Chapter 58.2 – Cross-dresser Jiang (x) (2)
In contrast to the other bustling area on the second floor where friends gathered, this part of the second floor had only two people present: Lu Dongcheng and a man with a crew cut.
The table displayed an array of beautiful bottles of liquor, while Crew Cut attempted to explain to Lu Dongcheng how lucrative it was to invest in the business of strange species.
Lu Dongcheng listened without changing his expression. His face didn’t reveal a lack of interest but also didn’t indicate any notable enthusiasm.
“Do you know that sometimes physical evidence might be more convincing? Today, I brought something here specifically for you.”
As there was no one else in the lobby, Crew Cut had to handle it himself. He pushed a sizable box closer, visibly struggling. After positioning it at a certain distance, he turned around, grabbed a pry bar, and pried open the wooden casing.
As the wooden panels were levered off one by one, it exposed the iron bars inside. While prying, Crew Cut commented, “Our security measures are foolproof; there won’t be any escape of the exotic creatures.”
The scattered wooden pieces made a clatter as the full view of the iron bars emerged.
There was nothing inside the iron cage—only red and yellow liquid.
A cold sweat instantly broke out; Crew Cut widened his eyes, gripping the iron bars in disbelief.
Had it escaped? How was that possible? Where could it have gone?
“No need to worry; your item will be found soon.”
Hearing the voice, Crew Cut turned to look at the person behind him. The person continued, “It will be found by the SIU.”
This person seemed unsurprised by the escape of the exotic creature.
Finally freed from sitting and listening, Lu Dongcheng stood up and flexed his wrist slightly. He chuckled, “The SIU has been investigating me lately.”
Crew Cut widened his eyes.
This person knew he was under investigation yet agreed to meet with him…
No, he knew he was under investigation, so he agreed to this meeting!
One reckless yet fast way to divert suspicion was to shift the focus onto someone else.
The SIU was investigating the other party. Perhaps they might show up here today.
At this stage, they were merely discussing a trade. The other party was innocent, while he himself was involved in the trade of strange species, attempting to drag someone else into the situation.
—The strange species he brought was released by the other party!
After all, Crew Cut was a businessman, so his brain was not slow at all, but it was useless to turn around now.
Lu Dongcheng strolled away casually.
“Lu Dongcheng, you’ve damned me!”
Crew Cut reached for the pry bar nearby, intending to move forward. However, Lu Dongcheng turned around lightly and glanced at him.
It was a look that spelled death.
Frozen in place, unable to take a step forward, Crew Cut’s hand went limp. With a clang, the pry bar fell straight to the ground, emitting a sharp noise.
Chaos erupted within the hotel. As the lobby doors swung open, various shouts filled the air.
The strange species brought by the man with Crew Cut today was called ‘Rotten Wolf’, and to demonstrate sincerity, he brought the alpha.
The Rotten Wolf was originally an illusionary creature capable of conjuring more secondary rotten wolves through the alpha.
The silent howls resonating in the lobby were from the secondary rotten wolves.
*
After witnessing two casually dressed men getting on the elevator, Tang Guo vaguely heard some strange noises, like scratching sounds, but assumed it was staff working and didn’t pay much attention.
It wasn’t until a person suddenly darted out from a nearby corridor, loudly shouting for help, that everyone’s attention was drawn.
Chasing closely behind him was a relentless wolf.
—Perhaps a wolf, but not quite; more accurately resembling a decaying corpse of a wolf. Most of its head’s skin and one eye were missing, and the ribs on the wolf’s body were faintly visible. Its dangling entrails swung up and down as it ran, dripping a mix of red and yellow fluids along the way.
The entire lobby erupted in horrified screams.
Security swiftly approached wielding riot forks, attempting to subdue the creature. However, more of the same beings inexplicably poured in from various corners, leaving everyone overwhelmed.
Tang Guo initially intended to run towards the exit, but the first person who made a dash for it collapsed in front of the door. The automatic sensor malfunctioned, rendering the door inoperable.
Some attempted to break the glass, but a server informed them that the ground-floor windows were reinforced with toughened steel glass to prevent theft, making it impossible to shatter.
No monsters had yet targeted her, so she relied on instinct and dashed towards the second floor.
The commotion on the ground floor was so intense that it could be heard even on the second floor. People who had been chatting stopped abruptly, and some rushed to look out the windows. While they couldn’t see much, the noises from below were clearer—a blend of cries for help and piercing screams, sending shivers down their spines.
