"Congratulations, you successfully survived the game and earned 88 exchange coins."
"Congratulations, your permanent talent—[Divine] God-Given Time—has leveled up to Level 2; Talent Effect: You now have 10 minutes of observation time before each game begins."
"Congratulations, your performance in this game has been recognized by the gods; you've received a God-tier talent: Divine Authority."
"Permanent Talent—[Divine] Divine Authority, Talent Level: 1; Talent Effect: Before each game, you can add one fake game rule."
"Congratulations, you received a viewer tip and obtained a game item—the Z92 Pistol. Tip message: Stay alive a few more times; I subscribed to you."
"You now have ten minutes to make exchanges. After ten minutes, you will exit the game. Unused exchange coins can be saved and exchanged after the next game!"
The screen in front of him had already started the countdown for exchanges, and Yu Tu didn't have time to mull over what the new talent and viewer tip really meant.
On the exchange screen, new items had been added this time:
——
10 Days of Lifespan: 20 exchange coins;
10,000 Cash: 1 exchange coin;
Game Item – Z92 Pistol Bullet (1 round): 1 exchange coin, Limit 0/3;
Game Item—Forged Long Blade: 20 exchange coins;
Game Item—Forged Dagger: 10 exchange coins;
Friendly Tip: You might want to save up exchange coins! With enough, you can buy high-level items!
——
Yu Tu looked at the screen, speechless. Damn it, even life lifespan inflates in price!
Fortunately, he still had over 20 days of lifespan left, so he wasn't in a rush to exchange for more.
Bullets were a must. Damn it, they're limited—only three rounds available.
Forget the long blade; he didn't know how to use that. The dagger was nice, 10 coins.
That left 75 coins, which he immediately exchanged for 750,000 in cash.
As for the suggestion about saving coins, Yu Tu scoffed in his heart: "Save your damn coins; I might not even survive next time! I'll enjoy it while I can!"
This time, the game screen had a new "Storage" button. When Yu Tu clicked it, the screen switched.
He saw a pistol with three bullets and a dagger next to it.
Yu Tu eyed the pistol greedily. Too bad he couldn't take it out, but since it was labeled a game item, he figured it could be used inside the game.
The countdown kept ticking, and this time, there was no forced logout or coin wipe.
Yu Tu clicked "Exit Game" in the lower right corner and once again lost consciousness.
When he woke up, he was lying on the bed in his short-term rental apartment.
Outside, night had fallen.
Yu Tu checked the time. From the moment he entered the game until now, it had taken a total of eight hours.
Which meant, subtracting the four hours spent in the game, he'd been unconscious for four hours too.
He used his phone app to log into the cloud storage of his surveillance system and checked the footage during his unconscious period.
According to the footage, as soon as Yu Tu placed his right hand over his left chest, he collapsed onto the bed instantly.
During that time, he stayed completely still, not moving at all. Only after eight hours did the Yu Tu in the footage slowly open his eyes and wake up.
This thing called the Divine Cage... it really was goddamn mysterious. What even was it?
Now Yu Tu was even more curious—what happened to the people who died in the Divine Cage? What was their situation in the real world?
Also, what exactly was the purpose of the Divine Cage?
He opened his banking app. Sure enough, his bank balance now showed an additional 750,000. He really wanted to go to the bank to confirm the source of the transfer but was also worried it might bring unnecessary trouble.
Yu Tu lay back on his bed, recalling the experiences from the last two games.
Damn, I have to admit—it was crazy thrilling!
He still couldn't get over how wild Folding Paper had been. Maybe it was the brush with death, but her madness and openness gave Yu Tu a kind of pleasure he'd never experienced before.
Plus, it seemed like people had way more stamina in the Divine Cage world—made it even better!
Yu Tu was pretty pleased. Two games, and both times he got the best rewards.
And he even received a tip.
A tip?
And... a subscription?
Could it be that the events inside the Divine Cage were being broadcast live somewhere?
The footage of Bunny Ears would definitely be fan-service gold!
Yu Tu also recalled Bunny Ears' talent: Loyalty of the Betrayer.
Clearly, this talent was tailor-made for her. It seems like whoever controls the Divine Cage was a big supporter of Bunny Ears' "subjugation" methods!
