Thriller Paradise Chapter 307: Ascending Tower Chronicles (Vii) - Novel Cool

Chapter 307: Ascending Tower Chronicles (Vii)

Chapter 307: Ascending Tower Chronicles (Vii)

Hong Hu had entered the gaming industry in his teens, carving his path without support from any studio. He’d long grown accustomed to life’s pressures and the scorn of family and friends—those were trivial hardships.

He’d been suppressed, deceived, faced cutthroat competition, and even endured intimidation. This made him cautious when dealing with unfamiliar people.

The past decade’s bitterness and struggles were etched deep in his heart. Though young, his experiences had forged a depth of character beyond his years. Hearing Feng Bu Jue’s evasive remarks, he immediately understood—the other party clearly either couldn’t or wouldn’t reveal the truth.

Sensing this, Hong Hu tactfully shifted topics, avoiding further probing or mentioning his suspicions about the derivative being. He casually steered the conversation with the other three toward lighter matters.

Feng Bu Jue spent five minutes explaining the principles of *-233 in detail and briefly outlined the settings of , satisfying the trio’s curiosity.

Soon, the four approached the wall.

The system hadn’t repaired the floor near the wall, leaving a rectangular gap about nine meters long and one meter wide. From afar, its depth was unclear, but up close, they saw it was less than a meter deep.

“In the entire lobby, only the distance between these two pillars is exactly nine meters,” Feng Bu Jue explained. “Other distances between pillars, walls, or objects have no relation to the number nine, whether measured in decimeters, feet, or other units. The only connection is the ninety-degree angles between walls, pillars, and the floor.” He paused, “But from a puzzle-solving perspective, the unique answer is more likely correct. Hence, this must be the breakthrough point.”

Hong Hu spoke up, “Though I suggested checking distances earlier, I admit I didn’t take it seriously myself.” He turned to Feng Bu Jue, “I didn’t expect you to confirm precise measurements by eye alone. That’s truly…”

“It’s not by eye,” Feng Bu Jue interrupted. “I have measuring skills. Every six months, I measure my stride length—it’s my ruler.” He glanced around, “In large buildings, there’s more margin for error, but in ordinary homes, a single walk-through lets me gauge room dimensions. I can instantly detect hidden layers or structural anomalies.”

At his words, Qiu Feng, Ji Chang, and Hong Hu exchanged astonished glances. Ignoring their reactions, Feng Bu Jue continued, “The human body itself is a powerful measuring device. Heartbeat, pulse, breathing—these can all be used for timing. Height, stride, arm span measure distance. With training, even weight estimation can reach ten-point precision.” His eyes gleamed, “If you’re interested, I can teach you to calculate the average density of a bucket of feces without tools…”

“Feng Bu Jue… no, Senior Brother,” Qiu Feng interjected, stunned. “May I ask what you do in real life?” His mind raced with theories like “mad scientist.”

“Artist,” Feng Bu Jue replied, the word long bottled up inside him.

The trio exchanged skeptical looks, their minds in disarray.

“In any case,” Feng Bu Jue redirected, “since we’ve confirmed the target location is upstairs, our objective is clear.”

Above them, the ceiling mirrored the floor’s rectangular gap, wide enough for passage. But Feng Bu Jue, ever cautious, decided to test it first.

He picked up a large debris chunk from the floor gap, hurled it upward with one arm. The piece arced, landing on the second-floor tiles two seconds later. No traps triggered.

“Looks safe. Let me go first,” Qiu Feng volunteered. In such situations, he preferred proactive action.

This highlighted strategists’ differences. Two wise sages—【Brilliant and Courageous】 and 【Steady Strategist】—embodied contrasting styles.

Yu Zhong Ji Chang, for instance, would’ve shared Feng Bu Jue’s caution, testing every possibility before risking danger. Qiu Feng, however, assumed safety unless proven otherwise.

With a shout, he leapt, kicking off the wall once before landing on the second floor. His teammates watched calmly—such feats were routine for near-thirty-level players. After level twenty, failing to jump five meters off a wall made one reluctant to greet teammates.

“Status?” Ji Chang asked.

“Safe. Come up,” Qiu Feng replied.

