Yun Feibai nodded and said, “That’s right. If you use it when you’re at an extreme disadvantage, you might just get a good result. After all, things can’t get any worse.”
Su Luo deeply agreed.
Simply put, it was an item meant for a dire, losing situation.
Definitely useful.
After listening to Yun Feibai, Su Luo also began to chat about her own Dungeon experience this time.
When Yun Feibai finished listening, he was amazed.
The System lied?
Is that even allowed?
To be honest, it wasn’t hard to survive in this Dungeon, but clearing it was truly difficult.
Yun Feibai thought that if he’d entered this Dungeon himself, he probably wouldn’t have done as well as Su Luo.
Suddenly, Yun Feibai seemed to remember something and said, “Oh, right. I got a Long-term Mission in the Cat-and-Mouse Dungeon. Take a look.”
Su Luo hadn’t noticed before, but after being reminded, she carefully checked and finally spotted a Long-term Mission listed below.
After she finished reading, she sighed emotionally and said, “So you can actually unlock a Long-term Mission by exploring the secret of Cat Village! By the way, my Spirit Pearl is actually a Long-term Mission too. You have a Long-term Mission, and I have a Long-term Mission. Sigh, the two of us started the game already carrying heavy burdens.”
Yun Feibai smiled, “Actually, it’s not so bad. The rewards are pretty high after all. From my Long-term Mission, you can tell there are a lot of items to be gained from the Cat Village Dungeon. And for your mission, the final reward should be pretty useful in the early stages. All in all, we’re the ones profiting here!”
The two chatted happily.
A whole day passed quickly.
As it was getting dark, they discussed the timing for their next Dungeon run, and both agreed to start the last Dungeon of the month at nine o’clock the day after tomorrow.
Two days passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, it was time to enter the Dungeon.
After confirming with Yun Feibai, Su Luo clicked [Enter Dungeon].
[Life: 25 (+6)]
[Strength: 7]
[Speed: 12 (+1)]
[Spirit: 14 (+3)]
[Endurance: 10]
[Charm: 12]
[Points: 164]
[Innate Skills: Divine Redemption (Legendary): Transports one person at full health to any location the skill owner has walked through. Usable once per Dungeon.]
[Skill – Healing Magic Bullet: Increases (or decreases) HP by an amount equal to 100% of the target’s (ally/enemy) Spirit (CD: 5 seconds)]
A wave of dizziness passed, and when Su Luo opened her eyes, she found herself on a coach bus.
She glanced to her side and saw Yun Feibai.
Party members aren’t affected by each other’s disguise, so when Su Luo turned her head, she was hit by her new teammate’s devastating good looks.
Well, her new teammate did have a flaw—he was so dazzling it made her dizzy.
Seeing the question in her teammate’s eyes, Su Luo composed herself and glanced around.
This seemed to be a tourist bus, the air conditioner blowing cool air, the interior comfortable.
Outside, a winding mountain road.
The hum of the bus engine was enough to make one sleepy.
Confirming that there didn’t seem to be any immediate danger, Su Luo opened the System to check her mission.
[Dungeon: Aquarium Prison]
[Mission: Aquarium Prison]
[Background: You and your boyfriend are participating in a travel event for some reason. Enjoy this wonderful couple’s holiday!]
After confirming there really weren’t any other prompts, Su Luo twitched her lips.
‘So concise, huh.’
“Wonderful holiday”? More like a death trip!
As for “boyfriend,” it seemed obvious who that was—her companion beside her.
But what exactly did “for some reason” in the background mean?
Su Luo didn’t think it would be that simple.
Aquarium Prison… was it really a prison inside?
Or just a gimmick?
Otherwise, why would they be here as tourists?
…………. Su Luo mulled it over.
Just then, a very ordinary-looking girl at the front of the bus, wearing a red vest and a red hat, spoke up:
“Dear passengers, we’re about to arrive at our destination. Please gather your belongings, we’ll be getting off in ten minutes.”
It seemed she was the tour guide.
After the tour guide spoke, a man called out, “Guide, can you tell us more about this aquarium?”
Su Luo looked in the direction of the voice.
It was a young man, somewhat handsome.
Su Luo guessed he was a player.
There were more than twenty people on the bus.
Since a normal Dungeon session maxed out at twelve people, most of those here must be real NPCs.
NPCs and players were easy to distinguish.
Aside from the players deliberately pretending to sleep, all the NPCs in this Dungeon seemed very sleepy, while only the players were alert.
This player was pretty clever.
He knew the guide must have already introduced the place before, so he used the word “again,” which didn’t quite match his appearance and was a little misleading.
