Chapter 650: Have You Been Here All Night?

Neither the man in the black robe nor I answered each other's question. The atmosphere in the water room gradually grew heavy.

Nobody knew exactly how many live show streamers were participating in this broadcast, so I couldn't be sure the person in front of me was the "devil" driving innocent people into this trap.

"What do you want? Maybe we can sit down and talk." Staring each other down wasn't getting us anywhere, so I took the initiative to break the stalemate.

A dozen seconds passed before the man in the black jumpsuit spoke at the same measured pace. "Why is your mask different from ours?"

He had asked the same question twice. I furrowed my brow slightly. "Is it that important? A mask is just meant to hide your true face. Why fuss over a fake skin?"

"For ordinary people, the meaning of a mask might be exactly what you said. But for a live show streamer, a mask holds extraordinary significance." Black Robe stroked the Paper Doll Mask on his face. His movements were surprisingly similar to the Paper Doll Interviewer's; come to think of it, Xiao A had done the exact same thing. "Think about the name of the Live Show, and then think about the difference between a paper doll and a living person. If you don't even understand that, you won't live much longer."

Black Robe remained where he stood. I couldn't detect any killing intent in his voice; he didn't seem prepared to attack me.

Since he wasn't showing any hostility, I naturally wasn't going to antagonize him. "I received my mask as a gift from the Live Show Examiner after completing a task."

Back at the intersection of No-Lights Road, after I successfully usurped fate, the Live Show Examiner gave me a mission to slaughter the entire Three Yin Sect. That was when I received this Good and Evil Asura Mask.

"Given to you?" Black Robe stared at my face for a long time before suddenly nodding. "So it's this face. I remember now. He's back!"

His voice was eerie and bizarre. The live show streamer's body trembled slightly beneath his black robes—whether from fear or excitement, I couldn't tell.

"This face? Isn't it just a mask?" I didn't know who this "he" was that Black Robe was talking about, but I had already gleaned many clues from the Black-Robed Anchor's words.

For example, the Paper Doll Mask. The name of the broadcast was the Underworld Live Show, and paper dolls were traditionally burned as offerings for the dead.

"If you say it's a mask, then it's a mask." Black Robe stood in the darkness, seemingly melting into the night. "This face saved my life a few years ago. A life for a life. I can't repay his kindness, but I can spare yours."

He stepped back, his voice growing faint. "If you are his successor, and if you want to know his story, you can come find me in Jinghai City. I will give you an answer."

His voice faded away, and Black Robe retreated from the water room. By the time I chased him outside, he had already vanished without a trace.

'This guy is so secretive. Just who is he? According to the intel Xiao A provided back then, there were only two streamers capable of participating in this broadcast. One is the Butcher, and the other absolutely despises fate usurpers. Could Black Robe be one of them?' I didn't know the real answer. I had only been a live show streamer for a little over a month. Compared to those old monsters, I was nothing but a rookie.

'He wants me to go to Jinghai City to find him?' Jinghai was one of Huaxia's direct-controlled municipalities. Whether in population or land area, it was over ten times the size of Jiangcheng. It was a place teeming with all sorts of people, a chaotic mix of good and bad. It wasn't somewhere I could step into lightly.

'What a weirdo. Still, he doesn't harbor any hostility toward me. I could go take a look if the opportunity arises.' I carried Gu Tongtong to the side. After making sure no one was around, I took off my mask, removed the Human Skin Mask beneath it, and began washing the bloodstains off my body.

Late autumn had arrived without me noticing. The freezing tap water splashed over my body, stimulating my every nerve and keeping me awake.

'I need to get Gu Tongtong out of here first and find someone to watch over her, then head back to Century New Garden under the cover of night. Chen Jiuge's body is dead. If I'm found missing from my room right now, the consequences will be unimaginable.' I wiped away the water on my body and changed into my own clothes. 'It's not time to expose myself yet. I have to be careful.'

I was currently walking along the edge of a cliff. A single moment of carelessness would send me plummeting into a bottomless abyss.

I took out my phone, but there was no signal here. After finishing my cleanup, I picked up Gu Tongtong and left through the water room's window.

Wang Wu hadn't lied in the end. This place really was the life gate of the feng shui grand formation. I had asked Daoist master Wan about it, and the Daoist master had only recited two lines of a feng shui incantation: "Water flows from the Geng direction toward the second and fifth houses; as the corrupt water bends away, good fortune arrives and disaster departs."

When I left Jianghu Cancer Research Hospital, the sky was still dark.

I found a place with a signal and sent a message to Balding Uncle, but he didn't reply. I called out to him a few times in the livestream chat, but he didn't appear either.

'Dropping the ball at a critical moment? Don't tell me the uncle is sick of me?' I swiped through my phone with a bitter smile, looking at my contacts. Finally, my finger unconsciously tapped on a name.

When the dial tone rang, I jolted awake. I was just about to hang up, but who could have expected the call to connect after only two rings?

"Gao Jian? You need me?"

The voice on the other end of the line was mature and concise, carrying a trace of concern that gave off a very reliable feeling.

