Volume 1, Chapter 31: The Walking Monk Meat

"A pity, the performance this round wasn't particularly impressive, so the rewards aren't much..."

"Mine was decent enough; I’ve gathered enough experience points to reach level two as a Priest."

Not far away, the Sheriff and the elderly Priest chatted casually, their tones indifferent. Yet, there was a shared glint of ferocity in both their eyes.

In the next moment, Qin Shang saw the elderly Priest produce an object: a black crucifix. Simultaneously, the Sheriff pulled out a pair of white gauntlets.

Items!

The instance exploration was over; what were these two planning by taking out their items now?

Qin Shang’s expression darkened, and he stepped back unobtrusively.

"'Licking Cockroach Jade Feet,' you are indeed clever. We really should thank you for helping us clear this instance..."

"But since that little girl already called you brother, why don't you just stay in the Divine Path to keep her company?"

The elderly Priest, known as 'Buddha Favors the Fated,' grinned with a sinister smirk. The once gentle and scholarly face of the old man now looked eerie and terrifying. The Sheriff, 'Eagle of Justice,' was the same, his stern, dark face twisted into a mocking sneer. It was as if Qin Shang were already a turtle trapped in their jar.

"What are you doing?"

"You should know that Tricksters are the common enemy of all players, right?"

"Never mind, it doesn't matter if you don't. You’ll know now. Every other professional player gets an optional task on their panel when they encounter a multiplayer mission with a Trickster."

"That task is to identify the Trickster in the team and eliminate them."

"As long as you kill the Trickster, you can obtain hidden hints for that round of the instance and earn bonus points..."

[Optional Task]!?

Why didn't I see this when I [Inherited] the tasks from 'Kind Sister' and 'Everyone Who Touches Me Gets Cucked'!?

The Sheriff licked his lips. "Points determine the wealth and luxury we can enjoy after we risk our lives to crawl out of this hellhole."

"Points have a ton of uses, too—like exchanging them for guides or survival days."

"Normal players have to enter a solo instance and a multiplayer instance every month. If your luck is bad, you're likely to be matched into a 'Death' type instance."

"Normally, clearing an A-rank instance only rewards ten points. B-rank is even less, and C-rank is basically negligible."

"But killing a Trickster rewards one hundred points, which can be exchanged for one hundred days of survival time without needing to enter the Divine Path."

"You could spend that time living it up in the real world."

Points have such a use?

Hearing this, Qin Shang’s expression changed drastically. No wonder the Sheriff, upon hearing there was a God-Slayer in the instance and suspecting a Trickster was hidden in the team, had instinctively blurted out that "Tricksters are the common enemy."

To be precise, it wasn't that Tricksters were the common enemy—they were walking bundles of cash! Among Divine Path players, a Trickster was essentially a piece of Tang Monk meat!

One hundred points... if converted into currency, that would be...

A small fortune!

Killing a Trickster could actually net a small fortune.

Qin Shang’s face darkened. He never imagined the most valuable moment of his life would be the moment of his funeral. I never thought my life would be worth so much. To think that one day, I could be worth a small fortune.

"Balance!"

Is this still the balance mechanism of the Divine Path? Because the Trickster is innately the most suitable profession for clearing instances, he is forced to become a lone wolf?

This means that after becoming a Trickster, aside from those of the same profession, there isn't a single other player in the Divine Path who can be fully trusted. Even with close friends or family, there is no guarantee they wouldn't take the risk to kill you for that small fortune or those one hundred days of extended life.

"Don't bother resisting. One level-two Priest and one level-one peak Martial Artist."

"It's not something you, a mere level-one Trickster, can contend with."

Seeing Qin Shang silently retreating, both men wore playful smiles.

[Time: 19 minutes]

Time slipped away. Qin Shang glanced at the system panel; there were nineteen minutes left before he could leave the Divine Path. Cold sweat broke out on his forehead. Never in his life had he felt nineteen minutes to be so long. In the hands of two people with supernatural abilities, nineteen minutes was enough to kill him a thousand times over!

