[Kuroki Hitomi: Alright, I'll find Gu Mengqing and confirm the situation for you.]
[Ke Mingqing: This is serious. If a player has joined Clock Maker's faction and is helping him target me, I'm going to be in an extremely precarious position.]
[Ke Mingqing: I need you to ask her exactly what kind of connection she has with Dark Crocodile.]
[Kuroki Hitomi: Don't worry, I'm already asking her.]
Ke Mingqing let out a long breath and pocketed his spare phone. Tilting his head back, he gazed up at the boundless clear sky. Warm sunlight bathed his face, but he was lost in thought.
To be frank, Ke Mingqing wasn't afraid of the local super-human species.
Unless they were a monster like Lorenzo, the leader of Death Crow who could Steal other people's abilities, most of the super-human species possessed fairly one-dimensional powers.
As long as he understood their abilities, he could find a way to counter them.
Players, however, were different. They wielded a bizarre array of skills, not to mention all sorts of rare items. Facing a player meant a single moment of carelessness could cost him his life. Countering them was a massive headache; it meant battling countless unpredictable variables to snatch survival from the jaws of danger.
It was the same principle that allowed him to fight a high-level super-human species despite his own relatively low overall stats—if he could punch above his weight class, other players could certainly do the same.
Maintaining a healthy sense of vigilance and fear toward the unknown was the absolute key to surviving in this bizarre world.
After a while, Ke Mingqing tore his gaze away from the flawlessly clear sky. Tucking his phone into his inner pocket, he lowered his head and made his way out of the train station.
Kuroki Hitomi messaged him on his way home.
[Kuroki Hitomi: I've confirmed it with her in person. She used an item to hide her player ID and pass the Hero Company's player detection. Then, using her father's connections, she got a job as a technician. She's technically only an intern right now, but the company is short-staffed, so her father has basically handed all his work and Clearance over to her.]
[Ke Mingqing: And then? Did she get involved with a hero called Dark Crocodile?]
[Kuroki Hitomi: Yes. She said he approached her two weeks ago. At the time, Dark Crocodile asked her to make him a hero suit and forge some historical records for him in the Hero Company's database so he could pass his background check.]
[Ke Mingqing: In other words, she doesn't know Dark Crocodile works for Clock Maker?]
[Kuroki Hitomi: Exactly. The two of them never met in person; they only communicated online.]
[Ke Mingqing: Are you sure Gu Mengqing isn't lying?]
[Kuroki Hitomi: She can't lie. I have a C Rank item called the Lie Necklace. As long as I wear it, I can see through anyone's lies. If she were lying, I would have noticed immediately.]
Ke Mingqing fell silent for a moment before typing out a reply on his panel.
[Ke Mingqing: Understood.]
He breathed a sigh of relief, looking down as he unlocked his front door.
Kuroki Hitomi was the only person he trusted right now. He didn't think she would sell him out. If her words were true, the problem wasn't as severe as it seemed.
Gu Mengqing had only inadvertently made contact with someone from Clock Maker's faction, and it was highly unlikely that Dark Crocodile would have revealed his affiliation with Clock Maker to her.
Therefore, it was highly unlikely that Gu Mengqing would form any genuine ties with them.
'So it isn't Gu Mengqing. Dark Crocodile probably has another collaborator inside the Hero Company. A collaborator who can guarantee his safety,' Ke Mingqing deduced.
'Otherwise, after what happened in the sewers, there's no way he would have returned to the Hero Company so brazenly.'
Lost in thought, Ke Mingqing walked inside and sat down in the entryway to take off his sneakers. Right then, another Chat Panel Pop-up appeared in front of him.
[Kuroki Hitomi: By the way, about tomorrow.]
[Ke Mingqing: What about it?]
[Kuroki Hitomi: I told you before that I'm taking the Ghost Train to Japan to meet the local players in Tokyo. Are you coming with me?]
Ke Mingqing hesitated. The truth was, he didn't feel comfortable letting Kuroki Hitomi go alone. If she were killed or captured, his own situation would take a sharp turn for the worse, given they were accomplices.
[Ke Mingqing: Call me when it's time. I'll go with you.]
[Kuroki Hitomi: Thank you.]
'I found Dark Crocodile's hideout, so they'll probably change locations now,' Ke Mingqing thought. 'But as long as he still dares to stay in the Hero Company, I can use him at any time to monitor Clock Maker's movements.'
...
...
The next day, Saturday, August 11th.
When Ke Mingqing woke up that morning, he didn't hear the usual cicadas; instead, he heard the faint patter of rain. Opening his eyes, he turned his head against the pillow and saw a light drizzle falling outside the window.
He was the first one up in the house. Heading out early, he made his way toward the abandoned train station in the restricted zone.
Amid the scent of wildflowers, he passed through the pitch-black tunnel and stepped onto Platform 7.
On the empty platform, Ke Mingqing spotted the girl with the teardrop mole.
"You're here." Kuroki Hitomi looked over her shoulder at him, her hands clasped behind her back. "Let's go, then."
Saying that, she withdrew a black-and-red card from her inventory and pinched it between her fingers. The back of the card was printed with an illustration of a black-and-red train.
Ke Mingqing had one as well. It was the Ghost Train Ticket, an item the two of them had obtained after clearing the weekly instance, Legend of the Ghost Train Conductor.
