Chapter 226: Death Game 1 (Revised)

Patter, patter.

Lin Xian's footsteps echoed through the dark corridor. He walked for a while, watching the lights stretch out, yet it seemed as if he could never reach the end. Furthermore, the situation was different from what he had anticipated; as he continued forward, water stains began to appear on the ground. The water grew more abundant, and the original marble floor began to transform into white tiles. Splash, splash.

The sound of water was constant. Lin Xian looked at the white tiles beneath his feet, silently feeling as though he had stepped into a swimming pool. As he continued forward, the accumulated water gradually rose from a few centimeters to covering his feet. At this moment, the walls of the passage ahead finally vanished; he seemed to have reached the end of the corridor.

Lin Xian frowned and reached out to take the lighting fixture forward, only to discover that ahead lay a vast expanse of pitch blackness. Layers of water ripples surged outward; before him was actually a massive, enclosed swimming pool, an open space of at least a thousand square meters, with walls covered in clean white tiles.

The ground beneath the water where Lin Xian stood suddenly disappeared a few meters ahead, revealing a pool ladder. Beyond that ladder, the water—which should have been clean and transparent—now presented an eerie black, bottomless and unfathomable!

Under the illumination of the light, a yellow swim ring floated on the black water surface, swaying gently with the ripples. Lin Xian looked around and discovered that, aside from his current position, there was no place to climb ashore; it was all high walls covered in white tiles.

The icy water ripples danced at Lin Xian's ankles, as if carrying a strange power, attempting to drag him down into the deep pool ahead.

"What kind of hellish place is this..."

He had just scouted that there were no complex mechanical structures within this passage, yet after walking for so long and seeing nothing, the end of the corridor turned out to be a massive swimming pool.

And it looked like an endless deep pool leading straight to hell.

In the research institute's monitoring hall, the expressions of the monitoring staff were somewhat complex. The few people in front turned to look at the Security Director, Feng Chun, who at this moment wore a grave expression, seemingly somewhat agitated.

"Director Feng, the target has entered the Black Pool."

"Release Black Abyss No. 1 creature immediately, start the water injection, and flood the passage!" Feng Chun said with a frigid expression.

"Ah?" Hearing this, the researchers were all dumbfounded.

"This... wouldn't that be..."

"Obey orders. Today, we must obtain valuable information about the target!"

"Understood." The researchers, with solemn faces, began to execute this cruel order.

Click, click. Lin Xian directly manufactured an extended bracket at the edge of the passage to push the light further out, illuminating a wider area. At the same time, he walked to the edge of the silver ladder and attempted to look down into the water.

Suddenly, a massive black shadow flashed beneath the water surface, its form coiled like a snake, pitch black, creating an undercurrent beneath the water that brushed against Lin Xian's submerged foot, as if trying to pull him down...

"Holy crap!"

Seeing this terrifying scene, Lin Xian subconsciously stepped back twice. His panicked footsteps created splashing sounds that echoed in the quiet space, carrying a bizarre sense of eeriness.

"There's something down there?"

Lin Xian's face turned ugly, his gaze sweeping around. As time ticked by, he didn't know how to leave this place, so he looked up. Only then, dozens of meters above the deep pool, did he see a structure resembling a diving platform, with a small dark door behind it.

At the same time, as the water ripples danced under the light, Lin Xian saw a narrow path hidden beneath the water surface in front of him.

Rather than a path, it was more like slender pillars standing beneath the water surface. The pillars were also covered in white tiles, each barely wide enough for one foot. There was a gap of about one meter between each pillar, extending all the way to the edge of the high wall of the black pool in the distance, where narrow stairs protruded from the wall.

It appeared he needed to step on these underwater pillars, treading across the bottomless black pool, walk to the wall at the end, and then wind his way up.

Without the light, he would basically be groping across a pitch-black deep pool, jumping between pillars toward an unknown direction.

And beneath his feet, those pillars extended into the pitch-black pool, with no bottom in sight, and there seemed to be some living creature swimming below.

"What kind of person could come up with these things?"

Lin Xian's heart sank. Honestly, he was truly feeling a bit intimidated.

A massive, bottomless deep pool in a claustrophobic space, darkness, silence, black water rippling, unknown underwater creatures.

It was definitely enough to make anyone's sanity plummet.

Just then, Lin Xian suddenly discovered that the black water, which had been at his ankles, had now risen to his calves. It was icy and bone-chilling, and within the passage, waves were surging!

"The water is rising?"

On the other side, on the researchers' screens, the monitors were aimed at every corner: the water surface, the narrow stairs, the pillars, and the diving platform above.

"The Black Water rising speed has been increased to Level 3. Calculated by time, the target only has 3 minutes of safe time to reach the wall edge. At that point, we can activate Level 5 water rising speed."

"Vital signs data: the test target's current heart rate has risen to 105 and is about to break 110," reported the researcher responsible for monitoring vital signs.

"He must be terrified this time." Feng Chun breathed a sigh of relief, his gaze watching the passage entrance on the monitor screen with great interest. "In 3 minutes, he'll barely be able to stand on the water; he'll have to swim across."

