Chapter 38

Chapter 37: Mountain and Sea 15

At 53 minutes and 18 seconds into the maze game,

Shizong, wearing Zhu Shuangyun’s face, encountered Zhou Lü together with Zhang Qijun.

Zhou Lü exuded a unique, overpowering aura.

In the world of Asura, most men are combative and skilled at fighting.

So unlike Zhang Qijun’s functional-type skills, Zhou Lü’s strength in the maze likely lay in combat, and his abilities should be quite formidable.

This is probably why he dared to venture alone through the maze.

Looking at “Zhu Shuangyun,” Zhou Lü raised an eyebrow. “Why are you hanging out with him? Don’t let him fool you.”

“I won’t. He used the Truth Card.”

Shizong stepped forward and said to him, “I don’t know why, but he betrayed ‘Mountain’ and chose to let us ‘Sea’ win. Maybe he has some personal grudge against the playwright. In any case, this works in our favor.”

“Are you sure?” Zhou Lü glanced at Zhang Qijun warily, still skeptical.

“I’m sure,” Shizong said. “Look at the time on his chest marker—it increased, right? That’s because he killed the playwright.

“He originally planned to kill Crow too, but Crow got lucky and returned to the maze starting point. Actually, we don’t need to bother with Crow; we can just leave the maze. But considering…

“Normally, Crow returning to the start wouldn’t allow him to reach the end.

“But we can’t be careless. There could be all kinds of strange items in this maze. What if he found a time-boosting card?

“To be honest, to save time and play it safe, I didn’t dare play the hardest mini-game, so I don’t know what the corresponding items do.

“But who knows, Crow might be good at these games. I heard he’s a sophomore. He’s pretty quick-witted.”

Hearing this, Zhou Lü seemed unconcerned.

“Speed-boosting items, time-extending items… no matter how many you get, it’s just flashy surface work, not really useful.”

“Oh? Why?”

Shizong, in Zhu Shuangyun’s tone, asked curiously.

Zhou Lü said nothing more.

Probably because he still couldn’t fully trust Zhang Qijun yet.

He just turned and walked to the front of the group to lead the way. “Follow me, you’ll see.”

“Eh, okay.”

Shizong clutched his stomach, looking like he could barely keep up. “Second male lead, slow down. I’m really too hungry to move.”

Zhou Lü glanced back at him and shook his head exasperatedly. “Looks like your only use is time.

“I’m guiding you to save a bit of your time, so the time transferred to the male lead at the end will be slightly more.”

Shizong blinked. “Well, what can I do with this role? Alright, I’ll give my time to the male lead, as long as our faction can win.

“But remember to tell him, when he kills me, do it quickly so I can leave without pain.”

“Still talking so much with your stomach empty?”

Zhou Lü spoke like a domineering CEO, expressionless, and quickened his pace.

Shizong struggled to keep up, running a few steps before slowing down again, soon falling far behind Zhou Lü.

Glancing sideways, Zhang Qijun walked beside him, not rashly following Zhou Lü.

Pretending not to notice anything, Shizong said to Zhang Qijun, “Don’t worry about me, you go ahead, hurry. If Crow catches up, I can hold him off. I have no skills anyway. I’ve accepted it—if I’m cannon fodder, I’m cannon fodder.

“To be honest, I don’t care how I leave the maze now. Even if I get killed, I can immediately go back to the fourth floor of the castle to eat. I just want to eat.”

Hearing this, Zhang Qijun didn’t chase Zhou Lü but stepped closer to Shizong.

Carefully glancing at Zhou Lü ahead, he said to Shizong, “His last words were clearly a warning to me. I feel he still doesn’t trust me. I…”

Shizong asked him, puzzled, “It’s okay if he doesn’t fully trust you. I trust you.

“There’s only Crow left on ‘Mountain’ side. Can’t we handle him?

“Wait, let me confirm—are you really not worried about the loser debuff?”

“Of course I don’t care about the debuff. I’m aiming to lose.”

Zhang Qijun said, “But I don’t want to die in this maze hastily without gaining the trust of the second male lead and the male lead first.

“First, the maze walls will randomly show story fragments I still want to understand.

“Second, if you ‘Sea’ win, you’ll get information to solve the ultimate puzzle. I want you to give that information to me.

