Chapter 327: Xirensheng: Am I not your most beloved...?

【System Prompt: You have confirmed to start the prerequisite quest.】

The scarlet pop-up window disappeared.

The game screen reappeared on the screen, Ying Duo still stood beside Luo Jinyou, his golden eyes fixed on him.

Yang Yixie leaned back in the chair and slowly exhaled.

It seems I still need to get through to Meng Kexin on the phone.

He couldn't leave any leverage, giving Meng Kexin no chance to trace him through the network.

Yang Yixie stood up and pushed open the door.

In the living room, Zhiruo leaned on the sofa with a rare relaxed smile, Xirensheng sat cross-legged on the sofa beside her, still holding a cushion, and raised an eyebrow when he saw Yang Yixie come out.

"Xiao Xie? How did you come out?" Zhiruo asked concernedly.

Yang Yixie walked over and naturally began to complain, "There's a part of the game I'm stuck on; I wanted him to try it."

He lifted his chin at Xirensheng.

Xirensheng's eyes lit up, and he sprang up from the sofa immediately.

"Stuck? What game? Let me see!"

Although he wasn't interested in pixel games, any game that made his partner admit he needed outside help was worth checking out.

Zhiruo smiled and waved her hand, "Go on, go on, you youngsters play; I'll just wash up and rest."

Yang Yixie nodded, bringing Xirensheng back to his room.

As soon as the door closed, the smile on Xirensheng's face faded a bit; he looked at Yang Yixie's expression and raised his eyebrows even higher.

"You're not really stuck, are you?"

Yang Yixie didn't waste words, directly explaining the current situation.

"I need to contact someone, with no possibility of being traced."

Xirensheng blinked and grinned.

"This is simple."

He pulled a deck of poker cards from his pocket—still brand‑new, edges sharp, with a faint ink smell.

"What's the phone number?"

Yang Yixie gave Meng Kexin's phone number.

Xirensheng's fingers deftly flipped the poker cards, pulling them out one by one and arranging them on the table in numerical order.

Ace of diamonds, seven of hearts, three of spades…… each time a card landed, its edge glowed with an extremely faint light.

The final card settled.

Xirensheng gathered the stack of poker cards, squared them up, and handed them to Yang Yixie.

"Just put it on your phone and it'll work; the voice is processed, so unless the other side is a deity, they can't trace the source."

Yang Yixie took the stack of cards, but had no intention of making a call.

He retrieved the list that Fang Zhiyan had previously sent him from the recorded text.

"Once the call connects, you'll read all these names aloud to her."

Xirensheng glanced at the screen and saw nothing but names like Chen X or Chen XX, and immediately curled his lip.

"You want me to be a mouthpiece? I knew my partner calling me in meant he'd put me to work...."

"Speech habits and phrasing can sometimes be a way to locate someone."

Regarding Yang Yixie's caution, Xirensheng merely wore the expression "My partner is strong, but really too careful—who let me indulge you?" as he looked at Yang Yixie.

"Fine, who made me your half‑blooded close partner?"

He took the stack of cards from Yang Yixie's hand and placed it on his own phone.

The moment the card faces touched the phone screen, the numbers and suits seemed to come alive, flowing and recombining, ultimately merging into an ever‑shifting array of runes.

Xirensheng cleared his throat, then pressed the dial button.

"Beep—beep—"

On the third ring, the call connected.

"Hello?"

A young woman's voice came from the other end, alert.

Xirensheng spoke, his voice sounding nothing like his own—deep and hoarse, like a middle‑aged man who had weathered too much.

"Meng Kexin?"

The other side fell silent for a second.

"……Who are you?"

Xirensheng didn't answer that question; he simply began reciting the list Yang Yixie had found.

With each name he paused, giving the other side time to digest it.

Three minutes later.

The list was finished.

Finally, Xirensheng added mysteriously, "You'll know when to use it."

After all, he didn't know anything himself; many places deliberately use vague phrasing just to build suspense.

Then Xirensheng hung up directly; the stack of cards fell back into his palm, reverting to ordinary paper cards.

Xirensheng casually tossed them aside, then flung himself onto Yang Yixie's neck, panting exaggeratedly.

"I'm exhausted—do you know how taxing it is to rattle off that many names in one breath? You owe me compensation!"

Yang Yixie ignored him, watching as the task appeared "Completed"; without waiting for Xirensheng to see the details, he went straight to submit.

Simultaneously, he selected the lowest tier's 10% that he had chosen first, intending to see what could be brought out.

【System Prompt: You have selected a sync value of 10%.】

【Loading sync data........】

【Sync complete.】

The game's loading screen has turned into the words "Maintenance ing...", and the display shows: 【Estimated maintenance completion time: Today at 12:00 AM】

Just right.

Yang Yixie turned off the computer and stood up.

"Go to bed early tonight." He directly took Xi Rensheng off himself and said to Xi Rensheng.

Xi Rensheng looked disappointed and said, "Huh? You're quitting already?"

"Had enough of playing," Yang Yixie pushed the door open, "Come out and watch TV with my mom."

In the living room, Zhiruo finished washing up; since Xi Rensheng was not there, she changed the channel and was watching an old‑brand variety show. When she saw the two come out, she smiled, waved, and gestured for them to sit beside her.

"Come, watch together."

Yang Yixie obediently sat beside his mother, and Xi Rensheng squeezed over as well, reverting to his carefree, heartless demeanor, occasionally cracking jokes at the TV program.

It was 10:30, and Zhiruo felt sleepy.

"Mom, you should go to bed early," Yang Yixie said concernedly.

Zhiruo nodded, knowing staying up late was bad for her health, but when she reached the bedroom door, she turned back and gave him a glance.

"You all go to bed early too, don't stay up."

"Mm." Yang Yixie and Xi Rensheng both nodded briskly, and Zhiruo was finally satisfied enough to close the door.

——————————————

The two returned to Yang Yixie's room; Xi Rensheng skillfully pulled bedding from the cabinet, spread it on the floor, wrapped himself into a wriggling maggot, and kept complaining.

"The Dome over there is so boring, not even a single person who can talk... When will you finally come to the Dome to hang out with us?"

Yang Yixie lay on his own bed, staring at the ceiling.

"Almost."

Xi Rensheng turned over on the floor mat, crawling toward the bedside.

"Really? When?"

Yang Yixie gave no reply, and the room fell silent, save for the sound of Xi Rensheng rolling on the floor wrapped in the blanket.

Time ticked by second by second.

Xi Rensheng wriggled twice more, poking half a head out from the blanket.

"Hey? Partner, why aren't you replying? Did you fall asleep? You actually fell asleep while I was talking to you! Could it be that I'm not your favorite......."

His voice got stuck.

Because he saw Yang Yixie sitting at the bedside, a Energy Pistol gripped in his hand, its barrel aimed straight at his head.