That passage, like a large water pipe extending out, had its end located exactly in the center of the massive circular deep pool.

Feng Chun stared fixedly at the direction of the passage pipe, but after watching for a while, he still saw no sign of Lin Xian emerging from the passage.

He immediately frowned.

"What's going on? Why hasn't he started moving yet? The water has already flooded in?"

"Unclear. We don't have a monitoring angle inside the pipe."

"Hmm? Could he have retreated?"

"No, the vital sign monitoring equipment can still detect the target's movements. The target is still in the scene."

Upon hearing this, Feng Chun's face began to show anxiety again. He checked his watch: "Two minutes left. If he doesn't set off now, he definitely won't find the way."

At this moment, a researcher asked with a face full of confusion: "He... could he be planning to just wait for the water to rise and then float up with it?"

"Impossible," Feng Chun said decisively. "Entering the black water, he won't survive for a minute. Black Abyss No. 1 will swallow him; he can't escape."

"One more minute and the passage will be flooded too!" a researcher shouted.

Feng Chun's face began to turn grave again. He stared fixedly at the end of the passage. At this moment, a large amount of black water had already poured into it, yet he still didn't see a human figure appear.

"Report, the target's body temperature is starting to drop, heart rate back to 80."

"Damn it, what the hell is going on?" Feng Chun muttered, frowning.

Just then, a researcher suddenly shouted: "He... he's out!!"

"Where?"

As soon as these words were spoken, many people, including Feng Chun, looked toward the passage entrance, but they saw no figure at all.

"There's no one?"

"There!" The researcher, looking as if he had seen a ghost, pointed at the monitor screen: "He's... he's above the passage."

Upon hearing this, Feng Chun hurriedly looked at another screen. Instantly, his pupils contracted sharply as he saw a bizarre scene he could never have imagined in his life.

He saw that at the top behind the passage, a circular hole had appeared at some point. A lifting platform rose from that hole, and Lin Xian stood on it, looking as if he were taking an elevator, slowly arriving at the edge of the diving platform above.

From another monitoring angle, a calm-faced young man slowly rose in front of the diving platform, then took a step across, quickly walked into the passage behind it, and left the Black Pool.

"No way?!" Feng Chun watched this scene, feeling somewhat disheveled: "An elevator?"

The scene he had anticipated—the target jumping onto the deep pillars in the water and frantically fleeing the underwater monster's attack on the narrow stairs by the wall—did not happen.

And at this moment, the lifting elevator that rose from the passage left this group of researchers completely baffled.

Even if Lin Xian had flown up, for these researchers who studied superpowers, it might still have been acceptable.

But where did this elevator come from?

"Director, the target's mechanical superpower seems quite different from our understanding," a researcher said with a blank gaze.

Feng Chun looked stunned, and only after a long while did he react, saying somewhat heavily:

"Miss Hua once said that the target had demonstrated the ability to manufacture some metal devices... but this..."

Metal devices and building a lifting elevator or a Gatling machine gun by hand were two completely different concepts.

"Director Feng, the target is about to enter the survival room. Please confirm which mode to use."

Hearing this, Feng Chun came back to his senses. His gaze flickered constantly, and then he gritted his teeth and said: "Since the other party possesses the ability to control and manufacture machinery, then activate Survival Room No. 3. Even if the other party cracks it, we can still obtain useful information."

"Yes!" The researcher directly entered the command.

As for Lin Xian, he moved forward along the passage and soon discovered that a fairly bright room had appeared ahead.

Whoosh~ Whoosh~

The flashlight beam swayed in the dark passage. Lin Xian, while breathing rapidly, ran quickly toward the front. After a while, the passage became increasingly wide, and bright light began to emerge from ahead. Lin Xian's gaze sharpened, and he quickly accelerated and rushed out.

Hum. When Lin Xian rushed into the wide, bright space, a massive ringing sound hit his ears, his chest felt tight and painful, and he breathed heavily.

He didn't have time to feel the discomfort in his body and quickly observed his current location with his eyes. He saw that this was a massive, bright white room, completely empty, with nothing in it, but the floor and walls were emitting white light.

In the distance, there was a door that looked extremely ordinary. Lin Xian subconsciously walked forward, only then discovering that the door had no handle and no keyhole; it was entirely a door-shaped device.

Clang! Clang!

At this moment, things resembling buildings began to rise from beneath the floor on both sides. Lin Xian raised his blade in defense, discovering that what had risen were some massive cabins filled with transparent green liquid, one on the left and one on the right. As the liquid cabins gradually rose, two strange monsters appeared in his line of sight.

One was a dark green monster resembling a starfish, its body appearing to be only about a meter in diameter, but it was covered in long, thin black spikes like steel needles, filling the entire cabin. The center of the starfish was covered in black eyes, looking extremely eerie.

The other one looked somewhat similar to the giant white monster Lin Xian had encountered in Jiang City, but its body was much smaller, with slender limbs. It was submerged at the bottom of the liquid cabin, hugging its legs, with its head buried beneath its knees. For some reason, even though this thing was just sitting there hugging its legs, it gave off a very dangerous feeling.

