Controlling this woman wasn't an impulsive decision for Qin Xuezhong.
First, it should be the breakthrough point of this instance; obtaining information from the woman sooner would allow her to progress on the main quest faster. Furthermore, since she and Yu Zhezhong had entered this instance to attract the mastermind behind the kidnapping of Mu Tingdeng using external conditions and internal intelligence, being proactive might earn them extra points.
So, for an entire night, Xiao Qin followed her.
At first, the woman did nothing else but steal food and find places to hide and rest. Her activity range was limited to just a few blocks, circling back and forth without straying too far. By the end of half the night, the woman had nearly stolen from every restaurant and street vendor in the area.
Xiao Qin calculated that the woman needed to eat about every hour. In just one night, she consumed the equivalent of several days' worth of food for an ordinary person. Even so, the woman still looked extremely weak.
Qin Xuezhong thought this night would continue like this, and that she would control the woman after she returned home in the morning.
At that moment, the woman's condition suddenly changed.
To Qin Xuezhong, the woman seemed to act strangely.
All night long, she had been weak yet highly alert; even with Qin Xuezhong's tracking skills, it had been somewhat challenging. But now, her gait suddenly appeared normal, and she seemed to lose her previously keen anti-tracking abilities. Even when Qin Xuezhong got closer, she remained oblivious.
It was as if… she had turned into a different person!
Qin Xuezhong quickly realized that this woman was a puppet!
How could someone in such poor condition still function as a puppet?
But it made sense, as many people used puppets to do underhanded things, often employing homeless individuals who were hard to detect, making it easier to dispose of bodies.
With this thought, Xiao Qin grew bolder.
She approached the woman from behind, using the surrounding crowd and environment as cover, managing to avoid detection by whoever was controlling her.
This confirmed for Qin Xuezhong that the person controlling the woman wasn't very skilled.
That person walked in a straight line without hiding, and was even communicating.
Being so close, Qin Xuezhong could barely hear his low voice.
"This puppet's physical condition is too poor; it might be wasted after this."
"I understand; we'll still follow the process to dispose of it, don't worry."
"Okay, I see the target now; I'm going to get the weapon."
Xiao Qin was startled—was it really about to go down?
Following the man's obvious gaze, she spotted what appeared to be the owner of a prosthetic modification shop ahead.
The woman's physical condition was already poor; after being controlled for this distance, she was likely nearing her limit.
If he was going to get a weapon and start shooting, not only would her body probably not hold up, but in the ensuing chaos, Qin Xuezhong estimated it would be very difficult to pull her out.
She needed to act now!
At that moment, the controller had sat down on a bench by the roadside, pretending to look around while reaching under the bench.
It was likely that they had hidden weapons there in advance.
Xiao Qin quickly walked over, grabbing a small bottle of liquor from a nearby shop, making a quick purchase without looking back.
In the controller's watchful gaze, she casually sat down next to the woman, smiling lightly as she said, "Nice weather today."
—The controller instinctively glanced up at the sky, which was dark and overcast, looking like it was about to rain, with the air thick with industrial pollution and the metallic smell of rust… What nice weather?
Worried about being discovered, he immediately attempted to get up and leave.
Xiao Qin placed one hand on the woman's hand, seemingly affectionate, but in reality, it was a firm grip to prevent the controller from standing.
Her other hand, as if meeting an old friend, casually landed on the woman's shoulder, gripping her neck tightly.
—Even if Xiao Qin spent her days slacking off, she had never given up on training in the simulator, and since Yu Zhezhong's arrival, they often practiced together in the virtual space.
So, even though Xiao Qin felt somewhat nervous, she expertly executed the entire series of actions.
As the blood supply to the side of the woman's neck was cut off, she promptly fainted, and the connection to the controller was severed.
Qin Xuezhong maintained a relaxed demeanor, appearing to simply be with a friend.
Then, she opened the bottle of liquor she had just purchased and splashed it all over herself and the woman.
Instantly, a strong smell of alcohol wafted from both of them, causing passersby to wrinkle their noses and walk around.
Qin Xuezhong feigned drunkenness, reaching down to feel under the bench.
Sure enough, she found a plastic bag.
From the initial touch, it was clearly a gun.
She quickly concealed the gun in her clothing, propped the woman up beside her, and called for a taxi.
The driver was used to late-night drunks and, noticing the woman's pale face, kindly remarked, "Young lady, you don't look well; don't stay up drinking so much."
Qin Xuezhong smiled sheepishly, "She's been working too hard lately and couldn't handle it, so she drank too much. I just wanted to get her home to rest."
The driver nodded and started the car.
---
In Qin Xuezhong's room, the woman lay on the bed.
For safety, her hands and feet were tied. Qin Xuezhong didn't dare be careless about this—someone with such strong anti-tracking awareness probably also had considerable combat skills.
Only now did Qin Xuezhong realize how frail this woman truly was.
Even with two layers of clothing, she could see the woman's bones and joints.
At the same time… her stomach was still moving.
Xiao Qin's heart skipped a beat.
