DSMC Chapter 33.2

Jiang Yan had placed his hopes on Yan Jiyun. He guessed Jiang Yan’s plan was to find Lin Xie and continue protecting him from the shadows. Only if everything was under his control could he shield Lin Xie, whose cover was now completely blown.

Lin Xie’s first exposure had been over the real-and-fake formula incident, but because Jiang Yan had helped bail him out and Lin Xie endured it, he got away clean. This time, though, it would be hard to shake off suspicion of being an undercover agent.

From his conversation with his contact, it could be inferred that his ultimate mission was to help the police capture Zhao Renfu. As long as Zhao Renfu was caught, Lin Xie’s status as an undercover wouldn’t matter anymore.

But until the police arrived, Lin Xie would have to keep Zhao Renfu in sight to prevent his escape. Plus, he still needed to locate the first batch of Red Field Poppy.

Yan Jiyun didn’t know Lin Xie’s hiding place, but Jiang Yan seemed to. Carrying Yan Jiyun, he came to the mirror door. It was Yan Jiyun’s second time here.

But hadn’t Building B been blown up? Wouldn’t hiding there be dangerous?

No, Jiang Yan didn’t go to Building B’s lab entrance. Instead, behind the mirror door stairwell, he found a concealed door and set Yan Jiyun on the floor.

“Blake,” Jiang Yan said, “sniff and see if Lin Xie’s scent is here.”

Yan Jiyun: “……”

‘How could you use a cat like a dog?’

Seeing the black cat staring motionlessly at him, Jiang Yan was sure that there was no one here.

Then he scooped Yan Jiyun up again, left the mirror door, and headed for Room 1 to 8. He didn’t go into those rooms, but used a master key to unlock Lin Xie’s office, marched straight into the bedroom, and opened the wardrobe. Inside was another hidden door.

Who would’ve thought that Lin Xie’s office served the same function as Room 1 to 8.

How did Jiang Yan know all this? Just how many secrets was he hiding?

Jiang Yan pushed open the hidden door and set Yan Jiyun down at the entrance. “Sniff and see if Lin Xie’s scent is here.”

Yan Jiyun：“……”

There was no trace of Lin Xie’s scent.

Damn it, he really wasn’t a dog.

Jiang Yan understood what he meant, but after coming out of Lin Xie’s lounge, he didn’t head toward the next spot.

He knew where the next spot was. Lin Xie was probably hiding there for the time being and it was very safe.

A true cunning rabbit has three burrows.

[Time until the instance ends: 6 hours, 6 minutes, 52 seconds]

There were still three hours until Zhao Renfu met with his old friend.

In those three hours, he’d probably be stuck bound to Jiang Yan. Hopefully Zhou Ying and the others could trigger the final mission through another route. He guessed it wouldn’t be too hard. So long as they got close to Zhao Renfu, or made contact with Lin Xie.

No, that might actually be difficult. Lin Xie’s whereabouts were unknown, and Zhao Renfu had so many mercenaries at his side.

Maybe finding the deputy supervisor could also trigger the final mission?

Leaving other players aside, Yan Jiyun was still in Lin Xie’s office with Jiang Yan.

Jiang Yan openly turned on Lin Xie’s computer and typed in the password.

The two of them were always at odds, so how could Jiang Yan possibly know Lin Xie’s password? Just how many of Lin Xie’s secrets did he know?

But then again, this was an office. The computer might just be standard equipment, something Lin Xie hardly ever used himself.

The men in black uniforms all knew Jiang Yan was in Lin Xie’s office. They thought he was carrying out Zhao Renfu’s orders. The little guard, being his number one lackey, quickly came over to report their noon progress.

Jiang Yan was calm and aloof, indifferent. The lackey rambled a few lines, then stopped. The explosion hadn’t caused a fire, but the entire production area was badly destroyed. All raw materials for the Red Field Poppy batch had been ruined. To use the factory again would require a long period of renovation.

The lackey lingered, waiting for Jiang Yan’s orders, then thought of something, “Boss, we made such a big scene. Won’t the police come?”

Jiang Yan tapped idly at the mouse, playing Spider Solitaire, and said nonchalantly, “The bridge is blown. They can’t get here in less than a week.”

Yan Jiyun sprawled on the desk. He noticed Jiang Yan kept glancing at the clock in the corner of the computer screen. He seemed more nervous than Yan Jiyun himself. The Spider Solitaire game was just random clicks, he wasn’t playing at all.

Yan Jiyun tried to sneak out, but Jiang Yan pinned him firmly in place and wouldn’t let him leave.

If he couldn’t leave, how could he complete the final mission?

Still, there was no need to look for the first batch of Red Field Poppy. They would appear naturally that night, since Zhao Renfu’s friend was bound to check the goods on the spot.

Time passed by the minute.

Jiang Yan deliberately asked the lackey: “Go ask if they’ve found Lin Xie yet.”

The lackey ran out, then came back: “Not yet. But a front hall waiter tried to leave and we caught him.”

Jiang Yan’s hand stilled slightly on the mouse: “And that person? What did he look like?”

