Author: 木尺素 / Mu Chisu

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 20

There was only one day left before Zhou Qian entered the game.

Late at night, Zhou Qian and Qi Liuxing sat on their respective beds, staring at the system panel that popped up from their watches, studying it.

Zhou Qian first opened the treasure chest he had obtained from the last instance via the system.

[Player acquired item: Bilingbiling’s Brush]

[Function: The system has sensed your obsession with cleanliness and has gifted you this amazing brush. After using a weapon, wipe it with this brush, and the weapon will be instantly renewed! Blood? Mud? Sweat? Dust? All gone with a single swipe!]

[Grade: D level]

Zhou Qian: “…”

Then, following the system’s suggestion, Zhou Qian lit up a group control skill.

[Player Zhou Qian acquired Common Skill 1: Bone Nightmare]

[Skill Description: Group control. Causes enemies within range to fall into a dreamlike state, reducing their movement and attack speed by 10%. There’s a 30% chance of backlash, causing the user to fall into the same dream state. Use with caution.]

[Player Zhou Qian acquired Ultimate Skill 1: Bone Kill]

[Skill Description: Can only be triggered when the player’s health is below 10%. It draws nearby death resentment to attack the enemy. The stronger the resentment, the stronger the attack. Consumes 1,200 MP.]

Without saying anything, Zhou Qian took a glance, and Qi Liuxing immediately frowned. “What? You can only use your ultimate when you’re severely injured? And there are conditions for using your ultimate. If there’s no death resentment nearby, you can’t even use your ultimate! Wait, this skill consumes more than 50% of your mana? This skill is so trolling!”

Zhou Qian: “Future Sword God, calm down. You’re ruining your image.”

Qi Liuxing: “…”

Zhou Qian took out the bone weapon and made a gesture with it, then put it away, smiling faintly. “It’s not about how the skill looks, but how you use it. I think it’s not bad.”

After preparing, Zhou Qian chose to enter “Last Wish”.

He then received a system prompt, informing him that he could video call his gambler.

Staring at the words “Yu Xian” in the system for a while, Zhou Qian initiated a video call request. He then saw two people—naturally, Yu Xian and Zhu Qiang.

“Hello.”

Zhou Qian adeptly showed a silly smile, like that of a naive rich young master, looking both innocent and sweet.

Yu Xian was momentarily dazzled, but then he quickly cleared his throat. “Haha, Qian Ge! It’s great to talk to you!”

Yu Xian’s reaction was like seeing his favorite celebrity. When he regained composure, he introduced Zhu Qiang. “Qian Ge, this is my buddy, Zhu Qiang. We’ve been watching you clear that last level. You’re amazing.”

Zhou Qian then greeted Zhu Qiang.

Unlike Yu Xian’s enthusiasm, Zhu Qiang seemed more introverted.

Zhu Qiang didn’t say much, and Yu Xian added, “When we watch you play, Zhu Qiang often predicts your strategies. I can’t do that. Haha, seems like I’m bad at gaming.”

“Oh?” Zhou Qian looked at Zhu Qiang with curiosity. “So, Qiang Ge is also a gambler? Do you have a player you’ve bet on?”

Before Zhu Qiang could answer, Yu Xian laughed. “Yes, but we want to keep it a secret for now and not reveal who that person is.”

“I see.” Zhou Qian looked at Yu Xian thoughtfully and didn’t say more.

Yu Xian added, “In any case, we’ll do our best to help you! We succeed or fail together!”

After ending the call, Zhou Qian didn’t take Yu Xian’s words to heart.

All this talk about “succeeding or failing together”? They were merely bound by mutual interests. People who come close due to interests might betray for the same reason. Zhou Qian understood this better than anyone.

Afterwards, Zhou Qian clicked on the “Ready” button on the system panel, preparing to officially log into the instance.

Inside the presidential suite of a five-star hotel.

Yu Xian turned to Zhu Qiang. “Hey, Qiang Ge, why did you say we should keep it a secret that your gambler, Lu Mengmeng, will be in the same instance as Zhou Qian? To give him a surprise?”