In a place like the Divine Path, morality and law simply do not exist. Even if I died, there would be no proof. Facing such supernatural phenomena, even if people outside knew Qin Shang had died in the Divine Path, with the Priest and the Sheriff colluding, no one would be able to uncover the truth. If questioned, they would likely claim I died at the hands of the God-Slayer or the boss. There would be no proof, as the bodies remain inside the instance.

"What was your clear reward?" the elderly Priest asked calmly.

"Ha!"

"Biting the hand that feeds you? Not satisfied with trying to kill me, you want to steal my clear reward too?"

Qin Shang scanned his surroundings frantically, searching for a way out. The first carriage remained dark, the dim, yellow lights providing little visibility. Escaping from a Priest with [Night Vision] in the dark was a pipe dream.

Wait...

That’s not right!

I have the Red Dress. There are two ways to use it: Wear it or Summon it.

If I summon it, I must follow the item's rules—I cannot move or make a sound!

As for wearing it, I can briefly gain the Priest's [Night Vision] ability and enter a five-second [Void] state. I would be immune to all physical attacks. But I still couldn't last nineteen minutes...

"Once you die, your items will be reclaimed by the Divine Path along with your character card. You might as well take them out and hand them over for us to keep safe," the elderly Priest said lazily. "If you do, we can be generous in return for your contribution. When we return to reality, we'll give your family a sum of money as a condolence fee."

"You don't even know who I am, yet you're trying to sell me a pipe dream?"

Qin Shang remained calm, continuing to stall for time.

The elderly Priest smiled playfully. "You can tell us yourself. You can give us your home address, your family's contact information..."

"Enough, stop wasting breath on him. He’ll take out the item when he can no longer hold on."

At that moment, 'Eagle of Justice' spat impatiently. Then, Qin Shang’s vision blurred, and a blast of air and a sonic boom erupted from the space just in front of him.

So fast!

That was the only thought in Qin Shang’s mind. This speed was comparable to a cheetah; the distance between them was closing rapidly.

"The Martial Artist's entry-level skill is called [Amplification]—a comprehensive boost to physical stats. Kid, you can't run!"

The next moment, the sinister face of 'Eagle of Justice' appeared right before Qin Shang.

There was nowhere to dodge. Qin Shang quickly connected with his character card.

Item Slot: 'Cursed Red Dress'...

He hurriedly pulled out the Red Dress. The shriveled garment hung in his palm like an ordinary girl’s red dress. He didn't have time to look closely at his clear reward; he threw it directly at 'Eagle of Justice.'

"Summon!"

Whoosh!

As the command left his lips, a black, murky mist surged from the dress. The hem suddenly inflated as if being pumped with air. Then, it transformed into a red dress floating in mid-air—not in the half-human, half-ghost form of 'Ail,' but not much better. It looked like a humanoid mist had put on the dress, a dark, blurry entity where the physical form of the dress was obscured.

'Eagle of Justice,' mid-lunge, collided directly with the red dress.

"This is the item you got from the instance? As expected, as a Trickster, you got the most clues, the highest completion rate, and the most rewards!"

"It looks like a top-tier item. This thing was worn by the boss—an item from an A-rank instance boss usually signifies a quality of at least Tier 2, or even Tier 3."

With that, the greed in 'Eagle of Justice's' eyes deepened. "'Buddha Favors the Fated,' let's attack together..."

Facing this item, 'Eagle of Justice' seemed to become somewhat cautious.

Qin Shang made a judgment. Though he wasn't sure what level of item the Red Dress was, it seemed even 'Eagle of Justice' had to be wary of it. Perhaps he could actually escape using this item.

Qin Shang felt a slight sense of relief, followed by a cold, murderous intent. 'Grandpa Cow' was right. These two really saw him as a goose that laid golden eggs—to be slaughtered once used...

Just wait. You think I haven't grasped the rules and gameplay of the Divine Path... Next time, if I get matched with you two again, I will absolutely slaughter you bastards.