The guide’s eyes flashed with a strange glint when she heard the man, but she quickly returned to her bright, cheerful demeanor and smiled, “Then I’ll explain it again.”
She deliberately emphasized the word “again,” as if she already knew something.
“We’re heading to the Mermaid Aquarium, a unique local tourist attraction. Here, visitors can watch mermaid performances and even experience being a mermaid themselves. There are all kinds of exciting activities waiting for you. Once the trip is over, everyone who comes out can go home!”
Wait, “Mermaid Aquarium” instead of “Aquarium Prison”?
Are we not supposed to know it’s a prison?
Su Luo found this odd.
What was even stranger was that when the guide said the name, she glanced at Su Luo and Yun Feibai.
Although everyone in the bus had already been briefed, they couldn’t help but cheer when they heard it again.
Su Luo’s inner thoughts: ‘I’m dead, this doesn’t sound like a fun activity at all. What kind of luxury suicide squad is this?’
But on the surface, she was the “Wow! That sounds amazing! I’m super looking forward to it!” fake-smile girl.
Next to her was Yun Feibai, also forced to smile.
Su Luo felt that while both of them were faking it, her smile looked like forced labor, while Yun Feibai’s was the sunny, cheerful boy type.
She was jealous!
Why were they forced to fake smile?
Simple.
When you don’t know what’s going on, copying NPC behavior is a good way to stay alive.
Su Luo had learned this from Granny Wang in her old neighborhood.
Clearly, Yun Feibai understood this too.
But while she was putting on her fake smile, Su Luo was still pondering the guide’s words.
The guide had specifically emphasized “everyone who comes out,” which meant she knew some people wouldn’t make it out.
Su Luo wasn’t sure if it was her imagination, but the NPCs around her seemed to be cheering less for the exciting activities and more for that last line—”go home.”
The other players clearly realized that this aquarium trip wouldn’t be a good one, but unlike Su Luo and Yun Feibai, they hadn’t absorbed the essence of the neighborhood uncles and aunties.
So, there were few players who, like Su Luo and Yun Feibai, kept up the act.
Most of them looked sullen, making them stand out among the beaming NPCs.
Such a striking sight quickly drew the guide’s attention.
“I see some adorable little cuties who don’t seem very excited for this trip?”
Her voice was cheerful, but her expression was nothing like her voice.
The whites of her eyes disappeared, turning completely black, as if only empty sockets remained.
Su Luo felt a chill rise around her.
Before the guide could transform further, a self-proclaimed clever player piped up:
“How could we not be excited? Why would we sign up if we weren’t?”
Su Luo was speechless.
This guy not only lacked experience, he hadn’t even read the Dungeon background carefully.
Was he looking to die?
Sure enough, the guide smiled.
Her tone was gentle, but it carried a sinister edge:
“Oh? You didn’t sign up voluntarily.”
Oh!
As she spoke, she walked up to the player, who was caught off guard by his own mistake.
Before he could explain, the guide suddenly opened her bloody maw and swallowed him whole.
Su Luo found the scene familiar—it was just like how the Cat Village villagers killed people.
Yun Feibai glanced at Su Luo, and both saw the same shock in each other’s eyes.
Clearly, they recognized this familiar way of eating people.
Su Luo also noticed that the NPCs present all looked indifferent, as if they hadn’t seen anything horrifying.
A few players, however, screamed, drawing the guide’s attention.
Seeing that half the group might be wiped out right at the start, Su Luo spoke up with a headache, “Guide, we’re almost there, don’t waste any more time! I’m really looking forward to the activities. I don’t want to waste any time on these irrelevant people.”
The NPCs present echoed her words.
This surprised Su Luo a little—did these NPCs really want to enter this deathtrap aquarium, or was it only deadly for players?
It wasn’t out of kindness that Su Luo spoke up for those players.
If all these obvious cannon fodder died at the start, then later, when someone needed to be sacrificed, it might be her or Yun Feibai.
Yun Feibai wasn’t surprised at all by Su Luo’s intervention—he’d noticed it too.
Though the guide’s introduction was vague, it still revealed some information.
There were many stages in this Dungeon, and although they didn’t know how the aquarium worked yet, it was clear the guide was on the same side as whoever was running things.
In other words, they wanted people to die.
If some stages didn’t claim enough victims, the NPCs in charge of those stages wouldn’t be happy, and passing would be much harder.
So, it was important to keep some cannon fodder alive to feed to them later.
Besides, Su Luo’s outburst wasn’t just a rash sacrifice—she’d already noticed how much the guide valued this tour group.
Otherwise, the guide wouldn’t have patiently answered the young man’s question at the start, then snapped in anger when a few players showed disinterest.
So, interrupting her with talk of the tour had a high chance of success.