Qi Dao decisively moved to the door, pressed against it, and shouted outside,
“Although I don’t know who you are, we’ve been set up. We’re not the ones who got the keys. There’s a tape recorder here, someone framed us.”
As he spoke, he gestured to Wang Yang to quickly pick out a key… just in case there was a real one.
“Liu Lou, Zhongyue Thirteenth High, you should know me. We’ve taken joint exams before… No keys? How come my parasite senses a strong metal presence? It can detect metal, as you know. As a key item, it should have that kind of presence.”
Of course, there’s a strong presence there’s a pile of keys!
Damn it!
But what good would it do to tell them outside that there’s a pile of keys?
The three of them had instinctively hesitated to give up the keys, thinking there might be a real one among them.
Even if they were convinced they were all fake, what would Liu Lou and the others outside think?
Liu Shen glanced at the bloodstains, the tape recorder, and the pile of keys, realizing they’d been thoroughly outmaneuvered there were flaws, there was suspense, but none of it could outweigh human greed.
They all wanted to take a gamble.
And none of them trusted each other, nor were they willing to give up their share.
The only way to verify the keys was to test them at the main gate…
Which meant the only outcome was…
“Let’s negotiate with them,” Liu Shen said calmly.
This also meant they’d have to spend their energy and time in a standoff with Liu Lou and his group.
And as time dragged on, the night watchman might catch up to them.
Now, it was their turn to face the danger that person had been in.
Because human nature can be calculated.
Wang Yang cursed, “Damn it!”
That bastard!
Huo You had bought herself some survival time and hid again.
She no longer needed to use the “corpse.”
Those people had already gathered together and were now in conflict.
Driven by the inexplicable nature of human behavior, their infighting and mutual harm were inevitably the same principle as F36.
Though low-level, it was effective.
So her “corpse” still had three minutes of usable time.
It had been 21 minutes since the dungeon started.
Among the six hundred or so examinees, a couple of troublesome groups had emerged…
They were now in conflict, but they wouldn’t outright start a war; they weren’t that stupid.
In the end, they’d still have to face her…
“After saying ‘I love you three thousand times’, they surely don’t really love me.”
With this mess, Liu Shen and the other two would probably want to tear her apart.
Those three were tough enough to fight F36 and survive…
“Ah, what a hassle. Brook, come out.”
Brook appeared, asking her about the current situation.
Huo You: “There are so many people outside, all dangerous. I’m no match for them. I’ve been pushed to the brink. Look, I’m even injured.”
She had cut herself to bleed… but of course, the blame was on others, right?
Brook was shocked,
“Half the time’s passed, and the pace is picking up? Examinees or monsters?”
Huo You: “Both. They’re all bullying me, using dirty tricks, accusing me of stealing, ganging up to hunt me down.”
“I’ve got no way out. I’m ready to surrender, but I know they’re up to no good-full of moral talk, but in the end, they’ll probably see I’m decent-looking and start spouting love nonsense, only to make me sign some slave labor contract… and then force me to breed.”
Brook was furious, “What?! They dare?!”
Huo You: “Don’t be mad. It’s normal for them… I’m just a lowly being.”
Brook: “But you’re not a slave at all! You’re incredibly talented don’t I know that?! Otherwise, how could you be worthy of me?!”
Huo You: “Life is lonely as snow… I don’t care for vanity or fame. It’s just historical reasons from the past that I can’t shake off this identity, dragging you down with me, being looked down upon.”
Brook: “Hmph, respect isn’t determined by status it’s earned through action. Every time I, Brook, appear, it’s never for nothing. The ‘corpse’ still has three minutes, right? What else do you need in terms of text? Speak!”
Huo You: “I want an attack text that can kill F36 with one slap.”
Brook: “Be more subtle.”
Oh, I can’t do it?
Fine.
Huo You thought for a moment,
“With the bronze badge you’ve recovered and enhanced, how many ordinary texts can you create, and can you chain them into a curse?”
This was only the first level, the so-called entry-level of the college entrance exam, and it was supposed to be easy.
During the exam, it was impossible for examinees to gain any effective material rewards-no top-tier weapons, treasures, special medicines, or rare raw materials.
None of that was available yet!
The bronze badge was only an “enhancement item” effective for the current exam.
You couldn’t even absorb other examinees’ parasites-most examinees had chosen survival items, so upon death or elimination, their souls and bodies would be controlled by the system, leaving no room for her to take advantage.
Otherwise, the entire exam hall would become a slaughterhouse where certain privileged youths with innate advantages could endlessly massacre the third and fourth races, growing stronger – this was one of the rules of the college entrance exam.