“After all, who wouldn’t want to fully understand this story and get high points?”

“Hmm, that’s true.”

Shizong thoughtfully looked at him. “We have the information you want, but you didn’t negotiate with us.

“When you approached me, you could have—your condition being that we tell you the info after you help us kill Crow and the playwright.

“Why didn’t you do that?”

“Because my main goal is to make the playwright lose. The info is just a bonus.

“Besides, if I had negotiated, you might not have trusted me completely. Then I’d get nothing.”

Zhang Qijun said, “Now my main goal is basically achieved. I’ll try to survive as long as I can, that’s it.

“Also, I haven’t seen Crow die myself, so I can’t fully relax.”

Shizong nodded. “I understand. I don’t know yet if the male lead and second male lead have found the exit. If they don’t have enough time, I’ll give mine. Worst case, you die with me. Seeing your sacrifice, they’ll trust you.

“Besides, if we’ve already won the faction battle, they should agree to give you the info. Even if they don’t, I will.”

“My main worry is that you three might get the info separately,” Zhang Qijun said. “This system is twisted. Who knows how it’s designed?”

“I get your concern,” Shizong said. “So you want me to…”

“You help me test the second male lead’s attitude,” Zhang Qijun said. “See if he trusts me. And if I let him kill me, will he give me the info? Also…”

“Also what?” Shizong asked.

“I’m worried that after the faction battle, the playwright and Crow might retaliate. I want your help then. But I don’t know what the second male lead means about that.”

“Okay. I’ll ask.”

Shizong looked toward Zhou Lü ahead and shouted, “Wait!”

He sounded exhausted, leaning against the wall for a moment before hastening toward Zhou Lü and speaking to him quietly.

While talking to Zhou Lü, Shizong casually glanced back.

He noticed Zhang Qijun had fallen far behind, cautiously and worriedly watching him and Zhou Lü.

At the same time, Shizong noticed Zhang Qijun take out an item card, seemingly ready to use it at any moment.

He didn’t hide it, instead openly displaying it to Shizong and Zhou Lü, as if on purpose.

By now, Shizong had figured out all of Zhang Qijun’s plans—

Zhang Qijun’s primary goal was to make Shizong’s faction fail, ultimately giving Shizong the debuff.

To achieve this, he had to do a lot: explore the maze, play mini-games for items, and convince the ‘Sea’ faction to trust him…

So back then, he had to prioritize his main goal first.

Now, Zhang Qijun felt he had achieved it.

Then he could plan for other things.

He wanted to solve the ultimate puzzle and get the ‘Sea’ faction to give him the info after winning.

He also wanted protection from the ‘Sea’ faction, so he wouldn’t be retaliated against by Shizong.

If the ‘Sea’ faction refused, he didn’t care about mutual destruction.

Even if he died in the maze, he wanted to cause them some trouble before dying.

So at this moment, Zhang Qijun probably held a powerful item.

He deliberately showed it to Zhou Lü as a display, warning him not to act rashly.

“What does he mean by this?”

Turning back, Zhou Lü clearly noticed Zhang Qijun’s action.

He cast a warning glance at Zhang Qijun, then looked at “Zhu Shuangyun” beside him and whispered, “Do you really trust him? What about the Truth Card? Explain carefully.”

Shizong: “It’s a card that guarantees he tells the truth.”

Zhou Lü: “Such an item isn’t necessarily reliable; some words are highly deceptive. What exactly did he say?”

“I can’t fully remember. Let me think…”

At this, Shizong inadvertently glanced back and saw Zhang Qijun frowning, meeting his gaze.

From Zhang Qijun’s expression, it seemed Sh

—It was Shizong who used the time-extension card on him. Shizong faked death!

“No! We’ve all been tricked!” Zhang Qijun immediately looked at Zhou Lü.

Panicked, his voice sharpened, “You have to believe me. The person next to you is not right. Shizong faked death. He probably completed the hardest mini-game here, maybe he got something that allows him to impersonate—”

Zhang Qijun didn’t finish his sentence because Zhou Lü had already launched a killing move at him.

In the real world, Zhou Lü was a refined, somewhat shrewd business elite, but in the maze, he transformed into an ugly, fierce male Asura, muscular and bursting with strength.

He opened his right palm, muttered something, and a massive axe appeared in his hand. With a swing, it unleashed a thunderous force!

