Chapter 16: A Harmonious Atmosphere

After the bloody experience in the last instance, Zhang Bing had already decided to keep his distance and draw a clear line with these NPC ghosts. Even if side quests were available, he had no intention of getting involved.

A ghost’s goodwill?

Tch, how could that thing even be called a quest reward?

For ghosts whose minds were likely filled with hatred, unable to distinguish good from evil, so-called goodwill probably just meant they enjoyed your screams more when they killed you.

But when he explored upstairs and saw that key figure of the instance, Pearl, struggling to crawl out from under the debris pinning him down, with several Charred Corpses in hot pursuit behind him, Zhang Bing’s mind went blank. He rushed forward purely on reflex. By the time he came to his senses, the kid was already in his arms.

He even risked his life to go back for that doll!

“Don’t empathize with any NPC, especially characters who are long dead. You can’t change the fact of their death, and you can’t stay here with them.”

The advice he’d given Wei Congxin hadn’t even left his lips for a full day, yet he was the first to let his heart soften. Cursing himself inwardly, Zhang Bing’s expression became even more fierce and unapproachable.

He carried Yin Luo all the way past the third floor, then swiftly ran to the large balcony on the second floor leading outside the house. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief and put the little troublemaker down.

Unlike the smoke-choked, blazing interior, the balcony air was fresh, even carrying a dry evening breeze.

Looking at the familiar surroundings, then at the large swimming pool beside them, Yin Luo felt a momentary sense of temporal and spatial disorientation.

This feeling was especially strong when a familiar voice rang in his ears: “Brother Zhang, you’re finally back! Ah, you scared me to death! How are you? Are you okay?”

Seeing the arrivals, Wei Congxin and Yan Shanque, who had been hiding in the shadows, immediately scurried over.

“I’m fine.” Zhang Bing shook his head. Suddenly remembering something, he turned around and pulled the little brat hiding behind him out. “And you?”

His features were hard and cold, and when his face darkened, he looked fierce and unapproachable, as if interrogating someone.

The black-haired youth seemed a little afraid of him. Clutching his rabbit doll, he lowered his head and quietly whispered another thank you.

“What are you thanking for? Nothing to thank for! I asked if you’re hurt!” Zhang Bing’s voice grew louder with impatience, making him look even more intimidating.

“No.” The black-haired youth lifted his head to glance at him quickly, then hung his head even lower and replied even more softly.

Zhang Bing regretted his tone the moment he spoke. The black-haired youth was small-framed and delicate-featured. When a brat of this age wasn’t acting out, he always reminded Zhang Bing of his own little daughter at home—also this short, speaking in a small, soft voice.

He guessed he’d scared the kid, so he clumsily tried to offer comfort: “It’s good you’re okay. Don’t… don’t be afraid. If there’s danger, you hide behind us.”

“Hmm.” Yin Luo, who had a decent impression of him, looked up and curved his eyes at him, acknowledging that he’d helped a bit.

Zhang Bing, a tough guy, was at a bit of a loss.

Wei Congxin’s face was about to twist. Watching this harmonious parent-child atmosphere, he couldn’t get a word in edgewise.

Didn’t he know exactly what kind of personality this Young Master Pearl had? He was absolutely a little madman! How could he possibly be this fragile and sensitive!

And that doll—don’t think I didn’t see your ear secretly twitch!

But Wei Congxin was a coward. He had little courage. He didn’t dare to shatter this beautiful scene. In fact, the mere thought of the word “ghost” made him unable to look directly at the black-haired youth. So, he had to find a way to change the subject: “Uh, Brother Zhang, did you see anyone else?”

“Qin Dan said he was going to look around. Zou Zihao’s room is locked; he probably hasn’t come out. Lin Yujing is missing,” Zhang Bing said.

Missing?

Wei Congxin had a bad feeling, a sense that something was about to happen.

Lin Yujing?

Lin Yujing was, once again, ostensibly sightseeing but actually thieving.

The Charred Corpses wandering in the flames seemed to not see him at all, treating him as if he didn’t exist.

The grey-haired man deftly passed through the gaps in the flames, humming a tuneless, purely emotional song. Following the traces of his frog-baby, he zigzagged left and right until he finally touched the destination.

Looking up, he realized it was a familiar place—the fourth-floor bedroom.

This instance truly wasn’t that difficult. Although a bit strange, it never exceeded the scope of a novice instance.

Because the main quest didn’t require players to fight the boss to the death, nor did it involve complex, mind-bending puzzles.

In fact, the most important clue was given right from the start—the instance’s name—Pearl’s Bedroom.

The players’ activity range was clearly within the entire villa, and the people they interacted with were members of this household. So why was the instance called Pearl’s Bedroom instead of Pearl’s House?

Why did those strange dolls only appear in the bedroom and not scattered in other rooms?

But for some reason, the players seemed to ignore this completely. After initially looking for the Little Bear doll, they never tried to enter the room to investigate again.

A single side quest had completely tied everyone’s hands and feet.

Don’t dare offend this, don’t dare test that.

Lin Yujing had no intention of reminding them. In fact, he didn’t even feel like doing the quest anymore and just wanted to slack off.

Side quests were important, but he was always hated by people and loathed by ghosts. This kind of quest requiring him to specifically build goodwill was absolutely not suitable for him.

Still, he was indeed interested in that little young master, which was why he’d put in the effort, even though there were no results yet and he was about to give up and coast.

“Let me take a peek at what’s here.” The grey-haired man had almost forgotten his own frog-baby. He happily pushed open the door, looked around, and let out an exclamation of wonder: “Oh ho, a pile of shattered corpses~”