Author: 颜凉雨 / Yan Liang Yu

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 70: The Young Girl in Black

Watching the four members of the camouflage team gradually disappear, Kuang Jinxin deactivated [(Defense) We Are All Wooden Figures]. This was a disposable stationery that had fulfilled its purpose.

The rain continued, symbolizing the unstoppable tears of Classmate Qian.

“Stop crying.” Kuang Jinxin approached, reaching out to wipe the tears off his teammate’s face. “Think of something happy.”

Qian Ai suddenly grasped his teammate’s hand, urgently asking, “Can you give me a blessing?”

Kuang Jinxin was startled, but seeing Qian Ai’s rabbit eyes and feeling pity, he nodded vigorously. “Of course.”

Three seconds later.

With a solemn and serious demeanor, Kuang Jinxin earnestly repeated the words he heard. “I, Kuang Jinxin, wish that Qian Ai will never find any stationery I’ve used in his [Stationary Box] again!”

In this powerful blessing, Qian Ai heard phrases like [Hit Me if You Dare], [Tears Like Rain], and all the potentially deadly stationery flying away with a wonderful sound.

“Good brother!” At this moment, Kuang Jinxin, in Qian Ai’s eyes, shone with a holy light.

The torrential rain gradually subsided, but the foggy mist still veiled the imposing copper door blocking their way, standing unyielding.

“[All Is Quiet in the World] couldn’t break it…” Xu Wang originally planned to use the heavy rain as cover to lead the team away, but now that hope was gone.

“If we enter the NPC’s territory, we must fight. It’s an iron rule of this level.” Wu Sheng analyzed. “So this door isn’t a piece of stationery, but a physical manifestation of the rules.”

“But we clearly broke through a wooden door before…” Xu Wang started, then, as if realizing something, turned to Wu Sheng. “She did it on purpose…”

Wu Sheng nodded, having already considered this.

A look of disbelief crossed Xu Wang’s face.

After the young girl in black intercepted them, they discovered the camouflage team behind the door. She used them to destroy the wooden door, then replaced it with a copper one to trap the team. And using [All Roads Lead to Rome], she turned the detours into straight paths.

Thus, they were the ones who destroyed the door, and [All Roads Lead to Rome] was also applied to them. The young girl in black didn’t break any rules.

But—

Xu Wang: “An NPC consciously exploiting loopholes in the rules… Is that possible?”

“If the Owl can seek your help,” Wu Sheng turned around, looking towards the distance, “then nothing is impossible.”

In the rain curtain not far away, the young girl in black was slowly approaching them.

The corrosive raindrops, upon reaching her, changed direction, falling elsewhere as if there was an invisible raincoat outside her cloak.

“No way…” Qian Ai, looking at the dry black cloak, felt his eyes sting again.

The [Tears like Rain] that could send the camouflage team away couldn’t even get close to her. What level was this? A king among NPCs?

The young girl in black approached them, stopping three meters away.

A cool breeze fluttered the edges of her cloak and brushed the faces of the four.

“It’s the wind.” At this distance, Wu Sheng could see clearly and judge accurately. “Just like Yue Shuai said, she can control the wind.”

So the raindrops were gently blown away by the fine wind surrounding her, deviating a few centimeters before falling.

Ignoring their whispers, the young girl in black stood still and said, “You are the victorious team. Now, you can challenge me.”

Her voice was cold, flat, without any fluctuations, straightforward and clear.

“Wait a minute!” Xu Wang suddenly interrupted, easing the tense confrontation. “Lao Qian, stop the rain. I want to talk to Xiao Hei.”

Qian Ai wiped his face. “Captain, Lao Qian’s heart is willing, but the tears are too strong…”

Xu Wang: “……”

[Owl: Someone used [(Illusory) Pain, Pain, Fly Away] on you~~]

After a warm sensation, Qian Ai’s eyes finally felt cool and comfortable. The pain from head to toe, like the soreness from using the [Qilin Arm] and the dull ache left by the shoulder throw, and the impact endured while fighting Xiao Huang… No, he didn’t want to count them anymore; all the pain flew away, disappearing into the vast night sky.

Qian Ai: “Thanks, Captain.”

Xu Wang: “You’re welcome. You worked hard.”

Qian Ai: “Why didn’t you use this when we fought Xiao Huang?”

Xu Wang: “It’s more cost-effective to accumulate injuries and treat them all at once.”

Qian Ai: “……”

The rain slowly stopped.

Classmate Qian, with clear eyes once more, silently hid his tears in his heart.

The young girl in black quietly watched Xu Wang. Even while he was chatting with Qian Eye, her gaze remained unwavering.

She was waiting because he asked her to.

Not only her, but also the clueless Wu Sheng, Kuang Jinxin, and even Qian Ai were waiting.

Xu Wang looked at the young girl in black, took a deep breath, then gently exhaled, softly saying, “You’re very cute.”

“I hate dishonest people,” the young girl in black replied without a second’s pause.

Xu Wang: “…I’m sincere.”

Young girl in black: “I hate liars.”

Xu Wang: “Can’t we change the challenge? Like playing a game together?”

Young girl in black: “I hate cheaters.”

Xu Wang: “You’ll have no friends this way…”

Young girl in black: “I hate people who tell the truth.”

Wu Sheng, Kuang Jinxin: “…”

Qian Ai: “Captain, stop trying to flirt. You’re a hundred romantics short of Xiao Kuang.”

