The King of Black Fog

In a loft apartment, the glow of the television flickered in Yang Qinglan's focused gaze as she was collecting information.

In the news, the Old Town Square had been cordoned off, bloodstains marking the cobblestone ground.

On a street in Prague's fourth district, a penguin died at the very last step as it ran out of an alley.

The screen switched, and the scene on Charles Bridge showed the Saint Statue in a battle against a giant Thorn Turtle, a spectacle on par with a Hollywood monster movie.

Suddenly, she turned her head to look at the door of the apartment, where a vortex appeared, colors bursting forth.

Maria Yafelona was drenched in sweat, her red hair sticking to her cheeks, and her seductive, vibrant face had green eyes filled with panic.

Yang Qinglan, resting her hand under her chin, sized up Maria Yafelona for a while, then turned to Li Changzhou, "Are you really planning on embarking on a criminal path involving the imprisonment of women?"

"Yes, I was thinking of imprisoning you. Is that possible?" Li Changzhou asked.

"What's going on?" Yang Qinglan motioned her eyes toward the red-haired, green-eyed Italian woman.

"Players are too dangerous," Li Changzhou said as he sat down on a dining chair—no sofa present, "I was just driving along, singing a song, when suddenly I got hijacked by a player!"

"It was you who hijacked me!" Maria Yafelona argued.

Li Changzhou waved his hand indifferently.

He had no interest in those who hadn't seen "Let the Bullets Fly."

"Why didn't you kill her? What was the point of bringing her back?" Yang Qinglan said.

Maria Yafelona looked at Li Changzhou in terror.

"Here," Li Changzhou handed over Maria Yafelona's Identity Card, "She said, surrendering the Identity Card means submission, destroying the Identity Card means the player will die."

"I'm willing, I'm willing to submit, I'll do anything!" Maria Yafelona hurriedly said.

She had never imagined that after barely escaping from the Crocodile God, the first car she hailed on the street would again bring her face to face with a player.

Yang Qinglan took the white Identity Card.

[Nickname: Maria](10)

[Full Name: Maria Yafelona]

[Value: 0]

[Instinct: Mafia Mistress]

[Skill: "Olive Oil Butterfly Style·Aphrodisiac," "Unlearned," "Unlearned," "Unlearned," "Unlearned," "Unlearned]

...

[Name: Mafia Mistress]

[Type: Skill]

[Quality: B]

[Special Effect: Summon twenty henchmen of a Mafia boss]

[Minimum Use Conditions: Intelligence 4, Charm 6, Female]

[Introduction: Can be used once a day, henchmen disappear at midnight, the strength of the henchmen depends on the power of the male you follow]

[Note: Choosing to rely on males as an unreliable means of survival... well, hope you have good judgment.]

...

Yang Qinglan looked at Li Changzhou, her gaze thoughtful.

"I wasn't affected by her aphrodisiac," Li Changzhou knew what she was thinking.

"You saying so doesn't count," Yang Qinglan did not look away.

"It doesn't count? How can I prove it?"

"Kill her?"

The apartment went quiet for two seconds, Li Changzhou rubbed his temple, "Can we not do that?"

"That's fine," Yang Qinglan handed the Identity Card back to Li Changzhou.

She sat down on the bed in his astonished gaze, legs crossed, and asked him, "What are your plans?"

"One more person means more strength, more safety. You saw it too, there are many aberrant-level players. Although we have thought of some countermeasures, it's always good to have a bit more insurance," he replied.

"Yes, but all this depends on one condition—"

"That what she said is true," Li Changzhou looked at Maria Yafelona, "destroying the Identity Card means the player will die."

"The condition is that you weren't affected by her aphrodisiac."

"...I thought we had a better understanding. I've been affected by your aphrodisiac, how could I be affected by someone else's?"

Yang Qinglan didn't respond, saying, "Take her Points, then send her somewhere else to be confined."

"Alright," Li Changzhou stood up, "then I won't be coming back later, I'll continue driving around."

"I'll come with you."

"...I really wasn't affected by the aphrodisiac."

"Nobody cares if you've been aphrodisiaced." Yang Qinglan turned off the TV.

Was that concern for his safety? Worried about him encountering other players again?

