"If you say it like that, I can’t help you. For your father’s sake, I’ll leave you a whole corpse."

Jing Shang said coldly, then raised his frail hand to grab Xia Kai.

The originally thin and short arm swelled up endlessly in Xia Kai’s eyes, finally transforming into a menacing claw larger than a human that descended upon him, with sharp nails like blades, piercing his eyes painfully.

He wanted to run away but found his legs wouldn’t obey.

In reality, many animals’ first reaction when facing danger is not escape but playing dead. The reasons are complex, involving innate genetic traits and learned behavior.

As a human, Xia Kai’s instinct to play dead had long been weakened and he hadn’t learned such a useless skill, but faced with Jing Shang’s monstrous claw, his animal instincts were forcibly awakened.

The result of this forced awakening was him being prey to Jing Shang, the hunter.

"Move, damn legs!"

Facing the approaching claw, Xia Kai screamed frantically in his heart.

However, no matter how he struggled, his legs remained motionless.

In desperation, Xia Kai had to use his skill.

"Spirit Revitalization: Spirit attribute increases by 30 points, duration one minute. Limited to three uses per instance."

A cold sensation ran from his crown down his spine, instantly making him feel invigorated, and he regained control of his body.

Yet Xia Kai’s first reaction after his body could move wasn’t to escape but to perform a very difficult action.

He leaned back, raised his right foot straight while balancing his body on his left foot.

Xia Kai was not flexible, and this dance-like move looked shaky, making his short and plump figure seem even more ridiculous.

But Jing Shang paid no mind to his antics, directly aiming at his chest.

"Ah!"

Suddenly, a scream echoed.

But the scream wasn’t from Xia Kai; it was Jing Shang.

"Damn beast, what did you do?!"

Jing Shang angrily questioned.

His monstrous claw had returned to its original size, with a bone-deep wound in his palm, almost splitting it in half, looking horrifying.

"What did I do?"

Xia Kai returned to a standing position and slowly untied the silk thread around his wrist.

This thread wasn’t bought from the System Mall; it was exchanged from a player in the previous instance.

It’s not an item, but it has magical properties.

Normally, it’s just an ordinary thread, but once attacked, it becomes sharp and tough, and the faster the attack, the stronger the performance, making it a perfect ambush tool.

To get this thread, Xia Kai paid a high price, and sure enough, it proved useful now.

"Of course it’s..."

He deliberately dragged out his voice, turned away, and ran before finishing his sentence.

Managing to trick Jing Shang once was already a pleasant surprise; he didn’t think he could truly fight him, especially with a bird-faced attendant eyeing him.

"Trying to run? Go and meet your dead ghost father obediently!"

Jing Shang laughed in anger and raised another hand towards Xia Kai.

A hole opened in the center of his large palm, revealing a vertical eye instead of flesh.

The evil eye emitted hundreds of needle-like rays, shooting towards Xia Kai’s back.

"Keep him alive; the dead are useless."

The bird-faced attendant reminded.

The dead can only be used as fodder or fuel, while the living hold many uses even if unrelated to that person.

"Hmph!"

Jing Shang snorted unhappily but retracted most of the rays, leaving a few aimed at Xia Kai’s limbs.

Facing the attack from behind, Xia Kai tossed out a black pot without looking back.

"Name: Trouble-Free Black Pot (Disposable)"

"Type: Tool"

"Quality: Excellent"

"Effect: After use, all ranged attacks within three meters (regardless of friend or foe) will be attracted to the pot, duration ten seconds. If exceeded, the item will break early."

"Remark: Why must the black pot be attacked, while the white pot can just cook? It’s unfair!"

"Can it be taken out of the instance: Yes"

Once the black pot appeared, all rays were immediately attracted into it.

The pot bottom was pierced with needle-like protrusions but remained intact.

"Phew~"

Xia Kai sighed in relief, although he was bleeding inside.

This was one of the rewards from the settlement in the instance before last, originally intended to enhance task evaluation at crucial moments but ended up being used for survival before the instance was even one-tenth completed.

Indeed, this hell trial is not for fishes like him.

Seeking wealth amidst danger is nonsense; keeping a low profile to make small gains is the right path for ordinary players.

Unfortunately, while Hell’s Game is relatively humane otherwise, its task distribution, like other Main God Spaces, doesn’t allow preconditions.

Xia Kai mocked internally while sprinting wildly on foot.

Jing Shang, upon seeing his attacks absorbed by the black pot, guessed its function and chased with waving arms.

Though Xia Kai couldn’t see his legs, his speed was astonishing, catching up to Xia Kai in a flash.

Hearing the wind behind him, Xia Kai was terrified.

Having no choice, he took out a syringe and plunged it into the carotid artery in his neck.