Twenty-three game zones had been detected in the city’s surrounding areas. These games were like hungry beasts — if they went seven days without “feeding,” they would begin moving toward wherever people were concentrated.

In order to hold onto the space where humanity could survive, an organization had been established. Based on the characteristics of the games, they had drawn up the following rules:

One: Every resident must participate in the games assigned by the organization.

Two: Residents who refuse to participate in assigned games will no longer receive food, housing, or strategy guides provided by the organization.

Three: If a resident submits a game-clearing item, they may exchange it for a leave pass to cancel one assigned game.

Du Lai gave them a rough introduction to the current situation in the city.

Yan Qingwen nodded thoughtfully. “It’s a clever approach. Twenty-three games — as long as every resident in the city takes a turn, it guarantees that the games won’t move for a period of time, and indirectly ensures everyone’s safety.”

Bai Youwei also nodded. “If the city has over two thousand residents, with each person participating once every seven days, that buys three hundred days of peace. Over four thousand residents would mean nearly two years of stability. But in actual practice, there are bound to be all sorts of problems. Take population attrition — how would you account for that? The headcount is only going to decrease.”

“Every policy changes over time,” Yan Qingwen said. “There has never been a method that remains effective and unchanged for over a decade. When that time comes, a new solution will surely emerge.”

Du Lai added: “The population attrition isn’t really the most troublesome part. What’s more problematic is the games’ anti-grinding system.”

“Anti-grinding system?” Bai Youwei was slightly surprised. She had heard Tu Dan and those students mention it before, though she had been completely distracted at the time.

“If all players clear a particular game, the game activates its anti-grinding system and disappears outright,” Du Lai said. “Maybe it moves somewhere else, maybe it ceases to exist entirely — no one knows.”

—

“Isn’t it a good thing if they just disappear?” Lu Ang couldn’t help asking.

“It’s not good.” Du Lai’s smile faded. “When the old one leaves, a new one comes. A newly appeared game always costs many lives… before anyone figures out how to clear it.”

Once he put it that way, everyone fell silent in unison.

Along this journey, whether the deaths were deserved or undeserved, expected or unexpected — they had seen more than enough of all of it.

Zhu Shu let out a soft sigh and murmured, “Try to look on the bright side — this place is already pretty decent. At least everyone has a purpose here, and they’re still alive.”

Out on the outside, there was nowhere to go and no idea where to head. People might drift through life in a daze, then stumble into a game somewhere on the road and die in complete bewilderment.

After a moment of silence, Du Lai remembered to remind Yan Qingwen: “So, have you given it any thought? The crane game.”

He said with a smile, “I have a feeling — the two of us working together would be unbeatable.”

“Didn’t you just say it wasn’t good?” Bai Youwei cut in.

Du Lai blinked. “What?”

“The anti-grinding system,” Bai Youwei said, eyeing him with playful mockery. “If everyone clears the game, it activates the anti-grinding system. And you said it yourself — when the old one leaves, the new one comes, and by then more lives will be sacrificed. I think, to avoid those sacrifices, Yan Qingwen had better refuse.”

Du Lai: “……”

Yan Qingwen smiled helplessly and told Du Lai, “Let’s find another opportunity to cooperate in the future.”

The smile on Du Lai’s face turned thin and cold — polite on the surface, indifferent underneath. He swept a glance over the group and said, “Looks like I’m destined to go home empty-handed today.”

No one paid him any attention.

Du Lai gave Bai Youwei one last look, then finally turned and walked away.

Once he was gone, Lu Ang asked, puzzled, “What was that about? Was he trying to scheme against us too?”

“Wanting a partner — that part’s probably genuine.” Bai Youwei watched the retreating figure. “But that crane game… it’s quite possibly a two-on-two format. Hard to say which two poor souls will end up as his opponents…”

—