Valerius swept his gaze across the players once more.
Then he turned around and took out a black box.
"Draw a number. You'll enter the game according to that number."
That immediately confused everyone.
The game hadn't even been explained yet—why draw numbers first?
[Keqing]: Huh? What kind of game needs numbers first?
[Ningguang]: These numbers must be important.
[Herta]: Entering by order… does that mean one by one?
[Ruan Mei]: …So each person goes alone?
[Phantylia]: He did say this game would be interesting~
Despite the confusion, someone stepped forward.
Huangquan didn't hesitate.
She reached into the box and pulled out a ball.
No. 3
With her taking the lead, the others followed.
Each drew their number.
"Good. Now that numbers are decided…"
Valerius raised his hand.
A map appeared.
Locations flickered into view:
Xianzhou Luofu
Belobog
Penacony
Liyue
Inazuma
Sumeru
Sixth Street
Public Security Bureau
Outer Ring
Almost every player's origin world was represented.
"Choose your destination," Valerius said calmly.
"One rule: each location can only be chosen once."
"And you cannot choose your own world."
That shut down everyone's initial plan.
No one could rely on familiarity anymore.
In the end—
They picked randomly.
Once all choices were made, Valerius smiled.
"I'll explain the rules now."
Strange World RulesYou will be transported into the world you selected. However, it is a distorted version—a strange world where common sense is broken. You must act according to rules.
Before entering, you have 10 points to purchase items. Remaining points will determine final ranking—the more you keep, the higher you place.
Only survival counts as clearing the stage. If no one survives, all are eliminated.
The three players who survive the shortest time will be punished.
Silence.
Huohuo was already pale.
This didn't sound like a normal game at all.
Valerius glanced at her briefly, then said:
"Alright. Rules are done. Player No.1—come purchase your items."
The chat exploded.
[Herta]: So points are used first this time!
[Ruan Mei]: That suggests… extreme difficulty.
[Tingyun]: Best to conserve points early. Perhaps leave 7.
[Ningguang]: Sensible. Sets a baseline for others.
[Jing Yuan]: But if you save too much and die, it's meaningless.
Meanwhile—
Player No.1 stepped forward.
Sushang.
"Choose what you want."
A menu appeared:
Emergency Pills (3 pts) – cures "strange infection" 3 times
Eye of Truth (5 pts) – reveals one false rule
Extra Life (5 pts) – revive once
Substitute Doll (4 pts) – negates one death
Teleport Card (3 pts) – return to visited location
Sushang stared.
Everything sounded dangerous.
This "strange world"… clearly wasn't normal.
After a long pause—
"I'll take this."
She chose the Emergency Pills.
"Good choice."
Valerius handed her a small glass bottle with three pills.
"These can cure you—or others."
Sushang nodded.
At least she could help teammates… if there were any.
"You chose Liyue."
"Enjoy your game."
Light descended.
She vanished.
Moments later—
She appeared outside a bustling harbor.
Liyue Harbor.
Ships came and went.
Everything looked peaceful.
"…This doesn't seem dangerous at all?"
Then—
A figure stumbled toward her.
A Millelith soldier.
Covered in blood.
"Hey—what happened?!"
Sushang rushed forward to support him.
"Run… run… they're monsters…"
He shoved a blood-stained paper into her hands—
Then collapsed.
The chat instantly reacted.
[Keqing]: What happened?!
[Ningguang]: Something's wrong. This close to the harbor, it shouldn't go unnoticed.
[Yanfei]: Monsters? Inside the city?
[Yelan]: That paper is the key.
Valerius finally spoke.
[Valerius]: Stop guessing. That's the rule guide NPC. Every strange world needs one.
[Xingqiu]: So… she must follow those rules?
[Hu Tao]: What if she doesn't?
Valerius chuckled.
[Valerius]: Oh… that would be interesting.
[Jing Yuan]: …That sounds ominous.
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