Zhu Qiang chuckled shyly. “Actually, I’m afraid Zhou Qian might look down on Lu Mengmeng and, by extension, me. It feels a bit awkward. Don’t mind it. I feel like a protective father toward Lu Mengmeng. He’s the player I’ve bet on, and you’ve bet on Zhou Qian. But Lu Mengmeng is nowhere near Zhou Qian’s level. I feel conflicted about that…”

“We’ve both struggled together to get to where we are now. How can there be any disparity between us? Strange.” Yu Xian yawned, speaking in a slightly drunken tone. “It’s a pity. This morning, when Lu Mengmeng contacted you, I took your advice and played the slot machine. Otherwise, I could have greeted him! How was your chat with him? What did you guys talk about?”

Zhu Qiang quickly changed the subject. “How did it go with the slot machine?”

Yu Xian replied, “I lost… I lost 300,000 by myself, and the 100,000 of yours was lost too.”

Zhu Qiang patted his shoulder. “It’s okay. I think they’re about to start another round. I’ll go buy you some food.”

“Alright.” Yu Xian collapsed on the bed. “I really can’t understand this game… Have you noticed that when we watch them play, time around us seems to slow down…”

Without answering Yu Xian’s question, Zhu Qiang turned to leave the suite, his expression becoming exceptionally solemn.

Yu Xian, I can’t get out of this anymore.

I’m sorry, don’t blame me.

……

Half an hour later.

[Player Zhou Qian entered the instance: “Last Wish”]

[Instance difficulty: Level 2; Pass rate: 60%]

[Hidden achievement completion rate: 7%]

[Number of players: 6]

Upon entering the game, Zhou Qian found himself standing in front of a building approximately seven stories high.

The building’s glass doors were tightly shut, likely waiting for all the players to arrive.

In front of the building were green trees and red flowers. A large lawn, its grass swaying gently in the breeze, spread out, touching the blazing afternoon sky.

After a while, two more people arrived.

They were Gao Shan and Yun Xiangrong.

Zhou Qian noticed that as soon as the three of them entered the game, not only did they all have system-provided bags, but their outfits also looked similar—blue and white uniforms.

Glancing back at the sign in front of the building that read “Pastime Nursing Home”, Zhou Qian guessed that they might be playing roles like caretakers.

[3/6 players loaded]

[Waiting for 3 more players]

…

[4/6 players loaded]

After the system prompt, the fourth player arrived.

She was a woman, appearing a few years older than Yun Xiangrong, a typical cold beauty. She gave a brief nod to Zhou Qian, Gao Shan, and Yun Xiangrong as a greeting.

Through the system panel, Zhou Qian learned her name was Situ Qing, a high-ranking Rank C player skilled in long-range attacks and even capable of AOE attacks.

Monsters in “Apple Paradise” were tough due to its special instance. But Situ Qing, being skilled in AOE, meant she could deal damage to multiple targets at once.

After Situ Qing, a tall and burly man, around 35 years old, entered.

He greeted everyone with a cheerful demeanor.

[Name: He Xiaowei]

[Rank: D]

[Skills: Long-range damage; Group healing]

[Gambler system assessment: A growing pianist trying to cultivate two skills simultaneously. However, as the saying goes, if one tries to master everything, one ends up mastering nothing. Both of his skills are relatively weak. It is recommended to specialize in one in the future, either pure damage or pure healing.]

Unlike others, He Xiaowei’s gambler system evaluation seemed a bit derogatory.

After greeting He Xiaowei, Zhou Qian noticed another system prompt.

[6/6 players loaded]

[Loading storyline, please wait…]

The last player was a slender young man, around the same age as Gao Shan and Yun Xiangrong. In contrast to Situ Qing’s cold demeanor and He Xiaowei’s friendliness, he struck a balance, politely greeting everyone before looking down, appearing contemplative.

His skin was pale, and the sunlight illuminated the fine hairs on his face, making him look as though he might slowly fade and disappear.

[Name: Lu Mengmeng]

[Rank: D]

[Skills: Close combat, assassin abilities, high mobility]

[Gambler system assessment: Always completes games with just 1% HP remaining. Please keep working hard and stay safe.]

Haa. The gamblers are quite harsh.

Moreover… such a frail figure, and he’s an assassin?

Zhou Qian took another glance at Lu Mengmeng and saw that the system had finally sent a plot prompt.

[Identity of the six players: Former nursing home caretakers, responsible for taking care of an old man named Jiang Yuqing.]

[Jiang Yuqing is nearly a hundred years old and is expected to pass away in three days.]

[Player mission: Help Jiang Yuqing fulfill his last wishes within three days.]

[One of the main quests has been activated: Jiang Yuqing resides in room 701. Please proceed to room 701 within 5 minutes to care for him.]

