Ita Era

Chapter 96 Negotiation
The Grim Reaper butler wasn't embarrassed or angry. He said, "I got the time wrong. The Grim Reaper Invitation will end at 6 a.m. today. I'll prepare 20,000 yuan for each person and pay it before the auction. You can eat and drink for free in the villa, as long as you leave before 6 p.m. today. After the Grim Reaper Invitation ends, as long as you don't leave the villa, or kill each other, or commit suicide, you will not be harmed."

The four turned to each other and exchanged glances. Ding Shi said, "Add one more rule: the rule for killing someone who tells us the bad news."

Butler: "Okay. But I can only explain the rules of the murder in the 'Bad News' after you agree to change the game."

Ding Shi: "I disagree."

Wang Meng said, "Add more money."

Ding Shi: "I still wouldn't agree even if you offered more money."

Male butler: "Fifty thousand each."

Ding Shi insisted, "I disagree."

Yu Yuan said, "I think it's possible. As long as we know the rules of the murder in the Bad News, we can circumvent the rules."

Ding Shi had witnessed Gui San Niang's abilities, but still objected: "No, you can tell from his fawning attitude that the bad news is not easy to deal with."

The male butler continued, "I can add four more professional books, each corresponding to your profession, which will greatly improve your professional skills."

When the male butler saw Ding about to speak, he quickly added, "You should listen to your friend's opinion first, instead of simply opposing him. Respecting others is a good virtue."

Hearing the butler say this, Ding Shi really couldn't speak for the other three and reject the butler's suggestion. Ding Shi said, "Anyway, I disagree. Do as you please."

Wang Meng said, "The key is that you disagree."

The butler added, "I can send invitation cards to all outsiders in Ham Town. I expect at least 10 people to attend the Grim Reaper's Invitation from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m."

The Grim Reaper was somewhat disheartened by only killing 10 players on the first day, so he orchestrated the "Grim Reaper Invitation" charade. It was a huge success; of the nearly 40 guests, only 4 remained, exceeding the target. However, the Grim Reaper also discovered that these 4 were extremely difficult to kill, especially when Ding Shi and his two companions teamed up; the Corpse Maid simply couldn't stop them.

Of the three, the one he disliked the most was Ding Shi, whose combat power had exceeded the gradual progression of the dungeon.

Why did Yihao only appear in one mini-game? It's because when the Grim Reaper discovered Yihao standing next to Ding Shi, he didn't attack Ding Shi; he just stood there, motionless.

Ding Shi only saw Yi Hao's shoes at the time, and he unilaterally believed that Yi Hao had not seen him. In fact, he could see Yi Hao's shoes, and Yi Hao could also see his shoes.

Death was forced to continue altering the game, creating a mini-game that reversed day and night, the core purpose of which was to relegate Yihao to the background and push the Corpse Maid to the forefront. However, even with her newfound professional skills, the Corpse Maid was still no match for Ding Shi and his group.

Therefore, Death had to make another correction, but since it was within the game, he needed Ding Shi and the others' consent to make corrections.

Death was furious. Ever since he met Ding Shi today, all his plans had been disrupted. He kept fixing the game, constantly changing its content. He killed 90% of the guests, but he couldn't kill him. No wonder there was that annoying aura around him; it was truly irritating. If it weren't for the suppression of the Heavenly Dao, he would have liked to crush him with his own hands.

Seeing that the three people, except for Ding Shi, were beginning to waver and exchanged glances, Death continued to press the issue: "The bad news is that she is a very beautiful woman."

Yu Yuan shrugged: "I'm sorry, I respect Ding Shi's choice."

The butler, Death, immediately changed his expression: "If you don't agree, I will release more murderers into Ham Town and make you my targets."

Death's expression changed again, and he said gently, "If you agree, I will limit the number of accidents you encounter each day to a maximum of three, and all of them must occur during the day. This way, you can get a good rest at night."

Ding Shi couldn't help but speak up: "For a ghost king to be so shameless, I estimate this bad news is extremely powerful."

Everyone nodded in agreement, and Yu Yuan said, "You can go now, we want to chat."

Death said, "Whether you agree or not, bad news awaits you on your path. Sooner or later, you will have to face it. Will you fight against five hours of bad news now, or seven days of bad news in the future?"

The woman in red had also figured it out and said, "I choose seven days." At first, she thought she could take a gamble, but seeing the Grim Reaper's attitude change, constantly increasing the stakes, and even sowing discord, she felt the Grim Reaper's full of malice.

"Further words are unnecessary. Good luck to you."

"Hey." Ding Shi called out to the Grim Reaper butler who was about to teleport.

Death immediately put on a smiling face: "Please speak."

Ding Shi asked, "Are the job books you mentioned in the new game the same as the job books for our patrol officer and butcher professions?"

"Haha." Death flicked his sleeves and left.

