Eliminating the Radiator

As soon as the invitation was finalized, shouts came from outside.

"Where is he! Come out!"

A muscular man from the Viking Gang, carrying an axe, walked over.

He passed through the Gladiator Arena and went straight to the entrance of the White Faction's base. Through the floor-to-ceiling windows, he could see directly inside.

"Boom!"

Then he directly swung his axe and smashed the window.

However, the base material was clearly extraordinary, making it impossible for a Gladiator to directly break into the enemy base.

The muscular man tried opening the door again, but it wouldn't budge. He stopped wasting his energy.

Seeing him so close, everyone fell silent.

Gaoxin leaned forward, meeting the other's gaze through the window.

"We forfeit this round, please go back."

Seeing that they had no intention of sending anyone out, the muscular man's expression changed: "You can still refuse to fight?"

Clearly, he had just realized that they didn't have to participate.

After a moment of thought, he pointed at the door and said, "Open the door."

Gaoxin chuckled, "Do you really want to come in? Alright, just wait a moment. After we lose some health and the duel ends, we'll let you in."

He turned and said a few words to Qiao Long and the others. Immediately, a group of people went upstairs and collectively headed to the Voting Room.

Only Gaoxin remained alone by the window, seemingly intending to open the door.

"You mother—"

Killing intent erupted in the muscular man's eyes. He knew that if he went inside, he would be in grave danger.

Inside the base of a defeated faction, a traitor vote could be initiated against any member of the base. As long as the vote passed, the traitor would be eliminated.

"Hmph, do you think turning my boss to the White Faction will kill him?"

Gaoxin stroked his chin, "It seems your base is quite harmonious? Has your boss dared to confess his defection?"

The muscular man sneered, "Confess? As long as we don't lose once, no one in the base can vote to eliminate anyone. What's there to say..."

"What? Do you want to tell her? Do you think Sophia will easily believe your 'sowing discord' and cause infighting among us? She won't even bother sending anyone to listen to your nonsense."

Gaoxin understood. The situation on the other side was very delicate.

Luis, the Big Hammer man, dared not reveal his defection and made no move. Sophia also didn't insist on finding out who had defected. The entire Black Faction maintained a superficial harmony.

However, Gaoxin smiled. This was precisely the best situation for him.

If a problem isn't addressed, it remains a problem forever.

The muscular man said coldly, "Kid, what are you smiling about? The Black Faction can't lose. Even if all of you Glass People are united, what can you do?"

"Without the help of the Radiators, even if you win the Invitation, you won't be able to damage our health! Haha, if we equip the Gladiators with firearms, you probably won't even be able to defeat the Glass People."

"Conversely, if you lose the Invitation, you'll definitely lose health!"

"And without my boss's vote, your attempts to incite defection will all fail. We just need to turn my boss back to Black before the final duel."

"I'd like to see how long you can last! With only two options, both failing, the increasing number of options later will eventually deplete your health."

"By then, all of you White Faction members will be Instantly Killed."

"Hey, we're being merciful over here and willing to take in five of you. Whoever comes and opens the door first can live!"

The muscular man sneered, as if they had already won.

Qiao Long and the others upstairs heard everything clearly.

Indeed, according to his words, if they continued to fight like this, the White Faction would eventually lose.

It was just a matter of relying on united voting to perhaps survive a few more rounds.

To this, Gaoxin actually nodded, "Since your side believes you've already won, then it's easy."

"Huh?" The muscular man was stunned.

Just then, inside the White Faction's base, the white number 5 suddenly popped and exploded, changing to 4.

This was because their turn to appear had come, and no one from the White Faction had appeared, resulting in an automatic loss. The White Faction lost 1 point of health, leaving them with 4.

The duel was over, and the muscular man should have left.

He sneered, "You failed even the first round, so stop being so mysterious. Since you're not fighting, just keep hiding."

"It's just a pity for your redemption vouchers."

As he turned to leave.

Gaoxin's faint voice came from behind him, "Do you really think you can't vote to kill someone if you don't lose? What if the Gladiators' votes can also kill?"

"Huh?" The muscular man froze.

