Lin Deshuang shrank behind Yao Qianhe and whispered, “Husband, he screamed so miserably. He must have been caught by the specter and is definitely having a rule executed on him right now.”
Yao Qianhe patted her hand comfortingly. “It is fine. He brought it upon himself. Besides, if the specter is over there, it means we are safe here.”
Wang Luoshan stared in the direction of the scream for a long time. He only snapped out of it after the sound completely faded.
In the end, he merely muttered,
“Well, it is just as well that he is dead.”
Then, just like Zhou Meng had done earlier, his gaze swept very subtly over Yao Qianhe and his wife.
Naturally, they did not notice.
Zuo Lin'an, however, had been resting with his eyes closed. His specter body was currently dealing with Wu Yuan's corpse, so he did not notice Wang Luoshan's subtle glance.
After successfully killing Wu Yuan, the specter body retraced its steps and found the woman Wu Yuan had thrown away. Confirming she was still alive, he casually carried her to the peak of the mountain closest to the edge of the mist.
Within the dungeon, there was only one cave.
And Wang Luoshan's group already knew its location.
That being the case, it was inconvenient for Zuo Lin'an to bring captured players there. He could only find a more distant spot to temporarily settle them, planning to deal with them when he had time later.
Once the specter body finished its task, Zuo Lin'an did not plan to rest. Instead, he wanted to strike while the iron was hot and take away the crippled Yuan Shan, along with the other two women near his living body.
This way, in the eyes of Wang Luoshan and the others, these captured players would surely be presumed dead, leaving only the four players on the mountain summit.
When that time came, his specter body could find an opportunity to test Wang Luoshan and his group, seeing what kind of trump cards they held.
Zuo Lin'an could even have his specter body appear and abduct his own living body.
This would make them believe that the only NPC in the dungeon—himself—had been killed by the specter.
This way, his role as an NPC could exit the stage. Without the need to act, he could perfectly fuse with his specter body in secret, using his peak state to test Wang Luoshan and the others.
Even if they had means to repel the specter, he could use his living body to avoid any risk.
With these thoughts in mind, the specter body quickly rushed over from the distance, and a chilling specter aura gradually enveloped the mountaintop.
The four players under Wang Luoshan noticed it immediately. They stood up and drew closer to one another.
Zuo Lin'an watched them closely through his God's-eye view.
As expected!
Various items materialized out of thin air in the hands of all four people.
These were undoubtedly specter items they had dematerialized and stored inside their bodies!
However, because they kept the specter items tightly gripped in their hands, Zuo Lin'an could not see them clearly.
In addition, Wang Luoshan and Zhou Meng each held a 【Death Doll】. As for the couple, Yao Qianhe and Lin Deshuang, they only had one specter item each.
Zuo Lin'an's specter body slowly materialized in the distance. Since he did not know the effects of the specter items in their hands, he did not recklessly approach.
More importantly, Zuo Lin'an was still unaware of their talents.
Wang Luoshan had the highest cultivation level, so he was naturally the first to spot those crimson eyes.
“The specter is here! Everyone, be careful!”
Zuo Lin'an's plan was to probe the trump cards of Wang Luoshan's group of four without getting hurt, so he remained standing at a distance, making no move to draw near.
However, several minutes passed, and both sides remained locked in a tense standoff across the distance.
After a moment of thought, he made a decision.
In the next instant, the specter body took a few slow steps forward. As it gradually closed in, it aimed to put some pressure on Wang Luoshan and the others.
Yet, they made no move, only drawing even closer to one another and growing increasingly vigilant.
They had not brought out any new items. So... was this all they had?
Zuo Lin'an had no intention of letting the stalemate continue, so the specter body took another step forward. This time, it did not just walk closer; it vanished from its spot.
His figure disappeared in an instant.
Wang Luoshan was just about to speak when, in the next fraction of a second, he noticed the specter had appeared right beside Yuan Shan.
Then, they watched as the specter grabbed Yuan Shan and vanished before their eyes in the blink of an eye.
Feeling the chilling aura around them gradually dissipate, Zhou Meng let out a small sigh of relief.
“Has it left?”
Wang Luoshan barked, “Do not lower your guard!”
Sure enough, in less than a minute, the specter's figure reappeared. This time, it carried away one of the women. Not long after, it appeared yet again and took the other woman.
Just like that, only the four of them and a single dungeon native were left on the mountaintop!
Lin Deshuang, who had been hiding behind Yao Qianhe the entire time, was also quite frightened. However, she turned her head and noticed Zuo Lin'an, who was still leaning against a tree with his eyes closed.
She asked in some bewilderment, “Young Master, a specter has appeared. Are you not afraid?”
At that moment, the specter body of Zuo Lin'an had just casually tossed the fourth person onto his chosen mountaintop. Sensing that someone was trying to speak with his living body, he split off a portion of his consciousness to respond.
“Afraid? What is there to be afraid of?”
His tone was completely nonchalant.
“If I were afraid, would that ghostly thing spare my life?”
“Since death is inevitable either way, I would rather not lose my final shred of dignity. Screaming and running away... if those people saw me like that, they would mock me even after I am dead.”
At these words, everyone looked at him with somewhat peculiar expressions.
Zuo Lin'an did not care, continuing to speak.
“But you all, on the other hand, look like you haven't given up on leaving this place yet.”
Wang Luoshan took a deep breath. “Young brother, you must know something, right?”
Zuo Lin'an looked at him. “What do you mean by that?”
He felt that because he had captured so many players, the pressure on Wang Luoshan had suddenly spiked. Was this man about to show his true colors now?
Then, keeping a wary eye on his surroundings, Wang Luoshan slowly paced over to him. He gradually squatted down, his eyes burning as he stared intently at Zuo Lin'an.
“You know what is going on with the specter here, don't you? You know its rules, don't you? And you know how to survive, don't you?”
At this moment, Yao Qianhe gestured with his eyes to Lin Deshuang, signaling her to prepare to use her third charge of 【Lie Detection】.
As long as Zuo Lin'an answered, they would know whether he was telling the truth or lying.
To their surprise, however, this dungeon native did not give a direct answer. Instead, he shifted his gaze and stared right back at Wang Luoshan.
“You seem to be some kind of Pacification Commissioner? From the Tianlong Guard?”
Wang Luoshan's expression remained unchanged. “Yes. But that does not prevent me from asking you questions. I wonder if you, young friend, could clear up this old man's doubts?”
Facing his threatening tone, Zuo Lin'an did not care in the slightest.
“And what if I refuse to answer?”
Wang Luoshan gave a soft chuckle. “I have cultivated my way to this day, climbing to my current position as a Pacification Commissioner. Do you know what this old man relied on to get here?”
Zuo Lin'an did not answer.
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