The Trembling World Chapter 398

Chapter 398 - Iron Hook

TL: xDh20, LifeisaJourney
What was definitely impossible was heading down to the ground level to fight them off. Even if it was Liu Gan, there was no end to the amount of zombies. His field of vision wasn't capable of seeing the end of this horde of Black-Spot Variants. It wasn't that Liu Gan was not confident in his skills to kill his way through, it was that the walls were very slippery. Even these zombies weren't able to climb up. Liu Gan believed that if he fell down, it would be hard for him to climb back up.
So to pass this trial, the access path definitely wasn't by the floor below. It should be above.
To confirm if there was a route above, Liu Gan shone his light on the ceiling to search for clues.
Lo and behold, right above his head by the edge of the cliff, there were several rows of iron hooks. These hooks were spaced half a meter apart, and stretched endlessly into the darkness. This was the test of 'valor' that Liu Gan was expecting. Seems like they had to rely on these iron hooks to swing straight into the darkness. Since both hands were going to be occupied, they wouldn't have any flashlights to know where the end is. This was truly a test of courage. Not knowing where the end is, but the courage to keep on going.
There was also the unknown question of whether the iron rod would hold up under the weight of the person. Without knowing how far to go, and endless amounts of Black-Spot Variants waiting for you to drop, to reach out both hands onto the iron hook required a lot of courage. All it took was just a little fatigue to fall down into the abyss.
Originally, Liu Gan thought this was all a scam or a trap. He didn't really think he would have to go through three legit trials. Qiu Zi must have felt played by the first trial, so after discussing it with Zhan Nan Shan, they believed it was a trap. They knew that there must be a good reward at the end of the trials, but at the same time they didn't want to continue taking this risk. So when Zhan Nan Shan left the Beginner Village, he wasn't be able to taste the fruits of this treasure trove. As a result, he handed it over to Liu Gan as a sign of good faith.
"Seems like we have to swing our way through. If you feel afraid, then stay here. It might be bad if we started going and then you fell when you ran out of energy," Liu Gan explained to the other players. Even at this point, he would continue if others stayed behind.
This was the moment when each player decided what they were going to do. While looking over the edge, players revealed how fearful they were. This wasn't just a trial of courage, it was also a trial of strength. The moment you started the climb, you had to keep going. There was no way for you to remain attached to the hook. This relied on the strength of arms and hands to hold onto the iron hook and swing across to the next iron hook, just like monkey bars.
If midway through the climb, they looked down at the crowd of zombies reaching out to the player, then fear might take over.
The most important question that hadn't been answered yet, how long was it to the end? Will the iron hooks be able to withstand this many people climbing across? If any iron hook wasn't strong enough, then it might collapse; the subsequent players wouldn't be able to pass through the gap. The consequences would be severe.
Looking carefully down, there were a few normal zombies mixed into the crowd of Black-Spot Variants. However, there were some other strange-looking Variant zombies that they hadn't encountered before. So it was hard to tell what type of attacks it could use. With this many unknown variables mixed in, if someone were to fall down into the crowd of zombie, they definitely wouldn't be able to live.
The initial climb upward was similar to a rock wall. No one knew who installed these iron hooks or the process by which the iron rods were installed in the rocks. The iron rod nearest to the platform they were on, was over three meters up. Every player there, based on their current capabilities, could easily jump to reach the first iron hook.
Liu Gan looked and asked around one more time. They were fearful and hesitant They didn't immediately respond to Liu Gan. Clearly, they had a lot of questions that they wanted to ask, but there was no definitive answer to their doubts. They questioned themselves if they had the confidence to make their way over.
The biggest motivation for climbing would be like the mainframe had said, that there would be rewards. Even if there were rewards, would there be enough to go around for everyone? If after all this hard work, their reward got allocated to someone else, then this would be pointless. Up to now, there hadn't been much risk involved, Liu Gan had powerleveled them this whole way. So if they replied 'no' to Liu Gan, they had already earned enough to call it quits. Since Liu Gan didn't want to force anyone who wasn't willing to go forward, the majority of the players wanted to retreat.
"Mainframe! If there is a reward for reaching the other side, does everyone get one?" a curious player shouted. Since they've already reached this far, he didn't want to simply call it quits.
"Yes, everyone that passes through these three trials will be able to obtain their own reward. They won't be able to steal away someone else's reward," the mainframe answered the player's question.
"It feels like that is such a fake answer…"
"Is it really true! Do you think this is a game? Rewards bound to the player?"
"Do we need to register first?"
"Liars everywhere. This must be one of them liars…"
As other players started debating and doubting the mainframe's credibility. At the same time, they talked themselves out of attempting the trial.
"You don't have much time left. Better hurry and start the trial or else you might fall off the cliff!" The mainframe started speaking again. This time the tunnel behind them had a heavy metal door close shut.
Boom!
That was when a thick metal framed door come down, shutting off their only escape route. Once again, they were left with no choice. This time, the ground beneath their feet started to move forward like a treadmill.
The players were all startled. They watched their feet get dragged closer to the edge of the cliff. Now they had no choice! If they didn't climb now, then they will fall into the grasp of the zombies. This was the moment of do or die!
Liu Gan gave NaNa specific instructions. NaNa bit onto one of the iron hooks and swung herself onto the second iron hook. She was the guinea pig that was going to test the waters - to see if the iron hooks were indeed sturdy.
Liu Gan stood up and jumped onto the first hook that NaNa had bit onto.Using his strength he swung forward. Now that things had turned out this way, he was going to thoroughly investigate this place. Even if there was a trap, he would go down fighting! There must be a way through if he fought vigorously!
The players watched as the treadmill sped up, pushing them ever closer to the edge. Staying would only result in death. They could only muster up their strength and courage to continue after Liu Gan on the climb.
The iron hooks were quite sturdy. It didn't seem like the ceiling would collapse any time soon. Using their strength to climb was a huge challenge to the players, even though their muscles and bodies had been enhanced numerous times, their stamina was finite. Once it was used up, then what they feared most would happen.
As such, they had no more choices. They couldn't just wait there. They had to push forward since death awaited if they stood around.