Chapter 241: Prequel to Infinite Highway

Deaths are rare in the Infinite Mall, and most players will simply go back 10 or 20 floors after failing the game.

But this is not the first time that players have faced similar death scenes. At least the game becomes more difficult as you go down, so occasionally one or two people will die in the game.

As for where these dead people went, no one knew. The corpses were like garbage in the room. They would disappear on their own once the game was over.

But this is the first time I have seen someone die so tragically.

Li Yuan noticed that Qi Fan was the first to arrive at the scene. He searched the room, ignoring the dead Teacher Du, and instead looked for something else.

Ah Guang also reacted at this time. Just as he was about to step forward, he was blocked by the people Qi Fan called over: "The room is too small, everyone, don't squeeze, step back a little, there's nothing to see when there's a dead body!"

The female player outside the door was still crying and shouting, saying that she didn't want to share the boat anymore and wanted to go back upstairs. A tense atmosphere had spread among the crowd.

While new players like A Guang were still figuring out the situation, those who had been on the first floor for a while had already started to spontaneously search through the rooms of the deceased.

Although the shopping mall on the first floor has been abandoned and many store doors are open, some small rooms will be used as personal rooms by players.

The room chosen by Teacher Du is very close to the ship, so close that it seems as if he can go directly to work and wipe the deck as soon as he wakes up in the morning.

Building a ship is just like going to work for players. After the 8 hours during the day, players are not allowed to enter the cabin at other times.

Players other than cleaners and assemblers cannot even get close to the ship.

An experienced person would know what the situation is by just taking a look at the scene, but unfortunately there are no players with the forensic profession here.

Qi Fan, as if nothing had happened, was the first to go up and check: "This person was probably attacked by something like a wild beast."

"Beast?"

No, the biggest problem is not this. How could people die in the safe zone?

A Guang felt a little short of breath, and he subconsciously looked at his teammates, but Li Yuan had already run over to the side to join in the fun.

Li Yuan had already connected a lot of clues in his mind, and his reaction was faster than A Guang. When Qi Fan just winked at his people, he had already rushed into the blockade line. By the time Qi Fan discovered him, the other people in the Eye of Wisdom team had also arrived.

Qi Fan had no way to continue chasing people away, so he could only secretly ask his teammates to isolate the others outside. Some players began to search the room, while Qi Fan himself squatted next to the corpse.

Li Yuan had already put away the lie identification card and squatted on the other side of the body: "Should you explain something?"

Qi Fan was a little surprised at Li Yuan's courage: "Aren't you afraid?"

A normal person facing a corpse that has been rotten like this would not only feel nauseous, but at least would not be able to approach it directly like Li Yuan did.

"I have a relative who is a forensic doctor."

Li Yuan explained casually without giving Qi Fan time to react, he had already started to check the condition of the body, but one of his hands was still supporting a backpack on his chest.

This action is actually a bit funny.

However, seeing that Li Yuan was still holding the stone sculpture in his arms, Qi Fan's expression froze slightly.

Taking advantage of this gap, Li Yuan quickly touched something in Teacher Du's stomach.

That's a card.

He did not pull the thing out rashly. Li Yuan had already realized that Qi Fan and he had mobilized the players who had arrived on the first floor early to search the room for this thing.

How can I bring this thing back under their noses...

Suddenly, Li Yuan felt the stone in his backpack shake violently twice.

He lost his balance and almost fell to one knee. Qi Fan seemed to seize the opportunity and shouted, "Little brother Li Yuan, go back and rest first. He has been working for too long and looks a little hypoglycemic. Don't be scared by the corpse. Come on, have a few people help him clean his hands."

Soon, a few guys who seemed to have been prepared for a long time appeared from behind and half-held Li Yuan.

"Look, your hands are all dirty."

An aunt with a kind face suddenly appeared from somewhere, holding a handkerchief in her hand. She swept her eyes over him with extremely vicious eyes, and without stopping, she quickly wiped the blood off his hands.

Just looking at the posture, it was obvious that he wanted to check between Li Yuan's fingers to see if there was anything hidden inside.

"Oh, you've only been here for two or three days, and you've been working all day long. You must be exhausted. Go back and rest today. Qi Fan is watching over here."

Li Yuan was forcibly dragged out by the enemy. This time, the blockade at the door of the room turned into a human wall. Even if the other members of the Eye of Wisdom team rushed over, they could not get in.

