Author: 木尺素 / Mu Chisu

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

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Chapter 97

Many people had the experience of gazing up at the night sky. The night was like an ink-splattered tapestry, with countless stars adorning it like dazzling pearls.

Observing the vast number of stars in their company, stargazers often felt a profound sense of loneliness. Yet, they may never realize that in this world, there existed another version of themselves, gazing at the same starry sky alongside them.

Beneath the surface of this perceivable world, there lay a second unknown realm.

This was the story setting incorporated into the new work by the author, Luo Yu.

The new work was in its preparation phase, with Luo Yu meticulously recording his materials in a manuscript. Besides the specific page that had the setting, almost every page described a crime that occurred on the 11^th floor of the Saiya Hotel.

Simultaneously, Luo Yu was also piecing together the story of a couple who were killers, attempting to uncover their motives for their actions. He hadn’t settled on the exact storyline, but whenever an idea came to mind, Luo Yu would jot it down on a sticky note and casually attach it to various pages.

When players entered the world of this manuscript, the elevator became the tool for flipping through the manuscript’s pages, enabling them to jump to different page numbers and witness the corresponding crimes.

The reason rooms other than the crime scenes existed was because the second world was a duplicate, replicating the first world in every detail. Moreover, due to the presence of the sticky notes, players could also glimpse fragmentary love stories about the man and woman.

When the couple committed suicide, Zhou Qian couldn’t extinguish the charcoal fire in the room nor prevent their deaths, as their story was already written.

Why did they vanish suddenly?

Probably because the sticky note fell off the manuscript or Luo Yu removed it.

After understanding the structure of this special world, Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou began frequently entering and exiting the elevator, trying to decipher the connection between the 12 numbers in the elevator and the manuscript’s page numbers, aiming to ultimately find Luo Yu and his manuscript.

What they experienced just now, reading magazines and brainstorming, all happened after pressing the number “12”. A couple who idolized Luo Yu were subsequently murdered in room 1111. After brainstorming, Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou re-entered the elevator, pressing “12” again, and repeated this action 15 times. Three times, they witnessed the murder of the couple in room 1111. The other 12 times were three different cases.

If they label the murder case of the couple in room 1111 as A and the other three cases as B, C, and D, then Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou pressed the number “12” a total of 16 times.

They viewed case A 4 times, B 3 times, C 5 times, and D 4 times.

Interestingly, cases B, C, and D all occurred in room 1108, which was rumored to be haunted and once sealed with concrete. Because of the room’s unique backstory, when Luo Yu wrote about this room, he had vast creative freedom.

This was probably why multiple cases occurred in room 1108.

After testing the number “12”, Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou started trying the number “11”. Including their previous experiences with this number, they pressed “11” a total of 17 times and similarly witnessed four different cases. Specifically, they viewed these cases 4, 3, 5, and 5 times, respectively.

After their many attempts, Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou rested in the lounge opposite the elevator.

Zhou Qian took out pen and paper to note down their experiences and said to Bai Zhou, “The 12 numbers in the elevator correspond to multiple manuscript pages. Which number we press takes us to a random page and crime scene. It’s completely random, dependent on probability.”

“Unless we are incredibly unlucky and have pressed numbers 11 and 12 so many times and still missed some cases, each elevator number likely corresponds to four different manuscript pages and cases.”

“This suggests the manuscript has at least 48 pages, and this world has 48 layers!”

“Right.” Bai Zhou nodded. “The first time we went to the 1st floor, what we saw was the lobby, not the 11th floor. We didn’t witness any crimes there.”

“That time, our actions were forcibly directed by the system. The system eliminated all other possibilities we might encounter after pressing ‘1’. This can actually be considered a hint given by the system.”

Based on their findings, the number ‘1’ in the elevator should correspond to four different pages and cases in the manuscript. But the system took players to the lobby the first time they pressed “1”, a clear hint that among the four pages linked to this number, only three detail crimes, while the remaining page probably describes the hotel’s lobby setting.

Zhou Qian remarked, “One of the manuscript pages that details the lobby setting might also have other settings. This page is accessible by pressing ‘1’. I agree with this. Moreover, if I were the author, I would naturally put the settings on the first page. The subsequent pages would detail the crime materials.”

“Agreed. So, the number 1 can actually correspond to page 1,” Bai Zhou said. “If the subsequent numbers strictly correspond to page numbers in order—number 2 corresponds to page 2, number 3 corresponds to page 3… and so on until all 12 numbers are used up, then we have to start over from number 1. Everything would then become very clear.”

As Bai Zhou was speaking, Zhou Qian had already written a formula on the paper. However, in a split second, something occurred to him, and he took the pen to strike out the entire formula.

Afterward, Zhou Qian looked at Bai Zhou and drew a small line at the corner of his right eye with the pen.

In the past, when they were in school doing homework together, Zhou Qian often did this to Bai Zhou. The next thing he would say, always half-jokingly, half-seriously, was, “Zhou Ge, I can’t do this problem.”

