Chapter 70

The three brothers in black robes were tightly bound with hemp rope. This rope was originally intended to bind and deal with Zhou Xian and others, but now it was being used on the three brothers themselves.

Unlike the previous time when Zhou Xian burst in, this time, after Xu Tianyun's call, the three quickly fell into the trap. When they started their attack, Zhou Xian and his team were already lying in wait, easily capturing the three.

Behind them, the puppets, which had been active, now lay motionless as if they had lost their power.

"Hmm, they look like ordinary dolls, just with a layer of artificial skin that looks similar to human skin, making them appear real. But where is the power source for these things?"

At this moment, our all-capable maid, Liuli, was inspecting a puppet that had been dismantled upon entry. However, after thorough examination, Liuli could only conclude that "this is not scientific."

On the other side, Zhou Xian and Lai Yiming stood before the three brothers in black robes, who were now disheveled, preparing to extract information from them.

It was clear that they were extremely angry about Xu Tianyun's "betrayal."

"You actually dared to betray us? Do you know how serious the consequences are? You wanted power, right? Lord Jiuyou can give you extraordinary power! Now that you've betrayed us, don't you want to live anymore?!"

The man with the buzz cut glared angrily at Xu Tianyun. But before he could finish, Zhou Xian rushed forward and punched him. Before the man could say another word, Zhou Xian punched him again, delivering three or four punches before stopping.

Turning around, Zhou Xian said with a smile, "I've never felt that beating someone could be such an interesting job."

"Thanks, Old Zhou." Xu Tianyun smiled at Zhou Xian. At this moment, he realized that not betraying his true self could actually make him so happy.

"No problem. Anyway, I've already asked all the questions I needed to."

The words after "No problem" were muttered by Zhou Xian, but not very loudly.

Xu Tianyun repeated the process 37 times, and Zhou Xian tied up the three brothers 37 times. These people had already been interrogated 36 times, and Zhou Xian used the information obtained from them to extract more details, both what they should know and what they shouldn't.

However, Zhou Xian did not ask them who the player of the Seventh Sea Emperor was.

Their minds were bound by talismans, and if they tried to reveal the information, the talismans would burn their brains, leading to certain death.

But apart from that, Zhou Xian had learned almost all the information he needed.

For example, none of the three could use special abilities. The older two could control puppets because of the power of their robes. The youngest, although a martial artist, had the "Slash" skill because of the large two-handed sword he carried.

In other words, they were just ordinary members.

"But there's one thing I really didn't expect. Your master actually sent people like you."

After beating the man with the buzz cut, Zhou Xian said this.

"… Because there was too much related information, our initial goal was just to confirm…." The bald man spoke.

He had thought the mission would be smooth, but as soon as they entered, they were knocked out by Zhou Xian and his team, and the puppets were immediately disabled.

"Oh?" Zhou Xian didn't expect his casual remark to elicit new information.

"This is about the information on the eighth Emperor player. We've been investigating it, but we haven't found anything. Recently, we've received more and more information about the eighth Emperor player, so we don't have enough manpower to verify it… In fact, the more capable people are investigating elsewhere. However, those who want to know about the eighth Emperor player are not just us; their opponents are even more powerful."

So that's how it is.

"It seems that being an Emperor player isn't just about having a protagonist aura but also a trouble aura. Zhou Xian, the Emperor player." Lai Yiming glanced at Zhou Xian. "The eighth… you mean the Emperor player?!" Li Chuyu and the others were also enlightened.

"Maybe there's even a romance aura…" Beidou interjected, but was immediately stopped by Zhou Xian. "We'll talk about this in detail tonight. For now, let's focus on these people."

Everyone agreed, and Zhou Xian turned to the three men: "But how to deal with you three is not a simple matter."

Zhou Xian looked at the three men, now feeling a headache.

In the current situation, it was clear that they had no more value. But letting them go was not an option. Imprisoning them… that was a joke, right?

"If you trust me, there might be a place where they can stay for a while." Zhang Taihuo pushed his glasses and spoke directly.

"Oh? Tell me more."

"The Abnormal Human Research Center. The security of this place is at a national level. And in this place, whatever they say is as if they haven't said it at all." This was indeed a good place.

However, upon hearing Zhang Taihuo's description, the three brothers in black robes showed a deathly pale expression.

