Chapter 67

"Who are you?!"

The person who removed Zhou Xian's helmet was not from the Dragon Tomb Society, but a group of people dressed in black vests and wearing black masks. Once the helmet was removed, the connection was instantly cut off, and Zhou Xian felt his mind being fiercely assaulted again, a dizziness that was no less intense than before.

Upon further inspection, Zhou Xian discovered that Tao Shan, Xu Tianyun, and Su Xiaoyue were also being held in the room.

"You won't gain anything by resisting. Surrender peacefully, and we can guarantee your safety!"

Outside the courtyard, Zhang Taihao and the others were still standing, but they were surrounded by the same group of men in black vests.

Among these people, a bald man in a black robe was the one shouting.

"Who are you? What do you want?"

Zhou Xian looked around and noticed that something seemed off about these people.

"Zhou Xian, right?"

At this moment, another man in a black robe approached Zhou Xian. This man was younger than the one outside and had a buzz cut.

"Who are you? What do you want?"

"Hey, you should know what we want... the Eighth One!"

The Eighth One!

When Zhou Xian heard this term, he instantly understood.

"Oh... Are you under the command of one of the Great Emperors? How did you find me?"

Zhou Xian knew these people had traced him!

"Hmph, trying to get information from us? No way!" The man with the buzz cut was cautious.

"Great Emperor... wait, Great Emperor players? Are you under the command of one of the seven Great Emperor players in the game?!" Su Xiaoyue's eyebrows shot up; she also understood the situation: "Zhou Xian, you're the Eighth One...?!"

"Old Zhou, you're actually the Eighth Great Emperor player?!" Tao Shan was also surprised.

"Shut up!" The man with the buzz cut kicked Tao Shan and then approached Zhou Xian: "Alright, Zhou Xian, don't even think about using your skills to escape. We've set up an anti-magic barrier in this room. Just cooperate."

While Zhou Xian was talking to the Dark Angel, these people had already tied his hands behind his back.

"Your array is impressive. If we didn't have some means, we wouldn't have found this place."

The man with the buzz cut narrowed his eyes and looked at the runes and array on the wall. A section of the wall had collapsed, rendering the array ineffective.

"I see."

Zhou Xian recalled the warning written in the demon race's language. If it was to warn him about the game's plot, the Dark Angel could have directly warned him. It wasn't a big deal.

However, after the Dark Angel's vague response, Zhou Xian understood that the sender might not be the Dark Angel but someone using the Dark Angel to convey a message. This person must have a special identity and could be one of the Great Emperor players.

This person must have used this method to inform him due to their status, and they must know the Dark Angel well, which is why the Dark Angel helped them keep it secret.

With this, everything made sense.

"What do you mean?"

The man with the buzz cut didn't trust Zhou Xian. Although the room had an anti-magic barrier, he still took out a stack of anti-magic talismans and stuck them on the bound Zhou Xian.

"These... are puppets, right? That old man from the Netherworld is really good to you—"

Before Zhou Xian could finish, the man with the buzz cut kicked him in the stomach.

"Old Zhou!"

"Zhou Xian!"

The others immediately shouted in alarm, but they were restrained by the men in black vests... no, by these puppets, and they had no means to resist.

"How dare you call the Great One by name?!"

Although he said this, Zhou Xian could see a hint of panic in his eyes.

"Because I saw through you, you're angry and embarrassed?"

Zhou Xian smiled at the man, showing no signs of panic despite being restrained.

He ignored the man with the buzz cut and focused on his virtual helmet. He noticed that a switch on his helmet, which was usually unnoticeable, had been activated.

"Do Not Disturb mode...?"

Seeing the "Do Not Disturb" mode switch, Zhou Xian's expression darkened.

"No wonder I didn't even notice being tied up."

The "Do Not Disturb" mode completely isolates the player from external sounds and disturbances, allowing them to focus on the game. This mode is typically used in noisy environments or for special actions. On Zhou Xian's helmet, the "Do Not Disturb" mode was a physical switch. Modern technology, to prevent accidental activation, made it a virtual switch with an indicator light to alert others that the player was in this mode.

Players in "Do Not Disturb" mode have no awareness of the outside world unless something unexpected happens.

But Zhou Xian remembered that he hadn't activated this switch.

"We had to be cautious to deal with you. We don't want to repeat the tragedy of Li Zheng. We're using 120% of our efforts to deal with you; we don't treat you as mere pawns..."

The man with the buzz cut then had several puppets grab Zhou Xian and tie him with the others.

Meanwhile, in the courtyard, Zhang Taihao and the others were still resisting.

The sword Zhou Xian had created was now an effective weapon in their hands, especially in Li Chuyu's hands, where it was particularly lethal.

Holding the weapon, Li Chuyu's demeanor was completely different from the dance sprite she was at school. Her every move was swift and precise, making it impossible for the puppets to advance. A slight misstep could result in a puppet's limb being severed.

On the other side, Beidou's performance was also impressive. Although she was unarmed, each of her moves caused significant damage to the puppets. She targeted the joints and connections, rendering parts of the puppets ineffective.

