SWDnovel Chapter 1: Everyone Traverses the Tower of Death!
Chapter 1: Everyone Traverses the Tower of Death!
The previous second.
Lin Ye was still sitting in his gaming chair in his university dormitory, with Slay the Spire, a game he had played for over 2800 hours, on the screen.
The level 20 Corrupted Warrior deck just crushed the three-layer Time Eater.
next second.
A dizzying, tearing sensation instantly swept over my entire body, and all sounds in my ears were completely erased.
The cold, emotionless mechanical voice boomed like thunder in the minds of 70 billion people around the world.
Welcome to the Tower of Death
All of humanity on Earth has been forcibly pulled into the world of spires.
The rules are as follows:
1. Each player starts with 100 lives. Those whose lives are depleted will be permanently annihilated and their souls will be scattered.
[2. The Spire has three levels. Clearing each level unlocks huge rewards. Clearing the entire Spire allows you to exchange for ultimate rewards such as unlimited lifespan, eternal relics, and the right to rewrite the real world.]
3. At the start of the game, you will be randomly matched with 1-3 teammates, sharing map progress and having your lives calculated independently.
[4. Dying inside the spire will deduct 1 life, reset you to the initial camp on that floor, and clear all cards, relics, and gold.]
5. Now, receive your initial newbie blessing and be matched with teammates.
The moment the notification tone ends.
The whole world was in an uproar.
One moment an office worker is typing away at their keyboard in an office building, the next a student is dozing off in class, the next a driver is driving on the road, and the next a mother is giving birth in the delivery room...
Of the 70 billion people in the world, none were spared; they were all thrown into this crimson, twisted world of spires.
Cries, screams, and despairing curses instantly filled the entire initial camp.
"Where am I?! Let me go back! I have children at home!"
"What?! A death spire?! A prank?! What the hell is this thing?!"
"100 lives? You'll die if you lose your life? It's fake! It must be fake!"
Some people collapsed to the ground, pounding their fists in despair; others clung to those around them, weeping uncontrollably; still others rushed frantically toward the edge of the camp, only to be violently thrown back by an invisible, blood-red barrier, crashing to the ground and spitting blood.
In the entire camp, only one person stood still, his eyes eerily calm.
Forest.
The moment the mechanical notification sounded, he didn't panic at all; instead, he subconsciously raised an eyebrow.
Killing Spire.
He could understand every room, every card, every relic, and every hidden mechanism of the game even with his eyes closed.
With over 2800 hours of gameplay, all classes advanced to level 20, all achievements unlocked, he is a top-tier strategy guide author recognized across the internet, and he can even recite the game's most obscure hidden easter eggs by heart.
What others perceive as a death trap.
In his eyes, this was a celebration leading to the pinnacle.
[Matching teammates... Matching complete]
Your teammate: Su Qingyue
As soon as the system notification sound ended, a slender girl in a high school uniform staggered to Lin Ye's side.
The girl's face was still pale, her bangs were damp with cold sweat, and her beautiful almond-shaped eyes were full of confusion and fear. She was Su Qingyue, the recognized school beauty of Jiangcheng No. 1 High School.
Su Qingyue was visibly stunned when she saw Lin Ye.
She knew Lin Ye.
I had little contact with the senior from the same school. I only knew that he spent most of his time playing games in internet cafes. I never expected to be matched with him as a teammate in this godforsaken place.
The surrounding collapse continued, and Su Qingyue's body was still trembling uncontrollably. She instinctively moved closer to Lin Ye, her voice trembling:
"Lin Ye? What... what's going on here? Do you know where this is?"
Before Lin Ye could reply, a semi-transparent blue interface popped up in front of everyone's eyes.
[Choose one of three initial beginner blessings. Please make your choice within 60 seconds. Otherwise, a random blessing will be assigned.]
Option 1: +10 Maximum Health
[Option 2: Randomly obtain 1 rare attack card]
Option 3: Receive 80 gold coins
The moment the interface popped up, everyone in the camp went crazy, selecting the first option without any hesitation.
"Choose health! Definitely choose health! Every 10 more points of health means one more chance of survival!"
"Nonsense! What's the use of gold coins and cards when we're about to die? Staying alive is the most important thing!"
"Exactly! Having high health at the start is key; everything else is secondary!"
Looking around, of the 70 billion people in the entire camp, more than 90% of them instantly selected +10 maximum health before the countdown ended.
Most of the remaining players also chose rare attack cards, hoping to get powerful cards at the start of the game so they could kill monsters and survive faster.
Almost no one glanced at the 80 gold coin option.
Su Qingyue was also staring at the interface, her finger hovering over the first option.
She thought the same as everyone else.
In this hellish place where you could die at any moment, every extra 10 points of health means a greater chance of survival.
But just as she was about to press the button, Lin Ye's voice suddenly rang out, calm yet carrying an undeniable power:
"Don't choose that."
Su Qingyue's fingers suddenly stopped, and she turned to look at Lin Ye, her eyes full of confusion:
"Why? That's 10 health points! Everyone chose this; if we don't, how are we going to survive the start of the game?"
Lin Ye ignored her question and didn't even glance at the three standard options.
He knew all too well the pitfalls of those three options.
+10 health points may seem like a life-saving measure, but it's actually just a temporary fix. For beginners without decks or relics, 10 extra health points only means they can withstand one more normal attack from a small monster, and it doesn't change the fact that they'll die instantly.
Random rare attack cards are an absolute trap. Beginner decks are already full of useless basic attack cards, and adding a high-cost rare attack card completely pollutes the deck. You can't draw defensive cards, and your hand is full of useless cards that you can't play, making you die even faster.
As for the 80 gold coins, that's for experienced people. Newbies who get them won't know how to spend them.
What he wanted was never those three useless options.
Lin Ye's gaze fell on the blank corner of the interface, a hidden trigger point that 99.99% of players in the entire Slay the Spire would never discover in their lifetime.
Neo's tail fin.
The only trigger point for the hidden curse blessing at the start of the game.
Under Su Qingyue's shocked gaze, Lin Ye didn't touch any of the options. Instead, he used his mind to precisely touch the three inconspicuous blank pixels on the interface three times in a row.
The interface did not respond at first touch.
Upon the second touch, a barely perceptible crimson tinge appeared at the edge of the interface.
The moment it touched and fell for the third time!
Om-!
A piercing buzzing sound rang out, and the blue interface in front of Lin Ye was instantly and completely covered by a thick crimson color!
The original three standard options have disappeared and been replaced by...
It was a line of scarlet, glaring text with twisted patterns.
Furthermore, only Lin Ye could see it throughout the entire camp!