Xiao Lou took the car keys and smiled at Ye Qi, saying, "Let's go." The man's smile was gentle, and his voice was friendly. On the surface, he seemed no different from Professor Xiao. If Xiao Lou hadn't given his teammates a secret signal beforehand, Ye Qi would have almost believed that this person was Xiao Lou.
However, after the clone incident in the Q room, Ye Qi became much more cautious. He would exchange passwords to confirm identities before meeting, and he couldn't let his emotions cloud his judgment. He pretended to be calm and followed behind Xiao Lou, smiling as he said, "Okay, let's go over as soon as possible. Maybe CEO Shao has already arrived."
Ye Qi knew this was risky, but if he ran away now, abandoning Xiao Lou as a crucial clue, he might not be able to find his other teammates. Besides, if Xiao Lou really wanted to kill him, would simply running away be useful? He didn't even know where he'd left his card.
Xiao Lou took Ye Qi down the elevator to the school's parking area, drove his white sedan, and Ye Qi sat in the back seat.
After getting in the car, Xiao Lou, whether out of habit or on purpose, casually pressed the lock button.
Hearing the "click" of the car door locking, Ye Qi's heart skipped a beat. If the driver didn't unlock it, he couldn't open the car door. In other words, at this moment, only he and Xiao Lou were left in the closed car. What if Xiao Lou drove him to the wilderness, murdered him, and disposed of the body? That would be too unfair for him.
Ye Qi calmly lowered the car window halfway and smiled, "It's a bit stuffy in the car, Professor Xiao, can I open the window for a while?" Fortunately, the car window could be rolled down, so if there was any danger, climbing out the window to escape was also an option.
Xiao Lou, sitting in the front row, smiled and said, "Whatever."
Ye Qi casually asked, "By the way, have you contacted Captain Yu? Should we go to the Police Station to see him?"
As Xiao Lou started the car, he said gently, "We haven't been able to get in touch yet. Since we agreed to meet at the fountain in Central Square, Captain Yu might have already gone there. Let's go there and check first."
Ye Qi's heart pounded with anxiety.
This Xiao Lou, on the surface, is no different from Professor Xiao, but in reality, he is full of loopholes.
First of all, if Xiao Lou really did return to the past, he would definitely contact Yu Hanjiang immediately, because he and Yu Hanjiang already knew each other before entering Card World. Xiao Lou knew Yu Hanjiang's phone number in the real world, so it was impossible that he "failed to contact Captain Yu ".
Secondly, since Xiao Lou has reinstated Jiangzhou Medical University Given Professor Xiao's identity, he would definitely go to the Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine to find Liu Qiao immediately, since they are teacher and student, and finding someone at the school would be very convenient. However, he didn't mention Liu Qiao at all. Furthermore, there's the major loophole of the "incorrect code verification." The code Xiao Lou whispered to his teammates was only known to the real Xiao Lou and his teammates. Fortunately, Xiao Lou and Yu Hanjiang were meticulous; everyone left a code before entering the secret room, allowing Ye Qi to immediately see through the "fake Xiao Lou."
What puzzled Ye Qi was that Xiao Lou didn't seem to have any intention of attacking him.
Was he trying to "lure the snake out of its hole," using his own clue to draw out his other teammates so they could solve the problem together?
Ye Qi thought about it more and more and felt that his guess was very likely. This could also explain why Xiao Lou suggested that he drive to the fountain in Central Square to find his teammates as soon as he heard him say "meet at the fountain".
Ye Qi pretended to turn his head to look at the scenery outside the window, but his mind was quickly thinking of a plan for what to do later.
With Christmas approaching, the streets are filled with a festive atmosphere. The familiar Jiangzhou City gives one the illusion of returning to reality.
But Ye Qi knew very well that none of this was real.
The people and things around him were like an incredibly vivid dream. He had to get out of this dream as soon as possible and find the real Xiao Lou, Liu Qiao, and the others in order to discuss how to pass the level.
After sorting out his thoughts, Ye Qi chatted casually with Xiao Lou, pretending that he completely trusted Xiao Lou. Xiao Lou, who was driving in the front, also chatted with Ye Qi in a cooperative manner. After about half an hour, the car finally arrived at Central Square.