Zhang Taihao and Lai Yiming held wooden sticks, which were not very effective for offense but provided good defense.

Seeing this, Zhou Xian suddenly smiled.

"What are you smiling about!"

Seeing Zhou Xian's smile, the man with the buzz cut punched him again.

"Hey, you must be very concerned about these puppets. If you don't care about casualties, you might be able to take them down, but at the cost of destroying half of these puppets."

Zhou Xian clearly hit a nerve. After hearing this, the man with the buzz cut punched him again.

After beating Zhou Xian, the man with the buzz cut slowly said, "That's right. These are high-level puppets given to us by the Great One. Each one is very precious. How can you damage them? And don't think you have a chance of winning. If you laugh again, I'll beat you to the ground!"

"I'm not laughing about that. I'm saying you're too careless!"

Only four people were captured, but one person was missing!

Zhang Taihao's maid, Liuli!

As if to prove Zhou Xian's point, as soon as he finished speaking, Liuli descended from the sky and delivered a spinning kick to the man with the buzz cut, sending him flying.

"Good job, Liuli!" Tao Shan was almost moved to tears.

Liuli flicked her wrist, and a short sword flew out of her sleeve. She cut the ropes binding Zhou Xian and the others, then threw a long stick to block the puppets' attacks. With a stomp, a dagger appeared on the sole of her shoe, and she delivered a powerful kick to the puppets. Her movements were swift and fluid.

"Are you really a maid?"

Su Xiaoyue, who also had a maid, was stunned.

"Of course."

Liuli then engaged the puppets again. The puppets wielded short knives and other weapons, but these weapons had no effect on her. When she forced the puppets back, the captured group finally stood up.

As a fellow maid owner, Su Xiaoyue was speechless: "What kind of skills are these? What kind of special forces maid is this... Ah, be careful!"

Before she could finish, a puppet charged at her, but its knife couldn't damage Liuli's maid outfit. Instead, the puppet was kicked and disassembled.

"108 Techniques for Maids. Teach your maid these. And don't be so surprised; my outfit is bulletproof. A mere dagger is nothing to me."

"..."

Su Xiaoyue was speechless.

"Now isn't the time to talk about this. Let's go!" Xu Tianyun glanced at the bald man outside and said, "If that person outside discovers us, it will be bad!"

"Right, let's leave here first—this place has an anti-magic barrier, so Zhou Xian's skills won't work." Tao Shan nodded in agreement.

"Agreed, let's leave here first."

Zhou Xian checked his status and saw a "Anti-Magic" debuff. He couldn't help until this debuff was removed.

The man with the buzz cut, who had been kicked by Liuli, was dazed. Under Liuli's leadership, they finally left the room.

"Zhou Xian, can you use your skills now?" Liuli asked as soon as they left the room.

"Not yet."

The status on Zhou Xian's body hadn't disappeared.

"Remove the talismans! That guy said these talismans also have anti-magic effects. Tear them off!" Tao Shan shouted.

The group quickly removed the talismans from Zhou Xian's body.

But Zhou Xian noticed that the debuff was still there.

"The anti-magic effect hasn't disappeared!"

Zhou Xian's expression darkened.

"Is there a time limit?" Xu Tianyun asked in surprise.

"I can escape alone, but you won't be able to hold on." Liuli looked back at the group.

"Then there's no problem."

Zhou Xian suddenly spoke.

"!"

The others looked at Zhou Xian in surprise.

"As long as you can escape, that's enough. Find a way to spread the news about this place and gather information about these people. If their identities are exposed, the whole society can bring them down."

Zhou Xian didn't plan to reveal his abilities, even though he had told his friends. He didn't want to be a guinea pig.

But if he had to choose between being a guinea pig and dealing with these people, the latter might be better.

Moreover, Zhou Xian had a backup plan.

"Understood."

Liuli nodded and prepared to leave.

But at that moment, a tall man in a black robe suddenly appeared before them. He had a stern expression and wielded a large two-handed sword. Without a word, he charged at the group.

This was the Warrior's skill, "Charge," from the game world.

"Get out of the way!"

Liuli immediately rushed forward to block the attack.

"Clang!" The weapon Liuli used to block shattered instantly, and her maid outfit was torn by the two-handed sword. She was then kicked and sent flying.

"Such formidable strength!"

The tall man in the black robe was clearly a trained fighter. Combined with the Warrior's skills and abilities from the game, he was formidable.

The black-robed man exuded a terrifying aura. Compared to the other two who controlled the puppets, this black-robed man might be a match for them in personal combat.

Liuli, who had shown formidable strength, was no match for this man. Zhou Xian and the others were no match for him either.

"Hehehe... I told you, we're using 120% of our efforts to deal with you. Do you think we wouldn't have a backup plan? The third one has been waiting for you, to prevent any surprises!"

At this moment, Liuli lay on the ground, her condition unknown.

The third black-robed man stood before Zhou Xian, victorious.

"So, there are three of you... But I want to say that 120% of your efforts won't be enough to deal with me!"

"You need to put in 200% of your efforts to even think about it!"

At that moment, time seemed to stop.

The next moment, the clock's hands reversed.

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