Author: 颜凉雨 / Yan Liang Yu
Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/
Chapter 152: Cursed
The seventh, eighth, and ninth rounds ended smoothly, with everyone moving forward without much fanfare. In a miraculous occurrence, each time the two teams met, they perfectly passed by each other, avoiding the cruel fate of a same-square PK.
As the tenth round was about to begin, there had been new changes in the positions and progress of the ten players on the field.
Gu Nian, having moved back from A5 to A2, was still 4 steps away from the finish line.
Kuang Jinxin, having rolled 9s in two rounds, leaped forward to 49/52, just 3 steps away from entering the sprint steps.
The remaining eight were essentially divided into three groups.
The first group consisted of Wu Sheng, Wang Duanran, Chi Yingxue, and Xu Wang, with progress between 32–38/52.
The second group, consisting of Qian Ai, Kong Lizhe, and Chen Guan, were at 25–26/52.
Jiang Dachuan alone made up the third group, still at Launch Point A, struggling hard.
Now, the dice returned to Jiang Dachuan’s hands.
The motivation from the Rolls-Royce was immense, and after so many rounds, Jiang Dachuan was still full of energy, hopeful and longing for every possible takeoff.
The dice hit the water, causing a graceful splash.
10.
“Captain!” After taking off, he first called out to his captain.
Wang Duanran breathed a heavy sigh of relief, as if he was the one going through hardship and suffering. “Good, it’s good that you’re taking off.”
Jiang Dachuan remained silent, only looking at his captain with gleaming eyes.
After a moment, Wang Duanran had a stroke of insight. “Remember, I’ll give you the car keys when we get back.”
Jiang Dachuan was satisfied, his eyes nearly disappearing from smiling.
At the same time, his teammate Gu Nian was in a different mood.
He rolled an 8.
He moved forward four squares, then moved back four squares, ending up back at A2 again—not even the Owl allowed him to exert effort in vain; there was no air current to lift him; he stood in place as if his last dice throw was an illusion.
Wang Duanran, Jiang Dachuan, Kong Lizhe, and Chen Guan hardly looked at him, fearing a wrong glance might make their teammate more agitated. Gu Nian rarely gets agitated, but when he does, it’s quite deadly.
Kong Lizhe rolled a 5, moving from 26–31. Looking back at Qian Ai and Wu Sheng in Grid 25, he wasn’t sure if he was afraid of being caught up in a PK battle or hoping to catch up for a chance at revenge through PK.
Grid 31 brought a surprise for Kong Lizhe—a thunderstorm that nearly blasted him into the water.
Qian Ai, 6 squares away, wasn’t worried about being affected and even took the opportunity to glance at Wu Sheng beside him.
That glance revealed Wu Sheng contemplating his arm. He initially thought to be strategizing a PK tactic by looking at stationery, but it turned out he was examining the badge handbook.
Qian Ai mentally kicked himself for forgetting about the badge!
Regardless of the reason, since their advisor chose to keep a low profile, Qian Ai knew he had to follow suit and keep quiet.
Thus, without even lifting his arm, Qian Ai slightly raised his eyebrows, trying to peek at Wu Sheng’s arm.
Fortunately, the hint was brief and noticeable—water.
The badge was in… the water? Underwater? On the water splash?
Qian Ai was confused, and more importantly, they couldn’t leave their squares or fall into the water, as that would be against the rules, requiring a return to the starting point. So, how were they supposed to find the badge?
“Lao Qian.” Wu Sheng’s reminder came. “It’s your turn to throw the dice.”
“Huh?” Qian Ai snapped back to reality, just as the dice flew in front of him, nearly flapping onto his nose.
With little time left to throw, he didn’t even attempt to catch it but simply swatted the dice towards the water surface.
6.
Qian Ai was just about to rejoice when he saw Kong Lizhe in front of him and rolled his eyes.
Qian Ai counted the squares and understood.
25–31, right into Kong Lizhe’s square.
Qian Ai couldn’t tell if he was happy or worried. The adrenaline from PK-ing Jiang Dachuan had cooled down over the rounds, and he was clear about the stationery he had, like [(Illusory) Ah, Fortune Has Fallen]. If Jiang Dachuan hadn’t used a defense stationery but a lethal offense stationery instead, he would have undoubtedly lost.
