chapter 148
Dust in his eyes was making Lu Li extremely uncomfortable. As he rubbed at them with his hand, he explained, “Three options. The countdown suddenly appeared without any warning, and we had to choose.
“The only difference between them is the direction of the triangle.”
In that extremely short window they could only see the pattern in a ring around them. His triangle and Mirella’s were oriented in completely opposite directions.
“The other two patterns are a circle and a square. No matter what angle you look from, they’re exactly the same.
“Of course, it’s also possible the triangles are the wrong choice and the other two are correct.” He finally rubbed the dust from his eyes and wiped away the reflexive tears at the corners with his fingertips. “But the moment I came in, I was already standing on a triangle.
“My luck has always been good, so I took a guess.
“Even if I guessed wrong, everyone still has Life-Saving Items.”
Luo Jia Bai muttered, “Next time I need to cash in for a notebook and pen. I should start writing down all the key points from the Instances you and I have already cleared.”
Seeing the faint worship in the three pairs of eyes, Lu Li couldn’t help the hint of amusement in his tone. “Half of it was a guess. What’s there to write down?”
“Of course we write it down. The other half of your analysis made perfect sense. And luck is a kind of strength too, isn’t it?”
The ground kept rumbling.
Three stone Pillars, thick enough to skewer any Player who hadn’t used an Item, rose back up amid the roar and straightened to their original upright position.
Three Players clambered out of the holes in a sorry state, half-kneeling on the ground, not yet steady on their feet. They looked at the floor and shouted in shock:
“Fuck, the countdown started again! How is it this fast?”
“Brother Liang chose right just now, it was the triangle. When we were under attack, Brother Liang never moved from his spot, but now the pattern under his feet has become a circle.”
“The patterns are changing, the patterns are refreshing!”
“What do we pick? We didn’t even figure out why the triangle was right in the first place.”
“Guess, we can only guess!”
The countdown started from 4, and the Players were visibly rattled.
Half-kneeling, Mirella pressed her palm to the glow of the pattern that had reappeared in the grid beneath her.
“It should still be the triangle.”
After entering the Instance, she hadn’t been like Lu Li, landing directly on a triangle.
She had waited for the patterns to light up, carefully comparing the energy transmitted through the beams from the three shapes, and then chosen the triangle.
“This place has some similarities to my original Mini-World. I can feel the energy. The energy in the triangle has always been twice that of the other two patterns.”
It seemed there were still magical elements in this Instance, which gave her a faint sense of familiarity.
Mirella finished her analysis.
She turned her head and found that the three of them-Lu Li and the other two-were already obediently standing on nearby triangle patterns, nodding along with complete faith in what she’d said.
Only Fenny, on her shoulder, was silently lowering his head to look down at the triangle pattern.
Fenny scratched his head in puzzlement.
He didn’t know if it was his imagination.
That feeling had been there since they first entered the Instance, but now that he could sense the energy in the pattern, it was even stronger.
There seemed to be an extremely faint trace of… Evil God power mixed in there.
Why would there be the power fluctuations of one of his colleagues inside an Instance of the Necromancer Game?
The fluctuation was very shallow.
He couldn’t tell which colleague it was.
Fenny patted his own head, hoping this was just a tiny misunderstanding.
–
The countdown ended.
Two Pillars creaked as they bent, stabbing toward the two Players who hadn’t chosen triangles.
Now that they knew the punishment mechanism, the two exchanged a look this time and chose to resist.
“Maybe each Pillar only attacks once! Run!”
As the Pillars came down, they sprinted across the surrounding grid, stepping onto other patterns as well as onto the lines that divided the squares.
Just as they’d hoped, the Pillars fell straight down in a single heavy, clumsy thrust in one direction.
But after pulling free of the ground, all five Pillars began to bend and, at an even faster, relentless pace, jabbed again and again at the two fleeing Players.
One of the Players was drenched in sweat. He stared ahead-there lay the edge of the grid. “If we make it out, maybe we’ll be saved!”
“Split up, don’t all go the same way! If we stick together it just makes it easier for it to attack!”
