Pain Immunity: Worried the Villains Aren’t Twisted Enough-Chapter 28: Gluttony Mask, Bro, Are You Sure You're Not Mentally Challenged?

Hell Mode should make it easier to increase my Pain Points.
If I count this round, this will be my third Hell Mode game in a row. My luck is seriously locked in.
“Heh.”
Lu Ce chuckled unconsciously. Good thing it was him—any normal person probably wouldn’t be able to handle this kind of arrangement.
【Greetings, excellent players.】
【I am your host for this round. You may call me the Great Tom.】
【Welcome to Demon Asylum.】
【Of course, if you prefer to call it a prison, that’s fine too.】
Lu Ce looked at the metal robot in front of him and suddenly spoke:
“Tom? Are you the same entity as the voice from the last game?”
【The Great Tom! Watch your wording, kid!】
Lu Ce found the voice familiar but didn’t bother to argue over something so trivial.
Instead, he pulled up his livestream footage to check if the Spectator Mode had any useful information.
【: It’s starting! I skipped class just to watch this pro’s POV.】
【: I straight-up quit my job for this. Once I learn enough, I’m ditching my crappy job and joining the game.】
【: This is a high-level match. I just checked—the five players in this Game Instance have all cleared previous games. No newbies.】
【: And aside from this guy, that foreign player over there is also a Perfect Completion Player!】
【: This is gonna be good.】
【: Wait, am I seeing things? Why is the pro’s mask a different color this time?】
Lu Ce glanced at the barrage of comments, noticing that his viewership was increasing.
Being constantly watched was an uncomfortable feeling, but it had its advantages—like getting instant info on the people around him.
A high-level match, huh…
It looked like the players this time wouldn’t be as easy to deal with.
Wait, mask color?
Reminded by the chat, Lu Ce turned to look at the metal robot. Through its scratched-up body, he could faintly see his own reflection.
It was a red mask.
Red (MEIKO) — Gluttony!
【Personality Influence: An enhanced form of Greed, focused on appetite. Causes mental disorder. Able to eat anything—no matter how disgusting, everything tastes delicious.】
【Benefits: Insane digestive abilities. Anything consumed is converted into energy, completely nullifying all negative effects.】
【Drawbacks: The more you eat and the more harmful the food, the greater the mental instability. The energy inside your body does not belong to you—if not released, you will literally explode.】
“Hiss…”
Lu Ce sucked in a sharp breath.
He hadn’t expected to be hit with something this big right off the bat.
The Greed Mask from last time at least had Normal Mode and Overload Mode to choose from. In Normal Mode, the changes weren’t too extreme.
But Gluttony was different.
It was the only one of the Seven Deadly Sins Masks that had no mode selection.
“Food and lust are the two primal desires.” Lust and Gluttony had the highest impact on mental state, meaning their negative effects were the worst.
But judging from this description, its abilities were completely broken—easily a bug-tier superpower in the early game.
As expected of an S-tier Sealed Artifact. The effects and side effects were both top-tier. He could only imagine what the other forms and Overload Mode would be like...
Still, high risk, high reward—a principle that fit this game perfectly.
At least for now, he didn’t feel any mental instability.
【Alright, I assume none of you here are ordinary players.】
【You may take some time to get to know each other, share your abilities, and familiarize yourselves.】
【After all, in a way, you are both teammates and rivals.】
“What do you mean?”
After the metal robot spoke, one of the foreign players in the group asked in English.
Based on the livestream comments, Lu Ce already knew that this guy was a Perfect Completion Player.
【Literally what I said. Get familiar with each other.】
The red lights on the metal robot flickered twice, then it rolled on its treads and exited the room.
“So what’s the task in this game?”
【Don’t rush! And also, address me as the Great Lord Tom!】
The metal robot seemed quite offended by the lack of respect. Without turning back, it rolled away.
Once the door shut, the five players were left alone in the damp room, around dozens of square meters in size.
Silence.
Since this was Hell Mode, even the atmosphere felt oppressive.
The foreign player who had spoken earlier furrowed his brows, looking puzzled.
“What is the purpose of this robot coming here…?”
“He didn't say anything. F***!”
“Maybe it was just here to act as a mirror.”
Lu Ce, listening to the guy muttering to himself, replied while touching his mask.
“By the way, International Friend, do you understand Chinese? If so, why aren’t you speaking it?”
After all, the robot’s voice seemed to be in Chinese.
Or was it translated into English for this foreigner?
Hearing this, the foreign player raised a brow, looking thoughtful. After a brief pause, he casually replied:
“I don’t want.”
Lu Ce didn’t bother with him anymore.
The silence returned.
Five players in this game—all of them veterans. Not bad.
Their expressions look like they just ate sh*t, but at least no one cried and begged when they heard "Hell Mode." That’s a good start.
One foreigner—looks arrogant. Seems to understand Chinese but refuses to speak it. His expression reminds me of an actor trying too hard to look deep.
To my left, there’s a big guy. Physically strong, but probably not a real threat. At least his appearance is distinct enough that I don’t need to remember his name. I’ll just call him "Big Guy."
Then there’s a woman—her eyes have been darting around nonstop since she came in. Definitely not an easy one to deal with. But whatever, hopefully she drops some gold.
The one on the far right is the flashiest. A 1.9-meter-tall man. Everyone else is wearing the game’s standard clothing, but somehow, he got himself a custom outfit—a full red suit with patterns. I’ll call him "Show-Off Guy."
……
Silence.
The man in red, whom Lu Ce had just labeled Show-Off Guy, stiffly turned his neck. His mouth twitched as he looked at Lu Ce.
“Dude… couldn’t you just think those things in your head?”
“Why the hell are you saying the narration out loud?!”
Are you sure you're not mentally challenged?!
Where am I flashy?! This outfit was mandated by the organization, okay?!