Qiong already knew He Yu was crazy.

She had even followed him into madness more than once.

Yet at this moment, she still couldn't help sucking in a sharp breath because of him.

At a time like this...

In an environment this unknown...

Inside an instance this dangerous...

He wasn't talking about making careful plans.

He wasn't talking about probing and testing.

He wanted to jump straight to the final prison break.

What did that mean?

It meant walking a tightrope.

It meant charging into battle completely unprepared.

Even squeezing through the crowd, Qiong stopped moving altogether. She stared at He Yu in disbelief and repeated,

"You mean... disable most of the wristbands, fully unlock only one of them, and then have that one person lead everyone else—who still can't fight—in a direct breakout?"

Under her incredulous gaze, He Yu slowly nodded.

Then he corrected her.

"If you can unlock two people's wristbands within the limited time, our success rate will triple."

Qiong asked instinctively,

"Success rate?"

He Yu replied,

"Three percent."

Qiong dug a finger into one ear.

"Before or after tripling?"

He Yu answered calmly,

"After."

Qiong: "............"

...Thank you so much.

You raised our chances from one percent to three percent.

Tripled them.

How incredibly impressive.

Expressionless, she turned to Ling Buchen.

"What about you?"

"What do you think of this plan?"

Ling Buchen grinned honestly.

"I think it's great."

"I'll listen to He Yu."

Qiong: "..."

Taking a deep breath, she sighed once again.

Madmen.

These two were both mad.

One danced on the edge of death every day while somehow giving off an air of fragile vulnerability.

The other was completely black-hearted, blindly supported He Yu no matter what, yet somehow always looked simple and harmless.

What kind of place was Blue Star?

Did it specialize in producing weirdos?

The part that made Qiong feel the most defeated was that she wasn't thinking about arguing with He Yu or persuading him to change the plan.

Instead, she was thinking—

How could she disable the wristbands in the shortest amount of time?

How could she possibly unlock one more person's wristband?

She had gone insane too.

He Yu reached out and patted her shoulder, wearing the expression of someone entrusting an important mission.

"Good luck."

"You're the hope of our entire village... no, our entire instance."

Qiong replied dryly,

"...Thanks for having so much faith in me."

He Yu smiled faintly.

"You're welcome."

Qiong: "..."

They didn't dare continue talking.

Although Wanrenzhan and the others had attracted most of the instructors' attention, some attention still remained on everyone else.

Besides, the instructors were standing above them, just like teachers standing on a podium.

Every movement below was clearly visible.

On top of that, He Yu and Qiong were a man and a woman.

Standing close together naturally attracted even more attention.

Qiong whispered,

"I'm leaving."

"I'll figure something out by noon."

He Yu nodded.

Protected by Ling Buchen, he gradually blended back into the ordinary NPC prisoners as he distanced himself from Qiong.

Apparently realizing they had finished talking, the people fighting up front sped things up.

Wanrenzhan's eyes were bloodshot.

He felt his strength surging.

Grabbing one of the beasts, he leaped high into the air, flipped over its body, and drove his fingers directly into the top of its skull.

His other hand followed immediately.

He pulled with all his might.

Rip!

He literally tore the beast in half.

This beast was several times more ferocious than yesterday's.

Yet Wanrenzhan tore it apart just as easily.

On the other side, Zhen Xing once again targeted the neck.

Unlike Wanrenzhan's savage style, his attacks were clean, efficient, and exceptionally rational.

But today was different.

The battle...

The smell of blood...

Both seemed to stir something inside him.

He found himself attacking far more viciously than usual.

Blood sprayed from the beast's neck.

Several drops splashed onto Zhen Xing's face.

The scent of fresh blood made his heartbeat quicken.

A faint crimson tint appeared in his eyes.

It looked deeply ominous.

Standing there, Zhen Xing frowned tightly.

Eugene finished his battle noticeably later than yesterday.

Yesterday they had all finished at roughly the same time.

Today he lagged behind by several minutes.

When Zhen Xing and Wanrenzhan finished, both instinctively turned toward the remaining beasts.

Wanrenzhan only felt overwhelming bloodlust.

He wanted to keep killing.

Meanwhile, Zhen Xing stood there breathing heavily.

Sweat rolled down his forehead.

Watching from within the crowd, He Yu frowned.

The battlefield ahead was soaked in blood.

Especially around Wanrenzhan.

Several droplets had even splashed all the way toward them.

He Yu and Ling Buchen both stepped backward.