Zhang Qijun was prepared and immediately activated an item card.

It was a defensive item that allowed him to vanish from his spot and reappear ten meters away.

A loud “BOOM” resounded as the axe struck the ground where Zhang Qijun had been moments before.

Zhou Lü missed, staring at Zhang Qijun now tens of meters away.

Zhang Qijun pulled out another item card and said to Zhou Lü, “In that terrifying situation, I only used a dodge item and didn’t kill you.

“How about that? Isn’t that sincere enough? You still don’t believe me?

“If you still don’t trust me, I’ll have to use my killing move! Don’t you know the situation is extremely—”

“Who says ‘we’?”

Shizong immediately cut in with Zhu Shuangyun’s voice, mocking him, “I sensed something wrong earlier. If you were truly on the ‘Sea’ faction, and you really killed the playwright, why didn’t you just give up your own time? Hesitating, wavering, you clearly have something to hide!

“If you were fine, why did you dodge? You should have let Zhou Lü kill you to prove you were truly on the ‘Sea’ side. Why didn’t you?

“You’re lying to me. Your words are full of lies!”

As he said this, Shizong bent his index finger, tapping it three times against his thumb.

Zuo Sanqiu, still in communication, immediately received the signal and hurried over using his high-speed movement.

After dealing with Zhu Shuangyun, Zuo Sanqiu was always ready to support Shizong.

He couldn’t get too close to Zhang Qijun, or he’d be detected, so he followed from a distance.

Fortunately, his speed shoes allowed him to arrive in time, catching Zhang Qijun off guard.

Suddenly, a piercing “Waa—Waa—” echoed through the long maze corridor.

The sound was grating and unbearable.

Zuo Sanqiu’s skill was on cooldown, used earlier against Zhu Shuangyun, so he couldn’t act again so soon.

The sound was just a normal crow call with no additional effect.

But when the first sound reached Shizong, he immediately covered his ears and urgently warned Zhou Lü, “Cover your ears! I overheard Crow telling the playwright about this ability. The sound slows actions and thinking!

“Cover your ears! He and the playwright are probably coming!”

The sound reached Zhang Qijun exactly as spoken.

His first reaction was to cover his ears instinctively.

He didn’t have time to activate the supposed “killing move” item card.

In that instant, Zhou Lü, leaving behind a “I don’t feel anything” remark, swung the axe again toward Zhang Qijun!

Zhang Qijun’s rational mind quickly realized that the Zhu Shuangyun in front of him was Shizong, who was deceiving him. Zhou Lü nearby was completely unaffected.

This was all Shizong’s scheme!

Yet Zhang Qijun’s instinct, ingrained by his master’s training, forced him to react correctly: covering his ears.

Even though he immediately tried to press the button on the item card, he was half a step too late.

Zhou Lü wielded his Asura War God power, able to swing instantly.

Zhang Qijun had to activate the killing item, which took at least ten seconds—made worse by his ear-covering motion.

It was too late.

Zhang Qijun’s eyes widened in fear.

In the next moment, the axe struck his crown, and he vanished like smoke in the maze.

Just a second before disappearing, Shizong arrived, picked up the item card that fell from Zhang Qijun’s fingers, and quickly pressed the activation button.

Zhou Lü immediately asked, “What are you doing there?”

“Of course taking his item card to deal with the others on the ‘Mountain’ side.”

Shizong said without turning back.

“You have no skills anyway. I can’t trust you, so I’ll take you directly. If you’re really Shuangyun, I apologize in advance.”

Then Zhou Lü raised his axe swiftly.

A moment later, a familiar voice echoed from deep within the corridor. “You can’t win. Forgot to tell you, I cannot be killed.”

Zhou Lü froze mid-swing.

Tilting his head, he saw another Zhang Qijun approaching.

This Zhang Qijun was, of course, Zuo Sanqiu in disguise.

Zhou Lü didn’t know this and genuinely hesitated.

Soon he realized—no matter which Zhang Qijun was real, they were both on the ‘Mountain’ side. He should kill them all.

Understanding this, Zhou Lü swung at the “Zhang Qijun.”

Zuo Sanqiu’s heart raced, relying on his speed shoes to dash forward.

“BOOM—!”

The axe grazed his arm, smashing into the wall.