Lin Xian frowned slightly as he watched this scene. Without guessing, he could imagine that these two things were definitely not here for him to admire.

Therefore, without a moment's hesitation, he walked directly toward that 'door'.

The moment Lin Xian touched the door, a red alarm began to sound throughout the room. Woo~ Woo~ Woo~

【Countdown begins, 5 minutes remaining.】

Lin Xian looked back and saw that at this moment, the green transparent liquid in the two massive liquid cabins began to slowly descend, as if it were some kind of countdown. He immediately reacted, his Mechanical Heart operating, and he directly began scanning behind the door.

As the scan unfolded, Lin Xian's frown deepened.

This was indeed a door, but it was a mechanical door with a very complex structure. It had 12 mechanical locks, each mechanical structure interlocking with the next, connecting to 12 switches behind the door. Lin Xian was completely baffled after finishing the scan, because this mechanical structure was not designed for ease of operation, but rather to be completely mind-boggling.

Lin Xian finally confirmed his guess: these things were arranged specifically to test his mechanical superpower.

And those two monsters were there to 'provide entertainment' for him.

"Making me pick the lock..."

Lin Xian's heart sank, and his Mechanical Heart began to operate.

Woo~ Woo~

The alarm sound was incessant. The green liquid in the two liquid test cabins began to decrease continuously. As the liquid decreased by half, the black needle spikes of the starfish in the first cabin began to move slowly. Those spike tips scraped against the edge of the cabin, emitting a creaking friction sound.

【Countdown 3 minutes remaining】

In the bright room, several researchers watched the monitor screen. At this moment, their gazes were all fixed on Lin Xian.

"Report test progress."

"Escape door opening progress 0%."

"What's going on? Hasn't a single lock been opened?"

"Wait a little longer."

【Countdown 1 minute remaining】

"Report, escape door opening progress 0%."

"Hmm? What's the situation? Has he given up?"

"Quick, notify Miss Hua."

Hua Xiaoling, wearing a black overcoat, was standing in front of a silver door. Behind that door was the room where Lin Xian was located.

In her earpiece, a report from her subordinate came through.

"Director Hua, there is 1 minute left, and the escape door opening progress is 0. Shall we initiate emergency procedures?"

Hua Xiaoling's eyes didn't flicker; she didn't speak, just quietly watched the door ahead.

【Countdown 10 seconds remaining】

"Escape door opening progress 0%. It's already impossible to open," Security Director Feng Chun said, his face changing drastically.

Squeak!!!

Inside the glass cabin, the green liquid had reached the bottom. The massive starfish was still twisting the spikes on its body, emitting a strange cry, and the white humanoid monster also slowly raised its head.

A hint of doubt began to grow in Hua Xiaoling's eyes, and at this moment, the test field countdown began.

10, 9, 8

7, 6, 5

4

3

2

1

On the final second, the silver door in front of Hua Xiaoling suddenly turned into a pile of ash. The sky-filling ash flew past her. Hua Xiaoling couldn't help but reach out her hand, catching one of the ash flakes in her palm. She saw it land on her hand, and in an instant, it turned into even finer dust, disappearing into the air.

Watching this scene, her gaze was full of surprise. She raised her head, and a slightly thin figure appeared before her.

"We meet again."

A sharp blade landed on Hua Xiaoling's neck. The sharp edge of the electric blade shaved off a few strands of hair, which fell slowly to the ground.

Click, click, click, click.

In an instant, dozens of armed personnel behind her raised their guns in unison, aiming at Lin Xian.

The light dots of the automatic cannons in the room also landed on Lin Xian's forehead.

Lin Xian, however, did not change his expression, looking coldly at Hua Xiaoling.

"If I don't see my teammates within 1 minute, you will die."

Hua Xiaoling looked at Lin Xian. Not only was there no fear in her expression, but a hint of longing and eagerness even flashed in the depths of her eyes. She slowly raised her hand, and everyone behind her lowered their weapons. Immediately, she signaled to the assistant beside her, who pressed a command on a mobile terminal. Another door not far behind Lin Xian opened.

Boom!

An invisible shockwave blasted out, and a pile of researchers immediately flew out from inside.

Kiki walked out from inside at this moment. Seeing Lin Xian, the urgent expression on her face finally relaxed.

"Lin Xian!"

Hua Xiaoling looked at the wailing researchers on the ground beside her, her expression still calm.

"Since I have extended an invitation to you, your teammates are naturally our guests."

"Guests?"

Lin Xian sneered: "Is this how you treat guests?"

Hua Xiaoling shrugged helplessly: "First of all, although the Qingshui Town test field was illegally trespassed by you, I also admit that we conducted superpower tests on you without obtaining your approval. I apologize for this. It's just... normally, our partners wouldn't enter the research institute from that place."

She said, her expression shifting: "Of course, they also wouldn't install a tracker on my car."

Hearing this, Lin Xian's expression changed slightly. He slowly lowered the electric blade in his hand and said: "You're right, but you didn't tell me the specific location when you invited me, so, well, I could only use my own methods."