Xiao Lou parked the car in a nearby parking lot, and then took Ye Qi to the musical fountain in the square.
Central Square is the busiest place in Jiangzhou City, with several shopping malls and a movie theater. Now, with Christmas approaching on December 24th, Christmas-themed posters are everywhere. A giant Christmas tree, over two meters tall, stands at the entrance of a shopping mall directly opposite the square, adorned with colorful lights and red stockings.
Many children were taking pictures and playing around the musical fountain. Ye Qi looked around and, not seeing a single familiar face, feigned confusion and asked, "Haven't they arrived yet?"
Xiao Lou looked at Ye Qi and said, "No rush. The location where everyone respawns each time we enter the secret room is uncertain. If our teammates are far away, it will take some time for them to get here." The gentle and calm Professor Xiao is indeed nine-tenths similar to the real person.
Ye Qi looked away with mixed feelings and asked, " Professor Xiao, have you had lunch yet?"
Xiao Lou nodded; "Yes, I ate at the school cafeteria."
Ye Qi rubbed his stomach in distress, and his stomach promptly growled twice. Ye Qi said embarrassedly, "I went to the cafeteria at noon and missed lunch, so I rushed to Jiangzhou Medical University to find you. I heard you had a public lecture this afternoon, so I went to the classroom to wait for you."
Hearing his stomach growling with hunger, Xiao Lou smiled and asked, "Are you very hungry?"
Ye Qi scratched his head helplessly, blushing as he explained, "I've been through the Nightmare Secret Room before, where I was starving for seven days straight; last time, CEO Shao and I were sent to the Famine World, where we survived by eating tree leaves every day."
I don't know if it's because I've been hungry too much, but now if I don't eat a meal on time, my stomach starts to protest.
Xiao Lou said understandingly, "You might have developed a stomach problem from hunger. How about this, since your teammates aren't here, let's go eat first."
Ye Qi looked around, pointed to the Western Restaurant on the top floor of the shopping mall near the plaza, and said, "Can I eat Western food? My classmates said that the steak and pasta at this restaurant are super delicious."
Xiao Lou said, "Okay, it's on you."
Ye Qi secretly breathed a sigh of relief and, feigning excitement, led Xiao Lou toward Western Restaurant.
The "musical fountain" he mentioned when giving the code was obviously fake. The meeting point Xiao Lou set was the city's largest Western Restaurant, which happens to be located in the Central Square area. More importantly, the location of this Western Restaurant offers a complete view of the square.
Assuming there are other teammates in this world, they will definitely come to the rendezvous point to wait for them. Ye Qi and Xiao Lou appearing at the fountain in the plaza will be visible to their teammates from the floor-to-ceiling windows of the Western Restaurant.
Ye Qi's gesture of pretending to be hungry and rubbing his stomach was a warning sign.
Ideally, a real teammate would be waiting for someone at the second-floor window and see Ye Qi's signal. In that case, he would deduce that Xiao Lou, who was with Ye Qi, is Hunter and prepare accordingly.
Ye Qi tricked Xiao Lou into going to Western Restaurant by saying he was hungry, which was actually a trap.
Of course, without teammates present, Ye Qi would have no choice but to face Xiao Lou alone.
Ye Qi was very nervous as he rode the elevator upstairs with Xiao Lou. When the elevator stopped at the top floor with a "ding," Ye Qi took a deep breath and followed Xiao Lou.
Xiao Lou nodded gracefully to the waiter who was greeting him.
The waiter hurried over and said, "This way, please, gentlemen."
The two followed the waiter to the window. Suddenly, Ye Qi caught a glimpse of a familiar figure out of the corner of his eye. His heart raced, and he excitedly clenched his fist in his pocket.
It is Chu Huaying.
She wore dark blue skinny jeans, flat ankle boots, a simple brown turtleneck sweater, her hair neatly tied in a ponytail, and sunglasses that covered most of her face, looking incredibly cool.
Although she was wearing sunglasses, Ye Qi recognized her at a glance.
Ye Qi pressed his left hand against his stomach, rubbing it twice clockwise and once counterclockwise. Feigning excitement, he stepped forward and said, " Sister Ying, what are you doing here?"
