SOLAK Chapter 20

Huang Bairong, ranked seventeenth among the residents of the Taishan Mutual Aid Society.

Though he never broke into the top ten, his strength was still considered extraordinary.

Before entering the Dark Night World, he had been a sprinter, so his physical fitness far exceeded that of ordinary people. On top of that, luck had favored him—on his very first day in this world, he had picked up two bronze chests and pulled two pieces of equipment.

That single stroke of fortune had put him far ahead of his peers. Later, when he joined the Taishan Mutual Aid Society and eagerly curried favor with Zhou Yuanshan, within just a few days his gear was completely upgraded, inside and out.

He even became one of the captains of a pioneering squad.

And everyone knew—the perks of the pioneering squads were nothing to scoff at.

New maps and new secret realms always yielded more chests and equipment than those that had already refreshed.

The rule of the pioneering squads was that members could take a cut and freely choose from the contents of the chests they uncovered.

For that reason, only the guild’s strongest elites or high-ranking insiders had the privilege of joining.

Take Huang Bairong’s squad, for example. He might have held the captain’s title, but every single member beneath him was someone he couldn’t afford to cross.

Only when they were overwhelmed by monsters earlier, when the chaos struck too suddenly for anyone to call for backup, did Huang Bairong dare to play his hand—shoving his comrades into the horde as shields.

But if He Huan released her recording… forget about public opinion. The guild’s own higher-ups would never spare him.

This Red Name woman had to die.

Huang Bairong recalled He Liang’s case. That man had only been level 4, and his equipment was incomplete. If not for sheer luck in pulling a realm compass, the item would never have remained in his possession.

For the woman to kill He Liang, her level should be around the same. After all, the best maps and secret realms were firmly monopolized by the Taishan Mutual Aid Society; most residents could not possibly surpass level 4.

Even if she was level 5, it didn’t matter. Huang Bairong was nearly level 7.

The Dark Night World might be new, but as long as it used levels as one of the measures of strength, no one could ignore that rule.

And against this woman, his level gave him absolute advantage.

All he needed was speed—a swift kill, one slash to the throat. Who knew, maybe he’d even loot something valuable from her corpse.

Huang Bairong licked his parched lips, eyes narrowing as he watched He Huan.

He slipped into stealth and crept closer.

Speed was his forte, and both of his skills revolved around assassination. Normally, once he marked a target, even someone a level higher could not avoid his Backstab.

Now he circled behind He Huan, ready to plunge his blade into her neck. A single strike there would guarantee a critical hit.

Meanwhile, He Huan adjusted the observation glasses perched on her nose. What an excellent tool—capable of showing not only monsters’ movements and weaknesses, but also those of other residents.

Through the glasses, she activated Insight, stripping Huang Bairong’s stats bare.

She hadn’t expected him to be almost level 7—two whole levels above her. In a direct fight, she could still handle him. But with his stealth ability, things were trickier.

Worse, tomorrow she planned to sneak into the Taishan Mutual Aid Society’s Mist Zone #3. She needed to wash off her Red Name status before joining their gathering. Killing Huang Bairong herself would be… inconvenient.

So, she played dumb—standing atop the rock, glancing left and right as if she couldn’t see him. Then she made as if to leave.

By then, Huang Bairong had reached the base of the rock. Seeing her about to jump down, anxiety spiked in his chest.

So long as she stood still, she was an easy mark. But once she started moving at random, the advantage of his stealth would be gone.

He gritted his teeth, risking exposure, and scrambled up the rock.

He Huan watched his clumsy climbing, expression cold but inwardly amused. Acting blind to him while suppressing laughter at his awkward fumbling was almost more effort than the fight itself.

At last, Huang Bairong hauled himself up behind her. Sword raised, ready to stab.

But the instant he moved, He Huan bent low and leapt off the rock.

The assassination failed. His stealth shattered, leaving him exposed.