Zuo Sanqiu survived but lost a chunk of flesh on his right arm, collapsed in agony, tears streaming, unable to run further.

As Zhou Lü raised the axe to strike again, he heard counting nearby:

“8, 9…”

Counting what?

Zhou Lü glanced at Shizong and saw him smiling faintly in the snow-white maze, raising an item card—the one he had just taken from Zhang Qijun.

[Item Name: Arrows Piercing the Heart]

[Effect: Summons arrows to attack target]

[Accuracy: 99%]

[Lethality: 100%]

“You…you’re Shizong.”

Momentarily stunned, Zhou Lü said this.

He didn’t look scared, just indescribably exasperated.

Probably regretting losing again to Shizong.

Shizong raised his finger to his lips, signaling silence, eyes gentle, smile soft—not like someone sending a person to die.

He looked at Zhou Lü, smiling faintly, and softly said the final number: “10—”

In an instant, countless arrows shot from the void, all aimed at Zhou Lü.

Ten seconds later, Zhou Lü vanished in the maze.

The deaths of Zhou Lü and Zhang Qijun proved that once someone truly died in the maze, their body disappeared.

This meant they were transported outside the maze, alive again.

Zhang Qijun, eager to kill Shizong as his primary goal, never observed how others died in the maze, so he fell into the trap easily.

The game had passed 56 minutes and 32 seconds.

Without any interference, the player’s remaining time would be 3 minutes 28 seconds.

Shizong killed Zhou Lü; the chest marker read: “06:56.”

Zhou Lü shouldn’t have missed obtaining a time card.

But he didn’t use it.

Did he give it to someone else?

Shizong approached Zuo Sanqiu, noticing his chest marker read: “21:53.”

“You okay?” Shizong asked.

Zuo Sanqiu’s face was pale. “I’m surviving.”

Shizong bent to help him up. “Can you walk?”

Zuo Sanqiu gritted his teeth. “Yes.”

“Alright,” Shizong said. “Why only 15 minutes? Zhu Shuangyun didn’t die?”

“She’s definitely dead. I didn’t kill her conventionally. I just drained all her time.”

After explaining his actions toward Zhu Shuangyun, Zuo Sanqiu sighed. “Before entering this instance, I had high hopes for our Eternal Life Guild.

“I thought once it grew, I’d be a founding member, maybe even an elder. Never imagined…

“After this, our guild will be effectively dead, scattered.”

Shizong said calmly, “Not necessarily.”

Zuo Sanqiu asked in surprise, “How are you going to fix the rifts this faction battle caused among everyone?”

Shizong: “No need to fix it.”

Zuo Sanqiu: “???”

Shizong said, “As long as the guild leader is strong enough, there will always be followers.”

Zuo Sanqiu looked at him suspiciously. “Then how can you guarantee everyone’s loyalty? If hearts aren’t united, an organization won’t go far. Personal charisma alone isn’t enough. After seeing your recent moves, no one trusts you anymore.”

Shizong: “For now, we share the same goals and interests, so it’s fine. What loyalty? It’s all mutual use.”

Zuo Sanqiu: “No, your worldview… let me tell you—”

“Enough. Shut up.”

“Yes, I’ll wait. I’ll use the Equal Wealth card.”

Their conversation took some time, and using an item card took 10 seconds, so after using the [Equal Wealth Card], their remaining time was 14:05.

Zuo Sanqiu asked Shizong again, “So what do we do now? And where’s He Zhen? What if he kills us while invisible? That’s terrifying. How can we know where he’ll appear?”

Shizong: “He Zhen can be invisible, but no one around him has abilities like Zhang Qijun, so he can’t precisely locate enemies in the vast maze. What do you think he would do?”

Zuo Sanqiu thought and said, “He definitely can’t run everywhere. The maze is too big. Since he can’t know where each of us is, randomly searching is pointless. What if he finds us after we’ve already found the exit? So…”

Zuo Sanqiu understood. “If the maze exit is the only one, he’d best guard the exit. But… waiting at a spot like that is tricky. It means he must be invincible.

“He doesn’t need flashy items, schemes, or disguises. He doesn’t even need teammates.

“He just needs to dominate the exit. That means he must be strong enough to deal with anyone heading there. He…”

When someone’s strength crushes everyone else, they don’t need to survive by humbling themselves or playing along.

