Survival Queen of the Frozen Wastes novel Chapter 522

Chapter 522 Choosing to Advance Early

Chapter 522 Choosing to Advance Early

RedBean nodded.

Bruce walked over and brought up another matter.

“I just asked around. If you want to leave the hall’s safe zone and head back into the tunnels, it costs 30 Frost Tokens.”

Riley looked up. “You have to pay to go back out?”

+10 Free Coins

“Yeah” Bruce wore a strange expression. “There’s a rule notice right by the hall entrance. It’s easy to miss if you don’t look closely. Coming into the hall is free, but exiting through the light gate costs 30 tokens.”

Hanna let out a cold laugh when she heard that.

“The system’s so greedy. It takes cuts no matter what.”

Riley shook her head.

“It’s not greed. This rule actually protects ordinary survivors.”

RedBean caught on instantly.

“This restriction forces guilds to only send small teams outside to collect supplies while keeping most of their people safe in the hall to recover. Otherwise, they’d burn through way too many tokens running back and forth.”

This small, easy–to–overlook rule explained a lot of things.

The safe zone wasn’t free to enter and exit as people pleased.

Free entry gave players a final chance to catch their breath.

Charging a fee to exit stopped top guilds from repeatedly exploiting the safe zone’s perks.

If exiting was free, major guilds would send every member out to guard checkpoints. The exit fee forced them to split their forces. They left a small crew outside to harvest supplies and kept the bulk of their teams inside the hall.

It kept them from suffering massive losses if the Black Fog rushed in or trouble broke out.

Riley glanced toward the large guild camps across the hall.

Their people were staring right back at her.

Their gazes locked across the crowded hall for a split second before both sides looked away.

The hall stayed loud and bustling.

Some players slept while their stats regenerated. Others traded supplies in a hurry. A few lined up at the NPC merchants to restock. More put together temporary teams, planning to head down to the next floor together.

Almost everyone had the same plan.

Wait.

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12:26 pm PTM

Chapter 522 Choosing to Advance Early

+10 Free Coins

Wait until the countdown was nearly over. Wait until they had no other choice, then enter the next floor at the very last second.

The central hall banned combat, restored health and stamina, and let players buy consumables from NPCs. The dungeon gave them a fixed time limit, and every minute spent here was far safer than fighting outside.

No one would rush into unknown danger early if the rules let them stay safe.

“Normally, we should wait too,” Red Bean said. “Thirteen more hours would let everyone recover fully.”

Hanna glanced at Riley. “But you don’t want to wait.”

It wasn’t a question.

Riley truly had no intention of waiting.

She stared at the stairs beyond the central gate, her eyes turning sharp.

“PineappleBeer and TartKing aren’t on Floor 8.”

She continued firmly, “We asked everyone by the entrance and dozens of survivors in the hall. No one has any solid leads. They’re either trapped in some undiscovered outer zone or they’ve already moved on to the next floor.”

“Only one hour remains for Floor 8’s outer areas…” RedBean said quietly,

She didn’t finish her sentence.

If PineappleBeer and TartKing were still in the outer zones, they would’ve made it to the hall within the hour. Yet there was no sign of them at all.

With their skill and strength, they would’ve left some trace if they were able to move freely.

The far more likely explanation was that they’d spawned in different starting zones and climbed up to Floor 9 early. Or they’d been forced to advance upward by the dungeon’s dangers.

Riley refused to waste 13 hours waiting here.

Every extra hour they waited meant her missing teammates endured another hour of unknown danger alone.

The hall was safe, but the next floor was not.

She wouldn’t let her team rest comfortably while their friends faced unseen risks.

Riley turned to face every member of Hope Guild.

“I’m going to Floor 9 early.”

She didn’t issue a direct order. She laid out her choice plainly.

(*

“The next floor will be more dangerous. Other guilds might set up ambushes. Moving early means taking on extra risk. Any of you can stay here to recover and head down when the countdown ends.”

Hanna spoke up first, without a single moment of hesitation.

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