Chapter 1607: Who Would Dare to Accept Without Some Skill
Tong Qi and the others had expressionless faces, but they couldn't say it was a lie either.
After sizing up Tong Qi and his group, that B-rank player took the initiative to shake hands with Xu Huo. "My name is Yi Jun."
"Xu Zhi." Xu Huo smiled and said, "With two B-rank players here, even if everyone present fell asleep, it would still be safe enough."
"Mr. Xu is too modest." Yi Jun didn't dare underestimate him and added, "I didn't sleep last night, and I did notice something else."
Xu Huo waited for him to continue.
"Most players find a place to rest, and even if they don't sleep, they usually don't move around recklessly at night," Yi Jun said. "But there are also individual players who specifically wait for this opportunity to kill people everywhere. Are you sure everyone is affected by mental interference?"
"After changing into protective suits, it seems possible to resist the drowsiness."
Xu Huo wasn't surprised. "As I said earlier, even under normal conditions, people quickly fall into a sleep state. This further proves my guess that there must be mental interference in this instance."
Yi Jun found it troublesome. "To be honest, there's been no progress all day, and the instance is so bizarre. I was considering just toughing it out for ten days until the instance ends, but if it's mental interference, that's not as simple as toxic fungi."
If what was truly affecting them was toxic fungi, there was nothing to say—it was just the instance environment.
But if it was mental interference, this was highly likely a mental-type instance. Rapid sleep onset and drowsiness were the instance obstacles, and this was definitely not something that could be overcome by just enduring a few days.
"The toxic fungi should only be a supplement, making it harder for us to distinguish whether it's poisoning or mental interference," Liao Xiaorong said.
"If I'm not mistaken, Mr. Xu should be a Mental Super Evolver," Yi Jun brought the topic back to Xu Huo.
Xu Huo raised an eyebrow slightly. "You too?"
Yi Jun shook his head. "I'm not a Super Evolver; I don't have that talent. But I've been through many instances, so I have a bit of experience."
"No wonder you could quickly realize this instance has mental interference," Tong Qi said excitedly. "Isn't this a perfect match?"
"Brother Xu, I trust your character. Tell us what to do next."
The others couldn't help but glance at him, especially Liao Xiaorong and the others who had come together. Tong Qi pretended not to notice, looking at Xu Huo with sincere eyes, as if he had placed extraordinary trust in him.
Xu Huo shifted his gaze indifferently. "Let's find another place first."
The city center had been blown open, leaving an open area that wasn't safe enough. It would be better to hide in a sturdier building. Location items could also be used, but he wasn't sure if they would interfere with the experiment's effects, so he set that aside for now.
"Speaking of which, isn't our group a bit small?" On the way, Tong Qi kept sticking close to Xu Huo and added, "So many players came earlier, yet only a few stayed."
"That's normal," Yi Jun said from the side. "Who would dare to accept without some skill?"
This wasn't like other instances.
"More people are thinking of playing the role of the mantis stalking the cicada," Chi Xian also said. "A lot of eyes are watching us."
"With two B-rank players here, they probably won't dare to act rashly," Liao Xiaorong said nervously, as quite a few people had left.
"It shouldn't be a big problem," Xu Huo said. "Before we start, I'll set up a barrier with poison. Not many people will be able to get in."
Besides, if the instance situation was really as he guessed, over time, more players would try his method. Moreover, if "Midsummer Night Star River" wasn't in this instance city, then everyone's chances were equal, and copying his approach would be difficult.
Seeing how confident he was, the others nodded slightly.
Before they found a suitable place, Xu Huo suddenly turned to ask Young Master Mo, "How did you find out about 'Midsummer Night Star River'?"
Mentioning this, Young Master Mo's expression darkened. After a moment, Scarface Glasses spoke on his behalf. "Young Master Mo had a very close friend who died here. At the moment of life and death, he contacted Young Master Mo, but the distress call was cut off by his killer. The other party left an address and said his name was 'Midsummer Night Star River.' At the time, we thought this player was quite famous in Zone 013."
"So you brought a few people here?" Chi Xian, who had overheard, leaned in and said incredulously, "Just you guys?"
Not that he looked down on this group, but if they came for revenge, bringing only two B-rank players and a few C-rank players—wasn't that too reckless?
Young Master Mo was displeased by his sudden interruption. "Do you think A-rank players are like vegetables growing in a field? You can just pluck them whenever you want?"
Generally, A-rank players supported by major families were also precious resources. Even if they usually helped out within the family, how could a trivial matter move them? Moreover, the number of family disciples who could reach A-rank was limited. Even if they were willing to help out of clan loyalty, they still had to consider safety issues. Compared to players who had fought their way through, they were far behind.
Young Master Mo had an older cousin. After the family trained him to become an A-rank player, they decided not to invest further resources, letting him coast through instances with guides. But this cousin had great ambitions and wanted to become a Super Player—of course, he was considered talented within the family, or he wouldn't have been chosen for training. However, he met his end in his first instance after leaving the family.
Instances without pre-obtained guides or analyzed information were unfamiliar to them. Not just the instances, but the other players in them were also strangers.
"Truly powerful top-tier families that can control A-rank players are very rare. Most just follow along and get scraps," Young Master Mo said calmly. "My family can invest resources to train A-rank players, but we can't possibly recruit truly formidable A-rank players."
Resources, channels, and technology—these things could influence players but couldn't truly control them. It could be said that many resource-rich players in the game could only live so well because of the rules set by the Game Government or the top families within the zones.
Powerful forces capable of dealing with Super Players and subduing A-rank players were the key factors that made this game world work.
"Do you know the other party's strength?" Chi Xian was silent for a moment before asking again.
"My friend entered a C-rank instance, so that should have been a C-rank player too." Young Master Mo didn't reveal more.
"This person is really strange. Why not just ignore you? Why deliberately tell you the address and name?" Chi Xian scratched his head in confusion. "Could it be just to lure you into the instance?"
"I can't guess what he's planning, but he killed my friend. Even if there's only a one-in-ten-thousand chance to avenge him, I have to come," Young Master Mo said firmly.
"Good!" Chi Xian applauded him.
Young Master Mo couldn't be bothered with him. Just then, Yi Jun found a suitable standalone building and called them over.
It was a time tower, circular in shape, with windows all around the middle, offering an excellent view. As they discussed how to set up defenses, Yi Jun took the initiative to produce an item. "Try this one of mine."
(Chapter End)