Russian Roulette

When Zhou Ke recovered from his dizziness, he began to carefully observe his surroundings.

This was the interior of a small classroom.

The room contained only one desk, two chairs, and a blackboard.

He sat in one of the chairs.

The other chair was occupied by his opponent for this round of testing—the student dressed in black.

Screech—!

A sharp knife suddenly appeared on the chair behind him, pressing against his spine.

Zhou Ke felt the icy touch of the blade, and his hair stood on end.

For a moment, he was startled, but he quickly calmed himself.

He couldn’t act recklessly—the test must have already begun the moment he entered this room.

And this classroom was undoubtedly the examination hall.

Zhou Ke recalled the spinning wheel on the computer screen, which had landed on "Luck."

His mind raced with guesses about how luck would be tested.

Rock-paper-scissors? Rolling dice? Or drawing playing cards to compare values?

Just as he was lost in thought, fluorescent text flickered onto the blackboard, slowly revealing several lines:

[Second Round of Entrance Examination: Aptitude Test.]

[Test Focus: Luck.]

[Examination Content: Russian Roulette.]

Russian roulette?

Zhou Ke was familiar with the term—he’d seen it in plenty of movies and shows.

It was a brutal game of life and death.

The tools? A revolver… and human lives.

A revolver’s cylinder had six chambers.

After loading a single bullet into one of them, the cylinder was spun and snapped shut, randomizing the bullet’s position.

The two players would then take turns pointing the gun at their own heads and pulling the trigger.

The one who got shot… naturally lost.

The crux of the game? Pure luck. Which, admittedly, aligned perfectly with testing luck.

But… this was just a school entrance exam. Were they really gambling with their lives?

The blackboard continued to display the rules:

[The revolver has six chambers and one bullet.]

[Both students will take turns firing the revolver at themselves.]

[The one hit by the bullet will be eliminated.]

[Note: Do not leave your seat, and strictly follow the rules.]

[Otherwise, the blade on the chair will pierce forward.]

After reading the rules, Zhou Ke sighed.

Exactly as he remembered Russian roulette.

But the same question remained—what kind of test was this? And was it really worth risking his life for?

As if hearing his thoughts, the screen displayed two more lines:

[The examination hall is an intelligent simulation with safety mechanisms in place.]

[After the test concludes, both participants will be transported back to school unharmed.]

Well, that made sense.

Zhou Ke stopped looking at the blackboard and turned his attention to the desk.

Sure enough, a revolver lay there.

Testing luck… really was as simple and brutal as it got.

"Hey, should I go first, or you?" Zhou Ke asked the student in black.

……

Outside the examination hall.

"Terminate the test!"

Chen Yun burst into the examination site, panting heavily.

Zhuang Xingyao, who had just sent Zhou Ke and the black-clad student into the examination hall, was in the middle of arranging for the next pair of examinees to put on their helmets.

"Professor, what’s going on?" she asked, raising a skeptical eyebrow.

"There’s a killer from the Skull Society hiding among the examinees!"

What?

At the mention of the Skull Society, the new students collectively gasped.

Even Zhuang Xingyao, whose face was usually as cold as ice, paled slightly.

Professor Chen Yun, still catching her breath, spoke in broken sentences:

"We received intel… a Skull Society assassin disguised himself as a student… planning to kill one of the examinees!"

"And he’s already been transported into the examination hall!"

The Skull Society—a top-tier assassination organization lurking within Dragon Country.

Once the Skull Society marked someone for death, escape was impossible.

Countless powerful figures, dignitaries, and tycoons had fallen to their hands.

And now, their target was… an ordinary student?

"Professor, are you serious? Why would an assassin target one of our new students? And besides…" Zhuang Xingyao hesitated before continuing,

"The examination halls are all intelligent simulations. No matter how dangerous the test is, it’s all fake."

"Even if someone ‘dies’ in the exam, they’ll just be safely transported back afterward."

Chen Yun finally caught her breath and spoke gravely:

"Someone in our school sabotaged the safety mechanisms inside the examination hall."

"What?" Realizing the severity of the situation, Zhuang Xingyao finally dropped her usual detached demeanor.

She lunged for the computer’s control panel, muttering, "Abort the test… we have to pull the students out of the examination halls immediately…"

Her fingers flew across the panel.

Soon, students began reappearing one by one, removing their helmets.

"What’s the big idea? I was about to win!"

"Thank goodness, I almost lost…"

Some complained, others sighed in relief, but most wore expressions of confusion as they turned to Professor Chen Yun and Zhuang Xingyao.

"My deepest apologies, everyone. Due to technical difficulties, this round of testing is canceled," Professor Chen Yun said, bowing to the students.

"Professor…" Zhuang Xingyao pressed her lips together, her eyes locked on an electronic screen.

"What is it?" Chen Yun turned a questioning gaze toward her.

Zhuang Xingyao, usually so composed, now spoke in a voice that trembled slightly:

"There’s one examination hall… that’s malfunctioning."

"The test inside is Russian roulette."

"There are still two people… trapped in there."

"Get them out now! Without the safety mechanisms, if the bullet fires, they’ll really die!"

Zhuang Xingyao’s voice was hoarse as she whispered,

"The examination hall is no longer responding to commands."

"And the bullet in the revolver… has been replaced with a real one."

……

Inside the examination hall.

"Hey, should I go first, or you?"

Zhou Ke tried to sound polite as he addressed the student in black.

"I’ll go first," the other replied in a low, raspy voice—one that didn’t sound like a student’s at all.

He reached out with his right hand and smoothly picked up the revolver.

Zhou Ke noticed a black skull tattoo on the back of his hand.

"Edgy much?" Zhou Ke thought. Was this guy some kind of rebellious punk?

The black-clad student didn’t say another word.

He raised the gun and pressed it against his own temple.

Zhou Ke quickly calculated the odds in his head.

Six chambers, one bullet.

Statistically, the chance of firing the bullet was about one in six—roughly 17%.

In other words, if luck was on his side, the bullet would fire now, and Zhou Ke would win instantly.

But 17% wasn’t exactly high. More likely, it’d be a blank shot.

Click.

The black-clad student pulled the trigger.

First shot.

Blank. No bullet.

Silently, he handed the revolver to Zhou Ke.

Zhou Ke sighed inwardly.

So much for luck—17% wasn’t enough to rely on.

He took the gun calmly, giving it a slight heft in his hand.

It felt real.

Zhou Ke thought back to the words on the blackboard.

【The examination hall is a smart simulation equipped with safety protection devices.】

【After the assessment, both parties will be teleported back to the school, and no one will suffer actual harm.】

At this moment, he couldn't help but wonder—if he were unlucky enough to get shot, would he really be unharmed?