The boy's slightly trembling, frightened appearance was like that of a little rabbit that had suddenly wandered into a wolf's den.
Xiao Lou, who was being treated like a "wolf," was both amused and exasperated. He took a step forward and said gently, "Don't be afraid. We won't hurt you. We just want to find out your purpose. Why did you put an eavesdropping device in our travel bag?"
Shao Qingge narrowed his eyes, a half-smile on his face, and said, "It seems the teleportation card can't teleport vertically?"
The boy hurriedly looked away, clearly realizing he had been right.
Shao Qingge said, "Since you can't escape, then you might as well confess honestly."
Xiao Lou smiled and said, "You've been eavesdropping on our conversation, so you should know that our Officer Yu is a Criminal Police Officer who specializes in arresting criminals. You don't want to be interrogated by him using violence, do you?"
The two of them put on an act, and Yu Hanjiang had no choice but to cooperate with a cold face. His sharp eyes were fixed on the boy's dusty face, and he said coldly, "Speak, I don't want to do it."
The boy felt uncomfortable under the stare and lowered his head, stammering, "I...I'll tell you..."
Yu Hanjiang asked, "Were you eavesdropping on us in an attempt to use our strategy to pass through the secret room?"
The boy hurriedly shook his head and explained, "No, no, I didn't copy you. I originally planned to put the supplies in the warehouse and use the Construction Site as a hiding place... It just so happens that I had the same idea as you."
Xiao Lou and Yu Hanjiang exchanged a glance, clearly not quite believing it.
Shao Qingge raised an eyebrow and said, "A coincidence? So many coincidences, who are you trying to fool?"
The boy whispered in defense, "It's true... because this isn't my first time in the Spade 3 secret room."
This answer surprised all three of them.
This isn't your first time here?
Xiao Lou immediately pressed further: "You mean, you were in the Spade 3 secret room before?"
The boy nodded. He seemed to recall some unpleasant experience. His lips turned slightly pale, and a trace of pain flashed in his eyes: "Last time, I failed to pass the level. I only survived to the fifth day before I was eliminated."
Yu Hanjiang followed up with, " Weren't the people eliminated from Secret Room World wiped out?"
The boy's face grew even paler, and his voice was barely audible: "Have you...have you ever heard of the Nightmare Secret Room?"
Xiao Lou and Yu Hanjiang exchanged a glance. Guardian had repeatedly emphasized to them that after being eliminated from Secret Room World, they would be sent to the Nightmare Secret Room for punishment, and the survival rate in the Nightmare Secret Room was less than 0.1%. Could it be that this little guy actually came back from the Nightmare Secret Room?!
As if to confirm Xiao Lou's idea, the boy followed up by saying, "I survived the Nightmare Secret Room and went back to Spade 3 to try again."
This is a lot of information!
Xiao Lou never expected that the boy would carry so many secrets.
If he has information about the Nightmare Secret Room, it would undoubtedly be extremely important intelligence for the three of them. After all, none of them have ever experienced the Nightmare Secret Room after being eliminated. If they were ever eliminated one day, knowing some information in advance would definitely be very useful.
Yu Hanjiang winked at Xiao Lou and whispered, "Tie him up and ask him carefully."
Xiao Lou understood, took out Compass and quickly drew several rings of different sizes. With a light lift of his finger, the boy's feet, waist, and body were covered with rings, making him look almost like a rice dumpling.
The boy trapped by Ring stared in disbelief, his face filled with terror: "What are you going to do! Don't, don't kill me..."
Xiao Lou smiled slightly: "Don't worry, this is just to prevent you from escaping. You can talk it out now. If the information you give us is satisfactory, we will let you go."
The boy tried to move his arms, only to find himself completely bound by the ring and unable to move. He looked at Xiao Lou with pleading eyes, on the verge of tears, "Could you please let me go? I'll confess everything..."
Xiao Lou chuckled and said, "No way. After all, you have too many strange cards. If you run away, even Captain Yu won't be able to catch you."
Yu Hanjiang nodded: "Go ahead and speak."
The boy glanced awkwardly at Yu Hanjiang and found the man's face was icy cold, his gaze almost drilling a hole into his face. He had no choice but to quickly explain: "I don't know what the other Nightmare Secret Rooms are like. I only know that after being eliminated from Spade 3, all Challengers will be thrown into an unfamiliar city, without a penny, and required to survive for fourteen days."
Xiao Lou was quite surprised: "Penniless, yet you survived for fourteen days?"
That's much more difficult than the " Financial Crisis " escape room. Although prices have skyrocketed in that room, on the first day before prices went up, each Challenger had 100,000 gold coins as initial capital, which could be used to stockpile supplies. As long as you kept your supplies safe, clearing the room wasn't actually that hard.
But if you're penniless, food and lodging will be a problem. How could he survive for 14 days?
Shao Qingge asked curiously, "How did you spend those fourteen days?"
