"Don't worry, it's just a hypothesis," Zhang Yuanqing spoke calmly to steady the troops' morale. He believed Guan Ya's reasoning was flawed—the Demon King had stated that one must resist the allure of beauty and the impulse to kill, and the latter had already been successfully tested. The Demon King's words were indeed accurate. By logical reasoning, wouldn't men typically need to resist the charm of a widow? How could it be that a female warrior would be the one to trigger this very challenge? Therefore, Zhang Yuanqing was not alarmed; Guan Ya's hypothesis was likely incorrect. "Still, this is indeed a good way to verify the triggering conditions," Zhang Yuanqing said, looking at the earth monster eating the lotus root. "Go and retrieve the Queen." This offered an opportunity to confirm the triggering conditions: if the earth monster is missing and the Queen returns, then his judgment is correct. Conversely, if the Queen returns and the earth monster remains absent, Guan Ya's hypothesis holds true. The slender, slightly overweight young man nodded in agreement, fully obedient to the captain's instructions, and immediately stepped out of the alley. Three minutes passed, yet neither the earth monster nor the Queen had returned. "Trouble." "Fire-Deity Star Army spoke gravely, 'They've encountered trouble.' If someone had been specifically dispatched, the purpose would be clear, and they'd return promptly—within three minutes. They haven't returned yet. Either they failed to locate the people, or both of them met with an unforeseen accident. Li Li, observing the scene, frowned, 'One is a Level 3 Water Ghost, the other a Level 2 Earth Monster. Even if they faced danger, they should have sufficient strength to withstand it. Their silence suggests otherwise.' The group turned to Zhang Yuanqing, seeking his judgment. 'This Yin-Yang Town feels strangely eerie. Perhaps they didn't have the chance to resist—just as we didn't notice at first, they quietly became like cats.' Zhang Yuanqing said. 'We can't just wait around. Let's go out together and search.' The group burst out of the alley, racing toward the direction where the Queen and the person named Chi-Lou had gone. Within just a few breaths, they reached the riverbank. The river meandered gently, and the streets paved with smooth, dark bricks lay empty and silent. The Queen and Chi-Lou were gone. How could two perfectly healthy individuals simply "Bad—we have to find them as soon as possible. Even a single second delay could mean the difference between life and death." Li Chunfeng's face was pale, recalling his own experience of being swiftly eliminated by the large cat. If the Queen and the one who eats lotus roots were facing a crisis of the same level, they might already be in peril by now. The Fire-Star army was visibly anxious, frantically scanning around, calling out for the Queen and the one who eats lotus roots. Li Liyuan furrowed her brows, looking here and there, searching the surroundings. Guan Ya also frowned, sensing the challenge. Though she had completed more dungeon runs than Zhang Yuanqing, most of them had been of moderate difficulty—this A-level one was her first encounter, and her experience handling higher-tier dungeons still fell short of Zhang Yuanqing's. "Don't panic," Zhang Yuanqing, who had endured countless S-level dungeons, remained the most composed, speaking swiftly. "At the very least, we've confirmed one point: the plot involving Xu's widow can only be triggered when the characters are separated." Moreover, I believe "separation" does not mean acting independently—it means the men and women parting ways. "Now, we must enter the scene or the queen and the one who eats lotus roots will indeed face life-threatening danger," he said, his words clear and decisive, swiftly steadying the troops' morale. The fire-star army's restlessness gradually subsided. Guan Ya replied, "I'll stay here. You return until we can no longer see each other." Zhang Yuanqing looked at her intently and said, "Be careful! Remain still at your post. If I find that the scene still isn't triggered, I'll come back immediately to find you." As he spoke, he silently exhaled a stream of yin energy, leaving Xiao Doubi in place. This way, he could, when needed, monitor Guan Ya through Xiao Doubi's visual perspective—much like a surveillance camera. The sudden disappearance of the one who eats lotus roots and the queen—among the known professional abilities—was currently known only to Zhang Yuan清: the night-wanderer's charm and illusionary arts of the illusionist. Regardless of which ability, as a spiritual servant, Xiao Doubi could still contribute meaningfully At the very least, he could serve as a stand-in for a dummy. Now, after his upgrade, the little comic has developed basic capabilities for defense and evasion, and Zhang Yuanqing has some confidence in his household spirit