"Brother Hao, maybe we should just surrender," a man with a crew cut standing beside the middle-aged man whispered. "Without the help of the players from the Mad King Building, we won't survive the next round of the game."

"Idiot! The Factory Head is dead, the higher-ups are all dead, now we are the masters of the Twilight Building!" the middle-aged man roared angrily, his eyes burning with fervor. "Do you really want to hand the Twilight Building over to someone else? From now on, we are all Factory Heads!"

In the chat room, the names of Mujina and the others had all turned gray—the clearest proof of their deaths.

The crew-cut man took a deep, ragged breath. "We can't even leave the building, what's the point of having a factory?"

"There has to be a way!" the middle-aged man gritted his teeth, refusing to give up until he was utterly defeated.

Just then, a commotion erupted downstairs. The players of the Twilight Building craned their necks to look and saw that the Mad King Building player named Xu Lang had arrived.

The morale of the Mad King Building players soared.

Suddenly, the crew-cut man spotted Pandora, who was surrounded by the ninth-floor players.

Pandora's slightly scrutinizing gaze also swept over and met his.

Their eyes locked.

*Thud!*

The middle-aged man was watching Xu Lang when a knife suddenly plunged into his back. He turned his head in disbelief and saw the twisted, savage face of his sworn brother.

"Brother Hao, greed has clouded your judgment. I warned you, but you, you just wouldn't listen!"

"Even if I didn't turn on you, someone else would have!"

The crew-cut man pushed the middle-aged man over the railing and down the stairs, then raised a fist and shouted.

"Brothers! Let's go downstairs and welcome our new king!"

...

Two days later.

Today was the sixth day of the rest period. Only one day remained until the game between the Twilight Building and the Mad King Building began.

The start times for the games in both buildings were synchronized.

At least for this round, that was the case.

"Whew... finally escaped from that abyss. I wonder when this dormitory building's game will start."

"Holy shit!"

"There's only one day left!"

In the Mad King Building, the door of one dormitory room shimmered and transformed. Next to it appeared the name of a high-level dormitory: "Intelligent Machinery Dormitory."

This meant new tenants had moved in.

Almost simultaneously with the dormitory's transformation, seven players appeared inside. Seeing the game countdown timer, they all started cursing.

They bore the hallmarks of "tech-side" players. Each was outfitted with modern tactical suits, and the dormitory interior had a cyberpunk aesthetic. In the corners were items like mechanical power arms and steam-powered gauntlets.

Just then, the doorbell rang.

"Open up, open up! Mad King Building population census!"

The surveillance screen displayed an image: four players with their equipment visibly displayed stood at the door, looking fully prepared.

"Damn, they've got an organization. Has this building already been taken over?" cursed a man with a scar on his face.

He was the dorm owner of this room.

"Boss, it looks like this building has only gone through six cycles of the game," a young man wearing non-prescription glasses spoke up in a low, excited voice, a look of delight on his face.

Hearing this, everyone's spirits lifted.

Veteran players arriving at a new building meant a clean sweep!

No wonder there was only one day left in the rest period—they had been given such a benefit.

"Only six cycles and it's already controlled. The ruler here isn't ordinary."

"Maybe this dormitory building has some special gameplay, otherwise why would it be taken over so early."

"Haha, whatever the gameplay is, watch me suppress everyone with a submachine gun!"

"Don't be rash. Let's figure out the situation first. They're knocking again outside. Let's go out and see."

...

The door opened. The bespectacled young man was the first to step forward with a smile. "Hello, are you the managers here?"

"Yes," Zhou Ye nodded, his ordinary-looking face showing a hint of weariness. His gaze swept over the scarred man's steam-powered arm guard, and a flicker of interest appeared in his eyes. "We just checked the chat room. You have seven people here. Please register which dormitory buildings you've been to before and what you're good at."

The bespectacled young man's expression stiffened. "Do we need to give such detailed information?"

"Yes, it's the rule," Zhou Ye affirmed.

"Could you tell us what your positions are... We're new here and not too familiar with how things work in this place," the scarred man asked with a hearty laugh.

Internally, he was extremely tense.

Daring to control all players so strictly meant the managers here were not just ordinarily powerful.

Because generally, players had a very strong sense of individuality.

Even if someone was much weaker than you, hiding inside their dormitory, few would dare to attack, after all, people aren't monsters. No matter how strong your combat power, you can't just go head-to-head with a turret.

"I am Zhou Ye, Deputy Minister of the Dormitory Affairs Inspection Department of the Mad King Building. I'm responsible for the population census, information recording, and distributing Newcomer Gift Packs to new players!" Zhou Ye straightened the collar of his suit, feeling immensely proud.

"Does everyone have to register their information?" the bespectacled young man asked.

"Obviously!" Zhou Ye said impatiently. "There have been many new tenants these past two days. Hurry up and answer the questions, don't waste time!"

Another member of the Inspection Department chimed in, "We advise you not to hide any information. Otherwise, when there are real benefits, they won't come to you."

The bespectacled young man frowned tightly.

These people were so overbearing!

Since they had checked our player information, they should know how many cycles we've been through, right? How dare they still act so arrogantly!

Just as the bespectacled young man was hesitating, the scarred man stepped forward, pulled the former behind him, and said with some nervousness, "Alright, we'll register right now!"

A few minutes later, the information registration was complete.

"This is the Newcomer Gift Pack. Once you come to the Mad King Building, you can't leave. From now on, we'll fight side by side. You are part of the Mad King Building." Zhou Ye took out seven pieces of level ten equipment and an ancient-looking black box.

The bespectacled young man was dumbfounded. Pointing at the equipment, he stammered, "Th-this... this is for us? For free?!"

"Yes," Zhou Ye replied, already accustomed to such reactions. "Take it. You can't take it away anyway. Even if it gets worn out, it will be while fighting for the Mad King Building."

"What do you mean, 'can't take it away'?" the bespectacled young man asked again, his tone urgent.

Another tenant quickly tugged at him, pulling him back into the room.

"Xiao Zheng, don't ask too many questions. Check the Trading Network."

Reminded by his companion, the bespectacled young man hurriedly opened the Trading Network and immediately froze in place.

How could a level six dormitory have so many level ten items?! And they were being sold so cheaply!

"Sir, what is this?" the scarred man asked, having already changed his form of address. He pointed at the Taleblade Demon Box replica.

Zhou Ye smiled and replied, "A good thing. As long as you are devout enough, when you're truly in danger, pray to this black box. It will pull you into a safe place."

Instantly, the scarred man felt as if he had moved into a god-tier building.

Do all Mad King Building players eat this well?

At this moment, even though he had once been a Top Player and was quite wealthy himself, he was utterly stunned by the Mad King Building's extravagance.

"This is a blessing from the Dorm Owner. Be grateful."

"The rules and precautions for the Mad King Building have been sent to you via private message. If you have any questions, message me again!"

"Remember, it is strictly forbidden to enter the Blood Mist World through illegal means. Violators will be severely punished!"

"In the future, if you have any important information, remember to report it to the Inspection Department immediately!"

After saying this, Zhou Ye left with his team.