[Note: The second to sixth floors are under maintenance and are not open to the public.]

[For a smooth clearance, players should actively seek clues. Good luck!]

After the system prompt disappeared, the glass doors of the building opened.

They weren’t automatic doors. Instead, an NPC resembling a security guard came over, unlocked the iron chain in front of the door, and ushered the players in.

Upon entering the lobby, they saw another NPC at the reception desk—a woman in her 30s wearing high heels and a welcoming uniform. Seeing the players dressed as caretakers walk in, she waved and greeted, “You must be the new caretakers? Mr. Jiang is in 701. Please go straight ahead.”

Zhou Qian, sensing something from her words, immediately asked, “Yes, we’re the new caretakers. Where are the old ones?”

The receptionist sighed. “Only two of the old caretakers are left, and they’re currently in room 701. I wonder how much longer they can endure.”

“Why? Is Mr. Jiang difficult?” Zhou Qian inquired.

“Yes. Taking care of him is no easy task, which is why he requires so many caretakers. And Mr. Jiang has a temper; he often gets angry and breaks things!” The receptionist added, “It seems that the caretakers couldn’t stand it anymore and left. But what’s strange is that none of them came to settle their wages. They all just disappeared. Hmm, it’s so weird. Who doesn’t like money these days?”

Hearing this, Zhou Qian raised an eyebrow, and both Yun Xiaorong and Gao Shan exchanged quick glances.

Could it be that those caretakers didn’t just leave because of Mr. Jiang’s temper but instead met a more sinister fate?

After pondering for a moment, Zhou Qian continued, “So today we can only go to the seventh floor? Why can’t we visit the other floors?”

“Huh? How did you know the other floors are off-limits?”

The receptionist looked at Zhou Qian in surprise, then explained, “Currently, this nursing home only has Mr. Jiang as its sole resident. Since there are no other guests on the other floors, we’re renovating them, so the security has sealed them off.”

Only Jiang Yuqing lives here?

From the receptionist to the security guard and all these caretakers, everyone is working around just one person?

“Oh yes, the two old caretakers are called Lao Tie and Lao Yu. You should go up quickly and listen to their handover. Be diligent, as I’ll be monitoring your attendance!” After urging the players to head to the seventh floor, the receptionist got busy with her work.

As Zhou Qian approached the elevator, he overheard her mumbling, “I heard that Mr. Jiang was a very handsome man in his youth. It’s a pity he’s old now…”

……

There were two elevators, A and B. The six players randomly chose elevator B and soon arrived on the seventh floor.

The corridor on the seventh floor had a light wooden floor, beige walls, and some luxury-style paintings, making the entire floor feel relaxed and cozy.

Given the time constraint of the main storyline, the players didn’t dally and went straight to room 701. But before they could enter, two NPCs dressed similarly to them opened the door and walked out. They were probably Lao Yu and Lao Tie, the two old caretakers the receptionist had mentioned.

The two spoke in turn, addressing the players.

“Mr. Jiang insists on eating [Wang’s Osmanthus Cake] every afternoon, or he gets moody! We’ll take a cab to buy it and be back in about an hour. Please take care of Mr. Jiang during this time.”

“Mr. Jiang had a nightmare about fighting someone last night. He seems to be in a bad mood today. Please be cautious. Taking care of someone isn’t easy. It’s your first day, so you’ll need to adjust!”

After delivering their lines, the two headed for the elevator, taking elevator B to leave. Just as they left, a “ding” sounded from elevator A next door. The doors opened, and three NPCs in blue cleaning uniforms stepped out, carrying brooms and cleaning tools. They appeared to be janitors.

Walking straight towards room 701, a janitor said, “Mr. Jiang loves cleanliness, so we came to help clean his room. Once we’re done with his room, we’ll help clean up for you new caretakers!”

With that, three janitors, plus six caretakers played by the players, entered room 701 together.

Upon entering room 701, Zhou Qian was immediately drawn to a wall on one side.

There hung a framed black and white photo that took up a third of the wall’s area.

The photo had an overall hue of dried maple leaves, yellowish-brown in color. It should be dry, as there was no sign of moisture, yet the people and scenes in the picture seemed blurred and distorted, possibly due to some kind of smudging effect. From a distance, it appeared as if the photo had been soaked in water.

Straining his eyes, Zhou Qian managed to identify seven individuals.

