Is the closed beta test of King of Loque over? The official release is here!

There were several other people nearby. Some were whispering among themselves, while others remained silent, their eyes fixed on the stone platform, seemingly looking for an opportunity to make their move.

The argument grew louder and louder.

However, at this moment—

"Hmph, I don't care about you guys!"

In the crowd, a burly man with a buzz cut suddenly broke away from the argument.

He took out a palm-sized, pale gold fragment from his backpack.

Eggshell fragments.

Without any hesitation, the man with the buzz cut strode to the stone platform and placed the eggshell fragment in his hand onto the shallow, saucer-shaped groove.

"Om-"

A deep humming sound came from the stone platform.

Immediately afterwards, the patterns carved on the surface of the stone platform suddenly lit up. Pale golden light spread outwards from the center of the groove, rippling outwards in concentric circles, enveloping the entire stone platform in a dazzling halo.

The eggshell fragments melted rapidly in the light, turning into tiny golden particles that sank deep into the groove.

then--

Suddenly, light shot up from the top of the stone platform.

Not intense, but noticeable enough.

The beam of light exploded in mid-air, transforming into several streams of light that scattered in all directions.

—Ding ding dong.

Golden rock shells rained down from the sky, clattering and bouncing onto the ground around the stone platform.

Following closely behind were three or four round and plump cocoa fruits.

They fell from the light, rolled around on the ground a few times, and finally came to rest in different places.

And finally—

An egg.

It was about the size of a fist, with a layer of pale golden patterns on its surface, and it emitted a soft, faint glow. It slowly floated down from the pillar of light and gently landed on the ground less than two meters away from the stone platform.

Pet eggs.

The air seemed to freeze at that moment.

All eyes were on the egg.

The man with the buzz cut immediately summoned his pet—a flat-shelled creature standing firmly on the ground with its four limbs!

"Trying to rob me?" The buzz-cut man sneered, his gaze sweeping over everyone around him.

"Then let's give it a try."

Chapter 246 Three's Company

His shell let out a low growl, and water-based energy began to condense on his body, preparing for battle.

After that proclamation, the open space remained silent for less than two seconds.

The others' gazes darted back and forth between the buzz-cut man's pet and the pet egg on the ground.

Some people hesitated.

Kogo and Rockbey are one thing—but that pet egg...

"Damn it, let's fight then! Who's afraid of who?!"

The first to erupt was the thin-faced player whose face had turned red. He suddenly pulled out a Gulu Ball from his waist, a flash of light appeared, and a guardian dog appeared in front of him.

Almost at the same time, three or four other people also started moving.

The light from the Gulu Ball rose and fell intermittently.

A chaotic battle broke out.

The light of skills flew everywhere on the open ground. The sounds of cracking stones, colliding energies, and players' roars mingled together, and the small open space instantly descended into chaos.

Some people were snatching eggs, some were intercepting them, and some were taking advantage of the chaos to pick up the roc berries and cocoa beans on the ground.

The situation was in complete chaos.

......

Mo Fan withdrew his gaze and retreated behind the vine wall.

He did not continue to observe, because he had already seen what needed to be seen.

"It seems—" He lowered his voice so that only Zhuang Xiao and Yan Liang beside him could hear him.

"The eggshell fragments in your hands are the keys to opening these altars."

Mo Fan's gaze darkened slightly.

"Once it's placed there, the altar will activate and give out rewards."

But the problem is—

He paused for a moment.

"These rewards do not go directly into the user's inventory."

"They were scattered from the altar."

In other words—anyone can take it.

Zhuang Xiao's expression changed slightly upon hearing this.

He instinctively gripped the eggshell fragment in his hand, remaining silent for a moment.

Yan Liang's expression also changed. However, his reaction was different from Zhuang Xiao's—he first frowned, then his eyes flickered, as if he was rapidly calculating something.

“Then in that case—” Mo Fan said calmly.

"Getting good things isn't that easy."

The rewards from the altar are scattered publicly. You place fragments to activate the altar, but the rewards aren't necessarily yours. Whoever has the stronger pet and the faster their reflexes will grab more.

You can even do it without using any fragments; just squat near the altar and wait for someone else to activate it before snatching the reward.

This mechanism, in essence, encourages competition and conflict between players.

Zhuang Xiao and Yan Liang each processed this information.

The chaotic battle ahead continued, with the sounds of various skills colliding constantly coming from the air.

After a brief silence.

Mo Fan turned around.

"Let's go around here first."

His tone was calm, without the slightest hesitation. After speaking, he strode towards the other side of the fork in the road.

Without thinking twice, Zhuang Xiao immediately followed.

The footsteps sounded for two beats.

The third beat – no sound.

After taking a few steps, Zhuang Xiao realized something was wrong and turned around to look.

Yan Liang remained standing in the same spot.

His gaze pierced through the gaps in the vine-covered wall, fixed intently on the chaotic battle raging in the clearing. More precisely, it was fixed on the scattered Rocbees and cocoa beans on the ground—and the pet egg that was being fought over by several people.

"Yan Liang," Zhuang Xiao called in a low voice, "what are you still standing here for?"

Yan Liang turned around, his expression showing some resentment.

“This is an opportunity.” He gestured with his chin toward the open space. “Those people up ahead are fighting in a chaotic mess; maybe we can find something in the chaos. Shall we give it a try?”

Zhuang Xiao frowned.

"With so many people and such chaos, how are we supposed to grab anything? What if we get caught up in it?"

He glanced back at Mo Fan again.

Mo Fan had already walked several steps away. He merely turned his head slightly and glanced indifferently behind him.

There was no urging or impatience in that look.

But—there was no intention to wait.

He glanced at it only once, then looked away and continued walking forward.

Zhuang Xiao turned around and said, "Alright, let's go."

After saying that, he quickly caught up with Mo Fan.

Yan Liang stood alone in the same spot, his gaze shifting back and forth between the chaotic open space in front of him and the direction Mo Fan had gone.

His lips moved, but he ultimately said nothing.

A moment later, he gritted his teeth, turned around, and followed.

His steps were somewhat hesitant, and his expression clearly showed reluctance.

The three regrouped and ventured deeper into the maze along another fork in the road.

Behind them, the sounds of the chaotic battle gradually faded into the distance.

......

The three of them ventured deeper into the maze along a new fork in the road.

The area was clearly much larger than Mo Fan had initially estimated. The passageway was winding and twisting, branching off every few dozen meters. Vines and walls obscured most of the view, making it difficult to determine overall orientation.

However, precisely because this labyrinth is so large, there seems to be quite a few altars as well.

The three walked for another five or six minutes.

They passed two altars—one that had already been activated, with eggshell fragments placed in the grooves, making it impossible to reactivate, and traces of a fight scattered around it. The other altar was surrounded by three or four players, the two sides on the verge of attacking each other at any moment.