Free Web NovelChapter 57: Chapter 57: My Turn Has Come!
"And one more thing, don’t mention that friend to him..." Ding Ning said.
She’d originally wanted to ask, to learn about Jiang Che’s daily life with his friend, to find out how he used to live.
But Xiong Jie’s words made her give up on that idea. Jiang Che said his friend got discharged, went outside to help him find his family.
But Xiong Jie claimed, ’discharged’ meant his friend was dead.
Maybe the organs had already been transplanted into someone else.
Jiang Che said, after his friend left, there was no more news.
For the first time, Ding Ning felt the taste of heartbreak.
Jiang Che was still fast asleep on the second floor. Ding Ning returned directly to her own castle section.
She had the ability to shrink distances, only before she was walking with Jiang Che and felt awkward about showing off too much.
She looked at Ya’s burial spot. The exit was blooming with dazzling light atop the grave where Ya had stuck branches.
The evil spirit guarding the exit glanced toward Ding Ning, then kept holding its post.
No human would be allowed to leave.
They didn’t understand either — why did the boss suddenly open the exit? The boss used to disdain even displaying the exit.
From what they knew, in other SSS-level dungeons, those Evil Spirit Lords would sometimes show the exit, watching humans rush to their deaths yet unable to leave.
Watching humans strive and fail, that alone was a pleasure.
Ding Ning eyed the humans lurking in corners, peeking at this side — all were waiting for a chance to flee.
This was her domain; the panorama of the region was etched into her mind. Here, even an ant’s exact location was known to her, let alone the hiding humans.
Just a hundred meters from the exit, over a dozen corpses lay.
Only fifty or sixty humans had survived this far — a good number were killed trying to break through.
With a glance, she recognized Sister Xia and her two companions: the three ants who had clashed with Tuantuan before.
Sister Xia’s group was hiding in the shadows, motionless.
When the exit first appeared, they didn’t rush over, but waited for the refresh at midnight — when item usage reset — then dashed toward it.
The dungeon weather was getting worse by the day; on the last night, the cold grew ever more biting.
Ding Ning surveyed the whole scene. Ever since she followed Jiang Che home, she’d removed the agreeable temperature in her section.
She only modeled her territory after human society because she liked its environment.
But if she wasn’t around, then even quiet and peace meant nothing.
Watching the humans shivering, hugging their arms, her lips unconsciously curled upward.
So this was how other dungeon Lords felt, watching humans try to escape.
It had become a staple performance in S-level dungeons and above.
Ding Ning observed the humans. Just by their clothes, she could tell that a third of the survivors were doctors.
Xiong Jie had explained: everyone who made it here would buy some kind of life-saving item.
These items were expensive, but these doctors could afford them. Who knows how many shady things they’d done.
Disgust flickered in Ding Ning’s eyes. She couldn’t shake the feeling that those life-saving items held by the doctors were made of Jiang Che’s friend’s flesh and blood.
Other Lords enjoyed the thrill of hunting humans — she, opening the exit this time, mixed in a little personal emotion. She didn’t want these humans to die lost without finding the exit.
She wanted them to see the exit right before them, yet sink deeper into despair.
As midnight approached, the temperature dropped ever more viciously.
The huddled humans pressed together, soaking up the last bit of warmth.
On the way home, Jiang Che said the one he was most grateful for was Ya.
Because he’d given Ya a piece of clothing, Ya died protecting Tuantuan.
Though Tuantuan told her the truth wasn’t exactly so.
Ding Ning’s lips curled up, as if remembering something.
Jiang Che was willing to lend clothes to other Survivors so they could warm up, even though Ya had used and deceived him.
So would the Survivors here, in such a freezing environment, share their clothes with others?
In an instant, the temperature around plummeted. Survivors who’d been toughing it out against the cold shrank into themselves.
The temperature kept dropping. One Survivor glanced at the fitness watch strapped to his wrist.
[Warning: Your heart rate is falling abnormally. Please get up and move around.]
An alert about heart rate flashed on the watch’s screen.
One Survivor slightly raised his head, looking at the companions beside him. Frost was already collecting in his hair. Under the moonlight, every breath of his condensed into solid white fog.
He’d heard there could be temperature changes, but never anything this freezing!
Cold! Cold! Cold!
Even pressed back-to-back with teammates, the chill couldn’t be tamed.
At this moment, in every live broadcast room, viewers watched Survivors curled up and shivering, utterly shocked.
[Wait, why is it this cold?]
[Didn’t Dungeon No. 9 never have such severe temperature changes before?]
[Why not mention that Dungeon No. 9 never had any exits before, either?]
[Are they forcing Survivors to break through the level now?]
[Seen plenty of deaths, but first time seeing someone freeze to death.]
...
In just moments, before anyone could discuss much, the storm descended.
Sheets of snow fell onto the Light Gate, flake after flake — the Gate began to form a thin layer of ice.
The evil spirit who had guarded the gate was nowhere to be seen, apparently retreating from the chill as well.
[The evil spirit guarding the door is gone!]
The Survivors hiding in the shadows spotted it too.
Staring at the gradually freezing escape exit, someone finally couldn’t hold back — braving the snow, he dashed for the Gate.
Countless eyes locked onto him, their legs tensed, ready to sprint.
No evil spirit intercepting, no traps.
Ten meters... eight meters... two meters... one meter...
The Survivor couldn’t wait. The person in front braced his shoulders, hoping to smash through the ice and escape.
BANG—
The sound of heavy impact on ice rang out. The foremost Survivor stared at the now frozen escape exit, eyes full of despair.
He touched it! He actually touched it!
Behind him, the hidden Survivors all crawled out.
"Sister Xia, lighter! Lighter! Burn through the ice!" The woman called Sister Xia was confused at first, but reacted swiftly.
She grabbed her lighter, feeling hope gather in her hands for the first time.
The storm was intensifying. The crowd pushed her to the front.
Flames from the special item began to ignite the ice on the gate.
Sister Xia couldn’t help but shout — this is a dungeon special item! It can even ignite the ice!
My turn, finally!
This round, the advantage is mine!
Her mouth stretched manically, but the next second, snowflakes poured down.
The fire before her, extinguished.
She flicked her lighter, ready to use its second charge.
The flame’s tip had barely flared before it went out.
