B-rank Beast Transformation Card

Xin Jiu regretted not bringing the machete she had spent a fortune on back home.

With that blade in hand, no one foolish enough to mess with her would dare charge at her.

But it was clearly too late to go back for it now.

The M9 bayonet... would just about do.

Short and sharp.

Every stab would hit its mark!!!

The instant Xin Jiu stepped through the museum doors, a system panel appeared before her eyes.

[You have entered the Treasure Plunder Zone.]

"Heh..."

Plunder, huh?

Were they plundering treasure, or taking lives?

She continued inside. The museum was very quiet.

The Treasure Plunder Zone had been open for ten minutes. Quite a few players should have arrived by now, so why was it so quiet?

Had the game altered the space here to accommodate the number of players?

Xin Jiu kept walking.

Sure enough.

The surroundings were completely different from when she had visited three months ago.

She walked for another ten minutes or so.

She saw several people lying on the floor ahead.

When she got closer, she saw five young men who looked no older than their twenties.

She held a finger beneath the nose of the nearest one.

No breath?

The other four were the same.

...They were all dead.

Only players could enter the Treasure Plunder Zone, and only players could have killed them. It seemed the time ahead would not be very safe.

Xin Jiu gathered her focus and continued on.

After walking another few hundred meters.

She heard faint voices. They were probably players, and they seemed to be arguing about something.

"I found it first!"

"Well, I saw it first! Until someone picks it up, it belongs to no one!"

"Keep arguing and you can all die!"

Xin Jiu stopped at a corner and cautiously peeked around it to observe the situation ahead.

It was a side hall.

This side hall had originally displayed a feudal lord's collection, gold, jade, and the like, but now all of it had vanished.

Dozens of people stood in the middle of the hall.

None of them looked particularly happy.

The man who had spoken last wore a tight black T-shirt and athletic shorts. He had an inverted-triangle build, with heavily muscled arms and thighs. He looked... like a bullfrog.

He was probably either a fitness trainer or a bodybuilder.

He swept his gaze over everyone, his voice harsh and grating. "If anyone makes another peep, I don't mind adding a few more corpses here."

"...?"

No one actually dared speak.

These players were so afraid of him. Had those five young men fallen victim to him?

He said "more." Or had he... killed players here?!

The muscular man grunted in satisfaction, picked up the blue-glowing card from the floor, and grinned.

"A [Shield Card] that lasts ten minutes. Good stuff. It's mine!"

It was actually a [Shield Card]!

The game's instances were fraught with danger. If it could prevent all damage for ten minutes, it was a lifesaving card.

A man in a plaid shirt was unhappy. Mustering his courage, he said, "I found that card first. You can't take it. Besides, the game said we each have to rely on our own abilities..."

"Our own abilities?" The muscular man cut him off, his smile vicious. "Then come spar with me first."

He clenched his fists, his knuckles making a teeth-grating series of cracks.

So being big meant he could throw his weight around, huh.

The plaid-shirted man's face flushed red.

"How can you be so uncivilized? Before the game starts, we should be helping each other!"

"Brother, the game has arrived. The world is no different from an apocalypse now. Talking about civility at a time like this? You really are a fucking idiot!" The muscular man laughed raspily.

A timid voice came from the crowd. "But the game hasn't started yet, has it? Why should we listen to you?"

The muscular man's gaze swept over them like a blade.

"Who said that?!"

No one made a sound.

"What's with hiding in the crowd? If you've got the guts, come out and say it to my face!"

There was a moment of silence.

"We die if we enter the game, and we die if we don't. We're dead either way, so why be afraid of him?" That person quietly spoke up again, fanning the flames.

Some players seemed swayed.

"That's right. Why should we be scared of him?"

"There are so many of us. Can't we beat him?"

The crowd began to stir.

The muscular man sneered. Then everyone saw his clothes rip apart with a tearing sound. Coarse gray fur rapidly covered the skin on his arms, while his broad palms gradually turned into hooked claws.

Wolf claws!

It was not just his claws. Black markings also appeared on his face.

His pupils became vertical slits.

Was this... beast transformation?!

Xin Jiu's expression shifted. Had he already found a B-rank Beast Transformation Card in such a short time?!

Although the Shield Card was also B-rank, it only lasted ten minutes. Using up a Beast Transformation Card that lasted thirty minutes just to snatch it was far too wasteful.

But the next second, she understood why the muscular man had done it.

"All of you, go find cards for me right now. Hand over anything you find immediately. If I catch anyone hiding one..." He extended his scarlet tongue and licked his fangs. "I'll crush your heads between my teeth and eat you!"

First, undergo beast transformation, then threaten the players into becoming his card-finding lackeys.

Once the time was up and he had stockpiled enough cards, he would leave the museum and enter the tower to wait for the game to begin.

What a shrewd little scheme.

Now even the plaid-shirted man who had found the Shield Card did not dare make a sound.

He could not have beaten the muscular man before the transformation. After it, he stood even less of a chance.

Only one person did not move.

It was a petite girl wearing a purple Lolita dress and a mask.

"You're disgusting," she said.

The muscular man froze for a moment. "What did you say?"

"I said you're disgusting."

Seemingly not having expected anyone to dare talk back, the muscular man grinned viciously. "Aren't you afraid I'll crush you to death?"

A player tried to persuade the Lolita girl. "There are still over two hours before we enter the tower. Don't argue with him. Once he leaves, we can take our time finding cards."

"Exactly. We don't need to stoop to his level."

The muscular man seemed to relish having everyone fear him and burst into loud laughter.

"If you behave yourself, maybe big brother will be willing to protect you if we end up in the same instance."

The Lolita girl scoffed.

"You, protect me? Take a look at yourself, bullfrog."

Xin Jiu almost laughed out loud.

They were on the same wavelength. She also thought this man was built like a bullfrog.

The muscular man's lecherous smile froze on his face, then he flew into a rage. "You're asking for death!"

He lunged, clawing at the Lolita girl's head. Crushing her skull with those claws would be as easy as squeezing modeling clay.

Someone in the crowd screamed!

Unable to watch, the plaid-shirted man turned his face away.

The Lolita girl did not retreat a single step. Beneath her mask, her crimson lips curved slightly.

"Then let's see which is faster, your claws or my fire!"

Flames bloomed in her palm.

Before the muscular man could use the Shield Card, the flames coiled around his body.