Chapter 101: He Was Fine—Why Did He Self-Destruct?

Roadside.

Yao Sen’s right foot was stuck in a storm drain grate. Just as he was trying to pull it out, a heavy truck barreled straight toward him from the intersection.

As he looked up, his pupils shrank sharply. His first thought was: I’m done for. There’s no way to dodge this.

With no other choice, Yao Sen decided to use his supernatural ability.

“Bang! Crack!”

A crisp sound rang out as the sturdy grate shattered instantly. His right leg was freed, and his body turned into a blur, dashing three body lengths to the left at an astonishing speed.

Yao Sen was an agility-type profession player, with the current rank title of Martial Arts Master. His flexibility, reflexes, speed, and close-combat skills were all extremely formidable.

“Clang!”

With his sudden dodge, the truck’s undercarriage scraped against the curb, launching it onto the sidewalk. The driver frantically stomped the brakes, bringing the vehicle to a jolting stop just in time.

No one was hurt, and the truck remained intact.

But inside a nearby noodle shop, six Vigil Keepers froze in unison. They had all sensed the Stellar Essence fluctuation just now.

The young woman responsible for escorting the old man home abruptly stood up. “Han Ming, Dongdong, you two stay behind and alert the bar—now!”

As she spoke, she was already out the door with three others in pursuit.

The two young men she called out to immediately adopted serious expressions as they approached Ren Daguo. One of them said urgently, “Uncle, stop eating—we have to go.”

“Huh?” Ren Daguo, his mouth still greasy with food, looked up in confusion. “What’s going on?”

“Just move,” Dongdong repeated.

“Oh, okay.”

Ren Daguo didn’t ask further. He quickly put away his notebook and pen before standing up.

…

On the street.

The moment Yao Sen dodged the truck, he bolted.

More than anyone, he knew that the second he activated his ability, the Vigil Keepers would have noticed. And once he was exposed, he’d be facing an endless stream of official players.

Forget about the kidnapping. At this point, he was lucky if he could just get away.

Yet, he still couldn’t figure out why his luck had been so rotten today.

Getting his foot stuck in a storm drain was bad enough, but did a truck really have to come at him right then? If he hadn’t used his ability and relied solely on his second-stage player’s physique to withstand the impact, he might not have died, but he would’ve definitely been injured.

And if that happened, the nearby Vigil Keepers would have definitely come to check on him. Once they got a good look at his condition, his cover would be blown anyway.

In that split second, it felt like he had no other choice.

“Whoosh!”

No more holding back—Yao Sen sprinted down the street, moving at a speed so absurdly fast that he left only afterimages behind, his real body already a kilometer away.

“Vroom vroom…!”

At the intersection behind him, several cars sped across the street, but Yao Sen’s body moved as if he were hurdling. Kicking off the ground, he leaped straight over the traffic and dashed into a nearby alley.

“Swish!”

He was fast—insanely fast.

But the moment he entered the alley, the surroundings distorted and blurred. In an instant, it felt as if he had fallen into another dimension.

A Wordless Stele barrier…!

The Vigil Keepers had already caught up.

Gritting his teeth, Yao Sen kept running, his right hand now clutching a palm-sized, exquisitely crafted, antique-looking music box.

He didn’t even glance back. Instead, he kept weaving through the alleyways, rapidly cranking the wooden handle of the music box.

A melodious classical tune resonated in his ears—but only his. No one else could hear it.

This was his rare item—The Time Music Box.

Originally, he had prepared it for kidnapping Ren Daguo. But given the current situation, he might have to use it ahead of schedule.

Behind him, the Vigil Keeper lady gave chase but quickly realized she couldn’t match his speed.

Still sprinting, she called out softly, “Precision Puppet.”

Ahead of her, Yao Sen suddenly felt a chill run down his spine—a powerful sense of impending danger.

“Swish!”

From the distorted space to his left, a flesh-colored wooden puppet over a meter tall suddenly emerged.

It appeared crudely carved, as if a child had hacked it out with a wooden knife.

Its limbs and torso were all connected by steel nails, its movements stiff and seemingly clumsy. But its attack speed was lightning-fast.

A craftsman-type player!

Yao Sen’s heart jolted in alarm. But there was no time to slow down now.

His reflexes were sharp—his body flexible. He abruptly leaned back, bending so low that his back nearly skimmed the ground as he darted beneath the puppet’s strike.

“Swish!”

The wooden blade sliced through the air just above him.

The puppet and Yao Sen passed each other in a flash.

Exploiting his agility-type physique, Yao Sen narrowly avoided the attack and kept sprinting.

“Creak creak…!”

The puppet’s crudely carved face suddenly twisted into a mechanical grin. Its stiff right arm jerked forward, flinging the wooden knife through the air.

“Whoosh!”

The sudden burst of force sent the wooden blade shooting toward Yao Sen’s back like a bullet.

“Bang!”

“Boom!”

The blade exploded into a cloud of blood.

At the same time—Yao Sen’s body vanished from the spot.

The Vigil Keeper lady arrived moments later, looking down at where he had disappeared. The ground was stained with large splatters of blood.

“…A teleportation-type item?” She was visibly surprised.

Beside her, the puppet ceased all movement, standing dumbly next to the young lady like a wooden post practicing Wing Chun.