He turned back disdainfully, "Gladiator votes, killing? What? Am I going to die at the hands of Glass People?"

Gaoxin stared at him, "Do you really think you can go back?"

Hearing this, the muscular man's expression finally changed.

"Wh...what?"

He thought of something and suddenly looked towards the Black Base. Though blurry, he could vaguely see... it looked like a fight had broken out inside!

"Ah?"

The muscular man was greatly alarmed. Without a second thought, he rushed towards the Black Base.

Getting closer, he could see clearly. A fight had indeed broken out inside, and they were engaged in fierce combat!

"Hahaha!" Sophia unleashed a barrage from her twin guns, chasing after someone.

The other four men in black vests were also formidable, surrounding Luis and another brother.

"Big Brother! Open the door quickly!" the muscular man desperately pounded on the door.

But his three companions were in no condition to help him.

They had already lost one person at the start of the match, and now he was outside.

With only Luis and two other brothers left to face five opponents, they were in dire straits and had no energy to open the door.

Even more terrifying was...

The victor in the Gladiator Arena must return to the base within one minute, or face instant kill.

"Damn! Damn!"

The muscular man pounded on the door frantically. He swung his axe, activating his power acceleration. His muscles bulged, even emitting white smoke as his organs overclocked.

Even so, he couldn't break the door down!

"Open the door! Open the door!"

He was going mad. Peeking through the window, he saw a Glass Person curled up on the ground in a corner and urgently shouted at him.

But the Glass Person trembled, too afraid to move, fearing being caught in some attack. They paid no mind to the person outside.

The muscular man was utterly horrified and shouted again at Luis, "Big Brother! Big Brother! Open the door!"

Luis inside had also overclocked his organs and used every trick he had.

Gritting his teeth, he charged towards the door, enduring heavy damage.

"Hahaha!"

"Boom!"

Sophia, with her twin tails, was already guarding the entrance and firing her guns. She dodged and blocked Luis's path, unleashing a barrage from her twin pistols.

Each shot had the effect of a small explosion. Luis blocked one with his Big Hammer to open the door, but he was hit by another. His body was immediately mangled, and he was sent flying, emitting black smoke.

The man outside watched with eyes splitting in rage, but he was helpless.

"Hey! Over here!" Suddenly, Gaoxin's voice came.

The muscular man turned and saw the White Base's door wide open.

He had no other choice now. He had to grab this last straw and rush into the White Base with all his might.

Finally, before the countdown for instant kill, he stumbled into the White Base's door.

Seeing that the instant kill hadn't occurred, he breathed a sigh of relief.

But when he saw no one on the first floor, he was greatly alarmed and shouted upstairs, "Don't, don't vote! Let's talk!"

Gaoxin appeared halfway up the stairs, looking down at him, "You have at least one thing to say."

The muscular man's mouth twitched. He lowered his head and said, "We shouldn't have underestimated you."

"Not that sentence," Gaoxin said calmly.

The muscular man frowned, "We can cooperate and deal with Sophia together."

Gaoxin shook his head, "Not that sentence either."

The muscular man stared at him, "I have five hundred points. I'll give them all to you after the game."

"Five hundred?" Gaoxin chuckled. Last game, a Radiator had also offered him five hundred. Was this the going rate?

At this moment, Dongfang Yi emerged from beside Gaoxin and whispered a few words.

Gaoxin said, "Say it loudly."

Dongfang Yi announced loudly, "The votes are in. It's just you left."

The muscular man roared in anger and threw the axe in his hand, "Fuck! What exactly do you want me to say!"

Gaoxin and Dongfang Yi, having been prepared, dodged into a blind spot.

When he caught up to the second floor, he saw Gaoxin standing in the Voting Room. The door had already been closed to a mere crack.

"Say goodbye."

Bang. The door was locked.

The muscular man's facial features twisted in anger, but he was helpless.

"Eliminate Traitor Vote has concluded."

"No!"

A beam of light descended, and he instantly turned to ash.

Before long, everyone emerged from the room.

Dongfang Yi immediately said, "Good riddance!"

Meimei calculated, "It was a unanimous vote to kill. That's a thousand each this round, so ten thousand for ten people."

