The hall, which had just seemed quite leisurely and even peaceful, immediately became noisy and chaotic.
"What?"
"In an hour?"
"Everyone is forced to participate? Isn't this too sudden!"
Clearly, many people were not mentally prepared at all.
Yesterday, when the basic rules were introduced in the hall, although it was emphasized that "the Arcade may open at any time," it still caught everyone off guard.
More importantly, this time, the game was mandatory for everyone.
According to the basic rules originally introduced, the Arcade's games had a certain selective nature.
It might only select a portion of the people to participate, and it wasn't necessarily always mandatory; there were also voluntary situations.
This made many people, more or less, harbor a sense of wishful thinking.
They felt that the trial game wouldn't start so soon, and even if it did, it wouldn't necessarily fall on them right away.
And at this moment, the shattering of this wishful thinking intensified the panic.
Some people sat helplessly on chairs or sofas, their faces pale, while others paced around anxiously.
"Everyone, don't panic, we still have an hour!
"Since this game is called 'Blood Poker,' it means it's related to playing cards. Everyone can think carefully about the rules of poker!"
The person speaking was Wang Yongxin. It was clear that he was also anxious at this moment, but he was still trying hard to calm down.
Li Renshu's voice was even calmer.
"This is the first game we've encountered. Since everyone is participating, it shouldn't be too difficult.
"The most important thing now is to stay rational and calm."
At the same time, she held the hand of Qin Yao, who was trembling beside her, and patted it gently to soothe her.
The words of these two people had a certain effect, and the originally panicked crowd calmed down a bit.
Cai Zhiyuan, holding a book, walked quickly towards Fu Chen.
It was obviously also found in the book reading area.
Seeing the book's title, Fu Chen's eyes lit up. He hurriedly said loudly, "Everyone, gather around, here's a book about the rules of poker.
"We still have an hour. Let's quickly understand the basic rules of various games, it might be helpful."
Everyone cast grateful glances at Cai Zhiyuan and Fu Chen.
It was obvious that within this one hour, apart from a few people with strong mental fortitude like Cao Haichuan, most people were very panicked.
And while cramming at the last minute might not necessarily be useful, it was enough to stabilize morale.
Fu Chen quickly flipped through the book. Of course, he wouldn't explain it from beginning to end; there simply wasn't enough time.
"I'll focus on a few popular rules: Texas Hold'em, 21, Dou Dizhu, Golden Flower, Solitaire...
"Let's start with Texas Hold'em, which is the most likely possibility."
Everyone listened with rapt attention as time ticked by, second by second.
00:01
00:00
As the countdown on the big screen reached zero, everyone's vision went black, and then they lost consciousness.
...
"Beep—"
A sharp buzzing sound rang out, and Qin Yao gradually woke up.
She then realized she was firmly bound to an iron chair.
"Hello? Is anyone there?"
Qin Yao tried to speak, but received no response.
There was a special metal device on her neck, restricting the movement of her head.
Not only that, Qin Yao's legs, waist, and other key areas were locked to the chair. Her left hand was locked to the table in front of her, with her elbow, wrist, and even fingers firmly fixed, unable to move an inch.
Her right hand could move freely, but when she tried to touch these devices, they were seamlessly fitted and didn't budge at all.
Qin Yao looked around. This was an extremely cramped single cubicle, less than 1.5 meters wide, with only a dim ceiling light, which couldn't help but instill fear.
The table in front was covered with a green cloth, along with a deck of playing cards and two mechanical arms that looked simple and rugged in style.
On the left wall of the cubicle was an introduction to chip exchange.
On the right wall of the cubicle was an introduction to the rules of "Simplified Golden Flower" and a detailed chart of hand rankings.
Qin Yao felt her heart rate accelerating and her body temperature rising. Clearly, this strange and oppressive environment was causing her immense psychological stress.
Suddenly, a sound came from the front.
Qin Yao followed the sound and saw a very small speaker, composed of just a few simple circular holes, so the sound quality was also muffled.
Combined with the emotionless electronic voice, it added another layer of horror to the atmosphere here.
[Welcome to "Blood Poker."]
[You are currently in the game's chip exchange area.]
[The machine in front of you is the "Chip Exchanger," used to exchange for chips needed in the multiplayer gambling game.]
[The exchange rate is: 100ML of blood = 10000 points in chips = 10000 minutes of visa time.]
[When exchanging, you must gamble against the "Chip Exchanger" according to the rules of "Simplified Golden Flower."]
[For every 10000 points in chips exchanged, you must gamble at least 1 round and at most 20 rounds before you can leave.]
[After the gambling session ends, based on the win/loss outcome, the "Chip Exchanger" will issue the exchanged chips to the player and allow the player to unlock the restraints and move freely.]
[Now, please state the amount of chips you wish to exchange, in units of 10000 chips. The initial exchange must be at least 20000 chips.]
The cubicle fell silent again, leaving only Qin Yao's somewhat rapid breathing.
After a moment, with no further electronic voice, Qin Yao gradually sorted out her chaotic thoughts.
"This machine can exchange for chips. What are the chips for? They should be used in the upcoming game.
"But the exchange method isn't direct; I have to gamble against this machine once...
"And it's exchanged with blood."
Qin Yao looked at her left hand, firmly fixed to the table by the device, and then at the suspended device above and to her left.
It was some kind of special blood-drawing device. The needle glinted coldly, and the device was connected to a large blood storage tank, smooth and transparent, marked with different scales in units of 100ML.
This made Qin Yao instinctively feel resistant and scared.
But she also knew she had no choice. If she did nothing, the game could not continue.
[Now, please state the amount of chips you wish to exchange, in units of 10000 chips. The initial exchange must be at least 20000 chips.]
The muffled prompt reminded her again.
"The initial exchange requires at least 200ML? This amount of blood, it shouldn't be dangerous, right."
Qin Yao thought for a long time before finally mustering the courage to say, "Exchange... 20000 chips."
[Exchange beginning.]
After the muffled electronic voice ended, the device on the upper left made a harsh scraping sound and started to move.
Qin Yao felt the restraints on her left arm tighten instantly. The cold metal ring squeezed her painfully, making the veins on her arm bulge.
A sudden sharp pain made Qin Yao's body tremble involuntarily. The blood collection needle had pierced her vein, and crimson blood flowed through the needle and tube into the storage tank.
It stopped only when it reached the 200ML mark.
The sharp sound of metal scraping rang out again as the blood collection needle was withdrawn and the device returned to its position.
At the same time, the device locking Qin Yao's left hand pressed a small cotton ball onto the wound at the needle site to help stop the bleeding.