perfectionist. From past incidents, you’ll see that no matter how many people are around before the attack, when the attack happens, there are never unrelated natives nearby. No matter how dramatic the scene, we’ve never heard of unrelated natives dying.

So, when the native who invited you leaves for one reason or another, leaving you alone, that’s likely when it’s about to strike.

If you find yourself alone, without experienced survivors or anyone else to help, there’s one last option: find natives and squeeze into crowded places. Crowds are chaotic, but it’s a two-way street.

Especially if you lack the strength to break through its plans directly, chaos can disrupt even the most meticulous schemes. But this shouldn’t be your usual strategy.”

Li Xinran stared at Lu Yi in astonishment. “This… this method… Did you come up with this?”

“This is brilliant,” Dong Xing Teng applauded, listening in. “I never expected you’d discover something like this. But now, all of it belongs to me.”

“Of course it’s mine,” Lu Yi replied firmly. In the team space, he whispered, “No, it’s Fang Hao’s idea.”

“Feeling more at ease now? I’ll test my other theories next. Even if things don’t go well, by then only a few will be left. The spots among the veterans will be ours,” Lu Yi said, putting his arm around Li Xinran and leading her out.

When they’d walked far enough, Lu Yi breathed a sigh of relief. This plan was given to him by Fang Hao. It wasn’t a killing trap, but a scheme to lure the enemy into overconfidence. If Dong Xing Teng wasn’t monitoring them, nothing would happen, and everyone could go their own way.

If Dong Xing Teng was indeed watching, the plan would proceed naturally.

That night, Dong Xing Teng hosted a dinner for his partners. During the meal, he stepped out to take a call and was immediately attacked by the Reaper. Fortunately, the middle-aged Master Cui whom Lu Yi had visited before protected him, allowing Dong Xing Teng to survive unscathed.

Returning to his villa, Dong Xing Teng closed the door and could no longer restrain his excitement.

Tang Qi had been protected by experienced survivors—yet, what was the result? Dead. When the survivors arrived, Lu Yi didn’t die, but someone else died in his place.

Thinking about it, Dong Xing Teng couldn’t help but laugh manically. “Veteran survivors—what nonsense. They’re nothing more than replacements. What a crowd can’t accomplish, a single master can. What value do they have for me, huh?”

He picked up a document containing records on Xie Rui Da, scattering the papers. “Protagonist? Xie Rui Da? Useless, all useless. As long as I gather enough capable people, this assignment will be my playground.”

Laughing, he drew out another sheet—a list of ability users. Over a dozen names were checked, indicating successful negotiations.