Wang Meng cursed, "Damn it, there are traps everywhere." In his perilous struggle against the terrible news, he finally found his professional book. Overjoyed, he opened it, only to find it contained tips for street thugs. The thought made him want to kill himself.

Death departed, and the villa fell silent. The maids, no longer baring their teeth and claws, stared quietly at the four figures on the chandelier, their eyes unblinking, creating a particularly eerie atmosphere.

After five minutes of silence, Yu Yuan said, "I'm finished."

"Huh?" The three were puzzled. Either we're all doomed, or how come you're the only one who's doomed?

Yu Yuan said, "I have a living poison in my body."

After the day-night reversal ends at 5 o'clock, the living poison will turn back into the dead poison and will erupt at 6 o'clock in the morning.

After these words were spoken, none of the three spoke.

Yu Yuan has two choices. The first is to ask Wang Meng and Ding Shi for help after 5 o'clock to forcibly kiss Hongyi. However, Hongyi definitely knows this, and many things may happen during that time.

The second option is to jump off the chandelier at approximately 5 PM, activating the living poison, which will randomly attach itself to one of the affected individuals. This choice will destroy the trust he has built with Ding Shi and Wang Meng. Furthermore, the person possessing the living poison may rush to commit suicide.

After 5 PM, the room becomes a safe zone, but the deadly virus is already inside the body, so it will still erupt at 6 PM. There is only one way to survive: escape into the room and close the door when the deadly virus is no longer inside you.

Seemingly sensing the changed atmosphere, Death returned, this time with a sly and sarcastic tone: "What should we do? Sacrifice ourselves or do the good of others?"

Death: "What do you think he'll choose? Rather than entrusting your life to someone else's choice, seize the opportunity to challenge the bad news. There are ten minutes left. After ten minutes, there won't be any new games."

Death floated down to Yu Yuan and said, "You are a businessman, you should know how to choose."

Yes, Yu Yuan is a businessman. He trusts Ding Shi and Wang Meng, but no one can make him sacrifice himself. However, businessmen also have a characteristic: they weigh risks and benefits. If it were a gamble between his own life and the three lives of Ding Shi and the others, Yu Yuan would choose his own without hesitation. But the current situation is different.

If Yu Yuan commits suicide, the probability of death will be divided equally among the others. There is a high probability that one of Wang Meng and Ding Shi will survive. The person who survives may not turn against Yu Yuan, but they will certainly not be able to return to their former relationship.

Therefore, Yu Yuan only has one choice: to join forces with Wang Meng and Ding Shi to deal with Hong Yi. However, if Yu Yuan doesn't take a suitable stance before 5 PM, Hong Yi definitely won't cooperate. Who lives and who dies is still uncertain, but at least Yu Yuan won't offend Wang Meng and Ding Shi. However, if Hong Yi survives, she will inevitably become Yu Yuan's enemy.

Yu Yuan asked Death, "Will the Deadly Poison erupt at noon?"

Death replied, "No, because the invitation ends at 12 o'clock. The deadly poison will only erupt once more, at 6 a.m.

Wang Meng didn't interrupt, offer any opinions, or refute Death; he simply waited quietly on the side. Ding Shi focused even more intently on the idiot dagger. That guy was still up to no good; otherwise, he would have already found a place to sleep instead of remaining behind the pillar, looking for an opportunity to go upstairs.

After a long silence, Yu Yuan finally spoke: "I am the chieftain of the Fire Seed, and my status is equivalent to that of the captain of a ship sailing on the sea. When the ship is sailing smoothly, the sailors obey my orders, they respect me, and they follow my orders. When the ship capsizes, I have an obligation to stay on the ship and be the last to evacuate. Even if there is one less person in the lifeboat."

Yu Yuan said, "Red Robe, I am not your chieftain. I will unite my tribe members to target you. I hope you can understand."

The woman in red said, "I understand, but I will not surrender easily."

Yu Yuan said, "Thank you for your understanding."

The woman in red said, "You dare not kill me now, because if you do, there will be one less person to spread the deadly poison. I cannot kill you either, for the same reason. Since we have met by chance, why don't we make a bet?"

Yu Yuan asked, "How do we gamble? What are we betting on?"

The woman in red took out a deck of cards—real playing cards, not cards. She rubbed the cards together with her left hand and spread them out on the ring: "Each of us four will draw a card. If I'm not the highest-ranking one, then I accept death."

Ding Shi couldn't help but glance back at Hongyi. If it were him, he would have suggested a bet with Yu Yuan, as that would obviously be unfair since there were three of them. Hongyi skipped the haggling and bet with the three of them.

But after betting on this, you also have to gamble on your integrity. Is there anything special about the red-clothed player's playing cards? Is the red-clothed player a cheater? Will the red-clothed player admit defeat if they lose?

