TDU Chapter 141: Seesaw
Chapter 141 Seesaw
"Team collaboration?!" Qi Xia was momentarily taken aback. "Are you implying... that the four of us are to act as a team and engage in this game together?"
"Exactly."
Qi Xia inhaled sharply, convinced that {team collaboration} was far more dependable than {intellectual questionnaire}. In essence, this meant he could leverage his own strength to safeguard both Qiao Jiajin and Tian Tian as best he could.
"Can you provide a more in-depth explanation of the game’s rules?" he pressed further.
"Enter the room to learn the rules."
Qi Xia glanced at the open door behind the Mortal Dragon. It was a small, almost claustrophobic space, no larger than a public restroom. This led him to believe that the game within would hardly be complicated. Even in the worst-case scenario, it would likely be some form of team-based escape challenge.
"Will there be any {Infiltrators} in this game?" Qi Xia asked.
"Of course not," Mortal Dragon shook his head. "As long as the four of you remain united, working together towards a common goal, victory is guaranteed."
"Is there a chance that we might end up fighting amongst ourselves?" Qi Xia continued to press.
"I promise you, that will not happen," Mortal Dragon replied, shaking his head.
Hearing those words, Qi Xia understood that it was worth taking the risk. "Then, let’s proceed together."
Mortal Dragon slowly smiled. "Good, very good." He nodded and stepped aside, opening the door behind him. He did not enter but merely cleared a path for Qi Xia and the others.
Qi Xia and Yun Yao exchanged a glance before slowly stepping forward. Qiao Jiajin and Tian Tian quickly followed, and the four of them entered the room.
It was only then that they realized the room was barely three or four square meters in size, its walls composed of metal and the floor crafted from iron mesh. In the corner of the room was an old wooden stool, upon which lay a long knife, its blade polished to a gleam. On the wall to the left, an electronic countdown clock was displayed, its display frozen at ten minutes.
What sort of game could take place in such an obvious and confined {small restroom}?
{Slam}.
A sharp, resounding sound echoed through the air, signaling the closing of the door behind them, just as anticipated. Qi Xia spun around, his gaze darting to the spot where the entrance had been—only to find an iron wall standing in its place.
"Damn..." Qiao Jiajin cursed under his breath. "That lan-joeng never explained the rules. Did he forget?"
"No, he wouldn’t forget. Just be patient and wait."
As soon as these words were mentioned, all four of them noticed a strange phenomenon. The floor beneath their feet was made of iron mesh, yet to their shock, the ground below it began to rapidly descend. It felt as though they were floating in mid-air, standing on the mesh floor.
Yun Yao nervously braced herself against the metal wall and, after a moment of careful observation, discovered something unsettling. "It seems like our room is... rising? Almost like an elevator."
Indeed, compared to a {restroom}, this space now felt much more like an {elevator}. After all, the walls were all metal, yet why was the floor made of iron mesh?
The four of them sensed the room shifting rapidly, yet all they could perceive beyond was a void of impenetrable darkness, stretching endlessly beneath the mesh at their feet. Fortunately, the iron mesh was sturdy enough, so there was no immediate fear of falling to their deaths.
"Watch out," Qiao Jiajin remarked. He stepped over to the wooden stool, carefully picking up the knife and holding it protectively. "The shaking’s intense—careful not to step on a knife."
After an indeterminate amount of time, the room jolted as if it had come to a halt, but the situation remained grim. It felt as though the room was tethered to an elastic rope, swaying erratically, its movements unstable and jarring.
When they glanced down, they saw a faint glow emerging from several meters below their feet. A fire had ignited directly beneath them, flames licking the air. Thin tendrils of smoke curled into the {elevator} cabin.
"What exactly’s happenin’?" Qiao Jiajin asked, crouching down and peering through the iron mesh. "Are we supposed to be roasting meat? But the fire's way too far."
Qi Xia knew that Mortal Dragon wouldn't do anything without a purpose. But what was the {fire} for?
"Welcome to my game arena, everyone." Just then, the voice of Mortal Dragon echoed from every direction, the tone eerie and unsettling.
