Chapter 162: Weapon Cards

"No need to say hello." The girl sat down at the table. "I think they're our opponents."

"Oh... is that so?" The boy smiled awkwardly. "Is this a battling card game?"

"Amazing!!" Di Ji roared. "We have four players now!! Next, I'll announce the game rules!!"

Qi Xia, Zhao Yisheng, the boy, and the girl gathered around the square table.

Di Ji reached for the cards on the table and drew five, laying them out.

Everyone leaned in to look. The five cards each depicted a different pattern: a knife, a stick, a rope, a stone, and a shield.

"My game is called 'Bingqi Pai'!!" Di Ji shouted with a laugh. "You'll put on the most thrilling fight right in front of me!!"

Qi Xia glanced at the five cards and fell into thought.

Using cards... to fight?

"From now on, only one person per team can sit at the square table!" Di Ji explained. "The other must enter the glass room!"

Everyone turned to look at the glass room nearby.

"The person who enters the room is called the 'Bo Dou Zhe'!" Di Ji gestured animatedly as he continued. "The one who stays at the table is the 'Cehua Zhe'! The 'Cehua Zhe' will play a card each round, and the item on the card will be the weapon used by the 'Bo Dou Zhe'!!"

"So that's how it is..." Qi Xia narrowed his eyes slowly.

"When the game starts, each 'Cehua Zhe' draws five cards. Then, in every round, play one card and draw another for the next round, until one or both 'Bo Dou Zhe' are dead! Oh, and just so you know, the deck also has two 'Sheng Pai' and one 'Si Pai'. You'll notice the difference when you draw them!"

At this point, Zhao Yisheng and the couple's expressions changed.

"One side dies?" the girl asked. "Do you mean the 'Bo Dou Zhe' will actually fight to the death in there?!"

"That's right!!" Di Ji roared. "If you lose the game, it's not just the 'Bo Dou Zhe' who dies!!"

As soon as he finished speaking, something sprang out from the back of everyone's chairs and clamped around their necks.

It was a metal collar.

The collars on Qi Xia and Zhao Yisheng's necks lit up with red lights, while the couple's glowed blue.

"Everyone, you're divided into teams by color," Di Ji said. "If the collar detects anyone's pulse stopping, the team member's collar will explode."

The group tugged at the collars around their necks, but they were incredibly sturdy and wouldn't budge.

"Zhao Yisheng, now we're in this together, life and death." Qi Xia said quietly.

Zhao Yisheng didn't respond; his face looked unwell.

The tall boy beside them grew restless, glancing around nervously. "What's going on? Why is this game so dangerous?! The previous ones weren't like this at all..."

"Zi Chen, it's okay, I'm here..." The girl patted his shoulder. "No matter how tough the games here are, we'll make it out alive."

Zi Chen looked at the girl and nodded slowly.

Hearing that, Qi Xia felt curious about the girl in front of him.

She seemed a bit tense but otherwise composed, scanning the surroundings and the cards on the table. In this situation, someone who could quickly think of strategies was definitely clever.

"Now, please assign your 'Bo Dou Zhe' and 'Cehua Zhe'," Di Ji said.

Qi Xia slowly raised his hand and asked, "How many cards are there of each pattern?"

"Sorry, I can't say!" Di Ji shook his head vigorously. "You'll have to figure that out yourselves!"

"Then, how many cards are there in total?" the girl raised her hand to ask.

"I can't say that either!" Di Ji glanced at the two of them, then gathered up the cards on the table, shuffled them, and placed the deck in the center. "Please assign your roles!"

Qi Xia stood up slowly and signaled to Zhao Yisheng with his eyes. The two stepped aside.

"Zhao Yisheng, do you exercise regularly?"

"W-wait, you're not suggesting I go in, are you?!" Zhao Yisheng was startled. He stole a glance at the one-meter-nine tall boy in the distance and whispered urgently to Qi Xia, "Do you think I can beat him?!"

"What if..." Qi Xia scratched his head, "you stay here and think things through, and I go in?"

"Well..."

Zhao Yisheng knew Qi Xia's mind was sharper than his own, so having him as the 'Cehua Zhe' was probably the best choice.

But the thought of fighting that one-meter-nine boy made his legs tremble uncontrollably.

"I'll get killed by him..." Zhao Yisheng whispered. "What if I die?"

"If you die, I'll die too." Qi Xia said. "I'll do my best to prevent that from happening."

"Do you have a plan?"

"No." Qi Xia shook his head. "I just wanted to experience Di Ji's game. I heard there's some connection between us, so I have no guarantee this time. Either of us could lose our lives at any moment."

"You're crazy!" Zhao Yisheng snapped. "This 'experience' of yours is going to get us both killed!"

"Not necessarily?" Qi Xia said. "We have no way out anyway, so let's give it a try."

After thinking it over, Zhao Yisheng reluctantly agreed, though he was shaking.

Things had come to this, so Qi Xia would be the 'Cehua Zhe'.

As expected, the couple had already decided: the tall boy would be the 'Bo Dou Zhe' and face off against Zhao Yisheng.

The boy looked even more frightened than Zhao Yisheng; both were trembling as they entered the glass room.

"Since you two are the 'Bo Dou Zhe', there are a few rules I need to explain!" Di Ji said. "Once the 'Cehua Zhe' plays a card, the ceiling will drop your weapons immediately, and you'll have ten seconds to act!"

"Ten seconds...?" The two exchanged glances, then looked at Di Ji.

"After ten seconds, stop acting immediately, whether your opponent is dead or not—you must throw the weapon into the window behind you!" Di Ji said with a sway of his head. "Any fighting outside of that time is considered a violation. Any questions?"

The two turned and saw a small window behind them.

"N-no questions..." Zhao Yisheng replied.

"Excellent!" Di Ji nodded, then turned to Qi Xia and the girl at the table. "As for the 'Cehua Zhe', I'll reiterate the rules! You each start with five cards, play one per round, and draw one for the next! To play a card, just place it on the table. Any questions?"

"No problems." The two said in unison.