Doing Math in the Acid Rain?

Cheng Shuili raised a hand to rub her temples. This dungeon was truly exhausting.

Now, two choices lay before the group: one was the warehouse, which had a very clear destination, and the other was to search for the third team that had entered this dungeon to exchange information and resources.

Most importantly, these two choices were not actually mutually exclusive.

Cheng Shuili presented the options to the group. Aside from Master of Slacking, everyone with a vote agreed that they should go to the warehouse first. After all, judging by the map, the scope of the entire dungeon was vast, and searching for other players aimlessly would likely do more harm than good.

Naturally, Cheng Shuili agreed.

Once the group had rested, they quickly donned their raincoats and headed toward the warehouse.

The next peak of acid rain would arrive in two hours. This meant that if they didn't find a new shelter along the way or during their exploration, they would have to return here before those two hours were up.

Cheng Shuili sighed, clutching her Night Hunt as she took the lead.

Qi Wanyi and Ailin each gripped a weapon as they brought up the rear. From a distance, the group looked quite formidable.

Although the acid rain had eased somewhat, the drizzle continued, and...

Although Cheng Shuili hadn't seen the acid rain at its peak with her own eyes, looking at the ravaged, eerie world left in the wake of the downpour allowed her to roughly guess its power.

The acidic, corrosive smell in the air, mixed with the musty, earthy scent rising from the wet ground, formed a strange odor that made one's throat tighten.

The already dilapidated buildings were washed by the rain until they looked even more mottled, with walls covered in dark water stains and pits that looked as if they had been gnawed away.

The ground was pooled with murky puddles, and from time to time, bubbles would rise from the bottom, making faint popping sounds.

Cheng Shuili stepped through a puddle, the soles of her boots making a faint sizzling sound. She didn't even frown, her gaze silently scanning the street ahead, which was shrouded in rain and mist.

"Stay close, and watch your footing and your surroundings."

Her voice was low, yet it reached everyone clearly.

"If you still want your shoes, try to steer clear of the puddles."

Jiang Tang carefully bypassed a larger puddle and, upon hearing this, subconsciously tightened her raincoat.

She tried hard to recall the contents of the map, squinting as she compared it to the buildings before her. Although the buildings were much more dilapidated, the layout of the surrounding structures suggested it was indeed the right place.

Cheng Shuili, walking at the front, naturally noticed as well. She didn't slow her pace, instead leading the group straight toward their destination.

After passing through a chaotic street, the outline of a low but expansive building gradually became clear.

It looked sturdier than the surrounding houses, with walls made of thick concrete. It had few windows, and the few that existed were high and small, embedded with thick iron bars. The glass had long since vanished, leaving only pitch-black holes.

The walls were covered in mottled scars of varying depths left by acid rain erosion, looking like some kind of ugly skin disease, but the overall structure remained stubbornly standing.

The only entrance was a pair of heavy, rusted double iron doors.

The door panels themselves looked extremely heavy, but what was even more eye-catching was the massive iron lock spanning the center of the doors.

That thing was larger than an average person's palm, and the chain was as thick as an adult's wrist, practically telling everyone that forcing it open with sheer strength was absolutely impossible.

Once the group got close, they saw a very conspicuous screen on the wall.

It seemed to display a math problem, and the hint clearly stated that the key was hidden at the location corresponding to the result of the problem.

As for why she said it was "probably" a math problem...

Cheng Shuili had been working for several years now; if she had to distinguish these things, she really was no better than an elementary school student.

Everyone saw the question on the screen. For a moment, they looked at one another, and the few who had been chatting all the way there finally fell silent.

In the end, it was Xinxue who pushed Jiang Tang forward: "I remember Tangtang is a college student... right? This kind of problem should be pretty simple for a college student, right?"

Jiang Tang looked troubled. Seeing everyone's eyes fixed on her, she wrinkled her small face and said, "Never mind that I studied medicine and only took a little advanced math in my freshman year. Besides, we've been in this hellhole for a month now; who would still remember this kind of stuff?"

"And besides, it's still raining acid... is the system really so absurd that it wants us to do math while standing in the rain?"

Qi Wanyi added silently. Seeing the group's eyes shift to her, she hurriedly waved her hands, "I'm a chef... I didn't even finish high school. You don't expect me to calculate this, do you?"

That was certainly not going to be her job.

Before Cheng Shuili could say anything, Ailin remarked, "I've failed math since I was a child. It was because my grades were so poor in this subject that I almost failed to enlist..."

As the group busied themselves with excuses, Master of Slacking, standing to the side, felt more and more alarmed the more he listened. He had originally thought these people had just gathered together randomly, or perhaps because they were all girls, they were just huddling together for warmth.

And yet?

A chef, a medical student, a soldier, and another person whose profession hadn't been mentioned, but who could fit in with them, so she clearly wouldn't be mediocre either.

Plus, a boss with peerless combat strength...

What kind of team was this, anyway?

Master of Slacking couldn't help but shiver... fortunately, he had surrendered after being subdued and had been very honest, telling nothing but the truth.

These people were definitely not simple!

Especially this person referred to as "Boss"... she was definitely not the "Master of Slacking", so who could she be?

Master of Slacking remained silent for a moment. Actually, there was someone who was a prime suspect. This person had always been a prime suspect, but he hadn't dared to think about it.

How could a player have such bad luck as to run into the number one on the leaderboard as soon as they entered the dungeon? And then get easily subdued by said number one, have their weapons confiscated, and sign a trade contract to become a hostage? Haha... if this were his past life, he could have gone to buy a lottery ticket.

While Master of Slacking was trying to find joy in his suffering and comforting himself in his heart, he saw that mysterious boss suddenly move.

She first stood in front of the iron door, and a few tissues appeared in her hand out of thin air. She used them to pinch the large iron lock, lifted it up, and glanced at the keyhole. Then, amidst the confused gazes of the others, she breathed a sigh of relief, pulled a key out of thin air from who knows where, and then...

Eh?

She just inserted the key that easily?

Master of Slacking frowned. What was the point of inserting it? This key wasn't the key to the iron lock; even if it could be inserted, it shouldn't be able to open it, right?

Just as Master of Slacking was still wondering about this action, he saw the other party gently rotate the key in her hand, and the next moment, the seemingly indestructible iron lock actually clicked open just like that.

It opened.

It opened?!! What?