Huang Bairong froze, barely daring to breathe. Eyes fixed on He Huan’s back, he prayed she wouldn’t turn and see him. As soon as his cooldown ended, he re-entered stealth.

From the rock, he watched. She had dropped into the oasis and lured out a monster with casual ease.

It was one of the same beasts that had massacred his squad earlier.

Yet in only seconds, with fluid motions of her dagger—fast as lightning—she cut it down.

The woman wasn’t just familiar with the secret realm’s mechanics. Her skill was formidable.

The more Huang Bairong saw, the more determined he became. He had to kill her.

Twice more, he attempted to strike, and twice she slipped away at the last moment.

But strangely, she never once acknowledged his presence, as though she hadn’t noticed him.

He could not let this drag on.

This time, he resolved to end it.

He crept close again, swung his blade—only for He Huan to dodge yet again.

Fury and frustration boiled over. Abandoning stealth, abandoning the dream of a perfect kill, he lunged openly into battle.

Now face-to-face, he saw her clearly. This Red Name woman’s features burned into his memory. He opened his mouth, ready to describe her appearance to Zhou Yuanshan through the guild channel—

But she smiled.

Her eyes curved, mocking.

And then his heart sank.

It’s a trap.

The thought barely formed when the screeching chorus rose behind him.

That sound. He knew it too well.

It was the same bone-chilling cry that had heralded his squad’s doom not long ago.

Back then, he’d had teammates to throw to the wolves. This time…

Huang Bairong stared in horror at the Red Name woman’s radiant smile, his blood running cold.

Since entering the Dark Night World, he had never known such terror. He wanted to run, but his body locked rigid, frozen in place.

He had underestimated this world.

There were horrors far beyond his imagination. Like how, in the blink of an eye, the grinning woman simply vanished.

Leaving only the screeching of countless monsters behind him.

He never even managed a scream before the swarm devoured him whole.

Moments later—

Hidden in stealth, He Huan watched a green pillar of light shoot up from where he had stood.

She narrowed her eyes, smiling. Green meant hope. Truly beautiful.

At the same time—

Mist Zone #3.

Inside a secret realm, Zhou Yuanshan was resting with other high-ranking members, discussing the matter of the Red Name woman, when a system notification popped up.

[Your member Huang Bairong has died unexpectedly. He survived five days in the Dark Night World. Within 24 hours, you may revive him using a skill or scroll.]

Zhou Yuanshan shot to his feet, his hand-drawn map falling forgotten to the ground.

The other leaders received the same message. Their faces darkened.

“‘Unexpectedly died’?” one muttered.

In the Dark Night World, if a resident was killed by another, the system would mark it as ‘assassinated.’ Any other cause of death was lumped under ‘unexpected.’

“Impossible. Huang Bairong was strong. With his speed and stealth, the chance of him dying to monsters in the wild is zero.”

“Unless… it was inside a secret realm. Remember, he reported his squad had been wiped out there—and that he saw the Red Name woman.”

“Then most likely, she killed him.”

…

While the others debated, Zhou Yuanshan finally steadied himself.

Their guild had only about 700 members, and of those, barely eighty were above level 5. The entire effort to clear secret realms relied on them. Every loss was a crippling blow.

Today alone, seven had died.

The pressure in his chest felt suffocating.

He turned to Qiu Keke. “What about the people I ordered to Mist Zone #4? Why haven’t we heard anything yet?”

“They’ve been notified,” she answered nervously, swallowing hard. “But even the closest group is nearly an hour away. We’ll need to wait.”

“Send more. Block that Red Name woman at all costs!”

“Yes!”

The named leaders rushed out to relay orders.

But before they had even gone two minutes, another system notification rang out, echoing in every ear:

[Congratulations to Resident *** for being the first to successfully explore E7 Area’s Secret Realm #4 — Wilderness Oasis! Reward: 50 Survival Points, and a First Clear Gift Box.]