After a long day of digging tunnels and finding an escape route, this hearty "vegetable roasted rice" helped relieve the fatigue. Afterwards, there were various fresh fruits to enjoy: pomelos, grapes, apples... the warehouse even had all the fruits you could buy in winter.
I was really lucky to have snagged a warehouse this time.
After dinner, Ye Qi remembered Captain Yu mentioning "Mr. Tang" and couldn't help but ask, " Professor Xiao, what's the deal with this Mr. Tang you were going to explain to everyone in detail when we got back? How did he end up giving you an S-rank card?"
After clearing the game last time, Yu Hanjiang and Xiao Lou met with Ninth Brother and Tang Ci together. The teammates only knew that the two of them had gone out for some business, but they didn't know who they met.
Xiao Lou looked at Yu Hanjiang, and seeing that the latter agreed, he explained, " Does everyone still remember Gui Yuanzhang, the president of the Distant Place Association?"
Ye Qi nodded: "Yes, Mr. Old Gui has a calligraphy card, that's impressive!"
Xiao Lou said, "Mr. Tang's full name is Tang Ci. He is the director of the Intelligence Bureau and also Mr. Old Gui's teammate. They once formed a very strong team to challenge the level. In the S-level difficulty level, they chose Plum Blossom J first, but they almost got wiped out in Plum Blossom J. "
Shao Qingge raised an eyebrow upon hearing this: " Isn't Plum Blossom playing cards? How could they have been wiped out?"
Yu Hanjiang said in a deep voice, "The S-level Plum Blossom Secret Chamber is not a card game, but a real-person confrontation. Challengers will face ten times the number of Hunters. They thought Plum Blossom was the easiest and chose it first. As a result, a group of people died in Plum Blossom, and only four survived in the end."
Xiao Lou continued, "Among them are Mr. Old Gui and Tang Ci, as well as Chu Huaying, the president of Luoying Pavilion codenamed ' Spider Goddess, ' and a mysterious figure who is currently working undercover in the Hunter Alliance. We cannot disclose his identity to you."
He didn't mention Ninth Brother's situation yet. Before they reunited, the fewer people who knew Ninth Brother was an undercover agent, the safer he would be. Although Xiao Lou trusted his teammates, it would be disastrous if they were controlled and involuntarily revealed secrets.
Upon hearing Xiao Lou's description, everyone looked at each other in bewilderment.
It's only Spade 8 now, and it's already so difficult. How terrifying will Plum Blossom J be, a locked room that almost wiped out Mr. Old Gui and his team? Nobody dares to imagine.
Yu Hanjiang looked at his teammates and said, "Level S is indeed very difficult, but don't worry, everyone. Mr. Old Gui and the others are willing to team up with us to try it again. With strong teammates joining us, our chances of passing the level will be much greater."
Ye Qi exclaimed excitedly, "So that's how it is! No wonder Mr. Old Gui gave us a whole bunch of cards when he invited us over, and Mr. Tang also gave Professor Xiao such a powerful S-class surveillance card. With their help, our combat power will be even stronger than it is now, right?"
Xiao Lou said, " Drone is just one of them. Mr. Tang has many other mechanical cards that are also S-level in strength. We didn't tell everyone before because we were afraid that everyone would be afraid of S-level secret chambers. Now, it's time to make it clear to everyone." He paused, his gaze sweeping gently over his teammates, and said, "The later secret chambers will definitely get more and more difficult, but the more secret chambers we clear, the stronger we will become. Moreover, there will be powerful teammates joining us in the S-level secret chambers, so everyone doesn't need to worry too much."
Ye Qi said optimistically, "I also think that we are short-handed for the survival room game with 8 people. If more teammates join the S-level team, it will be easier to divide them into groups."
Shao Qingge joked with a smile, "That way, I can win even more comfortably without lifting a finger."
Ye Qi looked at him: "Dear sponsor, could you please copy a copy of Mr. Old Gui's calligraphy brush for me? I'm really curious about that calligraphy brush. It can make things float and move, just like teleportation. It seems more useful than controlling musical instruments."
Shao Qingge nodded: "Since you call me your sugar daddy, I'll earn more money and make you a copy."
Ye Qi was extremely excited: "This is awesome! As long as we have money, we can duplicate two cards in each room, and we'll get more and more powerful cards... I've just realized that the most awesome card is actually CEO Shao's [ Rich and Willful ] card!"
Long Sen and the others nodded in agreement: "After all, they have money."
