Translator: Lonelytree Editor: Millman97
An hour after the competition started, various forces started to meet and the fights occurred all over the city. Around this time, a new change was brought in the middle of the city.
This was originally an open plaza with nothing but pebbles, but it was now the most infected part of the city. The smell of sulfur filled the air, obsidian shards littered the ground, and piles of bodies could be seen everywhere.
In the middle of the plaza, there was a large door about more than ten meters high and four meters wide. One side of the door was shrouded in a black mist. Around the door were five different-colored magic circles arranged in a pentagon. The magic circles were drawn in patterns that were impossible to decipher, and all the five circles were currently dim.
Suddenly, there was a crack. The little light that remained on the magic circles disappeared, and they shattered. The door opened…
The other side of the demonic door was a harrowing chaotic land. If the city was hell on earth, then the other side of the door was hell itself.
A shadowy darkness was slowly walking towards the door that connected both worlds. The monsters that were borne out of the energy in the city, the time wardens, the juries, and the Anomalies all sensed this strong presence approaching. Even though it was just approaching, it was enough to make the lower-grade monsters cower in fear. Wailing sounds echoed around the city. They spoke of a collective despair. The monarchy that signified the end of the world had arrived in the land.
At the same time, in the real world at the Zombie Blade studio, this conversation was happening.
“What? You’re telling me now? After it’s past 1 AM?” It was their studio manager who spoke. He was frowning, listening to their employee’s report.
“What’s wrong?” Coincidentally, their leader, who had stayed to work late that night, walked over towards them. He was holding a cup of coffee that he had just taken from the machine. “What is happening?”
The manager glanced at the worker and sighed. He raised the paper report. “Read this yourself. This is the data report on ‘Victor’ that was transcribed back to us two minutes ago.”
The leader took the report and read it while sipping the coffee. He almost spat it out. “What’s happening? He didn’t take the drug?” The employee said innocently, “But he said he did.”
“He ‘said’ he did?” The manager repeated in an accusatory tone.
The worker was quite cornered. He glared back at his superior and said in a demanding tone, “What else do you want me to do? Do we need to follow him and watch him ingest the drug or force it down his throat?”
“You…” The manager was stumped speechless, but he knew that this was not the employee’s fault. Entering the hub without the drug was Zombie Blade Victor’s own doing.
“Enough. Stop arguing.” The leader was a peacemaker. He understood the manager well. When anything bad happened, the first thing he would do was to force the blame onto someone else and not solve the problem. Many second-rate managerial companies had similar human resource problems. “If Victor tossed away the drug and lied that he had taken the drug, nothing can be done about it. We cannot read the anomalous data when he got into the log-in lobby. Only after he entered the scenario could we have received the reading of the machine.” He turned to the employee. “You have done a great job to discover this so soon. Now go back to your post.”
The employee turned and left. Before he left, he glared at the manager.
The leader told the manager, “This could make or break the studio. I’ll have to call the boss to inform him about this. You should also get back to work for now.”
“Hmm…Okay,” the manager answered and left.
The leader looked at him and scoffed with derision. He sighed deeply and said, “Useless. Tomorrow I’ll have the boss see you.” He lowered his head to turn his focus back to the report. He thought about it and said, “This kid…Don’t tell me he was somehow inspired and wished to fight fairly and openly for once in the final.” He shook his head. “He really thinks he has moved into the ranks of the experts? Laughable. If you were good enough to become a celebrity player, why are you still with us, Zombie Blade?”
Meanwhile, in the game world, in the northern part of town. “We meet again.” A cigarette dangled on Uncle Worthless’s lips, and his hands were in his pockets. He looked at Zombie Blade King and said, “Last time, you sure ran away in a hurry.”
“This time, that won’t happen anymore.” When he spoke, he already brandished his halberd. “Let’s get this over with!”
“Oh?” Uncle Worthless raised his hand to adjust his sunglasses. He looked into the man’s eyes. “Hmm…the gaze is not bad. It’s like a different person from before.” He put the sunglasses back on and scoffed. “You’re on some new kind of drugs, so the confidence has shot up to new heights?”
“You can think whatever you want,” Zombie Blade Victor replied. “I do not wish to explain.”
“All right. If it’s a fight you’re looking for…” Uncle Worthless took out his hands from his pockets. “Whether you’re a normal player or a seed player…It makes no difference to me.”
