Card Room

Chapter 18 – Contract

The others heard the words ‘contract’ and were all stunned.

The No. 2 girl asked incredulously, “What contract?”

The teenager explained, “The Clubs room will match challengers with the same progress. The five of you have cleared all the D-grade secret rooms. Starting from the C-grade secret rooms, multiplayer and cooperation mode will open. A contract is a must have for the formation of a team.”

The girl wondered, “What if you choose the Clubs room first? Can you team up with someone else after clearing the instance?”

“No, for people who choose the Clubs room in the beginning, I will look at their performance and eliminate some players with poor psychological quality. If they win the game, they can keep the money first and if they find someone they want to form a team with, they can find a keeper and buy the contract.” The teenager’s eyes swept over the crowd as he spoke. “The five of you will now progress through the C-grade rooms and can purchase it directly.”

He raised his hand and three types of contracts appeared on the table.

The beginner contract book is worth 10,000 gold coins and allows two people to bind together in a team. The intermediate contract is 50,000 gold coins and allows five players to establish a contractual relationship. The advanced contract is expensive and requires 180,000 gold coins, allowing 8 to 15 players to establish a contractual relationship.

The gold coins in Xiao Lou’s hands were limited and the only person he wanted to bind to was Yu Hanjiang. He didn’t hesitate to buy a beginner contract book directly with 10,000 gold coins. Yu Hanjiang originally wanted to buy one but put away his gold coins when he saw that Xiao Lou had already bought it.

After getting the contract, Xiao Lou opened it and found there were some terms written on it.

[Contract Code for the Card Secret Rooms]

1. The challengers who establish the contractual relationship will immediately become fixed teammates. Any teammate who opens a new secret room will call other teammates from the contract to enter the world at the same time. People in other secret rooms aren’t affected by the call.

2. The first person to sign becomes the owner of the contract by default. The owner can cross out the names of other people on the contract and terminate the contractual relationship with the other party, but this isn’t allowed when a secret room is in progress.

3. The contract can be upgraded. A beginner contract binds two people. 40,000 coins must be paid to upgrade to the intermediate and 170,000 coins to upgrade to advanced. After the upgrade, the original contractual relationship still exists but the signature page will expand and new people can continue to be added.

4. Write your own name on the signature page with the special feather pen that comes with the contract and then give the contract to the person you want to invite. After the other party agrees and signs the book, the contract will automatically be generated.

5. In addition to the owner, the other signers can actively erase their name or die in the secret room. Then the contractual relationship is terminated. If the owner of the contract dies in the secret room, the owner of the contract is transferred to the second signer.

6. Everyone in the Card World is allowed to sign only one contract.

7. The last team code can be added and modified by the owner of the contract.

This book had a very good texture and was like the mysterious magic books in Western fantasy movies. The pure black leather cover is surrounded by a beautiful pattern border and the middle of the book had ‘Card World’s Contract Book’ stamped. The inner pages of the book were yellowed paper while the code text on the first page was red like blood. A red feathered pen was sandwiched in the middle of the page.

The second page was the signature page, which currently only had two spaces.

Xiao Lou picked up the pen and seriously and correctly wrote down the name ‘Xiao Lou.’

After writing, he smiled at the other three people and handed the contract book directly to Yu Hanjiang.

Yu Hanjiang looked at Xiao Lou, very simply picked up the pen and then wrote next to Xiao Lou’s signature, ‘Yu Hanjiang’ in handsome characters before handing it back to Xiao Lou.

The two people didn’t speak from beginning to end but acted tacitly like they had been negotiating for a long time.

The other three, “…”

They were bound so easily? The onlookers suddenly felt some envy.

No. 5 smiled. “No. 1 and No. 3, you originally knew each other?”

Yu Hanjiang faintly replied with a ‘hmm.’

“No wonder why you keep looking at each other’s eyes during the process of playing cards.”

Xiao Lou, “…”

It was only a few times. Was it so obvious?

The Cubs teenager stated, “For the remaining three, if you want to form a team then you can find me. In the next level, you will be randomly matched with single challengers and the type of person you are matched with can’t be guaranteed.”

