Clue 5 1459

all from a long-time businessman dealing in esoteric objects. He was an old client of my father's and lived in the neighboring county. He specialized in reselling various occult items from folk tradit...The underground parking garage has two wooden doors that look simple in design but are very heavy. You can feel the quality of the wood just by touching them.

This is completely different from the storefront on the ground floor. The main entrance is luxurious, elegant, and very modern. This back entrance in the parking lot, on the other hand, is quite understated.

"Welcome." As we approached the door, the security cameras inside caught our presence, and an attendant opened the door to greet us.

I, Song Wei and my older brother walked inside. The door closed behind us. I turned back to look. The inside of the door and the walls on both sides of the corridor were all "soft furnishings".

"...These are soundproofing panels. All the walls and doors here are covered in them. Even if you were pressed against a door, with someone screaming inside, you wouldn't hear a thing." Song Wei whispered.

"This doesn't look like a good place at all..." I muttered.

"So I asked you if you wanted to cover your eyes, when we pass by the first and second floor lobbies you'll see... We're going to the third floor," she whispered.

What's what, just a bunch of men and women dressed in a few pieces of cloth, is there any need to scare me like this

The end of the special passage seemed to be a small railing, like a small platform. We should already be in the basement here, but it was brightly lit with bustling crowds enjoying themselves.

"Ouch, my eyes!" My brother took a glance outside the platform and couldn't help but cover his eyes.

Humans are naturally curious. Seeing my brother's actions, I couldn't help but sneak a glance down at the platform.

Huh

At first glance, I thought I had entered the zoo.

There are many round platforms below, surrounded by railings with wide gaps. I think those railings are just decorations, thin women could squeeze through them... and inside the railings there really are thin "animals."

Many men and women were dressed in animal costumes, complete with tails, of course, important parts on full display. They performed inside, some gentle, others alluring.

People outside the cage can do whatever they want, since the gaps in the bars are large enough for them to do anything.

"Animals play" My brother blocked me, not letting me take a closer look.

Song Wei curled her lips and said, "Isn't that right This is performance art, imitating animal behavior, just casually XX. Let's go, it's even more eye-opening upstairs."

"Is there anything even spicier" I whispered.

A host wearing a half-face mask in the European style handed us a tray at the entrance to the spiral staircase leading upstairs.

The tray was full of half-face masks. Putting one on made me feel like I wasn't a real person anymore.

The three of us all put on our masks, covering half of our faces. Song Wei took out a VIP card and had him verify it. He whispered to his colleagues in the parking lot, checked it over, and nodded, saying, "This way please, esteemed guests."

Song Wei wasn't here for the first time. She held herself with an air of superiority, speaking in the tone of a regular customer: "Is there any activity in room 003 today"

The attendant turned back and bowed, smiling: "This room number 003 is very popular. Originally we only had two shows a day, but now we've added two more. The next show is in twenty minutes. Would you be interested I can reserve a spot for you. You can rest at the lounge first."

"Well, I'll bring my friends to try it out. The three of us will go." Song Wei nodded.

"Okay." The attendant scanned Song Wei's customer card and motioned for us to feel free to roam the public area first.

The stage upstairs is even more exaggerated, with feathers, white gauze, huge hanging rings, and moving wires...and some dancers dressed in bizarre costumes.

"These...are they male or female" I couldn't help but ask.

The dancers came in all shapes and sizes, but without exception they were all incredibly fit. However, they wore layers upon layers of clothing, which seemed completely out of place.

These people are swinging on the rings, their clothing becoming less and less...

"Whoa, is that a person (!) or a demon!" My brother was walking ahead and had a clear view.

I and Song Wei instinctively used him to block our line of sight. It's best not to look at this scene.

My brother was delighted: "Where did you find so many oddballs"

Song Wei whispered, "As long as the money is in place, what can't be done Most of the performers here were brought by the boss. Many are rural kids who came to work. They struggle to make a living in big cities. A monthly salary of two or three thousand yuan suddenly becomes tens of thousands, they would agree to anything! All these people have been paid for plastic surgery and even become humans (big crabs) demons by the boss."

She hesitated for a moment, then whispered: "These people basically think: while they're young, use their bodies to earn as much money as possible. Tens of thousands of yuan a year, right Hook up with a master, and maybe even more. Do this for ten or eight years, lose your youth and health, and then get out... In fact, how many people who are lost in these places can actually save money They all compare and show off vanity. When they reach their thirties or forties, they have no money or health, and most of them still live miserably. They're just toys for the rich."

"The third floor is where we're going, full of things that satisfy the rich people's sense of novelty..." she whispered, resting her hand on my shoulder. "They'll give us a bracelet later. Wearing it means you're here for pleasure. You'll keep distance from each other, but the other 'staff'... they're just...animals."

She frowned with some disgust.

I swallowed nervously. This place is really eye-opening.

Money is not the root of all evil, but rather people's insatiable greed and desire for more that lead to wickedness. When this expands to a certain degree, it inevitably brings about disaster.

Before going upstairs, I heard cheers from the place behind me. Looking back, two people were swinging on a swing set, making all sorts of obscene gestures.

I frowned deeply. Although this place lacked an oppressive atmosphere, it was lavish and chaotic, rife with lust and desire. Being here, one's spiritual energy would be inevitably eroded.

A cultivator who is stained by defilement will lose virtue. I slightly lowered my eyes, gazing at my nose and my heart, silently reciting the Pure Heart Mantra in my mind.

The chaotic music, the intoxicating scent, gradually drifted away from me.

In these chaotic auras, I felt a subtle strangeness, as if something was watching me.

It's hard to describe this feeling. When I felt a jolt run through me, I quickly turned around—at the corner was a decorative mirror, adorned with gilded patterns to prevent accidental harm, turning a simple corridor into a maze.

"What's wrong, Xiao Qiao" Song Wei looked at me with some concern: "I told you to stop looking a long time ago. People who practice cultivation will definitely feel uncomfortable seeing this - ordinary people would even find it nauseating."

"No…" I waved my hand, brushing against Song Wei's. Only then did I realize she was about to give me a bracelet.

"We're going in, the room ahead is where we 'get on board'. Wear this bracelet, and people will keep their distance. Only you will go looking for your target; the target won't approach you proactively. Got it" Song Wei whispered.

Only then did I realize that while I was meditating, an attendant holding a tray had brought us bracelets.

My brother kept the greeters separated from me, a bit farther away. He was ordering drinks for them.

"Why order drinks We don't even drink," I asked, puzzled.

Song Wei curled her lips: "If we don't open the wine, can we even go in The ticket to enter this special room is 'opening the wine'. Whether you drink it or not doesn't matter, just open it."

As we were talking, a waiter rolled up a magnificent drinks trolley and stopped it beside our booth.

A pair of glasses of red wine were arranged into two heart shapes. The waiter confirmed with my brother and then began to open the bottles.

"Thirty-eight hundred each" I was taken aback. Twenty-four bottles would cost over ninety thousand, and with the tip, almost a hundred thousand!

I was dumbfounded. We always say that our circle bids whatever they want, this is no different What kind of wine is so expensive

My brother paid the money with a nonchalant look, it made me cringe. Ten thousand gone just like that!

"…Bro, if Yanqin knew you were spending this much money here, you better get ready to explain yourself on your knees."l be separated by yin and yang. Furthermore, for living beings to walk here, a price must be paid...”I swallowed nervously, carefully following him, step by step: "What's the price""A soul remnant, or...