Mo Wen was the farthest away before. He had been in a corner learning the boat driving skills that he had no idea about at all. Who knew that a murder would happen here?

He looked a little confused and looked into the room: "How could someone die? Isn't this a safe zone?"

Li Yuan shook his head and said nothing. But A Guang, who was standing beside him, started to explain with a pale face: "The one who died was Mr. Du who hit our car a few days ago! There was a big hole in his stomach, and everything inside was eaten out. There were also big lacerations on his body."

Qi Fan said that it might have been done by a wild beast or some other creature, but A Guang didn't quite believe it.

Where did the wild beast come from in this crappy shopping mall? Even if there was one, it must have been created artificially.

Li Yuan understood what he meant: "Go back first and talk slowly."

The shipbuilding work on this level is called a game copy, but it is actually similar to going to work. As long as the basic assembly work is completed within eight hours during the day, the players on Qi Fan's side will even take the initiative to work overtime and do more work.

This is the last level and everyone is eager to go home.

We didn’t have enough manpower before, but now with the addition of 8 people from their side, the efficiency has improved a lot.

No, there are 7 people now.

Teacher Du is dead.

The Wisdom Eye team actually had another member, but that guy had a weird personality and would often "kill himself" in the game, then go back to the upper floors to "revive", and they would have to wait for a while before they could find him.

So there happened to be an empty seat on the bus at that time, which allowed Teacher Du to get on.

"Teacher Du, there's probably no way he can be resurrected after dying like that. This is the first time I've seen a player die so miserably with his body damaged."

Li Yuan looked at another member of the group, Huo Siran.

"Aunt Huo, Mr. Du was also doing deck cleaning work like you. When did he come back?"

Huo Siran shook his head: "I cleaned different areas than he did. He was on the main deck and I was on the bow. Besides, he was very close to Qi Fan and his men, and there would be other people on the team doing cleaning work to help him."

The area where Aunt Huo was located was relatively small, so she was the only one needed. The main deck was a large, unobstructed space with three players arranged there, one was Teacher Du, and the other two were from Qi Fan's side.

Li Yuan knew that Mr. Du’s death was most likely related to Qi Fan and his people.

Thinking of this, he opened his backpack.

While others were still speculating about how someone could suddenly die, Li Yuan simply took out the stone statue and placed it on the table.

"Did you eat that card? Can you give it to me?"

Seeing Li Yuan put his hand next to the stone statue, his teammates immediately looked at him with a very strange look.

Ah Guang hesitated: "Brother Li, don't touch the corpse. It's too stressful. How could this stone..."

Before he could finish his words, he saw the big stone on the table stomped twice as if angrily, and then bumped into Li Yuan's hand.

Li Yuan had been with Shitou for the past few days, and they had interacted with each other many times, big and small. He had probably figured out Shitou's temper, so he changed his tone and continued very sincerely:

"Thank you for helping me. It was such an emergency at the time. Picking you up from the passage was the best decision I ever made. So, can you let me take a look at the card?"

After a pause, he added.

"Excuse me, Mr. Stone Statue...?"

Now, the big stone was finally satisfied. A faint white light appeared, and then a card quietly slipped out.

Li Yuan picked up the card. He didn't know if the stone was a mysophobiaist, as all the remaining blood on it had disappeared. After slowly seeing the contents on it, the expressions of him and his teammates all changed drastically.

[Notes on the Styx Special Escape Boat. The construction of this boat was based on a player's experience in building a ship for survival in the end times. There are two types of passengers on the boat: human and animal. Animals are divided into two types: carnivorous and herbivorous. After choosing a human identity, you cannot use any professional skills after boarding the boat. After choosing an animal identity, you can use professional skills at night.]

[Before boarding, neither party is bound by any obligation]

[Notes on the first-level game card: Before this card appears, this level is a safe zone. It is forbidden to use professional skills against players from any other camp. Everything is aimed at shipbuilding. After this card appears, players who see the content of this card should immediately choose their own identity.]

[Ding——Please choose your camp: human/animal? ]

This was the first time that the player in the Eye of Wisdom heard the one-way system prompt that Guang had mentioned before.

Li Yuan's expression was also surprised. He had guessed that the players who arrived at the first floor early should have had information advantages in other aspects, but he didn't expect this to be the case.

So, Teacher Du didn't know when he saw this card and was killed after he chose his identity?