Hua Xiaoling smiled faintly, seemingly unbothered, and instead asked: "Mr. Lin, may I know how you opened that final password door?"

Password door? I opened a password door my foot. Lin Xian snorted coldly in his heart. Wouldn't it be more efficient to just use mechanical devouring? Does she really think I'm stupid, spending time studying a password in just five minutes?

Although the mechanical structure of the door wasn't large, no matter how complex it was, it couldn't be more complex than an engine. For Lin Xian, this kind of thing was like devouring a train or a flatbed truck; it was just adding materials, and there was no difficulty at all.

He had no interest in answering Hua Xiaoling's question and directly said: "Alright, I've trespassed into your research institute, and you've conducted a bunch of tests on me. Now, can you tell me your purpose?"

"I said, our purpose is to be able to cooperate with you," Hua Xiaoling said.

"And if I refuse?" Lin Xian asked directly.

Hua Xiaoling narrowed her eyes and smiled, pointing toward a passage: "The premise of cooperation is, of course, that both parties are willing. If Mr. Lin is unwilling to cooperate with us, you can leave at any time. We will not restrict your personal freedom."

After finishing, Hua Xiaoling made a gesture of invitation to Lin Xian: "Or if you have time, could I introduce our Foundation to you first?"

Lin Xian and Kiki exchanged glances. Since they were already here, they might as well learn about it.

Thus, the two followed Hua Xiaoling all the way into the research institute.

Hua Xiaoling took Lin Xian and Kiki to take an elevator downward.

Lin Xian had completely underestimated the scale of this research institute. Aside from the large test fields, the research institutions were basically buried deep underground.

"Lin Xian," Kiki walked beside him and asked in a low voice: "Did they bully you just now?"

Lin Xian shook his head. He was somewhat surprised by some of the research being conducted in this test field; there were even eerie entities present.

"Such a large test field, why can't it be seen from the outside?" Lin Xian asked Hua Xiaoling, who was leading the way.

Hua Xiaoling said: "That's because our test field is built inside a canopy dome, with the outer surface covered in reflective panels. Using optical projection, the scene on the other side is projected onto the reflective panels. To the outside world, everything here is invisible."

Hearing this, Kiki opened her small mouth in surprise: "My god, so your test field is completely invisible?"

Lin Xian asked Hua Xiaoling curiously: "Your research institute doesn't look like it was built recently. Was it built before the Apocalypse Day?"

This research institute included ground and underground projects, and even directly built a small town and a canopy dome. Such a massive amount of construction work, if said to have been built within a few months, was simply shocking. Like Underground City No. 9, large amounts of construction traces could be seen around it, but here, there were none at all.

Hua Xiaoling said directly: "This place was originally a large-scale war and biochemical test base built by the Foundation in conjunction with multiple countries. Because it had a government background, the early construction was highly classified and was never known to the outside world."

"Before the Polar Night arrived, the security level of this research institute was considered safe. If you are willing, you can rest here for a while longer. We can provide whatever help you need."

"I suggest you make full preparations, because next you will be crossing the edge of the Star Abyss, and many unknown disasters will be beyond your anticipation."

"How come it sounds like you seem to know a lot about the dark night?" Lin Xian frowned: "What exactly does your Foundation do?"

Kiki also said: "Yeah, you conduct these tests, create these monsters, what exactly is it for?"

Hua Xiaoling suddenly stopped, turned around, and said meaningfully to Lin Xian and Kiki.

"To save humanity."

Upon hearing this, Lin Xian and Kiki both fell silent.

"The two of you, I want to ask you: do you think the descent of darkness is, for humanity, destruction or opportunity?"

"Opportunity?" Lin Xian frowned: "The people of this world are almost all dead. Where is the opportunity?"

Hua Xiaoling said while walking: "Since Mr. Lin has mechanical superpowers, you must be very knowledgeable about machinery. There is a common sense in the mechanical field: that is, in machines of equal efficiency, the simpler the mechanical structure, the better its stability and failure rate. Applying this law to sociology and even civilization, it is the same. If an organization or a civilization has an increasingly complex internal management structure, the communication costs become higher, and the organizational efficiency becomes lower. And under the same level of civilization, a civilization with a simpler organizational structure and higher efficiency will definitely be the most excellent civilization at present, and it will definitely eliminate civilizations with complex structures."

"Therefore, the scientific community generally believes that a higher-dimensional civilization must possess higher production efficiency. Compared to our human civilization, it is already a dimensional reduction strike."

Kiki listened, feeling completely confused: "What exactly are you trying to say?"

At this moment, Hua Xiaoling brought the two to a room at the end of a corridor. After pressing the password, the door opened. After walking in, they discovered that this room had a row of seats, and in front was a large floor-to-ceiling window. At this moment, the window was pitch black, and the situation outside could not be seen clearly.

"Our research institute happens to have a test regarding this aspect. If the two of you are interested, you can learn about it, and perhaps you will understand what I mean."

"Another test?" Lin Xian looked at Hua Xiaoling: "What do you want to do this time?"

