“I wish that were the case, but it’s impossible.” Chen Junnan’s expression grew increasingly solemn. “The only ‘even-numbered’ rooms none of us have entered are ‘Ten’ and ‘Fourteen,’ but the remaining two ‘treasures’ might not necessarily be in those rooms.”
“What?”
Chen Junnan gestured to his neck. “That damned fat rabbit has a bamboo stick hanging around its neck—it’s very likely the ‘flute’…”
“Han Xiangzi’s flute…” The others realized this too, their expressions shifting.
“This game is far more difficult than we imagined.” Chen Junnan gritted his teeth. “No wonder… Over such a long time, there must have been people who chose to ‘block the door,’ but the Earth Rabbit doesn’t seem to care at all. It must have a countermeasure… Because it knows we’ll eventually have to let it out.”
“It already foresaw this step…” Cui Shisi said worriedly. “We have to snatch that bamboo to have any chance of escaping…”
Chen Junnan nodded. “That rabbit’s been pretending all along…”
“There’s no need to worry too much,” Cui Shisi reassured. “With Seventh Brother and Tenth Brother here, even if we have to fight for that bamboo, it shouldn’t be too difficult.”
“Hopefully…” Chen Junnan agreed. “But I consider myself pretty experienced in games… and I’ve never snatched anything from an ‘Earth-level’ before…”
Everyone knew casualties were inevitable, but to save more lives, they had no choice but to take the flute.
“We need to hurry back and inform Xiao Song and Little Zombie,” Chen Junnan said, turning around. “They might think we’ve already reached the exit and could release the rabbit prematurely… For them, the game is in its final stages. They’ll probably try to ‘show their own prowess,’ betting their lives on it.”
“Understood.” Cui Shisi nodded. “If they release the rabbit themselves, even in a direct confrontation, they won’t be able to take the flute. The best they can do is avoid getting killed.”
“Right… We need a new tactic…” Though he said this, Chen Junnan felt stuck, his brain cells already exhausted.
Even if all six of them rushed the rabbit in a cramped room, could they really take the flute from its grasp?
Moreover, Song Qi’s ability was “Explosive Combustion,” which, upon reflection, seemed more suited for one-on-one combat.
“Let’s move together,” Cui Shisi said decisively. “I have a new idea.”
“Oh?” Chen Junnan raised an eyebrow. “What is it?”
“We choose a ‘correct path’ and lock all doors along the way except the ones we need.” Cui Shisi crouched and sketched a rough map on the grimy floor with her fingernail. “For example, if we’re in Room ‘Sixteen’ and need to go north to ‘Twelve,’ one of us can lock the door leading to ‘Fifteen.’ That way, when we return, we can only backtrack the same way.”
Chen Junnan crouched beside her, studying the sketch silently before nodding. “That might actually work… That way, only we know the correct path. If we escape fast enough, that damned rabbit will be delayed by the doors we’ve locked ahead of time…”
“Exactly.” Cui Shisi affirmed. “So we should pick a route that’s not easily guessed…”
She drew a zigzagging line from the lower right to the upper left of the sketch.
“We’ll take a winding path—from ‘Sixteen’ through ‘Twelve,’ ‘Eleven,’ ‘Seven,’ and then to ‘Six.'” She emphasized Room ‘Six’ with a tap. “We only need four moves to get there, and once we arrive, we don’t need to go further.”
Ma Shier, a burly man with a thick beard, paused. “Why’s that, Fourteenth Sister?”
Cui Shisi brushed her bangs aside. “Because Room ‘Six’ connects directly with Seventh Brother and Tenth Brother’s rooms. We just need to open the door from there, inform them, and plan the next steps for snatching the flute and escaping.”
With their strategy confirmed, the group equipped their ‘treasures’ and set off along the pre-planned path.
“Participants, please begin your move.” The mechanical broadcast echoed again. Just as Cui Shisi stepped forward to open the door to Room ‘Twelve,’ Chen Junnan grabbed her arm.
“Leader, what’s wrong?”
Chen Junnan stroked his chin, grinning slyly. “Hmm… I just thought of something…”
“What is it?” The other three looked at him curiously.
“I might have a way to let Song Qi and Little Jiang Shi know about our predicament… Tell me, does this game have a ‘time limit’ for moves?”
“A time limit…” Cui Shisi thought back carefully and soon noticed something odd. “There doesn’t seem to be one… But that can’t be right. Can we just stall indefinitely?”
“I think it’s intentional.” Chen Junnan smirked. “If there were a timer, it wouldn’t benefit that rabbit.”
“Why?”
Cui Shisi realized that while this handsome man wasn’t exactly a genius, his thinking was unpredictable—an asset in cracking games designed by deadly Zodiacs.
“Why stall for time? Simple—because that rabbit wants to kill.” Chen Junnan explained. “If each move had a time limit, the rabbit might not finish killing everyone in the room before the round ends, forcing it to watch them escape next turn.”
The others realized he was right. With more ‘Echoers’ appearing, the Earth Rabbit, while formidable, couldn’t guarantee killing every participant.
“It’s a shame I don’t have an ‘Echo’…” Cui Shisi bit her lip. “Otherwise, my ‘Teleportation’ would dominate this game…”
“Hey.” Chen Junnan waved a hand. “I didn’t bring it up because I knew you’d think like this. You strong ‘Echo’ users always blame yourselves… No one should be forced into a crucial role in any game. No one is born to lead. So even if we lose, no one will blame you.”
“Mmm…” Cui Shisi seemed comforted, nodding while meeting his gaze.
Ma Shier scratched his beard. “Leader, why’d you ask about the ‘time limit’?”
“I have an idea.” Chen Junnan said. “If we delay opening the door as long as possible, our turn won’t end.”
“And then…?”
“Then Song Qi and Little Zombie will realize something’s wrong and won’t release the rabbit prematurely.”
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