Tata's Favorite Map

Xin Jiu's gaze shifted slightly. A fire skill?

Was this skill temporary... or permanent?!

Flames engulfed the fitness buff. His muscular body writhed wildly as piercing screams poured from his mouth.

In just a few seconds.

A burly man who stood over two meters tall after beastification had been burned to ashes before everyone's eyes.

Luolita picked up the Shield Card that had fallen to the floor.

She casually tucked it into her pocket.

"This card is mine. Any objections?"

Having seen how powerful her fire skill was, who would dare object?

They could only shake their heads.

They were terrified that if they shook their heads too slowly, they would be the next to burn to death.

The game hadn't officially begun, yet players were already killing one another over resources.

Had the game deliberately arranged this treasure hunt because the Nine Provinces had the most players, intending to reduce their numbers this way?

What about the other countries?

Would it be the same there?

As time passed, the players caught on.

Why tire themselves out hunting for cards when they could simply take them?

Ten-odd minutes later.

Xin Jiu found a wooden puppet.

The puppet had no head, with a shield in its left hand and an axe in its right.

[Congratulations to player Xin Jiu for obtaining the item: Xingtian's Clone.]

[Skill description: summons a wisp of the war god Xingtian's battle will upon use. Duration: five minutes. A-rank.]

So there were items besides skill cards.

And this item was actually Xingtian, one of the ancient war gods.

Xin Jiu grinned so hard her face nearly split!

While no one was looking, she quickly stuffed the puppet into her backpack.

Players would fight until their heads bled over a single D-rank skill card. If they knew she had an A-rank item, wouldn't they pounce on her and tear into her like ravenous wolves scenting raw meat?

She continued onward, hoping to see if she could find the treasure map.

During the open beta, Xin Jiu hadn't obtained this treasure map marking the locations of treasures on the twentieth floor.

She figured that since the game had released resources to the players early, perhaps the treasure map would spawn here too.

If she could get the map and find the treasures, clearing the final ten floors wouldn't be so difficult.

For the next while.

Whenever Xin Jiu encountered players, she would first put on a harmless look and say, "Excuse me, do you have any spare cards you could give me? D-rank is enough. Without a card, I'll definitely die in the tower. Thank you..."

Begging was annoying.

But it was also very effective.

The moment players heard this, they would shoo her away like a fly.

But if she encountered anyone who recognized her, Xin Jiu would take to her heels.

There was no shame in protecting herself.

Whether her luck was too poor or the game was deliberately targeting her for having cleared it, she couldn't find a single skill card apart from the Xingtian puppet.

[Time remaining until the game officially begins: 00:48:57]

Another system window popped up.

The treasure map was important, but if she got it only to fail to enter the tower in the end, wouldn't she die all the same?

So Xin Jiu decided to give up.

As she was leaving, she spotted a plump chipmunk behind a sculpture.

With its back to her, the chipmunk held a cookie and crunched away, its long, fluffy tail twitching along.

"...?"

Why was there a chipmunk in the museum?!

Something wasn't right.

The chipmunk was very slow to react. Only after Xin Jiu had caught it in her hands did it start squirming and squeaking.

[Congratulations to player Xin Jiu for finding the "Treasure-Hunting Chipmunk."]

[Instructions: describe an item's features, and it will lead you there. The chipmunk will disappear once the item is found.]

[Tip: don't underestimate it. It actually runs very fast!]

The chipmunk stared blankly at her with eyes the size of mung beans.

Xin Jiu was delighted. "I'm looking for a treasure map right now. Can you take me to it?"

The chipmunk tilted its head, seemingly not understanding.

"It's made of animal hide, about this big." Xin Jiu gestured. "There are several treasure-chest-shaped markers on it."

"Squeak, squeak, squeak!"

It understood!

Xin Jiu let go, and the moment the chipmunk landed, it shot forward with a whoosh.

Its four short legs moved so fast they blurred.

It was so fast!

Xin Jiu took off after it.

After several turns, over twenty players suddenly appeared ahead, men and women who were also preparing to leave the museum.

The chipmunk darted past their feet.

"What was that?"

"A squirrel? Why is there a squirrel here?!"

The chipmunk vanished from sight in an instant, as did Xin Jiu behind it.

"Did a player just run past too?"

"She was chasing the squirrel."

"Chasing the squirrel?" The man leading them caught on and immediately said, "That squirrel must be something good. Hurry, follow them!"

Xin Jiu followed the chipmunk into a very small exhibition hall.

It clawed hard at a floor tile a few times, then disappeared.

The treasure map was here!

Xin Jiu drew her military knife and pried hard at the gap between the tiles. Since the game had put the treasure map here, it wouldn't make it impossible for players to retrieve, so she pried the tile up easily.

She took out the animal-hide treasure map and unfolded it.

No wonder she hadn't found the treasure chests on the twentieth floor. They had all been in the restricted zones.

[Congratulations to player Xin Jiu for finding the hidden item: "Tata's Favorite Map." You have earned 500 points.]

[Due to the treasure map's high value, you may choose whether to send a server-wide announcement.]

The options [Yes] and [No] appeared on the panel.

Xin Jiu selected [No] without hesitation.

The group of players arrived. Seeing no chipmunk, the man at the front glared fiercely. "What did you find?"

"Nothing at all." Xin Jiu's face was full of disappointment.

The man narrowed his eyes.

"Quit pretending. That squirrel was leading you to a skill card, wasn't it? Hand it over, and we can let you go."

"I really didn't."

Unfortunately, someone in the crowd recognized Xin Jiu and shouted, "Don't believe her! She's an expert at Codename: Divine Descent. I've watched her streams!"

The players exchanged meaningful glances.

Some pulled out steel pipes, others switchblades.

"Hand it over!"

Xin Jiu placed her hand on her knife's hilt. There were over twenty players. She would definitely get hurt in a fight, and she couldn't enter the tower injured.

Then I'll have to... ugh, what a waste!

The players watched her take a wooden puppet out of her bag.

"A puppet?"

"Hahaha, what's she taking out a puppet for?"

"She must be scared stupid. Little girl, a puppet can't protect you!"

Xin Jiu curled her lips. "Then watch closely."

The next second, the players' eyes widened in horror as a headless body several meters tall appeared out of thin air before them!

"What is that thing?!"

"Xingtian! It's Xingtian!"

"Run!"

The players fled in panic, but it was already too late. The war god was enraged and would not stop until death!

Amid the chaos, Xin Jiu skirted around them and rushed out.

The players' piercing screams rang out behind her.

Xin Jiu rushed to the museum entrance.

Quite a few players also came charging out from every direction.

For a moment, the entrance was packed solid. Less than half an hour remained. They had to get into the tower as soon as possible!

"Where's my ride?! Who stole it?!"

"Stop! That's my car!"

"What the hell! Where's my shared bike?!"

"Give me a lift, please!"

Time was limited. Whenever players found a vehicle, they grabbed it first, regardless of whether they knew how to use it.

Xin Jiu had taken the key with her before entering the museum, so her motorcycle was still safely where she had left it.

Before the other players realized she was its owner, she had already swung onto the motorcycle, twisted the throttle, and roared away.

This infuriated the players who had been eyeing her motorcycle for ages.

The motorcycle sped down the street.

Faster!

Even faster!!