[Time Until Floor 3 Activation: 00:00:00]
The system pulsed.
A sickening wet sound echoed as the fabric of reality folded. This time, it didn't feel like teleportation.
It felt like being swallowed.
[TUTORIAL FLOOR 3 – MAZE OF SKIN]
Objective: Escape the maze.
Time Limit: 4 hours.
Survival Rate Estimate: < 1%
Warning:
The maze is alive.
The walls bleed.
The exit moves.
You are not alone.
Kill. Escape. Or be devoured.
Wang Ling opened his eyes to the worst floor so far.
The walls pulsed like flesh. Veins throbbed beneath semi-translucent membranes. Every few seconds, the floor breathed—rising slightly, exhaling steam through pores that reeked of copper and rot.
The maze shifted. A low moan echoed like a heartbeat.
"Disgusting as I remember."
A ceiling eyeball blinked open and tracked him for three seconds before retracting into a sinew hatch.
Behind him, Yue screamed.
She staggered back from a wall that had opened into a mouth and tried to bite her.
"Control your breathing," Wang Ling said calmly.
She dropped to her knees, gagging.
"This floor broke half of the elite guilds in the first timeline," he thought.
"Not because of the enemy. Because of the maze."
[Floor Rules Updated]
• Maze shifts every 90 seconds.
• Touching a wall too long causes "Fusion" (instant death).
• One hidden predator hunts every section.
He walked without hesitation.
One hand always on the wall, never pausing.
Step. Pivot. Memorize.
The pattern hadn't changed much.
The Tower didn't remember him.
But he remembered it.
📜 GLOBAL SYSTEM RANKINGS – POST FLOOR 2
[Global Player Rankings – Day 3 Update]
1. Wang Ling – 285 Achievement Points
Titles: Monarch's Pressure, Cage Executioner, Unmatched in Steel, Those Who Die Behind Me
Tutorial Kills: 14
Floors Cleared: 2
Performance Rating: S+
2. Aimee Hart – 122 AP
3. Haruto Shino – 109 AP
4. Fatima Al-Rawi – 97 AP
Players Remaining: 74.4 Million
(From 3.2 Billion originally selected)
⚙️ ACHIEVEMENT POINT NOTICE
You have reached 250 AP.
Achievement Store: Tier 1 Access Unlocked.
[Shop – Tier 1 Preview]
• Stat Crystal (+1 to chosen stat): 50 AP
• Minor Skill Seed (Random Basic Skill): 100 AP
• Trait Fusion Node: 200 AP
• Monarch's Veil (Passive Enhancement): 250 AP
Wang Ling claimed nothing.
Not yet.
"Let the others blow their rewards early."
"I'll collect the ruins after."
As they turned a corner, the wall suddenly split open, revealing a corridor that hadn't existed a second earlier.
Screaming echoed down it. A man with blood-soaked hands stumbled through—panic in his eyes.
When he saw Wang Ling, he froze.
"Help me! There's something behind—"
The wall behind him opened, revealing a pale humanoid with a sackcloth face and jagged, sword-like arms.
A Maze Stalker. Tower-created. No memory. No soul.
The creature lunged.
Wang Ling didn't even blink.
He pushed Yue back, then drove his elbow into the creature's mouth as it struck. Bone crunched. He grabbed its malformed arm and twisted it into the wall.
It screamed—then vanished, pulled into the maze's tissue like a rejected organ.
[Predator Eliminated – 1/1 in Region]
+15 AP
+1 Strength
+Minor Title: Predator Breaker
Yue was pale.
"That thing... that thing just ate him!"
"He died," Wang Ling said, walking ahead, "because he didn't understand the system."
She stared at his back.
Then followed.
Loyalty +2
Current Loyalty: 19%
[Maze Shift Incoming in 15 seconds...]
They sprinted.
Every 90 seconds, the maze mutated—twisting, coughing up bone barriers, collapsing corridors.
But Wang Ling moved through it like it was his home.
He'd survived this once before.
Barely.
"This time, I won't just survive. I'll master it."
[Maze Exit Detected – 88m Ahead]
A section of the floor peeled back, revealing a glowing tear in space.
But three other players stood between them and the exit.
Armed.
Bloodied.
And afraid.
"Back off!" one of them shouted. "We're not sharing the exit! One more step and we kill you!"
Yue faltered.
Wang Ling didn't stop.
The nearest man fired a makeshift bolt launcher.
Wang Ling caught the bolt mid-air. Snapped it in half. Then vanished.
By the time Yue blinked, all three were on the ground.
Two dead.
One sobbing, crawling backward.
"I—I surrender!"
"You should've run," Wang Ling said flatly. Then stepped over him.
[Exit Reached – Floor Complete]
Time: 2 hours, 42 minutes
Kills: 3
+2 Levels
+1 Free Stat Point
+25 Achievement Points
Title Gained: "Maze Sovereign"
While navigating unknown terrain, all perception-based skills and traits are 30% more effective.
🏆 Player Summary: Wang Ling
• Level: 6
• Titles: 6 (Sovereign, Executioner, Predator Breaker, etc.)
• AP: 325
• Follower: Yue Lin (Loyalty: 19%)
• Ranking: #1 globally
• Status: Untouchable
As he reappeared in his dorm room, Yue slumped beside him—shaking, eyes unfocused.
He tossed her a towel.
"Sleep now. You'll need your mind for Floor 4."
"It's a memory maze. And memory... can be turned into a weapon."