Someone suddenly remembered, saying, “Tang Guo left earlier!”
A group quickly descended the stairs.
Fortunately, Tang Guo hadn’t gone outside the main lobby; they found her on the balcony outside the hall.
Amidst this chaos, the other person remained unusually quiet, as if the changes outside had nothing to do with them.
Jiang Yujin remained focused on his game of Xiaoxiaole amidst all this disorder.
This was the ultimate test of his remaining game energy. Whether he could continue playing depended on this particular level.
As someone grabbed his wrist, he had just exhausted his final move, failing to clear the level.
With a profound sense of sorrow, he allowed himself to be pulled away from the balcony by others.
There were arched glass windows near the main hall’s entrance, offering a view of the outside situation. The group cautiously stood by the window, peering down to witness creatures they had never seen before—hideous, savage, dragging decayed yet surprisingly agile bodies.
It was evident that they couldn’t escape from there, and they lacked the means to climb out through the windows. Someone suggested, “Let’s retreat to the rooms upstairs for now. If something happens, the special ops team will surely come over, and everything will be fine then.”
As of now, no monsters had reached their floor, making it temporarily safe here—at least safer than moving around without a plan.
Jiang Yujin, emerging slowly from the heavy blow, happened to overhear these words.
Though he hadn’t seen it before, he could smell the odor of the Rotten Wolves. Rotten Wolves didn’t rely on their eyes to hunt; they relied on their noses, capable of sniffing scents from two kilometers away. The reason they hadn’t arrived yet was likely because the prey on the ground floor hadn’t been chased down completely. Soon—perhaps it wouldn’t take too long—they might reach this area.
He thought about it but didn’t voice his concern, following the others back upstairs.
It was the same room they had dined in earlier, yet the atmosphere was completely different. Everyone remained silent, listening to the incessant noises emanating from below.
The waiting process always induced anxiety. They had listened to the sounds below for too long, unable to discern if they were coming from within or outside the lobby, unsure if the chaos persisted or if someone had come to rescue them.
This was the moment to send someone out to investigate.
Despite its slim likelihood, they feared something might rush in, so the windows had been closed. The room lacked ventilation, there were no games at hand, and it was getting dull. Jiang Yujin had just raised his hand to volunteer when Wen Yang, seated nearby, stood up.
As he rose, he caught sight of Jiang Yujin’s attempt and said, “You can’t say anything when you notice the movement, so I’d better go.”
He appeared somewhat composed, but his hand gripping the door handle was noticeably trembling.
He opened the door and went downstairs.
Jiang Yujin felt like he had forgotten something. He was thinking about it even after Wen Yang hadn’t left yet.
Someone noticed his apparent distraction and softly called out, “Tang Guo?”
It struck Jiang Yujin what he had forgotten.
He had forgotten his entrusted person. With them gone, the very essence of that trust was lost.
In an instant, he abruptly rose from his seat and pushed open the door. As the door swung open, the glass windows on the lobby’s side shattered, and a Rotten Wolf leaped in through the window, completely unaffected by the shards under its feet.
In the lobby were two people: Wen Yang, who had gone downstairs to check the situation, and Tang Guo, whom he had been about to search for. They were at the other end of the lobby, not a short distance away. Yet, in a matter of seconds, the Rotten Wolf effortlessly bridged that gap.
A putrid stench rode the breeze, and the foul, bloody tongue felt alarmingly close.
Without needing to lift his skirt to walk up cursed stairs, his light-colored pupils slightly turned. Jiang Yujin scanned the surroundings, then propelled himself with a single push, crossing the distance from the stairs to the chandelier, using the momentum to swiftly descend along the chandelier’s rope.
The chandelier swayed, emitting a clash of glass as it moved. People below heard the commotion, looked up, and saw what seemed like the sharp-edged petal of a dark flower.
Jiang Yujin bent down, snatched the glass piece hanging from the chandelier, and forcefully cut the rope.
In an instant, the chandelier plummeted, crashing the Rotten Wolf to the ground just before its claws could touch human skin, shattering the glass into a cacophony of piercing sounds.
The thunderous noise drew the attention of those upstairs. Someone anxiously asked what had happened.
No one below responded.
Tang Guo watched as someone descended from the chandelier, reaching out a hand toward her with clear. Her eyes met the clear and light-colored pupils, and the hand that was originally weak from being touched miraculously stretched out.
Meanwhile, Wen Yang, also seated on the ground, turned his head, his entire gaze engulfed in a flurry of white hair, his pupils trembling incessantly.