She carefully extended her hand to pull back a bit of the woman's clothing to check her stomach.
At that moment, the woman woke up.
Instinctively, she tried to stop Qin Xuezhong's hand, but the ropes binding her limbs held her back.
This movement startled Xiao Qin as well.
Despite being in excruciating pain and bound hand and foot, the woman's gaze remained calm and sharp.
"Where am I?" the woman asked.
Qin Xuezhong composed herself, "After coming here so many times, you still don't know?"
The woman glanced around, and her expression seemed to relax a little.
Just as she was about to speak, her stomach curled up violently as if she was experiencing severe pain. She said with great difficulty, "Give me something to eat, quickly; I can't hold on much longer."
Qin Xuezhong noticed that although the woman was enduring intense suffering, her limbs remained weak and limp.
Not daring to delay, she quickly went to the refrigerator, took out all the food, and returned to the bedside to untie the ropes around the woman's hands.
The woman made no extraneous movements; she grabbed the food and began to wolf it down.
As she continued to eat, her previously writhing stomach gradually calmed down.
"What do you want to do?" the woman asked.
This question caught Xiao Qin off guard.
There were no task prompts, so she didn't know what she was supposed to do. She could only vaguely say, "I want to help you."
"Help me?" The woman laughed dismissively. "Don't be so kind-hearted. I can see you're quite clever and have realized I've stayed at your place before. I'm truly sorry… I don't know how you brought me here, but… take my advice, leave this place and don't get yourself into trouble."
Hearing this made Xiao Qin feel more confident.
Since the woman was willing to talk, it meant there was still room for negotiation.
Xiao Qin actively untied the woman's feet and said, "Regardless, you're in terrible shape right now. At least for today, rest here; we can figure things out tomorrow."
The woman hesitated for a moment but ultimately nodded.
Qin Xuezhong brought over more food and casually asked, "So what's going on with you?"
"Don't ask; knowing too much is bad for you," the woman replied quietly.
Xiao Qin didn't take this statement seriously at all.
She was just a player; the story within the instance had no real impact on her. The only thing that mattered was her clearance score, which determined whether she would catch the mastermind's attention.
"Well… do you want me to check the puppet implant you have? What if you get controlled again?" Xiao Qin pressed on.
At this, the woman's expression changed.
Qin Xuezhong's words had hit upon the most dangerous aspect of her situation.
Because she had a complete puppet system implanted within her body, it allowed others to remotely access and control her, making her easily locatable.
They could even directly manipulate her, potentially taking control of Qin Xuezhong as well, achieving two goals at once.
Having just regained some strength after eating, the woman immediately tried to struggle to get up, intending to leave.
This time, Qin Xuezhong didn't even have a chance to stop her before the woman shuddered again.
Then, her eyes changed.
Qin Xuezhong instantly realized the woman was under control once more.
The controller looked relaxed and curiously surveyed the surroundings, speaking with a hint of smugness, "So, she ran to this rat nest, huh?"
Then he turned his attention to Qin Xuezhong. "Don't worry; you won't…"
As he spoke, he reached out to grab Qin Xuezhong.
However, before he could finish, Xiao Qin swung her heavy alloy thermos and struck the woman's head with force.
The connection to the controller was forcibly severed again.
Qin Xuezhong quickly started to think.
The other party likely already knew about the woman staying at her home, and perhaps they had sent someone.
She realized that this person was likely the mainline antagonist of her instance.
She had to protect the woman, find a safe place, and continue digging for clues related to her.
Without hesitation, Xiao Qin used her consciousness to penetrate the woman's chip.
—Although this was a data-generated game instance, Xiao Qin speculated that the system would likely simulate a brain-like space, allowing players with similar technology to read related information in a lifelike manner.
What she didn't expect was that her consciousness would break through two layers of data interfaces and reach a very real consciousness space.
She realized this was definitely not a virtual creation, but a real person's brain!
She had entered a real person's consciousness space?
This woman… was a player?!
Just as Qin Xuezhong thought of this, she noticed some scattered memories floating on the surface of the consciousness orb.
She was stunned.
These memories, floating on the surface, were all deeply etched in someone's mind.
Xiao Qin was taken aback because these memories were all too familiar.
—Core main brain vertical well, leaping down, shooting Tang Kede…
These were… experiences she had gone through with Yu Zhezhong in the vertical well!
The player behind this woman was Yu Zhezhong?!
Before she could process this, she saw even more intense memories glowing within the consciousness orb.
All of them were from her home.
It was Yu Zhezhong cooking, cleaning, tending to plants, and waiting for her to return.
From these memories, Qin Xuezhong felt a genuine joy and anticipation.
Her mind momentarily blanked.
At that moment, the previously dormant consciousness of Yu Zhezhong stirred.
Because he sensed that someone entering his consciousness space felt familiar, his reaction wasn't intense; instead, he felt a bit reassured.
Xiao Qin murmured, "Yu Zhezhong?"
"It's me."
Yu Zhezhong hesitated before answering.