At that moment, Liya finally felt something was wrong.
She glanced around and suddenly realized that, at some point, the beasts locked in the cages had been released!
Right behind Liya stood a tiger, extending its long tongue to lick its nose, its eyes fixed menacingly on her.
Liya’s legs almost gave out from fright, when the host on stage continued speaking: “You’re all so kind-hearted, surely you’d be willing to offer some fresh blood to our beautiful mermaid lady, and some meat for these poor beasts?”
Liya frantically shook her head, No!
She didn’t want to!
But no one paid any attention to her struggles…
***
After Su Luo and Yun Feibai had completely left the circus, they continued down the path.
Su Luo looked back curiously and asked, “What do you think will happen to those who didn’t leave the circus?”
Yun Feibai thought for a moment and said, “Those beasts are clearly getting more agitated. Their excitement gives me a strange feeling—like my old dog right before mealtime.”
He didn’t continue, but Su Luo understood perfectly.
Those people were probably going to become the beasts’ next meal.
The two tacitly decided not to continue that topic.
Suddenly, Yun Feibai said, “Did you notice? There must be more than twelve players in this dungeon.”
Su Luo nodded, “Yeah, just now at the circus, I saw several faces I didn’t recognize. They probably weren’t from our carriage. But our carriage has twelve players already.”
“That’s interesting,” they began discussing.
“I think those people might be from another dungeon,” Yun Feibai speculated.
“If that’s true, then their missions could be different from ours, maybe even players of higher ranks,” Su Luo added.
“We didn’t see any mermaids earlier. I wonder if we’ll get to see one later,” Yun Feibai said.
“Our dungeon mission has nothing to do with the mermaids. I have a feeling these mermaids aren’t so simple. It’s better not to encounter them,” Su Luo said seriously.
They exchanged sentences back and forth as time passed quickly.
***
As dusk fell, they finally saw an inn.
The two entered, and the innkeeper was reading a book at the front desk.
Seeing how absorbed he was, Su Luo knocked on the counter to get his attention.
Hearing the sound, the innkeeper finally looked up.
His face was pale, with large bags under his small eyes and deep dark circles.
He weakly asked, “Got money?”
Su Luo thought, ‘If I say yes, will you just rip us off?’
She frowned and said, “No money.”
The innkeeper immediately stopped looking at them and impatiently waved them off, “No money, then leave. Use the back door!”
Saying that, he opened his book again, ready to keep reading.
Su Luo smiled, “Why don’t you just put a price list back there? That way no one would bother you without money.”
The innkeeper hesitated, then said, “That’s actually a good idea. Alright, I’ll hang it up now, and take it down when I finish reading.”
Su Luo smiled faintly.
So there really was a price list—he just hadn’t hung it because he wanted to charge exorbitantly and pick and choose who to charge based on the guest.
She was also thankful to the book distracting him; otherwise, he wouldn’t have bothered to hang it at all.
Su Luo glanced at the book on the innkeeper’s chair and saw six big characters on the cover: 《Late Night Inn Encounters》, featuring a picture of a shapely woman in revealing clothing.
No wonder the innkeeper looked so worn out.
Su Luo had thought the place might be haunted, which was why he looked drained, as if his life force had been sucked dry!
Yun Feibai saw the book too.
Seeing him staring at it, Su Luo lightly nudged him and teased, “What are you looking at? Want a late-night inn encounter too?”
Of course, Su Luo was just joking.
Even ignoring personality, Yun Feibai’s looks meant he wouldn’t need to wait for such encounters.
His life was probably full of them.
Yun Feibai quickly withdrew his gaze and innocently replied, “No, I was just wondering if this innkeeper, being so dissatisfied, might cause you trouble tonight.”
He glanced downward and then said firmly, “But I was overthinking it. You’re not the type this innkeeper would like.”
His hint was very obvious.
Su Luo felt like exploding!
Discrimination?
Because her chest was small?
What did he think he was, the rice she ate?
Su Luo’s figure was actually quite good—though only 1.62 meters tall, her proportions were excellent.
Long, fair legs, a slim waist, and a graceful neck.
The only flaw was a small chest, size A.
Yun Feibai’s comment hit her sore spot exactly, and Su Luo felt like a firecracker ready to explode—and Yun Feibai had just lit the fuse.
