Ch63 - 8 Hour Game Battle

There were players who originally wanted to wait and see. Then they saw seven or eight teams that didn’t seem easy to go against and immediately changed their strategy. They covered their feet with oil and moved.

The small Squirrel Town that had nearly 2,000 players was cleared into an empty town in just three hours at an unimaginable speed. The timer also didn’t mean to stop. Seeing the shadow of the sun moving toward the center, the players confirmed the counter at the entrance and made sure that all irrelevant players had withdrawn. 

The fairy tale town was usually overcrowded and now it was so silent that the exaggerated raised mouths of the cartoon statues on the road gave off a slightly evil air.

[Petroleum – Fang Mian: All the people have almost gone.]

[Director – Zhi Xun: Cube Boat, come out.]

[Pioneer – Lin Qibing: We should talk first. Set up a location to meet.] 

Three teams sent invitations to Cube Boat. Their attitudes were different but their goal was the same. In their minds, the so-called grace of time was just a trick that Cube Boat used to set up a sense of mystery.

The other players in the town were almost gone and it was time for them to make their move. The three teams waited patiently for more than a minute. As they waited for a reply—

[Cube Boat – Li Yinhang (Li Bank): All players who are now in Squirrel Town, please leave the town within 4 hours and 40 minutes.]

Everyone, “……”

However, they had long mixed in the instances and their anger wasn’t so easily provoked.

Everyone had their own arrangements. The teams picked a bar or restaurant to rest and supplement their nutrition. There was still time and they could afford it.

Other teams didn’t communicate with each other. They tacitly spread out through the town to search for Cube Boat’s possible hiding spot. People who took different directions were secretly laughing at each other.

The resting people thought that Squirrel Town was so big and it was stupid to waste energy on such things. The searchers believed that spending time on rest was a wasteful act. 

The coordinates of Cube Boat were clearly in Squirrel Town and Li Yinhang reported the countdown every five minutes. As long as the chibi version of the squirrel head was next to this person’s name, they weren’t afraid of Cube Boat running away from the town.

Find their traces and strike first. Find a way to control them in advance and let them hand over the instance creature. Then those who were superior now would only be able to stare in envy.

Both sides insulted the other: big idiot.

The players in Squirrel Town went their own way but this made those outside feel fickle and impatient. The number of people heckling them started to rise. 

[Cowards!]

[Why do you have to wait eight hours? Isn’t this funny?]

[Cube Boat doesn’t necessarily have an instance creature. It is everyone’s guess, right?]

[Yes, people reported a number and a bunch of fools were tricked to run over.] 

The people on the island weren’t irritated by Li Yinhang, the emotionless countdown machine, but they were pissed off by these noisy people who kept saying strange things on the world channel.

Two groups of players who had wanted to wait for the monster to appear changed their minds and set off to search. If they found that Li Yinhang from Cube Boat, regardless of whether Li Yinhang was a male or female, they would first beat them up!

***

We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.

On a small platform hidden between the crystal spires of the theater castle, Jiang Fang leaned against the edge of the platform with folded arms. Like Nan Zhou, he hadn’t updated the game interface. Nevertheless, the current situation was almost consistent with the situation he and Nan Zhou had deduced. This meant Jiang Fang wanted to know what type of chaos was happening in the world channel right now. 

Pc atf ojmf bo j rfglfr bo lcreiar, Ol Tlctjcu rlqqfv atf kjafg klatbea mtjculcu tfg fzqgfrrlbc. Ktf wbwfca atf rsrafw alwf qblcafv ab atf fzjma cewyfg, tfg olcufgr wbnfv ab rfcv bea atf mbecavbkc atja tjv yffc fvlafv wjcs alwfr. Vtf qfgobgwfv tfg gbif fzagfwfis ojlatoeiis.

Aljcu Mjcu mibrfv tlr fsfr jcv rjlv, “Gbc’a ajxf atbrf kbgvr ab tfjga.”

Li Yinhang found it strange. “Huh? What?”

Her eyes passed over the vicious words that were quickly rising and realized what Jiang Fang meant. She waved her hand in an uncaring manner. “Hey, what is this?” 

Thanks to Li Yinhang’s working life, she had long become numb to the lethality of language as a weapon. Once, she had been a naive customer service staff until life woke her up with a slap on the face. She still remembered a conversation she had with an uncle with a strong accent when she first started the job.

The first time the uncle called, he was very kind and confused. “My card, can I get money from it in Huize?”

Li Yinhang replied, “Can I ask for your name and bank card number?”