All seven were in military uniforms, which were tattered and stained with blood and mud, as if they had just come out of a battle. Their heights, body shapes, and sizes varied, and due to the severe damage to the photo, their genders couldn’t be distinguished. However, they seemed close, with their arms around each other.

The seven had two things in common.

First, their facial features were all blurred, resembling water damage, making it impossible to identify any of them.

Second, even though their uniforms were worn out, they all had a clear emblem—”7″.

The two caretakers had mentioned that Jiang Yuqing had dreamed of warfare the previous night. It seemed that he used to be a soldier. He was likely one of the seven in the photo, and their unit number had something to do with “7”.

Drawn by curiosity, Zhou Qian approached the photo and reached out to touch it.

For a split second, he felt a peculiar sensation—as if his fingers were dampened by the moisture from the photo.

Upon closer inspection, Zhou Qian realized the scene in the photo was likely a rainy day.

Through his eyes, he felt the rain dropping, as if it were overflowing from the picture, and then filling the room…

An intense, ominous aura enveloped Zhou Qian, and he felt as though the seven blurred figures from the photo were sliding out and staring down at him.

A chill ran down his spine, and he instinctively retracted his hand and stepped back. By averting his gaze from the eerie photo, everything else returned to normal.

Apart from this strange picture, the room had a cozy, homelike feeling.

For the moment, Zhou Qian turned his attention from the picture to the rest of the room’s furnishings.

The walls were powder blue, with most furniture made in a light-colored wood style. The bed was in the center of the room, with dried flowers on nightstands on both sides. One vase was made of celadon, and the other was semi-transparent crystal glass.

On one side of the room stood a bookshelf, lined with many books. In front of the shelf were two soft couches and a small coffee table, with pastries and water.

On a coat rack by the bed hung a brand new military uniform.

After glancing around, Zhou Qian’s eyes were firmly drawn to this uniform.

It also bore the number “7”.

Did this uniform belong to Jiang Yuqing?

Its design looked quite old, definitely not something a current soldier would wear.

Considering the era of the black and white photo, Jiang Yuqing’s time in the military was likely long ago. Yet why did his uniform look brand new, without a single wrinkle?

Many thoughts ran through Zhou Qian’s mind.

Finally, his attention settled on the number “7”.

The building had seven floors, there were seven people in the photo, and the uniform had the number “7”…

Was there anything else related to seven?

Zhou Qian quickly glanced at the nearby bookshelf filled with various titles. Counting, he found that the bookshelf indeed had seven shelves.

At this moment, Jiang Yuqing, the key character in this scenario, finally spoke.

He was leaning on the bed with half-closed eyes, looking quite relaxed.

Seeing so many people enter the room, he didn’t even bother to open his eyes fully, but in a very hoarse voice, he asked, “Osmanthus cake… Did you buy it?”

Answering him was the tall and burly man, He Xiaowei.

“Not yet, Mr. Jiang. Is there anything else you’d like us to do for you?”

Jiang Yuqing muttered some inaudible words and then repeated, “Osmanthus cake. I want osmanthus cake. I want to eat…eat osmanthus cake…”

During this, Zhou Qian remained silent, recalling that the front desk had mentioned that Mr. Jiang was very handsome when he was young. Hence, he took a few more glances at Jiang Yuqing.

Indeed, he looked like a nearly hundred-year-old man, so old that the wrinkles on his face had folded all his facial features together. It was impossible to tell what he originally looked like.

Yet even so, he didn’t appear repugnant. He possessed a special noble aura, which didn’t allow anyone to look down upon him. One couldn’t help but wonder; he must have been a breathtakingly handsome man in his youth.

A moment later, after trying to communicate with Jiang Yuqing but achieving no results, He Xiaowei scratched his head and whispered to the other players, “I think Mr. Jiang seems a bit out of it. Does he have dementia?”

Lu Mengmeng, who hadn’t spoken much during the journey, remarked, “Our mission this time seems related to fulfilling Jiang Yuqing’s last wish. What if… he’s forgotten his own wish, and it’s up to us to find it? But how do we go about that?”

“Hey bro, you’re quite sharp,” He Xiaowei genuinely complimented him. “But what should we do next?”

Yun Xiangrong took over the conversation. “Didn’t the system say that we need to actively look for clues? We should start now since there’s nothing else going on. However, considering both the receptionist and the elderly caretakers said we should take good care of Jiang Yuqing…”

She pointed to a red button beside the bed, adding, “Although there’s a service call button here, if he needs something and we don’t attend to him in time, there might be issues.

