Chapter 775: Privileges and Obligations
A second chance... Feng Guang’s expression didn’t improve at all. As an E-grade player, he couldn’t kill off all the other players to reduce the numbers, nor did he have enough food and water. How many days could he survive on just those nutritional supplements?
This problem was one that some players had to face, so the longer the time dragged on, the more people would lose their judgment.
Xu Huo didn’t suspect that Liang Chong hadn’t told the full story. What he said basically matched Feng Guang’s actions from last night, and besides, the game’s requirements were simply too straightforward, leaving little room to hide anything.
The situation now was simply a matter of who had the better luck to be randomly chosen as the temporary master first.
But he said to the other players, “Two consecutive people failed to clear the dungeon. Everyone knows the surface-level rules by now, so the only possibility is that something went wrong with the details. Tonight, whoever gets chosen should go find Feng Guang. The temporary master can open their door at night, so you can compare notes and discuss. But I have one piece of advice: it’s best not to have internal conflict.”
Everyone exchanged glances, and one by one, they all expressed a willingness to join forces—they had no choice. It was obvious that the Raincoat Man’s group didn’t care whether others lived or died, and if the weaker ones didn’t band together, death was their only option.
After going downstairs, Xu Huo returned to the first floor to take another look.
The furniture that had been broken yesterday and the contaminated carpets had all been cleaned up and placed in specialized trash bins by Feng Guang. But it was clear that two bins couldn’t hold the bodies of several dead people.
He checked the rooms on the third floor. Since the rules weren’t clear, most players didn’t dare casually damage furniture, so there was nothing there that needed cleaning.
Then he went to knock on the doors of the remaining players on the second floor, inviting them downstairs to eat. While doing so, he took a quick look at the interior facilities of their rooms. Aside from the rooms of those two male players, the other rooms hadn’t been damaged either.
“Is he really going to be this generous and offer us food? Could it be poisoned?” two people muttered under their breath.
By the time everyone had gathered on the first floor, Lu Zhen had already laid out the food Xu Huo had brought. Although it was just some dry rations and water, it showed sincerity, especially since some people were still hungry.
“To be able to clear the dungeon, I suggest no one make a move against anyone else,” Xu Huo said. “The dungeon doesn’t force players to kill, so based on the surface-level rules, everyone should be able to clear it.”
“Two nights—one night someone died, the other night no one did—and yet no one cleared the dungeon in either case. How are you so sure that not killing will let you clear it?” the Raincoat Man countered, sweeping his gaze over the others. “Besides, the two who failed aren’t willing to tell the truth either.”
“The actual design of this dungeon is meant to split the players apart. The temporary master and the guests seem to be pitted against each other, with the guests in a completely disadvantaged position. But once the temporary master enters the guest rooms, it’s not certain who lives or dies. Not interfering with each other benefits everyone.”
“Of course, this is just my personal suggestion. Whether you follow it or not is up to you.”
“You’re putting yourself on such a high pedestal, and you’re still going to follow our wishes?” the Baby-faced Player said sarcastically. “If anyone dares to say no, you’d probably kill them first, wouldn’t you!”
“That’s right.” Xu Huo looked at her coldly. “When you killed others, you didn’t ask for their consent. I’m the same way. So you’d better keep your mouth shut and obey, or I’ll have to help you out.”
The Baby-faced Player gritted her teeth, but the impact of having her item cut in half earlier was just too great. After staring him down for two seconds, she reluctantly looked away.
The Raincoat Man and his two companions didn’t say anything either, though their expressions darkened a little more.
The living room fell into dead silence.
Xu Huo was satisfied. After letting his gaze sweep over everyone one by one, he said, “I’ll put it plainly here. None of you present here had better get in the way of my dungeon clear.”
After a moment, the Raincoat Man stood up. “I’ll do as you say. As long as no one starts trouble first, I won’t make a move either.”
With that, he led his people away, not even touching the food on the table.
The Redhead asked, “Brother Xu, why didn’t you ask them who the temporary master is today? If it’s not with us, it’s definitely on their side.”
“Know when to stop,” Xu Huo said. “You guys can split the food if you need it. Ration it carefully.”
“Thanks, Brother Xu!” the Redhead said without any psychological burden.
Lu Zhen also received a share. She carefully followed Xu Huo back to his room, reverting to the habit of walking close to the wall.
Xu Huo spoke up then. “That Dong Qiu—do you know him?”
“Not really. We just happened to be on the same path after entering the dungeon, but I saw him once somewhere else before. He probably doesn’t remember me,” Lu Zhen said. “Of the few who came the same way, only he’s left.”
The other one had been killed by the Baby-faced Player’s group.
“Does he have any issues?” Lu Zhen asked in confusion.
“Better not.” Xu Huo paused. “I hope he’s not today’s temporary master.”
Lu Zhen’s expression changed, and she immediately understood what he meant. But she didn’t rush out to confront Dong Qiu either. A hint of resignation crept into her voice as she said, “Wouldn’t it be better if everyone cooperated to clear the dungeon?”
But this dungeon only allowed one person to clear it at a time. It didn’t give players any chance to cooperate.
Soon enough, night fell again. Luckily, this time the player came from the right side. From the sound of footsteps, it seemed to be the Raincoat Man. He went to the rooms with corpses one by one, pacing back and forth before stopping next to Xu Huo’s room and knocking on the Redhead’s door.
As guests, players couldn’t open their doors. So after two polite knocks, the door swung open.
No sounds of fighting emerged. After a moment, footsteps came back out of the room and stopped in front of Xu Huo’s door. But this time, the knock was on the door across the hall.
The door opened halfway and then stopped abruptly. The next second came the sound of heavy impacts, mixed with the clash of blades and the shattering of furniture. It lasted about ten or more seconds before the close-quarters combat paused, and items came into play. A faint burnt smell wafted through the air, and Xu Huo, who had remained calm until now, furrowed his brow.
The commotion of the fight was too loud.
“Boom!” A sudden loud crash—without even looking, he knew a wall had been punched through. At the same time, a woman’s sharp laughter rang out, “Want to clear the dungeon? No way!”
Two more screams followed. The fighting gradually died down, and after a while, the Raincoat Man backed out of the room.
Another peaceful night passed. When Xu Huo opened his door, the first thing he saw was the cracked wall across the hall. The Alluring Female Player opened her door and stepped out, flashing a triumphant wink at him.
It wasn’t surprising that she was still alive. Xu Huo turned to look at the Redhead, who looked a bit intimidated. “Last night, the guy in the raincoat came in and took the corpses away. I didn’t dare stop him.”
Xu Huo nodded. At that moment, he received a game notification:
[Congratulations! You have been selected as today’s temporary master. As the master of the villa, you must maintain the cleanliness and hygiene of the villa, striving to create a warm and comfortable environment for the guests. Likewise, ensuring the safety of the villa and guest rooms at night is also an obligation you must fulfill—such as making sounds to help guests fall asleep peacefully, checking the doors and windows to deny thieves any opportunity, and reconfirming that the bedding in the guest rooms is soft and comfortable for the guests.]
[Privileges and obligations go hand in hand.]