The underling replied: “Already sent to the Old Master. Looked pretty ordinary, the kind you’d lose in a crowd. He worked in the back kitchen.”

Jiang Yan said, “Alright, I got it.”

He checked the time, then found the cat food Lin Xie had kept in the office, and poured a bowl for Yan Jiyun.

The lackey went out again to gather news. Jiang Yan told Yan Jiyun: “Nobody’s likely to bother you tonight. Stay here, don’t go anywhere. There’s plenty of cat food.”

The surveillance in Lin Xie’s office had already been shut down by him. Carelessly, he set the bowl down in front of Yan Jiyun.

Then he muttered to himself, “Lin Xie’s man has been taken. That man once worked under him. Lin Xie will definitely try to save him once he finds out. If he does, he’ll fall straight into Zhao Renfu’s trap. Then I’ll have to go instead. Blake, am I right?”

Yan Jiyun heard the helplessness in his tone. Saving someone from Zhao Renfu would be dangerous. Lin Xie was already under suspicion. If he stepped forward again, Zhao Renfu would seize him outright.

But he couldn’t just leave Jiang Yan locked in here!

This time Yan Jiyun couldn’t pretend he didn’t understand. While chewing cat food, he kept his eyes fixed on Jiang Yan, making sure he didn’t slip away.

Jiang Yan steadied his emotions, closed the computer, stood, and was about to leave.

At that moment, Yan Jiyun took advantage of his lapse, scrambling up his pants leg to his shoulder, digging tightly into his hair.

No way was he leaving him behind.

Jiang Yan: “Blake, I’m warning you, don’t you go catching feelings for me.”

No matter what Jiang Yan said, Yan Jiyun had no intention of staying put.

Jiang Yan considered that the black cat wasn’t the obedient sort anyway. Taking him along wasn’t impossible, so long as he didn’t run around.

“You have to promise me you won’t run off or make noise.” Jiang Yan knew the cat seemed to understand human speech.

Yan Jiyun patted his head with a paw to seal the deal. Whether he acted like a cat or not no longer mattered, he didn’t have much time left in the system anyway.

Jiang Yan pulled him off his shoulder. “Don’t pat my head with those litter-digging claws of yours.”

Maybe because of Yan Jiyun’s meddling, Jiang Yan seemed more relaxed than he should have been.

Zhao Renfu had arranged to meet his friend at his own residence. He was leaving tomorrow anyway, so he wasn’t afraid of letting the man know where he lived.

Jiang Yan went ahead to see Zhao Renfu. The number of men in black uniforms and mercenaries had doubled.

Now Yan Jiyun really understood why this dungeon was called one of the three major hardships for newcomers. With this many NPCs, how were players supposed to sneak in? Unless they had invisibility cloaks.

He still hadn’t spotted Zhou Ying’s team. Hopefully they were racking their brains somewhere.

When Jiang Yan entered, the deputy supervisor was there too. He had changed into new clothes. On the table before him sat an aluminum case, guarded by several men in black uniforms.

The man Zhao Renfu had caught was tied to a chair. Zhao Renfu asked him, “What’s your relationship with Lin Xie? Superior and subordinate? What’s his codename in your organization? You were trying to smuggle out the files he gave you, weren’t you?”

The man feigned fear, “I only work here. Lin Xie is my boss. I really don’t know what you gentlemen are talking about.”

From his tone, Jiang Yan realized Zhao Renfu had no solid evidence.

Zhao Renfu just smiled. “Guess whether Lin Xie will come to save you.”

The files weren’t important anymore. The important thing was luring Lin Xie out.

The man stayed silent. At that moment, Jiang Yan entered, carrying the cat and idly rubbing its chin, looking every bit the idle young master.

Zhao Renfu asked carelessly, “Today is crucial, so why are you bringing a cat around?”

Jiang Yan dropped into a spacious sofa. “Cats are fun. Father, you keep busy. I won’t get in your way.”

Yan Jiyun stayed quiet as an ostrich, doing his best not to be noticed.

Zhao Renfu knew his usual behavior, so he let it pass.

Just then, Lao Fang returned, leading four men and women. At the head was a fat man with a thick gold chain and a gold tooth. They had brought others as well, but the mercenaries stopped them outside.

Seeing his old friend arrive, Zhao Renfu stopped caring about the captured man. The black-uniformed men dragged him to the side and gagged him.

“You came just in time. Bring out the food, let’s eat!”

Soon the kitchen began serving dishes. Among the waiters, Yan Jiyun spotted Zhou Ying and her companions, who had disguised themselves deliberately. If not for recognizing their footsteps, he might never have noticed.

So, they had also received the final mission.

Wait, Yan Jiyun also saw Lin Xie, likewise disguised as a waiter, even more inconspicuous than the others.

Jiang Yan was right. He really had come to save his comrade!

Yan Jiyun scratched lightly at the back of Jiang Yan’s hand with his claws. Jiang Yan was just about to follow Zhao Renfu to the round table.

In truth, Jiang Yan had already recognized Lin Xie. Calmly, he moved in front of him, blocking Zhao Renfu’s line of sight.