Dice In The Darkness: Cthulhu Calls

"How’s it going?" Liu Xing asked Ling Ishikawa, "Did Hu Li give you the jade pendant?"

Ling Ishikawa nodded, taking the jade pendant from her pocket and handing it to Liu Xing. "Hu Li has agreed to help us with making the beekeeper’s clothing, but the issue with materials still needs to be resolved on our end. Hu Li’s clothing store is not well-equipped; it’s more like a facade."

Liu Xing pondered for a moment, feeling a bit conflicted. "That does complicate things. I recall that Panlong Town doesn’t have any place that sells leather."

Ling Ishikawa shrugged and smiled. "We’ll have to ask Hu Cang about that. However, I believe Panlong Town should have some leather or animal hides for sale. According to Hu Cang, there are many animals in the nearby mountains, so there might be hunters in Panlong Town as well."

Liu Xing nodded and said, "Let’s head back then and try to get the leather before nightfall so we can give it to Hu Li."

Ling Ishikawa was curious and asked, "Leader, I noticed you came out of a teahouse. Did you go to persuade Xiao Mochen? How did it go?"

Liu Xing shook his head with a hint of frustration. "It’s a mixed bag, I’d say. The good part is that I convinced Xiao Mochen to accept the reality and promised that if we kill Xiao Dafu, he won’t hold a grudge against us. The bad part is that Xiao Mochen doesn’t plan to help us directly or join our mission. I feel like I’ve done something wrong..."

Liu Xing furrowed his brows, realizing he had made a significant mistake by not getting the crucial information about Xiao Dafu’s visit to Gu Master Chaxi from Xiao Mochen.

He berated himself for his oversight. It was a critical purpose of his visit to Xiao Mochen, and he had missed it.

Liu Xing couldn’t help but rub the back of his head, trying to remember what he had been thinking when he had decided to leave without asking the question. After some thought, he decided not to press Xiao Mochen for answers immediately. He had left in haste, and returning now to inquire further would be embarrassing.

Given the current situation, he didn’t need the answers urgently.

So, Liu Xing and Ling Ishikawa returned to Hu Cang’s home together.

Hu Cang had already prepared a table full of food and was chatting with Zhang Jingxu and others while waiting for Liu Xing and his group to return.

Seeing Liu Xing and Ling Ishikawa’s return, Zhang Jingxu asked, "How did it go for both of you? But judging from your expression, Ryuusei, the situation with Xiao Mochen doesn’t seem very optimistic."

Liu Xing nodded with a sigh, "You’ve seen right through it. While Xiao Mochen is willing to accept that we might kill Xiao Dafu, he doesn’t want to cooperate with us in dealing with Gu Master Chaxi. It’s almost certainly because he’s afraid he might end up killing Xiao Dafu himself or he simply doesn’t want to kill anyone. As for the details about the people controlled by Gu Master Chaxi and their visit frequency to Gu Master Chaxi’s place, Xiao Mochen needs to recall, so I’ll have to go back to him tomorrow."

Liu Xing didn’t want to admit that he had made a mistake by not asking such an important question. So, he decided to phrase it differently.

Hu Cang chuckled and said, "That’s just Xiao Mochen’s style. Let me put it this way, since childhood, Xiao Mochen has always been a well-behaved child who follows the rules. To be more precise, he has been very obedient to his mother’s teachings. He wouldn’t dare do anything wrong. Those addicts controlled by Gu Master Chaxi, they are still fundamentally human beings, so Xiao Mochen naturally wouldn’t want to take a life."

Liu Xing nodded and smiled, "What about you, Mr. Hu Cang? I believe you would be willing to join us."

Since Hu Cang was sitting here and had already spoken in that manner, Liu Xing assumed that Hu Cang would choose to join their group.

As expected, Hu Cang chuckled and nodded, "Of course, I’m willing to join you all. I’m not as saintly as Xiao Mochen. If necessary, I won’t hesitate to take a life. Besides, I’ve already killed Zhong Rensan, and I owe you a favor."

Liu Xing nodded thoughtfully. According to Hu Cang’s current statement, it seemed that their decision not to stop him from killing Zhong Rensan had been the right one. If they had intervened, Hu Cang might not have chosen to join them now.

It appeared that their choices in this module were interconnected.

Ling Ishikawa then asked Hu Cang, "Mr. Hu Cang, is there any place in Panlong Town where we can obtain leather or animal hides?"

Hu Cang furrowed his brows and thought for a moment before responding, "Leather and animal hides are quite scarce in Panlong Town. Because Panlong Town is relatively close to Rongcheng, people often come here to sell clothing and shoes during the market days. These clothes and shoes are cheap and of decent quality, so the original tailor and cobbler shops in Panlong Town closed down over a decade ago."

Ling Ishikawa persisted, pointing to a pair of well-maintained bird guns in the corner, "Mr. Hu Cang, these two bird guns seem to have been owned by hunters before. Could there be some animal hides left in their homes?"

Hu Cang smiled and shook his head, saying, "You guessed correctly. The previous owners of these two bird guns were indeed hunters, but over a decade ago, one of them had his leg broken by a wild boar while hunting. So, he switched to being a fisherman a long time ago. As for the animal hides, he sold them long ago because he needed the money for medical expenses."

Liu Xing furrowed his brows, feeling that something was amiss. Could it be that there really was no way to find enough leather or animal hides in Panlong Town?