The uncle was extremely wary. “Why must I tell you? Just tell me if I can take it out.” 

Li Yinhang had to abandon her speaking techniques. “Hello, it is possible.”

She also made a very ill-timed remark. “Yunnan is an integral part of our country.” (Huize is in Yunnan)

The uncle’s second call was transferred to her by a colleague. Li Yinhang didn’t know how this uncle remembered her work number. He opened his mouth and said, “I can’t withdraw it.”

Li Yinhang asked again, “What is your bank card number? I can provide you with an inquiry service here.” 

As a result, the uncle scolded Li Yinhang like his tail had been stepped on. It was almost as if she had asked for his bank card password instead of the number.

Li Yinhang was scolded for 30 minutes and her mind never returned. It wasn’t easy to get out of the shadows. Then the third call came. It was still the uncle. The uncle whispered, “You aren’t lying to me, are you?”

In order to let the uncle withdraw the money, Li Yinhang swore on 18 generations of ancestors. The uncle squirmed and finally reluctantly gave his bank card number. Li Yinhang was stunned for a moment. “Hello… this is Guangming Bank. Your card is ICBC.”

The phone was silent for a while before he hung up. Looking back on all sorts of things in the past, Li Yinhang felt that her troubles of the past were far away and peaceful, like a previous life. 

On the side, Jiang Fang closed his eyes. His back was close to the large powder crystal decorative wall behind him and his nose was slightly sweating. His fingers gripped his arms tightly and the material of his shirt sank in areas.

Jiang Fang’s overall posture was deliberately controlled and there was a relaxation that hid his nerves from the human eye. Only he knew how tight his muscles were and how his ears were filled with the slight sound of vines shaking. Every time he stood on a high place, he would have the illusion that he was still at the site where his father fell off the cliff and he hung on the line between life and death.

No one would rescue him. No one cared. No one…

Suddenly, a hand stretched out from the side and grabbed a corner of his clothes. The slight imbalance in the body caused Jiang Fang to show a strong stress response in an instant. His sense of reason was like the dirt his father had stepped on. The moment of collapse, Jiang Fang had already grabbed the wrist of that hand and exerted force— 

The moment the clear sound of bones rang out, Jiang Fang’s near wild sanity returned. His heart thumped as he turned his head and met Nan Zhou’s quiet eyes that were filled with a hint of surprise.

Nan Zhou clicked to restore the wrist that had been dislocated by Jiang Fang’s grip. The speed was so fast that Li Yinhang didn’t realize what had happened. Nan Zhou said, “It is safe. The people in the castle are gone and they are heading to the Tin Soldiers Road to the east. Let’s go down.”

They have long estimated the current situation. In fact, fewer people came to Squirrel Town than Nan Zhou and Jiang Fang had speculated. They had found several hiding spots with at least two exits in advance but they still encountered variables.

On the way to the transfer point, two teams happened to block the two paths they chose in advance. They withdrew back to the central castle, hiding in the blind spot between the castle’s spires. 

“I’m sorry.” As they lowered the dark attic stairs hidden by them and returned to the interior of the castle, Nan Zhou spoke to Jiang Fang as they walked down the rotating crystal staircase side by side. He had a cold face as he seriously analyzed his mistakes. “I didn’t want to go that high but there was no other way.”

Jiang Fang murmured, “I didn’t seem to have told you about…” His fear of heights.

Nan Zhou cocked his head and blinked doubtfully. “Did I need you to tell me?”

Jiang Fang’s heart was filled with a soft sourness that spread slowly. He wanted to grab Nan Zhou’s hand. “Does your hand still hurt…” 

Before the question was over, Nan Zhou raised his hand.

“Ah.” He touched the control panel in front of him. “The system sent me another private message.”

Jiang Fang grabbed empty air but he wasn’t embarrassed. He lightly brushed against the back of Nan Zhou’s hand before naturally placing a hand on his shoulder. “What did it say?”

Nan Zhou was concise. “The price has increased.” 

Around an hour and a half ago, Nan Zhou’s panel backend received an official statement with a very strong tone.

The content basically said: We have launched an instant update to send benefits. After the update, you can get 500 points and a random item. The item rating can reach up to S-grade. I hope you won’t look down on it.

Nan Zhou had thrown the private letter into the trash without even thinking about it. The item level could reach up to S grade, which meant the worst rating could be D. Nan Zhou wouldn’t suffer this loss.

This was the second private letter from the system. The tone had already undergone a subtle change compared to just now. At the very least, it used honorifics. 