Xu Wang no longer hoped for a shortcut. He just wanted to know one thing. “Is there someone in this world that you like?!”

[Owl: Someone used [(Offense) Once Bitten by a Snake*] on you~~]

*This is part of an idiom. The full idiom is: Once bitten by a snake, you’ll be afraid of snakes/ropes for ten years (一朝被蛇咬 , 十年怕井绳). It refers to becoming timid and fearful after a setback (AKA Once bitten, twice shy).

The young girl in black felt a sudden, sharp pain on the back of her hand, and in the next moment, she soared into the sky, carried by the wind. The poisonous snake that had bitten her hand still clung on, its long body swaying in mid-air.

“You’re even resorting to sneak attacks on a girl.” Xu Wang sighed, shaking his head. “Lao Qian, it’s going to be hard for you to find a wife in this lifetime…”

Plop—

The snake suddenly fell to the ground, twitched twice, and died.

Looking at the young girl in black, there was no sign of poisoning. Even the two “blood spots” on her hand were fading.

“In this world, is there someone I like?” The young girl in black suddenly repeated Xu Wang’s question softly, lowering her eyelids. Her gaze and voice were as cool and indifferent as ever. She looked at Qian Ai and said, “I like people who act directly.”

Qian Ai: “……”

For the first time in his life, he was confessed to by a girl, but it was far from being a pleasant experience!

A sudden gust of wind roared fiercely!

In an instant, a tornado whirled through the narrow maze!

Xu Wang: “Xiao Kuang—”

Kuang Jinxin: “Got it!”

The only time Yue Shuai and his team clashed with the young girl in black, they were swept back home by such a wind!

They only knew this one skill of the young girl and black and had prepared accordingly—

[Owl: Someone used [(Defense) Calm Winds and Smooth Waters] on you~~]

The moment the defense stationery took effect, the tornado weakened significantly, leaving only a stubborn tail of wind that struggled for a few seconds before dispersing completely.

The young girl in black remained high in the sky. The distance made it seem as if her cloak was merging with her face in the moonlit shadows.

Before the four teammates could counterattack, two stone walls suddenly appeared in front and behind them, rapidly closing in!

Yue Shuai never mentioned that this girl could make a sandwich out of them!

Qian Ai spread his arms wide, pushing against the walls, but flesh and blood couldn’t truly resist the movement of the stone walls!

“Captain—” He was drenched in sweat, feeling as if his arms were about to break.

Kuang Jinxin also tried to help, but it was like dropping a bucket into a well.

To deal with the current situation, they either had to jump over or destroy the walls. But the walls were five to six meters high and extremely thick, offering no obvious weakness. Xu Wang rifled through his [Stationery Box] but found nothing that could counter this situation like [Approaching Science] did with [Returning Home].

The walls had closed to a width of only one and a half people. As the burliest classmate, Qian Ai could already feel the pressure on his shoulders!

In that instant, the walls suddenly began to shake.

Starting with a half-second of tremors, they intensified rapidly. Cracks appeared on the surface of the huge stones and sounds akin to structural collapse echoed within. In less than three seconds, the giant stones collapsed with a thunderous noise!

The three teammates instinctively looked at their advisor!

Wu Sheng calmly dusted off his clothes, then noticed his soaked and muddy attire.

With a light cough, Advisor Wu gave up on cleaning and shrugged indifferently. “[(Offense) Super Resonance].” He sighed, seemingly disappointed. “It wasn’t that super.”

Xu Wang was about to tease him when he suddenly felt a slight pain on the side of his neck.

He touched it, and his fingertips came away with a faint red.

Xu Wang was puzzled and was about to touch it again when Wu Sheng suddenly grasped his wrist firmly.

“Don’t touch.” His voice was ominously low. “There are blades in the wind.”

Before he finished speaking, Wu Sheng’s sleeve was cut open as if a sharp blade had passed by his arm.

Qian Ai and Kuang Jinxin were unharmed for the moment, but they too felt the wind blowing overhead!

“Run—” Wu Sheng shouted.

The four teammates immediately dashed off, still trapped in this maze segment, but at least they could run out of the wind’s path!

However, as they ran, the murderous wind pursued them relentlessly!

A stable team must maintain communication and look for opportunities even while fleeing—

Qian Ai: “Why is there no warning sound for her attacks?!”

Kuang Jinxin: “There was no warning for the stone walls either—”

Wu Sheng: “Don’t fall into a pattern of thinking. Stationery is only one of the NPCs’ methods of combat!”

Qian Ai: “You mean… the wind and stones are her own combat abilities?!”

Xu Wang: “I just want to know, since she used Wind Blades, why didn’t she deliver a fatal blow right away?”

Qian Ai: “Can we not give the enemy’s moves fancy names right now?!”

“It’s because she needs to aim.” Wu Sheng provided the answer Xu Wang was looking for.

[Owl: Someone used [(Defense) Dazzled Eyes] on you~~]

When the young girl in black’s vision was obscured by a flurry of chaotic petals, Xu Wang’s team, which had been passively enduring attacks, finally began their counterattack.

“Plan F!” Captain Xu shouted, sounding like the gospel of victory, as he rallied his team.

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The author has something to say:

Captain Xu vows never to flirt again, which hurts TAT. Advisor Wu thinks it’s good to let reality hit their captain hard (～￣▽￣)～

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