Lu Qingjia shrugged his shoulders and said, “I can’t possibly become a high-level Player in this round.”
“Why not?”
“Because this is just my first instance after advancing to the Intermediate Level Game. Even if I were given the chance to go to the Advanced Zone, my strength wouldn’t match up for now.”
The other Players gasped, looking at Lu Qingjia as if he were a monster.
Lu Qingjia smiled and said, “What’s wrong? You didn’t think what I said in the first class was a lie, did you?”
Of course, it was a lie; even at this moment, most people wouldn’t believe him.
If a newcomer who had just advanced from the beginner stage could navigate the late intermediate stage with ease and control the situation, then he wouldn’t just be a reserve for high-level Players; he would be a reserve for administrators.
Such a genius was terrifying enough that when faced with him, it was instinctive to refuse to believe.
But it was pointless to observe whether this person was lying.
Lu Qingjia continued, “Of course, I’m not helping for free; I want something in return.”
“Let’s set a clear price. How much do you think the opportunity to go to the Advanced Zone is worth for you to trade with me?”
The group exchanged glances, and one Player spoke up first, “How can we be sure you can really help us and aren’t just setting a trap for your own benefit?”
“There should be a contract platform in the Game, right? You can put forward the rewards you can offer, and we can sign a contract. If you become a high-level Player, the rewards are mine; if you fail, you can take them back.”
“Deal!” one Player quickly said, “Fifty thousand gold coins, one ability, and two items dropped from late intermediate instances. How does that sound?”
The other party replied, “Don’t worry, while abilities and items aren’t my trump cards and I wouldn’t trade them lightly, they are definitely valuable in my collection. To be honest, offering them feels like I’m cutting off a piece of myself.”
Lu Qingjia nodded, “Alright!”
Seeing this, the other Players quickly began to offer their own stakes.
Ouyang Bai was stunned; he gently nudged Lu Qingjia’s arm and whispered in his ear, “The rewards I got from clearing the game before were already enough to make people envious. I didn’t expect this to be even more shocking.”
“Indeed, robbing is more profitable than working.”
After all, with fifteen Players remaining, even if less than half truly became high-level Players, the benefits Lu Qingjia would gain would still be astonishing.
Not to mention, he was participating in late-stage instances as a newcomer to the Intermediate Level Game, contributing the highest rewards for clearing.
This harvest was enough for Lu Qingjia to leap into the ranks of late intermediate Players, an unprecedented case in Game history.
The terrifying Game let out a hissing sound of toothache: “I’ve seen robberies before, but this—forget it, as long as it’s not my stuff.”
After signing the contract, Lu Qingjia said, “My current thought process is very simple.”
“Since the flow of time in the confinement room is different from that in the instance, it represents the flow rate outside the box, and we can see that Player’s eyes. It’s very likely that the confinement room is a bug left by this instance.”
“It is a clue for Players to uncover the truth and a hope for Players to reach the Advanced Zone.”
The group arrived outside the confinement room, and even the grayish Ji Ye followed along, seemingly needing to move with the crowd.
But since he was offline, not many paid attention to him; everyone’s expectations were focused on the possibility of reaching the Advanced Zone.
At the door, when they opened the confinement room, the floor was just ordinary black due to the Game Player’s offline state.
One Player said, “You don’t mean to just break through the floor, do you?”
Lu Qingjia replied, “Of course, it won’t be that simple.”
“This Game is developed so exquisitely; although it’s limited to a school, the experience feels like it has created a small world.”
One Player’s eyes lit up, picking up on Lu Qingjia’s words: “In such a technologically advanced real world, is it possible that we are entering a future of interstellar or cosmic eras?”
“A world like this could very well be a high-level instance. As long as we enter that real world, we break through the barrier of the Intermediate Level Game’s Advanced Zone and become high-level Players, right?”
“The basic logic is like that, but the specific operations need to be done slowly.”
Everyone swallowed nervously, and then they saw Lu Qingjia suddenly smile—
“First, to enter the high-level instance, I must screen you all.”
As he spoke, with a flick of his hand, a silver gleam flashed like lightning.
In the next second, the burly man, who had been confined, a Gold-digging Player, had his throat slit open, blood spraying out unexpectedly.
His attention had been consumed by the excitement of soon becoming a high-level Player, and he had just signed a lucrative agreement with Lu Qingjia.
The burly man never expected Lu Qingjia would suddenly attack him.
His powerful physique meant he wasn’t dead immediately; instinctively, he launched a counterattack, but Lu Qingjia was already prepared. He didn’t engage in a direct confrontation but moved with incredible speed, using the knife in his hand to inflict wounds on the opponent. However, given the opponent’s preparedness, it couldn’t cause the same massive effect as the first strike.