“Dear player. At present, there is a highly dangerous foreign object in your backpack. It is recommended that you remove it immediately. Failure to remove it on time might cause containment collapse. Please update the system patch within an hour or the consequences will be at your own risk.”

This private letter soon went into the trash can with the last one so they could fall in love with each other.

Li Yinhang inquired, “Should I still send the countdown?”

Nan Zhou closed the panel. “Continue to send it.” 

The system’s mention of ‘high risk’ definitely wasn’t false. It was so dangerous that the system spent 40 hours to make a patch to prevent Nan Zhou from carrying it to the rest point. Such a strong reaction conveyed a message to Nan Zhou.

It was different from items that were forbidden to use after entering the five rest points of Rust City, Paper Gold, Ancient City State, Homeland Island and Squirrel Town. In the original setting of the game, the instance boss wasn’t an item. It could even be considered… a type of bug completely ignored by programmers. So at the resting point, there was a great possibility it maintained its vitality and lethality.

In light of this, Nan Zhou could place this treacherous door at the only entrance of Squirrel Town, making it the ‘door’ of the town. It was a false door to death. It would find a way to survive and take root, just as it naturally merged with the East Fifth Building. Its nature was originally one with no source, no reason and no awareness. It was the purest malice.

Even Nan Zhou couldn’t face the object inside the door. He only managed it because the thing inside the door had to be connected with a door. With its strength, it could wipe out and devour everyone who accidentally entered Squirrel Town through it. 

Any players who entered the town would be erased from the game without knowing what happened. Other members of the team would also forget them. This was a clean and traceless method of killing.

Frankly speaking, from the beginning, Nan Zhou wasn’t targeting players who were confused and discussing his series of operations. He was betting that the system wouldn’t allow him to do this. If Nan Zhou really did this, it was equivalent to destroying one of the five rest points.

In the face of maliciousness without any clues or rules, the balance of the game would be completely broken. If Cube Boat wanted, they could even induce some players with a high amount of points to go to Squirrel Town and die.

At that time, the significance of the existence of the Forces of Temptation rankings and the rules of the game would be destroyed and denied. Faced with such a dilemma, the operator behind the system was naturally anxious. However, it obviously wasn’t strong enough to add a new patch within the eight hour time limit set by Nan Zhou. The eight hour game and the countdown wasn’t for players to see. 

Nan Zhou used the world channel created by the system to show it to the system personally.

‘Time is running out. Hurry and make it big.’

This was an overt plot that couldn’t be more magnanimous. The system was clearly following Nan Zhou’s movement. It was because the third private letter was sent seamlessly.

“Dear player…” 

Nan Zhou read the private letter and could imagine the game maker’s trembling cheeks.

“Given the high value of the rare material in your backpack, you can go to a specific place to trade and exchange items. The exchange amount is 2000 points. This opportunity is rare. You must not miss it—”

Nan Zhou thought that it had changed to a cuter and cleverer copywriter. The wording had changed from ‘highly dangerous’ to ‘valuable rare material.’ He read the third private letter again and again. After hooking the interest of the unnamed person who was secretly observing, his hand moved and he mercilessly sent the private message to the trash again.

The game planners, “……” 

Fuck. Fuck your ancestor.

During the time when Nan Zhou was secretly fighting with the system and rejecting its exchange terms, Li Yinhang finished sending the countdown and asked Jiang Fang casually, “If the system is really reluctant to spend a lot of money to exchange for it, how do we end it?”

Jiang Fang turned to her when he heard the question. He wasn’t in the right mood because he had just come down from a high place. He also didn’t get to hold Nan Zhou’s hand.

Jiang Fang’s pale gray eyes were filled with a gentle flash of light. “Then let it go.” 

His tone was too natural and gentle that it took Li Yinhang a moment before realizing what he meant.

“Even if a player dies, they can be resurrected if we win in the end.” Jiang Fang smiled frankly. “Isn’t Yinhang’s wish to hope that all the dead players come back to life and everything returns to the origin?”

A chill rushed from the bottom of Li Yinhang’s feet, “……”

Jiang Fang’s eyes curved slightly. “Just kidding.” 

She instinctively took a step toward Nan Zhou’s side.

Nan Zhou had just deleted the private message. He noticed Li Yinhang’s movements and naturally took care of her while asking Jiang Fang, “What’s wrong?”

Jiang Fang blinked, looking very innocent and gentle.

…It was really nothing. 

Li Yinhang just suddenly felt that Jiang Fang had taken off his mask for the first time. He smiled at her before quickly putting it back on without a trace, hiding himself under the gentle perfection.

Why? It was probably because Nan Zhou was looking at him.