Chapter 38: Xu Ruyan, the Blood-Vengeance Mechanism!

The people who had fled into the hallway were struck dumb. Before they could even process what was happening, the big shot, Liu Quan, was already dead!

It hadn't even been ten seconds. How could the tables turn so quickly? One moment, they were following a "10V1" boss, feeling invincible; the next, their teammates were corpses and the boss himself was down.

Liu Quan’s name had dimmed—the ultimate proof of death.

Xu Lang had already reloaded his magazine and aimed his gun toward the hallway. Having finished the killing, he was neither flushed nor out of breath. He reloaded with such clear, methodical precision that he seemed as steady as a professional hitman.

Once he had acquired some money, Xu Lang had asked Wu Huihui to purchase some Number 6 bullets for him. Now, he had plenty of ammunition; he could fire whenever he pleased.

As the saying goes, when you have a hammer in your hand, everything looks like a nail.

He wouldn't let a single one of these wretched guests who had smashed his door go free.

Revenge.

It was the rational choice. The more rational a person is, the more they understand the importance of retribution. If there is no cost for others to offend you, then the offenses will only multiply.

Just as Xu Lang was about to pull the trigger, a female voice drifted from behind him.

"I advise you not to do that."

Xu Lang spun around instantly, his muzzle trained on the masked woman standing ten meters away in the corridor to his right. Simultaneously, he took a small step back, ducking behind the steel door to eliminate the possibility of being ambushed from the left side of the hallway.

A hint of admiration flashed in the masked woman's eyes. "Very good reaction. I can hardly imagine you're a first-stage player."

"Who are you?" Xu Lang asked, his gaze fixed intently on her.

The woman was tall, with a curvaceous, explosive figure that would make anyone’s heart race. She wore a dark green leather jacket, and the black mask on her face shifted its patterns as she breathed, looking exceptionally eerie.

Of course, Xu Lang wasn't looking at her figure, but at her basic information.

[Name: Xu Ruyan]
[Experience: Third Stage]
[Door Number: 180 (Room Owner)]
[Comfort Level: 80 (Increases Nightmare Coin conversion rate by 80%)]

Xu Ruyan’s voice was pleasant, and from the features visible above the mask, one could guess she was a stunning beauty with sharp, well-defined facial features.

Yet, her comfort level was extremely low.

Because Xu Lang did not want to sleep next to a viper!

That was exactly it—this woman gave Xu Lang the feeling of a snake, and a highly venomous one at that.

***

Because of the unique layout of the tenth floor, Dormitory 180 was also considered part of the tenth floor.

"Me? An old player, though I should be quite different from a bottom-feeder like him." Xu Ruyan seemed to be smiling. Her gaze drifted past the steel door to the corpse of Liu Quan lying behind it, showing that she wasn't the least bit concerned about the gun in Xu Lang's hand. "I can guarantee that this trash has made it into the top ten at most once, whereas in my three game experiences, I’ve been in the top ten every single time!"

Xu Lang’s eyes flickered. He asked calmly, "Then why did you stop me from killing the others just now?"

"That’s to protect the living strength of our tenth floor, of course." Xu Ruyan wasn't one for suspense; she went straight to the point. "You’ve already accumulated 'Blood Grudge.' If you keep killing, the Blood Grudge will only grow. By the first day of the game, all the monsters will be swarming your doorstep."

As soon as these words were spoken, a sense of foreboding washed over Xu Lang. He maintained his composure and asked, "What is Blood Grudge?"

Seeing that Xu Lang wasn't intimidated, the admiration in her emerald eyes deepened. She laughed.

"Killing other players during rest periods causes Blood Grudge to attach to you. When the next round of the game begins, you will be much more likely to attract the hostility of monsters than anyone else."

"Even hiding in your dormitory won't help. And the more you kill, the more exaggerated the Blood Grudge becomes."

"Blood Grudge is what we players call it, but it’s also a hidden mechanism of the Dormitory Survival game!"

Xu Lang fell silent.

For such crucial information, the game provided absolutely no hints. This was incredibly devious!

"Then, for someone like me who just killed one person, how intense would the Blood Grudge be?" Xu Lang asked.