Hua Xiaoling smiled faintly: "Don't worry, this test has nothing to do with the two of you. You are both just observers."

Hua Xiaoling signaled for the two to sit down, and then, seemingly remembering something, said to Lin Xian.

"By the way, this test has another purpose. If Mr. Lin is interested later, I will inform you in detail." After speaking, she turned and clapped her hands.

Click~

The lights in the room went out, and the black floor-to-ceiling window in front flickered and began to become transparent.

At this moment, Lin Xian and Kiki saw that outside the window, it was actually an empty, large room, and toward the direction closer to Lin Xian and Kiki, eight compartments appeared.

The lights in these eight small compartments lit up in an orderly fashion, like a secret interrogation room in a police station. On both sides of each small compartment was black glass, behind was a wall, and in front was a piece of transparent floor-to-ceiling glass.

The layout inside the compartments was the same: metal stools, metal tables. Eight people dressed differently, with silver shackles on their hands, were unconscious in their respective positions. Some were lying prone, some were lying supine.

Outside the glass wall was a massive black space. The faint light in the room couldn't probe into the depths, looking terrifyingly profound.

As the lights in each compartment lit up, the photosensitive reaction began to make some people's eyelids tremble, feeling the strangeness, and slowly waking up.

Lin Xian and Kiki watched this scene, their expressions changing instantly.

"What... what is this for?" Kiki asked in surprise.

"An interesting scientific experiment," Hua Xiaoling said in a calm tone.

Lin Xian's eyes sharpened, his gaze swept over Hua Xiaoling beside him, and then fell back into the room ahead.

The person in Room No. 7, closest to him, was a young man with messy hair. He seemed to be the first to wake up, looking at the surrounding environment with a confused expression.

From his horrified eyes, it could be seen that the current situation was completely beyond his expectations.

"What the hell."

The young man cursed in a low voice.

Immediately, the young man looked at the shackles on his hands, his expression changed drastically, and he began to struggle in terror.

But in the next instant, a sound of electric current came, Beep!

The shackles suddenly bit into his wrists like a living thing, and at the same time, a massive electric current surged over!

"Ah!!"

Stinging pain, paralysis, worse than death!

The young man gritted his teeth, almost fainting on the spot. As if it were some kind of punishment, after a burst of intense pain, the electric current suddenly disappeared.

After panting for a while, the young man seemed to realize that he had been imprisoned.

At this moment, the people in the other rooms had also woken up. Swish!

With a slight sound, the partition glass of the rooms instantly became transparent. Everyone was startled, looking at their companions around them with confusion and terror. The shackles on their hands made one woman scream.

"Ah!!!"

"Let me go!!" a man shouted loudly.

"Qiao Min! Qiao Min!"

Just when the others didn't know why they had appeared in this place, a man of about thirty seemed to see someone he recognized.

He stretched his neck and shouted toward the third room to his right.

"Ah?! Husband!"

A young and beautiful woman heard the voice and hurriedly responded.

These two were a married couple.

"Damn it, what is this place!" In Room No. 2, a middle-aged man dressed relatively decently roared hysterically.

The bizarre scene left everyone somewhat lost.

!

Hum~

A large light suddenly lit up, and the bizarre sound instantly made everyone in the room quiet down.

Looking forward, they saw that outside the glass wall was a massive room with no floor; below was a bottomless abyss.

Just then, the hollow room flickered, and a massive red head slowly descended. The red head wore a strange black hat, looking like some kind of holographic projection.

At the same time, a low, monster-like voice sounded again.

"Hello, everyone."

"It is an honor to inform you all that you have become the specially invited experimenters for Institution No. 2 tonight. I believe you have all noticed your current situation. I am very happy to see you all. Let me introduce myself: I am the 'Hatter', the host of this game."

The scene before them was truly somewhat bizarre, and a massive red head made people feel a chill at first glance.

The middle-aged man in Room No. 2 was clearly a short-tempered guy. He reacted and immediately slapped the table in anger.

"No! I don't want to participate! Let me out, I quit! I quit!"

Zzzzt!

A high-energy electric current sound suddenly rang out, and instantly followed by a scream.

"Ah!!!!"

The middle-aged man's shackles transmitted a massive electric current. His whole body was electrocuted until his muscles went rigid, and he howled in pain.

Boom! At this moment, in Room No. 6 next to the young man, a bald fatty suddenly shouted. The skin on his hands began to turn into gray granite, and then he pulled violently, intending to break the shackles.

In the room, Lin Xian and Kiki's gazes sharpened. This was actually a superpower user!

Just when everyone thought the small shackles would be easily broken by him, the fatty encountered the same situation as the middle-aged man.

The shackles, like slender snakes, suddenly locked tight, directly shattering the granite skin inch by inch!

Pfft!

In an instant, blood flowed like a fountain, the skin burst open, and a scream rang out!

"Ah!!!"

At this moment, the massive red head watched this scene quietly from the front, wearing a bizarre smile.

Everyone was shocked by this scene. Everyone looked at the shackles on their own hands, and a sense of unease began to spread in everyone's hearts.

