"..."

Chen Miao stared expressionlessly into the dark space under the bed. Although he wasn't the most experienced Secret Explorer, he had been through his fair share of such ordeals. Since Little He had warned them that the village would be restless at night,

it was only normal for something to crawl out from under the bed after dark.

He had actually planned to saw off the four legs of the bedstead to make it feel safer to sleep in, but after some thought, he dismissed the idea. Firstly, doing so might make the village chief dislike him even more.

And that would make it harder to win his approval.

However, without the chief's approval, it meant he couldn't clear the Secret Realm and would have to die here.

The village chief had become a crucial figure.

While Chen Miao stood pondering on the spot, he heard voices outside the window. Instinctively, he walked over, pulled back the curtain, and looked out through the glass. That glance made him freeze.

The room was tidy.

But in the gap between the glass and the window frame, there were... many dried bloodstains.

This was not right.

The bloodstains were inside the room, and if it was supposed to be absolutely safe, then nothing should have happened inside. What did this mean? Could it be that this house wasn't a safe space but specifically designed to trap and kill him?

"..."

Chen Miao stood in place with an ever-changing expression, deep in thought without speaking. The role of the village chief had become too vague in his mind. On one hand, he always saw the chief as the biggest boss of the village, yet on the other, he had to find a way to gain his approval.

He had never seen such an absurd mission.

It did not require him to kill the boss but to win the boss's approval?

But upon careful consideration, he felt that if the village chief wanted to kill them, he didn't need to go to the trouble of setting up a room just to do so. Were there not simpler methods, like three thrusts of a spear, which would have been much more convenient than using a house as a trap?

At that moment, he also noticed movement outside the window.

The man in the tailcoat, at some point, had started to work in the village chief's house, continually drawing water from the well and pouring it into the water jar inside, laughing and chatting with the village chief as he worked.

It seemed that the tailcoat man had already begun to take action.

Already thinking of ways to win the village chief's approval.

The feedback from the village chief seemed pretty good, with a face full of smiles that appeared genuinely kind.

"Hey!"

At that moment—

The brute's face suddenly appeared on the glass, standing outside his house, his voice buzzing through the glass: "The main objective is to win the village chief's approval. It's not good for us to keep avoiding the village. The show-off man in the tailcoat has already gone; should we go too?"

"I find him quite unbearable too. He's too pretentious, not at all authentic."

"Although you're not authentic either, but..."

"At least you don't show off."

"Talking to you, there's no sense of superiority or disdain, and as a low-level Supernatural being in a C-level Secret Realm, you've managed to remain so calm. You really are like what they say in the news, a rising star."

"I won't go."

Chen Miao shook his head, but after a short pause, he still offered a kind reminder: "I always feel that even though the task is to win the village chief's approval, it definitely isn't by flattering him. If doing some chores for the chief could win his approval, then this C-level Secret Realm would be too much of a joke."

"We need to first figure out what kind of person the village chief approves of."

"Then take targeted actions."

"Blind action might instead add negative points to our impression."

"You have a point."

The brute nodded thoughtfully: "But who should we ask about the chief? Should we ask the villagers? They look like devoted followers of the village chief; surely they wouldn't reveal a hint of his private affairs."

"Wait!"

A glint suddenly burst forth in his eyes as he turned his head to look at Chen Miao, who also nodded affirmatively in response, confirming the other's idea, "Those three people bound on the high platform might give us some clues."

"Let's go!"

...

They set off without hesitation.

Chen Miao left the civilian house and, together with the strong man, prepared to head toward the high platform. However, having taken only a few steps, several villagers surrounded them, speaking emotionlessly, "It's getting dark soon, it's dangerous outside, please return to your house quickly."

"Don't run around."

It was clear that they were under house arrest, their allowed range of movement confined to this small area.

...

Chen Miao did not show much reaction, scanning the villagers who were gradually closing in, he tentatively asked, "Thank you, by the way, I noticed that the village chief holds high prestige in the village, how many years has he been the village chief?"

No one responded.

But the eyes of all the villagers gradually turned icy cold, staring intently at him.

Some villagers even gripped their long spears tightly.

Objects that could wound on first hit, maim on the second, kill on the third.

Even Chen Miao felt his eyebrows twitch at the sight of these weapons, a hint of trepidation in his heart, he took a few steps back to show his peaceful intentions and his willingness to comply.

Only then did the villagers gradually disperse once more.

...

"Can't get out."

In front of the civilian house, the strong man spoke with indignation, "The villagers have basically put us under house arrest, we can't go to the high platform, let alone talk to them there. We can't just force our way out, can we?"

"It might not be completely impossible to get out."

Chen Miao spoke in a low voice after a long silence, "Didn't they say that many strange things will happen after nightfall? At that time, all the villagers will stay in their own houses, so there won't be anyone outside."

"Wouldn't that mean we could go to the high platform as we please?"

"At night?"

The strong man's eyelids twitched, "Brother, the villager who brought us here made it very clear that a lot of strange things will occur after nightfall, and we should stay inside and not wander around."

"Although we can't take his word for everything, from my experience, this kind of plot that's almost told to you outright is definitely not a joke, it will surely happen."

"Isn't that too dangerous to go in the middle of the night?"

"How dangerous can it be?"

Chen Miao swept a glance at the strong man, "Those three who are to be judged tomorrow, aren't they also tied up on the high platform all night? Will they die? If the three bound people aren't going to die, does that mean we certainly will?"

...

The strong man hesitated, he naturally knew that there was some truth in Chen Miao's words. The risk was significant, and if something went wrong, they would be beyond redemption. The reason he chose to cooperate with Chen Miao, instead of with others—

was out of necessity.

Chen Miao was his only option.

The pair of sisters were far from normal, and the tailsuit-wearing man viewed him with utter disgust after learning of his cross-dressing preference, a look that angered him. Only Chen Miao remained expressionless, so he had no choice but to cooperate with Chen Miao.

...

ps: There are only two chapters today. The one that was blocked yesterday has been revised as much as possible, but Starting Point is on holiday, and I guess no one will handle my issue before the year's end.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com