"...Everyone, come over and change into the prison uniforms."
Xu Xi felt a momentary daze, instantly realizing he had returned to the very beginning once again.
So this was the consequence of withdrawing from the competition?
There was no need to mention the missing staff members; they had undoubtedly already met with misfortune.
Unfortunately, all the display screens had gone black, so he wasn't clear on the specific situation of the remaining players inside the camp at that time.
And who was that man who had twisted his neck in the end? The final boss of this instance?
The other's skin was a bluish-white, his cold, empty eyes lacking distinct emotion or color, his entire body exuding a kind of inorganic chill.
He didn't look like an ordinary supernatural being at all.
But this was only the first day; the boss was already out??
Or was it just that they were clearing out the peripheral players first, like taking out the trash mobs?
He also didn't know what happened to those other players afterwards.
While deep in thought, Xu Xi followed behind the other ten players and began changing clothes.
He now knew the consequence of withdrawing: you would indeed die, and there was no escaping it.
Right now, he was more curious about what exactly the production team couldn't see on the monitors.
...Surely it couldn't be that man, could it?
"Okay, everyone, you will now enter the camp. I've already said everything that needs to be said, so I won't repeat myself. Tonight, you can rest well inside the camp. I've had people clean all the cells inside, so pick whichever you like, single rooms."
"Tomorrow, we'll officially begin the challenge."
Seeing that the eleven contestants he had carefully selected showed no objection on their faces, the slovenly man waved his hand with satisfaction. "Alright, everyone, get ready to go in."
"Creak—"
Two staff members pushed open the camp gate with effort.
Compared to the caution and wariness of the other players, Xu Xi's eager, almost excited demeanor was particularly conspicuous.
For Xu Xi, no matter how clear the footage on the monitors was, it couldn't compare to the direct experience of being there in person.
Not to mention the clarity of that footage wasn't that great to begin with.
To some extent, he really did hold a kind of sightseeing-like novelty attitude towards this camp right now.
Not only did the international netizens in the live stream notice, but even the players from other countries beside him picked up on it.
[Master Xu Xi seems quite interested in this instance. His expression was always pretty neutral in the previous ones. (ip Hua Nation)]
[Is there something special about this instance? First time seeing the master's emotions so openly displayed. (ip Hua Nation)]
[Blind guess: this instance is gonna hit the players with something big (just kidding) (ip Hua Nation)]
[For sure. An isolated island, a deserted camp exhibition hall, a shaman whose blessing failed, a bunch of suicidal NPCs... horror movies always start like this. (ip Hua Nation)]
[What is Master Xu Xi curious about? I really want to know, scratching my head.jpg (ip Hua Nation)]
[+1, and it feels like the master is here on a sightseeing tour or something. (ip Hua Nation)]
[What a sightseeing tour, Master Xu Xi is still way too relaxed. (ip Hua Nation)]
[Why do the comments from Hua Nation look like they're not worried about their contestant at all? (ip Rice Nation)]
[They seem to have an incomprehensible level of confidence in their nation's contestant. (ip Hans Nation)]
[Because of arrogance! This will be Hua Nation's most fatal flaw! Our contestant Winifred, however, has great personal charm. (ip Prettyland)]
[That foolish big-bearded guy who wants to treat everyone like idiots? (ip Bear Nation)]
[The Hua Nation contestant is acting so relaxed. Did he figure something out? (ip Kangaroo Nation)]
[Impossible, the instance just started. (ip Maple Nation)]
[Don't you all forget this Hua Nation contestant's first instance. (ip Garden Nation)]
[...]
While the live stream comments from various nations worried about their own contestants, they inevitably discussed Xu Xi, whose behavior seemed somewhat inexplicable.
But that was about it.
After all, they believed their own contestants were also selected from among thousands, not necessarily inferior to this Hua Nation contestant.
Inside the instance, after everyone stepped into the camp, the large gate slowly closed again.
Winifred glanced at the group standing stiffly apart from each other. Just as he was about to speak, he saw that hoodie-wearing young man, who had shown obvious interest in the camp from the start, completely ignore them and walk straight towards the interior of the camp.
Stunned, he noticed the same look of surprise on everyone else's faces.
At this moment, even if he wanted to say something, he couldn't get it out.
"...Since that young brother has taken the first step, we shouldn't just stand here any longer. Let's go, everyone."
After a moment, Winifred finished speaking and stepped forward, walking inside.
The remaining people, with varied expressions, all followed.
By the time they entered, the hoodie-wearing young man who had led the way was already nowhere to be seen.
On the other side, Xu Xi didn't care in the slightest about what those foreign players thought of him.
Having reloaded so many times, if nothing else, his behavior had become much more self-directed.
Xu Xi stared thoughtfully at the rows of photographs on the wall.
This deserted camp was very large, with numerous exhibition halls scattered inside. Even though he had tried hard to memorize the general layout from the god's-eye view in the monitoring room, when he actually encountered the intricate maze of corridors, he still lost his sense of direction.
So, this was a randomly chosen exhibition hall.
The wall was covered with photographs of several victims, alongside their personal information.
Xu Xi skimmed through it briefly and found it was just some basic identity details, nothing particularly useful.
However, he didn't leave immediately. Instead, he stood there for a while longer.
He was waiting.
In the previous timeline, that leather-clad woman was the first player to be attacked while observing this photo wall.
He didn't know what the condition for her attack was, so he could only try to replicate her actions.
Yet, he waited for quite a while without seeing any abnormality appear.
Then, a sharp, shattering sound from next door broke the silence of the exhibition hall.
Xu Xi hissed through his teeth.
He hadn't expected that, even this time, that leather-clad woman would still be the first to be attacked.
*
Polina frowned as she scanned her surroundings, only relaxing slightly after confirming the black shadow had disappeared.
She carefully recalled her various actions just now but couldn't find anything particularly unusual.
She really couldn't figure out why she had been attacked so soon after entering.
What was that black shadow? Why did it attack her for no apparent reason? Had the other players suffered similar attacks?
Polina buried these questions deep in her mind. Just as she was about to leave this place for now, the sound of light footsteps reached her ears, and she immediately tensed up again.
When the newcomer's figure became visible, she couldn't help but be taken aback.
It was unmistakably that hoodie-wearing young man who had entered the camp first.
Xu Xi glanced at the shattered glass fragments scattered across the floor, his gaze finally settling on the leather-clad woman not far away, who seemed somewhat surprised.
"What did you encounter?"
