Facing the other three people's subtly probing gazes, Xu Xi maintained a calm expression on the surface, but internally felt like he was sitting on pins and needles.
Seriously, why was everyone staring directly at him like that!
Did he say something?
He didn't really say anything either.
"Bro, you're the best!" Li Kang secretly gave Xu Xi a thumbs-up.
Xu Xi: "..." Huh?
He just asked for some incense.
Tan Xingyun and Xu Xiuman exchanged a glance, then Xu Xiuman turned sideways to avoid the old man across from them and asked softly, "Brother Xu, how did you figure out that the incense would be useful?"
"..." Xu Xi gave the denim-skirted young woman beside him a complicated look.
Alright, now he understood why they were looking at him like that.
Was there any possibility that he actually didn't know buying incense would come with an additional hint?
Xu Xi felt so awkward he didn't know what expression to make, nor how to respond. He couldn't exactly say he genuinely just wanted to buy some incense, right!
He had a feeling they were starting to develop some kind of misunderstanding about him?
"...I just saw it." Finally, Xu Xi squeezed out this reply.
He gave up trying to explain.
After all, obtaining the information was the reality.
Never mind how the process actually happened.
[LMAO, the beer-bellied uncle failed once and knew he probably wouldn't get an answer the second time either, so he just let the denim skirt young lady ask instead]
[But who would've thought the denim skirt young lady would also fail in the end]
[Did you guys see Xu Xi's look just now? So astonished, as if saying "what's so hard to see about this" hahaha]
[As expected, Xu Xi just couldn't be bothered to explain]
[It's so simple there's no need to explain]
[Oh? What did you figure out, person above?]
[I didn't figure out anything, I'm just imitating (dog head)]
[It's simple for him, but we really don't understand. Kneeling and begging the experts in the comments to analyze this for us]
Since Xu Xi's rebirth, the attitude in the live stream comments had rapidly changed. Most people were gradually starting to believe he genuinely had some real skills, and his previous quiet, low-key demeanor was just a persona he was maintaining.
And Xu Xi accidentally stumbling upon deeper hints further pushed the netizens' conviction to new heights.
The less Xu Xi could explain, the more the netizens would fill in the gaps with their own imaginations.
Xu Xiuman's expression froze for a moment. Seeing she couldn't get anything more out of him, she could only nod helplessly.
She subtly shook her head at Tan Xingyun without thinking.
Li Kang stood at the very edge and clearly witnessed the entire exchange between them, but he just scratched his head and pretended not to see anything.
For a team that needed cooperation to clear the instance, sharing clues was basically essential. If you wanted your teammates to adopt your suggestions, providing corresponding explanations or reasons was also standard practice.
After all, everyone was strangers before teaming up. No one would trust a stranger's baseless suggestion without reason - casually following such advice would mean not taking your own life seriously.
Yet Tan Xingyun and the other two chose to follow Xu Xi's suggestion despite his vague explanation that was practically nonexistent.
This wasn't because the three of them didn't value their lives.
On one hand, credit went to Xu Xi's unique aura.
To put it plainly, the three of them were intimidated by Xu Xi's seemingly unfathomable expert aura.
In instances, besides maintaining constant caution, certain decisions also require decisive courage.
Basically, it was gambling.
And they chose to take this gamble.
On the other hand, even after buying large amounts of paper money and offering incense, they still had money left over, enough to handle situations where money might be needed later.
The first time, everyone didn't get clearer hints and couldn't guarantee the paper money's effectiveness, so they chose a more conservative approach.
This time, everyone knew the paper money and offering incense would play important roles later in the journey, so of course they wouldn't be stingy.
After the old man finished the transaction, this time he didn't immediately wander back into the room. Instead, he stood at the shop entrance, smiling as he watched everyone leave, and didn't say anything about looking forward to their next visit either.
"This old man wishes you guests a smooth journey here."
Xu Xi glanced at him before getting in the car.
Whether it was a visual illusion from air refraction or something else, in the moment before he turned his head back, his peripheral vision seemed to catch the old man's body - including the funeral shop behind him - becoming slightly illusory and indistinct.
But when he looked back again, the illusion seemed to have been just his misconception.
...Whatever, there were plenty of secrets in instances. Just like the previous instance, he didn't dare claim he completely understood everything about it.
As long as it didn't affect clearing the instance, it was none of his business. No need to dig to the bottom of it.
Xu Xi thought silently to himself.
As the car moved forward, the exact same scenery as last time continuously reflected on the car windows.
Only this time, Xu Xi learned his lesson and didn't boredly stare at the white fog again.
After driving for over ten minutes, the car smoothly arrived before the road sign.
"Ahead... that must be Daoji Highway!"
Hearing Xu Xiuman's voice again, Xu Xi couldn't help but immediately straighten his sitting posture.
Xu Xi's movement was obvious and he didn't try to hide it, successfully drawing the covert attention of his three teammates.
Although everyone was very tense, no one else showed such abnormal behavior like Xu Xi.
[Why did Xu Xi's expression suddenly become so serious?]
[This look like facing a great enemy - did he discover something again?]
[Hards to say, probably noticed something ahead]
[Where exactly is he seeing this from? I don't see anything at all]
"...Looks like it. Get ready, we're about to enter." Probably influenced by Xu Xi's actions, Tan Xingyun's tone this time was even more grave, carrying a hint of resolution.
"..." Xu Xiuman took a deep breath and also prepared herself for something.
Li Kang clutched his snack bag and involuntarily moved closer to Xu Xi, hoping to draw some sense of security from him.
Xu Xi, who caused all this, clenched his hands tightly, praying internally that Tan Xingyun would drive smoothly.
Yes, from beginning to end, what he was worried about was how bumpy the road would be.
So difficult, all because he gets carsick. Xu Xi expressed with deep sorrow.
Just like last time, everything remained unchanged. They encountered countless grave mounds as scheduled, and those eerie shadows also appeared densely packed as if by appointment when the car entered the grave mound area.
Before anyone could react, Xu Xi was the first to take action.
He rolled down the car window and scattered a handful of the newly purchased paper money outside.
Those eerie shadows visibly halted their movements.
Tan Xingyun froze for a moment, then immediately spoke the next second: "The paper money we just bought - let's scatter it out bit by bit."
Xu Xiuman and Li Kang also froze momentarily. Hearing Tan Xingyun's words, the two efficiently followed suit by rolling down their windows and began scattering paper money outside, imitating Xu Xi.