Chapter 1405: 1405 Adjudicator Game: Game Invasion 10
No matter what methods they tried, no one could leave their room.
Even Rita’s King-tier Cat’s Ideal failed.
The same went for the other players and the veteran god-level players with vast reserves of resources and experience.
While everyone else was busy studying the prison cells and the shackles, Shadow.Q was still tirelessly attempting to strike up a conversation with the pink-tailed Moonfox in the neighboring room.
Her combat power and fighting skills couldn’t compare to the others here.
But her patience and social skills were among the very best.
It wasn’t that the powerhouses lacked patience or communication skills.
If they were facing combat or a difficult puzzle, they could devote endless patience to solving it.
But dealing with unfamiliar strangers was different.
These people were used to solving problems themselves.
They weren’t inclined to waste time on someone who refused to respond.
If a conversation yielded nothing, they’d rather investigate the prison directly and uncover clues through their own efforts.
Even Yulaw, who loved manipulating people through words, couldn’t be bothered.
Instead, he had immediately tried using language-based skills to control the neighboring prisoner.
Not only had it failed, it had completely enraged the target.
Shadow.Q was different.
She understood something very clearly.
If brute force could solve the problem, she wouldn’t be needed at all.
She could simply sit back and wait for results.
The fact that no one had found useful information yet meant brute force wasn’t the answer.
Language was her greatest weapon.
Time was the currency she invested.
And no matter the environment, she always found a way to prove her value.
After repeatedly promising that any prisoner who helped uncover secrets or weaknesses in the prison would receive supplies in return, Shadow.Q finally broke through the Moonfox’s resistance.
At last, she received a response.
The pink-tailed Moonfox said coldly, "It’s useless. Every six hours, the cube rotates. The rooms change positions..."
The sincere smile on Shadow.Q’s face never wavered.
"I’ve already told my companions what you look like. If item transfers are possible, we’ll provide supplies."
As she spoke, she immediately relayed the information to Rita.
At that moment, Rita was investigating the source of the room’s lighting when she noticed the message in the chat.
Soul fire ignited at her brow.
She opened World Sigh and pressed her hand against the illustration, attempting to create another rule.
Players may exchange items freely within the prison.
A glowing line of text appeared on the page.
Then Rita erased it.
The rule was too broad.
Too unrestricted.
The soul fire cost would be enormous.
Not worth it.
More importantly, things were different now than they had been on the dark bridge.
While inside the prison, every time she tried creating rules, she could faintly sense something.
A closed eye.
Watching.
Her rules had to remain subtle and discreet.
Otherwise, she might alert whatever unknown existence was observing this place.
She had experienced a similar sensation before.
But never this clearly.
Back when she stood upon the Bridge of Sighs and officially announced Adjudicator Game Start, she had limited players to only three reentries.
The reason was precisely this vague feeling of restriction and boundaries.
A quiet warning seemed to whisper in her heart:
Be careful.
Don’t get noticed.
Rita also discarded a second draft rule that would have allowed players to leave their rooms.
The moment she wrote it down, she knew.
A rule equivalent to a jailbreak would immediately draw the attention of that unseen eye.
A dozen seconds later, all players heard a new announcement.
[Adjudicator Game Rule 4]
[After each cube rotation, players may exchange one item with a player or lifeform in another cube room.]
The rule took effect.
Every Rubik’s Cube lock on the players’ shackles clicked once and rotated.
Knew I picked the right side.
Shadow.Q immediately turned toward the pink-tailed Moonfox, whose eyes had widened after hearing the announcement.
"What equipment do you need? Any restrictions? Let’s trade. I only want a single strand of tail fur. More information would be even better. My companions can trade with you too."
Without her glasses, Shadow.Q appeared remarkably harmless.
Gentle.
Generous.
Like an innocent newcomer fresh into the workforce.
The kind of person anyone might think they could fool.
As soon as she finished speaking, the cubes on both of their shackles rotated.
A patch of crimson mist between the two cells dissipated.
A tiny opening appeared.
The Moonfox stared blankly for a moment.
Then he spoke rapidly.
"Level 19. Any equipment with healing skills. Twelve minutes until the next rotation."
Shadow.Q nodded.
Understood.
She opened her right hand.
Skill light flared.
Following his requirements, she quickly crafted a top-tier bracer containing two healing skills and immediately pushed it through the opening.
This was the strongest skill she had acquired during the past century.
SSS-rank: Keep Handcrafting.
It allowed her to temporarily recreate any piece of equipment she had ever personally handled.
As a director of BS, she had probably processed more equipment than even BS Rita.
The Adjudicator had grown too quickly.
Her gear quality had skyrocketed early and never come back down.
Faced with such straightforward honesty, much of the Moonfox’s wariness melted away.
Excitement appeared in his eyes as he equipped the bracer.
He then handed over a small tuft of fox fur.
"Be careful. After each cube rotation, occupied rooms may randomly receive an inspector, a prison guard, or a new inmate."
"Different opponents mean different prison games."
As he reached that point, the enthusiasm from receiving new equipment visibly faded.
His shoulders slumped.
With little interest left in his voice, he shook his head.
"Forget it. Win or lose, the ending is usually terrible."
Shadow.Q quickly posted everything into the group chat.
At the same time, she continued asking questions.
"For example? Could you give us a hint?"
The Moonfox answered with a question of his own.
"What crime did you commit?"
Shadow.Q looked both candid and genuinely puzzled.
"I don’t know. My level and combat strength aren’t particularly impressive. I’m reasonably intelligent and good at my job, but that’s about it. There’s nothing especially remarkable about me. I don’t know why I’d be exiled either."
The Moonfox laughed.
Her honesty amused him.
Moonfoxes hated lies.
"That sounds about right. Plenty of prisoners die here without ever understanding why they were sent."
"It took me a very long time to figure out my own answer."
"What was it?" Shadow.Q asked.
The Moonfox looked at her and said:
"You must have enormous potential."
"Your soul fire must be special too."
"Special enough to grant unique abilities."
"Special enough to qualify you as fuel for the game."