"Hey! Where the hell are you, you damn lan-joeng?" Qiao Jiajin took a step forward, but the moment his foot moved, the entire room swayed even more violently, causing him to hurriedly grab hold of the nearby wall for balance.
"No one move!" Qi Xia felt unease creeping in. "It seems we’re fastened to something dangerously flimsy!"
The collective took a moment to feel the vibrations, and soon realized that Qi Xia’s observation was undeniably accurate.
The laughter of Mortal Dragon echoed all around, sending a shiver down their spines. He then boomed out, "The game goes by the name {Seesaw}. As long as you remain uneliminated, each of you will earn ten {Dào}. Let the game commence!"
No sooner had the words left his mouth, the ten-minute {countdown} clock began ticking down.
“What?!” Yun Yao froze, her eyes wide. “It’s starting already? What about the rules?!”
“Wait…” Qi Xia said, his voice tinged with a hint of panic, “The word {Seesaw} is probably the entirety of the rules…” He took a few cautious steps, feeling along the walls. Sure enough, he found a concealed shutter. The small opening was only about five or six centimeters in diameter, roughly the size of a tennis ball.
With a soft push, the small window opened.
Swallowing his anxiety, Qi Xia looked through the small window, and in that instant, every hair on his body stood on end.
Ultimately, a dragon remains a dragon.
Was such a structure truly possible?
Qi Xia's gaze wavered as he slowly retreated a few steps.
Seeing his expression, the others followed suit, glancing toward the small window. One look was all it took to send an icy wave coursing through their veins.
Beyond the narrow pane lay a towering metallic column, jutting outward for dozens of meters. One end of this colossal metal column was connected to their {elevator}, while the other end was linked to another {elevator}.
The people in the other {elevator} had also discovered and opened the concealed shutter and were now looking in their direction. However, the window was so small, and the distance so great, that neither side could make out the other's faces.
The enormous metal column resembled a seesaw, with its center fixed in place and two rooms suspended at either end, softly oscillating.
“Motherfu… seesaw…” Qi Xia muttered under his breath, his frustration evident. "This is what you had in mind?"
“Swindler lad… what exactly is…” Qiao Jiajin blinked repeatedly, his eyes darting to the distant flames below them. Cold sweat began to bead on his forehead.
A seesaw is a notoriously unstable structure. It wouldn’t take long before the slightest imbalance in weight would cause one side to plunge to the ground.
But beneath their feet lay flames. If they descended, the people in the room would be plunged straight into the fire, burned alive.
"We must lighten the weight..." Qi Xia muttered to himself, “Only by making our room lighter can we survive…” Before he could finish his thought, they felt the room begin its gradual descent—their weight exceeded that of the others.
“Oh no!…”
Everyone, except for Tian Tian, immediately stiffened in alarm and quickly moved toward the wall closest to the metal column.
“Tian Tian, come over here!” Qiao Jiajin called out.
Tian Tian nodded in response and hurried to join the others.
According to the principle of leverage, standing at the outermost point of the room would cause their force to exceed that of the others. It seemed the other side had already figured this out, meaning they weren’t easy opponents.
…
As the final notes of his humming faded, Chu Tianqiu slowly broke into a smile. "Let me hazard a guess," he said, opening his eyes. "You’ve chosen to take part in {Mortal Dragon}’s game so you can protect your teammates with your own strength, haven't you?"
Chu Tianqiu straightened up, glancing at the chessboard.
On the right were four {Pawns}, and on the left, there was a {King}, {Queen}, {Knight}, and {Bishop}. At this moment, the eight pieces were moving in tandem, attacking the beast from both flanks.
"Sometimes, self-inflicted cleverness can lead to a deadly end," Chu Tianqiu mused, then slowly removed the monstrous piece at the center of the board.
The formation had taken an odd turn. The eight pieces were split into two sides, glaring at each other with bated breath, but it no longer seemed like they were hunting the monster.
Rather, it seemed as though they were preparing for mutual destruction.