The trio exchanged glances, then followed, springing onto the second floor.

The second floor mirrored the first—identical floor tiles, pillar positions, and illumination devices. The key difference? The first floor’s ceiling stood four meters high, while the second’s soared near eight meters.

At the far wall, no door existed. The team knew the 23x23x23 room lay beyond.

After scanning the area, their gazes settled on the ceiling’s center—a two-meter-wide circular hole. A steel pipe descended from it, anchored to the second floor. It led directly to the third floor.

“So we’re supposed to climb the pipe?” Hong Hu mused.

“Doubt it’s for dancing,” Feng Bu Jue quipped.

“Feng Bu Jue… self-control,” Ji Chang advised earnestly.

“Now you mention it, I’m already picturing it,” Qiu Feng groaned. “Unnecessary Terror Value spike.”

Hong Hu adjusted his glasses, “Your tactics are admirable, but your thinking…”

“Without limits?” Feng Bu Jue grinned. “Humor’s innate. I’d rather make lowbrow jokes than say something like, ‘Will a firefighter slide down this pipe?’”

“So you’re saying you could be refined, but choose not to?” Hong Hu caught on instantly.

“Flattery,” Feng Bu Jue replied shamelessly.

“Was that a compliment?!”

As they spoke, they gathered beneath the hole. The third floor lacked light sources—the hole’s edges were pitch-black. From the second floor’s glow, they saw the pipe’s top welded to the third ceiling, no higher floors connected.

“We should explore this floor first,” Qiu Feng suggested. “Also, notice the building’s exterior—each floor’s height and windows match, but the interior…”

“A facade,” Hong Hu reasoned. “Or perhaps we’ve been in another Space since entering.”

The moment the Energy Wall appeared, all those concerns became irrelevant. Not to mention that *-233, or Feng Bu Jue's Npcfriend..." Ji Chang remarked, "Frankly, since I started playing this game, I've barely encountered any purely sci-fi scenarios. Almost every instance has some supernatural elements."

"Feng Bu Jue replied, "Either way is fine... but can I now go fetch that concrete fragment and try tossing it to the third floor?"

"Heh..." Qiu Feng dryly chuckled, his lips twitching, "No one's stopping you..."

He was right. No one would stop Feng Bu Jue—truth be told, no one could.

After a few words, the four still decided to give it a shot, splitting up to inspect the area. Since the second floor was nearly identical to the first, they confirmed there were no triggerable mechanisms in even less time than before.

Soon, they regrouped beside the steel pipe.

Feng Bu Jue lifted the concrete chunk he'd thrown up from the first floor and hurled it to the third. As expected, they only heard the sound of it landing—no anomalies occurred.

"If you're going up first, at least take a flashlight", Feng Bu Jue calmly told Qiu Feng.

"So I volunteer once, and you're determined to screw me over completely..." Qiu Feng retorted helplessly.

"I'll go this time", Hong Hu interjected. "Qiu Feng's already taken risks multiple times. From now on, we should rotate exploration duties." He paused, giving his teammates a moment to object.

When no one responded after two seconds, Hong Hu continued, "Judging from the second floor's situation, not every level is dangerous, nor does each require puzzle-solving to pass. My preliminary theory is that odd-numbered floors pose threats, while even-numbered ones serve as rest and cushion zones." He turned to Feng Bu Jue, suddenly asking, "Feng Bu Jue, you should have a flashlight available, right?"

"Yes." Feng Bu Jue reached into his coat pocket and actually produced a flashlight.

Hong Hu had already suspected this when Feng Bu Jue told Qiu Feng to "bring a flashlight."

"Oh?" As Hong Hu accepted the device, he briefly examined the item. "The brand and instructions are in German..."

Qiu Feng and Ji Chang immediately caught on.

Feng Bu Jue admitted bluntly, "Because I bought it at a convenience store nearby."

"You said you only bought snacks!" Qiu Feng exclaimed.

"I never said I only bought snacks", Feng Bu Jue shook his head. "I also got a folding knife, a lighter, a palm-sized notebook, a ballpoint pen, and two of these battery-powered flashlights."

"You mean you bought snacks alongside that stuff!" Qiu Feng roared.