"Everyone, don't struggle, this thing has a mechanism!" Room No. 4 was a thin young man in tattered outdoor mountaineering gear. Judging by his cracked lips, he was suffering from severe dehydration.

Seemingly satisfied with the quiet scene at this moment, the red head continued to speak.

"If you are ready, the game can begin."

As soon as the words fell, everyone panicked.

"Game... wh, what game?"

"What exactly do you want us to do?!"

"What is this place, some kind of laboratory?"

"Are you human or a ghost??"

Lin Xian noticed that the young man in Room No. 7 in front of him didn't say a word, his gaze constantly observing the surrounding environment and people, looking much calmer than the others. At the same time, he also began to observe the people in these 8 rooms.

The man in Room No. 1 who tried to stand up and greet the woman in Room No. 3 wore square-framed glasses and looked to be in his thirties, with a somewhat scholarly air.

The middle-aged man in Room No. 2 was very strange. Under the apocalypse, he was well-dressed and glowing with health, not looking like he was fleeing at all.

The woman in Room No. 3 should be the wife of the bespectacled man in Room No. 1. The woman looked terrified, her gaze constantly looking around and shivering.

The thin young man in Room No. 4 didn't look very old, and his tattered appearance clearly showed he was also struggling to survive in the apocalypse.

Room No. 5 was a blonde woman, looking relatively calm, with an extraordinary temperament.

Room No. 6 was the superpower user whose skin could transform into rock just now, a bald fatty who looked to be in his forties, currently looking extremely painful and miserable.

As for the young man in front of Lin Xian, he was in Room No. 7. To his right, in Room No. 8, was a girl who didn't look very old, with somewhat messy hair and a dirty body.

The girl had been keeping her head buried, and only now, hearing the voices of the people around her, did she slowly raise her head.

And when Lin Xian looked, the girl's facial features were actually exceptionally exquisite. Although she was covered in dirt, she couldn't hide that beautiful temperament.

At this moment, Lin Xian looked at Hua Xiaoling, seemingly understanding that under this apocalypse, this research institute had found a group of people to start some kind of experimental game.

"What do you mean by letting us watch this?" Lin Xian asked directly.

"Don't be nervous," Hua Xiaoling said in a calm tone: "This is just one of the projects in our research institute. You just need to quietly act as observers."

Upon hearing this, Lin Xian and Kiki both detected a subtle aura in each other's gazes.

Watching those survivors outside the window conducting an experimental game was truly somewhat bizarre.

Below, in the test hall.

"It can be seen that everyone has a common question."

The projected red head suddenly disappeared. In the innermost part of the abyss room, a light lit up, and only then did everyone see that it was a massive glass display case.

And inside the display case was a mountain of supplies piled up with all kinds of food, water, weapons, and even various daily necessities!!

Everyone's pupils contracted upon seeing this scene, and even their thoughts stopped.

"The supplies here are enough for one person to live for 10 years. This will be the reward for the winner of the game." The red head appeared again.

"Then... what about those who don't win?"

Someone asked in panic.

The others were also pulled back from the shock of the supply mountain, their gazes nervously watching the front.

The red phantom was like a living thing, seemingly able to 'gaze' at everyone.

"According to the game rules, the eliminated players will be directly executed."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's faces changed drastically!

Are you kidding?!

"No! No! No! I don't want to play this game! Let me out, I quit! I quit!!"

The young man in Room No. 4 was clearly panicked upon hearing this and immediately shouted in terror.

Zzzzt!

A hair-raising electric current sound came again.

The young man trembled all over, presenting a strange, spasming posture.

In an instant, a burnt-smelling mist rose from his body.

"Urgh~"

The electric current stopped. This young man, who had been full of energy just a moment ago, now collapsed on the chair in pain, foaming at the mouth, looking at the red head with terrified eyes, panting continuously, not daring to speak again.

Everyone was scared by this scene.

It seemed that as long as there was any thought of resistance, they would be punished.

At this moment, everyone quieted down, no one daring to speak again, fearing that if they were not careful, they would be the next to be punished.

"Oh~, it seems everyone is a smart person, which makes me look forward to it even more."

The red head smiled, emitting a sinister sound.

"Next, I announce, the first round of the game is... 【Jump】"

"Its" words seemed to strike a heavy blow to everyone's hearts. At this moment, the red head disappeared again.

Rumble!

At this moment, the floor of the massive room ahead slowly rose. The floor was made of square black metal, and beneath it seemed to be a mechanical structure. Everyone only heard clanging sounds; those square floors would sometimes rise and sometimes fall, revealing massive holes.

Everyone understood immediately upon seeing it.

It was just like the scenes in early video games; if you stepped into the void, you would fall to your death.

"Please allow me to introduce to everyone, the name of this game is 'Jump'. As the name implies, it is to jump to the floor with a landing point, jumping 1 square at a time, until passing through this room, which is considered a success."

Lin Xian was somewhat surprised upon hearing this. He had been observing carefully. Although the area where the floor disappeared seemed to have no pattern, the support and disappearance time were consistent.

