Lazily Yours.

"Ladies and Gents, you are not here to kill each other so relax. We won't allow you to die. At least not now. In a while, you will have your first task. You can die then."

"…" Uhhh… Gabi looked at Mr. Ma. He had a serious expression on his face yet, his eyes were sparkling with mischief. For some reason, Gabi felt something foreboding as she watched this man.

"Alright. First task." Ma Ping clapped his hands and almost immediately, the world started shaking. "It's not an earthquake. Relax. As I said, I will only let you die by fighting later. Not because of an earthquake."

So, that is supposed to make them feel better?

"In this task, you can use whatever weapon that you have with you. Daggers, needles, swords, guns. Whatever." Ma Ping held his hand towards the platform in front of them. Each of the platforms looked like concrete walls. However, its width and height were different. Some were only about as tall and as thin as Gabi while the others had at least six feet in width and seven feet in height. Some were really thin with only a foot in width but ten feet in height. They looked like towers were some looked like walls.

She immediately wondered if this was a maze. Was it a maze full of traps?

"Test is you have to reach the other side of the plane." Ma Ping gestured towards the concrete walls. "Without… dying, of course."

There he goes again, mumbling about death. Was it really that hard to run around a maze?

Of course, Gabi's thoughts soon changed when someone approached the concrete walls.

*ZIP*

*ZAP*

Laser?

Are those lasers?

Her eyes widened at the sudden appearance of the reddish laser that hit the bald person who ran towards the concrete walls. It didn't pierce his skin but… that man's skin was… burnt black.

It must have been too painful as the man was on the floor crying in pain.

"Ah, I forgot about those laser beams. It won't kill you… immediately." Ma Ping said. He was clearly enjoying their horrified expressions. "One or two hits won't kill you. It would only burn your skin. However, it hit your head, I can't assure you that you will not end up blind… or worse… dead. Hahahaha!"

Ma Ping started laughing. What was so amusing?

However, now Gabi realized that this man wasn't kidding about death and injuries. Fighting amongst themselves was useless. They needed to save their strengths for the real battle and that is the test.

This was only the first test and the intensity was already like this.

"The first three people that could reach the other end will be rewarded with points. Of course, I am not telling you how much. You will only know when you reach the other side." With that, Ma Ping waved and turned around. "I will see you on the other end. Goodluck. Keep your injuries minimal or you will have a hard time on the second day."

Damn.

That's the only thing that she could say.

This place was indeed called Tartarus because it was hell! Not just their point system also the way that they handle challenges.

Gabi looked at the laser beams. Because of her enhanced vision, she could clearly see that those lasers are following a rhythmic pattern.

Eighteen.

Gabi was counting silently and realized that there were eighteen of the laser. Now, she needed to determine if other lasers can only be activated by some sort of other mechanisms.

"Let's go! The point this time should be good!" Gabi heard Lu Tingting. She then watched as the giant of a man ran towards the first concrete wall. Just as Gabi expected, a laser beam immediately fired towards his way.

However, the man was clearly here because of his skills. Despite his size, he easily avoided the laser and used the concrete to cover himself from the next laser.

Seeing that Lu Tingting successfully reach the first concrete, the others looked at each other before they followed the man. About ten people followed, each of them was able to avoid the laser beam using different techniques. Someone was tumbling like a gymnast while someone easily dodged it by using some fancy moves like a one-hand stand and a split.

Damn.

Another curse escaped her lips. These people looked really agile and experienced in combat. After those ten people reached the first concrete, another group of people followed. And just like the others, they also used some fancy moves to avoid the beams.

A bead of sweat appeared on Gabi's forehead. She let out a loud sigh as her heart started to beat faster. She was nervous, she could feel her palms start to sweat. She eyed the laser beams and tried to gauge how painful it would be to be hit by those beams.

However, she had no choice.

She needed to run.

However, before Gabi could take a step forward, someone from the batch that followed Lu Tingting let out a scream.

Another laser beam!

This time… it wasn't red.

It was blue!

"Ah… I forgot to say." Ma Ping's loud voice echoed inside the space. Clearly, he was watching them from somewhere. "The red ones would burn your skin. The blue ones… would do something worse. I heard it could cut off a finger and cut your flesh. It's going to be painful. But it won't kill you. Unless of course… it would hit your head."

Hah! This man…

Gabi furrowed.

Ma Ping didn't tell them everything earlier. He waited for one of them to be hit by another laser beam before he said something. It was like, he was teaching them a lesson as they go.

Expect the unexpected.

Just because you already know the terrain and the enemy, doesn't mean that you should be complacent. You should be careful and still act with vigilance. And most importantly, always prepare for the worse.

Gabi inhaled sharply. A new determination appeared in her eyes.

Then… she took her first step towards the first concrete.