Qiao Long pondered, "The other side is still killing each other."

Dongfang Yi announced loudly, "It's normal for Radiators to kill each other, especially the Viking Gang. They started with one less person than Sophia's group."

"But Sophia probably felt that even with five against four, she didn't have absolute certainty and worried about losing her own people, so she decided to stabilize the situation first, then use Gladiator votes to draw one of them out..."

"Then, just as they were about to return, she made her move, creating a five-against-three situation while also using Instant Kill to eliminate one."

Gaoxin looked at him and said, "Actually, what the Viking Gang said was right. If the two Radiator groups truly allied, the Black Faction would almost certainly win. The White Faction could at best delay, and would eventually lose."

"But the hidden danger lies in inciting defection. If our people are very united and can work together, we can incite their people... disrupt their voting, and possibly delay for a long time using Invitation votes."

"And the alliances between Radiators are very fragile. Once someone defects, it means those around them are from the enemy faction, and killing them earns redemption vouchers."

"This is the eternal threat."

Meimei was a bit confused and asked, "I understand all this, but shouldn't we then try to tell Sophia that we've incited Luis to defect?"

Dongfang Yi smiled, "Even if we told her, would she listen?"

"If we went through all the trouble, using Gladiators, or tossing secret letters, or shouting loudly to pass messages, it would look too much like we're sowing discord, practically screaming 'I can't wait for you to kill each other'."

"Besides, this might make us look too united, with a strategy to win... She'll consider these things."

"In this situation, unless Luis made a rash move himself, Sophia wouldn't rush into action. She might observe for another round or two."

"Because in a situation of overt alliance, we, the White Faction, are the enemy."

Everyone nodded. They had to ensure their game advantage first. As for fighting with the other Radiator group, there was no rush. Anyway, she had more people and held the initiative.

Gaoxin gazed out the window at the chaotic battle unfolding opposite them.

He sighed, "If they were honest with each other and cooperated to deal with us, that would be truly troublesome."

"At that point, the Black Faction could use Luis's White Faction identity to prevent us from inciting a second person, which would be truly unacceptable to us."

"Fortunately, Luis doesn't dare to be open about it, and Sophia doesn't ask. Both sides are in a delicate situation, pretending nothing is happening."

"The more they don't address the problem, the bigger the hidden threat becomes."

"At this point, all it takes is a nudge to make Sophia believe our side is disunited and poses no threat..."

"Then she'll consider dealing with the hidden threats around her first."

"Right? Xing Shiping? Did you tell them the content of our next round's Invitation?"

Hearing this, everyone turned to look at Xing Shiping.

Meimei exclaimed, "Has he defected?"

Xing Shiping's expression changed, "What?"

Gaoxin stared at him, "I'm asking you, did you leak the answers to them?"

"I..." Xing Shiping realized that the moment his expression changed, it was tantamount to a confession.

He immediately said decisively, "Yes! I defected. When I came out of the Voting Room earlier, I was already part of the Black Faction!"

The curly-haired boy and his companions looked at Xing Shiping in surprise, recalling how they had felt something strange back then. Xing Shiping had been serious and unhappy since coming out of the room.

"Brother Xing, you told us not to lie, but you were lying yourself back then?" the square-faced boy was also stunned.

Xing Shiping said sternly, "I wasn't lying. I did vote for the square, but it was only after I came out that the message of my defection suddenly appeared before my eyes."

"I just didn't say it proactively. You didn't ask either."

Meimei shouted, "I was about to ask..."

Gaoxin stopped her, "I know, that's why I didn't let you ask. We, just like them, needed this superficial harmony at the time."

"Harmony with what?" Xing Shiping said somewhat agitatedly, "I only concealed it, but you lied!"

"Talking about letting all the Glass People survive? That's simply not feasible."

"I even asked you repeatedly if you truly wanted all the opposing Glass People to survive, and you said yes. What is that if not lying?"

The curly-haired boy was stunned, "Huh? Brother Xing, didn't we say earlier? We could be cowardly."

"As long as we don't become Gladiators, we won't be bound by the deathmatch rules. We didn't send anyone out just now, and we only lost one drop of blood, with no other problems."