It changed about once every 5 seconds, and the area where it was empty was overall smaller than the area with the floor.

In other words, as long as you grasped the 5-second gap to jump, it should actually be very simple.

The eight people below, including Kiki, had almost the same thoughts as Lin Xian. Perhaps this kind of game was a high test of psychological quality and on-the-spot reaction, but it didn't look very difficult.

But what the red head said next left everyone completely dumbfounded.

"Next is a supplementary explanation: the participants in this game are voluntary, limited to 1 person. After entering the room, they will be blindfolded throughout, and the remaining 7 rooms will give the participants hints in an unknown order to jump."

What kind of bizarre game is this?

"Wait, blindfolded?? Doesn't that mean if someone outside the field gives the wrong hint, that participant will be killed?!"

The bespectacled man in Room No. 1 said with a terrified expression.

"Yes. If the clearance is successful, all 8 people will gain survival and freedom. If the clearance fails, the supply reward will be obtained by the 【Murderer】, and the 【Murderer】 will also gain survival and freedom, while the others will proceed to the next game."

The red head's voice was like a cold steel needle, piercing straight into everyone's hearts.

This game was completely different from what everyone had imagined!

"What? Is it that simple? If successful, all of us can leave??" The man in Room No. 1 immediately spoke.

"It doesn't sound very difficult."

The woman in Room No. 3, seeing her husband speak, also gathered her courage and said: "What is more important than life? As long as everyone cooperates, we can all be free immediately!"

"Wait, can the 8 of us communicate and discuss?"

Just then, the woman in Room No. 5, who had been silent, suddenly spoke. Her voice was cold, and compared to the others, she appeared calmer: "I mean, before the game starts."

"Of course," the red head replied: "In each round of the game, you have 30 minutes to discuss. After the game starts, the room will be sealed and soundproofed. If no one participates in the game after 30 minutes, then everyone is declared to have failed the game."

The red head's voice was loud, echoing in everyone's hearts.

Everyone saw a countdown on the screen rapidly ticking down: 27:36, 27:35...

"My god! ~" The woman in Room No. 3 immediately covered her mouth and screamed, shivering all over as she watched the countdown.

"I don't think we should waste time."

The middle-aged man in Room No. 2 had a face like water, looking sternly at all the rooms to his right.

"Whoever is willing, stand out!"

"Wait!"

The bespectacled man in Room No. 1 pretended to be calm: "This game definitely requires our cooperation, so, are there any superpower users among us, or does anyone have any special skills? Everyone can introduce themselves. Maybe there are other solutions?"

He said this very vaguely, but everyone understood his meaning.

Let the superpower users stand out.

But after he finished speaking, he heard no response, so he took the lead and said:

"I... I am called Han Dong. Before the Polar Night, I was a math teacher. I... I don't have superpowers."

Seeing her husband speak, the woman in Room No. 3 also hurriedly said: "I am called Qiao Min. I am just a salesperson and don't have superpowers either. Han Dong and I are a married couple..."

"I don't think there's a need for self-introductions."

Just then, the woman in Room No. 5 also followed up. As soon as she finished speaking, everyone's gazes instantly fell upon her.

She looked cold and serious, saying directly: "This game looks very simple, but in reality, there are two problems: the sacrifice and the traitor."

"The sacrifice needs to bear the risk of being betrayed, while for the others, there is no risk. On the contrary, the traitor can grasp the initiative. As long as they kill someone, they can guarantee their own survival and obtain a large amount of supplies."

As soon as her words were spoken, the atmosphere instantly became subtle.

It seemed that everyone surviving only required a moment of unity, but no one could feel at ease. Under the apocalypse, these people had a deeper understanding of human nature, and wanting to give trust was so difficult.

Time ticked by. The young man in Room No. 4 looked around, too nervous to sit still, so he spoke directly:

"Then let's introduce ourselves. I am called Fang Xiaonian, just a student. No superpowers, but my body has evolved, and my movements are relatively agile."

"None of you have superpowers? Hmph, all of you are pretending to be innocent," the bald fatty in Room No. 6 said with disdain, cold light flashing in his eyes: "I am called Wang Anjian, I have superpowers."

"Zhao Bo, enhancement-type superpower," the middle-aged man in Room No. 2, dressed in a suit, said calmly.

The young man in Room No. 7 also said nervously: "I am called Chen Jia, just a machine gunner for a regular convoy, no superpowers."

The girl in Room No. 8 raised her head in fear: "I... I am called Wang Duo. I was a student before, now I am a... prostitute for a large convoy."

Upon hearing this, everyone's gazes changed instantly.

The bald fatty Wang Anjian glanced at her lightly and said sarcastically: "Indeed, she has some beauty. If she were in my convoy, I would keep her to play with too."

His words made Wang Duo shrink her neck, trembling extremely unnaturally, yet she still kept her head down without any anger or response, leaving only silent fear. It could be seen that her life after the apocalypse was not pleasant.

When everyone else had finished introducing themselves, everyone's gazes fell squarely on the blonde woman in Room No. 5.

