Chapter 5: The Rolling Dice

The Second Branch of the Bunker Security Bureau.

Through the surveillance monitors, Liu Jinsen knew that Wen Xishu had already entered the Three Towers world.

Wen Xishu was now his responsibility; he hardly needed to concern himself with anything else.

He did not want it this way; if he could, he would have preferred to do more for the people at the bottom.

But regarding his superiors' arrangements, he could only choose to obey.

Only after confirming that Wen Xishu had ascended the tower did he make a phone call.

"Liu sir, why are you calling? Is there medicine available?"

The voice on the other end of the line was agitated, but Liu Jinsen’s words poured a bucket of cold water over him:

"Apologies, no one has brought back any medicine yet."

Liu Jinsen’s call was to the Bunker Health Bureau.

Currently, an epidemic was raging in the lowest residential levels, and many people had been infected.

Medicine in the lower levels was in a state of severe shortage.

This disease was still spreading and diffusing; due to the high population density of the lower levels, implementing a complete quarantine was difficult.

In particular, the white and black people in the lower levels of the bunker were fond of flaunting their freedom; they always refused quarantine and were very adept at using human rights as an excuse.

This also caused the epidemic to become increasingly fierce.

"What is the situation now?"

"It’s very bad. Our medicine is severely lacking, the lower-level population is too dense, and the epidemic is spreading too fast. It is said that in the levels above... some people have been infected as well?"

Liu Jinsen did not answer this question, and the person from the Bunker Health Bureau continued:

"To be honest, we all want to give up; after all, this isn't the first time an epidemic has broken out."

"But previously, it was always the elderly who suffered, yet this time, the young are suffering along with them."

"If we don't save these young people, when the time comes that the number of explorations of the Three Towers is insufficient... it will trigger the Great Devouring, and the consequences will be unimaginable."

Liu Jinsen merely gave a grunt of acknowledgment.

Yes, the bunker had experienced rampant disease before, but it had only claimed the lives of the elderly.

The bunker’s upper echelons had expressed indifference toward this.

Just as before the bunker era arrived, a certain island nation's official believed that an epidemic could effectively solve the aging population problem...

They felt that if the elderly died, they died, and there was no need to deal with it. Unless the elderly were willing to work overtime until they were seventy, seventy-five, eighty...

But this time was different; this time, many young people in the bunker were also affected.

If they could not bring back a sufficient quantity of medicine as soon as possible to extinguish the epidemic, then the reduction in the young population would lead to a reduction in the core strength for exploring the Three Towers.

If the number of explorations of the Three Towers was insufficient, triggering the Great Devouring... that would be a massive calamity for the human camp.

"Liu sir, if it weren't for the fact that I lack the ability, I would want to go to the Slaughter Tower and give it a shot."

"At a time like this, whoever can bring back medicine is a hero!" the Health Bureau staff member sighed on the phone.

Liu Jinsen only responded coolly:

"Understood, I know the situation, thank you for your hard work."

Liu Jinsen hung up the phone.

Right now, he desperately wished he could head to the Slaughter Tower to fight the enemy with all his might; even bringing back a small portion of medicine would be good.

But now, he could do nothing, because his superiors required him to focus all his energy on one person.

Wen Xishu.

As a pragmatist, Liu Jinsen would not pin his hopes on ethereal, illusory things.

For example, counting on Wen Xishu to bring something back from the Trick Tower.

In fact, he did not even believe Wen Xishu would be able to return alive.

Wen Xishu naturally was not dead yet, but he had no idea how long he could survive.

After the option [Whether to roll] appeared, he did not hesitate and chose yes.

Facing new things, he was like stock investors facing a bull market—abnormally bold.

After all, even without rolling the dice, judging by the various existing risks, the probability of him clearing the Trick Tower was very low.

It was better to use some unknown means and take a gamble.

Wen Xishu gambled, and the result was—gamblers never meet a good end.

The result: three ones.

The red die, the white die, and the black die—the points on all three dice were one.

[Please select one from the following effects.]

[1: Triple High. (Tower ascension level x3; can be triggered when the points on the three dice are the same.)]

[2: Power of Three Phases. (Can simultaneously use the abilities and rules of three tower systems; can be triggered when the points on the three dice are the same.)]

[3: Minimalism. (Level too low, description cannot be obtained. Triggered when the points on the three dice are less than five.)]

[Due to the lack of a current school of thought and a level that is too low, "Power of Three Phases" and "Minimalism" cannot be triggered. This tower ascension level x3.]

And so, a newbie with zero magic resistance and level one was, inexplicably, teleported to the twenty-first floor of the Trick Tower.

This was a level that newcomers, and even many veterans, could not reach for a very long time.

The reason it was the twenty-first floor, and not the third, was because the level one travels to in the Three Towers fluctuates randomly within a certain range.