The boy lowered his head and said softly, "The people in that world are very indifferent. They never give money to beggars, and Challengers can't find jobs at all. Luckily, I can sing. I sang nursery rhymes on the street and got some snacks from some children who liked my singing. I pretended to be a garbage collector, slept on the street every day, picked up expired food from bakeries, and only drank boiled tap water..."
His shoulders were trembling slightly, clearly reluctant to recall that nightmarish experience: "During the worst time, I only ate a small piece of bread for three days, and I was so hungry I could barely walk. For the next few days, when there was no food, I ate..."
There were many leaves... I saw some Challengers starve to death, and in the Nightmare Secret Room, I was the only one who survived.
Terrible hunger can torment a person's spirit and destroy their will.
Appetite is human nature. What is it like to go hungry for several days in a row? People in the real world probably can hardly understand it. After all, living conditions are better now. People eat meat and fish every day, let alone go hungry.
However, this boy, penniless, survived for fourteen days by eating expired bread, snacks he earned by singing, and leaves from the roadside.
It has an incredibly tenacious vitality, like a cockroach.
At first, Xiao Lou thought this guy was cautious, like a wary little animal, but now he had to admire his willpower—in a forest full of wild beasts, it is no easy feat for a small animal to survive.
Having experienced such a terrible world, it's no wonder that the young boy would disguise himself as a garbage collector here, placing supplies on the garbage truck and covering his face in dirt... He could endure extremely harsh conditions in order to survive.
Xiao Lou's attitude towards him softened considerably, and he asked, "You were eliminated in Spade 3 Secret Room, went to Nightmare Secret Room, and after leaving Nightmare Secret Room, you returned to Spade 3 to try again?"
The boy nodded: "That's the rule."
Xiao Lou retrieved all the Rings from the boy's body, walked over and gently patted the boy's shoulder, saying, "It's really not easy to survive the Nightmare Secret Room. I heard the Guardian say that the survival rate of the Nightmare Secret Room is only 0.1%."
The boy smiled wryly and said, "Luckily, I can sing. I managed to get some snacks from the kids by singing, otherwise I might have starved to death."
Yu Hanjiang, however, was more concerned with another question: "Since you could survive in Nightmare Secret Room, why were you eliminated in Spade 3?"
The boy's expression darkened, and he lowered his head, saying, "I was matched with a teammate in Spade 3. He happened to be from the same university as me, and I trusted him a lot. We bought supplies together and stayed at Shanshui B&B. The next night, 80% of our supplies were stolen, leaving us with only a box of milk and a box of instant noodles. Although it was a bit little, we could barely survive if we ate sparingly."
The boy paused for a moment, then continued, "I never expected that he would abandon me and take the supplies away overnight so that he could survive."
Xiao Lou: "......"
Another player betrayed his teammates at a crucial moment.
In this world, trust has become the cheapest thing.
The boy said, "Luckily, I met a kind girl who shared some food with me, and I managed to make it to the fourth day. But at Shanshui B&B, the Challengers ' supplies were being stolen frequently, and everyone started to suspect that there was a mole among the Challengers. One of our group was a great lawyer, and he decided to bring all the Challengers together. He discovered this Construction Site, and we moved there together with our supplies."
"If everyone gathers the remaining supplies and distributes them uniformly, we can all survive until the seventh day without any problem."
"However, on the fifth day, the entire city of A descended into chaos. A large number of prisoners escaped from the prison and went on a rampage throughout the city, looting, burning, killing, and robbing. Some of us Challengers disobeyed orders and lit firewood at night to boil water and cook noodles. The firelight attracted the prisoners... In the end, the Challengers were all wiped out."
The three of them were shocked when they heard this!
Yu Hanjiang guessed that there would definitely be problems at the prison, but he didn't expect that the prisoners would break out and commit arson, murder, and looting everywhere. This was no longer a financial secret room; it was almost like a chaotic apocalypse.
Xiao Lou asked in confusion, "Since you've experienced Spade 3 Secret Room once and know its plot, you could have easily found a way to hide and complete the game yourself. What was your purpose in giving us the Eavesdropping Device?"
The boy said, "I didn't just put eavesdropping devices in your backpacks. I put one in every Challenger's backpack… this device that can release three eavesdropping devices at the same time. I'm eavesdropping on the Challengers ' conversations at different times in order to find the mole."
Yu Hanjiang immediately realized: "You mean, the guy who killed his teammate and ran away when we were catching the thief tonight is likely a mole within Challenger?"
The boy nodded: "We didn't find out until we were eliminated that the mole had been infiltrating our ranks all along. He stole all the supplies. His real identity wasn't Challenger, but a Freelancer in this world who wanted to make a fortune through Financial Crisis."
Xiao Lou concluded, "So, the Spade 3 secret room not only contains the Financial Crisis, but also a hidden boss that needs to be dealt with? If the Challengers aren't vigilant enough and keep having their supplies stolen, and don't realize there's a mole in the team, they could end up being wiped out?"
