Death Game: Starting as a fraudster, pretending to be a god.

"So that's how it is, this is 'duel'..."

Lin Yu nodded after hearing Mans' explanation.

He then raised his question again.

“Giving prisoners the ‘right’ to duel means that some prisoners might use this method to escape punishment. If they just keep dueling, wouldn’t they be able to go to the ‘place of death’ for some fresh air?”

"Besides... wouldn't deliberately losing a duel and dying in it be a quick way to escape?"

Lin Yu asked, and Mans smiled and shook his head: "My lord has naturally considered the point you are worried about, so... the punishment for losing this 'duel' is not death - in a duel initiated by a criminal, neither side will die."

“Even their ‘duel’ may not necessarily be in the form of ‘battle’… The form of the duel is decided by our lord on the spot and has a strong element of randomness.”

Hearing Mans say that, Lin Yu immediately thought of the "Eating Contest"... Although the final winner of that contest died, the contest itself was not a fight.

Mans continued, “While losing a duel doesn’t necessarily mean death, it does come with a penalty beyond the loss of chips—a penalty ordained by our Lord, which is the best solution to the problem you’ve raised.”

"The person who initiates a duel will lose the right to initiate a duel if he loses the duel."

"A person who accepts a duel will lose the right to initiate a duel if he loses two duels he has accepted."

"Those who lose the right to initiate a duel will remain unable to initiate a duel unless they win one."

"Of course, there are a few exceptions where prisoners are granted a pardon by their 'guardians'—but the number of 'guardians' who are qualified to grant prisoners the right to initiate a duel is relatively small, and I certainly don't have that right."

Mans spoke casually, and Lin Yu immediately understood the meaning of the "God of Fairness and Judgment".

"Duel" is indeed the last "right" that every prisoner possesses, so He made this right something that could be "lost," which further increased the value of this right.

Once you lose a duel, you will no longer have the right to initiate a duel; you can only wait for someone else to challenge you one day, and then win back your right through victory.

This way, people will indeed stop abusing the right to "duel".

Even the party accepting the challenge will become more cautious—after all, the accepting party only has one more margin for error than the party initiating the challenge.

In this way, most duels that can be achieved are between equally matched opponents who are both confident of winning.

The excitement and intensity are far greater than any random duel.

And after knowing this...

Lin Yu also assessed the difficulty of his final condition for passing the level: "winning fifteen duels".

This condition didn't seem simple, but after understanding the various restrictions of the duel, Lin Yu felt it was even more difficult.

First, I need to find someone willing to fight fifteen duels with me.

Secondly...

Winning "fifteen duels" actually means that one must win every single one.

Once the challenge is interrupted by failure, you can only wait for others to challenge you, which makes it even more passive to meet the requirements.

The difficulty of 15 wins and 15 consecutive wins is simply a matter of thinking; they are not even in the same league.

"So to achieve this condition, I must feign weakness... On one hand, it's to lull my opponents into a false sense of security so I can win more easily; on the other hand, it's to prevent those who are capable of winning from refusing my challenge..."

"Of course, if the timing is right, it would be best to find some prisoners in the outer ring area and provoke them to see if you can become the one who passively accepts the 'duel' and give yourself another chance to try and fail."

Lin Yu pondered a strategy to achieve the third condition, and a rough outline had already formed in his mind.

At the same time, based on the difficulty of this third condition for passing the level, Lin Yu could also deduce the approximate difficulty of the first two conditions.

"Arriving at the core area of ​​the Trial Grounds" goes without saying. Even Mans, who looks like a very experienced guardian, doesn't know the specifics of the "core" within the middle ring. This mystery makes the mission difficult to complete.

Moreover, based on the known intelligence, Lin Yu can confirm that the core area is filled with even more dangerous criminals than those in the outer and middle rings, and there may even be terrifying beings who "attempt to destroy the ten realms".

If the criminal who "attempted to destroy the Ten Realms" really exists, he certainly wasn't arrested just because he sat at home and thought about it; he must have achieved something... In other words, some of his actions really threatened the safety of the "Ten Realms".

And these kinds of people are locked in the "core" of the "eternal cage"... If he were to go inside and confront these kinds of people, Lin Yu himself was not sure if he could withstand it.