Thus, in this aspect, her hidden advantages couldn’t be utilized.
She could only “take the exam bare-handed.”
Brook: “As long as it’s not a state word like ‘corpse, I can create seven.”
Huo You pondered, “Then…”
At that moment, the system prompted that question 20 was starting.
“Will you take the exam now?”
“Yes.”
At the 32nd minute of the dungeon, after Liu Shen and the others quickly negotiated for a few minutes, they reached a consensus.
A few would go after the presumably existing treacherous “bastard,” while the rest would head to the first floor to test the main gate.
None of them wanted to stay here, fearing they’d be locked onto by the F36 night watchman.
Plus, they had to answer questions-twenty of them, with fifty still left, and only half the dungeon time remaining.
It was going to be tight.
So they moved toward the first floor.
“Liu Lou, are you really not coming with me?”
Liu Lou, the athletic school heartthrob, fancied himself a bit of a free spirit and had always had a bit of a thing for Liu Shen.
In this world, due to the extreme bacterial environment and life-and-death pressures, teenagers matured early, often considering certain matters by the time they finished high school.
Liu Lou was raised in a family that instilled in him the idea of finding a woman who was attractive, from a humble background, and had the potential to be a good partner and mother to their children.
If he waited too long, by the time he entered university or society, finding a strong woman from the same circle who met his standards would be much harder; they’d either aim higher or simply not bother.
Liu Shen was only eighteen, but she was well aware of the intentions of these young men.
She found it tiresome, but having just negotiated, she didn’t want to burn bridges.
She said calmly, “This person is dangerous. Hiding could lead to trouble. If I don’t go, one of you will have to. Who’s confident enough to deal with someone like that?”
Liu Lou’s group had banded together for mutual benefit.
Thirty-plus examinees were strong together, but none wanted to split off alone to chase after a dangerous, potentially unbeatable person who might not even offer any rewards.
What if the main group tested the real key at the gate, opened it, passed the dungeon, and got the rewards, while the one who left missed out?
That would be a huge loss.
Liu Lou frowned but said nothing more, quickly leading the group away.
Wang Yang and Qi Dao wanted to follow Liu Shen, but Liu Shen believed in not putting all eggs in one basket.
So they had to split up.
They went to the first floor, while Liu Shen stayed alone in the basement.\
Her figure was slender, her demeanor scholarly, making her seem particularly small and vulnerable walking alone in the vast, dim basement.
But her inner strength was formidable.
Despite not having an offensive parasite, she dared to take risks alone.
Why?
Because you shouldn’t put all your eggs in one basket.
Soon, she stopped in front of a pitch-black lounge.
The door was closed, and the air carried the musty smell of long disuse.
She stood there, speaking softly.
“Sir, should I call you sister or sister?”
“I can smell the blood from your wound.”
“My parasite isn’t just about hearing.”
“Can you come out and talk?”
Her voice was clear, friendly but not without edge.
She waited for Huo You’s response.
It only took a few seconds.
Huo You didn’t keep her waiting and came out by saying,
“You can try both and see which sounds better, then decide whether to be the older or younger sister.”
Liu Shen had come with certain intentions, but that didn’t mean she had any goodwill toward this person.
Hearing the other’s calm yet teasing tone, her heart skipped a beat.
If it were Liu Lou or the others, she’d be disgusted.
But this person…
Her voice was truly pleasant, exuding a stable, refreshing aura-not greasy, tolerable.
“Sir, I’m serious. Since we’ve chosen the easy level, it means none of us have the advantage of crossing class barriers outside. The college entrance exam is crucial for us, and we need to approach it carefully.”
“To maximize our scores, we can set aside any temporary grudges or impulses.”
“So, you should know my intentions—I mean no harm.”
“We can cooperate, putting aside past grievances, and work together equally to get through this dungeon.”
Whether smart or foolish, in the context of the college entrance exam, especially realizing this dungeon was testing the examinees’ “unity,” Liu Shen wasn’t stingy in choosing companions.
For this, she even had the magnanimity to ignore the earlier “I love you three thousand times.”
You could say she was quite sincere, her parasite wasn’t offensive, and her weapon was a dagger at her side.
Honest and polite.
Huo You remained silent for a moment, seemingly considering.
There was a faint sound behind the door.
Like a chair being moved.
Then.
Huo Ypu said: “I admit, your hearing and sense of smell are strong-you tracked me down. But does that mean you can also track the one behind you?”
“Does he love you three thousand times too?”