The group chatted and laughed, and soon it was midnight.
A notification pops up in everyone's floating window simultaneously—
[ Spade 8 Secret Chamber, Doomsday Escape, Day 3, 00:00]
[ Number of Challenger players remaining: 298]
Everyone was taken aback when they saw this message.
A hint of worry appeared in Xiao Lou's eyes: "I remember the notification last night at midnight was 344 people. Are that many dead?"
Yu Hanjiang frowned slightly: "The 30-plus Challenger teams that entered the secret room this time should have been dispersed to different areas. The East City District that we chose is likely the last place to be invaded by the Zerg, so we didn't encounter any danger all day. It's not certain for the others."
Xiao Lou nodded and said, "That's true. Finding a good location seems to be very important. When Captain Yu looked at the map, he analyzed that the East District was a logistics distribution center with mostly low-rise buildings and a low population density, so coming here was the right choice. Some teams, on the other hand, may have just fled to the North, South, or West of the city and were wiped out by the Zerg."
Yu Hanjiang said, "It's also possible that one or two Infected players appeared within the Challenger team and wiped out their teammates when they were completely unprepared."
The Luoying Pavilion team still feels lingering fear when they recall the incident where they set their teammates on fire in the supermarket.
The death toll reached 46 on the second day, which means that 4-5 squads were wiped out. These people may have been unlucky enough to be infected in the city center before they could evacuate, and one person's infection led to the annihilation of the entire team; or they may have chosen the wrong evacuation route and been surrounded by the Zerg army.
Following Captain Yu to the east of the city, the group successfully survived the second day. This wasn't luck, but rather the result of a capable member of the team who analyzed the situation of the city's residents and made the most correct choice.
Yu Hanjiang said, "Everyone, rest first. We don't know how fast the Zerg infection is going. We won't have a peaceful time in the east of the city for long. Be ready for battle at any time."
It was getting late, so everyone went into their tents to sleep.
Nothing happened that night.
The next day, everyone got a rare day off.
Nothing happened all day, and everyone was a little confused. Did the Zerg really not come to the east of the city?
At midnight, the floating notification popped up again.
Spade 8 Secret Chamber Doomsday Escape, Day 4, 00:00 AM
[ Number of Challenger players remaining: 208]
Ye Qi's eyes widened: "More than 90 people died today?!"
The death toll doubled from yesterday, likely due to a large-scale battle in some area. Around 10 Challenger teams were infected or died, a very worrying situation.
Yu Han
Jiang said, "It's possible that the Zerg went to the north, west, or south of the city. If the Challengers hiding there didn't have a proper evacuation plan, they could be wiped out if they were surrounded by the Zerg army."
After all, there's a limit to how many you can fight. Eight people might have a chance against 50, maybe even 500, but what about 5,000 or even 50,000 Zerg? Without proper preparation, you'd be overwhelmed by the horde of Zerg in no time!
The doubling of the death toll has everyone on edge.
Xiao Lou suggested, "Don't sleep too soundly tonight. Take turns keeping watch and stay alert at all times. The Zerg army might arrive in the east of the city soon."
Recalling the scene of countless Zerg swarms emerging from their nests, Ye Qi shuddered and said in a trembling voice, "I think I'd better not sleep."
Just then, footsteps suddenly sounded outside.
After dark, Ye Qi activated the eavesdropping device inside the snowman at the warehouse entrance. The most basic eavesdropping device could emit three eavesdropping devices, listen for 30 minutes, and cover a distance of 50 meters. Now, after being upgraded to the maximum level, it can continuously eavesdrop for 8 hours, and the distance has increased to 500 meters.
Ye Qi perked up his ears alertly and made a "shh" gesture to his lips: "Someone's coming."
Because the sun hadn't come out for the past two days, the snow on the road hadn't melted, and the hideous snowman Ye Qi had piled up under the tree hadn't melted either. The eavesdropping device hidden inside clearly transmitted the surrounding sounds.
Yu Hanjiang took Ye Qi's eavesdropping device, listened carefully, and quickly said, "About ten people are walking on the snow. Their footsteps are very rhythmic, unlike crawling insectoids. They should be nearby residents or Challengers —more likely Challengers."
After all, city residents are currently gripped by panic and are too busy staying at home to be running around in groups of seven or eight in the middle of the night.
The group exchanged glances.
Xiao Lou said softly, "I'll open Peach Blossom Spring. Everyone hide first and see what they're up to."