Chapter 494: Let Me Reattach Your Head
“Huh…?”
“Don’t worry.” Chen Junnan could see the lingering worry in their eyes and could only say with a smile, “Even though I locked the door this round, that little bastard can’t get to me right away. After all, he can’t move after using ‘Unlock’ and ‘Open Door’ in the same round.”
“But you’re fighting alone. Even if that rabbit takes a detour, he’ll still find you,” Cui Fourteen said.
“Ever played Go? A single black stone can’t surround a white stone. Don’t worry.” Chen Junnan turned to the others. “No time to lose. You all head out. And remember…”
Chen Junnan gave them a meaningful look, then pulled out a thin metal stick that looked like a hairpin from his pocket, waving it in front of them. The tip was stained with quite a bit of black mud.
The group cautiously glanced at the iron rod and then nodded one by one.
They needed to get to Room Fourteen as quickly as possible to find the last “artifact.”
Cui Fourteen glanced back at Twelve and Thirteen, signaling them. The three of them walked one after another into Room Fourteen in the distance, then turned back and closed the door—but this time, they didn’t lock it.
Chen Junnan squinted in his room, trying his best to imagine where the others were moving. Jiang Ten was right in the room in front of him. Twelve through Fourteen had already set off as an independent unit.
And… what about Song Seven?
Now that the Ground Rabbit had been released from the “starting point,” Song Seven knew perfectly well that the Ground Rabbit had chosen Jiang Ten… So how would he move?
Chen Junnan walked to the side, facing Song Seven’s room, and peered inside through the doorway. But the room was empty—Song Seven had already started moving.
But where did he go?
“Little Song… you probably can’t figure out my strategy, can you? Where did you go?”
Just then, the broadcast sounded again from the room. The “participants’” turn was over, and it was the Ground Rabbit’s turn.
The door in front of Chen Junnan wasn’t unlocked, which meant that rabbit had started taking a detour.
Although he had left the room Jiang Ten was in, he hadn’t directly opened Chen Junnan’s door…
Thinking about it, that made sense. After all, Chen Junnan was blocking that door. If the Ground Rabbit didn’t want to get stuck, he’d have to change his approach.
Otherwise, going through endless cycles of “Unlock” and “Lock,” he’d just be stuck in a stalemate with the “Door-Closing Disciple.”
“So you mean that little bastard moved from Room Five to Room Nine, or even back to the starting point at Room One, or further…” Chen Junnan scratched his head, feeling like his brain cells were running low. “Are you planning to attack me from the side?”
He walked over and locked the southern door as well.
Chen Junnan’s room had four doors. Now two of them were locked, and those were likely the directions from which the Ground Rabbit would come.
But did he really need to escape?
“A participant’s ‘Lock’ and ‘Move’ both use up two action points, right…?” Chen Junnan smiled, a strange idea suddenly forming in his mind.
From a normal perspective, the best move now was to run, making the Ground Rabbit waste his actions.
But if he ran now, the Ground Rabbit would lose a clear target, and the entire “Cat” team would be in danger.
He had already used one “Lock” this turn. Only one action remained.
“Then let’s make you completely confused. You chase me, so I’ll chase you.”
Chen Junnan walked a few steps forward and clicked open the door he had locked in the previous round.
“Stupid rabbit…” Chen Junnan laughed. “This door is open now… Are you coming or not? Oh, sorry, I forgot—you already left this room… Can you make it back in time?”
He waited a moment. There was no response from the surrounding rooms. Only the hoarse broadcast slowly began again.
The “participants’” turn ended once more, and the “zodiac” began to act.
Chen Junnan’s heart was in his throat. This unlock was pure gambling.
If the Ground Rabbit had only moved one square last round, then this round he would have enough movement to do “Move,” “Open Door,” “Move,” and then reach Chen Junnan’s doorstep. After all, the predator’s “Move” only consumed one action point; only “Unlock” consumed two.
If that were the case, the Ground Rabbit would meet him directly, walking right into his room.
But… would that really happen?
Chen Junnan grinned wickedly. “You’re such an impatient guy… You really want to kill me. I don’t believe you only moved one square last round.”
After a few minutes, the broadcast sounded again. The “zodiac’s” turn had ended.
Chen Junnan cautiously opened the door in front of him and saw only Jiang Ten on the ground, slowly regaining consciousness. The Ground Rabbit wasn’t there.
That meant the Ground Rabbit knew he couldn’t enter Chen Junnan’s room from Jiang Ten’s, so he had chosen a longer route. But the Ground Rabbit never expected Chen Junnan to boldly chase after him. Whether he returned the same way or continued his detour, he would waste an extra round.
“Are you close to Room Fourteen…?” Chen Junnan smiled softly. “But you probably won’t go straight to Room Fourteen to kill my teammates, right? After all, as long as that flute is still around your neck, you don’t need to intercept us in advance—you can just wait for us to come to you…”
With that thought, Chen Junnan strode directly into Room Five in front of him. Inside, Little Jiang Ten was grimacing in pain.
“Idiot leader…” Little Jiang Ten’s eye on his head wobbled. “Why did you come in… That rabbit hasn’t gone far. You’re in danger here…”
“Danger is exactly right…” Chen Junnan laughed. “I’ve always been the most dangerous one in this game. It doesn’t matter.”
He helped Jiang Ten’s body up and roughly checked for injuries. The only visible one was a fractured right leg. The rest were probably internal injuries—impossible to assess from the surface.
“Can you stand?” Chen Junnan asked.
The next second, a sense of dissonance hit him. Jiang Ten’s body didn’t speak; instead, the head lying a distance away answered, “My leg hurts a bit.”
“Holy crap… You scared me…” Chen Junnan propped Jiang Ten’s body against the wall, then walked over and picked up his head.
This was the first time Chen Junnan had held a severed head in his hands. It was heavier than he’d imagined.
The head looked a bit horrifying—the entire left side of the face had been smashed off, but no blood was flowing. The broken edges were all a dark, pitch-black color.
“Kid… I’ll just carry your head and run later…” Chen Junnan said.
“What’s the point of running?” Jiang Ten shook his head helplessly. “I told you you’re an idiot leader, but you won’t admit it. What are you going to do now? You’ve already ‘moved,’ so you can’t ‘lock the door.’ If that rabbit comes back, I might be fine, but you’ll definitely be done for here.”
“Who’s the idiot here?” Chen Junnan looked at Jiang Ten’s head in confusion. “So what if I don’t ‘lock the door’? That rabbit can come in?”
“Isn’t that obvious…”
“But aren’t you also a ‘participant’?” Chen Junnan frowned. “Just because your head got knocked off, you can’t ‘lock the door’ anymore?”
“Oh… right… I can lock the door…” Jiang Ten gave an awkward laugh. “I’ve been using my ‘Resonance’ a bit too much… I’m kind of out of it…”
“Being out of it is fine… We’re going to win this game no matter what.” Chen Junnan slowly moved Jiang Ten’s head toward his body. “Your young master here has a brilliant plan. I’m about to reattach your head.”