Players, Please Board the Train

Chapter 499: Sinking into Illusion

Under normal circumstances, that shot would have been enough to blow off Jiang Feng's leg, but he clearly had other defensive items. The energy bullet only lodged itself in his leg bone like an ordinary bullet, failing to even penetrate it.

However, this still made Jiang Feng suffer. His face darkened as he retracted his characteristic and waved his hand, hurling every usable object around him at Xu Huo in an attempt to create distance between them.

After using the second dose of the potion, Xu Huo's physical stamina and speed had greatly increased. Dodging these not-so-fast objects wasn't difficult. He used the piano wire to secure one end of "Hurt Others, Not Yourself" to the shelter and, holding the other end, circled around to bind Jiang Feng.

The rope, transformed into a fine blade, smoothly sliced through the incoming debris and then clashed directly with the invisible barrier around Jiang Feng. Only then did Xu Huo see the barrier's full form: merely a thin, rectangular shield about one square meter in size. Under the cutting force of the metal blade, it lasted only ten seconds before vanishing.

Although Jiang Feng had moved two squares during the fight, he only went from "2" to "4" and hadn't left the grid area. Therefore, he was inevitably ensnared along with the red wristband player.

However, the protective suits they wore also had defensive capabilities. The metal blade failed to cut through the clothing.

After being tricked, the black wristband player appeared furious and kept manipulating objects to attack Xu Huo. But he seemed to lack long-range attack items. After Xu Huo dodged to the other side of the shelter, he also seemed at a loss.

In contrast, the red wristband player threw out something like a rubber ball. It bounced twice, and the protruding bumps on its surface, under pressure, sprayed out greenish-yellow corrosive liquid.

The duration of "Absolute Safety Distance" hadn't expired yet, so Xu Huo didn't dodge at all. He raised the Note Launcher and aimed it at the two men.

These two had good eyesight. Even from a distance, they could clearly see the things wriggling between his fingers. Jiang Feng immediately used "Raindrop Pierces Stone" to create a protective band around them. The red wristband player was close to him and also under the protection of the band, but he still pulled out a metal carved door and placed it in front of himself."Pop! Pop! Pop!" The things launched by the item crackled under the rain of droplets. However, they weren't killed by the raindrops. Some were cut in half but could still writhe and jump after landing. Several of them attached themselves to Jiang Feng's exposed lower legs.

"Even if a leech is cut in half, it can survive. These mutated leeches should have even stronger vitality," Xu Huo said.

But it wasn't just strong. Two of them immediately burrowed into the flesh of Jiang Feng's legs!

Jiang Feng, however, merely glanced at them, raised his military knife, and made two slashes in the air. The leeches, along with skin and flesh, were sliced out. He then used controlled objects to sweep away the leeches on the ground. Spreading his hands, the circular rain curtain expanded to cover the entire area. "Rain keeps the guest!"

Although Xu Huo opened his umbrella immediately, he still got wet. The rain didn't have tremendous killing power, but the moment his clothes got wet, they became extraordinarily heavy, as if made of iron. His movements consequently became sluggish.

At precisely this moment, Jiang Feng lifted one foot out of the grid!

The duration of an item's effect on a player depends on the player's strength. Seeing this, Xu Huo knew the effect of "Counting Squares" on Jiang Feng was about to end. He pinned the kite string to the leg that was lifted, put on the protective suit, slung the "Umbrella of Justice" over his arm, activated "Mobile Metal," and while throwing down the "Fair Wallet," he took out the Constraining Star Sphere.

Early on, when setting up this place, Xu Huo had sprinkled hallucinogen everywhere. To avoid alerting the players, he didn't use those small items that create auditory and visual disturbances. On the other hand, it was also because these items were unlikely to be effective. However, if Jiang Feng could be drawn into his Mental World, these small items could serve as some cover, guarding against players who might suddenly arrive here.

Using the shelter for cover, he threw out the focused flashlight and the Strobe Dance Ball. After making these preparations, Xu Huo focused his main attention on the Mental World.

This time, he didn't immediately reveal the spiral staircase upon entering. Instead, he created countless doors before the two men.

Facing high-level players, opening one's own Mental World carries certain risks. If the opponent's mental power is strong enough to resist the influence, they could potentially turn the tables, forcefully break free, or even counterattack the Mental World, causing harm to the person who created it.

Moreover, the range of Xu Huo's Mental World expansion wasn't large; it achieved this effect by relying on items. Therefore, he needed to try to keep the people controlled within this range.

Because even if the trapped players didn't understand the intricacies of mental evolution, they might still rely on instinct to forcibly break free from the range of Mental Control. So, he needed to make these two quickly believe the events happening around them were real. That's why he placed so many doors. Each time they opened a door, the influence on them would deepen.

The two indeed fell for it. Upon seeing the doors, they didn't think much and went to open them.

The red wristband player acted on intuition, while Jiang Feng believed he was trapped in a container item.

A container item can hold living people. Once a player enters, they become part of the item, able to detach from the game and live inside the item.

But this kind of living cannot last too long. After a while, the player will die inside the item.

It's difficult to escape after being trapped in a container item, but it's not absolutely impossible.

"Every container item has an entrance. If it can put people in, it can let people out. So, as long as we find the entrance, we can escape," Jiang Feng said to the red wristband player.

The red wristband player looked at the many doors of various sizes and distances before them and said, "With so many doors, which one is the exit? Also, my items are gone."

"Once trapped in a container item, you revert to an ordinary person. Is it strange that items can't be used?" Jiang Feng scanned the surrounding doors, trying to find a pattern in them.

The appearance of these doors could be created by Xu Huo as he wished. However, to lure Jiang Feng deeper, he deliberately added some variations to the doors, categorizing them by style, pattern, and size. After they opened a few doors, he created two silver-gray doors.

"Choose one?" The red wristband player looked at Jiang Feng. "Which one do you pick?"

Jiang Feng couldn't see the difference between the two doors. Frowning in thought for a moment, he said, "We each take one."

After speaking, he proactively walked towards the door on the right.

Seeing this, the red wristband player rushed forward, charging ahead into the door on the right.

Watching his figure disappear into the darkness behind the door, Jiang Feng cursed "idiot" and went to open the other door.

The world behind the door was indeed different. It had turned into a pure white space, and before him stood a lengthy spiral staircase. Where it led was unknown, but looking up, at the very end, there was a very small dark portal emitting a faint light.

Jiang Feng's expression relaxed slightly, and he immediately stepped onto the staircase.