The gray-robed elder said: “If there are no further questions, this battle will officially begin in sixty seconds.”

Some of the subjects couldn’t help asking a few more questions, but the monitor refused to answer all of them, citing interference with gameplay.

It seemed that beyond the core rules, the details of the game would need to be discovered on their own.

The monitor’s figure gradually faded away.

Then a faint, high chime rang out in the air — *ding* —

“The countdown has begun. Sixty seconds.” Fu Miaoxue said. Her wristwatch had a prompt.

Chen Hui asked, “What should we do now?”

Yan Qingwen said, “The monitor just told us this territory is a triangle with sides three hundred meters long, and there are thirty-six such territories in total. We first need to understand what the overall map looks like before we can plan any movements.”

“Then let’s start by scouting the terrain.” Du Lai said. “We can try occupying the three territories that border this one. Those two enemy Kings are definitely looking for ways to seize territories too. With thirty-six hours, there’s no need to rush into confrontation — let’s prioritize getting familiar with the environment first.”

Although Fu Miaoxue was the King, effective command of the entire team rested largely with Du Lai.

He divided the ten people into three groups, each with a compact walkie-talkie clipped to their chest. The three groups moved quickly toward the three directions of the territory’s borders.

The sixty-second preparation time passed in a flash. Du Lai, Fu Miaoxue, and Leonid moved as one group. The moment they reached the boundary line, they heard Yan Qingwen’s voice come through the walkie-talkie:

“Dead end on my side. There’s an invisible barrier blocking passage. If you try to cross forcibly, a warning icon appears on the wristwatch.”

Before Yan Qingwen had even finished speaking, Chen Hui’s group reported the same: “Same on our end! A warning appeared on the wristwatch — this must be the edge of the map.”

Fu Miaoxue frowned, stepped across the boundary line, and looked at Du Lai. “No problem on our side.”

The terrain was triangular, with only three boundary lines — and two of them were dead ends.

Du Lai thought for a moment and called everyone to regroup at his and Fu Miaoxue’s position.

All ten moved together into the new triangular territory. At its center, they found the white cylindrical sensor and changed its ownership status.

When the wristwatch made contact, the blue light instantly shifted to red, and Fu Miaoxue’s miniature holographic projection appeared.

“That’s all it takes?” one of the subjects asked. “What do we do next?”

Du Lai scanned both flanks. “There are two more territories bordering this one. We split into two groups to check them out. Chen Hui, you stay here and watch the sensor — notify us the moment anything changes.”

Yan Qingwen nodded. “If only two territories border this one, and we hold both sides, no one should be able to get past us to reach Chen Hui in theory.”

“Let’s try it then.” Fu Miaoxue looked to Chen Hui. “You stay here.”

Chen Hui agreed.

The others divided into two groups and pushed forward. As soon as they crossed the boundary line, their figures disappeared into the haze. All around was barren wasteland — even the sky was a murky, yellowish-gray.

Chen Hui pulled a short sword from her pack and stood guard beside the sensor, alert.

—

On the other side, Du Lai had already reached a new territory. He checked the surroundings, found no enemies, and swiftly changed the sensor’s ownership.

The scout returned to report: “Right side is a dead end. Left side is passable.”

Du Lai pressed down on the walkie-talkie: “Yan Qingwen, what’s your situation? On our end, right side is a dead end, left side is passable.”

“Opposite here — left side is a dead end, right side is passable.” Yan Qingwen paused two seconds, then asked: “Territory secured. Should we press further?”

Du Lai frowned and glanced at Fu Miaoxue.

Fu Miaoxue shook her head silently.

If they left one person to guard each territory, their numbers would quickly be depleted to a bare minimum. If they encountered the enemy with superior numbers, the position would become very unfavorable.