Su Fu: “Alright, Pi Chu Xi, right? You’ve got a good eye. Your life is spared.”
“Five hundred thousand, everyone bears witness.”
But then her tone shifted, her smile growing even brighter: “It doesn’t matter if you don’t bear witness. I have my own ways!”
Yet everyone clearly saw Su Fu shake her head with a hint of regret, as if saying,
“Ah, what a pity. I was actually planning to kill you.”
The examinees immediately panicked.
“I’ll pay too!”
“I’ll give you five hundred thousand!”
“Boss! I want to buy my life too!”
“Five hundred thousand! Not a penny less!”
Su Fu looked at each of them one by one, nodding solemnly: “Hmm, noted, noted…”
While keeping track, she glanced at the Warden.
It showed no reaction to her bold demand for money, as if her actions as the “head” or “Warden” were completely justified.
It was quite professional, still diligently locking people up.
Its eerie blue eyes coldly watched every “escapee,” and the chains, like serpents, precisely bound them one by one.
Su Fu silently counted the remaining spots on the chains.
They were almost full.
This meant most examinees had already been captured, but there were still a few empty slots.
Matching the faces and names in her memory, she realized the top three- ‘Klaus, Asuka Amakawa, and Zhou Tinlin-were still missing.’
Moreover, the fifth-ranked Ming Yue Shuang and Shan Yue Hua were also nowhere to be seen.
Only the fourth-ranked Lily Waters, Sam Patel, and the sixth-ranked Pi Chu Xi and Fang Bo Han had been chained.
“Ming Yue Shuang…” Su Fu stroked her chin, deep in thought.
If she remembered correctly, Ming Yue Shuang and Zhou Tinlin from the third rank were both from the Egyptian pantheon and were favored by the god Horus.
Could the disappearance of the two from the fifth rank be related to this?
“This isn’t good…”
The top three examinees seemed to have some understanding of this exam hall.
Was this the advantage of having cleared a C-level exam?
She couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off.
It was one thing for the top three to escape, but even the fifth-ranked ones found a way out?
No, there must be some connection.
And speaking of which, weren’t there supposed to be three Wardens?
Where were the other two?
Su Fu absentmindedly listened to the bids while pondering the current exam.
The biggest threat now was the Warden.
The rule field undoubtedly existed.
Although the Warden, as an anomaly, was restricted by some force from directly killing the examinees…
They had brains now.
Just because they couldn’t act directly, did that mean they couldn’t kill the examinees?
Of course not, because there was still “infighting.”
Even bound by rules, there were always ways to exploit loopholes.
By inciting infighting and stirring up conflicts among the examinees, they could kill each other, perfectly bypassing the rule restrictions.
And the roles of “head” or “Warden” were the perfect design to incite such infighting.
Truly, these anomalies with brains knew how to adapt to policies with countermeasures.
Her earlier demand for money wasn’t genuine; it was just a bold performance.
If she hadn’t shown any intention to incite infighting, the Warden probably wouldn’t have been satisfied, and she might have been replaced.
“Five hundred thousand! I’ll pay!” Another desperate bid.
The examinee was drenched in sweat, clearly terrified of being eliminated.
But deep down, he probably hated her to the core.
Su Fu withdrew her gaze.
It seemed that the act had worked quite well.
The Warden was clearly satisfied with her performance.
Those deep blue eyes remained intently locked on the people, completely ignoring her “fee collection” behavior.
“Boss! We’ve already collected nearly ten million!”
Lin Mingxi’s excited voice rang in her ears.
Su Fu finally snapped back to reality: “Hehe, with so much money from all these people, we’ve really hit the jackpot this time!”
At that moment, the Warden’s movements stopped.
There was no one left to lock onto in the arena.
All its chains tightened simultaneously, and the bronze runes suddenly glowed with an eerie blue light.
“Click, click.”
Amidst the crisp mechanical sounds, the chains began to slowly retract.
Su Fu realized that the Warden was about to return to the prison.
“No, no!”
“Let me go!”
“Someone, please save me…….”
Terrified cries and screams echoed one after another.
Some were struggling desperately, while others muttered to themselves with pale faces.
The once proud prodigies now resembled trapped beasts.
The Warden paid no heed, striding forward toward the direction of the mist.
The candidates were also forced into the strange, deep gray fog, which seemed alive, writhing and sometimes forming twisted human faces, other times taking the shape of sharp claws.
It was a bit terrifying.
“Boom-“
A dull, heavy sound came from within the mist, like something being opened.
Immediately after, the outline of an enormous structure emerged from the fog.
It was a prison, its bronze spire piercing the clouds, with thick chains spread across it like a spider’s web.
At this moment, the gates were wide open.
Su Fu unconsciously tightened her grip on the golden staff.
In front of the gates stood another figure, clad in bronze armor.
It looked almost identical to the Warden escorting them, with the only difference being the number on its chest.
The one guarding the gate was “No. 1,” while the one escorting them was “No. 2.”
However, upon closer inspection, Su Fu noticed that No. 1 was slightly taller and bulkier than No. 2, suggesting that the numbers might be ranked by strength.
The two armored figures silently faced each other, as if communicating or waiting for something.
Su Fu wondered, where was No. 3?
Where had it gone?
Not long after, heavy footsteps echoed from the mist.
“Clank, clank.”
Finally, No. 3 Warden appeared.
But it looked rather battered, its bronze armor covered in cracks, and its blue eyes flickering as if they might go out at any moment.