“Lize, take him down—” Jiang Dachuan cheered from the distant Launch Point A.
Kong Lizhe glanced at his “unfortunate” teammate, not seeing Qian Ai as a threat, but still silently heightened his alertness and defense level.
Qian Ai landed inside the square.
Kong Lizhe had a tall and slender figure. Originally, a single person could stand on the square quite spaciously, but with Qian Ai added, the average space occupied by each person was immediately halved and then halved again.
Fortunately, the prompt sound appeared quickly. Both turned their backs and raised their arms simultaneously.
Looking at his dwindling stationery, Qian Ai decided to use a defense item just to be cautious.
“Ding—”
[Cheat Sheet]: Kong Lizhe uses [(Illusory) Death Choir]; Qian Ai uses [(Defense) Iron Armor]; [Iron Armor] can’t withstand the [Death Choir]. Qian Ai dies, Kong Lizhe wins.
The arena was quiet for several seconds. Everyone had thought it would take three to five rounds to finish the PK. Even Kong Lizhe himself didn’t expect to win so cleanly, and it took him a while to come back to reality.
When Qian Ai saw the words [Death Choir], he knew he had lost. He now rummaged through his entire [Stationery Box] and found no stationery left that could resist a fatal illusory attack. His last defense, Righteous Aura, had been used up in the previous PK.
“Da Qian, come back. I’m the only one at home, so it’s lonely—” Jiang Dachuan was so happy he didn’t know how to organize his words, flapping his arms up and down, welcoming his old friend’s return.
Qian Ai didn’t want to see his smugness, but upon hearing his newly acquired nickname, his spirits were instantly lifted. As he soared into the air, he chased after with a question. “What did you call me?”
Jiang Dachuan chuckled, his face full of spring breeze and deliberate provocation. “Da Qian! How about that? Isn’t it domineering?”
“Whether it’s domineering or not doesn’t matter; the main thing is that it’s a good omen!” With these words, Qian Ai gracefully landed on Grid 1, slapped Jiang Dachuan on the shoulder, and sincerely thanked him. “I’ll change my live streaming ID when I get back. ‘Da Qian Eats Across China’. The wealth will be rolling in. Hahaha!”
“……” Jiang Dachuan’s smile froze on his face, and then he was completely expressionless. He was provoking, demonstrating, and getting carried away with pride. Could he at least show some respect for those seeking revenge!
Having suffered a similar setback at the hands of Kuang Jinxin, Wang Duanran finally understood that the focus of communication in this team was bizarrely off!
Although he returned to the starting point, Qian Ai rolled a 6, still having another chance to roll again.
The man, who had already renamed himself Da Qian, clasped his hands together and silently prayed for 666.
“Rolling—”
3.
Jiang Dachuan looked down and snorted dismissively. As if rolling a 6 or 10 was that easy. Hmph.
The fifth to throw was Kuang Jinxin.
7.
He took off from Launch Pad B (Grid 14) and was now at Grid 11. Having walked these 7 steps—12–13–14–B1–B2–B3–B4—he was 2 steps away from the Finish Line.
All eyes on Wang Duanran’s team were on him.
Kuang Jinxin didn’t catch a break like Gu Nian did, nor did he engage in any PKs. He just smoothly made his way forward, and now, he was even closer to the finish line than Gu Nian.
The low-key Captain Xu wanted to cheer for his teammate, but upon second thought, no, he quickly glanced at Wu Sheng, Qian Ai, Chi Yingxue—don’t show off. We need to accumulate good karma!
Wu Sheng received the look, and a faint smile of indulgence flashed in his eyes that even he didn’t notice—yeah, got it.
Qian Ai had the phrase “Xiao Kuang, counterkill him!” on the tip of his tongue, but fortunately, he was quick to cover his mouth, making a muffled sound. Jiang Dachuan, beside him, looked at him in confusion, not understanding what was going on.
Chi Yingxue didn’t intend to cheer for Kuang Jinxin, but he also didn’t understand Xu Wang’s glance, meeting his eyes with a puzzled raise of her eyebrows—?
Xu Wang now felt a spring-like warmth towards Chi Yingxue. When he saw this, he thought he hadn’t made himself clear, so he simply shook his head slightly—it’s okay.
