Chapter 19
Sent into the game sandbox, Shen Yuzhe quickly noticed the difference in today’s event because it was the first time he saw female mini people in Zoe’s club.
The released female mini people huddled together in fear. There were about eight or nine of them, each with their unique features. However, they seemed to be in a constant state of terror, looking mentally distressed.
Apart from them, a newcomer girl with a doll-like face was also brought in. She started crying, screaming and cowering in the box. However, she was soon taken away by a mechanical claw, and no one knew what happened.
Following them were Steven’s two mini people. The young man with ash-brown hair—Shen Yuzhe remembered him as Little Wolf—was grabbed by a muscular man who was whistling nearby as soon as he was taken out by the mechanical claw. He looked like he had an excess of energy that needed an outlet.
The red-haired… Shen Yuzhe vaguely remembered he was called “Foxfire,” but it was hard to discern whether that figure was male or female. This individual had delicate features, a slender and tall figure, neat and tidy short hair—everything about them was unlike the female types such as Mina and Lily… For now, let’s just consider them a boy.
He was unaffected by Little Wolf’s behavior, even somewhat disdainful, keeping his distance and standing on the sidelines.
At the same time, Marle and the others had their eyes on Shen Yuzhe. Many familiar faces were ogling at Shen Yuzhe’s inflated clothes, clearly remembering his promise from the previous time.
Shen Yuzhe didn’t want his “generosity” to turn into unnecessary “tribute.”
He calmly told Mina and the others, “Let’s not bring out the food we have on us for now. Let’s listen to what this activity is about first. Maybe we might need it ourselves.”
The group nodded in understanding.
Strangely enough, even though Shen Yuzhe was the youngest among them and looked fragile, he gradually revealed a calmness that was quite different from his age, gaining their trust almost imperceptibly after the initial adjustment period.
Johnny whispered, “What do you think is going on? Why are there so many people today?”
Just as the question left his mouth, Zoe’s voice echoed overhead, answering everyone’s confusion, “Ladies and gentlemen, today we will have a new game.”
As it turned out, this was the club’s semi-annual all-member special activity where all the mini people inside the venue would participate.
The new game was called the “Card Snatching Game,” and the rules were quite simple. All the entering mini people would draw a card at the beginning. Among these cards, there was one gold card, two advanced cards, ten intermediate cards, and the rest were regular cards.
Next, they would engage in a melee inside the venue for three hours, and the rewards and punishments would be determined based on the cards they held after the game ended.
If the mini people were Zoe’s, gaining the gold card would give them the same treatment as if they had won six consecutive battles in the combat competition—ample food rewards, the privilege to choose a female to live in the tower, and a waiver from the next six matches.
For advanced cards, they also received generous food rewards, but their residence level was lower than that of the tower, and there was no ceasefire period.
Intermediate card holders would receive regular food for the following week, and those with regular cards would only get compressed food meant to alleviate hunger.
However, regular cards weren’t the lowest status. The game had an additional card collecting rule: collecting three regular cards could be exchanged for one intermediate card, and collecting five intermediate cards could be exchanged for one advanced card.
The latter exchange was more difficult, but the former was relatively easy.
The total number of cards matched the number of participants. This meant that as soon as someone wanted to collect cards, someone else would inevitably be losing their regular cards. Moreover, “cardless” participants would have no food for the next week.
External participants were naturally not bound by these conditions. However, Zoe would set rewards based on the card’s level, allowing the mini people to earn significant sums for their owners by snatching cards.
Apart from regular cards having no reward, the remaining three types of cards could be exchanged for different degrees of rewards and honors.
As for the final “cardless” outsider, they would face a severe punishment—being left within Zoe’s sandbox.
This new game rule shocked Shen Yuzhe and the others. If they had no cards in their hands when the game ended, would they really be abandoned by Evan to this extent?
Actually, before entering the event room, Zoe had already informed Evan and the others about the game rules, to prevent some “VIP” level members from feeling that the risk was too great and regretting their decision at the last minute.
Such an incident had occurred before. One senior member brought their female mini person to the game, and as soon as they entered the venue, several males swarmed and tore off her clothes. The real-time footage was projected onto the holographic screen, causing the owner to panic, cry, and regret bringing their mini person, creating discontent among the spectators.
Having learned from this experience, Zoe had to be cautious. After explaining the rules clearly, all voluntarily participating members would have to sign a consent form beforehand. Once the game started, regrets wouldn’t be accepted.
Before the event began, Evan even asked Zoe carefully, “So, you mean if my mini people have no cards after the game ends, I can’t take them back?”
Zoe nodded, “That’s correct. But the ownership of the mini people hasn’t changed. You can think of it as them being temporarily cared for in my club. The next time there’s a similar game, you still have a chance to win them back.”
Evan hesitated a bit, “Isn’t it unfair for females to participate alongside males in the game? Females would be at a disadvantage, wouldn’t they?”
Zoe teased with a raised eyebrow, “You’re overthinking it. The females are quite capable. You’ll see in a bit… Besides, you have three warriors. Their relationships seem quite good, and you have more than enough to protect two females, right?”
By then, Steven had already confidently signed his name on the consent form. He had participated in similar events before and had great confidence in the two mini people he brought, especially Little Wolf, his ace warrior.
