Their commission was suspicious.

Moreover, this task is really easy to complete.

“Of course I can. I brought it to you to return it. But you should know that I’m a businessman.” Chen Luo gently tugged at his hood.

To fulfill the wish, he would simply give the other person the blue kettle, but Chen Luo had other purposes.

“…But I have nothing.” Isamara shook her head.

This is a lie; she still has herself.

"..."

Chen Luo felt that his human-centered plugins were becoming increasingly perverse.

"Actually, I didn't come here just to make a deal. Besides the deal, I'm also looking for an item. The clues indicate that the item is in the church. It seems to be a rather strange-looking thing, like a teddy bear that has been there for a long time and has been twisted by some special force?" Chen Luo asked.

“I’ve seen it, but it doesn’t belong to me.” Isamara shook her head.

"Why are you so stubborn? You said it was yours, and then I traded this blue kettle for the teddy bear, and the kettle would be yours then, wouldn't it?"

Chen Luo was anxious

Are you sick in the head?

“That’s not mine.” But Isamara still shook her head firmly.

“…How about this, I’ll put it another way. I don’t know where that thing is, but if you help me find it, I’ll give you the blue kettle. How about that? Information is part of the business, and we merchants always believe in never leaving empty-handed,” Chen Luo said.

Yes: A businessman doesn't do business at a loss.

"Ok?"

Sorry, but a thief never leaves empty-handed.

"Is that so? Then I can agree." Isamara nodded, agreeing to Chen Luo's condition.

"You finally agreed." Chen Luo breathed a sigh of relief.

“But could you give me the blue kettle first?” Isamara asked, making another request.

"No."

“But I’m disappearing soon. Taking you to find that thing might use up my last bit of time,” Isamara said sadly.

"Here you go." Without even hesitating, Chen Luo handed the kettle to the other person as he approached.

We can't let her disappear! If she disappears before the mission is complete, won't the mission fail?

And her voice did sound truly sorrowful...

Of course, Chen Luo didn't want his mission to fail.

Chen Luo simply hoped that Isamara wouldn't immediately become a Buddha after obtaining the blue kettle.

Chen Luo still had many questions to ask.

[Ding! Mission complete]

Chapter 1111 The Mysterious Merchant and Isamara's Orca-like Apology

This kettle task was definitely the easiest task Chen Luo had ever completed, bar none.

It took less than a minute from accepting the task to completing it, and that minute was spent just chatting.

However, this was the most difficult commission Chen Luo had ever accepted.

It took more than two days from when I learned about the task to when I completed it.

Ah, thinking about it carefully, if Isamara had stayed here without moving, she would have almost disappeared by the time Chen Luo finished his three-day game tester mission...

"Thank you. If you want that item, please come with me," Isamara said, holding the kettle Chen Luo had given her.

“No need to be polite. I just made a deal. Actually, you don’t need to personally escort me down. Just tell me where to look. If I’m not mistaken, every extra action you take now reduces your time in this world, right?” Chen Luo asked.

“Hmm. But someone told me that if someone helps you, you need to express your gratitude. So I'll take you there myself.” Isamara nodded and then shook her head.

"..."

Chen Luo was somewhat flattered by Isamara's politeness. He had thought that Isamara might be crazy, cold, or indifferent, but now she seemed to be someone who was ignorant of the ways of the world yet had been taught some basic common sense.

Her actions were not motivated by her own will, but by someone's admonition, much like a kindergarten child obeying a teacher's orders.

The younger the child, the more nervous they are when facing a teacher, and the more likely they are to obey the teacher.

"But this will shorten your lifespan. Are you really not bothered?" Chen Luo couldn't help but ask.

Isamara was probably the "human" with the lowest will to live that Chen Luo had ever met. She was almost the opposite of Liu Huaixi. For her, death did not seem to be something worth resisting.

"After all, I'm destined to disappear, aren't I? You're very capable, but you can also see that this world is rejecting me. If I don't get replenished, I will eventually disappear. The only difference is probably sooner or later. I'm already very satisfied to see it on the last day." After saying this, Isamara, dressed in a red songstress outfit, hugged the blue thermos tightly in her arms and walked towards the statue in the church.

The statue in this church was strange. Chen Luo couldn't discern its original form because it was broken off at the feet, making it impossible to tell what the original shape looked like. But even with only a base and tentacle-like feet remaining, the statue was constantly emanating an ominous aura.

Although Chen Luo did not feel any impact, he knew that if an ordinary person looked at the statue, they would more or less experience some mental problems.

At the very least, I'll have a terrible nightmare, and then I'll be seriously ill for three days.

"Be careful, don't look directly at the statue's feet... Are you alright?" Isamara asked Chen Luo, the person who had brought her the item she had been longing for, as she made her way toward the statue.

But Isamara noticed that even when Chen Luo looked directly at the strange statue, he seemed unaffected.

"Merchants traveling this land always need some special skills, just like how I can enter the church without alerting all the special monsters," Chen Luo said.

The various passive buffs on Chen Luo are enough to offset the negative mental state that Chen Luo would experience when facing various chaotic items and creatures.

Add to that the passive effect of the legendary investigator who dared to confront two powerful figures even when he saw an evil god, and Chen Luo could be described as universally disliked among these chaotic creatures.

Of course, things are always two-sided.

The legendary investigator's achievements will not only make the chaotic creatures and evil gods hate and fear Chen Luo even more, but will also make them like Chen Luo even more.