Chi Yingxue understood then—oh.
After briefing his teammates, the dice fell into his own hands. Xu Wang immediately threw it.
5, 45–50, obtained the stationery [(Offense) Explosive Thermos Bottle].
“……” Xu Wang looked at the new icon in the [Stationery Box], finding it hard to imagine using it in battle.
Next, Chi Yingxue and Wang Duanran, then Chen Guan. They respectively threw a 2 and a 4, with Chi Yingxue entering Grid 9 and Wang Duanran entering Grid 12. Both started at Launch Point C (Grid 27), so they were closely matched in progress.
It was Chen Guan’s turn.
Playing Aeroplane Chess until now, Chen Guan was almost falling asleep. His inner cosmos was ignited by the fire left from their last encounter, but now that fire was nearly extinguished. He truly preferred a fight over playing this shitty game of chess. Even PK was just text-based, so what’s the point? The battle had lost its soul!
“Rolling—”
6.
Chen Guan was surprised. He had rolled a 6 last round and didn’t expect his luck to favor him again with another 6.
23–29, a surprise, the Happy Wheel.
Chen Guan grabbed the wheel and gave it a spin—Good Neighbor Responsibility Amulet (three rounds).
Xu Wang’s team was already curious about what exactly this was. Seeing the pointer stop on this option, they immediately looked at Chen Guan’s expression.
Chen Guan frowned, making his expression hard to interpret as good.
The rest of the team felt similarly.
Xu Wang’s and the others knew then—this thing wasn’t so great.
Chen Guan rolled for the second time.
9.
29–38, two more squares, and Chen Guan would complete a lap, returning to his Launch Point D (Grid 40)!
Happiness came so unexpectedly, Chen Guan only realized he was close to the finish line when he looked up and saw the five steps just ahead.
Wang Duanran immediately looked at Xu Wang, warning the opponent, “Hey, we have two people close to the finish line.”
Xu Wang felt anxious inside but maintained a composed face. “Let’s see if you can actually finish the steps.”
Xu Wang was inwardly anxious, but his face was calm. “Let’s actually finish the steps before we talk.”
Grid 38 had been revealed as a surprise.
Another Happy Wheel.
Chen Guan was puzzled. The Happy Wheel hadn’t appeared many times in the entire game, and he didn’t know why it favored him so much.
He held the spinner, and this time he spun it with more care.
The spinner stopped—Tornado.
“Whoosh—”
Chen Guan didn’t even have time to react before he was whirled back to grid 30 in a dizzying spin.
Grid 30 was a cash reward, but this didn’t compensate for the emotional trauma of Chen Guan and the entire team—just now he was at 50/52, and now he had fallen back to 42/52.
Happiness came suddenly and left just as quickly.
Xu Wang sighed and shook his head, crossing the vast water to the northeast, where Wang Duanran spread his hands in regret. “I told my team we should keep a low profile and accumulate good karma.”
Wang Duanran: “……”
When did you say that? Don’t make up scenarios, okay?
The end of the tenth round. Wu Sheng was the last thrower.
He first glanced at Kong Lizhe, six squares away, then threw the dice.
Kong Lizhe felt a chill from his gaze.
The dice stopped on the water—6.
“……” Kong Lizhe widened his eyes, looking at the dice and then at Wu Sheng, unable to believe it.
Two sixes in this round, again?
And the way the other party glanced at him before throwing the dice, as if he knew they would end up on the same square!
Definitely cheating, absolutely!
In his turmoil, Wu Sheng had already entered the square.
“Excuse me, please make some room.” Advisor Wu was very polite.
Kong Lizhe felt inexplicably nervous. He swallowed and stepped back while turning around.
Wu Sheng also turned his back to him.
[Owl: Please choose the stationery you want to use within ten seconds.]
Kong Lizhe looked at the icons in his [Stationery Box] as his lips pursed into a straight line.
He no longer had any stationery that could instantly kill someone. Whether it was offense or illusory, those that could kill instantly were rare and not easy to come by. In terms of offense, weapon types were the most numerous, followed by various climate and geological disasters, while illusory mainly involved mental harm and control, like [Meng Po Soup], [Pause Button], [Wake Up from a Dream with a Single Word], including the [Ah, Fortune Has Fallen] used by Qian Ai earlier, could all be categorized into these two types. And [Death Choir] was a rare illusory stationery that had to be used judiciously.
