[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-pain-immunity-worried-the-villains-aren-t-twiste":3,"chapter-pain-immunity-worried-the-villains-aren-t-twiste-pain-immunity-worried-the-villains-aren-t-twiste-chapter-221":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Pain Immunity: Worried the Villains Aren’t Twisted Enough",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},687805,922,"Chapter 221: Teaming Up, Redemption of the Kidney Slicer","pain-immunity-worried-the-villains-aren-t-twiste-chapter-221",221,"\u003Cp>Lu Ce: …\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The high-level player you mentioned… you don’t mean me, do you…?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You’re inviting me to help me?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why does this feel more and more off the more I think about it…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Also, what do you mean by “safer”? You sure it’s safer following me in the game? That didn’t seem to be your impression last time we were in one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, he couldn’t say that out loud. On the surface, it just looked like she had found some top-tier player to help her climb the ranks—and maybe lend him a hand too.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So he said,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“A pro, huh? You’ve really got connections. I haven’t met any powerful players myself.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xie Antong: …\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If we’re teaming up, maybe not for now. In the game, players are sometimes allies and sometimes competitors. Doesn’t feel like a profitable setup.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xie Antong stared into Lu Ce’s eyes for a while, then nodded and said:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Alright.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though she walked away with nothing, that uneasy feeling inside her only grew stronger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because Lu Ce’s words seemed fine on the surface, but actually had major implications!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The reason players in the same faction are both allies and competitors is usually because of endgame reward distribution!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And that kind of competitive reward split is mainly tied to Perfect Completion!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In other words, his offhand remark already revealed that his mindset was aligned with that of a top-tier player.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She felt awful. If only she could use the All-Seeing Eye right now…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Neither of them spoke, but Xie Antong began glancing at Lu Ce’s hand from the corner of her eye.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a pale and smooth hand—looking… almost like it was brand new.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Given his past and experiences, should he really have a hand that looked like it had never done a day’s work?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or rather, did it look more like… it had just grown in?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She didn’t have the All-Seeing Eye, so all she could do now was focus all her energy and brainpower on memorizing every inch of his skin, texture, bones, and joints.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Ce was getting creeped out from being stared at like that. He instinctively pulled his hand back, not wanting her to see it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A day passed quickly. The only official development in the past few days was the announcement of the Dragon Team’s formation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But to those in the know, this organization had already been common knowledge for a while.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back in his dimly lit room, Lu Ce prepared for the next game.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To be honest, after two straight days of no game updates, he was starting to get nervous.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wondered if he had gone too far. If the game decided not to continue, that’d be rough.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, he had a goal. Whether the game was using him or not, he still needed to use the game to gain power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And now, Xie Antong was contacting him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In other words, Blank was contacting him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Through the game system, it was their first time talking since becoming in-game friends.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xie Antong was very straightforward in her message: she wanted to team up in the next game.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was very clear—“With your strength as Sin, there’s no way you’d be worried I’d steal your Perfect Completion, right?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It feels like there’s something wrong with the game. We’ve been matched together several times now. Who knows what level of conspiracy is behind it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“To avoid unnecessary trouble, I personally want to team up directly to minimize risk—at the very least, I won’t be placed on the opposing faction.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her words were blunt. Lu Ce read them and didn’t see any real reason to refuse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So you really were trying to help me earlier today, huh?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Also, he wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination, but her words earlier in the day had felt like a test.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So, adjusting his tone to match how Sin would normally speak, he calmly replied:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Alright.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And just like that, after the game started, Lu Ce entered his first-ever team game.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A first-time exploration of a new feature.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On Xie Antong’s side, seeing that one simple “Alright” from Sin left her momentarily unsure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Tch…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hugging her knees and curling up in her computer chair, her expression was filled with confusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That… was Sin’s reply.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though it was unbelievable that he’d agree to team up, it actually kinda fit his “I don’t care about any of this” personality.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And maybe, he was agreeing just to come beat her up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking about how she actually took the initiative to ask Sin to team up—Xie Antong felt like she had lost her mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If this were the past, she would’ve been running away from Sin!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just because of a flash of insight today, she’d really gone all-in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Maybe I’m overthinking it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“These two people… are on completely different levels…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xie Antong mumbled to herself, unsure and uneasy—when suddenly, a message from Chiyo Eine popped up on the game interface.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>—“Wanna team up?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xie Antong declined without hesitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Forget it. I’ll just observe once I’m in the game.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If I’m wrong, then… Lu Ce, I really just asked for death for you!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Please make all necessary preparations.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Please choose: become a Spectator, or a Player.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Player!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Esteemed Strongest Player, welcome to the game. This time, you’ve chosen Team Mode and will be playing alongside [Blank].】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Team Mode is the same as Normal Mode. The only difference is that you and your teammate will be on the same faction.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【As for how you recognize and help each other, that will be up to you both to decide.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The basic game prompt sounded more or less the same as always, with no major differences.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only this time, it included a prompt about being on the same faction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking at that line, Lu Ce realized this team-up wasn’t exactly what he thought it’d be.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It didn’t seem like the usual idea of teaming up to clear a Game Instance. It just guaranteed you’d be in the same game.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If this counted as teaming up, then the game had basically already been matching them by default.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Please prepare for the initial phase. Please check your backpack and items.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Player Sin, please select: do you wish to reuse a previously used Sin Mask? Your options are…】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No! Go random!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Ce was decisive. After last time, he figured it was best not to pick the other masks casually.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Player selection confirmed…】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Game initialization complete…】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Please prepare accordingly.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Game Difficulty: Hell Mode!】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Loading game… Redemption of the Kidney Slicer!】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then came that familiar wave of dizziness...\u003C\u002Fp>",1099,"2026-06-02T09:03:27.233Z",1,"novelbin.me","89f20c6dc4af7fb211429a29e10f2a0f04ade703d2580fba1a4c24f9c0a067aa","pain-immunity-worried-the-villains-aren-t-twiste-chapter-222","pain-immunity-worried-the-villains-aren-t-twiste-chapter-220",867,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fpain-immunity-worried-the-villains-aren-t-twiste-cover.jpg"]