When a newcomer ascends the tower, it fluctuates between the first and seventh floors; a very small number of people with extremely bad luck are assigned to the sixth or seventh floor.

Wen Xishu was originally going to head to the seventh floor, but now it had become the twenty-first.

Without a doubt, according to the saying that the further back the level, the stronger the monsters—

Although he did not know what area he was about to enter, it was definitely an area where monsters could kill him in seconds.

"Wen Zhaohua really is my own brother, a master at setting his younger brother up."

Muttering to himself, Wen Xishu was not overly annoyed.

In his view, the dice's ability was bug-level.

He could vaguely sense what a perverted ability it was to be able to use the abilities and rules of three tower systems simultaneously.

If the Desire Tower sequence were in the Slaughter Tower, wouldn't that be a walking succubus?

If the Slaughter Tower sequence were in the Desire Tower, wouldn't that be a cultivator descending to a mundane world?

Of course, Wen Xishu did not actually know the specific operational details, and for himself in the newbie phase, he had not yet made certain preparatory arrangements.

The surrounding scene was constantly changing, with countless white lines crisscrossing to construct the area he was about to arrive in.

And in his mind, new information appeared.

[Task Description: Welcome to the Trick Tower. You have received a plea for help from Jennifer, a tower resident on the twenty-first floor of the Trick Tower.

On the twenty-first floor of the Trick Tower, there is a special old building from which sounds of sinister laughter emerge from time to time.

You have infiltrated the old building and successfully made contact with Jennifer. But this building, which has already been polluted, seems different from when you arrived.

The path to leave here has become strange and complex.

Taking Jennifer out of this building will result in a higher rating, or perhaps your abilities are only enough to escape alone.

Of course, it is also hoped that you can perform even more extreme actions.]

This message quickly vanished from his mind, and Wen Xishu began his first Three Towers game.

Trick Tower, twenty-first floor.

Location, Moen City slums, Jennifer’s home.

Wen Xishu was indeed somewhat surprised that his starting point was actually the comfort zone of the neighbor—under the bed.

He was lying under the bed, one hand supporting his body, the other hand covering a little girl’s mouth.

This little girl had freckles that Westerners considered cute, wore her hair in a ponytail, and her large eyes were blinking; she should have been pretty.

But the fear in her eyes made her face look slightly terrifying.

Their situation was very dire.

"Jennifer—where are you? Say something!"

"My dear Jen—ni—fer! I will find you, I am about to hear your heartbeat, hehe."

A man’s voice came from not far away, permeated with a perverted excitement.

Wen Xishu quickly figured out the situation. The Three Towers was not just one tower; the Three Towers encompassed an entire world.

A certain area of a certain level might just be a corner of that vast original world.

His task was a rescue mission, and the girl hiding under the bed with him was presumably Jennifer.

And the male calling for Jennifer was likely a dangerous individual.

That is, the reason Jennifer needed to flee this building.

Wen Xishu was about to speak to ask Jennifer for some details. But the moment he was about to open his mouth, a sense of crisis struck him with a roar.

In his previous life, Wen Xishu’s name could be said to have been flickering on and off the Book of Life and Death for years. His video comment sections were full of comments like "waiting to attend the funeral feast."

This also gave him an extraordinary sense of smell for death.

Wen Xishu noticed that Jennifer was holding a mobile phone, and the phone was set to silent mode.

And his own hand was covering Jennifer’s mouth.

The chill of death enveloped Wen Xishu in an instant, but he endured it, not allowing himself to make any movements.

Even his breathing was light.

"Jennifer! Where on earth are you! Let me hear your voice, will you!" the freak's cry came again.

Wen Xishu had not expected this game to be so malicious, actually having a starting kill; no wonder no one was willing to come to the Weird Tower.

Jennifer's silenced phone, the covered mouth, and the content expressed by the freak's words...

All seemed to indicate that as long as one spoke, the freak would be able to hear it.

Clearly, the other party's hearing could not possibly be targeted only at Jennifer.

If a Tower Climber were here and habitually opened their mouth to ask a question—

Then in all likelihood, that freak would charge directly at their face and find Jennifer.

The game would end immediately.

Of course, there was also the possibility of solving the monster with force and clearing the level by strength.

But Wen Xishu's magic resistance value was 0.

And this was the twenty-first floor of the Weird Tower; for him, this level required too much magic resistance.

Having magic resistance that was too low would result in many negative effects—

Being unable to see the normal analysis of items, being unable to deal damage to enemies, the enemy's damage instantly killing oneself, and at times, the world in one's eyes becoming indescribable...

In short, Wen Xishu did not possess the feasibility to clear the level by force, at least not at the current stage.

The freak's voice was getting louder and louder, not because he was shouting with more effort, but because his distance...

Was getting closer and closer.

Staying hidden under the bed would surely lead to death.

But if he rashly left from under the bed, the sound produced would also instantly attract the freak.

This was almost a dead end.

(End of this chapter)