The girl with the fruit knife, Manjusaka, obviously wasn't eager to team up with them either.

Her high ponytail swayed back and forth. "Dying in here doesn't harm our real bodies, and even if death means losing items..."

At this point, a cold gust of wind suddenly blew into her mouth, successfully silencing her.

Even though Manjusaka had clammed up, Gu Mian could still largely guess what she had intended to say.

"Since I don't have anything useful on me anymore, it doesn't matter how I die."——Something along those lines.

While Gu Mian was still mulling over Manjusaka's unspoken sentiment, he was unexpectedly singled out.

Manjusaka's voice carried over, "Of course, if I have to bring the Doctor along, it's not out of the question. As long as he's not too weak, I can protect him."

Gu Mian, having been singled out, was momentarily stunned. Did he just hear someone offer to protect him?

The atmosphere suddenly became strangely tense.

Nine Lives and Manjusaka had stated their intention to act alone. Even with Manjusaka wanting to take the team's relatively rare Doctor with her, Bai Qiong didn't try to stop them.

This scar-faced man, who looked difficult to get along with, had an unexpectedly gentle demeanor. He stood beside Keke, looked at Gu Mian, and said in a calm tone, "Doctor, would you like to go with her, or stay with the two of us?"

He wasn't trying to coerce or entice him; he was genuinely asking for Gu Mian's opinion.

Seeing his earnest inquiry, Gu Mian also thought seriously for a moment before speaking, "To be frank, I'm also considering acting alone."

Upon hearing this, Nine Lives chuckled first. After laughing a few times, he said, "If I'm not mistaken, players with professions who want to develop their professional skills... probably need to sacrifice other things, like forgoing physical enhancements to upgrade those professional skills."

He had guessed correctly.

Gu Mian's professional skills indeed required Attribute Points to upgrade. If he used points on them, he couldn't use them to strengthen his body.

Nine Lives continued, "Although our final rating might be lower if we stick together, it's safer for you. Don't get hung up on the final rating. Someone with a profession who doesn't team up with others will likely be taken down easily."

His words were blunt but logical. That was indeed the case.

By now, Manjusaka had retreated to the very edge. She glanced at her phone screen. "There's less than a minute left. Have you all decided how you're going to proceed?"

The current time was displayed on her phone screen.

Gu Mian also glanced down at his. It was 20:59. In one minute, it would be 21:00, and the hide-and-seek game would officially begin.

Bai Qiong thought for a few seconds before looking up. "How about this: Keke and I will go together. Doctor, are you sure you want to go alone?"

Gu Mian nodded slightly. "Yes, I still want to act alone. Honestly, I'm a pretty unlucky guy. Whatever misfortune occurs, it seems to hit me first before affecting anyone else. It's very likely that anyone following me will also become unlucky."

While Gu Mian was speaking, Nine Lives, standing not far away, showed a dismissive expression, as if his face read, How much unluckier can you possibly get?

Bai Qiong said nothing more, simply nodding to show he respected Gu Mian's choice.

A minute passed quickly.

Once the restriction was lifted, Manjusaka was the first to walk away. Moments later, her figure disappeared into the darkness.

Nine Lives glanced back at Gu Mian, Bai Qiong, and Keke. Then, he too walked away at a steady, unhurried pace.

The two of them headed in opposite directions.

Bai Qiong nodded at Gu Mian, then led Keke, who was beside him, away into the distance.

Soon, Gu Mian was the only one left.

The dim moon hung in the sky, providing little actual illumination.

The city's power was almost entirely gone; only the streetlights still glowed. Their light was incredibly faint, flickering as if they might go out at any moment.

The dark city was shrouded by an even darker sky, stretching out as far as the eye could see.

However, there were numerous buildings available for hiding.

At this moment, in this quiet and eerie city, five people were hiding in the darkness, their hearts pounding with fear.

There were also five Hunters, forced to wander the city in search of their prey.

There might be other things lurking as well...

Seeing that everyone else had departed, Gu Mian lowered his head to look at the phone in his hand. The screen displayed the name "Ji Bie Li" in large characters.

He didn't immediately try to call this unusually-named player. Instead, he put the phone provided by the instance into his lab coat pocket and then took out another phone.

[Mobile Phone Crossing Dimensional Walls (Mirror)]

This was a special item he had obtained in a previous instance.

[Function: Each phone can be used to make five calls.

If the player is in an instance when dialing, the call will connect to a randomly selected important NPC within that instance.

If the player is not in an instance when dialing, the call will connect to a random game player with the strongest compatibility.

Please note: This item can only be used to call players or NPCs who possess a phone.]

Compared to Gu Mian's Saw, this phone was rather impractical, so it had been left in a corner collecting dust. However, the phone had the advantage of being compact. Gu Mian, who didn't have an inventory, brought it with him into almost every new instance, even though it wasn't very useful...

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