My finger hovered over the end-call button. After a moment's pause, I licked my dry lips. "Senior, I've run into a bit of trouble. I'm currently in a wasteland between Jiangcheng and Xinhu. I'll send you the exact address in a moment."

"What happened? Weren't you invited to Century New Garden? Is someone trying to harm you?"

"It's a long story. Senior, whatever you do, don't alert anyone else! Remember, you have to keep this a secret for me."

Hanging up the phone, I looked at the night sky above, unsure if I had done the right thing.

'The dreams in the Despair District shouldn't have anything to do with reality, right...?'

Half an hour later, Tie Ningxiang drove her car to our agreed-upon meeting place. It was only 3:50 in the morning.

Her police boots stepped into the mud as she got out of the car. She said nothing and asked nothing.

"Drive fast. Take me to the perimeter of Century New Garden and drop me off somewhere without surveillance cameras."

I climbed into the back seat and laid Gu Tongtong down.

"Help me take good care of this child. Don't let anyone hurt her." I then handed the only remaining Injection to Tie Ningxiang. "Take a fifth of the medicine inside for testing, and make sure to keep a sample. As for the other four-fifths, if the girl's condition continues to worsen, inject it into her."

Sitting in the driver's seat, Tie Ningxiang started the car. She looked at the girl and nodded. She wanted to say something but forcefully held it back.

Since she didn't ask, I naturally didn't explain.

"Senior, don't tell anyone that you came to find me tonight. Promise me, okay?"

Tie Ningxiang didn't reply. She rolled down the window, letting the night breeze blow into the car. A moment later, seemingly remembering that the girl was injured and afraid she might catch a cold, she rolled the window back up.

From these back-and-forth actions, I could tell that a fierce struggle was raging in her heart.

The car drove silently to the vicinity of the commercial street near Century New Garden. Early-rising street cleaners could already be seen along the road.

"Here is fine." Using my Judging Eye, I scanned my surroundings. There were no cameras nearby, so I decisively pushed the door open.

"Wait!" Having suppressed her questions the entire way, Tie Ningxiang finally called out to me.

I stepped out of the car. Standing in the middle of the silent, deserted street, I looked back at the female police officer. "What is it?"

Tie Ningxiang took a deep breath. Her eyes were complex, carrying an indescribable emotion. "Did you kill someone?"

"I..." Looking at Tie Ningxiang in the car, the rest of my words caught in my throat; I just couldn't say it. "I don't want to lie to you. Take good care of that girl. Her name is Gu Tongtong. Remember! You didn't see me tonight!"

I turned and strode away, but her voice drifted from behind me again.

"There's rust on the hem of your shirt, bloodstains on your pant legs, and a clear blunt-force scrape on the back of your neck. Remember to treat them." The window rolled up, and the car drove off in the opposite direction.

I touched the wound on the back of my neck. Watching the departing car, I shook my head with a smile and walked toward Century New Garden, keeping to the shadows against the walls.

Just as the sky began to lighten with dawn, I squeezed into the ventilation duct and retraced my route back.

The building was deadly silent. No one knew that a thrilling, life-and-death struggle had just taken place a few kilometers away.

Carefully returning to the fifteenth floor, I entered the Sichuan couple's room, lifted the hypnosis, and put everything back in its proper place. Afterward, I opened the window and climbed back into my own room.

"Where did you go all night? Do you know someone walked past your door every hour last night, blanketing the place in their psychic sense? It nearly scared me to death!"

Climbing down from the windowsill, I happened to see Wang Shi lying on the bed. He had followed my orders and stayed there until now.

"You're already a ghost. How could you be scared to death?" I drew the curtains and raised the Ghost Ring. "The matter is settled. You can come back now."

"Don't forget our agreement! I want to return to the world of the living!" Wang Shi grumbled reluctantly for a good while before turning into a wisp of blue smoke and drilling into the Ghost Ring.

'Finally back.' I walked into the bathroom, locked the door, and meticulously inspected every inch of my body. I disposed of anything that might expose me and even scrubbed the soles of my shoes completely clean.

'A thorough investigation would definitely still find some omissions. I need to act a bit more natural and use the arrogant conceit of those sect cultivators to eliminate myself from the list of suspects. After all, I have a perfect alibi.' Just as I stepped out of the bathroom, the Live Show Phone in my pocket coincidentally chimed. This broadcast was finally over.

I took out my phone. Just as I was about to check the finalized points, footsteps suddenly echoed in the hallway.

'Are they coming my way?' I quickly stripped off my shirt and grabbed the blanket to cover my lower half. Before I had time to do anything else, urgent knocking hit my ears.

"Open the door!"

"Hurry up and open the door!"

I hurriedly messed up my hair, put on a groggy, half-asleep expression, and walked to the door, shouting impatiently, "What's the rush?"

When I opened the door, standing outside were Wei Wenming, the senior brother of the Golden Mountain Sect, and Wei Jianming, who had never liked me.

Our eyes met. The two of them looked me up and down without saying a word.

"If you have something to say, spit it out. What's the rush, are you in a hurry to reincarnate?" I was still wearing my pants and shoes. If they pulled back the blanket to look, I would be exposed instantly.

"Have you been here all night?" Wei Wenming stared at me, his eyes full of suspicion.