Li Changzhou suddenly worried about his sister, who was on a mission outside. But she was now an owl, soaring high with the speed of a wolf's howl at 10. She should be fine—if not, he wouldn't have allowed her to go out.

After sending the Mafia mistress to an abandoned warehouse Yang Qinglan discovered last night, the two returned to where Li Changzhou's sports car was parked.

"Where to?" Li Changzhou settled into the driver's seat.

"Kafka's former residence." Yang Qinglan closed the passenger door and pulled on the seat belt.

"The car can't go in there," Li Changzhou said as he handed her a pair of sunglasses.

Yang Qinglan looked at the sunglasses, puzzled about why she needed to wear them.

"They look cool," Li Changzhou said as he put on his sunglasses with both hands, shifted gears, and stepped on the accelerator.

Yang Qinglan also put on the sunglasses, covering most of her small face and revealing her delicate, fair nose and soft, pink lips.

Kafka's former residence, located on a famous street in the Castle District of Prague—Golden Street. Entry to the castle required purchasing a ticket.

Li Changzhou went to stand in line.

"How much?" Yang Qinglan asked, taking the ticket after entering the castle.

"240 Crowns for four attractions, how much is that?" Li Changzhou asked in return.

Yang Qinglan thought for a while, "72...72.225 Daxia Currency."

The first attraction was St. Vitus Cathedral, a Gothic building with a very high dome and a grand, luxurious construction.

The sunlight slanted into the cathedral, making them feel as though they'd stepped back in time to the Middle Ages.

While Li Changzhou was gazing at the confessionals, Yang Qinglan, drawn by the stained glass windows, suddenly tugged at his sleeve.

He hummed softly and asked, "What's up?"

"The stained glass on the right, the one with the golden clothes," she whispered.

"What is it?" Li Changzhou's eyes left the confessional and looked towards the chapel.

"It looks a bit like a snake."

"Can a snake cling to a window?" he asked, pointing to the organ and laughing.

"You can mine holes," Yang Qinglan laughed as well.

"That's Earth Tunneling!" Li Changzhou's eyes finally settled nonchalantly on the stained glass.

Beautiful stained-glass windows casting brilliant, colorful rays of light, creating an atmosphere that was dreamy, sublime, and mysterious.

Li Changzhou looked away and said, "I heard Notre-Dame de Paris caught fire. I wonder if their stained glass got smoked up."

Yang Qinglan followed his gaze to a row of candles in a corner of the church.

"Don't harm the people or the church," she cautioned.

"I'll try."

Yang Qinglan said no more, her gaze admiring the stained glass, a hint of blue bleeding into her deep black eyes.

"Miss Yang," suddenly, Li Changzhou leaned close to her ear.

"What's up? Are you not going to do it?" Yang Qinglan looked back, puzzled.

"Can I swear?"

"No."

"That little cutie, I really like this darling. And they actually use electronic candles," Li Changzhou laughed softly, his voice gentle and pleasing as a spring breeze.

Stunned for two seconds, "Pfft!" Yang Qinglan turned her face away, her slender shoulders trembling, trying hard to control herself from laughing aloud.

Li Changzhou's gloomy mood lifted, he stepped forward and said from behind Yang Qinglan, "Shall we spare it this time?"

"Who's sparing whom? Are you scared?" As Yang Qinglan was about to turn around and glance at him, she stopped.

"Let's go, to Golden Street," she said nonchalantly as she walked out of the church.

Behind St. Vitus Cathedral was St. George's Church, which was much smaller, and behind St. George's Church was Golden Street.

A lane that seemed plucked from an oil painting, with gray stone paths, and houses colored blue, red, yellow, and white.

The house where Kafka once lived, Number 22, was located at the entrance of Golden Lane, now a bookstore painted blue.

"That's the one," Yang Qinglan said.

The two took a few steps and then stopped.

A blonde-haired, blue-eyed little girl with a white bag came out of the Number 22 blue house.

Her skin was crystal clear, her lips red and plump, dressed in exquisitely gothic attire. For a moment, it truly seemed like they had entered a fairy tale world, seeing a fairy stepping out of her enchanted home.

"What a piece of junk, so tiny, trash." The little... little witch muttered, a lollipop ballooning into a cute round hill inside her mouth.

Li Changzhou and Yang Qinglan exchanged a surreptitious glance.

Czar Princess, Bi.