Every time he said this, he would intently watch Bai Zhou from the side, as if observing every minute expression on his face.

Often, Bai Zhou couldn’t distinguish whether Zhou Qian truly didn’t know or was pretending not to know.

However, he never really cared. He would just quietly take the pen and carefully explain the problem to Zhou Qian, enjoying the process.

The situation was the same this time.

Taking the pen, Bai Zhou silently wrote a formula: [Y=X+12n.]

Zhou Qian laughed and snatched the pen from him. “Hmm, X is the set of numbers on the elevator panel, Y is the set of page numbers, and n is less than or equal to 3. Well, a simple set mapping problem.”

He didn’t care that this move revealed his feigned ignorance.

Bai Zhou remained unfazed. Looking at Zhou Qian, he added, “If the starting number 1 corresponds to a different page, just adjust the formula slightly by adding the difference, and it will work.”

“Right. The formula is simple. Our problem now is…” Zhou Qian said, “Although we suspect that the author is probably staying in room 1103, there are a total of 48 pages in the manuscript. Excluding the page with the lobby, there are at least 47 other room 1103s. Which one is the author staying in…”

“In other words, if the author entered the world within the manuscript, on which page would he reside?”

After Zhou Qian finished speaking, he heard Bai Zhou say, “31.”

Almost simultaneously, Zhou Qian picked up the magazine in front of him and once again flipped open Luo Yu’s interview.

The interview revealed that the author’s lucky number was “31”.

Zhou Qian quickly did the math in his head. “Hmm, if you want to get to page 31 of the manuscript, press the number 7 in the elevator.”

Bai Zhou grabbed his wrist and stood up. “Mm, let’s go. The probability of success is as high as 25%.”

Hearing this, Zhou Qian laughed.

When the elevator door opened, Bai Zhou could easily see his smile reflected in the elevator door.

However, the reflection on the elevator door wasn’t clear, making Zhou Qian’s smile seem a bit dreamy, as if it transported Bai Zhou back to the distant past that seemed so far away.

Staring at the elevator door until it slid open, Bai Zhou turned his attention to Zhou Qian next to him and asked, “What are you laughing at?”

“I’m laughing because, Zhou Ge, you indeed suit my temperament. A 25% probability—if it were Xiaowei or Little Swordsman God, they would think it’s too low. See, only you think like me—that this probability is high.”

Taking another glance at Bai Zhou, Zhou Qian stepped into the elevator. “Let’s go. Let’s see if we can succeed on our first try and find out if our assumptions made before writing the formula are correct.”

…..

Elsewhere, not long after checking into the hotel, Hidden Blade left, saying he had something to discuss with Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou.

Once he left, He Xiaowei never saw him return.

Later, He Xiaowei found himself helping an elderly woman who had fallen, guiding her to the elevator that went down to the lobby.

Of course, he didn’t realize that, from the moment he encountered the elderly woman, he had entered the world of the manuscript. He just thought he had entered a paranormal space, essentially seeing ghosts.

After witnessing the heads fall off the bodies of Xiong Fei and Li Yuan and seeing a couple disappear in the elevator, He Xiaowei was even more convinced of his ghost sighting theory.

His defenses were completely shattered. Finding no safe staircase, his only option was to take the elevator.

From then on, He Xiaowei stayed almost exclusively in the elevator, too scared to venture out.

Every time the elevator doors opened, and he saw the familiar rest area of the 11^th floor, he would frantically hit the close button, then repeatedly press “1”, hoping he might get to the lobby and leave.

He Xiaowei felt his luck wasn’t great. He had pressed the number “1” at least 20 times before finally seeing the lobby.

He didn’t realize that he was actually quite fortunate—in those 20 times, he hadn’t encountered another version of himself or any other people from the second world trying to kill him.

Feeling relieved that he wasn’t seeing the repetitive 11^th floor’s rest area but instead the lobby, He Xiaowei bolted out of the elevator.

Spotting the Receptionist Wang engrossed in his work, He Xiaowei ran towards him like he was seeing a dear family member. When he reached him, he slammed his hands on the desk. “Mr. Wang! Are you still doing your accounting? There’s been an incident! The hotel is haunted, don’t you know? It’s terrifying!”

“Don’t worry.” Receptionist Wang looked up at him and said nonchalantly, “Some people have died in this hotel, so it has a heavy yin aura. But you don’t have to worry. Isn’t that a swastika on your hand? It will protect you!”

He Xiaowei thought, ‘Indeed, if they openly admitted that the hotel was haunted, how would they do business?’

The hotel staff must have known about the ghost disturbances long ago. Telling them wouldn’t help. He just needed to think of a way to escape and not engage in further conversation.

Wait, he wondered how that person called Erdan was doing. Maybe if he had followed him to the police station, he might have had a chance to survive? Anyway, Qian’er wouldn’t harm him.

As these thoughts raced through He Xiaowei’s mind, he reached the hotel’s glass entrance.

Through the door, he could faintly see police tapes outside, but they were obscured by fog, making them look somewhat illusory.

The strangest thing happened when he tried to push the door open: an invisible force pushed him back.

