Chapter 112: Infinite Nesting Dolls
In the darkness, the script for Act III, Scene 7 of the opera was still being written:
(Narration): How I wish I could sing to Harrison Rivers, "Please close your eyes—for what they show you might be false, and thus truth is forced to become mere delusion."
But even with my revelation, his overly cautious and timid nature led him to let Wayne Sturwell escape. As expected, one should never place hope in the nobles of Bryston.
[The entire passage above is crossed out with a thick black line.]
(Narration): A team of supernaturals from the Circle of Earth will arrive in five minutes. The owner of this place, the bookseller Charles Scott, is an ordinary man. He could have had a peaceful retirement and a quiet life. Unfortunately, due to the price that must be paid for a failed performance, as he entered the house, the unstable, collapsing ceiling fell right on top of him.
Ending: The performance has failed. Wayne Sturwell turned out to possess power beyond convention—who would have thought he also had the abilities of a penitent priest from the Ascetics Church? Alva Roskin was killed by Wayne Sturwell. Act III, Scene 7 of the script is void.
After a full half-minute of silence, it flipped to a new blank page, as if dejected.
"Act III, Scene 8: 'The Death of Wayne Sturwell' (Encore Performance)"
Just as it prepared to draft a new scene, a pair of gloved hands closed the book and lifted it.
The lights came on, revealing a place resembling a library. A kindly-looking old wizard put on his glasses and sat down at a long table. He opened the book and began to read.
At that moment, the distant sound of church bells echoed melodiously.
…
Zhou Ning closed his pocket watch—right at 10 PM.
"Sure enough, risk and reward always go hand in hand…"
He couldn't help but sigh. Anyone else would've been doomed on this mission. Even he had nearly lost his life. But the reward was beyond anything he'd expected—not only had he gained 160,000 experience points in one go, but he'd also obtained two rare cards.
He'd used the Epic Vampire: Zhou Ning possession card before—bug-level power, a trump card for desperate times. He even suspected it could beat a Level 60 Bloodline Knight like Harrison Rivers.
A single card was practically worth a life.
If not for the fact that a team of supernaturals from the Circle of Earth was already en route, Zhou Ning seriously would've considered turning back to settle the score with Harrison Rivers—to see whose life was harder to take.
Signs of a lockdown were already appearing nearby. Several police officers had sealed off the surrounding streets. Zhou Ning stood at the corner, calmly eyeing the oncoming Circle of Earth squad before ducking into a nearby diner. He had no interest in a direct encounter.
In the Apocalypse Game, the Circle of Earth was one of the major supernatural factions, on par with the Sunwatchers, founded by the Temple of Earth.
As the official church of the Falric Kingdom, the Temple of Earth held missionary rights in the Byron Republic, the Bryston Kingdom, and the Ruins Kingdom—all in the eastern part of the continent. In the Bryston Kingdom, which evolved from the former Falric Kingdom, it was one of the three mainstream faiths and had the authority to establish supernatural factions.
Compared to the Sunwatchers—whose ties to religion were looser and whose backing came from Bryston's royal court—the Circle of Earth had a much stronger religious foundation. They were far more inclined toward divine arts and supernatural powers, and their methods were significantly more aggressive. Almost all their members were devout followers of the Earth God, and they were extremely xenophobic.
Zhou Ning had suffered many defeats at the hands of the Circle of Earth in his previous life as a player.
If he could avoid them, he definitely would.
This small diner was near the southeastern docks, and at 10 PM it was doing good business. Many nearby sailors and seamen were eating inside.
After taking a seat by the window, Zhou Ning acted like any regular diner. He took off his hat and set it beside him, then ordered baked beef and a salad.
While waiting for his food, he tapped his fingers lightly on the table, watching through the window as the heavily armed Circle of Earth squad—some even dressed like knights—passed by.
"One of those two earlier was pretty strong. Even in my era, he'd count as a top-tier fighter. I won't be able to take action again for a while—you need to start leveling up fast."
Molly seemed to have just recovered, her voice still tinged with fatigue.
"Got it." Zhou Ning smiled and responded in his mind, "Thanks for your help back there. Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. Just a bit drained," Molly replied bluntly. "Here's a tip—next time, prepare some talismans. Ones made with occult techniques work too. They'll really help in combat. I still remember how to make some; I can teach you."
Zhou Ning nodded thoughtfully. He understood. Molly had brought this up more than once.
In his previous life, there were NPCs in the game who sold small talismans with special effects like haste, fire damage, or frost damage.
His current Occultism skill did include some talisman crafting knowledge, but only for illumination and calm—neither very helpful in combat. With Molly's recipes, things would improve greatly.
Now that their bond had deepened, Zhou Ning was finally feeling the warmth of having a personal granny companion.
After a leisurely half-hour meal, Zhou Ning paid the bill, put on his hat, and left the diner, taking a horse-drawn cab back to Vick University.
By then, the nearby lockdowns had eased up. As the carriage passed No. 52 Wooden Gate Street, Zhou Ning glimpsed through the curtain and saw that the house had mostly collapsed. Several Circle of Earth members were working on-site, and a body covered with a white sheet lay on the ground.
Whew… Zhou Ning let out a breath and drew the curtain shut.
It was almost 11 PM when he took out his key and opened the door to his dormitory—only to be surprised to find Fred still locked in an intense duel with another tall, skinny youth. John was sitting off to the side, watching the match.
He vaguely recalled the last time he played cards this long… was the last time he played.
The spectators in the room had changed, but the plates and snacks piled on the table spoke volumes about how fierce the match had been.
"If I were this dedicated back in school, I might not have been top of the class, but I'd at least be someone's model student," Zhou Ning thought.
"Wayne, I want to play a round."
As Zhou Ning greeted the others and was about to head to his room, Molly's cool voice echoed in his mind.
Zhou Ning: …
As a spirit companion granny, shouldn't you be focused on restoring your strength instead of getting addicted to card games?
Still, since she rarely asked for anything, Zhou Ning didn't have the heart to refuse. He braced himself and joined the game.
It didn't take long—just after midnight, under her command, Zhou Ning went 0 wins and 5 losses, retreating in utter defeat.
Back in his own room, Zhou Ning washed up quickly and collapsed into bed.
Although the battle earlier hadn't lasted long, it was the most intense one he'd ever experienced. His body was utterly exhausted, and mentally, he was also badly shaken. It made him realize his biggest shortcoming—his mental resistance was far too weak.
During the fight, he'd been struck by Harrison's Mental Lash. The skill affected both body and mind, and just that one move had cost him 12 Willpower points. On top of that, even Molly's assistance in battle had apparently drawn from his Willpower as well, leaving him with a pounding headache and overwhelming drowsiness.
Zhou Ning yawned—and before long, he drifted off into dreamland.
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