“So, it’s better if we split into two teams. One group stays in the ward to watch over Jiang Yuqing, and the other goes to explore the other places on the seventh floor. Later, we can share our findings.”

Yun Xiangrong was indeed an intelligent girl; her suggestion was very prudent and reasonable.

But for it to be fully effective, there was a prerequisite—the players splitting into teams should trust each other and share all the information.

Zhou Qian, Yun Xiangrong, and Gao Shan knew each other. The other three seemed to be strangers.

From Yun Xiangrong’s perspective, if she reluctantly trusted Zhou Qian and didn’t want to be separated from Gao Shan, the best choice would be for her and Gao Shan to be in one group, with Zhou Qian in the other; after the two groups finished their exploration, they could exchange information.

As expected, Yun Xiangrong’s gaze subtly shifted towards Zhou Qian. “Gao Shan and I will stay in the ward. The rest of you…”

Picking up on her hint, Zhou Qian was the first to turn and walk out. “Alright, I’ll search the other rooms for clues.”

When opening the door to room 701, Zhou Qian didn’t immediately leave but kept an eye on the situation behind him.

That was when he heard He Xiaowei’s voice. “I’ll also go outside and look around. There’s not much in this room, and it’s boring to just stare at an old man who’s out of it.”

“Then… I’ll go too. I’m quite curious about how the other rooms in this corridor look,” Lu Mengmeng chimed in.

He Xiaowei said, “Alright, the three of us will go out and explore, while the three of you stay in the room with Jiang Yuqing, waiting to see if there’s any special plot or story. This works perfectly—three people in each team!”

Hearing this and casting a subtle glance behind, Zhou Qian’s pupils shrank slightly as he continued to open the door. So, the ones exploring with him were Lu Mengmeng and He Xiaowei, while Situ Qing chose to stay in the ward.

According to Yun Xiangrong’s grouping, either Lu or He might know Situ Qing.

Why would they pretend not to know each other?

The astute Zhou Qian naturally showed no sign of suspicion on his face.

At this moment, something unexpected happened—three janitors rushed over and opened the door before him.

As they left, the three janitors chatted among themselves.

“Mr. Jiang’s room is fine. Not much cleaning needed there.”

“Right, let’s clean some of the caretakers’ rooms instead.”

“Let’s hurry. The sooner we finish, the sooner we can clock out!”

The sudden appearance and departure of the janitors were somewhat odd.

Zhou Qian quickly observed them and noticed that one of the female janitors was holding Jiang Yuqing’s military uniform.

“Why are you taking Mr. Jiang’s clothes?” Zhou Qian asked without hesitation.

“Shh!” The female janitor anxiously glanced at Jiang Yuqing, relieved to see him staring blankly, seemingly unaware. She then glared at Zhou Qian and said, “Hey, we all work hard for our living. We should understand each other. This uniform must be worth quite a bit. He has dementia and amnesia, so he won’t know if we take it. At most, I’ll share the money with all of you later, okay? Please don’t report me!”

Zhou Qian remained silent for the moment, just waiting for the three janitors to leave. However, he noticed that after they reached the corridor outside the door, the three of them suddenly froze.

Zhou Qian guessed that they originally came to clean the room. But after seeing the military uniform, they stole it, and without even cleaning the room, they hastily tried to escape with the stolen item.

However… if they were in such a hurry to leave, why did they freeze in the corridor?

What did they see?

As the thought crossed his mind, Zhou Qian decisively stepped out of the room, only to find himself momentarily stunned.

Seeing the three janitors and Zhou Qian all standing frozen in the corridor, the other players in room 701 sensed something was amiss. One by one, they came out, and soon, everyone was frozen in the corridor.

The corridor outside wasn’t the same as when they arrived. When they first came, the corridor was straight with a total of 12 rooms, 6 on each side of the elevator.

Room 701 was located at the very end of the corridor near elevator B, and its opposite room was 702. But now, coming out of room 701, the room directly in front was no longer 702. Instead, there was a sign reading “12”. The once straight corridor had transformed into a circular shape.

After a brief pause, the three janitors were the first to move.

Among them, the two women walked to the left, and the man went to the right. However, a few minutes later, they all met again in front of room 701.