Propelled into the air, He Xiaowei crashed down heavily. After some thought, he decided he needed to seek out Receptionist Wang to open the door for him.

Quickly getting up, he turned back to the front desk. But as he did, he noticed a trail of blood coming from behind it!

“Did… Did you kill someone?” He Xiaowei swallowed hard and asked Receptionist Wang.

Unable to use his qin, he quickly gripped a dagger in his hand.

Holding the dagger tightly, with a wary look, He Xiaowei approached Receptionist Wang step by step. He wanted to see who the deceased was.

The front desk clerk, still seemingly writing something, suddenly looked up, his face contorted by the light and shadow.

For a moment, he looked like a demon freshly crawled from hell.

“No, no… You’re not Receptionist Wang.”

Now close to the desk, He Xiaowei glanced inside, shocked to find the dead body looked exactly like Receptionist Wang!

“What the hell is going on here—”

Before He Xiaowei could think further, the living duplicate of Receptionist Wang suddenly raised an ax.

As the ax came slashing down like lightning, it was so fast that it felt instantaneous. He Xiaowei swiftly dodged to the side and then dove to the ground, skillfully evading the ax. With both of his forearms supporting his weight on the ground, he almost looked as if he were doing a plank.

Receptionist Wang swung the ax and missed, but quickly lifted it again, aiming for He Xiaowei.

He Xiaowei, with his nimble legs, seized the opportunity. Using his hands to push off the ground, he powerfully kicked both of his legs upwards, striking hard towards Receptionist Wang’s lower body.

Caught off guard, Receptionist Wang lost his balance. Both he and the ax toppled next to He Xiaowei, and the ax created a deep crater in the ground.

He Xiaowei quickly jumped up, thrusting his dagger fiercely into the man’s palm. The blade pierced through, pinning the man to the ground. Without any rush to pull out the dagger, He Xiaowei delivered a forceful kick to the man’s head. The man’s forehead hit the ground, bleeding profusely. Taking advantage of the situation, He Xiaowei mounted the man’s head with a forceful sit.

Subsequently, straddling the man’s neck, He Xiaowei pummeled him, all the while panting and interrogating, “When I first came to this hotel, I observed Receptionist Wang and studied his physique. He’s thin and weak, absolutely not a fighter. It seems you’re just like him. You could only succeed in killing him with a sneak attack, right?”

“Wait a minute. Judging by this, you’re not a ghost. What the hell are you?”

The man did not speak, and with his uninjured left hand, he suddenly exerted force, catching He Xiaowei off guard and gripping his waist fiercely. The ticklish spot on He Xiaowei was touched, causing his upper body to go limp instantaneously. As he lost strength, the man took the opportunity to push him away and stood up.

This so-called Receptionist Wang was clearly a tough character. Taking out the ax from the pit was time-consuming, so he simply ignored it. Instead, he extended his left hand, forcibly pulled the dagger from his right palm, and with the bloodstained blade, he slashed at He Xiaowei.

In that instant, blood splattered, and the knife gleamed like snow.

He Xiaowei quickly retreated several steps, narrowly avoiding the blade. As Receptionist Wang was about to swing a second time, He Xiaowei, instead of retreating, lunged forward, aiming his head directly at Receptionist Wang’s waist.

Receptionist Wang was completely caught off guard by this unconventional move. He hesitated for a split second, and in that brief moment, He Xiaowei, with a move resembling an iron-headed skill, collided with his waist, knocking him to the ground again. This time, He Xiaowei didn’t take any chances. He grabbed the dagger and thrust it directly into his opponent’s heart.

He watched him take his last breath and then, to his astonishment, watched him vanish into thin air. He Xiaowei retrieved his dagger, catching his breath, and quickly checked behind the front desk. Now, he saw the real body of the front desk clerk lying there, which confirmed that this was the genuine one.

He was utterly puzzled by the situation, but the weak fake Receptionist Wang had indeed reminded He Xiaowei of something—the strange occurrences in this instance might not necessarily be related to ghosts. With that thought, He Xiaowei felt somewhat relieved. He leaned against the front desk and took a moment to rest.

Little did He Xiaowei expect that before he could even catch his breath, there was another unexpected turn of events—

The elevator doors suddenly opened, and a figure holding a long machete rushed out.

Seeing this, He Xiaowei quickly ran towards him. But before he could shout “Master”, another identical figure burst out.

Damn it!

Why are there two of my masters?

Two Hidden Blade appeared, having completely identical appearances, weapons, and even the same fighting moves. Leaving the elevator one after the other, the two began to engage in a fierce battle. Their combat was tit-for-tat, and for a moment, He Xiaowei was simply dumbstruck.

How could someone be evenly matched with my master? My master’s sword technique is very powerful! He’s a Rank God player! What kind of monster can imitate him so perfectly?

Of course, He Xiaowei didn’t know that in the settings of this dual world, the two Hidden Blade were essentially one person, hence they could perfectly predict each other’s moves.

In this situation, He Xiaowei was clearly uncertain about whom to help.