Chu Huaying said casually, "It's too noisy outside. I came here to have a cup of coffee and wait for someone."
The code was matched.
Chu Huaying's code was set based on the location specified by Xiao Lou, which fit the scene and made the dialogue more natural.
Ye Qi was secretly pleased. Hunter probably didn't know their real meeting place, so Chu Huaying, who appeared at the Western Restaurant, was very likely the real Chu. Now that she recognized him and they exchanged the code, Ye Qi's guard immediately lowered.
He rubbed his stomach clockwise twice, then stopped and gently pressed his belly, laughing as he said, "I didn't have lunch, I'm starving, so I brought Professor Xiao over to eat something first."
Chu Huaying looked at Xiao Lou and politely extended her hand, " Professor Xiao, please sit down."
Xiao Lou shook hands with her, but the instant their fingers touched, Chu Huaying's hand shot out like a snake, swiftly grabbing Xiao Lou's wrist and then delivering a powerful over-the-shoulder throw, slamming the over-1.8-meter-tall Xiao Lou straight to the ground.
Her movements were extremely swift; in the blink of an eye, she forcefully twisted Xiao Lou's arm behind his back, removed the hair tie from his hair with one hand, and tightly bound Xiao Lou's wrist with a sturdy elastic band. Then, she pressed one knee down on Xiao Lou's back, and at the same time, her right hand chopped down like a knife, accurately striking Xiao Lou on the back of the neck, knocking him unconscious instantly.
Xiao Lou probably didn't expect Chu Huaying to attack him as soon as they met. He felt dizzy and then lost consciousness.
Ye Qi ""
Sister Ying is so cool!
Looking at Xiao Lou, who had been knocked unconscious, Ye Qi was dumbfounded. What did this older sister do in real life? Ye Qi was dazzled by the series of swift and decisive actions just now, which were no less impressive than those of Captain Yu and Ninth Brother.
Could she also be a former special forces soldier?
Meeting Ye Qi's gaze, Chu Huaying casually smoothed her messy hair behind her head after untying her hair tie, dragged the unconscious Xiao Lou to a seat, closed the door of the private room, and whispered to Ye Qi, "This is the world of December 24th. I happened to be in a car accident that day. When I opened my eyes, a big truck was rushing towards me. If I hadn't reacted quickly enough, I might have died again."
Ye Qi was terrified. "Did you see any of your other teammates?"
Chu Huaying shook her head. "I called CEO Shao, but he doesn't know who I am. I haven't met the other teammates yet. Remembering Professor Xiao said we'd meet at Western Restaurant, I rushed here immediately." She paused, then added, "When you were with Professor Xiao in the square earlier, I saw your gestures hinting that he was Hunter."
Ye Qi nodded. "Hmm, the code doesn't match. By the way, I've also met Liu Qiao and Captain Yu, but they don't recognize me."
Chu Huaying frowned slightly. "It seems that this time we will likely be divided into groups and teleported to different worlds again. We are in Jiangzhou City on December 24th. The CEO Shao, Captain Yu, Liu Qiao, and Professor Xiao in this world are not the real people."
Ye Qi asked疑惑地问道, "Is it another group mission? But what exactly is the mission objective?"
As if they had heard his question, two lines of information popped up simultaneously in their respective floating windows.
The first step of the relay mission is to find all the Hunters in this world and have at least one Hunter survive. Xiao Lou has been found, and Ye Qi has been obtained. card holder x1 Chu Huaying Card holder x1.
Ye Qi and Chu Huaying were both taken aback when the familiar card holder appeared in their pockets.
Ye Qi quickly realized what was happening and said with a grim expression, "I understand now. In the world of December 24th, there must be teammates who... This means everyone was divided into groups and sent to different linked dungeons. We must complete a relay mission to enter the next dungeon and meet the next group of teammates. If any link goes wrong..."
Chu Huaying raised an eyebrow. "That means everyone will be eliminated."
Relay race, everyone understands.
A relay task involving twelve people; if any link in the chain goes wrong, the task can never be completed.
This is the biggest challenge of Twin Kings' Secret Room.