servant. Guan Ya smiled calmly, "I know. Don't worry." Immediately, Zhang Yuanqing led his three teammates in a full sprint back along the original route. Soon, the four of them reached the original alley entrance. Zhang Yuanqing didn't pause—he simply slowed his pace, glanced at the buildings on either side of the street, and called out again, "Xiu'er, Xiu'er, where are you?" Suddenly, from the second-floor window of a building on the left side of the street, a soft, delicate voice answered, "Are the gentlemen searching for me?" The voice drifted into the ears of the four men, smooth and warm, like a lover's whisper, making their bones feel pleasantly tingling. "Yes, yes," Zhang Yuanqing said, glancing at the window, almost unconsciously. "Yes, yes," the other three men echoed in reply. The voice was soft and melodic, saying, "I'm right upstairs. Come up with me for a chat, gentlemen." Zhang Yuancheng, He De Xingjun, and Li Chunfeng instinctively moved forward, stepping toward the house. The open window was deep and dark, exuding an inexplicable sense of gloom. The melancholy, calm wood spirit youth suddenly shivered, recalling a detail: when the window had opened, they had immediately noticed, yet no one had been seen at the window. The window seemed to have opened on its own—or perhaps something invisible had opened it. The faint hopes lingering in Li Li Yuan Shang Cao swiftly faded, and she hurriedly grasped her companions' arms. Zhang Yuancheng suddenly snapped awake, softly reprimanding Li Chunfeng and He De Xingjun, "Have you never seen a woman before? Are you completely bewitched?" Li Chunfeng and He De Xingjun looked somewhat embarrassed. Li Li Yuan Shang Cao glanced at the resolute captain and gave a slight sigh. Zhang Yuanqing cleared his throat and said in a firm voice, "Madam Xiushu, could you please extend your head a bit so we may have the pleasure of seeing your face?" Hearing the captain's so bold and unashamed request, the three men felt a wave of relief, as though someone else had taken on the task of being awkward. Though the sunlight was intense, the darkness within the window seemed to absorb it completely, and the soft, delicate female voice returned once more: "The gentlemen are being so obtrusive, please don't tease me. Come up yourselves, don't make me wait any longer~" Her voice was both alluring and seductive, sending the men below hearts racing. Zhang Yuanqing's expression grew serious, and he lowered his tone, saying, "It seems she won't be coming down. We'll have to enter the room ourselves—otherwise the plot won't unfold." The three teammates nodded. Huade Xingjun hesitated, saying, "I have a rather bad feeling about this. This challenge might prove difficult, even risky—there's a real chance of falling short." "Why?" Li Chunfeng asked, frowning. "Because I'm rather fond of women," Huade The Fire Deity's army murmured, "That Guan Ya and the Queen are quite beautiful, their figures truly excellent—yet I can only admire their beauty. But just now, listening to Xu's wife's voice, all I could think about was sleeping with her." Coincidentally, I feel the same way too... Zhang Yuanqing thought. Li Chunfeng's expression wasn't very pleasant; his feelings were almost identical to the Fire Deity's army's. The Fire Deity and Yuan Shi seemed rather unreliable—Lili Yuan Shang Cao, the one least affected by beauty, was still far less formidable than either of them. He needed to find a way to keep Yuan Shi and the Fire Deity from being swayed by beauty. Li Chunfeng's gaze flickered, and he cleared his throat twice to draw his companions' attention. "In fact, rejecting beauty isn't difficult. Men's attraction to beauty stems from physiological responses dominating their minds—just as when you're hungry, you must eat; if the bacteria in your gut crave something sweet, you'll naturally think of sweet foods. Thus, from certain perspectives, human thought is governed by the body. This is precisely why so many men find it hard to control their Li Chunfeng spoke with confidence: "Physiological responses are beyond our control, since we cannot prevent our bodies from secreting hormones. However, we can influence the brain through alternative methods to suppress hormone secretion." That's so easy to understand... Zhang Yuanqing and the Fire Star army listened, stunned. The Fire Star army quickly asked, "Then, how exactly do we suppress hormone secretion?" Li Chunfeng replied, "It's simple—just keep repeating to yourself in your mind that even the most beautiful women must defecate, will smell sour if they don't bathe, will scratch their feet, and may even have foot odor. It helps to vividly imagine these scenes in your mind. Additionally, you can mentally imagine even more unacceptable scenarios, such as giants observing you..." "No, no—please stop! I'm already completely empty inside," Zhang Yuanqing