He had used it without hesitation in the PK with Qian Ai, thinking of avenging Dachuan.
He didn’t expect that one after another, he would be caught off guard.
But does the opponent definitely have a one-hit kill offense stationery?
Kong Lizhe thought this may not be the case.
After the ten seconds ended, both sides made their choices.
“Ding—”
[Cheat Sheet]: Kong Lizhe uses [(Offense) Spirit Behind You], Wu Sheng is haunted by an evil spirit who drains away his life force, death; Wu Sheng uses [(Illusory) Ah, My Heart is Broken], Kong Lizhe’s heart breaks, death; Wu Sheng’s death was slower, Kong Lizhe died faster. Wu Sheng won.
Kong Lizhe: “……”
Wu Sheng: “……”
The former thought that [Spirit Behind You] was just haunting, not expecting it to drain the opponent’s life force.
The latter thought [Ah, My Heart is Broken] was just about being heartbroken, not expecting it to be literally the breaking of the heart.
Both used seemingly non-lethal stationeries to take the other’s life. The difference was that Wu Sheng’s illusory stationery was more straightforward.
A bit simpler, leading to a straightforward death…
Kong Lizhe clutched his chest, swallowing down the bitterness—he died with regrets!
Qian Ai looked towards his advisor from afar, fist bumping his own chest—using the brother’s “Ah” series stationery to avenge a PK for a brother; I, Da Qian, understand you in my heart!
“……” Wu Sheng couldn’t bear this enthusiasm and silently turned his head away.
Turning away, he collided with the gaze of his own captain.
From the moment Wu Sheng threw the dice, Xu Wang’s gaze never left the scene, watching even more intently than Kong Lizhe. He could be one hundred percent certain that Wu Sheng was aiming to avenge Qian Ai, but… He raised his eyebrows inquiringly and made a gesture of 6, meaning—how did you manage to throw a 6 and end up in the same grid as Kong Lizhe?
The countdown for the second throw had already begun, and Wu Sheng threw the dice before giving Xu Wang a slight smile and then wrote “a vertical fold” in the air with his hand.
The dice landed on 8, 31—39, resulting in a cash reward.
Xu Wang was no longer concerned about the reward. The fluctuating fortunes of this round had significantly bolstered his defense against the lure of money. At this moment, he was furrowing his brows, fully engrossed in pondering Wu Sheng’s “vertical fold”. He mentally mimicked writing it… L?
L… L… Xu Wang’s eyes suddenly lit up. [(Illusory) Lucky]!
He was thoroughly familiar with what stationery everyone had during the battle strategy sessions. Before throwing the dice, Wu Sheng had used an illusory stationery of a blessing nature on himself!
Such a maneuver is possible?!
Xu Wang admired his advisor’s broad thinking while feeling touched by his deep concern for Qian Ai.
However, if it were him, he might have made the same choice. After all, repeatedly returning to the launch points without any encouragement could dishearten even the strongest of hearts.
Just like now…
Xu Wang looked towards Launch Point A, where Qian Ai had shaken off his previous despondency and was now looking refreshed and energized.
In contrast, the recently returned Kong Lizhe, and Jiang Dachuan, who had just moved one square forward, were emanating negative energy, both thick and thin, from their eyebrows to their entire bodies.
At the same time, besides Wu Sheng looking at Xu Wang, the remaining Kuang Jinxin, Chi Yingxue, Wang Duanran, and Chen Guan were all watching Launch Point A.
At this point in the game, the worst performers at Launch Point B, C, and D had made it past halfway. Yet at Launch Point A, the three of them had barely moved—Jiang Dachuan had just taken off, moving only 1 square forward. Visually, he, along with Qian Ai and Kong Lizhe, seemed to be huddled together like three groundhogs squeezing out of the same hole.
The only one making a stand from Launch Point A, Gu Nian, had been sprinting back and forth on the stairs for who knows how many rounds. When he started climbing the stairs, Kuang Jinxin was only halfway through, and now, not only had he reached the stairs as well, but he was also closer to the Finish Line than him.
Launch Point A must be cursed.
The author has something to say:
Slaps the blackboard! Classmates, the starting line of life is very important!
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