Ling Buchen murmured,

"They've changed a lot during combat..."

"Especially Wanrenzhan."

He Yu's beautiful eyes remained fixed on the two of them through his glasses.

His voice was hoarse.

"They're becoming more beast-like."

"The physical modifications are becoming very obvious."

Ling Buchen pressed his lips together.

He said nothing.

But his expression darkened as well.

The situation was terrible.

No wonder He Yu refused to waste even a single moment.

【Bullet Screen: "God... I have no idea how this instance can even be cleared. It's ridiculously hard."】

【Bullet Screen: "Exactly. Their combat power is restricted, they lose consciousness every night, they're injected with experimental drugs, there are countless unstable factors, and the murderer is probably among them... This is pure hell mode."】

【Bullet Screen: "Please let everyone stay safe! Don't vote yet! Save your votes until we see what He Yu decides!"】

【Bullet Screen: "Do you think... He Yu might only save himself?"】

After the battle ended, the instructor looked at Zhen Xing and Wanrenzhan with obvious admiration.

He seemed extremely pleased with their performance.

Especially theirs.

This time, Duan Yuchen and Siya had also performed exceptionally well.

The instructor and his deputy paused briefly on the identification numbers on their uniforms.

The look in their eyes made one's scalp tingle.

As for He Yu and Ling Buchen...

Their performance remained just as poor as before.

Fortunately, Zhen Xing and the others had drawn nearly all the attention.

Neither the instructor nor the deputy had time to deal with the "abnormal" pair.

Deputy Gaor glanced at them coldly.

"After the doctor examines them..."

"If they're failed specimens, dispose of them."

"We have plenty of experimental subjects anyway."

"We received another batch today."

The instructor nodded without caring.

To them...

These prisoners were no different from livestock.

Specimens whose combat power was as low as He Yu's and Ling Buchen's...

Were undoubtedly failed experiments.

The two of them lowered their heads without saying a word.

Morning training ended.

Everyone entered the cafeteria for lunch.

With Annie dead, only seven people remained at their table.

One seat sat empty.

This time, everyone except He Yu and Ling Buchen received extra food.

Instead of eating immediately, Zhen Xing frowned and looked toward He Yu.

"My body's developing serious problems."

"I feel..."

"...out of control."

Those two words perfectly described his current condition.

Wanrenzhan, who had been unusually restless beside Ling Buchen, paused.

Turning his head, he looked over.

His eyes were once again filled with blood-red veins, just like last night.

He himself hadn't noticed.

Frowning, he said,

"Something definitely feels wrong."

"But I also feel stronger."

Much stronger.

He had been the first to kill a beast this morning.

His own combat power had clearly increased dramatically.

His already powerful body had become even stronger.

During the battle, one beast had struck him head-on.

Previously, an attack like that would've seriously injured him.

Now...

It had left nothing more than a shallow scratch.

Barely worth noticing.

Eugene absentmindedly played with his utensils.

His black eyes shifted between Zhen Xing and Wanrenzhan.

Quietly, he muttered,

"Increasing combat power..."

"...doesn't really sound like a bad thing."

He Yu swallowed his food without looking up.

"Increased combat power isn't bad."

"The problem is whether you remain sane."

Duan Yuchen sucked in a cold breath.

Qu Wu carefully observed the two of them before finally turning toward He Yu.

Leaning closer, he lowered his voice.

"If this keeps going..."

"...what happens to them?"

Without hesitation, He Yu answered,

"They'll lose their reason."

"And completely become the prison's experimental subjects."

Qu Wu also inhaled sharply.

Looking back at the two of them, his expression gradually became complicated.

His emotions became equally complicated.

So...

Powerhouses like Zhen Xing and Wanrenzhan...

Could actually fall inside this instance?

Thinking about how he and the others had already caught the attention of the prison staff, Qu Wu's face turned pale.

His voice trembled.

"Did you come up with a plan this morning?"

"What do we do next?"

"When do we remove the wristbands?"

He was becoming anxious.

Their combat ability had been noticed today.

Tonight they would receive increased doses of the unknown drug just like Zhen Xing and Wanrenzhan.

One day.

Two days.

Three days.

Eventually...

All of them would probably become experimental subjects.

After taking another couple bites, He Yu judged himself about ninety percent full.

He set down his chopsticks and wiped the corner of his mouth.

"During this afternoon's training..."

"Qiong will unlock one person's wristband."

"Then..."

"We begin the prison break."

Calmly, he explained the plan Qiong herself had called insane.