Most importantly, it was dragging a chain that snaked deep into the mist, and faint sounds of intense struggle could be heard from the other end.
Everyone felt a chill.
What on earth was it dragging?
All the candidates were here, so who else could be in the exam area?
The three bronze-armored figures formed a circle, emitting a low metallic resonance.
Suddenly, No. 1 raised its hand.
Almost everyone realized that it was time to enter the prison.
The three armored figures moved simultaneously, dragging their chains as they walked into the prison.
Upon entering, the sight before Su Fu made her pupils contract sharply.
The light dimmed instantly, and the walls were covered in deep scratches.
The air was thick with the damp smell of mildew.
On either side of the corridor were rows of cells, but as they passed by, Su Fu noticed that each cell was constructed differently.
Some cells were pitch black, with nothing visible inside.
Some cells were engulfed in flames…
Overall, the living conditions were universally poor.
Everyone gasped in shock. “Good heavens, how can anyone live in a place like this!”
Soon after, the 2nd Warden began assigning cells based on the order of the chains, mostly two people per cell.
It seemed almost intentional, deliberately grouping students from the same high school together, as if to ensure trouble would arise.
The moment the examinees entered their cells and opened the doors, Su Fu felt her divine power being suppressed.
So… there are rules inside the cells as well?
It wasn’t long before it was Su Fu’s turn.
But the 2nd Warden didn’t lock her in one of those cells.
Instead, he led her to a special cell.
It had a bed, a desk, a chair, and bright lighting.
Most importantly, the door could be opened and closed freely.
“The Warden’s… room,” the 2nd Warden said before turning and leaving.
Su Fu stood at the doorway and suddenly smiled.
These wardens are really… dedicated.
They’ve given her ample “freedom,” and on the desk were the keys to all the cells.
Allowing her to fulfill her “Warden” duties at any time.
But what if she didn’t?
Then, this room would likely have a new occupant.
The others looked enviously at Su Fu’s room, their thoughts unknown.
Su Fu closed the door, cutting off all prying eyes.
The situation wasn’t looking good.
Eliminating the examinees wouldn’t clear the exam paper.
This wasn’t like the previous exams where advancement was based on quotas.
On the contrary, if the number of examinees decreased, there would be fewer people to fight against the anomalies.
So, unless absolutely necessary, she wasn’t considering a massacre.
Moreover, if she really killed them all, the wardens would likely declare her guilty, and that would be the end of her.
The rules… she needed to figure them out.
The ultimate goal was to clear the exam, so she still had to focus on the exam paper itself.
The strength of these three wardens was unfathomable.
Just the suppression of divine power alone was suffocating.
Direct confrontation was definitely not an option.
Moreover, Su Fu pondered, all the wardens’ methods seemed to be related to rules: rule chains, rule suppression… they were like enforcers of the rules.
She needed to investigate thoroughly where these wardens came from, what they wanted, and why they were doing this.
She sighed, “Is this what a C+ level exam is like?”
“It’s just too insane.”
Her head hurt.
She was already starting to miss the old D-level exams.
“Anyway, I’ll pass this information to Jiang Qingyu first.”
Su Fu activated [Hundred Birds’ Heart], instantly gaining the vision of a crow.
She briefly conveyed the message:
“The three wardens are terrifyingly strong, all enforcing certain rules. The prison has special suppression, making it difficult to mobilize divine power.”
“You’re free to act outside. Focus on investigating the wardens’ origins and motives.”
Jiang Qingyu quickly replied, “Got it. Also, I’ve found some clues-traces of Wu Gao’s Ming Yue Shuang and Shan Yue Hua. Still tracking them. I’ll update you when there’s progress.”
Su Fu’s eyes lit up.
That was indeed good news!
Tracking down those two from Wu Gao might reveal what the top three were up to.
***
In Cell No. 4.
“So that’s how it is…”
Lily Waters whispered, “The prison is the true domain of rules.”
“No wonder Su Fu willingly entered…”
This is the key to cracking the exam paper, and as long as we don’t do anything reckless, we’ll be protected by the rules.
Sam fell silent for a moment. “We’re in danger now. Su Fu has the upper hand. Not only has she gained the Warden’s approval, but she’s also become the prison warden for these ‘criminals.’ “
“Most importantly, the warden’s authority within the prison isn’t suppressed by divine power. That means she could end our lives at any moment if she wanted to.”
Lily Waters frowned.
The rule field controls anomalies, but that doesn’t include examinees.
Of course, examinees are sometimes affected by the rule field due to anomalies, but this clearly isn’t one of those situations.
Like now, the Warden can’t directly kill them, but Su Fu can.
“This kind of power must never fall into her hands,” Lily said coldly. “I’m afraid we’re not the only ones thinking this. Others must have realized it too.”
Who would want a sword of Damocles hanging over their heads?
Before, Su Fu could be bought off with money, but what about later?
If she changes her mind, wouldn’t their exam be a complete failure?
So, no, the power must be in our own hands.
The position of warden must be ours.
Sam was silent for a while and then he said,
“But this is exactly what the Warden wants. It wants to see us fight among ourselves until we’re both weakened.”
Lily sneered. “If we don’t resist, we’ll be the first to die.”
“Let’s team up with the others-Pi Chu Xi and Fang Bo Han. They probably aren’t willing to be manipulated either.”
Sam didn’t respond.
It was the truth.
Soon, Lily activated her divine skill, [Dark Force].