Seeing this, Zhou Qian left the door of room 701 and tried walking to his left. After a full circle, he returned to room 701, now having a clearer understanding of the layout.

Opening his mouth, Zhou Qian explained to the other players, “Both elevators have disappeared. The corridor has become circular. There are 12 rooms in this circular corridor, numbered ‘1’ to ‘12’. That means…”

Pointing to the room still marked “701”, Zhou Qian continued, “That means there are now 13 rooms on this floor. There are 12 rooms forming a circle around the 13th room, numbered 1 to 12. Jiang Yuqing’s room, 701, is now in the center, making it the 13th room.”

“When we arrived, the building was square! How could there be a circular floor?

“What’s going on?” He Xiaowei exclaimed in shock.

His voice was very deep, but probably because of his humorous appearance, the fearful shout seemed funny—like a rugged man whining.

“So, room 701, along with its walls, moved to another space as a whole?” Yun Xiangrong frowned. “Is this some kind of supernatural instance? Or some… alternate dimension?”

Hearing her say this, Gao Shan quickly looked inside 701 and then came out. “Jiang Yuqing is asleep. Nothing else has changed. Everything in the room is as usual.”

Here, a few players quickly discussed the current situation.

Meanwhile, the three NPC janitors were also discussing with fearful expressions.

“What’s going on? Why is this happening?”

“I don’t know. Should we… try opening one of the doors to see?”

“Yeah, maybe opening a door will reveal the elevator or some other way out?”

Hearing this discussion, Zhou Qian immediately looked at them.

The female janitor, who had stolen Jiang Yuqing’s uniform and was now wearing it, acted first.

She went straight to room 12, opposite room 701.

The door was unlocked. She pushed it, and with a “creak”, it opened, and she went inside. Shortly after she entered, the door closed on its own with a “click”.

About three seconds later, something unexpected happened.

A gunshot rang out from room 12!

The gunshot, like a thunderbolt on a clear day, jolted everyone present.

Gao Shan quickly shielded Yun Xiangrong, who held onto his collar tightly in return. He Xiaowei turned and leapt, practically hanging onto the door of room 701, looking like a clumsy, large koala. Lu Mengmeng also seemed terrified, closely following He Xiaowei and quietly grabbing the hem of his clothes.

Zhou Qian remained motionless. He propped up one leg and stood leaning against the wall next to room 701’s door, squinting towards room 12.

At that moment, he noticed that Situ Qing didn’t run away; instead, she took a step closer to the door of room 12.

Following the sound of a gunshot came a scream. It came from inside room 12, presumably let out by the female janitor in military attire just before her death.

With a loud bang, the door to room 12 was thrown open, and the janitor ran out.

There was a large bloodstain on her chest, the result of the gunshot she had just received. Not far behind her, a dark figure was raising a gun towards her, but no subsequent shot was fired.

It was a swift, ghost-like silhouette with no discernible features or expressions.

Zhou Qian took a step forward, seemingly trying to see the face of the mysterious person.

However, just then, the door abruptly closed on its own.

As for the janitor, she fell face down on the cold corridor floor, never to breathe again.

He Xiaowei: “What the hell is going on? Why are there gunmen? Is this game supernatural? Fantasy? Sci-fi? Damn it, is it set in a gunfight scenario? We don’t have any guns!”

Gao Shan: “Rongrong, you go back to room 701 first. I’ll stay in the corridor to check.”

Yun Xiangrong: “No way. What if something happens to you? I’ll stay to heal you.”

He Xiaowei retorted, “Damn it, don’t single dogs have rights? I can heal too! Why isn’t anyone teaming up with me?!”

Beside them, seeing their coworker killed like this, the other two janitors were clearly panicking.

One of the women said, “What… What’s happening… We need to get out of here quickly, or we’ll be trapped until we die! I need to go pick up my daughter from school!”

The male janitor responded, “Ah, I told her not to take someone else’s military uniform! This might be karma! We’ll be fine!”

“Right, you’re right… Then… I’ll try another room.”

Swallowing hard, the second female janitor glanced left and right, then chose to enter room 1 next to room 12.

Seeing her move, all the players immediately focused on her. Under their watchful eyes, she entered the room.

Shortly after, the same thing happened as with the previous janitor: a gunshot followed by a scream, and she ran out with an obscured figure with a gun behind her. Finally, the door to room 1 closed, and the second janitor fell into a pool of blood.

“What’s going on…? Can’t we open any doors on this side…?”