After he anxiously shouted, “Master,” both of them surprisingly turned to look at him.

One of the Hidden Blade said, “He Xiaowei, come and help!”

The other swung his sword with a clang and shouted, “He’s the fake one. He Xiaowei, help me!”

He Xiaowei: “……”

As the two exchanged another dozen moves in an instant, He Xiaowei thought of a solution and loudly asked, “When did you formally accept me as a disciple?”

Both answered almost simultaneously, “After the ‘Last Wish’ instance ended.”

He Xiaowei then asked, “You originally didn’t want to take me as a disciple, right? Why did you agree later?”

Both again responded at the same time, “Because of 137!”

He Xiaowei: “Damn it, I knew you didn’t really want to, wuwuwu. So, I’m not good enough after all, wuwuwu—”

One Hidden Blade swiftly swung his sword three times, each missing its target, cutting down a lamp, lifting a piece of the wall, and breaking a plant in its path.

Grinding his teeth, he said to He Xiaowei, “Initially, it was indeed because of 137 that I considered trying to take you as a disciple. I gave you the entrance ticket to ‘Last Wish’ as a test for you. Later, I decided to accept you because you did perform well. So, I am sincere! Don’t be stunned. Can’t recognize your own master? Come and help!”

The other Hidden Blade, dodging those three strikes with a nimble figure, also swiftly swung his blade three times. His stance was almost identical to the previous Hidden Blade.

He said, “He Xiaowei, I am your real master. I remember the first thing you said to me. It was at the trading hall, right? You said to me, ‘Boss, do you need a leg accessory*? I can heal, deal damage, and take hits. Plus, I’m very smart!'”

*Referencing hugging a thigh.

He Xiaowei: “……..”

Fuck, don’t do this to me. I really can’t tell them apart!

……

Elsewhere.

The leader of the “Invincible Legion,” Batu Fei, was always seen with Liu Wansan.

Of course, he had no idea that under Liu Wansan’s skin was actually Wen Bin.

Their experience tonight was no different from others at the beginning. The system summoned them to the corridor for some reason, where they encountered an NPC. After helping the NPC in the lobby downstairs, when they tried to return to the 11^th floor, they found they couldn’t.

Sensing something amiss, they entered the elevator. Batu Fei instinctively wanted to press “1”, but Liu Wansan stopped him just in time.

“Why won’t you let me press 1?” Batu Fei asked.

“Something’s off. Maybe someone created this chaos to lure us to the first floor?” Liu Wansan said. “We’d be walking straight into an ambush.”

“You’re… You’re right,” Batu Fei remarked, giving Liu Wansan a more appraising look. “I never noticed before, but you’re quite sharp!”

Liu Wansan replied, “It’s all thanks to you, boss. I’m just glad you’re willing to consider my advice. Just don’t be mad that I overstepped.”

“Don’t be so modest. If you’re right, why wouldn’t I listen?” Batu Fei patted his shoulder. “Am I the kind of leader who fears having subordinates smarter than me? Obviously not!”

“Let me teach you something today. A leader doesn’t have to be the most skilled, smartest, or strongest. The key is to recognize and utilize talent. Look at me. I have an eye for it! It doesn’t matter how I am personally, as long as my subordinates are smart.”

“So, there’s really nothing for you to worry about. If you can lead me to victory, why wouldn’t I listen to you or be jealous?”

“In the real world, I run a business. I might not be particularly talented, but I have capable people under me, and our company continues to thrive!”

What Batu Fei never expected was that he was the naive one.

In real life, he was born into privilege, directly inheriting a small workshop business from his family and becoming the boss.

Given life’s pressures and the need to earn money, people worked for him, naturally doing the tasks he assigned. Moreover, in modern society, there are legal constraints.

But now, he wasn’t in the real world. Without the protection of his parents and other relatives, and without laws and national safeguards, in this survival of the fittest world, what right did he have to be the leader?

So, when the two pressed “2” and encountered another Batu Fei, Liu Wansan didn’t help.

When Zhou Qian encountered a fake He Xiaowei, the fake one still tried to deceive and ambush. But in Batu Fei’s case, with two identical people unexpectedly coming face-to-face, they immediately started fighting.

For a full 30 minutes, they battled on that floor. Regardless of how the real Batu Fei pleaded with Wen Bin for assistance, he remained motionless, casually reading magazines in the reading area.

After 30 minutes, both Batu Feis were exhausted, falling to the ground, head-to-tail. They each had the other’s head pinned between their legs. Both were trying to incapacitate the other without being killed themselves. Neither had the strength to finish the other off.

Finally, after perusing all the magazines, Wen Bin casually approached the two, his shadow making him seem like Death.

The real Batu Fei managed to raise his head and realize something. “You’re not Liu Wansan…”

“It took you this long to realize? But it’s too late.”

Wen Bin drew out a delicate and exquisite fruit knife and, in an instant, swung it twice, each swing taking down one. Both Batu Feis were killed.

Swiftly, the fake Batu Fei disintegrated into ashes, disappearing into the void.