But the introduction doesn't specify the exact circumstances under which one would like it or dislike it.

As someone who can put two powerful punches to an evil god, it would be a failure if even the evil god couldn't look him in the eye, let alone just the foot of a statue.

Thank you for your concern.

“It’s alright, I just hope nothing happens to you before you get the teddy bear you want. Is that called… the spirit of a contract?” After pondering for a moment, Isamara put the question out of her mind and walked to the statue.

Isamara did nothing to the statue, but instead gently tapped the counter beneath it a few times. A hidden compartment appeared, and pushing the stone pillar inside produced a rumbling sound from the church's backyard.

"..."

Isamara's definition of the spirit of contract is rather strange, but at least Isamara is indeed willing to pay.

Even though Isamara had already gotten what she wanted.

"Can I ask you some questions?" Chen Luo asked, following closely behind Isamara.

"can."

Isamara nodded slightly as she walked toward the church's backyard.

The hat swayed quite a bit, making me worry that it might suddenly be blown away by the wind or fall freely.

The church was damp and covered with weeds and moss, perhaps because it hadn't been maintained for a long time, but Isamara's neat red dress and hat remained spotless.

But when Isamara stepped onto the church's haphazard cobblestone path, she felt no sense of incongruity.

"Judging from your appearance, you're probably going to disappear in about ten hours, right?"

"perhaps."

"Was it always in this state where once you took action, the disappearance time would be shortened?"

"No, when I'm in a place with a strong eerie atmosphere, this effect can be reduced infinitely. When I first arrived in this place, moving around the whole town had almost no impact on my disappearance time."

Perhaps realizing that Chen Luo could see a lot, Isamara didn't hide anything from him.

The reconnaissance talent is no longer of any use, because Isamara seems a little too honest and has never told a lie.

The humanized plugin has become too lazy to translate and has instead continued writing its own 1000-word apology letter.

"So that's why you're so familiar with this town, or rather, this church?"

"Because there was nowhere to go, once I left the town or moved toward its edge, the speed at which I disappeared would increase with every step I took. Initially, only the church district allowed me to move freely without being affected, so I almost always stayed near the church."

Out of sheer boredom, she began investigating the church, and due to her unique abilities, she was able to detect any lingering eerie presence...

Just as no matter how careful you are, if you carry certain items with a special scent, they will still be detected by police dogs, those eerie scents were a bit too dazzling in Isamara's eyes.

To Isamara, the information belonging to the Chaotic Pantheon was like a police dog following a trail of blood.

By following clues and exploring the small church, Isamara eventually found out what was inside.

Let alone Isamara, even if you put someone in a house for days, weeks, or months without giving them a cell phone, computer, or books, they can still turn the whole house upside down.

"Did you save those three outsiders more than half a month ago by chance or on purpose?"

"I needed someone to retrieve something from outside town, so I saved them, but that also shortened my time. It seems they've run into you."

"Hmm. I encountered the newbie gift pack as soon as I entered the abyss passage, and then I selected this blue kettle. They didn't arrive until a minute after I opened the blue kettle. It seems they haven't completed your request."

"It doesn't matter, as long as we get the items." Isamara shook her head, seemingly unperturbed that the three college students hadn't completed the task themselves but had instead told others about it.

Isamara only ever wanted the blue kettle.

It doesn't matter who sent it.

"Then how did you know that the newbie gift pack would appear in front of the virtual gate at the starting point of the newbie village at that time?"

Chen Luo was very curious about this.

I'm very curious.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I don't have the ability to predict the future. I just used an item from the basement we're going to next."

Led by Isamara, Chen Luo and his group arrived at the backyard of the hall and saw a passage leading underground.

At this moment, Chen Luo and Isamara were heading down the damp passage.

Although the passage was damp, it was not dark, because the surrounding walls were decorated with luminous pearls...

That's incredibly extravagant!

"That item is a magic mirror, a cursed object. It can answer one of your questions, but it will also randomly give you a very serious curse."

In gratitude for Chen Luo handing her the blue thermos, Isamara continued to provide information.

"Oh, what kind of curse did you receive?" Chen Luo asked.

“It’s obvious, isn’t it? Look at me now, am I shrouded in shadow? That’s the curse that mirror has placed on me. No one can see my true face except for that one very special person. But he’s not in this world…” Isamara said.

"..."

Chen Luo wanted to say that he could see it too, but he knew he could because of his investigative abilities, so he chose to keep quiet.

"At first I thought that dark shadow was evidence that the world was rejecting you, but I didn't expect it to be a curse. Do you need me to help you remove it? I have some confidence in removing curses."

“No need, whether the curse exists or not has no effect on me.” Isamara shook her head.

"..."

He's completely unresponsive.

That being said, her talent clearly indicates that removing the curse from her should indeed be one of the quests she can accept, right?

Or is it simply that the time is not yet right?

This concealment curse is quite something, and coupled with the world's rejection of Isamara, it indirectly hindered Chen Luo's speed in seeing through Isamara.

[I see, I see. Um, after you complete the transaction with him, you'll get a unique faction merchant title—the Mysterious Merchant.]

"???"

When Chen Luo saw this text just as he was about to reach the end of that narrow, winding road, he was stunned.

"Wasn't it said that there were only three spots left for the sole faction merchant?"

Chen Luo couldn't help but ask the Book of Akasha.

The Book of Akasha is sometimes inaccurate.

[The mysterious merchant is one of them.]

The answer from the Book of Akasha is exactly like this.