Chapter 79
Xing Nuo, drowsy with sleep, smelled the warm, comforting aroma of egg custard.
His little nose twitched, his sleepy face nuzzling the blanket, his eyes struggling to open, but he still smacked his lips.
The scent of egg custard was like a hook, pulling him from his slumber.
He clenched his fists, mumbled, and struggled, but sleep was too tempting.
He rolled over, about to drift off again, when a soft voice reached him.
“Xing Nuo, egg custard ready!”
Xing Nuo mumbled in response:
“Zaizai sleepy.”
Egg custard yummy, but Zaizai eat tomorrow…after sleep.
Lu Qi, crouching under the seat, holding a bowl of freshly made egg custard, gently poked Xing Nuo’s cheek.
Feeling the warmth of Xing Nuo’s skin, he smiled and fed him a spoonful of the custard.
Xing Nuo, in his dream, felt like he was eating egg custard.
His dad, as gentle and patient as always, fed him spoonful after spoonful, praising him for eating so much, telling him he would grow big and strong.
Xing Nuo smiled, a small dimple appearing on his cheek, and happily swung his little legs in his dream.
After finishing the egg custard, his tummy full, he said goodnight to his dad, snuggled deeper under the covers, and fell into a deep sleep.
Lu Qi, having experienced the joy of feeding Xing Nuo, watched him sleep, his chin resting on his hand, his head tilted.
He put the remaining egg custard in his spatial storage, planning to reheat it for Xing Nuo in the morning.
The bus continued to rumble through the dark, foggy night.
The players in the front, looking at the thick, inky darkness outside, rubbed their arms nervously.
“We’ve found the hidden monster. Now we just have to watch out for those monsters in the back, right?”
No one answered.
They sat in silence, the faint aroma of egg custard in the air, anxiously waiting for the next stage of the dungeon.
The bus stopped at a small station, and three players in red boarded.
Seeing the players who had boarded at the previous stop, the newcomers tried to strike up a conversation, gathering information.
Hushed whispers filled the bus.
Xing Nuo’s sleep was restless, disturbed by the sounds of struggling and fighting.
Whenever the noise started, Lu Qi would pat his back, soothe him to sleep, and then stuff his ears with tissue paper.
Seeing the players fighting the monsters, Lu Qi climbed out from under the seat and ran towards them.
The players hadn’t expected that none of the red-clad newcomers were actually human!
They were all monsters in disguise!
The monsters, having gathered enough information, revealed their bloody maws, their guttural laughter echoing as they tore a player’s arm off.
The blue-clad players huddled together, wary of each other, afraid of being betrayed by a hidden monster.
As their wounds increased, a player was about to cry out in pain when Lu Qi appeared and covered his mouth.
“No yell.”
Lu Qi’s eyes were cold as he held the player, then slapped another one.
“No yell.”
Players: “…”
It hurts! Why can’t we yell?!
As the players fumed silently, Lu Qi ran towards the monsters, kicking several of them over.
“I said no yell, right?”
The monsters, sprawled on the floor, their grotesque faces confused, looked up at him.
Lu Qi, standing at the front of the bus, his dark, empty eyes emotionless, set a new rule for the fighting players and monsters.
“No loud noises. No fighting.”
They were disturbing Xing Nuo’s sweet dreams!
A monster protested.
The next moment, it was dead, its body dissolving into energy, which Lu Qi absorbed.
The players and monsters quickly agreed to the new rule.
Lu Qi nodded in satisfaction, looking at the now-polite and well-behaved players and monsters.
“Keep it up.”
He ran back to his seat and climbed under it.
The players and monsters, forced into a truce, stared at each other.
“So, what now? Do we keep fighting?”
The monsters, dejected, looked at the delicious humans and cursed inwardly.
The players returned to their seats in the front, separated from the monsters by two rows of empty seats.
A tense silence filled the bus.
The expected bloodbath didn’t happen. The players sat there, confused and apprehensive, watching as the bus continued its journey through the darkness.
After an unknown amount of time, the first rays of dawn appeared through the front window.
The bus slowed down, its swaying becoming more pronounced.
[Ding! Approaching final destination. Please prepare to disembark.]
The clear, cheerful announcement woke Xing Nuo, who had slept soundly all night.
He yawned and mumbled sleepily:
“Xiao Qi, I dreamt of egg custard…so yummy.”
Lu Qi, his chin resting on his hand, said:
“That wasn’t a dream.”
Xing Nuo yawned again, not believing him.
Only in dreams could he eat egg custard. In reality, all they had was dry bread.
He stretched his arm and blinked.
“Where this blanket come from? Xiao Qi, yours?”
Lu Qi nodded.
“Borrowed.”
Xing Nuo peeked out from under the blanket, looking at the disheveled players and monsters.
“Borrowed? Someone found us?”
Lu Qi scratched his cheek.
“Maybe not.”
He hoped no one had noticed they hadn’t paid for their tickets.
Xing Nuo sighed, his hair a mess, climbed out from under the seat, and carefully folded the blanket with Lu Qi.
“We have to weturn it.”
Sneaking onto the bus had been unavoidable, but they had to return the borrowed blanket.
Lu Qi nodded in agreement, as always.
Xing Nuo, holding the blanket, nervously walked towards the front with Lu Qi, hand in hand.
He was afraid a ticket inspector would appear and demand payment.
They had no money between them.
Fortunately, they reached the front, where the human players were sitting, without being stopped.
Xing Nuo sighed in relief, thinking that perhaps everyone had forgotten about the tickets after a night’s sleep.
He returned the blanket to the player and thanked him politely.
Lu Qi, following behind, also mumbled a thank you, his face expressionless.
The player, looking at Lu Qi, was silent for a moment, then said:
“You’re welcome.”
Having cleared that hurdle, Xing Nuo pulled Lu Qi’s hand and sat down in the front row, near the door.
They would get off at City C and go to the new amusement park.
As Xing Nuo waited excitedly, the players’ final test arrived.
[Congratulations on surviving the night and reaching your final destination.]
[Please choose to disembark, or answer the following question: What is the name of the final destination?]
The players’ minds raced.
There was no way they were getting off the bus!
Who knew what dangers awaited them outside? This wasn’t a choice at all!
They had to answer the question!
“The final destination? There should be a route map on the bus!”
“There isn’t one? What’s going on? This bus has no signs or markings!”
Xing Nuo, looking out the window, then turning to the frantic players, their heads and arms bandaged, their faces filled with anxiety,
wondered if they were injured and going to the hospital.
He turned back to the window, watching as the bus pulled into a small, dilapidated station.
The players also noticed the station and frantically searched for any clues about their destination.
But the station was old and run-down, like an illegal bus stop, with no signs or markings.
The bus stopped, and Xing Nuo gasped softly.
“We here!”
He and Lu Qi jumped down from their seats, waiting for the doors to open.
The players, their hearts pounding, stared at the door, a knot of anxiety in their stomachs.
The system’s voice echoed in their minds:
[The doors are about to open. Players who cannot answer the question must disembark.]
The players braced themselves, sweat dripping down their faces.
Behind them, the monsters stirred, their menacing presence pushing them forward.
As if they would pounce and devour them if they didn’t get off the bus.
The doors slowly opened.
Xing Nuo, his face filled with excitement, took a step down.
“We finally at City C! Go to amusement park…find Qingqing!”
The players, hearing this, like a choir of angels, exchanged glances and quickly submitted their answers, escaping the dungeon.
Back in Central City, after some research, they finally breathed a sigh of relief.
City C was a high-difficulty S+ rank dungeon!
If they had gotten off the bus, they would have been doomed!
