Yi Xing, who had obtained the four correct numbers, seized the opportunity to quickly sneak into the Government Office Secret Chamber. He soon found the two people standing helplessly in front of the safe and said to them, "The last number is a green 5!"
"Thank you, brave warrior!" Bai Mofei cupped his hands and turned to input the password. Just as the three of them thought the safe would open, a huge iron grate fell, preventing Bai Mofei and Lu Yingying from leaving the area.
"How can this be? These are the four numbers, aren't they? Why did it lock you two in?" Yi Xing walked forward and, together with the man inside, tried to lift the grate, but the reality told him that it was impossible with just human strength.
"The input order must be wrong," Lu Yingying guessed from the side. Her words were like an NPC about to issue a quest, and she immediately received supplementary information.
"【The last number, green 5, has been found, but Bai Mofei and Lu Yingying entered it in the wrong order and are trapped in the secret chamber. Find the correct password order and inform Bai Mofei and Lu Yingying to unlock the safe before the remaining 43 minutes are up. There is still a chance to obtain the secret artifact that doubles the victory coins. If the provided order information is incorrect, their location will be reported to the hunters until they are captured. The clue is in the Prefect's room.】"
Yi Xing, resting in a chair, spread the map on the table to see which route was faster. After planning his route, he set off again. As he reached the door, he turned back and said to the two, "You two stay here, I'll be back shortly."
"Then, many thanks, brave warrior!"
He moved quickly according to the route he had planned in his mind, cautiously avoiding the hunters he encountered along the way. Upon arriving at the government office, he met Yi Yang Qianxi and Wang Junkai, whom he hadn't seen in a while. The former showed a surprised expression upon seeing him and immediately said,
"Xiao Xing Ge, after we separated, didn't you go look for Xiao Ju? How was she captured?"
"It's my fault, I didn't protect her well. I thought the Government Office Secret Chamber was safe at the time, so I went out alone to look for clues, leaving her there. I wish I had stayed with her."
Yi Yang Qianxi quickly comforted him upon hearing this, "That's not your fault, Xiao Xing Ge. We couldn't have predicted such an unexpected thing. Perhaps Xiao Ju will be even happier after being eliminated, because she made a contribution."
"I'm fine, now I need to finish this task quickly! Time waits for no one!" Yi Xing adjusted his state and stepped into the Prefect's residence. At this point, there were 50 minutes remaining in the total time, and 7 minutes left until the task ended.
The two behind him exchanged glances and quickly followed his steps. The three of them entered the Prefect's room together. It was truly massive; it would take ages for one person to find anything.
"Jun Kai, you search over here. Qian Xi, you're responsible for this area. Leave the rest to me. Any problems?"
"No problem!" x2.
After assigning specific tasks, each person meticulously searched their designated area, hoping to quickly find the correct sequence for the password. Yi Xing rummaged through the desk drawers and the papers on the table, but none of them were related to colors. After searching for a long time, he still found nothing and asked the other two,
"Did you two find anything?"
"Nothing here," Wang Junkai replied, straightening up.
"I did find something, but I don't know if it's related to the color sequence," Yi Yang Qianxi walked over with a piece of paper in his hand and handed it to Yi Xing, telling him to take a good look.
"I've generally looked it over, and there's no significant connection. So where could the clue about the Prefect be?"
Yi Xing crossed his arms over his chest, his brows slightly furrowed, a posture he habitually adopted when thinking. He must have overlooked a detail somewhere. He looked up, scrutinizing the layout of the entire room. He didn't realize it until he looked, and when he did, he was startled; he hadn't even seen the clue right in front of him. He had been living too comfortably lately, and his observational skills had declined.
On the wall of the Prefect's room hung two paintings, with a long distance between them. From the marks on the wall, it seemed there should have been two more paintings hanging there. Opposite, there were also traces of paintings having been removed. Combining this with the previous clue about the Painting Store, he knew where to go next.
"I know where we need to go next!"
"Where?"
"The Painting Store. Look at the surrounding walls, aren't there marks where paintings were removed? That means the clues should be on these paintings. And on the map, the only place related to paintings is the Painting Store."
Seeing that the two of them were still a bit confused, Yi Xing patiently explained the reason for going to the Painting Store. This greatly helped the production team, as they wouldn't need to add explanatory subtitles.
"Xiao Xing Ge, then let's set off quickly!"
"Wait a moment, someone's coming!" He heard footsteps outside and immediately stopped his two younger brothers, peeking out to observe. If it were a hunter, their target would only be him, and it wouldn't affect them.
The arrivals were not hunters but teammates. Tian Liang came over with Xie Na and Ada Choi. Yi Xing let out a sigh of relief, walked out with the people behind him, and greeted them.
"Oh, you're all here. I've already obtained the clue inside. Next, we need to go to the Painting Store. There's information about the correct color sequence there."
"Are you sure?" Tian Liang asked, a little uneasy. His trust in Yi Xing wasn't very high, as he wasn't present during the first recording. Asking an extra question was understandable.
"Absolutely and positively sure."
"Alright, so we're going to the Painting Store now?"
"Wait a moment, with so many of us, we're too big a target. We need to split up. Qian Xi, Jun Kai, you two go back to the Government Office Secret Chamber with Sister Ada. If we get the clue, we'll notify you immediately, so remember to check your phones. As for Brother Tian Liang and Sister Na, I'll trouble you two to accompany me to the Painting Store."
Yi Xing scanned everyone present and quickly arranged their destinations. Time was pressing, so this was the only way. Splitting into two groups was the best solution at this moment.
"Oh, it's no trouble at all, no trouble. I haven't completed a single task yet, so it's time I contributed to the team." Xie Na quickly waved her hand. She had been hiding since the first task began, so 'trouble' was entirely out of the question. If there were a step count leaderboard, she would definitely be last.
Following the arranged lineup, everyone split up as they exited the government office gate, heading to different locations. On Yi Yang Qianxi's side, he was a bit disgruntled with his cousin's arrangement. Since there were other people present, he didn't want to make his cousin lose face, so he didn't voice it.
Just because he didn't say it didn't mean others wouldn't. Wang Junkai leaned in close to him and whispered, "I feel like Xiao Xing Ge always treats us like children. He never lets us do anything dangerous."
"I feel that way too. When this recording session is over, let's talk to Xiao Xing Ge and tell him not to specially look after us. We can stand on our own."
These were things Yi Xing didn't know, but he had indeed taken this situation into account when grouping them, and another factor was who had money on them.
Tian Liang and Ada Choi had both participated in Task One, so they probably didn't have much money left. Men were definitely at an advantage over women, which is why Ada Choi was assigned to the group waiting for results.
On the Painting Store sub-team's side, the three dared not pause for a second. They had wasted a lot of time in the Prefect's room, and every minute and second from now on was exceptionally precious. They soon stood together in front of the Painting Store. As they stepped inside, the receptionist who had initially introduced himself to Yi Xing appeared and said,
"Are the three of you here to look at paintings? It's only 7 qian per person, oh, and you can enjoy various styles of paintings inside for one minute!"