Card Room

Chapter 365 - Hunters

Crowded places were inherently dangerous, let alone a stadium where the headlights on the roof had just broken. In the dark environment, there were tragic screams everywhere and it was easy for people to lose their minds.

Everyone was rushing desperately toward the exits. The consequence of crowding was that more people fell to the ground.

At this moment, even if you knew that someone was under your feet and you were unwilling to step on them, it was impossible to stop because there were more people behind you, pushing you forward. Even if one wanted to avoid stepping on others, the force of the people around would automatically push you forward.

Some people were squeezed by the crowd like sandwiches. They were caught by the people in front and behind them, moving in the same direction as the crowd with the direction of their bodies no longer under their own control.

The constant screams from the crowd made Xiao Lou numb. He hugged Yu Hanjiang’s back to support himself so that he wouldn’t be squeezed into the crowd.

“We have to think of a way. We can’t let things go on like this.” Xiao Lou quickly calmed down and spoke in Yu Hanjiang’s ear. “Can you stop them? We can’t let them squeeze any longer!”

Areas A and B were relatively good since they were close to the exits. There might be a large number of spectators rushing out but once they went out, the number of people in the venue would quickly decrease. The lights on this side also hadn’t fallen down.

Areas C and D were undoubtedly the areas hardest hit by this accident. These areas were located in the deepest part of the stadium and were more than 1,000 meters from an exit. There was also a downward staircase in the middle where it was easy to fall when it was crowded. The lights over there also suddenly fell and injured the audience, causing the crowd to lose control even more.

Yu Hanjiang’s face was gloomy as he looked at areas C and D. The surroundings were too noisy and he couldn’t hear clearly. He had to lean toward Xiao Lou’s ear and say, “The hunters had a premeditated plan. They considered the terrain factors and concentrated the challengers in areas C and D which are furthest from the exit. The lights on the roof there must’ve been deliberately damaged. Luo Yan, the celebrity, must be involved.”

Xiao Lou felt a chill go down his spine. “Luo Yan is also a hunter?”

In fact, Luo Yan could’ve stopped the accident early on. She was the main character of this concert and had a microphone in her hands. She just needed to say, “Please don’t get excited. Everyone, please go back to your seats, leave in an orderly manner and don’t crowd the aisles.” The audience would mostly calm down and there wouldn’t be such a serious stampede accident.

Yet where was she? During the time when the audience was screaming out of control, crowding and trampling on each other, the singers on stage had quickly left the scene under the escort of their agents and bodyguards. She went backstage and the big stage was empty.

Xiao Lou couldn’t believe that the goddess would just watch as her fans were trampled to death! Although a large number of foreigners gathered in areas C and D were injured, many natives in other areas were also affected by the screams and injured by the crowding. The hunters had no mercy on their compatriots in order to kill foreigners!

The anger in Xiao Lou’s heart was beyond words. He clenched his fists forcefully. The noise around him was deafening. Even if he yelled, no one would listen to him. The only way was to get to the big stage and pick up the microphone to be heard and make everyone calm down.

However, the wireless microphone was taken away. Besides, he had to go through the aisle from here to the big stage. Currently, the aisles were full of people. Many cards were banned in the main city so he couldn’t fly there directly. It would be great if Ye Qi was here. Xiao Lou remembered that Xiao Ye had some instrument cards that could be used in the main city.

As he was feeling anxious, he heard the sound of an instrument. It was the tinkling of piano keys. The melodious notes slid across the eardrums like running water. In the noisy, screaming stadium, the sound of this music was like clear water extinguishing the flames.

It was different from the passion and excitement of the rock song of the concert just now. The tune of this piano piece was extremely ethereal and soothing. The soft notes rang in the ears, clear and agile like it was suddenly raining on a fine day. The fine water drops fell one after another.

It was Kiss the Rain, a very famous piano piece. Xiao Lou had heard this song before. It was especially suitable to listen to carefully when alone. This soothing, light music made people feel like it was a rainy spring day. The restlessness in one’s heart would be gradually eliminated by the soft notes.

Who was playing the piano? Xiao Lou tiptoed and looked over Yu Hanjiang’s shoulder toward the big stage. Under the spotlight, a familiar teenager sat—Ye Qi!

Currently, Ye Qi was wearing a clean white shirt. His delicate and elegant side face was no less beautiful than a celebrity. The young man’s slender fingers kept hitting the keys. His expression was serious but his face was slightly pale. There was no one else around. He just appeared out of thin air. It also wasn’t known where he got the piano to play.

Xiao Lou quickly reacted and spoke in Yu Hanjiang’s ear, “It is his piano music box.”

Yu Hanjiang also remembered this card. In the 9 of Diamonds secret room, Music Labyrinth, Ye Qi got the S-grade card Piano Music Box. It had two skills. The first one was to open the music box and play the song Dream Wedding. This made all targets within 50 meters fall asleep.

The second skill was to enlarge the piano music box to the size of a normal piano. If he sat in front of the piano and played a piece, all targets within 100 meters would be locked in place and listen to the entire piece. He couldn’t change songs in the middle of playing.