The third male janitor murmured.

Seeing the incidents in rooms 12 and 1, he paced back and forth, seemingly on the verge of a breakdown.

“Is this… some kind of endless loop*?”

*Ghost hitting the wall (鬼打墙吗) Idiom describing a phenomenon where a person feels like they’re walking in circles and can’t find their way out (AKA going in circles).

“What the hell is happening…?”

“I need to get out of here. This is too terrifying… Am I going to die too?!”

Muttering to himself, the male janitor ran halfway around the circular corridor to the other side.

Zhou Qian quickly followed, and the other players figured that as long as they didn’t enter those 12 rooms, they wouldn’t be attacked. Since the gunmen in the two rooms didn’t chase anyone into the corridor, everyone else followed as well.

Before their eyes, after hesitating between rooms 6 and 7, the male janitor finally decided to enter room 6. After the door closed, the six players moved closer to get a better view, waiting in silence. But nothing happened this time. No gunshots.

A minute later, the janitor emerged from room 6, looking much more relaxed.

“It’s safe! No one tried to kill me! But there’s no way out in there. I need to keep searching.”

After muttering to himself, he immediately opened the adjacent room 7. Room 7 opened and closed, yet no gunshots ensued. Another minute passed, and the janitor came out again.

“It’s strange. There’s no exit in this room either… How can I get out…”

Holding his head in despair, he slowly made his way back to the opposite side of room 701, with the players in tow.

As they passed by the bodies of the two female janitors, the male janitor sighed, seemingly lamenting their deaths. He then looked up, his gaze drifting from one room to another in confusion.

“A’Hua went into Room 12 and died; Xiao Wang went into Room 1 and died; I went to Rooms 6 and 7 and didn’t die… but I also didn’t find the way out. I can’t die trapped here…” Mumbling these words, he approached Room 2.

“Room 12, Room 1… people died in both. It can’t be that there are killers in three consecutive rooms, right?”

Having said this, the male janitor pushed the door open and entered Room 2. The door slammed shut. But three seconds later, a gunshot rang out swiftly! The same thing that happened to the previous two female janitors happened to him. It seemed he saw something terrifying and tried to escape from the room. Unfortunately, he was shot in a vital spot and died in the hallway.

Three mysterious gunshot incidents happened so quickly, right before the players’ eyes. After the brutal killings, three janitors lay in the corridor. The air was thick with an unpleasant smell of blood.

Zhou Qian always despised blood. He frowned slightly, standing in front of Room 701, glanced inside through the open door. An elderly Jiang Yuqing was sound asleep, seemingly oblivious to the three shootings outside.

He Xiao Wei roared with a deep voice. “What’s going on? What the hell is this?”

Yun Xiangrong calmly said, “The game designer arranged this plot. Perhaps they want us to find a pattern based on the janitors’ entry and exit from the rooms. It’s a puzzle for us. Among the 12 rooms, some are safe, some are not. We need to find the pattern and explore accordingly.”

Gao Shan seriously added, “But it seems difficult; I can’t discern any pattern.”

Just as Gao Shan finished speaking, all six players received a system notification:

[Players triggered side quest ①: “Checks and Balance”]

[Time limit for completion: One hour]

[12 rooms contain 12 important pieces of evidence. Players must find all evidence to clear the stage.]

[Note: Once the bullets in the rooms are fired by the killer, they have a 100% hit rate】

He Xiaowei: “What does this mean? Side quests? Does that mean we can skip this task?”

Gao Shan: “But if we don’t take the side quest… will we be trapped here forever?”

Yun Xiangrong raised an eyebrow, looking at Zhou Qian, who was heading into Room 701. Shaking her head, she said with a smirk, “Even if we don’t want to do the side quest, Qian Ge will probably force us to.”

He Xiaowei, who was unfamiliar with Zhou Qian’s methods, innocently asked, “Huh? What do you mean?”

A few seconds later, sure enough, Zhou Qian’s voice echoed from the room. “Just observing the manner of death of those three janitors won’t help us find the pattern. We probably need to search Room 701 for more clues. Let’s all come in and look for hints.”

Upon hearing this, Gao Shan looked at Yun Xiangrong and gave her a wink. Yun Xiangrong responded with a “I told you so” look.

Inside the room, Zhou Qian approached a black and white photo. Looking up, he gazed at the seven blurry faces on it. “Will you give me information?”

