Chapter 180

The rules of dodgeball are as follows (simplified version)

(1) Each time a player participates, the number of players must be no less than twenty, with no upper limit.

(2) The boss serves the ball.

(3) The number of players the boss sends out in each game is not fixed, but there is only one [real player] and only one [real ball].

(4) Only by catching the real ball or hitting the opponent with the real ball can the opponent be eliminated.

(5) Once the game has started, it is not allowed to be paused or for players to leave the field, unless a winner is determined.

(6) If all players are eliminated or killed, the boss wins.

[The real players] are eliminated or killed, and the boss loses.

(7) Best of three games.

*

The billboard, silent after the power outage, suddenly erupted into a frenzied hum, like a television set being reconnected to a signal.

After a flash of static, the vanished Slender Man reappeared on the big screen.

The players outside the tent turned around in horror.

The Slender Man changed into a blue announcer's suit, and a wide smile spread across his mask-like face.

It cleared its throat, its normal speech tinged with a high-pitched laugh, and with that slippery, enigmatic tone, it enthusiastically and cheerfully explained, like a true amusement park promoter—

"Hello everyone, next up for the audience and tourists is the dodgeball event, featuring twenty players carefully selected by visiting contestants and shop owners!"

"Although it is an old game from many years ago, as a well-known classic competitive event, the residents of the kingdom have shown an unprecedented level of interest in this competition."

"I've heard that even His Majesty the Black King has heard of this competition! What an honor for a boss who's only on the first floor!"

Slender Man: "Oh? Wait a minute, we've received a call from a citizen of the kingdom. Let's hear what he has to say."

"This citizen said, 'I am not jealous at all of the dodgeball event owner being able to gain His Majesty's attention. I am so happy for this lowly, rude, and brainless butcher that I wish I could rip his bones and entrails out!'... He is indeed very happy. As the commentator, I have the same thought!"

The Slender Man covered his face and laughed as if he was about to cry. His manic nature intensified when the name of the Black King was mentioned, sending chills down the spines of the watching players.

Then the Slender Man patted his face, seemingly calming himself down, and said with a smile.

"No matter what, it's wrong to randomly remove a person's bones and internal organs. Children, please don't do this!"

"Next, we'll play an interview with the owner of the dodgeball project. Let him explain the secret to his success in gaining His Majesty's attention."

The screen suddenly changed, and the figure of the dodgeball boss appeared in the distorted and noisy image.

Thick arms, respirator, big guy, with a blood-stained pig-slaughtering knife next to him.

His movements were very restrained; his rough hands rubbed together incessantly, or perhaps he was flattered and stammered for a long time before he could speak fluently.

When the topic of business philosophy came up, it seemed he had entered his area of ​​expertise. Instantly, the shop owner's expression changed, and his face, covered in burns, became particularly frightening due to the barely suppressed excitement in his small eyes.

The shop owner smiled kindly at the big screen.

"Although you're only eliminated if you get hit by a real ball, if a player gets seriously injured by another ball, they definitely can't continue the competition, right?"

"You're asking why you can get injured playing dodgeball?"

The shop owner waved his hands: "Don't make a fuss. These days, you can choke to death even when you're drinking water. It's normal for sports to have risks. The disclaimer is here, and we will never force anyone to do anything against their will."

"If any unnatural phenomena occur during the game, don't panic. It's normal and a small modification made to immerse players in the game."

"It's not easy for a small shop to operate at low cost. If there's anything unreasonable, we hope players will be understanding. Harmony brings wealth."

"Huh? What?"

"You're saying this ball isn't quite right?"

The shop owner paused, a sinister aura slowly creeping into his kind smile, as his breathing tube emitted trembling white mist: "Please, who decided that the ball in dodgeball has to be a ball?"

The image freezes on his malicious smile, then shifts to a promotional video for the amusement park.

The background music is cheerful and heartwarming, and the dolls are releasing hot air balloons.

Colorful balloons floated in the sky, accompanied by the pervasive laughter of children from all directions, creating a scene resembling a peaceful and beautiful dream kingdom from a fairy tale.

We are dedicated to providing the most heartwarming service to every player! We will dedicate our sweat, blood, bones, soul, and everything else to create the world's most fun amusement park!

Enjoy the game! Hooray for the mighty Black King!

.

Many players thought of Xie Xubai's method, but they weren't as fast as him, and the vehicle's starting delay was precisely due to those few seconds.

There were a full twenty people, and the passageway divided by the white pillars wasn't exactly spacious.

They had gathered together to check the newspaper information on the ground, but upon hearing the shout, they panicked and scattered in a reflexive manner. Unsurprisingly, they collided face to face with a loud thud, their heads buzzing and numb, and they almost lost their balance.

It was complete chaos.

The noise of the car engine was already deafening, and the blinding high beams were stinging my eyes!