The real Batu Fei, however, died with his eyes wide open, unblinking in death.

Reflected deep within his pupils was Wen Bin’s image—he pulled out a photograph and then transformed himself into He Xiaowei.

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 木尺素 / Mu Chisu

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

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Chapter 96

Inside room 1111.

In the dimly lit room, there was a pungent smell of blood. Two fresh bodies lay silently on one side, their grotesquely battered faces covered by nylon bags. Opposite them was a signed photograph of a handsome and elegant man.

It seemed that one of the couple was an ardent admirer of someone named “Luo Yu”. They regarded him as an idol. Their visit to Blue Harbor City and stay at the Saiya Hotel was specifically to meet him and get his autograph.

Luo Yu had an air of scholarly elegance about him, not at all like an idol. He wore glasses, and the eyes beneath them held a smirk, giving off an unnerving sense of insight.

Holding the photo, Zhou Qian felt a strange sensation, as if he was truly making eye contact with Luo Yu. Strangely, Zhou Qian also felt that this man looked somewhat familiar.

The photo was a Polaroid, which meant someone must have taken Luo Yu’s picture on the spot and then asked him to sign it as a keepsake. What particularly caught Zhou Qian’s attention was the banner behind Luo Yu in the photo, which read: [Meeting, July 23, 1997.]

The content before the word “Meeting” wasn’t captured, which left room for various interpretations such as “concert”, “meet-and-greet,” and so on. Due to the obscured portion, Luo Yu’s identity remains uncertain.

However, the date after the word “Meeting” was particularly intriguing. After Zhou Qian entered the hotel, he noted the year was “Blue Harbor City 1997”. However, the players, being budget tourists, checked in in October, not July. This meant that the two victims in this room might have arrived in Blue Harbor City only three months ago.

Something wasn’t adding up.

The male-female pair of killers supposedly committed suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning many years ago. Those who died at their hands should have existed many years prior, like the family of three in room 1108. So why were these two recent guests of the Saiya Hotel victims?

Initially, Zhou Qian assumed all the deceased he and Bai Zhou had encountered were victims of the male-female duo. They were simply replicated into this alternate dimension, re-living their lives and being killed again, but this time by Xiong Fei and Li Yuan.

This new clue completely overturned Zhou Qian’s previous assumptions. Why were a couple who checked into the Saiya Hotel room 1111 three months ago dragged into this alternate dimension and subsequently killed?

Frustrated, Zhou Qian complained to Bai Zhou, “The plot is becoming illogical. We must have missed something.”

But what did they overlook?

After some thought, Zhou Qian had an epiphany and gestured to Bai Zhou before quickly heading towards the exit, exclaiming, “The lounge!”

Shortly after, Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou arrived at the lounge area, right opposite the elevator. The coffee table had several magazines and books.

Zhou Qian remembered flipping through one in a hurry during a previous discussion. Suddenly, he recalled seeing something related to “Luo Yu” in a magazine, which might explain why the man in the autographed photo seemed familiar.

After rushing to the rest area, Zhou Qian quickly picked up several magazines and spread them all out on the coffee table. He then tried his best to recall in which magazine he had seen the name “Luo Yu”.

His eyes quickly scanned the covers of these magazines. In a short while, Zhou Qian had an answer and immediately reached for one of the magazines.

Unexpectedly, at that moment, Bai Zhou also reached out to that magazine, and their hands suddenly touched.

Bai Zhou remained still. He lifted his slender index finger slightly, then let it down, making a soft sound.

Turning his head, Zhou Qian glanced at him but didn’t linger. He was the first to pull out the magazine.

After flipping through the magazine for a few pages, Zhou Qian found what he was looking for—an introduction to and an interview with Luo Yu.

[Luo Yu: Best-selling fantasy novelist, known for “Dual World”.]

[Have you ever heard of this urban legend? One day, when you take an elevator, you might enter a parallel dimension and meet another version of yourself. The parallel space defies your imagination. The “you” in that world might be a monster. Who knows?]

[That’s the story of “Dual World”.]

[The author, Luo Yu, believes that there are actually two layers to this world. We usually can only see the first layer, but not the second.]

[The second layer is a complete replica of the first world. There exists another version of us, identical to us in every way, familiar with every detail of our lives. Unfortunately, while they can see us, we cannot see them.]

[So, if one day you encounter another version of yourself, please be careful. They might be from the parallel world, trying to replace you.]

[In “Dual World”, the male protagonist’s doppelgänger from the alternate dimension comes to the real world, wanting to replace the protagonist and stay in this world. After the protagonist discovers this, he engages in a series of strategic and physical confrontations with his other self.]

[The plot is full of ups and downs, with countless thrilling moments. Want to know if the protagonist eventually triumphs or if he’s replaced by his evil twin?]

[Don’t just be intrigued. Buy the book and find out the ending!]

Frowning, Zhou Qian turned to the next page and immediately saw an interview related to Luo Yu.

Reporter: “I heard you’re going to have a book signing in Blue Harbor City soon?”

