The guy wearing the mask seems to be the most cunning prey, walking easily through the crowd. Sometimes he even deliberately slows down to wait for the pursuer behind him, but then turns around and leaves before the opponent is about to catch up. Keeping hide-and-seek is the safest and most cunning way.

distance.

Qi Qiu followed closely behind. As a new "hunter", he seemed a little overwhelmed. When he turned the corner of the street, the "prey" in front of him seemed boring. He wanted to end the chasing game, so he quickly turned around and disappeared completely into the crowd.

Qi Jiu lost track of his target and stood in the moving crowd, looking around blankly. Where would this guy go?

Suddenly, he saw a little gray cat standing on the eaves not far away——

"Meow meow~"

Just when Qi Jiu noticed that his cat was wagging its tail, and then running nimbly at the joint between the eaves of the building. The little gray cat would not be like that cunning guy, it would slow down and wait for Qi Jiu to catch up with him.

Qi Jiu followed the little gray cat through most of the street until the little gray cat ran into a window on the second floor of a building.

Qi Jiu stopped in front of this building. It was a two-story Japanese-style wooden building. The building was painted an extremely strong crimson, and the window panes were filled with grotesque Ukiyoe patterns, row after row.

Red paper lanterns hang under the eaves, swaying in the wind and overlapping shadows. Misty water rises from the outdoor hot spring pool in the courtyard. The entire building exudes a psychedelic and ambiguous temperament.

The door entering the building is very narrow, and the door is hidden under the paper lantern with "Yuzhiwu" written on it. Male guests in luxurious clothes lift the red door curtain to go in and out. It is obvious that this building with ambiguous light is a place for entertainment.

Place.

Next to the "Iku no Yu" is the "Iku no Yu" with paper lanterns of the same style hanging. Male guests having fun from the building will walk to the "U no Yu no Yu" on the side.

Qi Qiu imitated the appearance of a guest and raised the curtain to enter the "Yuzhiwu", but his presence was like a transparent person, easily avoiding the waiter's greeting. After he looked around and could not find the figure of the guy,

Walk straight towards the depths of the corridor.

The long corridor is connected to the wing rooms provided for guests. All rooms are lit with lights. The ambiguous light falls on the corridor through the shoji doors. The paper door leaves vaguely reflect the shadows of people intertwining with each other, and the sounds of play are numb.

One after another, Qi Jiu, who had never seen such a world, was inexplicably nervous. To him, this was more terrifying than the supernatural scene.

Although he knew not to look at evil, in order to find clues about that guy, Qi Jiu had to look along the shoji gates one by one. He believed that the little gray cat would not give wrong guidance.

Until he reached the end of the long corridor, the continuous and tiresome voices gradually subsided, and the room on the far left was not lit. By some strange coincidence, Qi Gu stopped at the door of this room, and then put his ear to the outside of the shoji door——

"Meow~"

It's the familiar meow of a cat.

Qi Chu's breath was slightly suffocated. After hesitating for two seconds, he raised his finger and knocked on the door.

"Dong dong."

Qi Ku waited for ten seconds, but there was no movement in the dark room. He knocked on the door again and said "dong dong dong".

Finally, a very light friction sound came from the room, like someone striking a match.

Then a faint light shone from the paper door, and through the door leaf, a vague figure inside the room could be seen bending down to light the lamp in the corner with a match.

"Meow meow~"

The light gradually became brighter, and the outlines of the figures in the room became clearer.

Qi Jiu saw clearly that it was the silhouette of a "woman" dressed in a costume and wearing a bun. He was holding a long pipe in his hand. A cat stood on his shoulder, raising its tail and saying "meow meow" from time to time.

"The cry.

Qi Jiu was stunned for a moment, and then continued to knock on the door.

The figure inside the door finally spoke up: "What can I do for this guest? I don't accept guests casually."

It was a voice that Qi Jiu was very familiar with.

Listening to your own voice through a door is quite a novel experience.

Qi Jiu made up a lie without missing a beat: "Excuse me, I came here to find something."

