Chapter 6: Class B Yellow, The Shopping Mall (6)
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The security aunt’s head rolled to Xu Yiliu’s feet.
She wasn’t scared. Squatting down, she examined the grotesquely large head carefully. “It’s definitely dead. That means my guess was right. These things, though terrifying, can indeed be harmed by us.”
The man carrying the fire axe finally caught on.
Why did he care whether the insults were aimed at him or not?
No, that wasn’t the issue—it was just something felt off, something he couldn’t quite put his finger on. He simply disliked Xu Yiliu.
Xu Yiliu looked up at this teammate.
Well, more precisely, a colleague; after all, they were all cleaners.
She stood up, brushed off imaginary dust from her clothes, smiled, and extended her hand. “Hello, let’s officially meet. I’m your colleague for this mission, Xu Yiliu.”
The man thought she was a bit pretentious, but couldn’t deny her skills, so reluctantly shook her hand. “Hello, I’m Sheng Mo.”
Xu Yiliu withdrew her hand, and before starting a conversation, she went to the broadcast room door and locked it from the inside.
Fortunately, apart from that contaminant, the security room only had the guard who escorted her here; otherwise, her rare slip in acting would have been a fatal flaw for both of them.
With a gap in the situation, Sheng Mo finally seized the opportunity to ask again, “How did you do it?”
Xu Yiliu was still rummaging through the broadcast room and responded with an “Huh?”
“The contaminant. The system indicates one contaminant has been cleared.” Sheng Mo was incredulous—this person had been under his watch all along. “How exactly did you manage that?”
Xu Yiliu opened a drawer. “Why should I tell you?”
She glanced at the system; the task data on the panel had indeed changed.
[Task: Identify and clear contaminants 1/3]
Sheng Mo grew frustrated. “You—”
Xu Yiliu waved her hand. “Just kidding~ Don’t be mad.”
Though stingy with money, she wasn’t petty to this extent.
From the system and that contaminant’s words, she deeply understood that information meant survival odds. Living on was quite good—accumulate virtue and strike it rich. Besides, this colleague was skilled and quick-witted; with him well-managed, he’d be quite an asset.
Sheng Mo had serious doubts about Xu Yiliu, but as she explained, his anger gradually faded.
First, he was shocked by the contaminant and hidden rules; second, Xu Yiliu spoke sincerely, providing only useful information. Without her, he wasn’t sure he could have arrived at the same conclusions.
After listening, Sheng Mo sincerely asked, “Why don’t you choose to leave the game?”
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Xu Yiliu’s irritation after killing had mostly been vented through the security aunt; her emotional value on the panel had risen back from 78 to 95. Now, in a fairly good mood, she patiently replied, “When solving problems, I usually list three answers. So, I’ll give you three.”
Sheng Mo thought she was putting on a show but kept a neutral expression. “Alright, go ahead.”
“One, I don’t believe that system is real.”
Sheng Mo was taken aback.
Xu Yiliu explained, “The mental pollution illusion created by the contaminants comes in two types. One is ordinary, using what people find hardest to resist as bait. Most can’t endure it and easily go mad or fall into despair. In this state, your sight and hearing can’t be trusted, but your sense of touch remains, though somewhat disturbed. The system still functions normally.
“The second type occurs when cleaners like us approach the source of the mental pollution. We get the chance to kill the contaminant’s physical form, but also receive more severe mental pollution. Even I, my emotional value dropped below 80.
“At that point, I’m no longer physically in the illusion. My sunglasses, the person I’m gripping, my clothes—all changed or vanished. To pull that off, it can fabricate a system completely. The options it shows me might not be about canceling my cleaner identity; more likely, it’s about suicide, giving up my mission.”
Sheng Mo murmured, “You’re really impressive.”
He prided himself on his intelligence but couldn’t shake his subconscious dependence on the system.
This wasn’t something mere cleverness could achieve.
Xu Yiliu continued, “Two, I hate it.”
Sheng Mo looked at her. Her usually indifferent expression had grown colder, the whole person sinking into gloom.
“No one can do those kinds of things in grandma’s name…”
Her voice lowered. Sheng Mo didn’t catch it clearly. “What?”
Xu Yiliu shook her head. “Nothing.”
She went on, “And three…”
Sheng Mo listened attentively.
Xu Yiliu smiled faintly. “I’m a dedicated worker. No one can stop me from doing my job. I’m the tiger guarding the mountain, the agile leopard, the farsighted eagle, the battle-hardened wolf. I’m the best worker—oh yeah!”
Xu Yiliu would never have a day off from work!
Sheng Mo: “…”
Xu Yiliu tossed Sheng Mo a shoulder bag. “Carry this.”
“I don’t usually carry bags,” Sheng Mo frowned.
Xu Yiliu pointed at the fire axe in his hand. “You’re carrying that? Which customer walks around the mall with a fire axe?”
Sheng Mo obediently slung the bag over his shoulder, placed the fire axe inside, and caressed it carefully.
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This was a rare weapon.
He watched as Xu Yiliu pulled a box out from the bottom drawer. Upon closer look, it was a deck of playing cards. Shocked, he asked, “You want to play cards now?”
Xu Yiliu paused, putting them in her pocket, smiling brightly at him. “No, I want to do magic.”
Sheng Mo was amazed. “You want to do magic?”
Xu Yiliu spread the cards in her hands, expertly shuffled, performed a fancy flourish, then slid out a card. “Guess what suit this is?”
Sheng Mo answered seriously, “Hearts—”
Before he finished, something flew past his ear.
He stared blankly at Xu Yiliu’s smiling face, then turned to look.
The playing card she casually flicked was deeply embedded in the wall.
Turning back to Xu Yiliu, she gave him a graceful magician’s bow:
“Wrong, it’s a Joker.”
Sheng Mo looked at her with a complex expression. “Are you really a magician?”
If so, she was far too young—she looked about the same age as him.
Xu Yiliu retrieved the card from the wall. “No, I just did some related part-time work.”
There were no fruit knives or similar tools inside; after searching around, only the playing cards were handy. They’d make do.
Sheng Mo recalled her earlier workaholic declaration and hurriedly shook his head, throwing away the scattered cards. “What are we doing next?”
Xu Yiliu wiped the blood off her foot with a tissue and reminded Sheng Mo to check. “...Go out and work.”
Sheng Mo was anxious. “Work? But how? We have no clue about the next contaminant.”
“You don’t have a clue,” Xu Yiliu said bluntly, smiling at him, “But I do.”
Sheng Mo grinned broadly. “What is it?”
Xu Yiliu thought to herself: indeed, every monkey has its own way of being a monkey. This guy hadn’t even noticed that he no longer disliked her and was instinctively inclined to follow her lead.
Yes, she was very pleased.