Xing Shiping grabbed him and yelled, "Yes, we can be cowardly, but our health still drops!"

"Any faction whose health reaches zero will be subject to Instant Kill for all its members."

"So we must deplete the opposing faction's health, and the defender must send out Glass People, not Radiators."

"In other words, to win this game, we have to sacrifice the five Glass People on the other side no matter what."

"Although I know there's no other way, sacrificing those NPCs is better than sacrificing us."

"But you're saying you want the opposing Glass People to survive too? That's just ridiculous! Are we supposed to sacrifice ourselves instead of them?"

"Who knows what you're plotting? I can only prioritize protecting myself and my partners!"

Gaoxin calmly said, "The other side can also avoid battle."

"Or, before the White Faction's HP is depleted, all Glass People can become Black. That's also an option."

Xing Shiping and the others were stunned into silence. Upon closer thought, it seemed plausible.

But then he said, "But... but that's too idealistic! How could the other side possibly avoid battle?"

"In the Redemption Game, as long as Radiators and Glass People are on the same field, such a harmonious situation is impossible."

"Are you trying to say they don't want the Glass People to die at our hands, so they plan to kill them themselves? And thus lose HP for nothing?"

"They won't. Losing even one drop of HP means a thousand less for everyone. But killing one person from the opposing faction only gives one player a thousand."

"The opposing Radiators came in groups. How could they agree to that?"

"As for turning everyone Black, it requires too many rounds, and there are too many unpredictable factors. You mentioned before that we can't maintain such coordinated play for that long."

Seeing Xing Shiping's worried yet resolute expression, Gaoxin shook his head slightly.

He stated decisively, "I completely understand how you feel. You want to survive with your partners. As long as all five of you turn Black, you can win alongside them."

"However, in the Redemption Game, Glass People should never expect mercy from Radiators!"

"Because every bit of trust you place in them is like gambling with your life."

"The more you desperately hope they'll conveniently let you live, the more they'll look down on you, the less they'll care about your life."

"Only by respecting yourselves first, by treating yourselves as true players, and by being even more ruthless than them, can you succeed."

"You say the Radiators won't cooperate? Then why don't you ask if I will cooperate?"

"I won't!"

"I want to achieve the 'all Glass People survive' ending. If the Radiators disagree, I'll eliminate the Radiators!"

Xing Shiping and the others were dumbfounded. They finally realized how different Gaoxin's playstyle and mindset were from theirs.

All Glass People naturally felt inferior, never considering defeating the Radiators, only thinking about finding the winner among the Radiators and surviving by their side.

But Gaoxin placed himself on an equal or even higher footing, never caring if the Radiators agreed. If they didn't, they were enemies, even if these enemies were extremely powerful.

Gaoxin patted Xing Shiping's shoulder, "As long as there are no Radiators forcing them, why would those Glass People come out to their deaths?"

"In this game, the ten NPCs on the other side absolutely cannot obtain redemption vouchers. Their biggest and only desire is to survive!"

"Whoever can let them live, they will follow!"

Everyone nodded. Indeed, this was self-evident.

NPCs just needed to survive. As long as they could live, they would do whatever they were told.

If all the Radiators could be successfully eliminated, the situation would become... ten Glass People on the Black side, ten Glass People on the White side.

From then on, the game could end however they wished.

Xing Shiping snapped back to reality and stared at Gaoxin, not expecting him to actually intend to save the ten opposing NPCs.

"You... are you serious? We can barely protect ourselves, and you want to risk our lives like this to save ten people on the other side? To the point of fighting all the opposing Radiators to the death? Wiping them out?"

Gaoxin gazed at him, "You've got the logic backward."

"Precisely because we can barely protect ourselves, we must save the others!"

"In this game, if only our side makes an effort, it's very difficult to defeat the other side. If we can unite all the NPCs on the other side, we can eliminate the Radiators."

"Conversely, only by eliminating the Radiators can we save the opposing NPCs."

"And we can also survive and even receive considerable rewards. These things are mutually reinforcing and yield huge benefits. Why wouldn't we do it?"