Chapter 53

The Player closest to Luo Jia Bai exchanged for a Weapon. The killing intent was not only aimed at Luo Jia Bai, but was also covertly directed at Lu Li.

This was targeted at the person who appeared out of nowhere and directly occupied a survival slot.

Some Players were shocked, some raised doubts.

“Why doesn’t he have to go through the initial test?!”

“Who is he? I’ve never seen him before! If Feng Shan got promoted directly, I could reluctantly accept it. In the last Instance, Feng Shan led the whole team through a C Grade Instance with almost zero casualties. But him?”

“He looks so weak and useless. If we kill him, do we get that promotion slot directly?!”

Some Players even speculated from another angle, guessing if this was a shortcut to promotion offered by the Face Tentacle.

A Player charged with a knife toward Lu Li without hesitation, but before he could get close, he was knocked to the ground by the enraged Face Tentacle.

The face on the Tentacles closest to the Player bulged out.

“Crunch, crunch.”

That face bared its sharp, densely packed teeth and devoured the Player.

Severed hands and feet spilled out, and it licked them back in with its tongue.

Blood splattered out during the chewing, spraying onto every Player who was eyeing Lu Li restlessly.

All the faces repeated in unison:

“Here, my rules are the only rules. Foolish humans, do not attempt to challenge the bottom line.”

Under the threat of instant death, even if anyone still had complaints, no one dared to target Lu Li anymore.

This also lessened Luo Jia Bai’s burden a bit.

But he was still sweating profusely.

The violent elimination period given by the Face Tentacle lasted ten minutes.

Lu Li watched Luo Jia Bai continuously exchanging for Items, then exchanged for a small chair and sat down next to him. “You keep busy, I’ll go online for a while.”

Luo Jia Bai responded angrily: “[a certain plant]! If you’re going to slack off, at least don’t sound so happy about it!!”

Lu Li checked the basic info of the Live Stream Room:

[Audience: 44,597]

[Instance Live Stream Room Overall Ranking: 3rd]

[Points: 326,000]

[Real-time Bullet Comments: ON (some Bullet Comments containing spoilers or puzzle-solving guides have been blocked)]

He swiped the interface to the right, and sure enough, saw the Bullet Comments rapidly updating:

[I’ve been following the Streamer since the last Instance, watched the whole thing, now following you to this Instance. Please recognize me, I’m your die-hard ghost fan.]

[Tipped 1,000 Spirit Money. Streamer, are you alone? Want to chat? Here’s a thousand Spirit Money to start.]

[The one above is too stingy. Tipped 8,888 Spirit Money. Is the Streamer really that good at handling ghosts? I don’t believe it. Give me your contact info, let’s get in touch. Sis still has a little Spirit Money.]

Lu Li felt a bit sorry. “I’m not good at chatting.”

But he was a bit tempted by the Points.

Thinking of how much Points Fatty made in the first Instance, Lu Li sighed.

He just couldn’t learn that guy’s way with words.

Sitting properly in his little chair, Lu Li rested his chin on one hand and turned his gaze to the struggling Luo Jia Bai, coming up with an idea.

“How about I give you all a live play-by-play?”

Before the Bullet Comments could respond, Lu Li had already started with the details.

“The other side is coming at him with a knife, trying to show Luo Jia Bai his strength head-on.”

“Another person is sneaking up from behind, holding a familiar Item-the cheapest Wooden Stick. Honestly, it’s really hard to sneak around with a two-meter-tall Item. Looks like Luo Jia Bai has already noticed him. While his body faces forward, he turns his head back.”

“The Wooden Stick of the person behind gets knocked away, but his hand has already reached Luo Jia Bai’s thigh and is moving upward.”

“The three of them are tangled up at the same time. So, what will Luo Jia Bai do in this pincer attack from front and back?”

The live comments paused strangely.

[I can see the scene clearly, and the Streamer’s play-by-play is pretty accurate, but why does it feel like a truck just ran over my face?]