They can kill effortlessly.

All defensive items would be useless under his power.

The item shop mentioned there are two indestructible weapons in the maze; He Zhen must have found at least one to act so confidently.

Such overwhelming power, enough to crush all items, explains his audacity.

Of course, Shizong thought it wasn’t just that.

He Zhen likely carries an arrogant, high-status attitude, disdainful of political scheming.

Shizong found He Zhen interesting.

Only 18 years old, yet living like someone high-ranking, who never bows to others, possessing unmatched strength.

He scorns manipulation because he can easily crush anyone like an ant.

Has he always been like this?

Who exactly is he?

No matter what, he doesn’t seem like a powerless illegitimate son of a family, born from a washed-up, fallen celebrity.

Zuo Sanqiu, beside Shizong, slowed his pace as he connected the dots, nervously rubbing his hands.

“He has a powerful weapon and can be invisible… what should we do?”

Shizong smiled faintly, showing no tension.

Zuo Sanqiu swallowed. “What do we do?”

Shizong: “Simple. Didn’t you forget what I bought for 50 points?”

Zuo Sanqiu blinked. “That thing called ‘Free Your Hands’… I thought it was for finding clues in murder cases… I even thought it was useless.”

Shizong: “In murder cases, there are plenty of clues, easy to find. Then it’s kinda useless, just randomly finds one among many. You never know if it’s helpful.”

Shizong: “But in this maze, there are only two weapons.

“If that Fourth Sister found both, I admit defeat.

“But if not, the maze only has one clue that this item can find. How is it random? It only shows where that weapon is.

“So, as long as Fourth Sister can’t find both, the other weapon will be in my hands.”

Most items are in the shop, obtained through mini-games.

But the two truly hidden weapons must be found directly.

If He Zhen already found one, using [Discover Clues Anytime, Anywhere], Shizong can easily find the other.

Finding a single item card in this huge maze is like finding a needle in the ocean.

But if only one needle remains, the once-useless clue-finding item becomes a divine tool.

Zuo Sanqiu: “…Damn it. Why aren’t you using the item yet!”

Shizong had already used the item he bought for 50 points.

The item card activated.

It displayed the maze map and clear navigation, guiding Shizong to a location.

Suddenly, Shizong’s expression became serious.

His palm burned—his Knight’s Emblem was activating.

“Something wrong?” Zuo Sanqiu noticed and asked worriedly, “The item didn’t work?”

Shizong: “No. I suspect He Zhen is coming.”

Shizong looked at Zuo Sanqiu calmly.

“Give me all the item cards you just earned, and the ones from Zhu Shuangyun.”

He Zhen was indeed nearby.

Guarding the maze exit, he noticed that after so long, no one had come.

What did this mean?

The battles were intense.

Many might be dead.

Even Zhou Lü might be in trouble, as he didn’t return on time.

Realizing this, He Zhen didn’t panic; a faint smile appeared.

He guessed this was all connected to Shizong.

Shizong had played brilliantly.

He Zhen stopped guarding the exit and, invisible, delved back into the maze.

Soon, he found Zuo Sanqiu and Shizong.

Zuo Sanqiu was closer; Shizong a bit farther, holding a stack of cards, reading instructions.

He Zhen wasted no time, whipping his weapon.

But Shizong and Zuo Sanqiu couldn’t see him.

From their view, a rift opened in the void, and a black whip shot out like a venomous snake, then descended like a deadly blade!

Everything happened silently.

The whip struck Zuo Sanqiu, who immediately vanished from the maze.

He died instantly.

The whip retracted, and the void rift closed.

But a moment later, another spatial rift appeared above Shizong’s head!

The whip descended with overwhelming force—but missed.

Shizong, alerted by the emblem, had used an item card ten seconds earlier to vanish.

[Item Name: Shadow Shift]

[Effect: Disappear from current location, reappear randomly anywhere in the maze]

Shizong’s forehead had a thin layer of sweat.

He arrived at a strange yet familiar crossroads.

This card teleports randomly; Shizong initially didn’t know where.

Luckily, the clue-finding card showed a map and indicators.

He realized he wasn’t far from his previous location.

He had to secure the other weapon before He Zhen arrived.

Author’s note:

He chases, he flees… (bushi)