At least you can't kill anyone before you see this card and choose your identity.

Everyone in the room looked at each other, not knowing what to choose for a moment.

Aunt Huo turned the card over and saw an illustration on the back.

A ship set sail on the dark sea, packed with all kinds of animals. These animals looked crazy, as if they were engaged in a fight and a carnival.

But if you look closely, you will find that in the corner of the ship, there are a few very skinny humans on the deck. They have unusually clear expressions and watch the crazy animals coldly from afar.

"The two camps should have their own flaws. The humans look malnourished and skinny, while the animals are fat and strong, but their eyes are red, and they are obviously not in a clear state of mind."

Someone in the team said: "I also think it's better to choose human. Turning into an animal always makes me feel like I have animal nature."

Animality means loss of control.

Ah Guang thought of the death of Teacher Du and his face turned pale: "If we choose humans, will we be unable to defeat the animals in the other camp?"

Guys like Qi Fan had very obvious muscles when they were carrying wooden boards.

He said how come they are so strong?

Although there are differences in physical fitness, a difference of three times is too exaggerated. After all, he is someone who has carried a camera and followed the crew.

Li Yuan turned around and looked at the stone statue for a while.

Since this hidden card is used to explain the rules before and after boarding the ship, what is the purpose of the stone statue? Why did it absorb the card in his hand directly at the critical moment just now?

Li Yuan looked at the stone statue carefully. Compared with the card, he felt that this thing was more important.

He had hidden the stone statue in his schoolbag for a few days, and now he could see the outline of a human being more clearly than before, like a child sitting cross-legged.

In the end, most of the people in the Eye of Wisdom chose the human camp, and the remaining one or two did not choose not to make a choice, but were thinking about it.

Mo Wen was not a rough guy. He first looked at the door vigilantly. Most of the players on the first floor were still staying near the room where Teacher Du died.

No one came to find them now, but Mo Wen knew that once they made this choice, there might be a broadcast reminder soon.

Before, they were completely in the dark and knew nothing, so they were in different camps and were able to live in peace.

But maybe Teacher Du had just received this card, seen the content and chosen his camp when he was killed, and this card was even hidden in his stomach in the end.

Right now, I have to consider what to do after choosing the camp.

Li Yuan finally said his decision: "I also choose to be a human. The illustration on the back of the card is very clear. Choosing an animal will give you power, but you will also be overwhelmed by animal nature."

"Humans are indeed weaker, but they will always stay awake and remember their purpose. If they lose their way at sea, it is more important than anything else to have reason and remember their purpose."

As soon as he finished speaking, the big rock shook very seriously, as if agreeing with his words from a distance.

Ah Guang looked at the big rock, then at his teammates, and felt very scared: "Didn't we pick this thing up in the passage? How come it's moving? Is it a prop to pass a level? It's a bit weird..."

Li Yuan picked up the stone and looked around. The stone didn't react now. He put the thing back into the bag and said, "This thing should be special. Although Qi Fan and his men said that the stone is useless outside the passage, I have observed that the place where they put the stone should be in a very secret place. I have tried to test him several times, asking if we should study these stones together, but he always changed the subject and ignored the matter."

Now it seems that the other party must have studied this kind of stone for some time but did not come to a conclusion, otherwise he would have snatched it away long ago.

I wonder if Teacher Du’s death was related to the stone.

After all, on this floor, shipbuilding is currently the most important task. There are too few players who can come here. If you want to go home, you need to complete the shipbuilding work as soon as possible, otherwise it will take a long time with only three or two people.

As a laborer, Teacher Du should not have died unless he knew something he shouldn't have known, or did something he should have done.

After making the decision, Li Yuan and his companions finally made up their minds. A very simple dialog box was suspended in front of each of them. A Guang even shouted directly into the dialog box: "I choose to be a human!"

As for the others, some followed his example, while others, like Li Yuan, silently said in their hearts: "I choose the human camp."

A rather rough system prompt sound came to my ears, but it was also mixed with the voices of many men, women, young and old.

Faintly, they even heard the sound of splashing water.

[Ding——Congratulations, you have obtained the qualification to board the escape ship on the first floor of the Infinite Mall. Please stay rational and do not actively harm any animals before the animal camp actively attacks.]