Luo Yu: “Yes. Miss, you’re quite informed!”

Reporter: “Haha, it’s because I’m a fan of your books. I really love ‘Dual World’. May I ask, the reason for going to Blue Harbor City is…”

Luo Yu: “I’m going there for inspiration.”

Reporter: “Let me guess, are you preparing for your next book? Oh my god, am I privileged to get some early news about your new book from you? What kind of story are you thinking of writing next?”

Luo Yu: “It’ll still be fantasy-themed. My readers love that from me. I’ve recently taken an interest in murder cases. Blue Harbor City has several famous serial murder cases. I want to go see for myself.”

Reporter: “Ah, are you referring to the murder case at the Saiya Hotel?”

Luo Yu: “Yes, that’s the one. I want to visit the places where the murderer stayed. Maybe they will return from hell to meet me… and provide some inspiration. Who knows?”

Reporter: “You mentioned earlier that the theme is fantasy, so it’s not entirely a detective novel?”

Luo Yu: “It’s not a detective novel. There will be fantasy elements involved. It might even share the same world view as my book ‘Dual World’. I still need to think about the specific setting. Right now, I only have a preliminary idea.”

Reporter: “Wow, I’m truly looking forward to it!”

……

After a while, Zhou Qian closed the magazine.

After pondering for a bit, he looked at Bai Zhou and said, “All the illogical phenomena finally have a clear explanation.”

“This so-called alternate dimension—it’s actually constructed by the author Luo Yu.”

“In a sense, we’ve stepped into the world of a novel!”

“Luo Yu writes fiction, using everything that happens in the real world of Blue Harbor City as his material repository.”

“Now, he’s using a series of murders committed by a male-female duo as a basis for his story. When these serial murders occurred in the real world, they happened in strict chronological order.”

“But when the author writes, the order in which these case materials appear in his mind isn’t linear. There’s no set pattern or logic.”

“One day, Luo Yu might suddenly remember someone he met ten years ago, thinking their character would be interesting to use, so he writes them into the story. Another day, he might pass by the hotel reception and find the receptionist’s appearance unique, so he includes them as well. Moreover—”

“Many details might be fabricated. Because when an author creates, he embellishes and imagines many things. Thus…”

“That’s why the information in this world seems so chaotic!”

Events and people in the real world couldn’t be linked in any systematic way to phenomena in this alternate dimension. There was no logical correspondence between the two.

Unless one considered this alternate dimension purely as the author’s fiction and deliberate arrangement.

Luo Yu was a fantasy author. After getting clues about him, everything seemed to make perfect sense to Zhou Qian—

Many serial killers in the world act alone. Cases involving cooperative efforts, especially between a male and female pair, were rare.

On top of that, the fact that the woman was having an affair and teamed up with her lover made the story even more tantalizing, adding a dramatic twist perfect for a novel.

All the victims stayed on the 11^th floor, and crime scenes bore the symbol of an inverted pentagram, adding a mysterious layer to the murders and fueling wild speculations.

Thus, the murders committed by the male-female duo made the Saiya Hotel famous, causing a huge sensation.

The fantasy author Luo Yu was drawn here because of this.

Looking for inspiration, Luo Yu stayed here for a long time, possibly up to three months.

During these three months, he stayed in the Saiya Hotel day and night, feeling the presence of the male-female duo and enjoying the sensation of being surrounded by the vengeful spirits of the victims…

The hotel’s atmosphere inspired his writing.

He wrote prolifically.

Regarding the serial murders committed by the couple, he combined historical records and archives he found with his imagination to create multiple crime scenes in the Saiya Hotel.

Therefore, there was no time travel or temporal dislocation.

People killed at different times appear in the same space simply because it was a space constructed by the novel.

However, during the creative process, the author Luo Yu obviously encountered some issues.

For instance, the police might release only limited information about victims, and only a few cases might be suitable for turning into fiction.

Moreover, most real-life victims might have been ordinary-looking people with no distinct features.

But the victims Zhou Qian and others saw in this alternate dimension were all handsome men and beautiful women. This was probably Luo Yu’s artistic touch.

In conclusion, based on real history, to enhance the drama, Luo Yu used his imagination to create many new victim profiles.

For example, if he met an impressively beautiful female reader at a book signing three months ago, he might write her into the story as one of the victims.

That was why those who appeared at the hotel three months ago were also present in this dimension. Furthermore—

Zhou Qian looked at Bai Zhou and spoke his thoughts out loud, continuing, “For instance, when he saw that eleven poor tourists checked into the Saiya Hotel, he got a new inspiration.”

“For the nine of us who are still alive, he had a moment of brilliance and thought that maybe the story of the parallel worlds could be applied to us. Hence, all nine of us have doppelgangers.”

“He probably thought that a game of strategy and mutual destruction involving nine original individuals plus nine counterparts from another dimension, totaling eighteen people, would be a fascinating plot for a novel. Furthermore—”

“Xiong Fei and Li Yuan were killed. Luo Yu might have chanced upon their bodies, so that night, when brainstorming for his novel, he created a pair of executioners based on them.”