The teenager consciously served as the ‘Newbie Village Guide NPC.’ He might have some facial nerve paralysis but he was very responsible and explained the rules clearly.

The No. 2 girl looked at the No. 7 girl. Before she could speak, the No. 7 sister took the initiative to open her mouth. “Let’s team up. I don’t have 10,000 gold coins but if we join our money together, we should have enough to buy a contract.”

The No. 2 girl’s eyes lit up. “Okay, how much more do you need?”

The two sisters joined up. They bought a contract with their money and quickly signed it.”

Only No. 5 was left with no teammates. He played so freely that neither of the two girls dared to team up with him. However, the man didn’t seem to mind. He sat in the chair like he was sitting on his own sofa.

Xiao Lou intuitively sensed that this braided man was very strong. His thinking was keen and he was bold. His skill when playing cards was very professional. Although his performance in Hearts, Diamonds and Spades weren’t very good, in the Clubs room, such a person would definitely become an existence for the opponents to fear—a gambler! Who would dare play so crazily? If someone had used a transfer bead in the first round then he would’ve been finished after going all in.

He perceived Xiao Lou’s look and No. 5 winked.”Why are you looking at me? Do you still want to play cards with me?”

Xiao Lou decisively shook his head. “No.”

No. 5 said with a smile, “If there is a chance then let’s drink together in the future.” He seemed to think of something and suddenly looked at the keeper. “Right, A of Clubs, I have been in the Card World for so long and never felt hungry. Don’t we need to eat here?”

Everyone, “……”

The moment he said this, everyone realized with surprise that they weren’t hungry. It seemed there was no feeling other than being tired?

They all looked at the keeper with doubts.

The Clubs teenager explained, “You don’t feel hungry because you are still in the D-grade secret rooms. The lowest level secret rooms will protect novices and shield your physiological metabolism. Once you leave the D-grade secret rooms, you will feel hungry, tired and in pain. The five senses of a normal human will be restored.”

Xiao Lou questioned, “Then the gold coins rewarded by the Clubs can buy things in the Card World in the future?”

“Yes. Gold coins are the only currency in the Card World.” The keeper looked at the clock on the wall and suggested, “The room is closing. You have three minutes to say goodbye to each other.”

There was a brief silence in the room.

After a few seconds, the No. 2 girl whispered, “E-Everyone, I am a student of Jiangzhou Medical University. I would like to ask if in the real world, you encountered any accidents before coming here?”

The No. 7 girl replied, “I am also at the medical university. I was taking a bus back from school when I got into a car accident.”

The No. 2 girl was startled. “Is it the school bus that drives to Minzhu Street in Jiangzhou City?”

“That’s right.”

Xiao Lou’s back was slightly stiff. “You were on the bus at that time?”

The two girls glanced at each other and nodded.

The two girls were actually medical students and perhaps they had also attended Xiao Lou’s class. If it was the real world then Xiao Lou would say hello to them gently. It was just that in today’s Card World, Xiao Lou found it difficult to take care of himself, let alone his students.

Jiangzhou City’s Minzhu Street happened to be the place where Xiao Lou’s accident happened. It seemed that many people died in this car accident.

Xiao Lou didn’t reveal his identity and glanced at Yu Hanjiang in an inquiring manner. The latter shook his head and said, “I wasn’t in a car accident. I will tell you later.”

No. 5 shrugged. “I have never been to Jiangzhou but I did have an accident in the real world.”

The No. 7 girl seemed to think of something and suddenly trembled. “Then my sister also came to this world? She was sitting with me at the time! She is in poor health. How can she live in a place like Zombie Town? Would she have been given to the zombies…” Thinking of the cruel picture, her body started trembling uncontrollably and she couldn’t continue to speak.

The No. 2 girl walked over and gently held her hand. “Don’t be sad. Maybe your sister is still alive. The Zombie Town doesn’t have to be cleared in a violent manner and she can live if she is fast.”

The No. 7 girl made a ‘hmm’ sound and bowed her head with frustration.

The keeper declared, “The room is closing in 30 seconds. Please return to your personal space.”