Reaching out, Zhou Qian touched the photo again. Enduring the unsettling, cold aura, he tried to stay focused to see what would happen next.

Usually, players wouldn’t face a risk of death without any logic or hint at the very beginning. Now they had activated a side quest, and the risk of death was the 12 rooms. So, everything in this room should be safe for the time being.

Yun Xiangrong, Gao Shan, and the others indeed followed Zhou Qian into the room. But they kept their distance, waiting to see what would happen to him.

The black and white photo, looking as if soaked in rain, began to fog. Upon closer inspection, it wasn’t the photo itself that fogged up but rather the images of the seven individuals, as if spirits were converging within the figures, ready to emerge. Seeing this, Yun and Gao tightly held each other’s hands with a tense expression.

But Zhou Qian was closest. He touched the photo and felt an overwhelming sadness. This sensation was very strange for him. Zhou Qian had been emotionally numb for a long time. Although he wasn’t completely void of emotions, his emotional reactions were extremely muted. But now, it was as if the heart of someone in the photo was directly placed into his chest, making him feel an indescribable sadness deep within.

Directly in front of Zhou Qian, a strange scene suddenly appeared.

It seemed to be inside an old house from the Republic of China era. A man was bent over a table, writing poetry beside a white candle.

The man was tall and had an exceptionally refined and calm demeanor. Through a mist of clouds and fog, Zhou Qian couldn’t make out his facial features clearly, but he could vaguely see that the man was very handsome.

Zhou Qian silently watched him finish a poem—

“You ask of my return, yet there’s no set date; rain falls on the Bashan mountains, filling the autumn pond.”

“When shall we together snip a candle at the western window and talk of the rain on Bashan at night?”

His handwriting was in a neat regular script, both elegant and bold. Zhou Qian’s own handwriting resembled chicken scratch, but Bai Zhou’s handwriting was excellent. Thus, Zhou Qian always had a soft spot for those with good penmanship.

In the scene, after finishing the poem, the man let out a deep sigh. Instead of sending out the poem, he surprisingly burned it in the flame of the white candle.

Zhou Qian felt as if his heart was beating in tandem with the man’s. Now, his heart felt as though it was being squeezed, as if it was being consumed by the flames with the poetry lines, causing waves of burning dull pain.

This unique empathetic force from the photo brought Zhou Qian a long-lost sadness. He squinted and continued to watch the man in the scene, attempting to ask, “Why did you burn it? Who did you write this poem for?”

Affected by the sadness, Zhou Qian’s voice was unusually hoarse and heavy. The man in the scene seemed to hear him and looked up at him.

“It’s you, you all came! You’re really here!”

“Am I seeing this right?!”

“It’s great… even if it’s an illusion… I can see you in my lifetime. It’s wonderful.”

Who does this “you all” refer to? Is it referring to our group of players? Can you in the photo see the “us” in this room?

With a thoughtful squint, Zhou Qian saw the man quickly write two more lines and handed the paper to him.

Taking the paper, before he could read it closely, a sudden downpour obscured the scene. In no time, the man, furniture, candlestick, the antique room… all were drenched, distorted, and blurred, becoming a yellow-tinted black and white, finally merging with the color of the photo.

After a brief moment of realization, Zhou Qian looked up to see the same strange black and white photo. He was back in room 701. Everything that just happened seemed like an illusion he experienced by touching the photo. However, he now held a tangible piece of note.

Beside him, Gao Shan, Yun Xiangrong, He Xiao Wei, and Lu Mengmeng quickly gathered around to see the two lines written on the note.

Yun Xiangrong: “This must be a clue!”

He Xiaowei: “Definitely! These two lines must hint at the pattern of those 12 rooms!”

The peculiar feelings inside Zhou Qian faded, and his sensations became blurry, indifferent to joy or sorrow. He then looked at the note. The two lines the man in the photo wrote to him were—

[The lowest ranked cannot be kill!]

[Balance of power is the only solution!]

……

Outside room 701, looking at the players inside, Situ Qing raised her wrist and glanced at the system panel popping up on her watch. Her disabled younger brother, also her gambling partner, sent her a message.

[Your main task is to kill Zhou Qian. No need to focus on completing the side quests.]

[You can try persuading the other players to give up on the side quest. It’s best to win over Yun Xiangrong and Gao Shan; otherwise, they’ll cause trouble.]

[If necessary, deal with the couple first.]

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