Who gave you permission to travel through time with Earth?

Chapter 57 Death Under the Iron Shield?

The thought of this possibility immediately made everyone's breathing quicken, not from excitement or annoyance, but simply from the fear that surged up in their hearts.

The strength of the Iron Shield is beyond doubt. The weaver's methods are the most unpredictable and the boxer's body is the toughest. The Iron Shield's attack is the strongest. Even the guild leader has to give way to its firepower.

Moreover, he had the most followers, a total of ten. If even if these people were used as stepping stones to exhaust the iron shield and they still couldn't find the exit, then how dangerous must this exhibition hall be?

Is it possible that we'll meet again next?

"..."

Another ten minutes of anxiety ensued. Jiang Yu decided not to wait any longer. They still had at least one more hurdle to overcome, and the president's side could collapse at any moment. They didn't have much time to waste.

If things really develop as Fang Jin guessed, Xu Hao could still escape after his defeat, but they would be imprisoned in the scavengers' stronghold, which would be a truly hopeless situation.

"Gentlemen... let's put aside the iron shield for now. The team only has fourteen people left, and we also have no idea how much more difficult the second-floor mechanism room will be compared to the first floor."

"Therefore, I propose that all fourteen of us attempt to enter the same room, pooling our collective strength to overcome the difficulties and increase our chances of survival!"

She had already prepared this suggestion, since no one could confirm whether there were any empty rooms on the second floor. By pooling everyone's strength to conquer one of the rooms, the probability of survival would actually be higher.

Of course, this also carries the risk of total annihilation, but the probability of survival is much higher than that of individual attempts. Most people did not hesitate and immediately raised their hands to agree with Jiang Yu's suggestion.

"..."

Fang Jin did not object, nor did she have the luxury of objecting, because Guo Shi's voice on the other side of Nian Si gradually became more urgent. They had just gone through the first fifteen minutes, moving one square diagonally towards the center.

But they didn't encounter an ambush set up by the scavengers; they didn't even see a single bullet or detonator. Scattered on the ground were large amounts of limbs and flesh, with reddish-white marrow floating on the water's surface.

They swept away the top layer of white sand, revealing countless dead human skins embedded in the sand, their faces filled with the despair and pain of dying. And these people... Guo Shi and the others all knew them.

These were the eleven people who entered the final exhibition hall.

"...Is the iron shield inside too?"

"Yes, even though it's completely unrecognizable, we've found the modified iron claws and the eyeball. He probably wouldn't have given up those two items even in death."

"How did they die? Were the wounds large? Was it the work of a player or the instance itself?"

"...It's hard to tell. Are you asking whether they were transferred here after dying in the instance, or whether they were hacked to death by scavengers after being transferred, right?"

"If it's the former, it can be seen as a provocation to lure the enemy in, but if it's the latter, it's troublesome. Chen Yuanqing can take advantage of the dispersed manpower to teleport the enemies in the museum over and kill them one by one."

"It's hard to answer. The corpse is so badly disfigured that it's practically unrecognizable. It's said that the scavenger's swordsman can chop a person into minced meat in an instant. The destructive power of the dungeon is probably no less than that."

"I previously guessed that teleportation required certain conditions. If it could be exchanged at will, the ability of that chess piece would be quite outrageous. How could the Bronze Hall not notice its energy level reaction?"

"...We are not the equipment users; the information we can see is only the most superficial level."

Guo Shi sighed, turning the iron mask that was sunk into the sand over. The more he looked at it, the more disgusted he became. He casually stomped on the ground twice.

"I'm quite relaxed here. I don't know how many times we'll catch Chen Yuanqing and his group after fifteen minutes. I'm becoming more and more pessimistic about this campaign."

"We've been led by the nose the whole time. Have Xu Hao and the Liquor Club been too careless? In any case, the longer it drags on, the worse it will be. Stamina, food, and morale are all problems..."

"..."

"Wait a minute... I seem to have an even bigger problem on my end..."

Fang Jin unconsciously spoke up, cold sweat streaming down her temples. At this moment, Jiang Yu and the others had reached a consensus and jointly selected one of the six exhibition halls to enter.

The group filed in, and Jiang Yu, who was at the back, noticed that Fang Jin was still in a daze. She was puzzled; could the death of the Iron Shield have affected him so much? She then waved and called out:

"Come on, Brother Fang, we should go now. Or have you figured out which exhibition hall might have...?"

"Bang—!"

Just then, a series of violent banging sounds came from downstairs, followed by a figure being projected directly onto the edge of the second floor. The iron shield's gaze collided with that of the two people walking at the back!

"...How have you all been? Why didn't you wait for me before you left?"

Then, a dull and weary voice came from under the mask. His face and collar were covered in blood, and the white smoke he exhaled was thicker than usual. He had clearly just gone through a fierce battle.

"You're still alive?!"

Two completely different questions rang out at the same time. Jiang Yu was slightly surprised, while Fang Jin was stunned. The strange movements she had just felt on the first floor of the museum were indeed not an illusion.

Fang Jin glanced at the iron shield from head to toe. The iron claws on his hands had not fallen off, and his black and red eyeballs were still embedded in their sockets. His dull but domineering temperament remained unchanged. He could not see any flaws.

So which side is fake?

"They're alive, but all of their men are dead. I've never seen such a dangerous dungeon. Every step you take requires paying with your life."

Iron Cover snorted coldly, then jumped heavily off the edge of the armrest. The modified metal inside his body made him three times the weight of an ordinary person, and the collision of the parts proved that he was not entirely made of flesh and blood.

"...What is the theme of your exhibition?"

"Why should I tell you? Are you happy to see that I have no men left? If not, shut up and keep going."

"I'm trying to deduce the relationship between the themes. Although this museum is a replica, it has been used by scavengers for so many years, so there should be some rooms suitable for living."

Fang Jin told him frankly, but his eyes were fixed on the iron shield's every move. His intuition told him that the iron shield was fake, but he couldn't find any flaws in its equipment or tone.

...It all depends on whether he's willing to reveal the theme of the room.

"Monopoly, a game that has nothing to do with force and observation, but most of the squares either go backwards or result in death, so we have to risk our lives to gamble on that damn dice."

This time, Iron Shield chose to be honest. Although it was quite shameful to lose all his subordinates, it wasn't really a difficult topic to talk about. If he could make good use of the assistance he received later, it wouldn't hurt to tell them.

...It seems this guy really is an iron shield.

Fang Jin muttered to herself that the question that had been lingering in her mind had finally been answered.