The people turned to leave. As the No. 7 girl was walking to the door, she suddenly turned back and cried out, “My sister is called Liu Qiao, she is 18 years old and just admitted to university. If you meet her in the future, I hope you can help me tell her—live well!”

She was looking at Xiao Lou, apparently trusting him the most among these people.

Xiao Lou had to say warmly, “Okay, if I meet her then I’ll tell her. You must also live well.”

The girl nodded at Xiao Lou and returned to her personal space.

No. 5 waved to them. “Goodbye, everyone. I will continue to go to Clubs. If you don’t want to bump into me then it is best not to go to the Clubs room.”

Xiao Lou and Yu Hanjiang glanced at each other and didn’t say anything.

The room was about to close and they turned to walk into the personal space corresponding to their number. They were bound and no matter what secret room was opened, they would pull in the other party. There was no rush to talk here.

However, the moment he entered his personal space, Xiao Lou saw a familiar tall figure.

Yu Hanjiang, “…”

Xiao Lou, “…”

Why did they meet in the personal space? Was this intercommunication?

The two men simultaneously turned to look at the Clubs teenager.

The teenager spoke with a blank expression. “Due to the contractual relationship, you are bound to go to instances together. I am too lazy to split into a separate A of Clubs to take care of both of you. The questions you have to ask and what secret room to choose can be discussed together.”

Xiao Lou suddenly felt that this little guy was occasionally a bit cute. He was lazy and didn’t want to split into two A of Clubs, so he just merged the two people in a team together.

Just right!

Xiao Lou immediately took off his mask and Yu Hanjiang did the same.

The two men finally saw the long-lost familiar face.

This glance was truly as if it was a lifetime ago.

Their faces hadn’t changed or their appearance from memories. However, both pairs of eyes were full of thick fatigue.

“I haven’t seen you for a long time.” Yu Hanjiang walked up to Xiao Lou and whispered, “I didn’t expect to meet you here.”

“I also didn’t expect it.”

They clearly had a lot to say but didn’t know where to start. The room was silent for a moment.

Then Yu Hanjiang asked, “You were in a car accident before coming to this world?”

“Yes, on the seventh day after the new year, I had dinner and went to the supermarket to buy some things. I was crossing the road when I encountered a bus suddenly rushing over. It happened to be the place that the two girls just mentioned so I think they should’ve died in the same car accident…” Xiao Lou didn’t want to recall that bloody scene and closed his eyes. “Group Leader Yu, what about you?”

“There was a bombing case and some accidents occurred during the execution of the mission.” In front of those other people, it wasn’t good to disclose his policeman identity but it wasn’t necessary to hide it from Xiao Lou. Yu Hanjiang explained simply, “It was also the seventh day, in the afternoon in the suburbs.”

“So you didn’t get my WeChat?”

“WeChat? My phone is always on silent while I’m on a mission.” Yu Hanjiang wondered, “Were you looking for me?”

“It was no big deal. I was just asking you when you have time for a meal together.”

“…” Yu Hanjiang remembered that he told Xiao Lou on the night of the Spring Festival that they would eat together.

Unfortunately, this meal couldn’t be fulfilled. They encountered accidents on the same day and were actually reunited in the Card World.

Xiao Lou could imagine how dangerous Yu Hanjiang’s situation was at the time and didn’t ask for the details of the incident. Instead, he walked in front of the card wall and changed the topic. “Group Leader Yu, you must want to go back to the real world?”

Yu Hanjiang followed and looked at the huge card wall in front of him. “You as well?”

Xiao Lou smiled. “Of course. ”

He turned to Yu Hanjiang, holding out his hand and declaring with firm eyes, “We will clear the card rooms together and leave here!”

Facing Xiao Lou’s clear eyes, Yu Hanjiang nodded carefully and whispered, “Okay.”

The man held Xiao Lou’s hand tightly.

The eyes of the two people met in the air.

In this strange Card World, they met a familiar person.

The body temperature of the other person passed through the fingertips, seeming to inject a great force into their hearts.

From now on, they were comrades in arms.

No matter how difficult the future, they would go side by side.

[End of Volume 1]