Chapter 1605: Chapter 1605: Listen to Me, Everyone
Xu Huo moved to the edge of the explosion pit, raised his hand to lift the two people, and said solemnly, “I’m not joking. Since you’re also here to find the ‘Midsummer Night’s River of Stars’, your goal aligns with ours, and you’re also People of Zone 013, you might be able to provide some useful advice.”
The surrounding players were not impressed by his speech tactics, but were curious about what he would say next, so no one left.
The two Tan-skinned City Dwellers were anxious and stammered for a while without being able to speak. Although they were locals, they didn’t have any clues about the “Star River” either. But they didn’t dare to say it outright, fearing they’d be killed immediately.
Xu Huo didn’t focus on them for long; instead, he turned around and asked loudly, “Before we start the grand discussion on finding the ‘Midsummer Night’s River of Stars’, I want to ask three questions.”
“First question, has anyone already seen the ‘Midsummer Night’s River of Stars’?”
“Second question, does anyone have a definite clue about the ‘Midsummer Night’s River of Stars’?”
“Third question, is everyone certain that there is only one space in this dungeon venue?”
After asking the three questions in one breath, what followed was a long silence.
Not to mention there weren’t any; even if there were, at this moment, nobody could possibly follow his lead. Some players even quietly left.
Xu Huo wasn’t really seeking answers. When enough time had passed, he said, “Since no one has any clues, I’ll assume everyone is on the same starting line.”
“To express sincerity, I’ll first share some information I know and my conjectures.”
“Firstly, the cause of drowsiness might not be poisonous spores. It’s very likely this instance contains a special power similar to mental interference.”
“Secondly, for players who disappeared without reason, I suspect they were sucked into other spaces within the instance, spaces closer to the ‘Star River’.”
“Third, even if we don’t want to pass the level, we might not be able to leave here after ten days.”
Although most players were listening with a “just for the sake of hearing” mentality, some were watching his “solo act” with interest. But whenever someone proposes, there’s someone to contest, so just as he finished speaking, a player loudly refuted him, “What you said about mental interference is simply not valid. I entered from Stone Medicine Island, and the locals there also have a drowsiness problem.”
Where there’s a first, there’s a second. Another player immediately spoke up: “I checked with a prop that there is no chaotic space in this dungeon venue. It’s hard to believe your theory that the disappeared were sucked into another space. Besides, even if this space exists, how do you know it’s closer to the ‘Star River’?”
The first two questions were quite contentious, as for Xu Huo’s third point, it sounded somewhat exaggerated to attract attention, most people found it somewhat implausible.
“I also came from Stone Medicine Island,” Xu Huo explained to the first player, “The reason I mentioned it might be mental interference is because I took an antitoxin. Even after confirming I felt no sleepiness, I still fell asleep in a very short period of time.”
“As for the Stone Medicine Island issue, it’s easier to explain. I judge the main venue of the instance is actually on Stone Medicine Island.”
“What’s so strange about you falling asleep?” The player said: “No one here lacks antitoxin.”
In other words, everyone tried using antitoxin to fight off sleepiness; there’s no need for him to demonstrate the effectiveness.
Xu Huo didn’t rush to refute him, instead he smiled and looked around at everyone, “Is there really no one who came in fully prepared from the outset?”
With everyone gathered here, although most are Rank-C players, not everyone could immediately afford the money to buy protective suits equipped with breathing apparatus. Most relied on antitoxin to hold on; after all, everyone had succumbed to it, and antitoxin is cheaper than a new protective suit, and its effect is not bad.
Thus, those wearing suits that could completely isolate outside air stood out.
There was a peculiar undercurrent stirring in the crowd.
At this moment, Xu Huo interrupted them, “I’ve already said clearly, I was affected even after confirming I wasn’t poisoned. If any of you really came prepared, you should know very well what I mean.”
“If there are players who’ve stayed longer on Stone Medicine Island, they can also talk about the situation on Stone Medicine Island. After all, this dungeon venue drifts to different places, if it’s poisonous spores causing the drowsiness, other places shouldn’t be spared either.”
He said, turning to the two Tan-skinned City Dwellers beside him, “In Tan-skinned City, there were people who’ve seen the ‘Midsummer Night’s River of Stars’, and many have entered here. Besides in this foggy space, those who’ve gotten out alive, or you, do you have symptoms of drowsiness?”
The two Tan-skinned City Dwellers hurriedly shook their heads, “No, no, absolutely not. The young man who got out alive stayed in Tan-skinned City for a long time without ever suddenly falling asleep.”
No one voluntarily admitted they were immune to the possible ‘poison spores’, nor did anyone acknowledge knowing about the situation in Stone Medicine Island. But clearly, such people existed within the crowd, so they wouldn’t leave.
Other players also noticed something amiss, and naturally, they wouldn’t leave either.
This was considered a good start.
“Then what evidence do you have to prove there are other spaces within the dungeon venue?” someone else asked: “Is it just because people disappeared without reason? There are many ways to make someone disappear.”
Xu Huo cited surveillance devices; whether due to sleep or intentionally to solve the mystery of disappearance, players would certainly install surveillance devices at the places where they slept and came and went. The interference with surveillance, without outside intervention, was likely caused by power fluctuations due to space instability.
Of course, this deduction wasn’t enough to serve as evidence. But with so many players searching the city all day and not finding any useful clues related to the ‘Midsummer Night’s River of Stars’, it couldn’t be concluded that his deduction was wrong.
Since it couldn’t be found in this city, and another space might exist, suspecting the other space being closer to the ‘Star River’, or the ‘Star River’ being in another space altogether, wasn’t very unreasonable?
Xu Huo didn’t need actual examples to prove his statement, just steering the players in that direction was enough.
“What you said sounds reasonable,” a player who appeared cultured and good-natured came forward, “but is practically useless; it doesn’t help us clear the level at all.”
Because both mental interference and multiple spaces exceeded most people’s understanding.
“Don’t be in such a rush,” Xu Huo said, “Don’t I have a third conjecture as well?”
“Listen to my third conjecture in conjunction, and you’ll find my first two points are very important.”
“Today there are fifty players present, just for an instance, compared to this venue, that number is quite considerable. With so many people, has no one brought out news of the ‘Midsummer Night’s River of Stars’?”
Some have heard tales of ‘Midsummer Night’s River of Stars’, but no one heard of the ‘Midsummer Night’s River of Stars’ instance information, and that’s the most critical point.