The woman in red shoveled the deck together, her shuffling technique revealing only a player's skill level, not a professional one. She then placed the shuffled cards on a ring and swept her hand across them, creating a crescent shape.

The woman in red said, "You all go first. The highest is K, and the lowest is A. If I tie for first place with someone, I'll bet with that person again."

Ding Shi stretched out his left hand, pulled out a card from the deck and held it in front of him. Wang Meng and Yu Yuan each chose a card, and the woman in red also drew one.

Ding Shi held the crossbow in his right hand, stared at Sha Bi with his eyes, and flipped over the cards with his left hand without even looking at them, saying, "King of Clubs."

Everyone peeked over and saw that it was indeed the King of Clubs. The woman in red was stunned for a moment, then turned over her own card, which was a ten.

In the eerie silence, the woman in red sighed, then reached out and gathered the playing cards together, saying, "I misjudged, I admit it."

Yu Yuan said, "If you don't accept, we can play another round. I'll help Ding Shi get the cards."

The woman in red shook her head: "If the ending is real death, I will definitely take the risk, and even break my promise. But death is just the end of the challenge of the instance. I will not let this stain accompany me for the rest of my life. He was able to cheat because I did not think things through. It was my mistake, and I will not let others pay for my mistake."

The woman in red looked up at the three of them, her beautiful eyes holding a hint of self-deprecating laughter, and said, "I will keep my promise."

Because of this incident, no one was in the mood to chat. Time passed by, and Ding Shi remained vigilant, while Sha Bi did not give up his plan to go upstairs.

During this time, Wang Meng offered to take over the sentry position, but Ding Shi refused. Once the wildcats were in Wang Meng's hands, it would be difficult to get them back.

Wang Meng said, "On the last day of the dungeon, I'll buy this Wildcat Crossbow for two hundred dollars."

Ding Shi asked, "Where are the crossbow bolts?"

Wang Meng replied, "I can make my own crossbows."

Ding hesitated, but Wang Meng raised his fist and said, "For the tribe!"

Ding Shi said, "You must swear that you will never use the Wildcat Crossbow to ambush me for the rest of your life, otherwise you will be my grandson, my grandson forever."

Wang Meng answered without hesitation: "Yes."

Ding Shi said, "Write down my phone number." Ding Shi then gave his home phone number.

As it approached 5 o'clock, Ding Shi and the other two became more wary of Hong Yi. Hong Yi sat on the circular platform, quietly lost in thought, without making any move.

It's 5 o'clock, the day-night reversal game is over.

The announcement explained the upcoming arrangements: everyone must be back in their rooms by 5:10 PM and follow the rules. Breakfast will be a buffet from 6:00 to 8:00 AM, followed by an auction from 9:00 to 11:00 AM. Death has also prepared new mini-games for the two hours between 8:00 and 9:00 AM and from 11:00 to 12:00 PM.

However, after a long day, everyone wasn't very interested in the new game.

Ding Shi slid down the dangling rope to the second floor, let go, and fell. He used 50% of his Force in his feet, and the remaining 50% each in his calves, thighs, and lumbar spine for protection. He landed from a height of 7 meters without a scratch.

Ding Shi pushed over two sofas and brought a mattress from his room.

The woman in red didn't rush to leave. Wang Meng was the second to leave. Facing the weak Yu Yuan, the woman in red didn't make a move either. After Yu Yuan landed safely, the woman in red was the last to leave the crystal ring.

The four walked to the fork in the road on the second floor. The woman in red said, "Let's go here." She pointed.

"Sorry." Yu Yuan quickly kissed the back of the red-clothed man's finger, successfully transferring the poison.

The woman in red wiped the back of her fingers on her clothes with obvious disgust.

Yu Yuan didn't mind and shook hands with the woman in red, saying, "Thank you."

The woman in red smiled, her expression tinged with a hint of helplessness.

Wang Meng shook hands with the woman in red: "It's a pleasure to meet you."

The woman in red responded, "Me too."

Ding looked at everyone, and seeing that everyone was looking at him, he could only go up and shake hands.

"I haven't thought of any lines yet, a handshake will do." The woman in red nodded to everyone and headed towards rooms 234.

Ding Shi said, "Hello."

The woman in red turned around, puzzled, "Is something the matter?"

Ding Shi tossed the substitute doll over: "Good luck."

The woman in red caught the substitute doll and, after reading the description, said happily, "Thank you."

Ding Shi waved his hand to indicate that he didn't care, and walked to the right with Yu Yuan and Wang Meng.

The substitute doll can only withstand one attack, but Dead Poison happens to be that one attack. The next Dead Poison attack will occur at 12 o'clock, and Death has clearly stated that the invitation ends at 12 o'clock, and Dead Poison will not take the guest's life.

Ding Shi didn't consider himself a good person, but he would help those who matched his words and actions if he could. Besides, it was just a substitute doll, nothing special, and it even took up a prop slot.

(End of this chapter)