The figure inside the door smiled: "But there is nothing here. I'm afraid you are in the wrong place?"

Qi Jiu's voice was firm: "My cat was lost and I saw it enter this room."

"My mask is also gone and I saw someone wearing it coming in here," he added.

"But there is only my cat here, and the mask... was given to me by a familiar friend," the figure chewed on his pipe, with a smile hidden in his voice. He shuffled a few steps toward the shoji door, and finally pressed against the door.

Say, "What's going on?"

Through the thin door, the two faced each other in silence for a moment.

"Sorry, I still want to open the door to confirm." Qi Jiu said calmly.

"Okay then," the figure behind the door came closer and pressed his hand on the door, "Then I will make an exception and allow you to visit."

"Creak"——

The moment the shoji door was opened, the Loto swordsman wearing the "Sixteen" mask on the street disappeared, replaced by a "woman" wearing the same mask on her face and her hair in a high bun.

The "woman" wears a robe with complex patterns and decadent colors. Judging from her clothing and hair accessories, she looks like a "courtesan" dressed up for traveling.

A long pipe hung in his hand, and the cat lay lazily on his shoulder. The little guy looked like he was enjoying himself to the fullest.

The "woman's" Adam's apple moved slightly, she raised her head slightly and looked at Qi Qiu in a condescending manner: "Is this your cat?"

He took a bite of the cigarette holder, and a thin stream of smoke rose from the pipe. As he spoke, he raised his hand to touch the cat on his shoulder.

The cat felt so comfortable that he closed his eyes and took the initiative to rub his face with his palm.

The clothes with complicated patterns hung loosely on his shoulders, and the outline of his slender collarbone and male chest was faintly visible.

"Is it your mask?" He stopped stroking the cat and moved his fingers to the mask.

Qi Jiu stared at him quietly, stared at his fingers pressing on the mask, and replied firmly: "The mask is mine, please return it to me."

Because he was a little nervous, Qi Jiu's voice sounded very tight at this moment.

"So this is your mask, I'm sorry." The other person laughed softly as he said that, and then took off the mask on his face.

Under the mask, the face was painted pale with makeup, and the facial features were painted with seductive and strong makeup, but despite this, Qi Qiu still recognized this face that was exactly the same as his own——

Qi Qiu stared at those same gray-green eyes. At that moment, time seemed to come to a standstill. All the sounds around him disappeared, leaving only Qi Qiu's breathing and suppressed heartbeat.

After all, the scene of facing "oneself" is too absurd.

Absurd and very interesting.

This appears to be their first official meeting.

Light a lamp, face the light, face to face.

After a long while, the other party handed the mask that he had taken off his face to Qi Jiu. While holding the cat, he chewed his pipe lazily and said with a low smile: "Come to me."

"——Just like last time, come to me."

*

It was almost dusk when Qi Ku woke up, and there was a faint noise coming from the corridor.

The scene in the dream was vivid in his mind, and the man's words and smiles were lingering in his mind. Qi Gu, who had just opened his eyes, felt inexplicably like he was in another world.

At this time, Qin Rang put his ear against the shoji door and seemed to be listening with great interest.

Qi Jiu rubbed his eyes: "What's going on?"

"Other players had a quarrel with Xiaomi and her daughter," Qin Rang seemed to have heard the whole story, "because Xiaomi refused tonight's bathing activity, but if the mother and daughter did not participate, there would not be enough people to start a group.

As a result, no one can go to the hot spring bath."

Qi Jiu: "Have you got the rule book for hot spring bathing at night?"

Qin Rang shook the "Open-Air Hot Spring Safety Rules" in his hand with some pride: "Just now I saw that you didn't want to wake up for a while, so I went over and asked the lady at the front desk to get it."

"It's really good." Qi Jiu smiled, feeling relieved that his younger brother, the European Emperor, could finally take charge of his own business.

Others were still rolled up in the quilt, and they had already taken the code handed over by Qin Rang and started studying it——

"Dear tourists, welcome to 404 Hot Spring Street. I believe you will have a unique hot spring experience here.