Then Lu Qingjia stepped back, revealing a strange smile: “Why are you still focused on resisting my subsequent attacks?”
“Have you forgotten that, in reality, as long as my attack causes you a wound, the outcome is decided?”
The burly man’s face twisted in rage, fear, and anger, but it was too late. A bulge formed in his heart, then suddenly collapsed, as if his entire heart had vanished.
“Why—”
Before he could finish his sentence, he crashed to the ground.
Lu Qingjia stepped forward, looking down at his corpse, coldly saying, “Why? I’m a Hunter Player, even if I haven’t been certified by the Game yet.”
At this moment, the corridor was eerily quiet. If previously Lu Qingjia had tricked those people, the Players were still uncertain about his moral alignment; the scene now left them with goosebumps.
He wouldn’t allow Gold-digging Players to rise to the Advanced Zone, even at the cost of forgoing benefits. Only a Hunter Player’s sense of responsibility and commitment to the real world could achieve this.
By now, nine Gold-digging Players had died, and considering both factions and the scattered ordinary Players, it was safe to say that nearly all the Gold-digging Players had been dealt with.
Some couldn’t help but sigh internally; perhaps this fraud really was a good person?
At that moment, they saw him lift his head, his face still smeared with the burly man’s blood, looking strikingly handsome yet eerie.
He smiled, “Sorry, but this is my stance. So before entering the Advanced Zone, I need to confirm your factions.”
“If you are Gold-digging Players, you can log out of the Game now and save your life.”
It sounded easy, but with the Advanced Zone so close, how could anyone move?
Moreover, the remaining Players, in terms of numbers, temperament, and behavior, really didn’t seem like there were any stragglers left.
Seeing that no one reacted, Lu Qingjia said, “Alright, everyone line up and face me.”
“I want to hear you say with your own mouths that you are not Gold-digging Players or Villainous Players. If this statement is false, you will be dragged into the depths of hell, tormented day and night to appease the souls of the wronged in my hands.”
“I’m a fraud, exceptionally skilled at detecting lies. Whether your identities are true or false, I will judge myself.”
Seeing some people frown at his meticulousness, Lu Qingjia said, “If you are confident you can find a way on your own, feel free to ignore my request.”
“But I have a mental cleanliness obsession; I cannot tolerate Gold-digging Players thriving in front of me.”
“Anyone who acts recklessly,” he brandished the knife in his hand, “I will have to use violence to stop them.”
Though this guy claimed to come from the beginner stage, his lethality and cunning had frightened everyone.
Thinking of those six splashes of blood, the two tragic corpses in the kitchen, and the burly man whose body was still warm?
One was already enough of a freak, and with Ouyang Bai, it wasn’t worth tearing faces over a trivial matter.
The group exchanged glances and lined up, facing Lu Qingjia, making the promises he requested.
However, they didn’t notice that when they stood in a line facing Lu Qingjia, the black-and-white Ji Ye, who had been motionless on the periphery, suddenly regained color, as if he were logging into the Game.
But if one looked closely, his gaze mirrored Lu Qingjia’s.
After they swore, they asked, “Is this enough? Can you tell who is lying?”
Lu Qingjia shook his head, “Of course not. I’m not a lie detector; how could I possibly tell at a glance if everyone is lying? There are certainly people skilled at disguise in this world; I wouldn’t be arrogant enough to think I’m the only one with that skill.”
“Moreover, even if someone isn’t good at disguise, it doesn’t mean they don’t have similar abilities to hypnotize themselves, making them believe their own words at a certain moment.”
Upon hearing this, the crowd was thoroughly enraged: “Didn’t you say you could tell? How long is this going to go on? If you can’t tell, why make us stand in a line like fools?”
“Because I can’t tell, but the rules can~~”
Lu Qingjia revealed a strange smile, and one Player’s face changed dramatically as he suddenly produced a weapon, intending to take Lu Qingjia down with him.
But it was too late; he couldn’t move in time, and his body exploded into a puddle of flesh.
The crowd was shocked, and those quick on the uptake had already reacted, looking at the now-colored Ji Ye, exclaiming, “When did you take control of the rules from the first class?”
Lu Qingjia replied, “Not just the first class.”
As soon as he finished speaking, two more Players suddenly found black holes beneath their feet, and countless pale hands reached out, pulling them down into the ground.
Woohoo, badass Lu Qingjia let’s go!
Thank you for the chapter!^^