Chapter 426: Strange Rat

Each person gets five "Dao" tickets. After victory, the surviving members can equally divide thirty "Dao."

Qi Xia frowned and asked, "What about the number of participants? It wouldn't be so coincidental... exactly five people, right?"

"That's not the case," Di Shu said with a smile. "Since the leaders in 'Mao' have never come to bother me, I've decided to be generous and give you a choice. You can opt for five participants or six."

"Oh...?"

This was the first time Qi Xia had heard of a game with a flexible number of players.

"I must clarify in advance," Di Shu continued. "If five people participate, I'll play the role of 'Mao'. If six participate, one of you will have to play 'Mao'."

Qi Xia thought for a few seconds and said, "We can choose ourselves...?"

"That's right," Di Shu nodded. "Since I'm running an open business, I have to handle different situations. I can manage with five or six people."

"Then how should we decide...?" Luo Shi Yi whispered from behind. "Do we need to ask another team to lend us someone right now?"

"I think that's possible," Zhou Liu nodded. "If all six are our own people, the game will be much easier."

After hearing this, Qi Xia furrowed his brow.

The purpose of coming here for the Di Ji level wasn't to make the game easier, but to maximize the difficulty, so they couldn't consider having all six as their own people.

"We'll stick with five," Qi Xia said. "Even though I know this might be a trap, I'm willing to jump in."

"Hmm...?" Zhou Liu looked at Qi Xia with some confusion. "You're given an easy path and you won't take it. Do you want to get us killed in the game?"

"Although I'm a con artist," Qi Xia said, "If you all follow my arrangements, I have a high chance of keeping you safe."

"In that case... I can only hope the leaders don't regret it," Di Shu said with a smile.

Zhou Liu, upon hearing this, no longer hesitated and signaled to Qiu Shi Liu at the back of the team. Qiu Shi Liu then pulled a pile of "Dao" from his waist pouch and handed it to Di Shu.

"Alright!" Di Shu took the "Dao" and tossed it into the box beside him, then turned and opened the door of the building. "Xiu Luo Chang, leaders, please come in."

Glancing at the dark corridor inside, everyone took a deep breath and walked in one after another. "Xiu Luo Chang" didn't matter—as long as they were still alive in "Zhong Yan Zhi Di," everywhere was a battlefield.

In just a few seconds, they noticed that the air here smelled different from elsewhere. There was no foul stench inside; instead, there was a sweet fruit fragrance.

This scent almost never appeared in "Zhong Yan Zhi Di," making people feel a bit disoriented.

After walking about ten meters in the pitch-black surroundings, Di Shu finally stopped, pressed a button on the wall, and the old lights in the room flickered on.

"We're here, leaders."

Di Shu led them to the main hall and pulled out six collars from a cracked box behind him.

"I need to explain this in advance," Di Shu said. "Since I truly respect you leaders, I won't use violent methods to harm your lives during the game. But as I mentioned, I have my own superiors, and after careful consideration, I have to provide these 'explosion collars' for you to wear. I hope you won't take offense."

Qi Xia silently took a collar and asked a question he'd been holding back: "Are you this polite to all 'participants'?"

"Me?" Di Shu shook his head. "You're overestimating me, leader. You're the leader of 'Mao,' which means you're with Qian Wu's people. I'm only this polite to you all. Please put it on first."

After hearing this, Qi Xia shook his head. Apart from the rules, every word from this man was a lie—typical office slickster.

Everyone looked at the collars in their hands, and Zhou Liu looked up and asked, "Tsk, why six? Is one a spare?"

"Hey, what are you saying? I need to wear one too!"

Before anyone could react, Di Shu grabbed the largest collar and fastened it around his neck. There was a click, and it locked securely in place.

Qi Xia carefully examined the sizes of the collars and gave Di Shu a suspicious look.

"Leader, don't mind it," Di Shu said with a grin. "This is an 'explosion collar.' Mine is bigger than yours, which means it has more explosives. You all only need a little to die cleanly, but I can't afford that. Please bear with me, leaders."

"Let's hear the rules," Qi Xia said.

"Alright, alright, follow me," Di Shu said.

Di Shu led them a few steps across the spacious hall, where they noticed several rooms around, totaling seven wooden doors.

"My game rules are complex, but playing it is simple," Di Shu said. "We're divided into two factions: I'm the 'Mao,' and you're the 'Shu'."

"Tsk, we already knew that," Zhou Liu said.

"The game consists of six rounds," Di Shu continued. "Each round is divided into 'night' and 'day'."

Seeing that no one responded, Di Shu nodded and added, "All 'Shu' can only move during 'night,' while 'Mao' can only move during 'day'."

"How long is 'day' and 'night'?" Qi Xia asked.

"Ten minutes each," Di Shu said. "Do you leaders think that's enough?"

Qi Xia calculated carefully: Each round was twenty minutes, and six rounds would take two hours. With time so tight now... they had to quickly figure out how to crack the game.

"Damn..." Luo Shi Yi cursed. "If it's not enough, can you extend it?"

"This might be tricky; it's not easy to extend," Di Shu said expressionlessly. "If you need it, I'll try my best to apply on your behalf. Let's just follow the rules, and I hope you'll understand."

"Stop wasting time," Luo Shi Yi scratched his ear. "We're divided into 'Mao' and 'Shu,' then what?"

Di Shu pointed to the room on the far left, which had a black door, and said, "'Shu House' is your base. You can discuss strategies there or hide from the 'Mao's pursuit. I absolutely won't enter 'Shu House,' so once the game starts, that's the safest place."

After hearing this, Qi Xia looked around and realized that the seven doors in the room were all different colors, though they were all dark tones, making them distinguishable under the dim light.