Chapter 336: Carboniferous Period 8

At the mention of joining forces, everyone present hesitated. They glanced at the people around them, their eyes filled with unconcealed distrust.

However, the black bear that had materialized from the card was clearly not something they could subdue on their own. Cooperation was inevitable.

"I have no problem with cooperating, but how will we divide the spoils afterward?" a middle-aged man with a buzz cut asked.

After all, there was only one card. The question of who would ultimately take it was a serious one.

The moment he said this, the atmosphere instantly grew tense.

Clearly, everyone wanted to obtain this powerful card.

"How about we agree to cooperate for now and focus on forcing the bear back into its card form? After that, whoever gets the card... well, may the best person win."

The speaker was a man who looked to be in his early thirties.

As he spoke, the man habitually pushed up on the bridge of his nose with the middle finger of his right hand.

Only when his finger touched the bridge of his nose did he realize he wasn’t wearing glasses.

Perry Yates watched the man, not missing the fleeting glint in his eyes.

’He only made such a proposal because he’s supremely confident in his own abilities, certain that he’ll be the final victor.’

No one there was a fool. They all understood the implication behind his words—that his proposal stemmed from absolute confidence in himself.

But even knowing this, none of them objected. After all, they were all thinking the same thing.

There were no weaklings among the players who had survived to stand here today. Every one of them had fought their way through countless rounds of the game.

’You’re confident you’ll come out on top? Please. I’m just as sure I’ll be the one playing everyone else for fools, the clever hunter who snatches the prize at the very end.’

And so, with an unspoken agreement, the group of schemers began their "cooperation," each with their own agenda.

The first problem they faced was how—or rather, *who*—should wake the sleeping bear.

The bear was deep in slumber. Whoever struck first and woke it would undoubtedly bear the full brunt of its rage. That person would have the highest chance of dying.

Everyone understood this, so no one dared to make a rash move. No one wanted to be the one to volunteer for a suicide mission.

They all looked at each other, each person hoping someone else would step forward to draw the bear’s ire.

But the crucial thing was, no one there was an idiot.

’Me? Wake the bear, take all the damage, and get myself killed just to make things easier for everyone else? Get real. This isn’t some TV drama where I’d willingly sacrifice myself for my companions.’

’And even if it were, these people aren’t exactly my trusted, ride-or-die comrades.’

’If someone did step up, took the brunt of the bear’s rage, and died, and then the rest of them managed to kill it... would any of them be grateful to that first volunteer?’

’Highly unlikely. Not only would they not be grateful, they’d probably mock the person for being an idiot willing to throw their life away.’

Standing behind everyone, Perry Yates watched the scene unfold. They were all gathered around the bear, looking at each other—they might as well have been holding hands and singing campfire songs for all the action they were taking. Not a single person was making a move.

’Well, if none of you are going to make a move, then I won’t be so polite.’

As Perry thought this, her fingers twitched slightly as she reached a malevolent hand toward the bear.

She activated Abyssal Roots.

Instantly, everyone present felt the ground begin to tremble faintly.

Everyone was instantly on alert. Some even backed away a few steps, putting a safe distance between themselves, the bear, and the other players.

A moment later, a mass of roots burst from the ground. Before the players could panic, they realized the roots weren’t targeting them, but the sleeping bear.

In the blink of an eye, the black bear’s entire body was enveloped by the white roots.

Startled by the attack, the black bear instantly awoke from its slumber. It stared at the roots coiling around its body and let out a furious roar.

The bear clawed furiously at the roots, trying to tear them from its body.

The roots entwined around it were incredibly slender, even thinner than a strand of hair, making them easy to snap.

However, the true power of the Abyssal Roots lay not in their durability, but in their sheer numbers and their ability to silently invade a victim’s body and drain it dry.

For every root the bear tore away, ten, or even a hundred more, would instantly take its place.

Gradually, the bear grew weaker as the number of roots covering it multiplied. By the time it sensed the danger and tried to escape, it was too late. Its remaining strength was nowhere near enough to break free from the Abyssal Roots’ embrace.

Meanwhile, of the players who had been surrounding the bear, more than half had seen how the tables had turned and already fled. A few remained, their eyes locked on the two battling card abilities, apparently unwilling to give up.

Seeing this, and sensing the bear was nearly subdued, Perry Yates directed the Abyssal Roots to attack the remaining onlookers.

Since the main force of the Abyssal Root System was focused on the bear, the attack on the players wasn’t fatal, but it was more than enough to scare them off.

Another ten-plus minutes passed before the bear finally gave up the struggle and reverted to its card form.

Perry Yates used Invisibility and retrieved the card.

Once she had turned and left the hornet’s nest behind, she finally had a moment to examine the card’s details.

It was a four-star card. Unsurprisingly, it had most likely belonged to a player.

This wasn’t because Perry Yates was biased against regular players; it was because you couldn’t become a Croupier without sufficient strength.

In other words, while not all powerful people were Croupiers, all Croupiers were exceptionally powerful and possessed formidable cards.

[Card Name: Greedy Bear

Card Level: Four Stars

Card Ability: A bear with a voracious appetite. After fusion, it allows the user to convert consumed food into personal energy.]

After reading the card’s description, Perry Yates thought for a moment and quickly recalled who it belonged to.

She had never met the owner, but she had heard Amber Sheridan mention him before.

This person was Croupier 004 from her home planet. His most famous abilities were a defense that gave him skin as tough as copper and bones as strong as iron, as well as an astonishing Recovery Power.

Of course, in addition to those two, he also had a bottomless stomach.

According to Amber Sheridan, this Croupier would eat until he was as round as a rolling mountain of flesh before every game. Yet when he emerged, he would miraculously return to his normal size.