Maybe it was for ratings?
And come to think of it, his own talents matched his situation too.
The first game was about racing against time—so he was given the talent to know the rules in advance.
In the second game, he tricked people with a fake rule—so he was given the power to create a fake rule.
Yu Tu placed his hands behind his head and stared into the void outside the window. From now on, he needed to put more thought into this. If his performance in the Divine Cage was flashy enough, he could win better rewards!
As for what the Divine Cage actually was?
Was it like those savior systems in other novels? Or some kind of live survival reality show?
Who cares—Yu Tu just knew that the Divine Cage was thrilling, fun, and made him money!
Plus... it extended his life!
That alone was enough.
He was already someone on the verge of death. So, drink today while you still can!
No—live today while you still can!
Yu Tu touched his stomach. It had been eight hours, and he wasn't even hungry.
8 PM. Prime time! What a waste it'd be to sleep now.
Yu Tu's nights belonged to bars and hotels. Over the past five days, he'd gone from a total bar noob to a regular who knew all the ins and outs.
For example, Yu Tu now knew exactly how much the bar's front desk girl charged for a night out.
Last time she'd satisfied him, so he gave her double.
"Brother Yu, you're here!"
Seeing Yu Tu enter, the girl enthusiastically rushed over. This new guy was a big spender!
"Haha, when am I ever not here?"
Yu Tu smoothly wrapped an arm around her shoulder and headed toward a private booth.
"How should we arrange things tonight?"
"Tonight, everything is up to my pretty little Lin."
Xiao Lin giggled with a hand over her mouth: "Brother Yu, rest assured. Your little sis will take care of you properly tonight—you'll be very satisfied!"
She led Yu Tu to a semi-private booth. After some flirty small talk, she scanned the bar and quickly found him a companion.
"Yan Fei! Haven't seen you in a while!"
Yu Tu looked in the direction Lin was pointing—a girl in a white mini dress, tall and beautiful, clearly quite young.
Yu Tu's hand tightened slightly on Lin's waist, a sign that he approved of Yan Fei.
"Lin-jie, I was prepping for my graduation thesis these past few weeks, so I couldn't come."
"I knew it! Come here, let me introduce you. This is Brother Yu."
"Brother Yu, this is Yan Fei—about to graduate and still job hunting. Maybe you can offer some guidance?"
Yu Tu looked at Yan Fei, who sat right beside him without hesitation. He removed his hand from inside Lin's clothes. "Sure, sure. Helping a fellow student is my honor!"
"Haha, that's great. I was worried Brother Yu might be bored tonight. But with Yan Fei around, I'm sure you two will have plenty to chat about. I'll get the drinks ready—enjoy yourselves!"
Yu Tu pointed at Yan Fei and said to Lin, "Bring drinks based on what she likes."
Lin gave a little smirk, understanding the message: Yan Fei wasn't one of the girls who peddled drinks.
She walked off, swaying her hips, and Yan Fei casually hooked her arm around Yu Tu's—the same one that had just been up Lin's shirt.
"Brother Yu, what do you do for a living?"
"Me? I'm unemployed."
"Brother Yu, stop teasing me~"
"I'm serious. My job's pretty flexible—it feels just like being jobless."
"Then you must be some kind of boss~"
"Not really, just some small-time business. What about you? Come here often?"
"Not too much. I stop by with friends sometimes."
"Where's your friend? Bring her over too."
"She's busy today, so I came alone."
"Well, introduce me next time…"
Yan Fei was really something—great in every way. Yu Tu was very satisfied. That night, he even brought her to "work out" and taught her how to earn money.
As a senior, it was only right!
When her boyfriend called, Yan Fei was breathless from running on the treadmill.
To punish her for not focusing, Yu Tu cranked the speed up.
Her boyfriend, worried sick on the phone, kept begging her not to overexert herself!
The next morning when they parted, Yan Fei sincerely thanked Yu Tu for his guidance, saying she'd learned so much, and left her contact info so they could keep in touch.
She also enthusiastically offered to introduce her bestie to Yu Tu.
Yu Tu looked at the photos and thought, "Teaching one or two makes no difference. So, why not both?