Qu Wu: "..."

...He was anxious.

But not this anxious.

This sounded more like marching straight toward death.

Duan Yuchen frowned.

"Do we really have to do this?"

He Yu nodded.

"Yes."

"We can't delay any longer."

"Whether today, tomorrow, or the day after..."

"We'll never find ten uninterrupted hours."

"The earlier, the better."

Even Eugene hesitated.

"So we can only rely on Qiong?"

"We can't figure out how the prison staff unlock the wristbands and remove everyone's at once?"

If everyone's restraints could be removed simultaneously...

Eight experts plus one strategist...

Their odds would improve dramatically.

But with only one person...

The difficulty was simply too high.

He Yu shook his head.

He had naturally considered that possibility already.

Looking at Eugene, he said,

"We'll be injected again tonight."

"Who knows what Zhen Xing and Wanrenzhan will become tomorrow."

"Who knows what the rest of you will become."

After a pause, he continued,

"Our bodies are being modified."

"The Night of Chaos exists."

"The prison rules exist."

"Under those circumstances..."

"Do you really think we'll have time to obtain the proper method for unlocking the wristbands from the prison staff?"

The guards obviously couldn't unlock them.

Neither could the deputy.

The instructor clearly wasn't authorized either.

Even someone as skilled as Qiong struggled to disable a wristband.

That alone showed how much effort had gone into creating them.

Security throughout the prison was airtight.

There were no loopholes.

Which meant the unlocking method was probably held by the mysterious Dr. Ganlun...

Or perhaps by the warden, who still hadn't appeared.

Meeting someone of that level...

Obtaining the unlocking method...

Just thinking about it made one realize how difficult it would be.

And how much time it would consume.

Time...

Was exactly what they lacked most.

Eugene understood.

Taking a deep breath, he asked,

"So..."

"...all we can do is gamble?"

He Yu didn't answer.

No one else had a better idea either.

Duan Yuchen looked deeply at He Yu.

His expression was complicated.

"You're really..."

"...a gambler."

But unlike the gamblers on Money Planet...

He Yu gambled with his life.

And he never hesitated.

No matter how low the odds.

Just imagining the coming plan made Duan Yuchen feel it was completely insane.

Yet He Yu remained as calm as ever.

Unlock the wristband.

Break out immediately.

If they failed today...

They would have to attempt the escape while enduring another Night of Chaos.

Unknown dangers.

An unknown Night of Chaos.

The mere thought made one's scalp go numb.

He Yu had always been fearless.

Unlike everyone else.

For ordinary people...

A thirty percent chance of victory would already be a desperate gamble.

For He Yu...

While gambling with his life, he continuously adjusted according to new information and changing circumstances.

He constantly increased the odds of survival.

Kept raising the probability of living.

But relying on adaptability...

On new information...

On unpredictable changes...

Was ultimately full of uncertainty and danger.

Duan Yuchen suddenly slapped the table.

"Since we've decided..."

"Then let's do it!"

【Bullet Screen: "..."】

【Bullet Screen: "So saying that every contestant this season is gradually becoming He Yu and turning into lunatics is absolutely accurate."】

One second—

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

"That's insane."

"We're definitely doomed."

The next second—

Slaps table.

"Let's do it."

It was honestly impressive.

The loud noise made the deputy look over from the distance.

Duan Yuchen hurriedly lowered his head and shoveled food into his mouth.

Only after staring for quite a while did the deputy finally look away.

When Duan Yuchen raised his head again...

He discovered Eugene was also silently stuffing food into his mouth.

"..."

"I thought you didn't eat?"

Without looking up, Eugene continued quietly eating.

His messy silver hair hung over his face.

【Bullet Screen: "Look how scared the poor kid is. He has to stress-eat now."】

【Bullet Screen: "Even we're nervous just watching. You can imagine how Eugene and the others feel."】

Qu Wu.

Ling Buchen.

Zhen Xing.

Duan Yuchen.

Eugene.

All of them silently concentrated on eating.

Big mouthful after big mouthful.

None of them held back.

Wanrenzhan: "???"

He couldn't understand.

"Why did everyone suddenly start stuffing themselves?"

Without lifting his head, Ling Buchen replied faintly,

"Eat while you can."

"What if it's our last meal?"

Wanrenzhan: "................"

Damn.

Don't tell horror stories like that.

Blinking blankly, he immediately lowered his head and joined everyone else in devouring his food.

Eat.

Even if they were going to die...

At least die with a full stomach.

