He Fired Six Shots in a Row

Less than twenty seconds remained.

The remaining difficult choice was left to Ji Xun and the other person in the final Iron Cage.

Seeing this, Ji Xun seemed to think of something, and a hint of amusement appeared on his face.

But Ning across from him was nowhere near as calm. Her eyes trembled constantly, clearly reflecting the intense turmoil in her heart.

The facts were right before them: only by killing their companion could they leave alive.

In the instant she hesitated, a hand had already reached for the revolver.

Ning was not surprised. She saw it, but did not stop him. Instead, the knot in her heart seemed to loosen as she thought, So he made his choice?

If Ning had wanted to seize the revolver, she definitely could have, even if Ji Xun moved first.

But she did not.

Since that guy had made his decision, she no longer needed to struggle with hers.

Whether the first chamber held a bullet or not, she had decided that the instant he pulled the trigger, she would use a special item to leave this Alternate Dimension.

Though that might mean missing out on the Fallen Witch's pituitary gland forever.

Still, she had never intended to kill someone who bore her no grudge simply for her own benefit.

As for that Epic Source Card—

It might have been a fatal temptation to others, but it held no such appeal for her.

Besides, the guy across from her had saved her.

When they encountered that Curse Gambler earlier, the monster had originally targeted her, but he had stepped forward to block it.

Though she had ways to escape, she still owed him that favor.

Now that he had chosen to take the gun first, he naturally intended to kill her.

That meant neither of them owed the other anything anymore.

Sure enough, when faced with a choice between life and death, even the most rational person would choose self-preservation.

Having thought it through, Ning no longer hesitated.

Thinking back on everything they had gone through, she could only sigh. What a pity.

No one else knew that in those few seconds alone, Ning had already undergone a long and complicated inner struggle.

Yet this Alternate Dimension, full of unexpected twists at every turn, produced another utterly unforeseen development.

After taking the gun, Ji Xun not only did not hurry to fire, but even teased her maliciously. "You hesitated."

"..."

Ning did not respond. At that moment, she looked at Ji Xun as though he were a stranger who had done all he could.

But the longer she looked, the more something felt wrong.

That guy's expression was as composed as ever, yet she could not put her finger on what was off about it.

There was none of the urgency and desperation that came with approaching death, only the same calmness he had shown from beginning to end.

Thinking back, it seemed she had never once seen fear in this guy's eyes along the way.

Was he certain she would not fight him for the gun?

The metallic scraping overhead was piercing as the iron spikes dropped another large section.

She still could not help reminding him, "If you don't fire now, and the bullet happens to be in one of the later chambers, then even if you want to survive, it'll be too late."

Switching turns also took time.

Yet Ji Xun remained unhurried and asked with a smile, "Aren't you afraid the first chamber has a bullet?"

There was still plenty of time.

No rush.

By now, Ji Xun had already determined that his teammate definitely possessed some special means of leaving the Alternate Dimension. So he pretended not to know and teased her a little.

When they encountered the Dog-Headed Monster earlier, he had merely suspected it. Now, he was one hundred percent certain.

But the price must have been steep.

Otherwise, she would not have struggled so much.

She would rather bear the cost herself than bring herself to pull the trigger.

Tsk, tsk.

Ji Xun looked at his teammate and smiled from the bottom of his heart.

For a fleeting instant, his smile seemed to overlap with the smile on the Mechanical Clown's face.

This trial tested human nature.

Just like the earlier mirror house, it exposed humanity's dark and twisted side beneath the sunlight.

There was human darkness, but there was also the radiance of humanity.

How rare.

The iron spikes were already just a foot above their heads. Less than ten seconds remained.

The pressure of death hanging overhead felt like a massive stone crushing their chests, making even breathing difficult.

Fourth Young Master Cao watched with his brows tightly furrowed.

Now that the exit had appeared, his life was no longer in danger.

He had originally wanted to observe a little longer, to see whether there was another key to breaking the situation.

Yet to his surprise, the two people across from him had started chatting back and forth?

Were they planning to die together as star-crossed lovers?

His instincts told him that anyone who could reach this point and remain so calm had to possess some extraordinary ability.

Or perhaps they had discovered some crucial clue.

But time waited for no one.

The situation no longer allowed him to linger.

If he stayed any longer, he might lose his life as well.

After waiting several more breaths and still seeing neither of them fire, Fourth Young Master Cao's gaze turned cold. Unable to endure the endless pressure of death hanging over him any longer, he hesitated for a moment before walking toward the distorted light gate. His figure vanished instantly.

It was not only Fourth Young Master Cao who had run out of patience. The look in Ning's eyes had shifted from indifference to confusion and anxiety.

She did not want her concession to have been wasted for nothing.

Had this guy gone mad again?

10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5.

Three seconds left!

Then Ji Xun suddenly moved.

But no one knew that even at such a dangerous moment, Ji Xun had still been calmly counting down the time in his heart.

Only after watching the troublesome third party leave did he wipe the smile from his face and raise the gun in an instant.

Yet to everyone's utter surprise, he did not aim it at the girl across from him. Instead, he pressed it beneath his own chin.

The sight stunned Ning!

She had thought he could no longer resist firing and had been ready to leave immediately, but he had actually pressed the barrel against his own chin?

Before she could figure out why, before the shock in her eyes had even fully spread across her face, she suddenly heard five crisp clicks in rapid succession: "Click," "click," "click," "click," "click."

Ji Xun fired five times in a row!

Five empty shots!

"How is that possible?!"

Ning's first thought was that his luck was incredible—that there had been no bullet in any of the five chambers.

But then her thoughts instinctively shifted. Wait... that's not right!

The rules said each person could only fire once. How had this guy fired five times in a row?

The succession of sudden changes came too fast, leaving Ning feeling as though her thoughts had turned into a tangled mess.

But before she could think further, the guy across from her pulled the trigger for a sixth time!

This shot was still aimed at himself!

Had he gone insane?!

Was this guy killing himself?

No wonder he had not been worried before. If he fired six shots at himself in a row, it really would only take a few seconds!

But why?!

For the first time since entering this place, Ning displayed an expression of utter shock.

It was as though a heavy hammer had struck her brain, bringing her thoughts to a halt. She stared stiffly at the scene before her.

Bang!

That familiar explosive sound she had heard twice before.

Flames burst from the muzzle.

The only bullet fired!

At that moment, time seemed to slow a hundredfold. In Ning's eyes, a burst of dazzling color exploded.

There was no scene of brains splattering. Instead, the final bullet burst into a cloud of colorful powder against Ji Xun's face, painting it into a comical clown-like visage.

For that instant, the player who had mocked the rules grinned wide, as though savoring some ultimate spiritual pleasure.

He had won the gamble again.

Ning froze for a moment before realizing something. "A Paintball?"

Then she understood as well. The guy before her had seen through a rule of the game that she had failed to notice.

They had cleared the trial!