In reality, facing this kind of melee, many “greenhouse mini people” brought by the high-level members weren’t a match for the mini people accustomed to combat fights in the field. The chances of being left behind were high. Through this method, Zoe had won quite a few mini people, and they still remained in her club.
However, Evan wasn’t clear about the situation. Seeing Steven joining and even winning two rounds, if he hesitated further, he’d seem rather indecisive.
And Zoe continued to coax from the sidelines, mentioning that they would receive a high activity fee based on the number of external participants. Evan had brought five, and if all five participated, it would be a significant income. This condition momentarily clouded Evan’s judgment, leading him to sign his name on the consent form.
The other female partner hesitated for a long time, then after consideration, she decided to watch the game rather than participate.
As a result, the doll-faced girl was grabbed by the mechanical claw and returned to her.
After being gawked at by the crowd inside the venue, the girl cried while clinging to the edge of the box, whimpering and acting coquettish when she saw her owner. Even through the glass, one could sense her fright.
A guest sitting nearby immediately showed a heartbroken expression and asked, “Oh, poor little thing, what’s her name?”
“Her name is Bessie,” the woman answered indifferently, her tone sounding rather aloof.
The person asked again, “Has she reached sexual maturity? It’s time for her to mate, right?”
She nodded, “Yes, I brought her here today to see if there are any suitable males for her. But after hearing Zoe’s introduction just now, I’ve decided to observe for a while.”
The person supported her decision not to participate in the game, “Such a cute little sweetheart is indeed not suitable for the game. The males in Zoe’s place are quite wild!”
The woman wasn’t here for the first time, so she was well aware of how the males would behave. However, having been constrained by various female morals since she was young, she was oddly drawn to these primitive and savage mating performances happening before her eyes.
She glanced at the mini people in the box, gently caressing the glass with fingers adorned with gemstone rings. She seemed somewhat uncertain if she was being too soft-hearted this time.
As the new game was announced, the venue was already buzzing with excitement.
There were those who were fearful and scared, but there were also those who were excited and surprised…
Because after nearly ten rounds of the food-snatching competition, some had never drawn a competitive card, while others had drawn cards but never won a match. Having eaten compressed food for over two months, many were on the brink of exhaustion.
—For a mouthful of regular food, they were willing to risk their lives!
And in this single event, ten intermediate cards, two advanced cards, and one gold card were drawn, and there was the option to collect cards. This indicated that at least thirteen people in the audience would be able to enjoy regular food after the event. Compared to the past, where only the winning five-member teams could enjoy it, the number had greatly increased.
What’s more, Zoe even allowed the females to participate in the event. Females didn’t have much combat strength, and the cards in their hands were practically extra gifts for the males—those who wanted to keep their cards would have to pay a price.
Moreover, Zoe had just mentioned that apart from not being allowed to kill, there were no other restrictions on the card-snatching game.
…Haha, they knew exactly what Zoe wanted to see. This event was an immense feast for the males in the venue!
There were already lecherous males making provocative gestures towards females across the venue, frightening Lily and Mina to the core.
But the cameras were ready, the card-drawing boxes were brought into the venue, and they had nowhere to escape.
“We five should stay together, don’t split up,” Shen Yuzhe said with a pale face.
“Damn it, damn it!” Johnny continued to curse non-stop, his arm muscles bulging as he clenched his fists.
Some drew regular cards, while others luckily drew intermediate cards. However, those who had drawn cards didn’t disperse; instead, they gathered together and stared intently at those who hadn’t drawn cards yet, trying to see who would get the gold card or the advanced cards. If the person who drew these cards wasn’t strong enough, they would undoubtedly be the first targets of competition…
Unfortunately, the first person to draw an advanced card was actually Ace!
—This guy’s luck is still so good.
Thinking about how difficult Ace was to deal with, many people gave up competing for this card.
Those further back became cautious and deliberately shielded their cards when drawing, not letting anyone see.
Shen Yuzhe saw Kai also step forward. He casually picked a card and wasn’t concerned about anyone seeing it.
It was a regular card.
Everyone couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief. If Kai had drawn the gold card, they could basically give up any thoughts of competing for it.
Next were Little Wolf and Foxfire. After drawing his card, Little Wolf loudly asked, “What kind of card is this? Intermediate? Advanced? Can it be exchanged for money?”
Foxfire impatiently kicked him, “Get lost, idiot. Can’t you read?”
Their conversation amused those around them, and a person who had drawn an intermediate card even showed off to Little Wolf, “Yours is regular, but mine is an intermediate card!”
Who would have thought that the person named Little Wolf would suddenly light up? Without any hesitation, he pounced forward, acting crazy, “Give it to me!”
The scene immediately turned chaotic. How could any newbies dare to act so recklessly? Several people rushed up, intending to teach him a lesson.
Taking advantage of the chaos, Shen Yuzhe approached and reached into the box, stealthily taking a card and sneaking a glance at it, feeling his heart “thump.”
Just as he was about to discreetly slip the card into his pocket, he heard Johnny curse under his breath from behind, “Damn, what kind of luck do you have!?”
This sentence immediately drew sinister glares from the crowd—what kind of luck? Could it be that this kid drew the gold card?
