“Pardon the interruption.” Tu Shenshi approached at an unhurried pace, his expression mild. “I’ve just noticed that the first king to complete the initial battle has been decided. Now, please choose your next battle.”
A selection panel appeared before Bai Youwei —
Battle 1 with the Jester, Battle 5 with the Comic Man, Battle 10 with the Ball, Battle 20 with the Grey-Robed Elder. Four options appeared in front of her.
Among them, “Battle 20” had already greyed out and was unselectable.
For her next battle, Bai Youwei needed to choose from among 1, 5, and 10.
“Do I have to choose right now?” Bai Youwei asked hesitantly. She felt like she hadn’t mentally prepared yet.
“You have ample time to consider,” the rabbit-headed inspector said with a smile. “However, until you make your selection, you cannot leave the rest hall.”
Bai Youwei frowned slightly.
She looked at the three options again. After a moment, something occurred to her, and she turned to Tu Shenshi. “I have a question.”
Tu Shenshi gave a small nod, his voice gentle. “Please, go ahead.”
Bai Youwei said, “I currently have a total of 48 puzzle pieces. I just won 32 from him, plus the 4 pieces my subjects hold, which brings the total to 84. So even if I lose all three of the remaining battles, I can still make it to the final round, right?”
According to the rules, a king could only be eliminated if they didn’t have enough pieces to qualify for a battle.
Tu Shenshi smiled faintly and said, “While no explicit rule addresses this — in practice… the difficulty of the battles increases progressively.”
“Increases?” Bai Youwei blinked. “Didn’t you say before that the difficulty of a battle only depends on who you’re matched against?”
Tu Shenshi nodded again. “Allow me to rephrase —
“The *risk* of the battles increases progressively. By the time the third battle arrives, the losing side will almost certainly not survive.”
If you couldn’t survive, what good were puzzle pieces? You’d be eliminated all the same.
Bai Youwei furrowed her brow in thought.
Shen Mo, standing beside her, offered, “Choose Battle 10.”
Bai Youwei thought it over and agreed that Battle 10seemed the most suitable.
Because by the time the next battle began, the kings in Battle 10 would be players who had advanced from Battles 1 and 5. Once someone advances, their mindset tends to be somewhat more relaxed than before.
Meanwhile, Battles 1 and 5 at that stage would be more likely to feature defeated kings — people on the edge of death tend to fight with everything they have, even at the cost of mutual destruction.
Bai Youwei chose Battle 10.
The inspector for Battle 10 was the Ball — already something of an old acquaintance. Bai Youwei was familiar with the types of games it tended to run.
“Battle 10 requires eight participants.” Bai Youwei pointed to herself and Shen Mo. “Besides the two of us, we need to find six more. The Ball’s games tend to be fairly physical — we should pick players with a physical advantage.”
Tan Xiao and Cheng Weicai certainly wouldn’t be a problem. Ashalina and Alon would also work. But Pan Xiaoxin wasn’t suitable to bring along.
Bai Youwei still needed two more subjects.
Tu Shenshi smiled and said, “There is still one month before the next battle. Please use this time to prepare. Additionally, a new labyrinth access has been unlocked — would you like to apply to enter now?”
Bai Youwei thought it over, then shook her head with a slight frown.
What happened with A’Qing was still fresh in her mind. She didn’t want to put her companions at further risk. Her leg had fully healed now, and the others had each been through the labyrinth two or three times already — that was more than enough to handle the games. There was no point pushing further.
“Declining to apply…” Tu Shenshi gave an understanding nod. “Whenever you’d like to enter the labyrinth, you may apply at any time. Then — best of luck.”
With that, he stepped back and vanished in an instant.
The rest hall was now empty, save for the four glowing squares on each wall and a scattering of unrecruited subjects drifting nearby.
—