Chapter 262: Su Qing

They stood in a massive circular plaza. It had only a single entrance and exit, and the passage was currently blocked by someone who looked like a sweet, demure girl next door.

She was lovely and petite, her glossy black hair cascading down her back like silk. With her bright eyes, radiant smile, and delicate air, she looked exactly like a well-behaved model student.

However, her posture had absolutely nothing in common with a good girl. She slouched against the rocky wall of the entrance, a lit cigarette dangling from her lips. One hand absentmindedly rubbed her smooth chin as she eyed the crowd with a lazy, delinquent swagger, looking for all the world like she was enjoying a good show.

This was none other than King Chi's avatar.

Having secured an avatar and free from any supervision in this Dungeon, King Chi had completely let loose.

"No!" the man struck by the Mithril Token shrieked. He violently yanked up his shirt to expose his abdomen, his face instantly turning deathly pale.

Countless intersecting black curse marks had appeared on his flesh. Like squirming tadpoles, the lines were spreading across his body at a visible rate.

His terror deepened. He snatched the Mithril Token from the ground and shot a savage glare at the three men and one woman hiding on the other side of the plaza.

"Trying to kill me? None of you will live either!"

Holding the Mithril Token high, he charged straight at the group. Their expressions shifted, and they immediately scattered to flee.

An intense chase began. The Mithril Token was treated like the plague; everyone who saw it dodged frantically, not daring to let it near.

Strangely enough, the chase didn't seem to involve King Chi's avatar at all. She just leaned there blocking the entrance, smoking with that delinquent air, and absolutely no one dared approach her.

"Hey!" King Chi's avatar suddenly shouted impatiently. "Hurry up, you lot! Pick someone to take the curse on the Mithril Token and don't waste this... waste my time! If I don't get first place later, you'll all pay!"

A crisp, ethereal voice came from her mouth, yet the words were rather vulgar. With the cigarette dangling from her lips, she gave off the vibe of a delicate, tragic beauty who had dyed her hair blonde and squatted by the school wall to smoke after class.

Though her tone wasn't the least bit intimidating, the people involved in the chase tensed up, flashes of terror appearing in their eyes.

That terror was deepest in the eyes of the short-haired woman. She couldn't forget what she had witnessed upon first arriving. When she entered the plaza, she had seen this seemingly sweet girl opening the Mithril Treasure Chest.

Watching her pull the Mithril Token from the chest, the woman had even marveled at her own good luck, surprised to have encountered a Mithril Token so easily. So, she stepped forward and threatened the sweet girl, demanding she hand it over.

To her surprise, the girl had actually handed it over.

That sickeningly sweet voice still echoed in her ears.

"Big sister, do you want it? Then I'll just give it to you."

And thus, the nightmare began.

After receiving the Mithril Token, she had been wild with joy—but a second later, she discovered the curse. Anyone who held the Mithril Token would be invaded by it. Countless black curse marks would begin to spread, and once they covered the body, death was absolutely certain. She had to hand the Mithril Token to someone else to lift the curse.

Shocked and furious, she felt she had been tricked. She tried to give the Mithril Token back, and then... there was no 'then'.

This 'good girl' had used a single punch to teach her—a Silver 2—how to behave.

That kind of overwhelming strength left her incapable of even entertaining the thought of resistance. Facing such an unfathomable expert, she couldn't force the Mithril Token back into her hands. Her only choices were to wait for death from the curse, or be beaten to death on the spot.

Fortunately, just as she fell into despair, others arrived at the plaza, leading to the current scene.

"Lin Nanxing, give it up. We're all at Silver 2, and with your injured leg, you won't catch me," the short-haired woman said coldly.

Lin Nanxing's expression grew even more savage as he roared curses at her. "Zhou Hui, you bitch! If you hadn't schemed against me from the start, would I be in this state?! Even if I die, I'm dragging you down with me!"

A ruthless glint flashed in Zhou Hui's eyes as she spoke to the others. "There are still plenty of dangers in the Dungeon. We have to conserve our stamina; we can't keep wasting it on him. Miss Su Qing wants the Mithril Token, which means someone has to die. Since the Mithril Token is in Lin Nanxing's hands right now, let's sacrifice him.

"I assume none of you have any objections."

The others exchanged glances and nodded without the slightest hesitation. No one wanted to die, so Lin Nanxing would just have to die instead.

"Do it! Break his legs!" Zhou Hui shouted fiercely. The group instantly stopped fleeing, whirled around, and counterattacked.

"Y-you all!" Lin Nanxing's face warped in horror; he never expected the group to actually unite to sacrifice him. In truth, it was the most logical choice. If Lin Nanxing had been in their shoes, he would have done the exact same thing, but the problem was that he was the one carrying the curse right now.

The dynamic in the plaza abruptly reversed. Lin Nanxing turned and fled, screaming frantically, "Don't listen to Zhou Hui, she's a bitch! Let's team up and break her legs so she can take the curse! I'm willing to pay!"

However, no one listened to him. People naturally clung to their first impressions, and the crowd only wanted to lift the curse as quickly as possible and leave this place.

Under their combined assault, Lin Nanxing had almost no room to resist before both of his legs were snapped.

"Ah!!" he screamed miserably, collapsing to the ground with his legs bent at unnatural angles.

"You animals! Bastards, you'll die terrible deaths!" he cursed continuously, but the only response he got was the crowd's cold stares.

Just then, from the entrance behind King Chi's avatar—Su Qing—came the sound of steady, unhurried footsteps, accompanied by the dull thud of a wooden stick striking the hard ground.

Still leaning against the wall, Su Qing flashed a wicked smirk. "Looks like a newcomer has arrived. Lin Nanxing, maybe you can beg them. Who knows, they might just be soft-hearted enough to die for you."

Lin Nanxing's expression was vicious, and it looked like he wanted to curse at Su Qing too. But after taking one look at her, he ultimately didn't dare to open his mouth. All of the latecomers had experienced Su Qing's strength firsthand; she truly could drop them like toddlers with a single punch. Insulting Su Qing meant dying right now. If he kept his mouth shut, he might live a little longer.

Besides, it was entirely because Su Qing had blocked the entrance and refused to let them leave that this chase had happened in the first place.

For a moment, everyone's gaze gathered on the entrance shrouded in darkness.