Chapter 803 374: Upgrade! Stage Curtain Rises! (Part 3)

Uluru was the waiter, and the hooded man was hiding inside a giant plush toy just right.

"Collaboration, won't you consider it?"

Asked the hooded man inside the plush when he got closer.

"How about letting your real self come forward?"

Ye Mingqiu asked with a smile.

He could feel that the guy inside the plush, working right now, was a projection of the hooded man and not the real entity. The true body's location was unknown.

"That's impossible, I'm timid. If you keep me in mind, I'll be scared to death," the hooded man replied without hesitation.

After a period of contact, he became exceedingly clear about one thing: Ye Mingqiu had an unmistakable tracking ability. If he actively engaged in hostile contact, Ye Mingqiu could quickly locate his real body using his ability. Whether it was him or Chang Gongye, who was previously beaten to death, they were tracked down this way.

He concluded that he shouldn't approach this guy actively or easily become hostile to him, as he wasn't sure how Ye Mingqiu's targeting ability was triggered.

Perhaps it's due to harmful actions, malicious intent, or something else entirely.

"Hehe."

Ye Mingqiu chuckled and said, "How do you plan to work with me? Prove your value."

"Besides the four main areas, at the center, there's a core area. That is the real Demon Island. The prosperity on the outside is just a false front."

"Oh?"

"For Central Island, the people from the external four islands are just livestock; the islands themselves are merely pastures. They manipulate the inhabitants of the four islands to different shapes for their taste, not for stability and harmony. The so-called decency... is merely a facade."

"That's indeed valuable intelligence, but it seems I can't use it," Ye Mingqiu raised his eyebrows and said.

"You can use it."

The hooded man opened his mouth again, saying: "Since the four islands are essentially pastures, the guards managing entry and exit are more like shepherds. They need the little sheep to be active in and out, but at the same time, they can't let the sheep escape."

"Therefore, while it seems easy for us to go in and out, it is actually with their consent and confirmation that we won't escape that we are relatively freely allowed in and out."

"But such freedom doesn't come without a cost. The cost is... being more susceptible to being hunted."

"Hunted?"

Ye Mingqiu caught onto the keywords.

"Yes, hunted. Those who frequently go in and out will be noticed, more likely to attract the attention of other town residents, and then reported, or having their disgraceful places found by others, thus obtaining benefits from reporting by finding those places."

The hooded man's voice paused slightly, then continued, "Those taken will be sent to Central Island; some will be made into ingredients, others used as consumables, employed for various dangerous and terrifying purposes... Results are quite horrific."

"Stop."

Ye Mingqiu raised his hand and straightforwardly said, "So, you mean to say that all our current safety is just superficial, and we might be hunted by an unknown entity at any moment?"

"Correct."

"Have you seen similar situations? Where did you get this information?"

"No need to ask, it's no secret to the upper-level people. As long as you can make contact with the upper level, sooner or later you can verify its authenticity," the hooded man justifiably replied.

"..."

"Moreover, before you came here, a seven or eight-year-old girl had been taken away. I don't know the specifics, but maybe she was taken to make pizza or some other delicacy."

"To them, the young, beautiful, hopeful, and joyful children are the most delicious ingredients. Spring Island is precisely a base for cultivating these ingredients. It's as simple as that."

"Are the optimized ones those people too?"

Ye Mingqiu asked.

"No, no, of course not. As ingredients and toys, their appearance is too poor to be fit for such production. Their endings are often worse..." The hooded man's voice stopped, his facial expression deeply hidden under the plush costume.

"On the dark side of the world, there is a group called Demon Hunters. They claim justice, hunting the Demons of the world, igniting the foundational order of this world, attempting to destroy the surface harmony."

"Do the people of Central Island know about them?"

"Of course, they know. But they are not afraid, even treating Demon Hunters as a part of the game. Caught Demon Hunters often meet terrible ends. The files over there record dreadful things."

"What a terrible world."

Ye Mingqiu sighed in lamentation, his facial expression didn't change much. It's not hard for him to imagine that those Demon Hunters might be seen as pure lunatics disrupting order by destroying world order senselessly on the surface world.

Yet their actions are challenging to explain. If more people know the truth, those who know it would face danger, even possibly being optimized.

"So, have you come into contact with them?"

Ye Mingqiu asked.

"Yes."

The hooded man nodded, then raised his hand and said, "My name is Carl. If possible, I hope to become your temporary partner, to strive for more benefits in this world."

"Interesting."

Ye Mingqiu shook his hand, his smile growing even brighter. If this information is true, then a mission from the Demon Hunter's side should be less challenging and allows for better rewards.

But only if Carl's information is true.

He doesn't need the Spirit Realm to confirm its authenticity because such behavior is hard to verify. Even if the other party really knows the information and contacted the Demon Hunters, if he also bears malice towards Ye Mingqiu, it wouldn't matter even if confirmed through the Spirit Realm.

Currently, the most crucial thing is whether anyone shows hostility towards Ye Mingqiu. If he doesn't feel hostility, it means his situation is relatively safe.

Ye Mingqiu did not feel any hostility, so he believed there were no immediate issues.

"Buzz!!"

A buzzing sound suddenly rang out; the two-story administrative building glowed faintly. Soon, the location mentioned by Wen Shuo in the world channel moved instantly to a far place.

Without a doubt, that is the Central Island.

The real Demon Island.