Marinated Eggs

“This god is really down-to-earth,” Su Ze remarked with a sigh.

“God? How do you know he’s a god?” Xuanyuan Jin exclaimed in surprise.

Su Ze and Mo Ziang stared at him, with Mo Ziang gritting his teeth, “Eat a strawberry butt, you!”

“May you always hit the bullseye,” Su Ze clapped his hands sarcastically.

From the moment the young man mentioned that the three of them had gathered, Su Ze and Mo Ziang had already figured it out.

Xuanyuan Jin, who had just cursed himself, was still clueless.

“You all know the rules, right?” The young man clapped his hands, shaking off the grease and crumbs from the fried dough sticks he had been eating. “No time to waste, let’s go.”

The four of them arrived at a deserted street corner.

A void rift opened before them, dark and unfathomable.

Su Ze took a deep breath to steady himself, while Xuanyuan Jin clasped his hands together, chanting a Buddhist mantra.

Suddenly, a burst of laughter erupted among them.

Mo Ziang raised his hands above his head, clapping wildly. His laughter was manic and unsettling, his steps unsteady and bizarre, as if he were drunk.

He gradually calmed down, and for the first time since they met yesterday, a familiar, crazed, and slightly deranged smile crept onto his face.

“Gentlemen, I’ll go first,” Mo Ziang said as he danced his way into the void rift, disappearing without a trace.

“How long will the competition last?” Su Ze, preoccupied with his thoughts, had forgotten to ask earlier.

“Until half of the participants are dead,” the young man replied.

Without hesitation, Su Ze stepped into the spatial rift. From the moment he met Mo Ziang, the latter had always been this crazed, and Su Ze had grown used to it.

Xuanyuan Jin chanted his mantra and stepped into the rift as well.

The rift closed, and the young man outside vanished along with it.

Endless darkness, where time seemed to stand still.

Su Ze awoke in the darkness, lying on a cold, hard, and smooth metallic surface that felt icy to the touch.

A room constructed entirely of cold metal came into view.

He stood up and noticed Mo Ziang silently dancing in a corner of the room, not making a sound, yet his movements were still graceful.

Xuanyuan Jin, who had been lying on the ground, also got up.

Su Ze took the long case from his back and inspected its contents.

A straight sword, a Miao sword, and the “Ghost Slayer Heavenly Child” were secured on three sides of the case.

In the middle were cigarettes, smoke grenades, and single-serve combat rations… everything except the C4 plastic explosive, which had disappeared… but everything else had made it through.

Su Ze pulled out a pack of cigarettes and skillfully handed them out. Xuanyuan Jin declined, but the others accepted.

Su Ze lit one and placed it between his lips.

A sudden vibration shook the room, and a section of the metal wall slowly slid open. What they had thought was just a wall turned out to be a tightly sealed metal door!

A blinding white light, like a flash grenade, flooded the room.

“Damn it! I wasn’t ready, took a full flash!” Su Ze cursed, closing his eyes.

A gust of wind swept in from outside, strong enough to lift a small poodle into the sky, fulfilling its dream of soaring without wings!

The room, illuminated by the light, reflected it off the metal walls, ceiling, and floor, turning the space into a sea of light!

It was like being on a beach at dusk, chasing a girl who seemed to be blurred by a mosaic filter, running slowly ahead, occasionally turning back to tease, “Big brother, come catch me, if you catch me, I’ll let you… cough cough.”

Su Ze pulled up the collar of his trench coat to cover his mouth. The strong wind pressure whipped his medium-length white hair into a frenzy, like seaweed dancing wildly under a tidal wave.

And Mo Ziang was literally dancing!

He moved gracefully in the gale, his steps flawless despite the overwhelming wind pressure.

Su Ze watched Mo Ziang’s dance with a sense of admiration.

In the vast sea of light, everything was blurred, and only faint outlines of people could be seen.

Suddenly, he noticed Xuanyuan Jin moving in his peripheral vision and turned to look.

Ding—!

“Damn it!”

A blinding white light, even brighter than the one outside, flashed toward him!

“That’s too much! Who threw a flashbang in my face!” Su Ze grimaced, covering his eyes as tears streamed down his face.

For a moment, he thought he saw a shiny, reflective bald head!

Not sure, let’s check again!

He peeked through his fingers toward the source of the reflection.

Ding—!

“Damn it!”

Su Ze was now bawling.

He was sure now—it was a freaking glowing bald head.

“Crow! Check over there, something’s come in!” Su Ze pointed blindly toward the glowing spot, his eyes still shut.

He had no idea what that thing was, but he wasn’t about to open his eyes to find out!

Mo Ziang’s dance came to a halt as he finished a spinning maneuver, bowing as if concluding a performance.

Then, he turned to look in the direction Su Ze had pointed.

Ding—!

“Ahhhh!”

The scene turned cartoonish as Mo Ziang burst into tears, covering his face with one hand and pointing at the glowing bald head with the other. “A bald head! A huge glowing bald head!”

“Sir, do not panic,” Mo Ziang felt his hand being grabbed by Xuanyuan Jin, who spoke in a calm voice. “I have checked the surroundings and found no such glowing bald head.”

“Really? Did it disappear?” Mo Ziang wiped his tears, believing Xuanyuan Jin, and opened his eyes.

Weng—!

“Ahhhh!”

A dazzling white light struck his retinas!

“I’m blind! I’m blind!” Mo Ziang fell to the ground, rolling around in agony.

He hadn’t seen what it was—just a flash of light brighter than the sun!

“Sir! Sir, are you okay?” Xuanyuan Jin panicked, unsure of what to do as he watched Mo Ziang writhing on the floor.

“What’s going on?”

Hearing Mo Ziang’s screams, Su Ze also panicked and instinctively opened his eyes.

Ding—!

“Damn it!” Su Ze cursed.

“We’re surrounded!” Su Ze shouted.

He was on the verge of a breakdown. He remembered the bald head wasn’t near Mo Ziang earlier!

Mo Ziang’s screams were too pitiful, and Su Ze, despite the discomfort, tried to open his eyes to save him.

Ding—!

Ding—!

Ding—!

After being hit by multiple flashes, Su Ze’s eyes were red and swollen. Save him? How the hell was he supposed to do that?

Even with his eyes closed, he couldn’t help anyone!

Ding—!!

Tears streaming down his face, Su Ze pulled out the straight sword from his case and swung it blindly!

The last flash had helped him pinpoint the bald head’s location!

“Damn it! What are you doing?” Xuanyuan Jin’s shocked voice rang out beside him.

“Get out of the way! Don’t block me from chopping this bald head!” Su Ze thought Xuanyuan Jin was just standing too close to the bald head and didn’t think much of it.

“Damn it, damn it, damn it!” Xuanyuan Jin sprinted around the room, with Su Ze chasing after him, swinging his sword wildly.

“You said you were chopping the bald head… damn it!” Xuanyuan Jin arched his back, narrowly avoiding Su Ze’s sneaky stab aimed at his rear.

“That was way too precise! Almost went in white and came out yellow!” Xuanyuan Jin roared.

“Isn’t that normal?” Su Ze sounded confused but didn’t stop swinging. Stab a bald head, and the blade comes out yellow, right?

“Are you insane?”

“I don’t mind you chopping the bald head, but you’re chopping… damn it!” Xuanyuan Jin yelped, twisting his hips to dodge a stab from Mo Ziang, who had recovered and joined the fight, aiming for his left buttock!

Ding—!

Tears streaming down his face, Su Ze once again locked onto the glowing bald head’s position!