[Ghost Train Ticket: Once a week, you may use this ticket to board the Ghost Train and travel to any abandoned train station in the world.]
The moment the girl brought out her ticket, a translucent card slot materialized in the air above the platform.
Kuroki Hitomi didn't rush to swipe her card. She thought for a moment before asking, "Are you planning to go to Japan and meet those players as Blue Pigeon, or are you going to forge a new player identity?"
She knew that Ke Mingqing's player talent, Disguiser, could not only forge a super-human species panel but also change his player ID. The former allowed him to masquerade as a super-human species, while the latter granted him an entirely new player identity—at least in the eyes of any unknowing players.
"I'll forge a new identity," Ke Mingqing said. "If the others in Leijing ask, just tell them I wasn't willing to reveal who I am."
"Understood." Kuroki Hitomi nodded. "Are you going to use the ID 'Jin Chengwu'?"
After killing another player, Li Wei, Ke Mingqing had forged the ID "Jin Chengwu" to fool the system announcement. Now, the other players all knew of the existence of a Red Name Player called Jin Chengwu.
Ke Mingqing shrugged, unbothered.
"It has to be Jin Chengwu. My player ID is still red, so changing to a different name is useless. I'd be exposed instantly."
Kuroki Hitomi tapped her chin thoughtfully. "But I have a feeling the other players might refuse to cooperate with you once they see your red ID."
"It's fine. I'll convince them," Ke Mingqing said.
The main issue was that he couldn't casually show himself as Blue Pigeon. If those Japanese players ever leaked that information, the consequences would be dire.
The mere rumor that "Blue Pigeon is colluding with players" would be more than enough to ruin him.
Kuroki Hitomi nodded. "I understand."
She gripped her Ghost Train Ticket and swiped it through the invisible card slot in the air. Immediately, a sudden gust of wind whipped up, lifting their bangs and clothing.
A piercing searchlight illuminated the long-dormant platform as a train, stretching on seemingly without end, roared out of the tunnel and into their line of sight.
Every car was brightly lit, and flickering flames cast bizarre, eerie silhouettes against the windows.
[Prompt: Player Kuroki Hitomi has used the Ghost Train Ticket. Weekly usage limit: 1/1.]
Ke Mingqing also swiped his ticket through the slot, and an identical Pop-up prompt box appeared before his eyes.
[Prompt: Player Ke Mingqing has used the Ghost Train Ticket. Weekly usage limit: 1/1.]
With a loud hiss, the Ghost Train came to a halt, spewing a thick cloud of scalding steam.
The doors to Car 7 slowly slid open. Ke Mingqing and Kuroki Hitomi exchanged a glance before stepping up the boarding stairs and entering the car.
As the doors shut, the train's engine slowly rumbled to life.
It roared forward, plunging into the pitch-black tunnel. Yet, for some reason, the scenery outside was incredibly bizarre, as if the train had been sucked into a vortex of turbulent space and time.
Car 7 was dead silent.
Ke Mingqing took a seat and turned his head, watching the scenery streak past the window.
Sometimes he could see Tokyo Tower; other times, the Perlan in Reykjavik, or even the Empire State Building in America. It was as if all the beautiful sights in the world were taking turns displaying themselves right before his eyes. It was breathtaking.
Since every country operated in a different time zone, the sky outside was sometimes dyed the blood-red of dusk, sometimes the pale grey of dawn, and sometimes shrouded in the deep veil of night.
"Why didn't you ask anyone else to come with you?" Ke Mingqing asked suddenly.
"I only trust you." Kuroki Hitomi sat on the bench opposite him, looking down as she flipped through a book of haiku.
"I'm tired of hearing that. Can you say something else?"
"We're accomplices," Kuroki Hitomi murmured softly, her eyes still lowered. "You wouldn't have any peace of mind if you didn't come along anyway. It'd be bad news for you if I got caught."
"True enough," Ke Mingqing said absentmindedly.
Not long after, a figure with purple lips wearing a conductor's uniform walked over. Raising a pair of eyes burning with ghostly fire from beneath the brim of his hat, he spoke in a hoarse voice.
"The train will arrive at the abandoned station in Tokyo, Japan, in ten minutes. Please prepare to disembark early, players, so as to avoid being swept up in the temporal turbulence..."
"Did you reach out to the players we're looking for on the forums beforehand?"
"Yes. There are only two players assigned to Tokyo. Their identities in this world are a pair of twin brothers. Their names are Kamishiro Ruri and Kamishiro Kawa. Ruri is the older brother, and Kawa is the younger brother."
"That's ridiculous. The system even assigns people into those kinds of relationships?" Ke Mingqing sighed. "Literally everyone else got an easier starting point than me, huh?"
Kuroki Hitomi looked up from her book and gave him a faint smile. "Look on the bright side. Because your situation was the most dangerous, you've become the strongest player at this current stage. Isn't that a good thing?"
"Could you not jump at every opportunity to flatter me?" Ke Mingqing dragged his gaze back from the window. "Why don't you tell me what these twin brothers do in Japan? What are their day jobs?"
"Oh, that." Kuroki Hitomi thought for a moment. "One works as a host, and the other is a kabuki actor. I hear they're both very famous in their respective industries."
"A host?" Ke Mingqing stared blankly.
Resting her chin on her hand, Kuroki Hitomi leveled her quiet, cat-like eyes at him. "Yes. A host."
She paused and asked suspiciously, "You seem rather interested?"