“The author saw how they were slashed in the throat, so they were portrayed by him as monstrous killers whose heads can fall off and whose necks can spurt blood.”

“Of course, the method of killing by this pair of executioners is based on the real deeds of that man and woman in history! Speaking of that man and woman—”

Bai Zhou took over. “I need to correct my previous speculation. The scenes where that man and woman fall in love aren’t flashbacks from before their deaths but are probably just the author’s imagination.”

“Yes. Wait…”

Zhou Qian continued, “Let me think… monstrous killers, love story, male monster seducing a man… No, that’s not right—”

“What I just said isn’t entirely accurate. This dimension might not exactly be a novel written by Luo Yu, but rather his draft or collection of materials!”

“For the story about Xiong and Li, Luo Yu wrote it quite messily with many illogical parts. The love story of that man and woman isn’t clear either—”

“All of this isn’t a fully-fledged novel yet. The author is likely still in the process of gathering materials and organizing an outline. That’s why I say this alternate dimension is just his draft world.”

“As for the author himself right now, he is…”

“If he can see us, and he saw Xiong Fei and Li Yuan, then in the real world, the author Luo Yu must be staying at the Saiya Hotel, and probably on the 11^th floor. The most likely room he is in—”

Hearing Zhou Qian say this, Bai Zhou looked at him, and they both simultaneously uttered, “1103.”

The room 1103 was where the male and female murderer duo often stayed. It was also the room where they took their own lives.

In the interview, Luo Yu mentioned that perhaps the man and woman would return from hell to converse with him.

Therefore, with the intention of feeling the aura of their deaths and to get inspiration, he might have stayed in room 1103.

When the players checked in, Luo Yu might have been hiding somewhere in the lobby or in a dark corner of the first-floor corridor, watching everything.

He silently heard the front desk say that only the 11^th floor had rooms and silently watched everyone take the elevator up.

Finally, he also went to the 11^th floor, checked into 1103, and included the new people he met and the inspiration he got into his novel draft.

Now, Zhou Qian and the others had entered the world of Luo Yu’s manuscript, which was based on some historical data, combined with his own imagination, sudden insights, and his private settings.

Therefore, because the draft also contains a “dual world” setting, the players might be hunted and replaced by their alternate selves.

After organizing his thoughts, Zhou Qian said, “If we, as mere tourists, can enter the world of the manuscript, is it possible that the author himself might also come in?”

“Possibly,” Bai Zhou replied. “So, maybe when we find him, we can figure out how to leave this place.

“There are countless room 1103s in this space right now. He might be in one of them. He might not even know what has happened and might still be writing.”

“We really need to get out,” Zhou Qian said. “This theory probably hits the nail on the head. The situation is going to get more dangerous.”

“First, the swastika killer who murdered Xiong Fei and Li Yuan might be another serial killer imagined by the author. If the author imagines this and incorporates this setting into his draft, there might be another terrifying murderer hunting us in this space.”

“Second, if the author gets inspired and randomly decides to kill off a character, any of us could be killed off at any moment. This is his manuscript world; whatever he decides is logical.”

By the end of this conversation, Zhou Qian shook his head. “A virtual game from an exhibition hall? This is bigger than I thought. Initially, I believed it was just a time-travel gimmick. I underestimated it.”

“Of course, this theory only explains the plot clearly, but there’s still a fundamental problem we haven’t solved.”

What Zhou Qian was referring to was the issue related to the elevator and the floors.

No matter which number the players press inside the elevator, they always end up on the 11^th floor, but they encounter different murder cases each time.

After a moment, Zhou Qian put down the magazine, and he and Bai Zhou exchanged glances in the dimly lit rest area.

Together, they uttered the same two words. “Page number.”

……

Inside the virtual game hall’s private room.

The gamblers were silent for a long time, completely stunned.

[What exactly is the relationship between Zhou Qian and 137—]

[Why are you asking that? Is that the main point? The main point is, what do they mean by “page number”?]

[It’s a shame that the gambler who previously sent Zhou Qian a reminder message isn’t here.]

[Yes, even though his theory about 137 was wrong, he was right about He Xiaowei being fake! He’s too sharp. If he were here, we could ask for his opinion.]

[Wait, don’t we have Priest? Priest, what do you think?!]

Seeing the gamblers looking at him, Priest began to explain, “Zhou Qian has already analyzed that this world isn’t a complete novel. It’s a world formed by the author’s drafts, written in the hotel for inspiration.”

“The author is writing about a series of murders. So, how do you think an author would organize the drafts for such a complex case for convenience?”

Without waiting for an answer, staring at the screen, Priest continued, “For example, on September 7^th, 1987, a family of three was murdered. I would label it as A1 and place it on the first page. News reports, police disclosures, and crime scene photos are all there.”

“Then, on this page, I would write an outline about this case—”

“The outline would describe how a man, a woman, and a child were killed by a murderer with specific features in a particular way. They lived in room 1108.”

