Zhu Zeyu hunched his neck and obediently nodded.
One of the keys to acting without going out of character was remembering what information the character actually knew.
Zhu Zeyu had been standing guard outside in the corridor the entire time.
In his current identity, Zhu Zeyu had no idea that Director Jin had watched the surveillance footage, much less what the Seer had said to Director Jin.
When he had just tested the waters by asking about “the Seer,” he had merely been checking whether he could steer the conversation toward the “connector.”
Once he successfully guided the topic there, Zhu Zeyu would be able to lead people upstairs and, quite naturally, put on the spectacular show of rescuing the players from the dungeon and clashing head-on with the [Hunter].
Unfortunately, Director Jin was impervious to both persuasion and pressure. He had refused to reveal even the slightest bit of information about the Seer, offering nothing but a complaint.
Zhu Zeyu pretended to ponder for a moment before speaking again.
“Director, I took a careful look at this segment of information, and I think there are a few points worth noting.”
“You see, this [Hunter] claims to be Hunter No. 3. That’s one point. I thought the one we fought earlier was No. 1… Ah, never mind. In any case, it was the first [Hunter].”
Director Jin heard him, but didn’t take it in.
“And what does that have to do with the situation now?”
He was deeply displeased. “All you’re saying is that there’s a new [Hunter], and that the [Hunters] have accomplices. We already knew that!”
“Director Jin, that’s only the first suspicious point. There’s a second.”
Zhu Zeyu lowered his head in feigned deference. “I remember Captain Zheng saying in the vehicle that we were immune to… immune to the dungeon.”
It would have been better if he hadn’t said that.
The moment he did, Director Jin felt even more as though his authority had been challenged. He narrowed his eyes slightly at Zhu Zeyu.
What was that supposed to mean?
Why bring up exactly what he didn’t want to hear?
Zhu Zeyu paid no attention to what his superior might be thinking. He only wanted to keep the performance going.
“Director, what I mean is, based on the principle Captain Zheng explained to me, the dungeon’s arrival must require some kind of medium, right?”
“I think they either used some method to damage our equipment, or they brought some kind of object inside.”
That was an interesting idea.
Director Jin suppressed his irritation and gestured for Zhu Zeyu to continue.
And Zhu Zeyu did not disappoint him. He immediately got to the crux of the matter.
“If we destroy that thing at its source, Director, how likely do you think it is that the dungeon will be destroyed along with it?”
The suggestion struck the nail on the head.
Director Jin immediately thought of the surveillance footage he had watched in his office.
In the footage, that young man had indeed bent down and touched a small device. Only then had the sudden change occurred.
But…
Director Jin shook his head, his brows still tightly furrowed.
“You have a point. But what if the device is destroyed and those people don’t come out? What if they all die inside the dungeon?”
“If the higher-ups find out, it’ll be classified as a major accident.”
At that, Director Jin’s gaze sharpened.
“If something really goes wrong, who’s going to take responsibility? You?”
Zhu Zeyu once again put on a troubled expression and fell silent.
The identity of “Zhu Zeyu” was still too inexperienced. In front of Director Jin, he occasionally found himself at a loss for words.
Controlling the [Walking Dead] “Medic,” Zhu Yan raised his head and joined the discussion.
“Director.” The “Medic’s” tone was steadier. “What if we coordinate with Captain Zheng and have his side try it first?”
“You mean we should rescue Captain Zheng’s team first?” Director Jin understood.
Under Zhu Yan’s control, the “Medic” nodded.
“Director, they’re an elite team to begin with. They have far more experience and methods for dealing with dungeons.”
“Right now, the [Hunter] is definitely upstairs. There are no terrifying creatures or [Hunters] down here, and the overall environment is relatively simple.”
The “Medic” laid out his reasoning in an unhurried manner.
“More importantly, they’re our own people.”
Internal problems were much easier to handle than external ones.
Their own people wouldn’t cause trouble so easily.
If this “rescue experiment” failed, the deaths could be treated as sacrifices. If it succeeded…
“If it works, we can go straight upstairs and destroy whatever is up there.”
“And Captain Zheng has experience fighting the [Hunter], so it’ll be easier for us to capture them.”
The players around them were swayed by his words.
