Lin Yu's admiration for his own "good luck" came from the heart.
Although his "luck" in this round stemmed from the [Lucky Sweetness] buff effect...
To achieve such an overwhelmingly advantageous position relying solely on [Lucky Sweetness]...
There must have been some fate-level "good fortune" beyond just [Lucky Sweetness].
"Even smoother than anticipated."
Lin Yu exhaled deeply before turning his gaze toward the players literally "hanging by a thread."
Then, Lin Yu looked at Ka the Octopus.
Their eyes met, and then...
Ka the Octopus smiled and spoke: "Guest, you're the only one left..."
"Now, would you like to enjoy your dessert?"Hearing Ka's question, Lin Yu chuckled.
He didn't immediately answer the octopus's inquiry...
Instead, Lin Yu surveyed the other six participants.
"Right now—all of you, or at least three people, owe me your lives."
Then, Lin Yu tapped the table and looked back at Ka.
"Apologies, chef..."
"I'm full."
Lin Yu spoke calmly.
He rejected Ka.
An expression of astonishment appeared on Ka's face.
He stared incredulously at Lin Yu before asking: "You mean you're refusing the dessert?"
"Of course, I'm too full. No point wasting food, right?"
Lin Yu grinned broadly.
"I sneaked a cupcake earlier—already had my dessert!"
His expression suggested genuine satiation as the reason for declining.
Ka regarded Lin Yu with something resembling admiration.
"Acceptable... but refusing means accepting punishment."
Lin Yu rested his chin on one hand.
"Fine by me."
He didn't even ask what the punishment entailed.
Seeing Lin Yu's resolve, Ka retrieved a button from the pool.
"Snap!"
With Ka pressing the button...
One of the ropes in front of Lin Yu's left side snapped.
Just as Li Hua had predicted, the "punishment" only severed one rope.
And for Lin Yu, who currently had four ropes...
This was utterly inconsequential.
He merely felt his chair wobble slightly more.
This was precisely why Lin Yu had fought so hard to maintain "four ropes."
From observing others who'd lost ropes...
Losing one rope with three remaining still provided relative stability.
But losing two...
Would make the chair tilt dangerously in one direction, becoming unusable.
And with only one rope left...
Without reinforcement methods, the chair would swing wildly or even spin.
Unfortunately...
Compared to other players, Lin Yu lacked accumulated [standard items].
Losing two ropes without reinforcement would guarantee greater risk.
Most crucially, Lin Yu needed to maintain his 'Fluoxetine' persona...
Thus, the optimal strategy was keeping at least three ropes.
With four ropes...
Lin Yu could comfortably choose to forfeit outright.
This way.
Whether Ka served some [Assassin]-related item Lin Yu had never heard of...
Or even directly presented something related to [Fraudster]...
Neither scenario would occur!
This was Lin Yu's strategy.
If the [dessert] might expose him...
Then paying a small price to prevent its appearance altogether was ideal.
After Lin Yu made this decision...
Not just Ka, but all other players showed stunned expressions.
Even for the irrational madman Fluoxetine who defied expectations...
This move was abnormally unconventional.
"Why?"
Li Hua looked at Lin Yu and asked solemnly.
Lin Yu had anticipated questions about his "motives."
He'd carefully orchestrated this scenario precisely to explain his "motives."
A Fluoxetine-style justification that would convince everyone.
One that conveniently connected to his entire performance's "ultimate purpose."
"Do I need to explain myself to you, [Gambler]?"
Lin Yu smirked before continuing.
"But... since you asked, I'll humor you."
"Like I said, you all owe me your lives."
He glanced at Ka.
"The final card's effect is 'everyone loses one rope.'"
Hearing this, all players displayed shock.
"What?!"
Robin exclaimed.
Mosin-Nagant nearly stood up: "How could you know that?"
"I knew all the card contents in advance," Lin Yu tapped his temple, fabricating confidently, "This is a god-watched dungeon, a divine banquet, and I recognize each participant's potential..."
"So if any of you died during this penultimate [dessert] round... I'd be devastated!"
"Because that would be utterly ridiculous!"
Despite the absurd claims, Lin Yu's delivery was so natural that nobody doubted his knowledge of the final card.
Ka didn't interrupt—because Lin Yu knew the octopus was equally unaware of future "cards"!
Having decided early to "reject" the dessert...
Lin Yu had observed the [dessert] interactions differently.
He'd discovered a crucial fact...
No cards were pre-placed by Ka.
All cards emerged through "interaction" between [dessert] and players!
Therefore...
Ka likely didn't know the desserts beforehand.
Having successfully bluffed Ka and the players...
Everything progressed exactly as Lin Yu's "script" demanded.
Li Hua calculated silently before concluding:
"So... after this round, maximum remaining ropes per person is four!"
"Obviously, did you think the 'gods' designed this game for cozy tea parties?" Lin Yu retorted sharply, "That's why I left you all with just one rope..."
"While I don't want deaths before the finale, I won't let you enter the final round with excessive safety margins."
"With so many elites gathered at this fated banquet by divine invitation..."
"We must maximize drama to match the 'Mad Banquet Beyond Heaven' title!"
"The final showdown between geniuses and gods demands walking the razor's edge between survival and eternal damnation—that's the climax I demand!"
Lin Yu stood up dramatically, pointing skyward.
"Comrades, if you survive this dungeon... come find me!"
"I'll be waiting atop Jiangcheng's twilight rainbows, where thirty silver coins chime through the night!"