Ji Chang asked, "Wait... you don't speak German. How did you know how much to pay at checkout?"

"The convenience store's cash register displays Arabic numerals", Feng Bu Jue said, pulling out a wallet and showing a 20-euro note with pride. "Euro bills have Arabic numerals too, you know."

"What's the point of showing off stolen money?!"

"Oh, by the way, that guy I robbed was using a Nokia cell phone." Feng Bu Jue put away his wallet and pulled out a mobile phone. "Look, a communication device worthy of firearms-grade quality. It still has signal here."

"Not only are you shamelessly admitting robbery, you're now flaunting stolen goods!"

Qiu Feng's face twitched—another victim of Feng Bu Jue's knack for provoking commentary...

"You guys suddenly made things lose all tension..." Hong Hu gave up watching. Gripping the flashlight between his right index and middle fingers, he used his left hand and legs to climb the steel pipe.

The climb was only a few meters. Soon, Hong Hu's upper body reached the third floor's platform. However, he didn't immediately step into the darkness. Instead, he stabilized himself on the steel pipe with his legs, gripping it with one hand while sweeping the flashlight beam around.

The third floor's space was equally vast, with the same four-meter height as the first. Without artificial light sources and limited by the flashlight's range, Hong Hu could only observe a dozen meters around the opening.

"At least the flashlight's beam shows nothing in immediate vicinity", Hong Hu called down. "Except for that building fragment Feng Bu Jue threw up." He extended his legs and leapt onto the third floor. "Come up. It's safe."

"Won't you check the surroundings thoroughly before letting us up?" Feng Bu Jue asked.

Hong Hu increasingly felt this guy was shameless, though he held his tongue. "If I had eyes in the back of my head and two flashlights, I'd consider that."

Feng Bu Jue smiled, producing another flashlight from his pocket. Without a word, he leapt four meters upward, using the steel pipe for a brief push before landing beside Hong Hu.

Clicking on the second flashlight, he illuminated another direction. "You're scared, aren't you?"

Hong Hu had no retort...

He was scared.

In such an empty, pitch-black, unfamiliar environment, alone with only a flashlight for company—anyone would feel uneasy.

"Heh... Stay here and keep watch. I'll go check things out", Feng Bu Jue said lightly.

This surprised Hong Hu. From the scenario's start, Feng Bu Jue had mostly hung back, leaving risks to his teammates. Now he was showing unexpected bravery.

"Hey... This isn't the time to play hero..." Hong Hu warned.

"Do I look like someone who'd do that?" Feng Bu Jue countered.

Truthfully, Hong Hu didn't think he did.

Fear wasn't just an expression—it was an infectious pheromone. Pretending fearlessness versus genuine fearlessness were easily distinguishable.

Feng Bu Jue was undeniably the latter.

As he entered this horror-tinged environment, his expression resembled someone walking into a maid café. No trace of the typical nervousness—no furrowed brows, no exaggerated shouting, no readiness to fight staff—that contrasted sharply with ordinary folks.

"I'll be back soon", Feng Bu Jue called down. "You two climb up first. Stay with Hong Hu by the hole. If I run into trouble, you three handle the backup."

As Ji Chang and Qiu Feng ascended the steel pipe, Feng Bu Jue had already strode ahead without looking back. He moved farther and farther, soon becoming a distant light in the darkness.

Feng Bu Jue's proactive scouting request stemmed from multiple considerations.

First, he possessed Soul Intent and a psionic weapon for defense. Even without using items from his satchel, his close-combat skills ranked among the game's elite—certainly superior to his three strategist companions.

Second, he remained unaffected by environmental factors. Oppressive atmospheres, eerie darkness, fear, sudden screams, or ghostly apparitions—nothing could disrupt him.

Third, he wouldn't get lost. His mind constantly tracked his steps, maintaining precise spatial awareness. No one knew what this floor might hold—if silent-moving black walls existed, players might find their entry point vanished upon returning.

In short, having Feng Bu Jue scout first was prudent. His judgment wouldn't falter from fear; traps or monsters wouldn't easily eliminate him; and panic wouldn't disconnect him. His three teammates simply needed to wait at the accessible exit hole for his report.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end

Report