[All players in the human camp have all their skills unlocked and have a new trait, "Sober during the Day"]

[“Sober people during the day”: When the boat enters the river, it is daytime, you will be more sober than other passengers, and you will be able to recall everything about reality and the purpose of your boarding. Similarly, at night, please stay away from those crazy people at night, who will do something irreversible driven by hunger]

【Wish you all a speedy return home】

This was the first time everyone heard the shopping mall broadcast in their ears, especially the last blessing, which was quite unfamiliar.

Ah Guang scratched his ear, his face full of surprise: "There actually is a system prompt, very humane."

The rules of the game were clearly broadcast throughout the mall before.

Li Yuan felt that the stone in his bag was about to jump up again. He patted the backpack on his chest like coaxing a child, and then said to the others: "Are your professional skills in good condition? Get ready in case Qi Fan and his men attack us later."

The reason why players like Qi Fan were initially wary and friendly towards them was probably because they had not seen this card and had not chosen a camp, so they were not in the same system as each other and could not take any action.

Before boarding the ship now, force restrictions are unlocked, which means that subsequent shipbuilding work may not be very safe.

Judging from the physical condition of Qi Fan and the others, it is very likely that they all chose the animal camp.

Li Yuan's concerns were correct. At this moment, an omnidirectional broadcast suddenly sounded in the shopping mall outside.

[It has been detected that all players on the first level have read the introduction to the boarding rules and are now unlocking their professional status. Please complete the shipbuilding game within one day, otherwise all the ship parts will be broken up and scattered throughout the mall, and the first-level game player selection will be carried out again. ]

[The 24-hour countdown begins now, please hurry up and complete the work! ]

The person who was originally in the room where Teacher Du's body was located, searching for the rule card, suddenly started swearing.

"That guy really did take something away. How did you check it just now? In my opinion, you should have stopped him directly!"

The person who was speaking was a rather large fellow. Qi Fan saw that as he was speaking, animal patterns gradually appeared on his body, and he immediately frowned:

"Pay attention to your own mental state first. The biggest problem now is that we have to hurry up to build the ship. We don't have time to deal with those people one by one. If we don't finish it within the specified time this time, we will have to start all over again."

Qi Fan and his friends stayed on the first floor much longer than Li Yuan and his friends thought.

They had played this game once before. At that time, most people chose the animal camp for the sake of physical fitness or to enhance the effects of their skills. The consequences can be imagined.

How could a group of guys whose brains are all muscles resist the temptation of a rapid increase in strength in a short period of time? They would easily have friction with their companions.

In the end, the ship that had been pieced together after so much effort was even mostly torn apart during an internal conflict.

After this tragic failure, Qi Fan reorganized the team and returned to the first level, but the cost was much higher than the last time.

When going down, the game in the corridor also changed. This time, for some unknown reason, I had to go through a maze of obstacles when going down the stairs. I could only go down one floor after finding the designated stone blocks.

Qi Fan understood that this was because the difficulty of the game would become increasingly higher, and no losses could occur until they repaired the ship and left here.

He was anxious and had someone keep an eye on Teacher Du, but he didn't expect that this guy would be attacked as soon as he got the rule card.

"I don't care who among you couldn't control his animal instincts and took action. I won't pursue who ate Teacher Du for now, but it's best not to let me catch you stealing. Now, everyone, get moving. Don't waste time looking for trouble with those new guys. The most urgent thing is to fix this ship as soon as possible!"

Qi Fan was intimidating when he spoke, and although he didn't have tiger fur on his body like the previous man, he still crushed others with his aura.

Their group has become a typical animal society.

Qi Fan knew that the guy named Li Yuan was very smart and would not give them too many opportunities to kill people. At least now he had to control the guys under his command and prevent them from eating people because of hunger.

Everything can wait until we get on board.

And Li Yuan, whom he had been extremely cautious about and treated with great care, was now being looked at by his teammates with a look that seemed to indicate that he had to smile.

Because he realized that this stone was quite important, Li Yuan now always carried his backpack on his chest and worked with the stone.

As a result, the stone is becoming more and more lively. It turns around all the time, and when it is bored, it wants to talk to others. Li Yuan has to chat with it, but also comfort it not to move around, so as not to attract the attention of Qi Fan and others.

As a result, when Ah Guang came to get the materials, he looked at them for a long time and suddenly laughed out loud: "Brother Li, you look like you are pregnant and coaxing a child."

Li Yuan, who had just dealt with an overly lively stone sculpture:?