After finishing everything on his tray, Zhen Xing looked toward He Yu.

His gaze was serious.

Sensing it, He Yu turned toward him, puzzled.

Zhen Xing said nothing.

He simply smiled at He Yu.

For once...

He Yu looked genuinely confused.

Zhen Xing didn't explain.

His smile only became brighter.

He knew.

He Yu had accelerated the entire schedule and decided to act this afternoon...

Because of him.

He could clearly feel his body deteriorating.

Among everyone present...

His time was running out the fastest.

He Yu...

Really was someone others could trust.

Someone unexpectedly warm.

As for Wanrenzhan...

Zhen Xing completely ignored him.

Ironically...

Wanrenzhan thought exactly the same thing.

He also believed He Yu was doing this for his sake.

Which was why...

Dangerous as the plan was...

Even though he normally loved arguing with He Yu...

This time he didn't voice a single objection.

Instead, he kept looking at He Yu with an especially strange expression.

He Yu: "..."

...Why were these people acting so weird today?

After lunch, everyone returned to their rooms for the mandatory afternoon nap.

The moment He Yu and the others entered Room 705, the guard arrived with several new prisoners.

One of them was assigned to their room.

The number on his chest—

No. 4.

Just as expected.

With Annie dead...

The newcomer immediately inherited his number.

The guard didn't seem to find Annie's death unusual at all.

No investigation.

No concern.

The body was quietly removed.

Death...

Was utterly commonplace inside this prison.

People died every day.

Once someone died...

A replacement immediately arrived.

Even the number remained unchanged.

Annie hadn't been the first No. 4.

Nor would he be the last.

The prisoners no longer possessed names.

They had become numbers.

Disposable numbers.

No. 4 looked almost identical to every other prisoner.

The same prison uniform.

The same numb expression.

He walked into the room and stopped beside Annie's former bed.

The guard warned,

"Remember the rules."

"Or suffer the consequences."

As he left, he glanced once toward He Yu before leading the remaining newcomers farther down the corridor.

The instant the guard disappeared, Zhen Xing and the others quietly slipped into Room 705.

The newcomer merely glanced at them before indifferently looking away.

He seemed completely uninterested in anyone else.

He Yu exchanged a glance with Zhen Xing.

Both saw the smile in the other's eyes.

They had just decided to escape.

And now new prisoners had arrived.

Perfect timing.

A perfect opportunity.

Eugene understood immediately.

Walking over, he smiled pleasantly.

"You're the new No. 4?"

No. 4 looked at him numbly without speaking.

Lowering his voice, Eugene continued,

"Mind answering a few questions?"

"Where did you come from?"

"Which floor?"

No. 4 remained silent.

He simply unfolded his bed and prepared to lie down, faithfully following the afternoon nap schedule.

He treated everyone else like air.

Eugene grabbed him.

"Hey."

"I'm talking to you."

Only then did No. 4 speak.

Apparently he hadn't spoken for a long time.

His voice was hoarse.

"Follow the rules."

"Don't talk to me anymore."

"Don't get me killed."

At the end...

Fear flashed across his eyes.

Zhen Xing spoke immediately.

"Do it."

Eugene's mechanical hand extended instantly, clamping around No. 4's throat.

His expression turned savage.

Leaning close, he whispered,

"Talk."

"Or I'll kill you right now."

Since persuasion had failed...

Threats would have to do.

Nobody wanted to die.

Sure enough...

Terror filled No. 4's eyes.

Finally, he answered.

"I..."

"I came from above."

"Above?"

Eugene frowned.

"The sixth floor?"

"Which floor?"

This was the second time He Yu had heard the phrase "above."

His eyes remained fixed on No. 4, waiting.

No. 4 looked confused.

"...Which floor?"

"I don't know."

He didn't even know which floor he was on now.

Eugene's eyes turned cold.

He was about to continue interrogating him when He Yu suddenly spoke.

His tone was gentle.

"When you say 'above'..."

"Do you mean the surface?"

"Can you see the sun there?"

People who saw the sun...

And people who never did...

Were noticeably different.

Eugene tightened his grip.

No. 4 nodded frantically.

He Yu adjusted his glasses with a sigh.

"It seems..."

"Our difficulty just increased again."

"'Above' refers to the surface."

"So among the six floors above the seventh..."

"Aside from the ground level..."

"The remaining five floors are completely unknown."

Everyone's brows furrowed tightly.

No. 4 was only an ordinary NPC.

He knew very little.