[Tipped 10,000 Spirit Money. Streamer, take this pen, and never walk the straight and narrow! Write whatever you want! I’m begging you!]

Luo Jia Bai: “……”
Luo Jia Bai: “Maybe you should just stop talking for now.”

The Player who was caught attempting a sneak attack was shocked. He pointed at Lu Li’s nose and cursed:

“You two! Despicable! Shameless! Cheating!”

“The official statement proved he never cheats, he’s just naturally strong!” Luo Jia Bai swung his blade and decapitated the wailing Player. “So much nonsense before dying.”

“Despicable, shameless.” Lu Li repeated with pleasure, his voice cold yet gentle. “It feels good to be the bad guy. I was never a good person anyway.”

The Bullet Comments suddenly exploded:

[Spirit Money*2000 tip, Streamer, can you use this voice to read novels? I love listening to stories. I’ll pay Spirit Money for you to buy the best microphone! I bet your bedtime stories would be amazing.]

[Spirit Money*15000 tip, Streamer, can you use this voice to curse me a couple times?]

[Upstairs?? Wait, you!? You’re all crazy! I told you, this world is just one giant Ace Admiration!!]

Luo Jia Bai finished the prolonged fight.

As the number of Players around dwindled, in the end, only eight people besides Lu Li were left standing.

Lu Li looked thoughtfully at the dazzling new vocabulary in the Bullet Comments. “Looks like there are still lots of trending online phrases. I should study them when I have time.”

Luo Jia Bai wiped the blood from his forehead, feeling like he was bleeding inside as well.

“Can’t you learn something decent?”

The Face Tentacle swept around, counting the number of people, and shook its body regretfully.

“Not a single new Player this time, what a pity. I love watching Players draw cards.”

Behind the Face Tentacle’s light screen, the gloomy, pitch-black lake suddenly surged forward.

A giant wave enveloped the nine Players.

The Face Tentacle said: “The game officially begins. Jump in without hesitation. Good luck to you all.”

–

The icy water released the Players just before they suffocated.

“Cough, cough, cough!!”

“Why do we almost die just entering an Instance?! Ugh-”

Several people knelt on the ground, coughing up the water they’d inhaled.

Lu Li was in the best condition.

He lowered his head and realized he was kneeling too.

He was no longer wearing his Initial Outfit.

Instead, he wore rough Linen Clothes, fraying at the seams, and his hands were locked in Shackles.

Any movement scraped marks onto his skin.

But they quickly healed.

Behind him, a crowd was shouting, accusing:

“They’re thieves! They tried to steal Pearls!! Tonight we finally caught these nine!”

“Lock them up in the Prison now!”

“Boom-”

After a loud crash, the iron door of the Prison slammed shut in front of them.

The Evil Spirit Bracelet sent Instance information to each Player:

[Instance Name: Evil Siren’s Heart]

[Guide to Clearing: In this Instance, follow the Moon’s guidance, escape the Prison, and make your way layer by layer into the center of this powerful Kingdom’s Royal Palace. Crush the evil, beating Siren’s Heart to clear the Instance.]

They were in a dark Prison.

It seemed to be underground, as the window was at the top.

All the Players’ hands and feet were locked in Shackles. The first stage hadn’t triggered yet, so they had to hurry and break free. That way, when something strange happened, they’d be able to escape more easily.

But Lu Li looked up at the only window.

A strong beam of white light slanted down.

It was Moonlight.

The Prison was actually a Dungeon.

Strangely, though it was underground, the place was completely dry, not damp at all.

Is it nighttime now?

Lu Li shuffled forward two steps and finally saw the window clearly.

He also saw the anomaly in the sky outside.

There were actually two Moons in the sky.

[Congratulations, Player, you have discovered Key Clue 1.]

[Immortal Moons, you possess two! One hangs high in the sky, one sinks deep beneath the sea.]

[Why is this Kingdom so favored by the Moon?]

[Why is there no sun in the daytime here?]