"To be precise, it's four... but since you didn't kill them with your own hands, the Blood Grudge will be a little less," Xu Ruyan smiled.

"Do you have a specific example?" Xu Lang pressed.

At a time like this, he didn't want to play games; every word he spoke hit the core of the matter. Besides, since Xu Ruyan was in the mood to explain, he would naturally ask everything he could.

Information asymmetry was a resource; if he could exploit it, he would profit.

"Anyway, the player with the most Blood Grudge in my previous round died first, and they had only killed one person." Xu Ruyan teased, "That’s why I stopped you from killing more. If all the monsters flocked to the tenth floor, I’d truly have a headache."

Xu Lang fell silent again, silently cursing the creator of the Dormitory Survival game.

Seeing Xu Lang’s dismal expression, Xu Ruyan laughed, her voice rich and magnetic. "Relax. The Dormitory Survival game has its own set of judgment mechanisms. Since your killing this time was a passive counterattack, the Blood Grudge shouldn't be too outrageous; otherwise, I would have already changed floors."

"Thank you. I will help you once when it’s necessary," Xu Lang said solemnly.

Xu Ruyan definitely had an agenda in telling him this. Rather than waiting for her to make demands, he was better off taking the initiative to set the cost within an acceptable range.

Besides, this was essentially a blank check—it wouldn't cost him a single copper coin.

"Heh, if you want to repay me, just try to survive two more days in the next round," Xu Ruyan said, turning to leave.

Her hips swayed gracefully.

But Xu Lang felt that even if he checked her information again, her comfort level wouldn't be very high. Although she had given him some intelligence, his perception of her remained unchanged.

She was a viper.

***

The people in the hallway had all fled. After looting Liu Quan’s body, Xu Lang returned to his room.

In the entryway, Cao Yaxuan was clutching a crossbow. The moment she saw Xu Lang enter, tears welled up in her eyes.

"Xu Lang, I thought something had happened to you," she sobbed.

"Hold that steady, don't shoot me," Xu Lang shrugged.

This crossbow was his final trump card, which he had entrusted to Cao Yaxuan. She had a relatively stable mindset, could handle pressure in critical moments, and had been with him the longest.

"Xu Lang, is what that woman said true?" Wang Yazhi stepped forward, checking to see if Xu Lang was injured while she asked.

"Most likely. She has no reason to lie to me just to save a few strangers," Xu Lang’s expression darkened.

Hearing this, the three women couldn't help but feel a sense of worry.

...

[9 Sun Heng: Damn, what a brainless old player, almost got me killed!]
[181 Li Yu: Sun Heng, you went to the tenth floor too?]
[9 Sun Heng: Don't slander me, I just went over to take a look.]
[32 Ye Fan: Some "old player." I knew they weren't as reliable as Brother Lang. If Liu Quan were really that strong, he wouldn't have brought you all up there. I even tipped Brother Lang off earlier; I wonder if he saw it.]
[84 Li Wang: I didn't go either. That old player was clearly using us as cannon fodder.]
[186 Wang Tingting: Everyone, stop for a second. Let me tell you about the Blood Grudge thing...]
[9 Sun Heng: Damn, that bitch was really trying to screw us over. I bet they were planning to make us kill Xu Lang while they hid in the back.]
[32 Ye Fan: Bro, can you stop self-destructing? Are you not afraid Brother Lang will come looking for you?]
[9 Sun Heng: It's fine, there's Blood Grudge anyway.]
[181 Li Yu: That only seems to take effect during rest periods.]
[9 Sun Heng: Actually, I respect Brother Lang a lot. If it weren't for him, we might have all died in the first round.]

The clown had logged on, sparking a wave of laughter.

[32 Ye Fan: @Xu Ruyan, Big Sister, can you take us under your wing?]
[180 Xu Ruyan: Finished sucking up to the big brother, now you're trying to suck up to the big sister? Not afraid of dying?]
[32 Ye Fan: Hehe, I just feel like you aren't a bad person.]
[180 Xu Ruyan: I don't have the time for that. Besides, there should be other new residents coming soon; ask them instead.]