“Nerve-racking is what it is. One party is like a tiger waiting to pounce, the other is waiting for perfect timing. The history from the past, the encounter today…a duel to the death is inevitable.”
On the other side, meanwhile, on the eastern side of the city, there was a “blood lake” about three meters wide. The lake was always boiling, upping the temperature around it. In the lake, the sticky blood was mixed with many indeterminate objects. It was like a disgusting cocktail. No one knew how the lake was formed and no one cared to find out.
Because of the lake, the surroundings were clearly visible. Players with more than Level D sleuthing mastery could look across the lake clearly. This environment was what led to what happened next. There were twelve players in total. They were looking at each other from across the lake. They did not circle around the lake, but they stood in groups of three. Each group was occupying a corner.
On the east were Lying Drunk, Sashimi, and Understanding Death.
On the west were Vishnu, Yama, and Brahma.
On the south were Bladeless Swordsman, Flashes of Sword, and Smiling Divine Question.
On the north were Ming Zi, Qu Ming, and Zhen Nan.
This was truly a sight to behold. The strongest trios from Regulations, Brahman, Jiang Hu, and Hyotei had gathered together at one spot. Even though Zen Dream and Shiva were not there, this was an already impressive gathering.
At this point, we have to give a little more details about the group Qu Ming Nan.
Some might think putting these three gigolos with the former three groups might lower the whole standard, but that was not the case.
We’ll look at their gaming history, and you’ll understand why.
First, the three belonged to a very small gaming studio that just started, and Thriller Paradise was the first game they had entered as professional players. With that premise, they became famous in less than two months. Secondly, their claim to fame was not their one-on-one fighting skill but their 3 versus 3 group-fighting tactic. During Blade Duel at Chang Ling, Atobe had mentioned that these three always abandoned him to queue up for Killing Game.
Thirdly, even though they were experts at group fights, all three of them managed to get into Top 50 in the Tournament of the Best. Bfore the finals, they had not tested for any team-fighting skill.
Lastly, the fact that they were famous could be seen from their impossible-to-remember IDs and how easily they were mixed up. They were so unique that they had become unforgettable in the minds of the gaming public. The fact that their names, despite being so hard to remember, became so popular was their claim to fame.
“This is getting complicated,” Ming Zi looked across the lake and concluded.
“Looks like in the finals, many people have used the same tactic. They would meet up with other members from their guild’ first,” Zhen Nan added.
“Isn’t that a given? We’re smart, but we can’t expect others to be dumb.” Qu Ming shrugged. “The result of the finals is generated using the points system. To first find a trustworthy ally and then grabbing as many points as you can before dealing with the inside problem—that is just a normal strategy, isn’t it?”
“Yes…” Ming Zi concurred. “But the problem is we have entered the enemy’s line of sight, and there are three different enemy gangs. What should we do? Should we attack?” He paused. “And if we do decide to attack, whom shall we attack?”
“Stop joking,” Qu Ming said. “In this situation, taking the first move is no different from suicide. To give you an example…A attacks B, while C and D observe from the side line. When A and B’s fight reaches the middle or the end, either C or D will come in to take advantage of the situation.”
“But how can you tell C and D won’t fight among themselves?” Zhen Nan questioned. “If C or D killed the other before the fight between A and B ended, then they can still turn around to ambush A and B.”
“But if A and B finished the battle first, then the winning party will turn around to sneak-attack C and D, who are still fighting,” Ming Zi countered.
“How about we try to go for a negotiation? A and B joins hands to kill C…” Qu Ming gave another suggestion.
Zhen Nan nodded. “But the alliance between A and B will be fragile. Who knows what will happen in the actual battle?”
“Hmm…” The three were caught in a conundrum, and it looked like they were solving some very hard math problems.
On the other side of the lake, a young man with a bowl cut, Sashimi, was talking to his partners. “Brahman and Jiang Hu are discussing tactics, Hyotei. Well, I can’t say I understand what they’re saying.”
Understanding Death asked, “What’s wrong? Are they talking in foreign language?”
“They might as well be. They’re throwing around A, B, C, and D,” Sashimi said, “It feels like they have already lost themselves in a multi-layered analysis that is impossibly boring and highly improbable.”