The next day, in the morning.
The Seventh District, filled with tents, was bustling with passersby.
Though last night's chaos injured many civilians, people never share the same pessimism; life goes on with a smile for others.
From Lv Bai's current observations, most people were still going about their usual business, at most discussing last night's events in their spare time.
"As expected, there's no way to find the Death Fighters based on the announced coordinates."
He pulled up a small stool and sat at the tent entrance, resting his chin on his hand, scanning the people passing by.
Not long ago, the system panel released a new round of positioning information.
Unfortunately, the red dots on the map representing Death Fighters were almost never inside the tents.
Clearly, the Death Fighters deliberately left their tents before the system announced the positioning information.
Under such a premise, the sporadic red dots remaining in the tents seemed more like traps.
Of course, it wasn't as if he didn't get any information at all.
By simply counting the red dots on the map, it could be confirmed that nearly a hundred Death Fighters had gathered at this temporary refuge camp.
"Don't listen to those fools boasting; as soon as they heard gunshots, they crawled under their blankets trembling. I'm not the same; see this scar?
Last night, as soon as I left the tent, I saw that murderer. I ran over and gave him a kick. If it wasn't for my help blocking him, that murderer would have escaped long before, instead of being shot dead by those soldiers."
A middle-aged man in floral shorts smoked a cigarette, speaking grandly.
A young, handsome man in a white shirt gave a thumbs up and praised, "Wow, you're steady, man."
"Right? I'm telling you, before the virus broke out, neighbors..."
Lv Bai glanced and then looked away; there were too many of these small groups chatting idly, nothing worth noting.
Out of boredom, Lv Bai planned to go over the information on the positioning map again.
During this time, he vaguely smelled a hint of disinfectant.
Exiting the system panel, he turned to see the young man in the white shirt.
The man sat down elegantly nearby; even though he was a bit close, Lv Bai didn't feel it appropriate to ask him to leave directly.
Noticing Lv Bai's gaze, the genteel young man gave a Smiling Face, "Is there anything you're unsure about?"
"What?"
Lv Bai was taken aback, then gradually squinted his eyes.
"Don't be nervous; I don't intend to be your enemy." The young man paused, and then added, "I hope we can collaborate."
"What do you mean?" Lv Bai tilted his head, despite asking, not making eye contact with the young man as if observing others nearby.
The young man said, "You can call me Ah Gu. Let's skip the pointless probing phase. I'm acting alone, and I suspect you are too."
"That's quite obvious."
Lv Bai gestured to the empty tent behind him, grinning nonchalantly, "Why should I cooperate with you?"
Lv Bai wasn't surprised the young man could identify him as a Death Fighter; what intrigued him was the man's apparent confidence in convincing him.
"Because you need my intel."
The self-proclaimed Ah Gu smiled, "You haven't received complete Death Fighter training, right?"
"What makes you say that?" Lv Bai remained expressionless.
"Want some?"
Ah Gu took out a pack of gum from his pocket and offered it to Lv Bai.
Seeing Lv Bai didn't reach out, he didn't mind, took out a piece for himself, peeled off the wrapper, and tossed it into his mouth, "It's obvious. To deal with a Death Fighter, you didn't just rely on the official forces of this military base but created such a big mess.
Wanna guess why everyone's gathered here but still lying low?
From your perspective, don't you find this unusual situation strange?"
"The Death Fighters have all gathered."
Lv Bai thought for a while, "To prepare to compete for something?"
Before Ah Gu could explain, Lv Bai realized.
"Lying low, they're waiting, which means this thing hasn't appeared yet. Oh, the virus antidote, or a vaccine?"
Ah Gu paused for a moment, smiled, and said, "Seems it was wise to seek collaboration with you.
If you had received Death Fighter training, you'd know that no matter the background of the Death Arena, there's always a Node that can greatly alter world progression. This Node could be an item, a living being, or even a breeze.
Once a Death Fighter holds this Node for more than twenty-four hours, their points double, and afterward, all points will be doubled."
After listening, Lv Bai didn't ask a naive question about what the points were for, instead, he asked, "So, Ah Gu, what's the cost?"
"You're sharp."
Ah Gu complimented him and then explained in detail, "The moment a Death Fighter secures a Node, the system panel will start broadcasting their real-time location until the Node changes hands."
Lv Bai said, "But in reality, you can't be 100% sure that the Node will appear in this military base, right?"
"Hmm, I admit I'm taking a gamble, including exposing myself to team up with you." Ah Gu was very candid.
Meanwhile, a young girl in a dark green school uniform made her way through the crowd, her face, full of collagen, showed a hint of anxiety.
When she saw Lv Bai sitting at the tent entrance, conversing with a young man in a white shirt, her anxiety quickly faded.
She hurried to Lv Bai's side, exhaling a breath of relief, "Lü, I heard there was a lot of chaos in your area last night, and gunfire too. Are you okay?"
"Wu Ya."
Lv Bai nodded and smiled, noticing Tian Wang and Ke Jiangni following behind Wu Ya through the crowded scene.
Seeing this, Ah Gu showed an amused expression.
After chewing for a long time, he spat out the tasteless gum, "Just as I thought, you're indeed a good person.
Anyway, you can consider it; it'd be best to give me an answer before tonight. If you agree, just give a thumbs up outside the tent, and I'll come find you then.
That's it for now; I won't interrupt your reunion." With that, he turned and left.
Wu Ya watched Ah Gu's retreating back, wondering if her presence had disrupted their conversation.
But she felt asking might come off as too affected, hesitating, before finally asking tentatively, "He's not from our school, is he?"
"Neither am I." Lv Bai replied immediately.