Someone agreed. “That makes sense, Director Jin. If it doesn’t work this time, we can still send the situation back to Headquarters’ Strategic Analysis Division and have them analyze it remotely.”
Ma Dong asked, “Should we send part of the group over to try first?”
This was a last resort, but under the circumstances, it was also the safest option available.
Director Jin nodded, not daring to be careless in the slightest.
“Upstairs has already descended into chaos, and Liu Lei’s side is barely managing to maintain order.”
This was only the beginning. There was still a long time before the open-beta dungeon descended.
If something truly happened to the shelter this time, the Human Alliance’s trust rating would fall along with it. The higher-ups would absolutely hold him accountable.
“This rescue…”
Director Jin looked toward the end of the corridor, where a vast expanse of white stabbed painfully at his eyes.
“…I’m going with you.”
There was no way he could feel at ease unless he saw this through with his own eyes.
…
In the corridor.
Captain Zheng withdrew his hand. The color had drained from his not-quite-pale face, and his chest heaved violently.
This space could no longer be called a “corridor.” The walls on either side had been crumpled like discarded newspaper, while the lights had changed from white to a deep green.
At first, they had still been able to stand upright here with ease. But in just a few minutes, the ceiling had pressed directly down against their heads.
The oxygen in this place even seemed limited. Captain Zheng felt increasingly short of breath.
“Captain, what do we do?” one of the team members asked uncertainly.
“We’ve tried everything we can think of,” said another player with a scholarly appearance. “There’s no way. This place is like a swamp. The harder we struggle, the more it twists.”
“It’s shrinking, too.” Captain Zheng nodded.
The players wore solemn expressions, and no one spoke.
This dungeon was far more severe—and far more ruthless—than anyone had imagined.
There were no monsters, no rules… nothing at all.
Captain Zheng suddenly slammed a fist into the wall, his entire body trembling uncontrollably.
“Damn it. I’m not willing to die here for nothing!”
Despair spread rapidly through the cramped space.
None of the players spoke. They exchanged glances, yet in one another’s eyes, they all saw the same despair.
And above their heads, Zhu Yan was drifting around gleefully in his [Mist] form.
The more despair, the better.
The more despair they felt now, the happier they would be when Zhu Zeyu appeared later.
Wouldn’t that shining, saintly persona be perfectly established this way?
…
Two minutes later.
A group of people cautiously approached the corridor outside Room 1356.
Zhu Zeyu, walking at the front, made a hand signal and carefully stopped the others behind him.
“Look,” he said. “There’s a metal pull ring on the floor.”
with countless casualties. As a top-tier gamer, Liu Xuan volunteered to join the fight, intending to dominate with his skills, but instead he obtained the hidden class: [Pacifist]. Unable to attack. Unable to use active skills. Fortunately, with each level gained, he acquired a new passive skill. And so, armed with a body full of passives, Liu Xuan slaughtered his way through the battlefield of ten thousand races! [You attacked Liu Xuan] [You gained the debuffs: 'Poison', 'Fear', 'Burning', 'Bleeding', 'Freeze', 'Silence', etc.] [Your attack speed has been reduced by 99%] [Your armor and magic resistance have been reduced by 99%] Warriors of the Ten Thousand Races: How the hell am I supposed to fight this?!
villain is the number one simp for the book's leading female protagonist, Shen Wan'er. As expected, he later becomes a tool for the main character to show off and slap faces, ultimately meeting a tragic end with his family ruined and his life in shambles. Fortunately, he awakens the [Universal Pure Love System], which allows him to earn points by performing acts of pure love. To change his fate, Gu Yan makes a decisive choice to seek warmth and companionship with the book's biggest villain—Cold Qingqiu. ........... My name is Leng Qingqiu. To find the murderer who killed my parents years ago, I deliberately blinded myself so that everyone would lower their guard around me. Just as I was secretly accumulating power and capital according to my initial plan, a man walked into my world. "Lengleng, Qingqing, Qiuqiu, which nickname do you prefer?" I don't like any of them. You'd better leave quickly! "Why aren't you saying anything? How about I call you my baby wife?" Leng Qingqiu thinks to herself, this man is truly annoying! (Stubborn pure love warrior + single female lead + true pure love + 1v1)
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