Moreover... Lin Yu wasn't sure if the so-called "core area of ​​the Trial Grounds" referred to the "core of the Eternal Cage".

Although Lin Yu felt that it was most likely that place, what if it wasn't?

Moreover, Lin Yu felt that even if the "core area" was indeed located in the "core", it might not be the entire "core", but rather refer to a part of the "core".

In short... Lin Yu felt he couldn't be too optimistic.

In contrast, the seemingly simplest condition, "surviving for seven days in the Trial Grounds," might also contain some kind of "trap" after considering the difficulty of the basic conditions within the "Eternal Cage" mentioned by Mans.

After all, although "Order" and its servants who serve the "God of Fairness and Judgment" have been emphasizing that no one will die in this "eternal cage," Lin Yu doesn't think their words are necessarily reliable.

There must be some trap waiting for me here.

Even if they don't die, they might suffer inhuman torture in the following days because they "survive for seven days" as challengers accepting the trial.

Of course, it is also possible that... these three conditions seem to be parallel, but in fact, their difficulty levels are not equal.

The "survive for seven days" condition is the easiest guaranteed condition to achieve, essentially a free pass. The remaining two are like bonus questions, which you can choose to do. If you are strong enough, you can complete the other two at the same time and leave here earlier.

But as I said before... Lin Yu wouldn't look at things from such an optimistic perspective.

He must prepare for this "trial" by addressing three equally challenging conditions, including the possibility that the first condition for survival also presents some unknown problem that awaits his solution.

The first step I need to take is definitely to leave this small area where the elves are imprisoned.

After all, Pokémon are released one at a time, and Lin Yu's only current contact is with Mans, the "guardian".

This is clearly not Lin Yu's comfort zone.

Therefore, Lin Yu looked at Mans.

"Thank you for the information, Mans... Now, I'd like to ask how I can leave this area."

Mans laughed when he heard Lin Yu's words.

"I'm sorry, seeker... Although I don't want to hide this information, it's information that my lord has emphasized I absolutely cannot reveal to you."

"This is something you have to explore yourself... You have to find the answers yourself."

Lin Yu understood what Mans was saying.

"I see... So this is the second level of the 'beginner level'."

As expected of the "trial" specially designed for its members by "Order," the challenges are quite clearly set up.

After testing "mechanical" defenses or evasion methods to avoid falling from heights, the test now lies in investigative and puzzle-solving abilities.

Lin Yu didn't waste any more time. After saying goodbye to Mans, he didn't leave the building where the elves were imprisoned directly. Instead, he turned around and went up the stairs.

Afterwards, Lin Yu went up to the eighth floor of the building, where there was indeed an entrance leading to the ceiling.

After reaching the ceiling of the building, Lin Yu once again checked the situation of the current area from this high vantage point.

"Besides these buildings... there's just a large, empty square... no, perhaps it's more accurate to call it an open space."

"This small area is roughly a regular quadrilateral... and these low walls don't have any doors or passageways..."

"The wall closest to me is in that open space..."

After planning his route and confirming a few things, Lin Yu jumped off the roof.

Just before he was about to fall to the ground, he activated [Corner of the Shadows] again to avoid the fall damage. He then emerged from the shadows and walked straight out of the complex of buildings that imprisoned the elves, heading towards the wall.

On this inevitable path, as Lin Yu passed through that open space...

He would also happen to pass by some lonely creature that was pacing.

This is also why Lin Yu specially planned the route for climbing.

Although there will only be one other elf to interact with in this area besides Mans for the time being, Lin Yu does not intend to give up the opportunity to communicate with that elf prisoner.

Lin Yu walked straight toward the figure, which, unsurprisingly, was a tall, thin, and frail elf.

"Hey, friend, hello."

Lin Yu smiled and struck up a conversation with the other person.

The elf stopped its mechanical, puppet-like steps, which seemed to follow a pre-programmed patrol route, and blankly looked up in Lin Yu's direction.

The next moment, Lin Yu's words brought a glimmer of life back to the murky, lifeless eyes of the elf.

“I am a seeker of the Way from the outside world… Do you want freedom?”