Chapter 1213: The Players Who Came In First
Truth serum doesn't completely strip players of their ability to think or completely rob them of their sanity. For evolved players, the effect of truth serum depends on the individual. The truth they speak might be true, but how true is uncertain.
Seeing that the female player was slow to answer the second question, Jiang Zifeng said, "How about another shot then? I've got plenty of truth serum here."
"I'll talk." The female player decisively spoke up. "I planned to use a prop to separate you two first, then ambush him. If I could succeed, great. If not, I'd use a teleportation prop to leave."
"Not entirely true," Xu Huo said after listening. "She had at least five props prepared just now, and one of them should be something that attacks from underground."
Jiang Zifeng pointed at himself and then at Xu Huo, asking her, "Since we're both standing right in front of you, why did you want to kill me first?"
The female player, already shocked and frightened by Xu Huo's words, couldn't help but answer, "Because you look more annoying..."
Jiang Zifeng touched his own face. "Though I'm not exactly a jade tree in the wind, I'm still somewhat handsome. Can't believe I'm so disliked. Looks like I'll have to change my face when I get out."
"Let's get to the point."
"How many cards do you have now?"
"One." The female player gave the same answer as before. "The effect of the card was indeed revealed to me by someone else, because someone got Number 12 before I did."
Number Card 12 was undoubtedly a trap card, since White Card 12 was in Xu Huo's hands.
But clearly, she wasn't talking about He Xiaoxiao, who had obtained that card.
The female player continued, "Before I got Black Card 12, this card was already circulating in the maze."
Xu Huo exchanged a glance with Jiang Zifeng. Xu Huo said, "Are you saying that the previous holder of Number 12 died before you entered the game, which is why you were able to get the card?"
"When did you enter the game?"
"This morning."
"That's about the same time as us." Jiang Zifeng said, "You didn't run into players who entered the instance at the same time, but you encountered those who came in earlier?"
"I'm different from you. I don't care about a high rating. As long as I can smoothly reach the end and clear the instance, that's enough. So unless the maze walls actively attacked me, I barely triggered any walls along the way. It's normal that I got ahead." The female player showed regret on her face. "That's why I ran into the players left over from the previous round of fighting earlier."
"Each player can hold a maximum of six cards. Sounds like those guys haven't been in here much longer than us, or they wouldn't be chasing after you." Jiang Zifeng said, "If they'd had enough time or were strong enough, they'd have filled up their six slots by now."
"Not necessarily." Xu Huo shook his head slightly. "Maybe they're just after specific cards. It's possible that in the latter half of the maze, there's a way to remove cards from the card frame."
After speaking, he looked at the female player.
With reluctance, the female player said, "Among the number cards, there's a type that has a canceling effect. It can cancel out any card except the first card you hold. But there aren't many of these cards."
"Canceling cards?" Jiang Zifeng rubbed his chin. "Sounds interesting."
"So it seems number cards have categories too: clue cards, canceling cards, trap cards... probably other types as well."
He also looked at the female player.
The female player really didn't want to say more. Information in an instance can sometimes save your life, but of course, it's also a double-edged sword.
"I don't know anything else. I overheard all of this, and it cost me dearly..." She looked down at herself, then said, "But I heard those people say that flower cards are very useful and relate to the final clearance rating."
"The players who came in first might not be limited to just one round, nor might they only be a day or half a day ahead of us." Xu Huo said, "If they've figured out the game mechanics, it's not impossible for them to come back from the end to grab cards."
"I think the same way." Jiang Zifeng cracked his knuckles, looking eager. "Doesn't that mean someone ahead has already gathered the cards for us? Just rob one, and we're automatically in the second half of the game!"
"With plenty of time, maybe I can even snag a straight flush!"
Xu Huo agreed completely.
The female player watched the two men, who were brimming with confidence, and tried hard to hide her disdain. She said, "I've told you everything I know. Can you let me go?"
"Whatever." Jiang Zifeng waved his hand. "But you're not going to recover anytime soon in this state. Might as well rest here. We're not going to do anything to you anyway."
He turned back to Xu Huo and said, "Let's have our rematch next time."
"No problem." Xu Huo took out his shelter and prepared to rest.
Jiang Zifeng had a luxurious prop tent that was much more spacious than the shelter when set up. He even enthusiastically invited Xu Huo and the female player to stay inside together.
The female player was wary of them. Though she didn't leave immediately, she kept her distance, laid out a simple sleeping bag on the ground, and sat down to heal her injuries.
By late night, a thick fog had risen in the maze. Visibility dropped to less than ten meters, and the fog seemed to have a certain isolating effect on perception, greatly limiting their warning range.
Xu Huo opened the door and stepped out, just as Jiang Zifeng emerged from his tent. Xu Huo said, "Let's take turns keeping watch."
Jiang Zifeng nodded and turned back into the tent.
A moment later, the female player moved closer from a distance and tentatively placed her sleeping bag in front of the shelter.
Xu Huo was looking at the collection of plant videos he'd taken during the day. Seeing her restless and fidgeting, he asked, "How many mutated plants do you know?"
The female player could already move around. She walked over to Xu Huo, leaned in to look, and asked curiously, "Why are you filming so many mutated plants?"
"Personal hobby." Xu Huo said, "But this is my first time in Zone 001, so I don't know many mutated plants around here."
The female player had considerable knowledge on the subject. She began talking along with his video, not only naming the mutated plants and their classifications but also describing their habits.
"Most of the plants in the maze come from Zone 001. Many are variants cultivated in laboratories. A lot of the original plants were edible, but the variants have mixed in traits from other plants. After gigantification, they usually become aggressive or toxic. Some plants deliberately keep small specimens for propagation, to catch you off guard."
"You've already captured quite a few."
After listening, Xu Huo said, "So many of the plants from Zone 001 laboratories don't have special light requirements?"
"Ordinary plants need a very long growth cycle to get that big. The ones in the maze don't. They just use nutrient supplements." The female player said, "There's a very famous bud vegetable in Card City. Its variant can grow ten meters tall in less than two months. But these plants don't live long—at most half a year, maybe as short as three or four months."
In other words, the only thing in the maze that could potentially serve as a directional reference had lost its usefulness.