At that moment, Hu Cang suddenly slapped his thigh and said, "I almost forgot about this! Xiao Mochen’s grandfather was one of the top hunters in Panlong Town back in the day. I used to visit Xiao Mochen’s grandfather’s house when I was young, and I saw a lot of animal hides there. Most importantly, Xiao Mochen’s grandfather knew what kind of person his son, Xiao Dafu, was. So, he severed ties with Xiao Dafu long ago. However, Xiao Mochen and his grandfather maintained a great relationship."

"When Xiao Mochen’s grandfather passed away, he left all his belongings to Xiao Mochen, including a large batch of animal hides. Xiao Dafu had already left Panlong Town at that time, so those hides should still be with Xiao Mochen. However, I’m not sure if Xiao Mochen has sold them. If you want to try your luck, you can talk to Xiao Mochen. I believe those hides should still be in his possession, as selling them would have made his life less miserable."

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, surprised that this matter was connected to Xiao Mochen once again. It seemed that Xiao Mochen was indeed the central character in this module.

Taking responsibility for what he had just said, Liu Xing immediately offered, "I’ll handle this matter. After we finish eating, I’ll go see Xiao Mochen."

Seeing Liu Xing volunteering, Ling Ishikawa and the others nodded in agreement.

Liu Xing breathed a sigh of relief.

After discussing these important matters, Liu Xing and the others continued to chat while eating.

Once they finished their meal, Liu Xing set out again, arriving at Xiao Mochen’s teahouse. At that moment, Xiao Mochen was having dinner with a pale-looking elderly woman.

Liu Xing knew that the elderly woman must be Xiao Mochen’s mother.

However, when he and his group had discussed the people in Panlong Town earlier, aside from Hu Li and the owner of the Black Internet Cafe, they hadn’t mentioned any other women. Xiao Mochen had agreed with that statement. At that time, Xiao Mochen should have known that his mother was still in Panlong Town.

So, why was Xiao Mochen lying?

Liu Xing pondered this while subconsciously observing Xiao Mochen’s mother, given that he was a doctor.

At first glance, Liu Xing noticed something odd about Xiao Mochen’s mother’s condition. Although her face was very pale, it wasn’t the type of sickly pallor he would expect.

If he had to describe it, the word that came to Liu Xing’s mind was "zombie."

Liu Xing furrowed his brow, realizing that Xiao Mochen’s mother had likely undergone Gralki’s transformation.

If that was indeed the case...

"Mr. Ryuusei, why are you here again?" Xiao Mochen interrupted Liu Xing’s thoughts.

Liu Xing quickly adjusted his mindset and smiled, saying, "Well, here’s the thing. I heard from Hu Cang that you might have some animal hides, and we were wondering if you could sell them to us."

Xiao Mochen raised an eyebrow and thought for a moment.

As for Xiao Mochen’s mother, she was trembling as she tried to climb the stairs.

Liu Xing had a sudden insight and moved forward to help Xiao Mochen’s mother.

As expected, when Xiao Mochen saw Liu Xing approaching his mother, he immediately said, "Wait!"

Liu Xing stopped in his tracks, pretending to look puzzled. "Uh, what’s wrong?"

Xiao Mochen realized he had overreacted and quickly said with a forced smile, "Mr. Ryuusei, you might not know this, but my mother is a bit stubborn. She doesn’t like being treated as a patient by others, so you don’t have to help her."

Liu Xing nodded and said, "I see, my apologies for the misunderstanding."

Xiao Mochen shook his head and pointed to a nearby mahjong table. "No, no, I know you meant well, Ryuusei. Let’s sit and chat."

Liu Xing and Xiao Mochen took their seats and continued the conversation. Liu Xing asked, "So, let’s get back to our previous topic. Do you still have any animal hides that you can sell to us?"

Xiao Mochen nodded and said, "Yes, I do have some. However, those hides are still in my grandfather’s house. So, if you need them, I can retrieve them for you tomorrow. Of course, consider these hides as my gift to you. Talking about money would only complicate things."

Since Xiao Mochen had offered the hides as a gift, Liu Xing didn’t hesitate to accept. He smiled and said, "Thank you, Xiao Mochen. But let me ask you one more thing: approximately how often does your father visit Gu Master Chaxi, and how long does he stay there each time?"

Xiao Mochen raised an eyebrow and thought for over half a minute before answering, "If I remember correctly, my father visits Gu Master Chaxi about once a week, and he stays there for approximately two to three hours each time."

Liu Xing nodded, stood up, and said, "Alright, thank you for your help, Xiao Mochen. I have some other matters to attend to, so I’ll take my leave."

"Sure, take care," Xiao Mochen said with a smile.

After leaving the teahouse, Liu Xing rushed back to Hu Cang’s house. At this point, he had a nearly confirmed hypothesis, and all that was left was to ascertain whether Xiao Mochen’s mother had undergone Gralki’s transformation.

If Xiao Mochen’s mother had indeed accepted Gralki’s transformation, it would confirm that Xiao Mochen was a "252" and that Gralki was brought to Panlong Town by him. This was because the current timeline in Panlong Town was certainly before Gralki’s appearance there. Therefore, it indicated that Xiao Mochen’s mother had already been transformed by Gralki before Gralki arrived in Panlong Town.

Given the pieces of information from Xiao Mochen and Hu Cang, Liu Xing had a rough idea of how things had unfolded. In an effort to save Xiao Dafu, Xiao Mochen had spent all of his mother’s life-saving money. As a result, Xiao Mochen’s mother was on the brink of death because she couldn’t afford treatment. It was at this point that Xiao Mochen, through a fortuitous encounter, learned about Gralki’s existence and made contact with him. Finally, Xiao Mochen had agreed to some terms, leading to his mother accepting Gralki’s transformation.

And the price Xiao Mochen had paid likely involved betraying the entire town.

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