Please be sure to strictly abide by the following hot spring etiquette when taking a bath. Even if it does not seem very reasonable, please do not doubt it. Everything is for the sake of your safety and health. Please remember:

1. The entrance fee to the hot spring is 30 yuan/person;

2. The open-air hot spring adopts the group purchase mode, and the number of visitors must not be less than 11 people, otherwise it will not be open to the public;

3. Pregnant women and those suffering from serious infectious diseases are not allowed to enter the hot spring area;

4. It is not advisable to soak in hot springs 6 hours after drinking;

5. Please wash your body thoroughly before bathing in the hot spring. You are not allowed to wear shoes, clothes, makeup, or jewelry into the hot spring pool;

6. Please pay attention to the etiquette of bathing. Please do not stare at other tourists who come to bathe for a long time. Please do not bury your head under the water of the hot spring or swim in the hot spring pool;

7. Hot springs are divided into male and female hot spring pools. Please confirm in advance whether your gender matches the selected hot spring pool to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings and dangers;

8. Soup pools with different curative effects have different soaking time regulations. Please strictly follow the instructions of the soup pool to ensure the soaking time. It is prohibited to leave without authorization before the specified time of the selected soup pool is reached;

9. No matter what happens during bathing, please do not panic and do not make loud noises to break the tranquility of the bathing place;

10. Tourists staying in the hotel must go to the hot springs on open days, otherwise they will be responsible for the consequences (tourists who meet the second taboo can ignore this article);

Sincerely thank you for choosing the hot spring bathing experience at 404 Hot Spring Street, and I hope it can bring you a comfortable and safe hot spring night."

"Aren't you willing to go, Xiaomi?" Qi Jiu asked with a frown as he stared at the last line of the rules. After all, the rules clearly stipulated that all travelers staying there must go to the hot springs on the night of the opening day. There was no reason for ordinary guests not to participate.

Qin Rang nodded: "Yes, that's why I say Xiaomi and her daughter are so strange."

Qi Jiu quickly stood up, washed up, and picked up the mask again: "Let's go and see what's going on."

When he held the mask in his hand, his expression paused, and Qin Rang happened to look over: "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, I just had a dream about masks." Qi Jiu replied hastily, with no intention of continuing the topic.

He recalled that when the guy took off his mask, the face exactly like his was painted with strong and seductive makeup. The other person slightly raised the corners of his lips towards him and murmured in an irresistible tone: "Come to me."

The long pipe was filled with an unreal fog, and his bewitching whisper seemed to ring in my ears.

Too cunning, Qi Jiu thought.

But this game of hunter and prey, of seeking and chasing, interested him very much.

Qi Jiu and Qin Rang, who were wearing masks, appeared in the corridor. Ten players, led by the elderly witch, gathered in front of door 105 and argued continuously. The content of the argument was the same as Qin Rang described. Xiao Mi was unwilling to participate in tonight's open-air hot spring.

experience, and she refused to let her mother go even if she died.

"It's your business if you don't care about the second rule, but Article 10 of the safety code has been clearly written. If you don't participate in open-air bathing activities on the open day, you will be responsible for the consequences." The union leader reminded sternly.

Xiao Mi chuckled: "Tsk, uncle, I think you're saying the opposite, right? It's my business whether I care about the tenth rule. After all, you are responsible for the consequences, but the second rule really has nothing to do with me.

You care about the second rule, don’t you?”

Of the 18 players who came with the tour bus, 5 died on the first night, leaving 13 people left.

In addition to Xiaomi's mother and daughter, there is one "pregnant woman", and the safety regulations clearly prohibit pregnant women from entering the hot spring area, so if Xiaomi, mother and daughter refuse to participate, their number will not be enough.

The union leader choked up: "Isn't it normal for me to think about my own safety? If it weren't for the number limit, would I have come to find you?"

Another woman with dyed pink hair who lived in 114 also sneered: "But you don't care about the rules and punishments, and you still drag your mother to prevent her from going. Isn't it too selfish?"