"Don't worry, you may not be 'abnormal humans,' but you have at least approached abnormal entities and controlled such puppets. You might even live a comfortable life there. Well, the time you'll spend there might be quite long. If we happen to forget about you, that time might be… your entire life."

Zhou Xian realized for the first time that Zhang Taihuo was quite skilled at creating a sense of despair.

"Wait! I can help you! I can tell you who assigned us! Just remove the talisman from my head, and I'll tell you everything I'm restricted from saying! Everything!"

The bald leader could no longer sit still.

"Talisman? What's that?" Lai Yiming asked.

"We've been restricted. Our master put a talisman in our heads, so we can't reveal any secrets. If we do, we die. But if you can remove the talisman, I can tell you who my master is. And I can help you deal with him!" The leader said eagerly.

"Is that so? That's good news. Zhou Xian, let's put them in the research center for now. When we find a way to remove the talisman, we'll come back for you."

Zhang Taihuo's words almost made the leader cry.

"Master, I think I've found the power source for these puppets. It's a bunch of strange runes." Zhang Taihuo's maid, Liuli, walked over, holding a core that had been dismantled.

"Let me see." Zhou Xian took the core.

"Puppet Heart (Fake): One of the power sources for puppets, usable only by specially modified small puppets. Current energy: 5346/10000. It slowly regenerates energy in sunlight and can also directly extract the user's life energy through control devices."

"This is not a good thing." Zhou Xian was sure that the three brothers had no idea that the Puppet Heart would absorb their life energy.

"This is the core of the puppet? It's not much different from the game." Tao Shan examined the Puppet Heart, finding it similar to the one in the game.

"If it were different, that would be a problem." Lai Yiming shook his head. "Think about it carefully."

"How did this thing end up in the real world? Or was it… transported from the game world?" Zhang Taihuo looked at the Puppet Heart, considering a possibility.

Everyone's attention returned to the three brothers.

"I really don't know…" The leader was now crying.

"I don't expect you to know such confidential information." Zhou Xian had already asked this question, but they clearly didn't have the right to know the exact information.

"Speaking of which, I seem to know a bit about this." Xu Tianyun suddenly spoke.

"Old Xu, you say you know?" Tao Shan was surprised.

"Yes, I once read online about the headquarters of 'Dragon Tomb' and the Shenglong Group… If there's no mistake, it's likely related to them."

If this is really related to them…

"But there's no information online. How did you get it?"

"Uh, it was spread on a small scale for a while, but soon a black hand came out to delete posts and restrict discussions. Now, all related content is completely gone."

The identity of this black hand also needed to be discussed.

"But how did the game suddenly become so fantastical? Are we really playing a game?" Tao Shan expressed the thoughts of everyone.

"Do you remember the countdown on the game interface?" Zhou Xian suddenly said.

"Every time we log in, we see it. Who could forget it!" Tao Shan shook his head. It appeared every day, and at first, it was interesting, but later it became annoying. Now, Tao Shan had adapted to it.

"Maybe we're saving the world, and the countdown is the clock of the game's destruction." Zhou Xian said casually.

Tao Shan: "…"

Xu Tianyun: "…"

Li Chuyu: "…"

Su Xiaoyue: "…"

Beidou: "Cool!"

"Old Zhou, don't scare me."

Lai Yiming looked at Zhou Xian with a subtle expression.

"…"

After a moment, Zhou Xian realized that his casual remark might not be impossible.

If not, why did the countdown increase when he destroyed the cult's altar?

No way, the more he thought about it, the more it seemed like the truth.

"Cough, Liuli, contact my family and have these people sent over. Remember, don't let anyone know about it." Zhang Taihuo began giving instructions to Liuli.

"Okay, Master." Liuli grabbed the rope binding the three men. "Come with me if you really want to live."

Hearing Liuli's words, the three men reluctantly stood up and followed her, preparing to leave.

"But, is there really a place called the 'Abnormal Human Research Center'?" Lai Yiming watched the men leave and suddenly asked Zhang Taihuo.

"Let me tell you, our country actually has a national organization called 'Dragon Group' composed of people with superpowers. Do you believe it?"

"I didn't believe it before, but I started to believe it later. But based on recent signs… well, it probably doesn't exist, right?" Lai Yiming said.

"If you think that way, you're right."

Zhang Taihuo shrugged.