The boy said, "That's right, this person knows a lot about Challenger, and he calls us— outsiders."
The real challenge of Spade 3 Secret Room is not just Financial Crisis.
Xiao Lou was initially puzzled as well. Before the Financial Crisis began, each Challenger could receive 100,000 gold coins, equivalent to 1,000 RMB in initial funds. With that amount of money, it would be no problem to go to the supermarket and buy enough food for a week.
Compared to the local residents who were caught off guard by the Financial Crisis, the outsiders who were challengers knew in advance that the Financial Crisis would break out and stockpiled enough supplies to survive for seven days.
Moreover, people like Shao Qingge, who major in economics or related fields, might even be able to make money in the secret rooms of Financial Crisis.
Why would Ace of Spades and Plum Blossom A be so kind?
In retrospect, it seems the two Guardians had already dug countless traps for everyone.
The theft of Challenger's supplies was not a coincidence, but an inevitable event.
Ace of Spades has set up a disguise in this world.
Freelancers who become Challengers specialize in stealing everyone's resources. If players are unaware of this and lack vigilance, they can easily have all their items stolen and be eliminated from the game.
Only someone as cautious as Yu Hanjiang, who stored supplies separately, could possibly survive in Spade 3.
The young boy didn't use the eavesdropping device to copy a walkthrough; rather, he had experienced too much—betrayal by his teammates, the Challenger's temporary alliance being wiped out, and the terrible hunger in the Nightmare Secret Room, where he survived fourteen days eating expired food and leaves.
Most people would have had a mental breakdown by now.
He didn't trust any of the Challengers, so when he re-entered the Spade 3 secret room, he didn't match with any teammates. He placed eavesdropping devices in all the Challengers ' backpacks, hoping to find the person hiding among them stealing supplies, avoid the thief, and quietly complete the level.
Yu Hanjiang's approach was undoubtedly the correct way to pass the level, and it coincided perfectly with the boy's thoughts.
Xiao Lou looked at the dirty-faced boy and said, "You dare to tell us these secrets? Aren't you afraid we'll kill you to silence you?"
The boy smiled bitterly and said, "You are a Criminal Police Officer, a university professor, and a business owner. If even you have to kill people to pass the level, is there any humanity left in this world? I guess you won't go far. The sooner you are eliminated, the less suffering you will endure."
Seeing the disappointment in his eyes, Xiao Lou couldn't help but feel sorry for him—this child was only seventeen or eighteen years old, abandoned in such a cruel world, and had experienced so much hardship; it must have been truly difficult for him.
It's hard to imagine how he survived those days eating tree leaves.
Xiao Lou sighed softly and said, "You're right, we all want to clear the game, but as long as other Challengers don't provoke us, we can't go around killing people. After all... this world has gone mad, but we haven't."
Xiao Lou's last words startled the boy, and his eyes instantly reddened.
Clearly, he was reminded of his own experience of being betrayed.
He was randomly matched with teammates in the Spade 3 secret room, and it just so happened that he was matched with an alumnus. He was overjoyed to unexpectedly meet a senior from the same school in a strange world. He trusted the senior implicitly and entrusted him with his gold coins to spend together. He followed the senior's arrangements to stay at Shanshui B&B and hid all his supplies under the bed...
When the supplies were stolen, he optimistically said, "I have a small appetite. From now on, I will only eat one pack of instant noodles and one pack of milk every day. Senior, you eat more. If we can't afford the room fee, we will sleep outside. If we keep these two packs of food, we can barely survive for seven days."
The senior student agreed on the surface, but when he woke up the next morning, he was the only one left in the room.
He was worried that something had happened to his senior and was frantic, searching everywhere for him but couldn't find him. Later, the girl next door told him that his senior had left the guesthouse early in the morning with his travel bag, and he finally realized that he had been abandoned.
The remaining supplies are far from enough for two people, but more than enough for one person.
He was heartbroken and utterly hopeless at the time, but thankfully the girl next door was kind enough to share some food with him, even though supplies were limited. A calm lawyer at the guesthouse decided to unite all the Challengers, and they all moved to the Construction Site, relying on milk, bread, and chocolate for sustenance each day.
But there was this one disobedient idiot who didn't want to eat bread every day, so he secretly started a fire at night to cook noodles and even cooked ham sausages into the noodles.
The firelight and aroma in the dead of night attracted the criminal gang.
Those people were all armed, and he saw Challenger after Challenger being slashed, blood flowing everywhere.
The girl who served him instant noodles had a large hole pierced in her chest. He wanted to save her but was powerless to do so. He tried to escape using his teleportation card, but ultimately couldn't escape the encirclement of a group of thugs.
He was stabbed to death.
During his time in the Nightmare Secret Room, he lived in a daze. If it weren't for a strong will to survive and his talent for singing to get snacks from children, he might have starved to death long ago.
******