The Players scattered, and the stone pillars dropped after them in pursuit.
“Everyone stop! Quit running!”
The tall man who’d chosen triangle twice in a row-the one the other Players called Brother Liang-suddenly barked, “When you’re running forward, the grid in front of you is still expanding. You’re actually expanding the playing field for this stage!”
A fleeing Player rushed past the four of them, kicking up a huge cloud of dust.
A lot of dust blew straight into Luo Jia Bai’s eyes. He hurried to cover them, but it was too late; he could only cough and rub at them as his eyes watered.
Gu Yu Chu’s tone was as mild as ever as he asked, almost solicitously, “Do your eyes hurt?”
He handed Luo Jia Bai a pair of Glasses and introduced them at the same time. “Windproof Goggles. Windproof, sandproof, pollen-proof. Great for day and night, a real lifesaver if you have dry eyes. They fit the curve of your face and stay breathable even during long-term wear…”
Luo Jia Bai’s tears wouldn’t stop. “Stop reading it, stop reading the ad copy, I’ll buy! I mean, I’ll trade! Bring your Wristband a little closer, I really can’t see right now.”
Gu Yu Chu smiled as he bumped his Evil Spirit Bracelet against the other three’s Evil Spirit Bracelets.
Three sales made.
After Lu Li put on the Windproof Goggles, the focus of the Audience in the Live Stream Room gradually shifted:
[Tipped Spirit Money *15000. I feel like the Streamer looks so handsome with those Windproof Goggles on, and his clothes are so special too-pretty and practical, and they really suit his vibe.
The last Instance it was waterproof gear, this Instance it’s sandproof gear. It’s obviously a light color that should show dirt easily, but it’s still spotless! Did he exchange those clothes from the Points Shop? How come I’ve never seen any other Streamer wearing them?]
[Tipped Spirit Money *10000. The reason you’ve never seen them is because… they’re too expensive. Just that outfit he’s wearing right now costs five hundred thousand Points! Who still remembers the Streamer’s last outfit? That one cost two hundred thousand back then, I was completely stunned.
What’s strangest is, even though the Streamer keeps buying these luxury outfits, his account balance barely changes. That’s what I don’t get. Does that mean he’s not the one exchanging for them? Whatever, tipping to support the Streamer getting new clothes! A new pretty outfit every Instance!]
[Tipped Spirit Money *10000. I’m not even nearsighted, but seeing the Streamer wear Windproof Goggles makes me want a pair too. Does the Underworld sell the same model?]
[Tipped Spirit Money *12000. The Streamer’s eyes are still all red even now, I like it so much, sob. I know the Streamer’s only tearing up because the sand got in his eyes, but I really love watching him cry. I’m a pervy ghost, I’m guilty.]
[The Streamer had an absolutely god-tier tearful photo before. Does any Ghost Friend still have it saved and can share it now?]
[Sorry, Fellow Ghosts, the whole Tearful Moment Series 1 of the Streamer’s crying photos got bought out completely by a loaded Sponsor Account. Those pics are now priceless and unavailable. But I already screenshotted Tearful Moment Series 2 just now-ten-shot burst! If you want them, come find me.]
Two Players had stopped running and burned through another Life-Saving Item. Cursing under their breath, they clutched at their Points in pain.
“Triangle again! I thought the rules would keep changing. My bad for assuming it was smarter than it is.”
“We don’t even have the Instance name yet-how is it this hard already? This doesn’t feel like a normal A Grade Instance.”
The Female Player standing next to Brother Liang asked softly, “Cheng Liang, look over there-the four of them on Lu Li’s side have guessed right twice in a row, all of them! Is that just good luck, or…”
Seeing the apprehension and fear in her eyes, Cheng Liang snorted. “You’re scared before we’ve even confronted them? Don’t make the other side out to be some unstoppable force. Don’t crush our own morale.”
“This Instance isn’t a closed space, it’s a map we have to explore. A large-map Instance is better for us to move around in,” Cheng Liang said. “Remember, we came here with a mission.”