The girl with the mechanical arm knew that Ji Xun had the "Witch's Gaze" card and vaguely guessed his method of killing the monster.
But what if it didn't work on the monster?
Was he really willing to gamble his life on it?
Ji Xun understood his teammate's astonishment but pointed to the monster's corpse, reminding her, "I think this monster dropped some materials."
The girl with the mechanical arm looked at his nonchalant expression after gambling with his life and twitched slightly at the corner of her eye.
She then drew out a dagger and cut open the monster's chest, pulling out a heart covered in green crystals.
**The Second Mutated Heart of the Cursed Gambler**
**Quality:** Superior Radiant Silver
**Description:** A rare mystical material containing extremely dense curse pollution power. It carries the power and speed of extreme physical outbursts.
Holding the heart, the girl clearly felt the surging energy within and found it incredible.
She had never seen a first-rank material with such strength before.
It was no worse than her previous "Witch's Pituitary Gland." She said, "This is an excellent material for almost all physical-type career cards. If you want to advance in the close-combat career sequence, I've never seen a better material of the same rank."
She glanced at Ji Xun and added, "I'll help you store it."
Storing such high-grade materials required high-quality storage cards, and it was clear that her teammate couldn't afford one with his current equipment.
"Thank you."
Ji Xun didn't stand on ceremony.
This material was valuable without a doubt. Even if it wasn't useful to him, selling it would provide a good starting fund in this world.
Moreover, his teammate was quite generous, not asking for a share of the loot despite not participating in the kill.
...
Her curiosity growing, the girl stored the heart and handed the card back to Ji Xun. Unable to contain her question, she asked directly, "How did you know the 'Witch's Gaze' would work on this monster?"
Though her tone was calm, her curiosity was immense.
A non-supernatural person killing an A-level disaster was nothing short of a miracle.
At this moment, she fully understood what Ji Xun meant by "taking a gamble."
Judging by the result, her teammate's confidence wasn't just about luck.
Listening to her question, Ji Xun felt no need to hide from such a receptive teammate. He said straightforwardly, "Think differently."
He explained, "From an adventurer's perspective, you'd think about how to solve this level. But if you think from the designer's perspective, you'd consider how to design the level. It has to be intricate and challenging but not completely insurmountable for the player. This is the only method I could think of to kill the monster."
"You can understand it like this: the witch is the guardian of the second level, protecting crucial clues. To prevent those clues from being useless, the witch's existence must be key to the subsequent puzzle. That skill card is the link to the next level."
...
The girl with the mechanical arm frowned thoughtfully.
Her teammate's calm tone revealed extreme rationality, wisdom, and meticulous logical thinking.
And madness!
Ji Xun continued.
Ji Xun continued, "Ever since I noticed the issues with the walls, I suspected this dimensional space had intricate and logically meticulous level designs. The bunker has four floors, each with a B-level disaster clearly stronger than the other monsters. Given such difficulty, the BOSS setups must be interconnected..."
The girl with the mechanical arm, smart as she was, seemed to guess what he was about to say but interrupted, "What if, I mean, what if they aren't connected?"
Ji Xun gave a mysterious smile, as if hinting at something deeper. "If the levels weren't connected, all those intricate designs would be meaningless."
He then added, "Moreover, if they weren't connected, do you think anyone could survive under the mutated A-level disaster? If I'm not mistaken, the original proper way to clear this would be someone killing the A-level 'Corrupt Giant' on the first floor, obtaining a key item to defeat the 'Fallen Witch' on the second floor, and then the 'Cursed Gambler' on the third. The levels are like iron gates that need corresponding keys to open. And these disasters hold the keys."
"But we didn't..."
The girl started to say they hadn't gone to the first floor but stopped midway.
Ji Xun finished her thought, "Because you're too strong."
Her extraordinary strength allowed them to directly kill the second-floor disaster, skipping levels.
From this perspective, her strength was indeed abnormal.
Ji Xun almost concluded that she had other means of escaping when the 'Cursed Gambler' had chosen her.
"..."
Hearing what seemed like a compliment, the girl didn't feel happy but rather fell into deep thought.
Despite their limited communication, she felt as if her secrets were being seen through by this man.
This explanation made everything clear.
But there was one more point.
She asked, "What if you guessed wrong?"
"..."
Ji Xun pondered for a moment, silent.
The girl thought he might be hiding something but then heard his faint response after a pause.
"That's why there's a gamble."
Ji Xun's brow furrowed slightly before he smiled calmly.
Indeed, everything before was conjecture, and testing it carried risks.
But in his eyes, some things were more interesting than death.
...
"Bang, bang, bang..."
The dark laboratory occasionally echoed with gunfire, indicating that the group of Blackwater mercenaries who had fled earlier was in trouble.
Having collected the loot from the disaster's corpse, Ji Xun called out, "Let's go, let's check it out up ahead."
With this gamble won, the next levels seemed like open-book tests to him.
Though he wasn't sure what they'd face, Ji Xun felt confident.
The girl with the mechanical arm didn't object and followed silently.
At this point, she understood that her teammate was far from being the weakling he appeared to be.
But the old question arose again: why would such a clever person recklessly come to this dimensional space alone?
And spend a night with that witch?
Could it be... he was seeking some special thrill?
Normal people wouldn't risk their lives like this.
But this guy was so crazy, maybe he really was...
Moreover, he had spent a night with the 'Witch' and survived!
The girl shook off the strange thoughts in her mind but couldn't deny his exceptional qualities.
...
The two walked through the laboratory corridors, searching various spots and collecting loot from the bodies of mercenaries they found along the way.
Their journey, which should have been a "battle royale," had turned into a "leisure exploration mode."
The girl with the mechanical arm found it odd that the constant feeling of looming death had diminished.
Thinking back, it seemed to have started after they killed the 'Cursed Gambler.'
His composure seemed infectious, as he had never appeared flustered.
Every crisis was resolved seamlessly, creating a certain sense of assurance...
However, her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of hurried footsteps and frantic curses from a distance.
"Captain, Akun's leg was cut off..."
"Damn it, did anyone see the monster? Kill it!"
"No, we didn't see the monster. It must be that unknown disaster on the fourth floor!"
"Help, Captain, don't leave me!!!"
...
The laboratory was a closed loop, amplifying sounds.
Even without seeing the people, their wails and cries echoed clearly.
Recognizing the voices, Ji Xun identified them as the mercenaries they had encountered earlier.
The girl beside him sensed something too, her expression serious. "There's a powerful disaster nearby... stronger than the 'Cursed Gambler'!"
Ji Xun didn't dare to be careless.
But with others drawing the monster's attention, it reduced their troubles.
An idea struck him, and he pulled out his pistol, aiming at a nearby gas lamp.
With a loud bang, the lamp shattered, plunging the corridor into darkness.
Ji Xun motioned to his teammate, pulling her into the shadows. "Let's observe first."
The girl with the mechanical arm glanced at him, puzzled: Not running?
To her, with the monster's attention elsewhere, this was the perfect escape opportunity.
Ji Xun offered no explanation.
She hesitated but chose to trust him, remaining silent.
The two figures melted into the darkness...
...
Seconds later, the noises grew closer.
They watched as a bald man and four mercenaries, seemingly chased by an invisible threat, ran back in panic.
From a dozen strong, only four remained.
As they ran, a strange scene unfolded.
Without warning, the head of the trailing mercenary suddenly flew off, blood spraying as his body collapsed.
The severed neck showed a clean cut, as if by a sharp blade.
Ji Xun watched intently, his eyes narrowing.