said, mentally picturing the scenes and shivering. "Alright, go in now—beauty isn't anything special," the Fire Star army said, stepping resolutely toward the house. ... By the riverbank, Guan Ya waited quietly, her attention fully focused on the surroundings. Suddenly, a delighted cry rang out behind her: "Guan Ya?" The mixed-race beauty stiffened, swiftly turning around while maintaining a defensive posture. From the narrow alley behind, a young woman burst forth—dressed in a single garment and seven-eighths pants, with a smoky makeup that enhanced her elegance and grace. She was radiant and commanding—clearly the Queen. Her emotions carried joy, apprehension, and helplessness, yet there was no sign of hostility. Her steps were unsteady, lacking any preparatory momentum—she had not come to strike a surprise attack. Her aura was thick with the essence of "Water-type" spiritual energy, confirming she was indeed a water spirit, not a trick of illusion or disguise. "Guan Ya, how are you here? Where are the others?" The queen was full of surprise, glancing around, searching for the others. "They went to look for you elsewhere," Guan Ya said, gazing at her weary colleague and asking, "How did you suddenly disappear? What happened?" Upon hearing this, the queen's expression darkened, and she spoke softly: "After I fetched the water, I intended to return, but found myself lost—no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't locate any of you. I called out, but you never answered. Then, then…" The queen glanced nervously behind her, her voice trembling with fear, saying, "I heard children's laughter behind me. No matter where I went, the laughter followed me. But whenever I turned around, it was gone. As soon as I ran again, it came back. I simply can't find it." The children's laughter?! A bright, intense glow surged in Guan Ya's eyes, completely filling her pupils. At that moment, she saw more—on the queen's back, a small hand of dark green and black extended and rested upon her shoulder. Instantly, a baby with a dark, bluish complexion peered out, its face grotesque, skin wrinkled, eyes wide open—not the innocent black buttons of a child, but eerie, pale pupils. Kuan Ya felt her heart sink: "It's on your back." ... Zhang Yuanqing and the others arrived at the front door of the building facing the street. The door was a classic double wooden door, both door handles covered in rust. The Fire Star troops pushed open the wooden door, and with a creaking sound, the long-dormant door swung wide. Inside, the light was dim, and a distinct, old-house dampness and mildew filled the air. The space beyond the door appeared to be the outer hall, with simple tables, chairs, and wooden cabinets, modest and unadorned. Beyond the outer hall lay a small courtyard with a small platform at its center. The platform was bathed in sunlight streaming through the courtyard, and several bamboo racks for drying clothes stood upright. The platform was surrounded on all sides by inner halls, rooms, and a narrow staircase leading up to the second floor. The four of them stared at each other, and Zhang Yuanqing looked toward the dimly lit wooden staircase, saying, "Stay close to me." He stepped forward first, ascending the staircase. The corridor was narrow and dim, and the old wooden stairs creaked with every footfall. Eventually, after traversing what was not an especially long stretch, they reached the second floor. The second floor was a private bedroom, furnished with items typically used by women. Directly facing the staircase entrance stood a large carved wooden bed, its red silk curtains hanging down, with fresh bedding laid out, embroidered with osmanthus flowers. A wooden table by the window held a bronze incense burner, releasing a soft, lingering fragrance. Beside the window stood a dressing table, before which sat a woman bare-chested, draped only in a delicate, gauze-like sheer robe. Her silhouette was graceful, and the full, rounded curve of her backside—naturally lush, like the moon—became even more pronounced under the slight pressure of the wooden chair. In the gleaming bronze mirror, a face emerged—graceful yet poised for both delight and displeasure, delicate and hard to describe. Her figure and appearance were flawless, but what truly captivated was her aura, indescribable, drawing one in with irresistible charm, leaving only one word echoing in the mind: *wenfu*—a woman of sensuous grace. The four men’s gazes, like magnets, were fixed firmly on the woman’s elegant form, unable to shift. Huo De’s star general, Li Li, and Li Chunfeng, now utterly enchanted, had forgotten their earlier alertness and caution. "Thump, thump… thump, thump…" Zhang Yuanqing heard his own rapid heartbeat, a surge of passion rising in his lower abdomen, pulsing steadily toward a specific direction, filling him with a sense of warmth and swelling.