In the midst of the crisis, Captain Xu only had time to grab the two nearest people and squeeze behind a pillar, while the bewildered faces of the others flashed through his mind.

This is why everyone pursues levels and stats, yet feels despair when entering dungeons beyond their own level.

If the numerical values ​​are insufficient and the reaction speed is low, even if you know in advance that it will be dangerous, what can you do? You still can't avoid it if you're not meant to. That's a fact.

Brian's eyes turned cold, and he instinctively gathered lightning, intending to force all the vehicles to a stop.

Then, his eagle-like eyesight allowed him to spot the dripping black water under the carriage.

—It's gasoline!

If lightning were to ignite the gasoline, it would definitely explode, and in such a narrow passage, half the people would be blown away!

Brian's pupils contracted sharply, and he quickly withdrew the lightning. The remaining time was only enough for him to grab one person along the way, jump up, insert his fingers into the stone of the white pillar for support, and hang lightly in mid-air like a goose.

The venue has too many restrictions, making it a targeted trap.

Both Brian and Captain Xu were convinced that several people would die this time, just like all the players had experienced countless times before.

Unexpectedly, at this critical moment, all the players suddenly shot into the air like hot air balloons, crashing into the ceiling with a series of loud bangs!

The instant their bodies were airborne, the two cars below collided with a deafening roar! Orange-red sparks shot out, almost instantly igniting the gasoline spilled on the road!

Brian knew about the trap beforehand and didn't hesitate. He crushed the props to open the barrier and inverted it to cover the two cars.

After two rounds of intense bombardment over half a day, the members of the elite squad became more adept at it and instinctively followed closely behind to reinforce the barrier.

boom--

A wave of heat hit us, explosions rang out, and the barrier was stretched and glowed by the scorching flames!

...

It took quite a while for the flames to die down, and then the surroundings returned to a deathly silence.

The protective barriers were very effective, and there were no casualties.

Thick smoke billowed from below.

The area where the two vehicles collided was charred black. The impact affected surrounding vehicles, causing a chain reaction of explosions. After the black smoke dissipated, only a few quietly burning steel wrecks remained.

The players looked up with pounding hearts, just about to rejoice at their escape, when they were shocked to see themselves floating in mid-air: "Wh-what's going on?"

Another voice broke out, somewhat abruptly in the crowd, trembling with sobs as if on the verge of collapse: "I'm about to die, is it possible...?"

Players, including Captain Xu, instinctively looked toward the source of the sound.

A player shakily raised his hands, his face pale. Invisible skill fluctuations spread out from his palms like a spider web, very unstable, as if he could be drained dry at any moment.

Everyone vaguely remembered that this player's main ability was [gravity control], but because he was only a B-rank player, he couldn't control very heavy things.

When this player first volunteered, he only weakly claimed, "Perhaps I could reduce the weight of the ball to make it easier for everyone to catch..."

I never expected that it would save everyone's lives at such a critical moment.

But the next second, Captain Xu and the others caught sight of the young man behind the [Gravity] player and suddenly realized: the one who reacted first was probably someone else!

Just then, they heard the young man say something terrifying in a gentle voice: "No, if we fall, countless cars will crash into us."

As if responding to his words, the car engulfed in flames vanished in an instant, and a perfectly intact vehicle reappeared in the empty parking space.

The engine roared, poised to strike again.

[Gravity] The player was really about to cry when he saw this. He could only roughly control something weighing a little less than a ton. So many people together would be so heavy!

Xie Xubai met his gaze, his eyes sparkling like stars, and earnestly encouraged him: "You can do it, believe in yourself."

[Gravity] Players are heartbroken: I can't do this!

But for some reason, when he met Xie Xubai's bright, shining eyes, he couldn't bring himself to say anything discouraging or disheartening.

For some reason, this person's eyes seemed to have a real power to give people, and he suddenly felt that he had inexhaustible strength.

Silently replenishing the other party's missing mental energy, Xie Xubai waved to the stunned Captain Xu.

Captain Xu recalled that it seemed the young man was the first to speak up and remind him, which somewhat changed his mind, and his doubts fluctuated.

He tossed the two players he was holding up to the pillars, then positioned himself, climbed the wall, and approached Xie Xubai as quickly as possible: "What's wrong? Did you find anything?"

This position made him look like a gecko clinging to the wall, which wasn't very aesthetically pleasing, but there was no other way at the moment.

Captain Xu would never dare to step on those cars; who knows if brushing against the car body would count as being "hit" by the ball.

"Yes, I've found something."

Realizing Xie Xubai was leaving, the [Gravity] player, who had recently come to regard him as her pillar of support, shuddered, her eyes welling with tears, her glazed eyes seeming to silently scream:

Don't go, I need you—

Xie Xubai cast another encouraging and reassuring glance, then drifted away without hesitation.

He tapped the old, yellowed wall with his finger, listened to the echo, and said to Captain Xu in a startling way, "I think I know where the [real players] are."