Chapter 3086: Cross-Zone Trap
It was a city built from white metal, with hundreds of towering buildings densely packed along its outer perimeter. Peering through the gaps between the structures, the city center rose and fell with architecture, giving it the unmistakable air of a vibrant, living place.
The group couldn't help but feel surprised. Who would have thought there were so many people in the center of Challenge Island? Had those who succeeded in the challenge chosen to stay here instead of leaving?
It couldn't be that good... The same thought crossed everyone's minds simultaneously.
They quickly rushed to the outskirts of the city, only to be blocked at a distance by a barrier. At that moment, their personal interfaces simultaneously popped up:
"Entry into the Central Zone Challenge requires the following:"
"1. Points higher than 10,000."
"2. The player with the highest points in the team."
"Players meeting the 10,000-point threshold, please cross zones within 2 hours. Only one team member can cross zones every half hour."
After that, the interface switched, and a progress bar appeared before each person. Xu Huo and Ding Xiang's bars were already full. Xu Huo's prompt read "Cross Zone?", while Ding Xiang's read "There is 1 person ahead of you."
Looking at Old Duan and the others, although their progress bars weren't full, they were ranked according to their scores, all the way down to Old Duan in seventh place.
The white-haired man's group was similar, but since more than half of them had over 10,000 points, more than half were eligible to cross zones.
Seeing this, everyone understood what was happening. The challenge was forcing players to turn on each other. Those below 10,000 points couldn't cross zones, and those above could only send one person through every half hour, ranked by score. Moreover, the ranking was based on their own team. This meant that even if they killed other players to gain enough points, if enough teammates had over 10,000 points, some would still be unable to cross zones within two hours. The number of players would have to be reduced.
Take the white-haired man's team, for example.
Even high-scoring players weren't completely safe. If they had to wait the full half hour, they'd not only have to guard against betrayal from their own teammates but also prevent teammates from killing players in other teams to accumulate points and surpass them.
As for those below 10,000 points, they'd have to work hard to even qualify.
They weren't the only two teams to reach the city's outskirts. After the progress bars appeared, everyone looked at each other with grim expressions.
In Xu Huo's team, only two could cross zones, which wasn't a problem time-wise. But the only issue was that the personal interface didn't mention whether players below 10,000 points had a time limit. The remaining six all had less than 10,000 points. If Xu Huo and Ding Xiang crossed zones, it would be difficult for the others to get points from other player teams, and leaving might also be impossible.
The atmosphere in the team grew somewhat tense.
However, having witnessed Xu Huo's strength, neither Old Duan's group nor the white-haired man's team considered targeting him.
Within the same team, Old Duan and the others had been through life and death together, supporting each other along the way without abandoning any teammates. So for now, things remained relatively calm.
The white-haired man's team was different. They were all capable individuals, but as soon as the cross-zone requirement was announced, someone turned on a teammate. The white-haired man couldn't even stop it. One teammate was killed, and the killer's score jumped to the highest.
This enraged the other two players who had over 10,000 points but were ranked lower. According to the order, one was fourth and the other fifth. Now that the first had been pushed out, seeing someone take the lead, the other didn't want to fall behind and acted decisively. However, they didn't go after the original killer. Instead, they targeted another injured teammate.
Similar incidents were happening in other player teams. Of course, some players didn't want to stir up trouble in their own teams and set their sights on outsiders. Unfortunately, their teammates, unwilling to fall behind, would intervene... In no time, internal strife broke out among the player teams.
"If a team has enough high-scoring members, those below 10,000 would have to be careful not to kill anyone, or their scores would rise and they'd start queuing," Shuang Tou couldn't help but remark.
"Then how do we clear this?" Love Orange couldn't help but ask. The six of them didn't have enough points. Should they try to pick off players from other teams? With everyone watching, the chances of success were slim.
As for their own teammates... having crossed the desolate zone together, they had a fair understanding of each other's abilities...
At this moment, everyone felt how despicable Challenge Island's method of sowing discord was. Companions who had survived through unity were now forced to turn on each other at the final hurdle, trading life and death for a chance to cross zones. It wasn't just about making them fight tooth and nail—it was about dehumanizing them, trampling their dignity without any bottom line!
"Simple," Xu Huo said calmly. "Kill everyone else. Leave only four in each team, and everything will be fine."
Everyone was stunned. That actually made sense.
"Our biggest advantage is that we don't have too many people with over 10,000 points, and Xu Huo and Ding Xiang have enough points to spare," Na Wei spoke up. "The main reason other teams are fighting over points is that if they give up some points to let others qualify, they might drop below 10,000 themselves. We don't have that concern at all."
Xu Huo and Ding Xiang both had over 20,000 points. Even if they split half their points, it would be enough for the remaining members to qualify.
"Should we try it?" Ding Xiang looked at Xu Huo. Seeing no objection, she took the initiative to spar with Na Wei. During the exchange, she was repeatedly "injured," and Na Wei's score gradually increased.
Challenge Island didn't prohibit this method. As long as those ranked later raised the remaining teammates' scores before crossing zones, they could perfectly avoid the risk of the half-hour-per-person rule.
Of course, this method wasn't without risk. As they fought, players from other teams might try to interfere. That's when someone who could truly control the situation was needed.
Ding Xiang handled the points, so Xu Huo had to handle the muscle. He crippled a few players who tried to take advantage, and soon no one dared to provoke them.
Meanwhile, some players had already started crossing zones.
Besides the white-haired man and a few others with under 20,000 points, there was a player with over 30,000 points. He was the first to cross from a high altitude, charging in aggressively. But the moment he stepped into the central zone, a light screen appeared before him:
"Player Little Little Flying Eagle has obtained a Naked Run Ticket!"
Before he could figure out what a "Naked Run Ticket" was, his score plummeted rapidly. In the blink of an eye, it dropped to 20,000, then 10,000, then 1,000... Within a few breaths, it fell below 100. Little Little Flying Eagle let out a howl and began to melt!
That's right—he started melting. From his head down, his hair, skin, and flesh began to boil and curl. Hissing blood bubbles popped, burst, and coalesced into streams of blood, as if a candle were being peeled from the top down. In the end, only a skeleton stood there.