Xiao Mi crossed his arms and looked at her strangely: "I said, she is my mother, not your mother, so there is no need for you to be so concerned about her, right?"

The pink-haired girl shrugged: "That's why I hate trying to reason with such rebellious little girls. They answer questions that don't make sense. They're so fucking rude."

The witch asked calmly: "Can you tell me the reason why you don't want to participate in outdoor bathing?"

Xiao Mi curled her lips: "The reason is not important. If you really want a reason, I can tell you that I am here."

Everyone: "..."

Xiao Mi smiled mischievously: "Is this enough?"

"It's all nonsense!"

"But what should they do if they continue to insist not to go..."

"We can only find ways to let them go, whether they want it or not."

"Let's see what the witch says..."

Different from the competition-oriented dungeon of the previous Rose Fish "Last Place Punishment", when the situation of the existing dungeon is still unclear and there is no competitive trend for the time being, all players tend to cooperate to maximize common interests.

After a round of tossing in the morning, everyone has now agreed that the elderly witch is the most senior boss among all the players, and they all cast inquiring glances at her.

The witch only glanced at Xiaomi and her daughter lightly: "I never like to do things that force people. After all, forcing yourself destroys the energy field of things, and things tend to develop towards bad results, but..."

She cast her gaze towards Qi Qiu who had just come out of the room, her expression paused, and then she raised her eyebrows slightly and said, "Article 2 of the 'Safety Rules' emphasizes the minimum number of people entering the room, but it does not say that the people entering must be tourists.

Isn’t it?”

Everyone was stunned for a moment, and then suddenly realized.

They followed the witch's gaze and almost simultaneously looked at Qi Qiu, who was wearing a mask.

Aware of everyone's attention, Qi Qiu did not deliberately act like he hadn't noticed, but nodded slightly with a calm attitude: "Good evening everyone, is there anything I can do to help?"

The witch took two steps forward and said, "Good evening, we really want to experience the open-air hot springs that are open tonight, but there are two ladies in the tour group who are inconvenient to go into the water due to physical reasons. If they don't go, we won't have enough people, and we won't be able to reach it.

There is a minimum number of people allowed to enter, so I would like to ask you to help me gather the number of people."

"We came all the way here just to experience the open-air hot spring here. We really don't want to miss it because of the number of people." She added, and the reason she gave was reasonable.

Qi Jiu nodded: "No problem, how many people are you missing here? Are there any requirements for boys and girls?"

Seeing how readily the massage therapist agreed, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Now in everyone's eyes, the hotel masseur played by Qi Jiu has become a very easy-to-handle NPC. If there are not enough people for him to join, he can agree whether it is fortune telling or bathing.

Witch: "Excuse me, we still need one person here, male or female."

"That's it," Qi Jiu said, "Do you think I can do it?"

As he spoke, he scratched his head in embarrassment, "But this month's salary has not been paid yet, so there may be some difficulties in handling the admission fee..."

The witch immediately understood: "You have helped us a lot, and your hot spring tickets are naturally paid by us."

Madam, who had been feeling sorry for Xiaomi's matter, now stood up: "I should pay for the massage master's hot spring tickets. Because of my daughter's matter... I'm so embarrassed. I can't justify not paying for the tickets."

The witch glanced at her and nodded: "Okay."

"Then I'll go talk to the landlady." Qi Qiu responded readily.

After all, the open-air hot spring must be a very important trigger point in the plot, but his current identity is a hotel service NPC. It would be too strange to force him to go to the hot spring with the tourists.

But now that the other party took the initiative to invite him, he agreed to the other party's request without missing any important plot points. Someone also paid the 30-coin admission fee for him. Exploring the plot comes with free bathing. It can be said that he kills two birds with one stone.

Qi Jiu's wishful thinking was rattling.

Witch: "Then please."

Qi Jiu: "You're welcome."

Qin Rang followed Qi Zui. He lowered his voice and asked anxiously: "What should I do tonight?"

Qi Jiu: "Just stay in the hotel room and it shouldn't be a big problem."

