When the Wild Beast is Trapped in the Nightmare Cycle (BL)
Chapter 514: Just Saying

Chapter 514: Just Saying

Noir remained as impassive as ever. He simply gave the deep gash on his arm – which appeared severe enough to need stitches – a furtive glance before taking out a roll of bandage from his prop storage.

Seeing this, Gu Luoxin intended to lend a hand, but the man moved so fast that he had no chance to butt in.

Noir nimbly cleaned the blood on his arm and dressed the injury before tying a secure knot with the help of his teeth. His smooth and practiced movements highlighted the tantalizing flex of his toned biceps and the sharp line of his jaws, oozing with the hot allure of danger and power, like a hunting leopard lazily licking the blood off its paw.

Gu Luoxin couldn’t help but stare despite himself, enraptured.

In no time at all, crimson specks permeated the white bandages akin to ink dripping into a glass of water. It looked terrible at first glance, but honestly such a wound was nothing in the players’ eyes.

They had suffered more serious wounds before— broken bones, internal injuries, innards spilling out of their bodies, you name it. Some of them had even died before coming back to life through various methods.

Nonetheless, Gu Luoxin still couldn’t help but feel distressed at the sight of this ’tiny’ wound. He hurriedly put away any distracting thoughts and inquired, "Are you okay, Senior? Do you have any other injuries?" his eyes scanned the man’s figure up and down, his tone laced with thick concern.

"I’m fine," Noir replied with a minute shake of his head. He then jutted his chin toward Jin Jiuchi, who looked like a dead, dried-up starfish on the ground. "What’s up with him?"

"He..." Gu Luoxin instinctively turned to Shen Nianzu, and then the two of them, as though connected by telepathy, waved their hands in unison. "It’s nothing, nothing at all."

It was too embarrassing! One of their teammates had collapsed because he ate the wrong thing, out of his own volition at that! If they were to state this out loud, wouldn’t it be like airing out their dirty laundry in public? They had to preserve Jin Jiuchi’s image in the eyes of outsiders, at the very least. Otherwise soon all the players across the country would come to learn that the ever mysterious and powerful JJ was but a dumb and gluttonous husky in reality!

Noir arched a brow, seemingly skeptical but lacked the interest to pursue further. Firstly, if Jin Jiuchi’s condition was serious, his teammates wouldn’t be acting so carefree and casual right now. And secondly, he was aware that Jin Jiuchi wasn’t a human, thus might not die too easily.

It was fortunate that other players were too preoccupied with tending to their own wounds to pay much attention to them. Shen Nianzu noted the three unfamiliar players out of the corner of his eye and although his expression showed nothing, he was inwardly frowning at the sheer amount of blood on their bodies.

It wouldn’t have reached this extent had they not been the main culprit behind the massacre.

Judging from their demeanor, they seemed to know each other but still too distant to be teammates, proving that they had come to a temporary alliance just to escape from the Red Zone. Granted, a single player would never be able to achieve such a feat unless they were a genuine assassin or a master of ambush. Two players posed a significant risk because they not only had to fight other adversaries but also watch their own back, fearing that the other person would take the advantage of their momentary lapse of attention to get rid of them. Four would be too many – three was just right.

If Shen Nianzu was the leader of a temporary alliance, he would choose a team of three too. Wasn’t the SJG Team the perfect example of this?

Of course he was not saying that he didn’t trust his teammates. Shen Nianzu was a cautious and highly intelligent player, after all. He wouldn’t have bothered recruiting anyone if he wasn’t certain about their character and virtues.

The three bloodied players whispered amongst themselves, their vigilant gazes studying the other players. While Shen Nianzu conversed with Gu Luoxin and Noir, he automatically devised a plan in his mind about what to do if those players decided to attack them, but apparently, the three of them still retained some rationality and intelligence, for they simply left in the end, each to their own direction.

The temporary cooperation had come to an end.

Shen Nianzu subtly breathed a sigh of relief just in time to hear Gu Luoxin asking Noir in a hopeful tone, "Would you like to join us...?"

Perhaps not wanting to be perceived as too clingy and desperate, Gu Luoxin cleared his throat and loudly invited Ying along, who happened to pass by them. "Umm how about you, Ying-jie? Would you like to join us too?" he broke into a sheepish grin and added in a smaller voice, "Only if you want, though..."

Ying paused in her tracks and nodded in acknowledgement. "Thank you but no," she refused with a resolute tone. "I’m going back in."