She wanted to blow him up!
***
Just as the friendship between the two was teetering on the brink of collapse, the innkeeper finally appeared, swaying slightly with a hanging sign in hand.
“Hey! You’re still here?”
Seeing the tense atmosphere, the innkeeper hesitated.
Su Luo stopped glaring at Yun Feibai and turned to smile, “We stayed to see how expensive your rooms are.”
The innkeeper laughed, “Look, my inn is really cheap.”
Su Luo glanced at the wooden sign, which read:
Single Room 4 Lang
Double Room 7 Lang
Luxury Suite 10 Lang
Looks like the game currency here was called “Lang.”
Su Luo quickly did the math and glanced at Yun Feibai, who noticed her look and silently gestured ‘2′.
Su Luo hesitated.
If they took single rooms, they’d have to spend 8 Lang total.
More importantly, since the inn was here but not mandatory to pass through, it meant staying outside overnight was likely dangerous, possibly life-threatening.
So if possible, they had to stay here.
They still had 50 Lang.
Given the dungeon’s maximum time limit of seven days, their money wouldn’t be enough.
To be safe, they could only book a double room.
But Su Luo’s heart was reluctant.
Yun Feibai obviously had the same thought and chuckled teasingly at her.
Just as Su Luo was about to lose her temper, Yun Feibai turned to the innkeeper, “Sir, you must have gotten a bunch of customers in one night, right?”
Why did he say that?
Yun Feibai had noticed that before the innkeeper left, he dog-eared the page of his book.
He had read more than half but hadn’t dog-eared any previous pages, which meant no one had come before.
The innkeeper rolled his eyes but said nothing.
Yun Feibai continued, “Anyway, your rooms are empty. It’s better to have people than give discounts, isn’t it?”
The innkeeper smiled slyly, “You two kids are clever! You were pretending to have no money before, huh?”
He dragged his chin, encouraging them to continue.
“Ha ha, sir, you know how to protect yourself out here, right? And we really don’t have much money. If you charge 3 Lang for a single room, then we’ll take two singles. What do you say?”
The innkeeper looked them over slyly and asked, “Why not take a double room? Maybe I could even give you a discount!”
Yun Feibai wasn’t tempted by the offer and immediately responded, “So you’re agreeing to a discount? Thank you, you’re a great guy!”
Su Luo watched Yun Feibai bargain with the innkeeper, feeling conflicted.
She didn’t mind sharing a room with Yun Feibai.
First, she trusted his character.
Second, with Yun Feibai’s looks, if anything happened, she wasn’t sure who would really lose out!
Most importantly, to successfully complete the dungeon, she was willing to make this small concession.
But Yun Feibai’s willingness to consider her feelings and negotiate for a better room was what truly touched her.
When Su Luo was at the orphanage, she was the oldest among the children, so she was always the one taking care of others.
Being an orphan made her very mature from a young age—she never wanted to trouble others and solved things herself whenever possible.
Over time, the other kids believed she was capable of anything.
This was the first time she’d seen someone her age look out for her, protect her feelings.
Su Luo was filled with indescribable feelings, so she remained silent and watched as this man, now her teammate, handled the situation.
In her heart, Yun Feibai had finally become a teammate she truly respected—smart and warm-hearted.
***
Yun Feibai successfully bargained and turned back to Su Luo, wanting some credit.
He caught her complicated gaze and was momentarily stunned.
Jokingly, he asked, “Seeing how thoughtful I am, have you fallen in love with me?”
Su Luo snapped out of her strange emotional state, rolled her eyes, and said, “No way. I’m still waiting to see you start your harem!”
Indeed, in Su Luo’s eyes, Yun Feibai was a walking, talking male lead script. (In some ways, she was right.)
Handsome, capable, with an impressive Talent Skill—a classic overpowered male protagonist setup!
And she?
If she was lucky, maybe she’d be the friend who peacefully disbands the party with the male lead, mainly there to make the female leads jealous.
Yun Feibai frowned at this and said, “Don’t talk nonsense! You’re ruining my reputation! I’m a faithful, one-woman man.”
Su Luo just smiled without responding.
She was only joking, but Yun Feibai’s anxious reaction was actually quite amusing.