The woman's expression shifted, and she finally said in a low voice: "Tan Meng... wing-type superpower user."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's expressions changed, and their gazes toward her became complex.

No wonder she didn't want to introduce herself. It turned out she had the superpower to fly and hover. In this way, this jumping game was completely effortless for her!

Tan Meng's face turned gloomy. Feeling everyone's gazes, she lowered her eyes and said: "Don't look at me. I won't go up to jump, but I can guarantee that I won't be a traitor."

"But you can fly. Even if you fall, you won't..." Qiao Min in Room No. 3 said anxiously at this moment.

"Hmph." Zhao Bo in Room No. 2 snorted with disdain: "This test field captured us and brought us here, do you think they wouldn't consider the special nature of superpower users?"

His words instantly made the room quiet down again.

The self-introductions took about ten minutes, but the few still hadn't discussed any results.

"Alright, everyone has introduced themselves. Who wants to participate?"

Zhao Bo in Room No. 2 acted as if he were high and mighty, saying loudly.

After the introductions were finished, returning to the main topic, everyone fell silent again.

Countdown 16 minutes remaining.

Just then, Fang Xiaonian in Room No. 4 said timidly: "I... I want to share my thoughts."

Everyone looked over.

"We can all hold up numbers with our hands at the same time. Whoever's number doesn't repeat, that person goes up. Of course, we all reach a consensus in advance, that is, everyone must work together, cannot betray, and then everyone survives together."

As soon as Fang Xiaonian's words were spoken, the others began to think.

This sounded like the most appropriate and helpless method. The 8 people had different expressions, and at this moment, they seemed to have reached a consensus.

"Alright, since everyone has no objections, let's start."

Then Fang Xiaonian clenched his fists and looked left and right: "I'll count to three, everyone show your numbers together."

The air became heavy.

"3"

"2"

"1"

Everyone showed their numbers together and immediately looked at the others.

At this moment, only Tan Meng in Room No. 5 held up a '1' and was successfully selected. Everyone's gazes looked over.

Tan Meng's face turned pale, and her raised hand began to tremble uncontrollably. Her mouth twitched, and she suddenly said anxiously: "No, I don't want to participate. No one can force me!!"

As soon as these words were spoken, Wang Anjian in Room No. 6 immediately sneered: "Sure enough, useless. Everyone just wait to die together!"

Everyone had different expressions, falling into silence again, watching the countdown decrease second by second, and a suffocating feeling began to well up in their hearts.

And there were 3 minutes left.

Just when everyone was at their wit's end, an extremely faint sound suddenly rang out.

"I can go."

In the room above, Lin Xian frowned, his gaze following the direction to the right, because that faint sound came from Wang Duo in Room No. 8.

And Kiki at this moment also felt a tug in her heart, unable to help but secretly grab Lin Xian's hand.

Below, Wang Anjian in Room No. 6 looked at her with a strange expression and suddenly hummed with a laugh.

"Alright, I support you. I'll definitely give you the correct answer."

He said this with a sinister tone, and no one believed he would really be that kind.

In Wang Anjian's view, a woman who had become a plaything in the apocalypse was not worth his attention. He was even somewhat secretly happy that someone was willing to be the first to step on a mine.

"Really? Are you really going?" Qiao Min, seeing someone willing to go, hurriedly and decisively said: "I... I am willing to support you."

"I definitely will!" Han Dong shouted loudly.

"And me..." Fang Xiaonian also hurriedly expressed his stance.

"I definitely support you!" Tan Meng in Room No. 5 hurriedly said excitedly.

Zhao Bo in Room No. 2 raised his hand at this moment: "Whoever it is, if they become a traitor, then I will definitely kill them when I get out next round!"

His voice was cold, seemingly very domineering.

But at this moment, it seemed no one took it to heart.

Chen Jia in Room No. 7 looked at the thin girl beside him in surprise. With a pale face, he nodded repeatedly, his lips dry as he said: "I... I support you!"

Everyone instantly became enthusiastic. Aside from feeling incredible that someone could take the initiative to stand out, they were more ecstatic that they had a chance to survive.

Wang Duo sat there without raising her head, her eyes devoid of sorrow or joy, carrying a sense of indifference. After saying that sentence, one could even feel a trace of relief from her.

"0:00"

Following a long silence, the countdown ended.

The massive red head appeared again, scanning everyone with a bizarre smile.

"Very good. It seems our first challenger for tonight has been selected."

As soon as these words were spoken, the hearts of the other 7 people finally settled halfway.

The red head emitted a low, strange sound.

"Next, the game begins!"

Click!

At this moment, the partitions of all the rooms turned pitch black again, and at the same time, the sounds around them were completely isolated.

A small screen floated up on the metal table in front of the 8 people, with three buttons on it.

They were ↑ 【Forward】, ← 【Left】, → 【Right】.

An indicator light was gray.

This meant that if the indicator light lit up, then the corresponding room needed to give Wang Duo instructions.

According to the movement trajectory of the floor.

There was only 5 seconds of time.

Give the correct instruction, Wang Duo survives.

Give the wrong instruction, Wang Duo dies.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 227 =====