Chapter 696: Correct

Silently waiting for explanation.

The man's exoskeleton armor began to wriggle.

Like sucking milk.

The spikes extending from the bone armor grew into the triangular monster beneath his feet.

The sucking sound, as if the bone armor on his body were alive, greedily devouring the flowing liquid.

"Delicious, strong..."

"Right?"

Inside the crystal ball, the old man suddenly changed the subject, glancing furtively at the commander's armor.

His expression stalled.

The commander who was about to reply to the Military Region information oddly glanced at the old man.

His expression was not very natural.

That's right.

The dungeon plan's bestowed transformation ability is indeed strong.

The bone armor on his body belongs neither to equipment nor to props.

Thus it is not restricted by the system, providing him extra combat power.

Otherwise, he actually has no confidence to single-handedly resolve a Judicator (Triangular).

The triangular monster that had just been decomposed under his feet still retained tenacious vitality, but under the absorption of the bone spikes, it gradually withered.

Silent struggle, twitching.

That which was eaten into his body, like a fluid substance, actually gave him a pleasurable feeling.

Essentially...

He is actually eating the monster raw.

Perhaps deep inside, there is always a voice telling him that doing this makes him hardly different from the monster.

Resistance.

The commander silently and unconsciously covered the protruding bone spur, not intending to answer this question.

His voice hoarse:

"We need... to explain."

"Or rather... what should we do."

The military group inside the trial tower kept asking him.

Not long until the next alarm, he must come up with a feasible plan.

And hope lies in the old man before him.

Seeing the old man not responding for a long time, as if lost in thought.

The commander opened his mouth, subconsciously adding:

"We do not doubt you."

"Just..."

He spoke halfway, not knowing how to open his mouth.

The man's origin is too mysterious; he also knows a lot of apocalypse information.

Even though the commander is a military representative, he only knows part of the old man's information.

This existence is likely a survivor of the previous apocalypse game.

High level, they trust the old man a lot.

The dark blue shadow inside the crystal ball, hearing the voice, smiled indifferently, a hint of hidden emotion flashed in his eyes.

"Actually nothing."

"The trial tower had an accident, which I indeed didn't expect."

"But the impact is not big."

While speaking, he sighed, his eyes showing recollection, his spiritual body flickering rapidly.

"The trial tower I previously participated in is actually similar to this one."

"But the difficulty isn't that great, but speaking of it..."

"Essentially, it also continually forces the trial-takers' potential, seeking to break the gene lock's limitation."

"The difficulty mutation might be due to premature activation."

It's considered an explanation to himself.

The old man pretended to be relaxed and slowed his tone:

"Maybe it's still a good thing..."

"The higher the difficulty, the greater the reward."

"This time, we might be able to produce many more third-rank."

Gripping the crystal ball, the commander frowned tightly and did not relax his vigilance despite the old man's reassurance.

He couldn't help but ask:

"Alright, then let's assume so."

"What do you think we should do next?"

"Choose... which method?"

Looking at the three rules, he felt only a chill in his heart.

Time is pressing.

The old man saw the worry in the commander's heart and, without hesitation, opened his mouth to say:

"Kill other Awakened Ones!"

"This is the correct choice!"

Kill five, and you get a quota to promote to three Fourth Rank! That's worth it!

He felt slightly excited.

"Even, if the opponent has points, killing just two or three of them is enough!"

Not giving the commander time to think, the old man spoke rapidly, adding point by point:

"I know you'll definitely ask why we didn't choose the second or third option."

"Or perhaps all three paths can be pursued simultaneously."

"Killing one's own kind, that point, is indeed not good."

The commander subconsciously nodded; that was indeed what he wanted to ask.

The old man put away his smile, his expression solemn, his voice low:

"Give up fantasies!"

"You should be very clear about this."

"The missions given by the Doomsday System usually have a way to survive, rather than being a dead-end option."

"This principle applies to all situations!"

"In other words, the easiest survival path to find is also the most suitable for you!"

After a brief pause, the old man suddenly raised his head and said:

"Do not doubt this!"

"Do not think the other options will be better."

"Among the three options, think carefully: is killing Awakened Ones the simplest?"

"If we choose to kill monsters for points, how many of us do you think will die?"

"Moreover, if you're unwilling to kill others, do you really think the Awakened Ones in other war zones will just sit idle?"

He snorted.

The old man turned his head toward the distance where the mist had cleared, a sharp tower top that looked like a church.

"Prisoner's dilemma."

"Any war zone that tries not to attack humans will eventually become prey for other war zones!"

"As long as one war zone harbors the idea of hunting humans, everyone will be forced to do so!"

"If you don't kill, others will!"

"It's a simple truth."

"Killing people yields points, and you can also gain the points they earned from killing monsters."

"Even if they adhere to pedantic morals, they're ultimately just walking meat."

The commander did not refute; with his intelligence, he had certainly thought of this.

But he feared another possibility even more.

"If..."

"What if it's not just war zones fighting each other?"

"The punishment is so terrifying, yet the reward is so tempting."

"They have ten thousand reasons to kill their own comrades."

In a daze, the commander asked somewhat unwillingly:

"Going to the next layer would also yield high points..."

"Perhaps there are other benefits..."

He hadn't finished speaking.

The old man gave a soft hum, his expression impatient:

"I've made it perfectly clear! If you have three paths of survival before you, choose the easiest!"

"Don't fantasize about being able to complete higher-difficulty tasks."

"I've seen too many self-conceited fools who think they're the chosen ones!"

"Just being alive is a great fortune!"

"The so-called 'not necessarily dead' still has a minuscule success rate!"

His expression grew grim, as if offering heartfelt advice:

"The Doomsday System, at its core, is a brutal 'evil god'! It loves to watch us struggle in death!"

"The so-called power trial..."

Chuckling, the old man arrogantly offered his guess about the power trial:

"If you want greater strength, you must have sufficient resolve!"

"You must have the belief to sacrifice everything, sparing no cost!"

"Strength? Where does strength come from? Where does force come from?"

"Essentially, isn't it just plunder—eating other creatures' corpses to strengthen oneself?"

"What's killing other war zones? Think of our Huaxia war zone, think of the countless survivors suffering there!"

His heart shuddered.

Seeing the commander swayed by his words, the old man nodded inwardly and said directly:

"There's one more point that actually proves I'm right!"

After the alarm is triggered, there will be a brief period of Safety.

This Safety period is for finding other teams!

Otherwise, why do you think the trial is still divided into group trials? And they kindly give you a breather time?

If you want strength, how can you manage without paying some price?

The commander listened and then remained silent for a long time.

The solution offered by the other side is actually nothing special.

But indeed, as he said, I cannot find any excuse to refute.

After a moment of hesitation.

His expression turned stern, and he made up his mind.

Without hesitation, he sent a message to the military:

"Evade the monsters, and go all out to hunt other Awakened Ones!"

Since we've decided to do this, let's do it cleanly.

While other battle zones might still be hesitating, with their vigilance not so strong.

As they possess the most Awakened Ones, they will surely seize the advantage!

Inside the filthy, dim restroom partition.

Zhang Tie touched his forehead, his big palm like a fan, pulling at the charred corpse hanging from the ceiling.

The feel was stiff, like touching dried fried yellow fish.

"Lin Dui, why is hunting Awakened Ones a trap?"