Ye Qi had joked that if he played the piano for long enough, he could make people stand still and listen to his concert for dozens of minutes. The range of 100 meters from the stage included area C that was deep in the stadium and area D on the second floor.

The piano music played by Ye Qi itself was very good. Combined with the card effect, everyone in the C and D areas who hadn’t had time to run into the aisles were fixed in their positions and couldn’t take a step!

The stampede would soon come to an end if they didn’t move. Although the people who had been trampled to death couldn’t be saved, the masses who hadn’t joined the trampling army could still avoid the tragedy.

Xiao Lou saw this scene and a hint of surprise flashed across his face. “Wait. How did Xiao Ye get here?”

Yu Hanjiang also didn’t know how Ye Qi suddenly appeared. His sharp eyes quickly swept across the stage and he keenly spotted a figure. There was a man standing behind the curtain who was over 1.88 meters tall. He couldn’t see the face of the other person from Yu Hanjiang’s position but the familiar profile immediately allowed him to confirm the identity of the other party. “It is Brother Jiu.”

Xiao Lou heard this answer and felt slightly relieved. “Brother Jiu seems to have found something. He probably brought Ye Qi over desperately. Only Ye Qi’s music card could control this type of group riot.”

At this point, Ye Qi’s forehead was covered in sweat. He forcibly maintained his composure, letting his hands hit the keys according to the music score in his memories to ensure the piano music wouldn’t be interrupted. He couldn’t imagine what the consequences would be once it was interrupted and the control effect ended.

The total duration of the piano piece ‘Kiss the Rain’ that he played was 4 minutes and 20 seconds. Brother Jiu asked him to control the scene for five minutes so he had chosen this softer piece to play. Once he came to the scene, it was like hell on earth. It was full of screams and curses and he even saw a young man being trampled on by the crowd behind him!

Ye Qi turned pale with fright. He took out his music box and turned it into a piano. He sat in front of the piano and played the music. The notes of the piano rang through the stadium and the scene gradually stabilized.

The crowd beyond 100 meters was still squeezing toward the exit. Yet in this circle of 100 meters around the stage, everyone sat back quietly on their seats. Those rushing out heard the music and their pace slowed down...

By the time Ye Qi played earnestly for a whole minute, the entire stadium was completely quiet. Only the piano notes lingered in their ears. The originally passionate concert seemed to suddenly become an enchanting concert.

Xiao Lou saw the stable scene and gradually exhaled, relaxing his clenched fists.

Just then, Yu Hanjiang’s mobile phone received a message from an unfamiliar number: [This is equivalent to openly fighting the hunters. Ye Qi’s music piece will end in 3 minutes. Leave the scene the moment the music stops. There were hunters in the crowd so don’t look back.”

The other party didn’t write the name but Yu Hanjiang knew that this message was sent by Brother Jiu. He showed his phone to Xiao Lou and Xiao Lou nodded to express his understanding.

Ye Qi sat on the big stage and played the piano in a frightened manner. This was the most nervous he had been since learning the piano. He hadn’t even been as nervous when taking the piano exam but now his hands were covered with sweat. The audience was watching him and there might be hunters among them. Ye Qi’s heart was full of fear.

Finally, the piece finished playing and there was warm applause from the audience. Ye Qi stood up and the light on him went out. Ye Qi hurriedly put the piano away in the darkness and headed backstage. The mood of the audience had completely calmed down. The four minute piano music had awakened everyone like cold water. The crowd recovered their senses and there would be no more large-scale crowding and trampling.

People started to line up to leave. The people trampled to death in the aisles remained in place. The corpses were bloody and depressed crying rang out through the stadium. The expressions on the faces of the audience members were very frightened but they orderly left the scene as quickly as possible. Xiao Lou and Yu Hanjiang also mixed in with the crowd and left quickly.

After arriving outside the stadium, the two people finally sighed with relief, their faces a bit ugly. Xiao Lou found Yu Hanjiang holding his hand tightly. It was so dangerous just now that he hadn’t noticed. Xiao Lou raised his head to look at Yu Hanjiang and asked softly, “Are you okay?”

Yu Hanjiang spoke at almost the same time. “How are you?”

Xiao Lou shook his head. “It’s fine. Let’s go back to the hotel first.”

The two people walked to the side of the road. A car suddenly stopped, the door opened and Ye Qi poked out his head. “Get in the car quickly!”

Yu Hanjiang and Xiao Lou hurried into the car. Inside the car, there was a familiar person sitting in the driver’s seat while Tang Ci was in the other front seat. Tang Ci had his laptop open as he tapped quickly with his slender fingers. Countless characters flashed across the computer screen.

The appearance of the man in the driver’s seat was unremarkable. It was the face of a passerby in the crowd. It was the disguise mask that Tang Ci gave Lu Jiuchuan. Yu Hanjiang recognized it with one glance. “Brother?”

Lu Jiuchuan stepped on the accelerator with a strong foot and he spoke in a deep voice, “Go to the hotel and meet the others first. Xiao Tang will explain the specifics.”

The black car quickly moved into the traffic.

Yu Hanjiang looked at Tang Ci. “What is going on?”

Proofreader: Fictional Reality & Paranoid Kitten

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