Qin Rang said in a low voice: "But... the last clause of the code stipulates that all tourists must go to the hot spring on the opening day. Is there really no problem if I don't go?"

Qi Jiu smiled: "Don't forget, you are not a 'tourist' mentioned in the code now. You are an intern in the hotel. It is safer to stay in the hotel."

"Oh, that's true of you," Qin Rang said after realizing it, "but why did you agree to them? It always feels very dangerous..."

Qi Jiu said half-jokingly: "Customers are God, how can you refuse the guests' reasonable requests?"

Qin Rang: "..." Here we go again.

Qi Jiu: "The development of the plot still needs to be actively promoted by the players. If not, many important clues will be missed."

"I said, will it be okay if I don't go?" Qin Rang scratched his head, not knowing how to speak, "Ah... I mean, my luck value is relatively high, is it really okay without me?"

"

Qi Jiu shrugged: "Of course you are playing it safe, but there is nothing you can do if the guests are not invited. After all, they paid for the tickets."

"That's what you said. If you really need my presence, you will definitely find a way to put me in." Qin Rang curled his lips half-jokingly, "Speaking of which, I find that you won't take me to play this time.

, my stealing skills are about to decline..."

"Don't expose me directly," Qi Jiu smiled: "I will take you to play with suitable projects."

Of course, Qin Rang knew that the other party had a plan, and keeping him in the hotel was for his safety, so he nodded: "Qi Qiu, pay attention to your safety."

"no problem."

*

At 6:40 in the evening, the hotel proprietress handed Qi Qiu a route map to the open-air hot springs and a bamboo lantern: "Since you want to go to the hot springs with your guests, you will lead the way."

"Remember, don't let the bamboo lanterns go out on the road." The landlady looked at him deeply and reminded him in a deep voice.

[Dear traveler, congratulations on starting the free side mission: successfully leading hotel guests to the open-air hot spring "Yu no Yu"]

[Conditions for completing the mission: Maintain the burning of the guide object "Bamboo Lantern"]

[Current progress: 0%]

Qi Jiu glanced at the bamboo lantern handed to him. Since the landlady told him so, it meant that the bamboo lantern would definitely be extinguished.

Qi Jiu asked: "What if the bamboo lantern is accidentally extinguished?"

"It must be rekindled within ten seconds, otherwise..." the proprietress suddenly laughed sinisterly, "you will be lost in the vast night."

Qi Jiu asked again: "But how can I light it now?"

He remembered that open flames were prohibited in the hotel.

The landlady shrugged: "If you carry it outside the hotel, it will light up on its own."

"Okay, thanks for letting me know."

Good guy, this bamboo lantern is also smart.

"This is your first time taking a guest to an open-air hot spring. There will always be strange things happening at night. Anyway, it's always right to be more careful." The landlady patted him on the shoulder, "Is there anything else you can't do?

Is it clear?"

Night road, strange things, plus the large proportion of supernatural elements in this copy, it is easy to infer that there will be supernatural events on the way to the open-air hot spring, and the fire of this bamboo lantern is equivalent to some kind of enchantment

, can protect people walking at night from ghosts and evil spirits.

But judging from the system tasks and the reminder from the boss lady, the bamboo lantern will definitely go out on the way.

What to do?

Soon, Qi Jiu suddenly had an idea.

"You have made your explanation very clear," Qi Jiu said sincerely to the landlady, "but can you please do me a favor?"

The landlady was a little surprised: "Please tell me."

Qi Qiu: "If possible, I would like to ask you to repeat what you just told me about the bamboo lanterns that cannot be extinguished in front of the tourists who are about to go to the open-air hot springs."

The landlady paused slightly: "Of course, but...why do you want me to do this?"

Qi Jiu smiled: "I think passengers have the right to know their situation. In this way, they will also actively protect the flames of the bamboo lanterns. There is strength in numbers."

After all, no one is more afraid of something happening along the way than that group of players, and they will definitely protect the bamboo lanterns more actively than anyone else.
Chapter completed!