But this single piece of information alone...

Was enough to make all of them uneasy.

If this was truly an experimental prison...

Why were experimental subjects divided only between the underground seventh floor and the surface?

The seventh floor was obviously where Dr. Ganlun's experiments took place.

The surface...

Was probably the actual prison.

Prisoners were likely selected there before being transferred underground as test subjects.

Then...

What exactly were the floors in between?

Could they simply pass through them?

The more unknown something remained...

The more worrying it became.

He Yu smiled gently at No. 4.

Compared to the increasingly ferocious Eugene...

He looked completely harmless.

When He Yu smiled...

It was almost impossible to refuse him.

His voice was warm.

"How did you come down here?"

The words had barely left his mouth when—

Tap.

Tap.

Tap.

Footsteps suddenly echoed outside.

Eugene immediately released No. 4.

Everyone looked toward the doorway.

The guard had finished settling the new arrivals.

Now he was walking back inside.

Seeing the guard, No. 4 instinctively shrank into himself.

He sat stiffly on the bed, not daring to move.

He didn't even dare speak to the guard.

Naturally...

He didn't dare report Eugene and the others either.

He simply sat there quietly.

Like a lifeless statue.

Rigid.

Numb.

There was no way the system couldn't create flexible NPCs.

The prisoners behaving like this...

Only proved how terrifying Death Prison truly was.

Seeing so many people still gathered inside, the guard frowned immediately.

"What are you doing?"

"Why are you all together again?"

"Looking for death?"

Before anyone could answer, his whip lashed downward.

Crack!

It struck Duan Yuchen and Qu Wu, who happened to be standing near the doorway.

He used his full strength.

Without holding back at all.

Both inhaled sharply.

Their eyes turned cold.

From the instant the guard appeared...

Killing intent had already filled Eugene's eyes.

"Guard."

"What instructions do you have for us?"

He Yu smiled faintly.

There wasn't the slightest hint of warmth in his eyes.

Seeing He Yu, the guard's expression softened slightly.

Ignoring everyone else, he ordered,

"Go back immediately."

"Otherwise I'll treat this as violating prison rules."

"And execute every one of you."

Zhen Xing and the others remained where they stood.

Their eyes were full of vigilance.

The guard sneered.

Raising his hand, he tapped something on his intelligent terminal.

Instantly...

Agonizing pain shot through Zhen Xing's body.

He convulsed violently.

No. 4 collapsed onto the floor.

His body curled up in unbearable pain.

His breathing became weak almost immediately.

The guard sneered,

"You're nothing but experimental subjects."

"And you still dare resist?"

"Death is the most common thing in this place."

As he spoke, he prepared to activate the terminal again.

If these people hadn't already caught the doctor's attention...

If the instructor hadn't taken an interest in them...

He would've killed them already.

He Yu silently gave everyone a look.

Eugene understood immediately.

Lowering his head, he said hoarsely,

"We'll go back right away..."

Zhen Xing and the others finally withdrew from Room 705.

Wanrenzhan and Ling Buchen looked once toward He Yu.

In the end...

Grinding their teeth, they reluctantly returned to their own beds.

Having successfully subdued them, the guard looked thoroughly satisfied.

Just a bunch of experimental subjects.

Yet they actually dared challenge him.

Even without killing them...

There were countless ways to make them suffer.

He simply wasn't interested in tormenting them right now.

He wanted to do something else.

His gaze settled on He Yu.

His eyes lingered over that refined face.

He Yu stood beside his bed.

The guard walked over.

A lustful gleam flashed through his eyes.

He reached out.

Grabbed He Yu's clothes.

Pulled hard.

Two buttons flew off.

The shirt opened.

His shoulder...

And beautifully shaped collarbone...

Were exposed.

He Yu's gaze darkened.

【Bullet Screen: "HOLY SHIT!!"】

【Bullet Screen: "Is this guard trying to force himself on He Yu???"】

【Bullet Screen: "Kill him! Damn it! He thinks he deserves He Yu? Dream on!!"】

【Bullet Screen: "...Out of all the instances so far, this is the first one who's actually laid hands on He Yu, isn't it?"】

【Bullet Screen: "Yeah. Prisons are always chaotic, and He Yu's ridiculously good-looking. It's not surprising the guard wants to toy with him. But... he's asking to die."】

He Yu glanced at his exposed shoulder.

Then he looked at the guard.

Smiling, he asked,

"Like what you see?"

The guard answered almost instinctively,

"...Beautiful."

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