"To the Red Zone?" Shen Nianzu was taken aback by her decisiveness. He knew that she was powerful, but she was all alone, after all! Plus this wasn’t just any Red Zone, but one they had just been kicked out from because they offended the creatures within for some unknown reason. Who knew what kind of danger would be looming inside? Even then, she still decided to go?

"Uh-huh," Ying’s eyes blazed with determination as she gazed at the crimson forest before her. "The main reward is inside. I have to return even if it’s dangerous. I want more power... enough to protect anyone I want." Her fists clenched, then she sighed, muttering, "It would be great if it’s the platinum or golden ticket..."

The platinum ticket could bring a player straight to Legendary rank, regardless of what level they were currently at. It was the main attraction of the Cycle. While the golden ticket only boasted one level upgrade, for Elite players, its effect was the same as platinum ticket since their next level would be Legendary.

Even Shen Nianzu had to admit that he was somewhat tempted.

It was common knowledge that in order for Elite players to advance into Legendary, they would have to challenge the Nightmare themselves and complete a series of harrowing, inconceivable tasks that were more dangerous than anything they had gone through before. Just this condition alone was enough to deter most of the players. This also explained why, despite the fact that nearly all the top thirty players on the leaderboard were in Elite rank, only three Legendary players existed for the past two years— namely Qian Hui, the Harbinger of Doom; XXX, the Divine Oracle; and Grandpa Song, the Sword of Heaven.

Most players were content to remain in the Elite rank, unwilling to gamble on their precious lives.

But Shen Nianzu was different – he aspired to reach the top and unravel the truth behind the Nightmare Cycle. For that, he had to become a Legendary player sooner or later. Of course he would never leave his teammates behind.

SJG would one day become the one and only organization where all of its members were in the Legendary rank— he would make sure of it!

"Silver," Noir suddenly piped in, drawing their attention. There was nary an expression on his face as he informed them, "It’s a silver ticket."

Silver ticket— it offered a free pass on any Cycle. Sure, it was a priceless treasure in the eyes of many others, but compared to platinum or golden tickets, it seemed a little lackluster. Before the disappointment could sink in, however, Shen Nianzu abruptly realized— hold on, how did Noir know about it?

"So it’s you?!" Shen Nianzu and Ying blurted out in unison, taken aback.

The two of them had a look of understanding on their faces. No wonder the celebratory fireworks were cut short. As it turned out, the one who had discovered the black box was Noir. With how quick-witted the man was, it wasn’t strange for him to make a critical decision to abandon the reward in such a short amount of time.

Gu Luoxin was utterly awestruck, his round eyes sparkling in admiration and even a hint of worship. "Senior, you’re so lucky!" he praised unabashedly.

There were only five silver tickets scattered across the entire forest, but Noir managed to find one so soon— wasn’t his luck simply off the charts?! Gu Luoxin would already be over the moon if he could harvest some props and experience points!

A peculiar look crossed Noir’s emerald eyes, seemingly wanting to say something but deciding not to in the end.

"Will you be going?" Shen Nianzu asked Ying with a mix of concern and curiosity. Only a silver ticket, was it worth all the trouble?

Ying weighed her choices for more than five seconds before coming to a decision. She ruffled her short hair with a frustrated look, "Oh well, if it’s only a silver—" she had just spoken up to here when another voice interjected,

"How do you know he’s not lying?"

The five of them turned toward the source of the voice, only to see Shang leaning nonchalantly against a tree trunk not far away. It was unknown how long he had been listening in on their conversation. He had his arms crossed over his chest, his posture relaxed and casual. He was one of the rare players who was still dressed in his original outfit rather than changing into the provided gear like others, making him stand out at a glance.

Clad in sweaters, khaki pants, and polished leather shoes, he painted a striking contrast with the bloodied and battered players, looking as though he was merely out for a leisurely stroll rather than participating in a brutal survival instance.

What made him even more striking was the absence of any visible injuries on his body aside from some dirt sticking to his clothes, though it was unknown whether it was due to his healing skill card or any other reason.

Upon sensing the not-so-friendly scrutiny from Ying, he raised both hands in a gesture of surrender. "Just saying."

A gentle and harmless smile played on his lips, yet his words were blunt and full of suspicion. "He’s the one who has seen the black box. How would you know that he’s not planning to go back and reap the reward for himself later on?"