A dozen seconds later, the Vigil Keepers trailing behind arrived one after another.

“Where is he? You didn’t manage to hold him down?!” a young man frowned and asked.

“He had a rather peculiar teleportation-type artifact,” the young lady said, her delicate brows slightly furrowed. “But this artifact doesn’t seem to be usable instantly. Moreover… he vanished so abruptly that I didn’t detect a second fluctuation of his Stellar Essence.”

“…His target should be Ren Ye’s father.”

“Oh, right! Where’s Uncle Ren?” the young lady immediately turned back and asked.

“He’s already gone.”

“We need to report this to headquarters right away. Even when Ren Ye’s father has come to the Capital, someone still dares to go after him—Bell Society must be getting desperate.” The young lady responded briefly and immediately began contacting headquarters.

Somewhere on a street.

After putting away the Time Music Box, Yao Sen’s face was pale. He clutched his arms tightly around himself, fleeing in a miserable state.

Wherever he passed, sporadic traces of blood were left behind…

That wooden blade from earlier had clearly inflicted serious injuries when it exploded.

…

Inside a car.

Ren Daguo looked shaken, holding a paper-wrapped package in his arms, his tone slightly hurried as he asked, “That… that car accident just now…?”

“It’s fine. Our people are already pursuing him,” a middle-aged man beside him said in a low voice. “It’s still unclear whether he was after you.”

“Oh!”

Ren Daguo nodded.

“Don’t worry. We’ll take you back first.” The middle-aged man reassured him in a steady voice.

“Alright.”

After the young lady led a group in pursuit, more than twenty Vigil Keepers emerged from a nearby bar and immediately escorted Ren Daguo away.

Sitting beside him, the middle-aged man kept scanning the streets outside, muttering to himself in confusion, “I really don’t get it… That tailing player—why did he suddenly activate his supernatural ability when no one was attacking him and no one had even noticed him?”

“I saw a truck crashing into him,” Dongdong explained.

“A tailing player exposed himself just to dodge a traffic accident?! Who the hell would believe that? That’s brain-dead level stupidity,” the middle-aged man propped his chin with his right hand, his face full of bafflement. “Too weird. This is seriously too weird.”

Ren Daguo remained silent, trembling with nervousness.

About forty minutes later, he was safely escorted back to the Annual Ring Hotel.

Yan Duoduo and Huang Wei came out to greet him. After a brief conversation and some words of comfort, they started discussing the incident with the Vigil Keepers from headquarters.

Ren Daguo was the first to return to his hotel room. The moment he stepped inside, he saw his daughter sitting in a chair, pouting.

“What’s wrong?” Ren Daguo asked with a smile.

“You disappeared all night. Where did you go?” Ren Qingning asked in confusion.

Ren Daguo hesitated for a moment. “Didn’t Boss Yan and Old Huang tell you? I went to meet their leader.”

“What kind of leader takes all night to meet?”

“When I finished talking with him, it was already late, so I just spent the night at their place,” Ren Daguo casually replied while taking off his coat. “The leader was mainly trying to reassure me about your brother’s safety.”

“Hmph, so sneaky.” Ren Qingning snorted. “I couldn’t sleep well because of you.”

Ren Daguo placed the paper-wrapped package on the coffee table, then reached inside and pulled out two smaller paper-wrapped parcels. “Haven’t eaten yet? Here, have some snacks to fill your stomach.”

“What is this?” Ren Qingning’s eyes lit up at the sight of food, and she immediately ran over, eagerly opening the package.

As the paper unfolded, a fragrant aroma filled the air. Inside were delicate pastries, pink and white in color, looking exquisitely crafted.

“They’re so pretty.” Ren Qingning picked up one and gently placed it in her mouth.

The pastry melted instantly, soft and slightly sweet, with an excellent texture.

“This is delicious!” Ren Qingning’s eyes sparkled. “What kind of pastry is this? Where did you buy it?”

“Oh.” Like a little greedy cat, Ren Qingning couldn’t resist grabbing another piece. “Mmm… the taste is so unique. I’ve never had it before.”

“You enjoy it. I’m going to lie down for a bit.”

Ren Daguo didn’t explain further. He simply turned and headed for his bedroom.

Ren Qingning sat on the chair, playfully swinging her little feet, and soon finished the entire package of peach cakes.

…

Back in his room, Ren Daguo pulled the curtains shut and turned on the bedside lamp.

The dim yellow light cast shadows across the room. He sat on the bed, expressionless, and pulled out a figurine from the paper-wrapped package.

The texture of the figurine was unusual—while it looked wooden, it had a surprising elasticity. Yet, if one assumed it was silicone, it appeared far too lifelike, with facial features completely devoid of stiffness or artificiality.

The figurine depicted a white-robed swordsman, holding a sword in his right hand and a wine jug in his left, exuding an air of carefree elegance.

Ren Daguo stared blankly at it, and suddenly, an overwhelming weariness seemed to settle over him…

After a while, he casually placed the figurine on the nightstand, yawned, and collapsed onto the bed.

…

In the tomb of the previous dynasty’s princess.

Inside Prince Huai’s sacrificial chamber, the blood pool flickered with a crimson glow.

“Ah… it hurts, it hurts so much.”

“Am… am I really dead? No, I can’t be… My beloved consort is still waiting for me to dual cultivate with her…!”