Chapter 2872: Gambling Lives and Hidden Cards
His meaning was clear: cooperate or die.
The bearded man suppressed his anger, burying his hatred deep. "Even if you survive today, you've made an enemy of our Hundred Forest Society. When we get out, it'll be a fight to the death!"
Xu Huo had made plenty of enemies; one more Hundred Forest Society didn't matter.
He turned directly to the others. "What do you all say?"
Bear Xiao Xin looked around. "I don't have a better solution. I'm willing to take a risk, but for safety's sake, I think we should reduce the number of people staying outside even further. Since it's a three-layer space, one person per layer should be enough."
"If we can't clear the instance after repeatedly fending off the instance boss's attacks, it means your method is wrong. No amount of probing will help. There's no need to add unnecessary sacrifices."
"Agreed." Xu Huo intended to exclude the Hundred Forest Society members. He pointed to Bear Xiao Xin, the bearded man, and the sparrow, then said to Wang Xin and the others, "That's four people already. There are two spots left. You can consider it. Those entering the container items should lend out their life-saving items to improve survival rates."
If the person holding the container item died, those inside would likely die with them. Even if they were lucky enough to hold out until later players arrived, those players might not release them.
The longer the wait, the more dangerous it became. Bear Xiao Xin had already said that the players outside had delayed their entry; they definitely couldn't hold out for a month. Rather than dragging things out and letting their condition worsen, it was better to gamble.
The bearded man's face turned ashen. If he didn't cooperate, Xu Huo would certainly prevent them from interfering with the instance clearance. Before nightfall, they would all die here!
Cong Lei was easygoing, probably because he was physically and mentally exhausted. He voluntarily handed over two life-saving items to Xu Huo. "Brother, I'm a local from Zone 033. If you get me out, I'll treat you well."
Bear Xiao Xin's group also contributed a few items.
After discussing among themselves, Wang Xin and the others decided that the purple-haired man and Shen Ling'er would stay outside, while the rest each contributed one item.
The bearded man's trait was very special. "Can you avoid the instance boss?"
The bearded man looked numb. "I don't know. Never tried."
"Then try tonight," Xu Huo said.
The bearded man couldn't help but glance at him: This guy really didn't value human life at all!
"Wait!" The bearded man finally spoke up. "We'll join too!"
Xu Huo swept a glance over him. "Then leave two people behind. One will follow me, the other will follow Bear Xiao Xin."
This was to prevent them from secretly slipping into the small compartments.
But the bearded man had no choice but to agree.
The decision was made, but no one felt any relief. They couldn't even fight the instance boss; once targeted, they were almost certainly dead.
If they didn't clear the instance by the time eight o'clock arrived, most of them here would die.
"Don't you have any other way?" the sparrow asked Xu Huo desperately. "Even with a few life-saving items, there's no way to block the instance boss. If we can't clear it, are we really just supposed to wait to die?"
"A-grade instances inherently have a certain chance of being life-or-death gambles. Didn't you know that before entering? Or have your previous instance clearances been too easy?" Xu Huo said.
That was true, but he still had a backup plan. If delaying still didn't lead to clearance, he would have to consider destroying the instance venue.
Although the space here was complex, he had the capital to take a gamble. If he was lucky, he might not even need to dismantle the entire instance to get out.
But clearing it would be out of the question.
"How are we splitting into groups now?" the sparrow asked instead.
"Still three groups." Xu Huo left no room for negotiation. "Me, you, and one from the Hundred Forest Society form one group. Bear Xiao Xin, the bearded man, plus a Hundred Forest Society member form another. Shen Ling'er and the purple-haired man form the third."
"Aren't they short one person?" The sparrow looked at Shen Ling'er and the purple-haired man.
"One more or one less doesn't make much difference," Xu Huo said, looking at the two. "If you want to add someone, you can, but you might have to cut numbers soon."
If the eight-person group couldn't clear it, the sparrow and the Hundred Forest Society members would have to immediately enter the container items for a second attempt.
That's why Xu Huo had the sparrow and the bearded man travel with him.
Before that, he still said, "Choose your space portals in advance. We'll separate after the small compartments close. No one is allowed to enter the small compartments, even if the door suddenly opens in the first half of the night."
"Thinking you can hide in the small compartments and wait for others to die is absolutely impossible. You might survive tonight, but you won't survive tomorrow. I need everyone to remember that."
The bearded man and Bear Xiao Xin had people with them, making them the most likely to release someone mid-course. But as long as the small compartment doors didn't open in the first half of the night, it shouldn't be a problem.
With things settled, the next step was to conserve energy. Everyone scattered to find places to rest, but they consciously stayed within the central courtyard.
Xu Huo chatted with the bearded man. He was very curious about the man's trait, as it far exceeded the average compared to most players he'd encountered.
"I'm a white player," the bearded man said. "My profession is spy. I don't enjoy killing; I just want to keep to myself. Instance clearance performance is tied to reward settlement, so I've upgraded my trait more times."
Xu Huo nodded. That was obvious.
But Xu Huo still wanted to know which type of power the man's trait was closer to.
Many traits bore traces of space power and spiritual power, and the game amplified the abilities of those who hadn't undergone super evolution to achieve effects comparable to super evolution.
The bearded man thought for a moment before saying, "There are many types of defensive items."
"Space-type items are just one kind. Most items are physical shields or special energy barriers. There are many kinds of energy in this world. My trait might seem like it's hidden in space, but in reality, it's wrapped in some kind of energy. It's just that others can't easily perceive that energy."
"If you were standing here and the surrounding air wasn't moving, could you sense its actual existence?"
"What was this trait before it was upgraded?" Xu Huo pressed.
The bearded man was amazed at his sharpness. After a pause, he answered honestly, "Invisibility Cloak. Back then, it couldn't fully block perception."
Xu Huo smiled. "If you get too close to someone, you'd be seen through, right?"
The bearded man smiled too. "Ordinary players, of course."
But Xu Huo was different. With dual evolution in spirit and space, he was already far beyond ordinary. That's why the bearded man didn't dare approach recklessly and instead tested him multiple times.
The results of those tests were also clear: the venue limited his abilities. Otherwise, escaping would have been easy.
Xu Huo could tell that the bearded man used his trait frequently. That might be why his trait had evolved so quickly.
In comparison, Xu Huo rarely used his traits. Besides their weak effects, another reason was that most of his traits were scraps—useless and flashy.
Being flashy was a problem.