“Next, on January 29^th, 1988, an elderly woman and her granddaughter were victims. They lived in room 1112. I would place this case on the second page of the draft.”

“On April 5^th, 1988, another murder of a couple took place. They stayed in room 1108. This case is on the third page of my draft…”

“In this way, I think you should understand easily.”

Priest said, “A man and woman duo are the murderers, and all the victims are on the 11^th floor. Based on this case, Luo Yu created his novel. Thus, every page of his manuscript has cases occurring on the 11^th floor.

“That’s why, no matter which number is pressed in the elevator, players always end up on the 11^th floor.”

“Upon exiting the elevator, players see different murder cases. It’s not because they’ve traveled to different times, but because they’ve opened different pages of the manuscript.”

“So, the numbers on the elevator panel don’t represent floors, but page numbers in the manuscript.”

[Shit, is that even possible?]

[Wait, the elevator only has 12 buttons, but the manuscript has many pages, right? How does that work?!]

[Bro, that’s the point! Zhou Qian pressed “11” twice and saw different murder cases. Why? This can be explained by the problem you just raised—]

[The elevator only has 12 buttons, but there are many pages in the manuscript. So, the relationship between “elevator numbers” and “page numbers” is “one-to-many” rather than “one-to-one!”]

Priest said, “Yes, the elevator only has 12 buttons. So, when Zhou Qian and the others pressed for the 11^th floor the first time, they might have ended up on page 11 of the manuscript.

“But the second time they pressed for the 11^th floor, they might have been on page 22, which is twice 11.”

“The murder records on these two pages of the manuscript are different, so of course, the scenes they saw were different.”

“Of course, this pattern is just my speculation. How the 12 elevator buttons correspond to different pages of the manuscript is something they’ll still need to figure out. Also—”

Priest narrowed his eyes and said, “When Zhou Qian and 137 met that man and woman, they had already entered the manuscript world. After that, they successfully made it to the main hall.”

“So, pressing the number ‘1’ still gives one a chance to get to the first floor. Players won’t always be stuck on the 11^th floor. It’s just a matter of probability.”

“However… I suspect that the first floor is quite dangerous now.”

The gamblers all asked in unison, “Why?”

Priest explained, “Because when they first discovered that pressing the numbers in the elevator only takes them to the 11^th floor, most people would instinctively press ‘1’ several times. Common sense and past experiences would make them believe that they can exit the hotel from the first floor, thinking it’s the safest.”

“The reason Zhou Qian and his group never encountered other players is because they never pressed the button for the first floor.”

“But it’s different for other players. Most of them will meet on the first floor. And don’t forget, based on the author’s ‘Dual World’ story setting, another group of ‘players’ will emerge from an alternate dimension.”

“So… the current situation on the first floor is probably chaotic.”

At that moment, inside the game,

When Zhou Qian looked at Bai Zhou again, his expression had become more serious. “If the author’s manuscript isn’t very long, by trying a few more times, we can figure out its pattern. What we need to do next is find the author of this manuscript world and find a way back to reality.”

“Yes, we need to do it quickly. Then go to the first floor,” Bai Zhou said.

“We indeed need to hurry. He Xiaowei probably pressed ‘1’ multiple times, thinking he saw a ghost. He might have encountered the fake players.”

Zhou Qian’s expression turned grave. “I just hope that Hidden Blade’s intuition is reliable. At least he can protect He Xiaowei a bit. Wait, can he really handle it? He is He Xiaowei’s master after all.”

“Don’t worry. Under such circumstances, ‘intuition’ will be very useful.” Bai Zhou said, “When I played dungeons with Hidden Blade, his intuition was always accurate. He typically grasped the moves of the boss and the location of treasure chests quickly—”

Before Bai Zhou could finish, Zhou Qian, while pressing the elevator button, interrupted him with a simple “Oh.”

Bai Zhou sensed something but wasn’t entirely sure. “Zhou Qian?”

Zhou Qian walked into the elevator first, then looked at him thoughtfully.

Bai Zhou entered the elevator and looked back at him uncertainly. “Zhou Qian? Do you have something to ask me?”

Zhou Qian: “After we came out of ‘Last Wish’, why did you disappear for seven days and didn’t contact me?”

Bai Zhou: “I went to play some instances. Why?”

“Right, instances.” Zhou Qian asked, “With Hidden Blade?”

Bai Zhou: “?”

Zhou Qian no longer looked at him, just at the number panel. After the elevator doors closed, the number “12” reflected Bai Zhou’s face. Zhou Qian pressed it firmly with his thumb.

“Forget it, let’s go. We have to find the pattern between the page numbers and the elevator numbers, and that author.”

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 木尺素 / Mu Chisu

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

---

Chapter 95

In less than a minute, Zhou Qian had changed his clothes.

After the two left room 1107, even though they knew the likelihood of anyone being present was low, they still forcibly opened all the doors on the 11^th floor to check the inside before leaving the floor.

Once inside the elevator, they pressed the number “12”. When the elevator door opened, as expected, all the door plaques still displayed numbers starting with 11. They had arrived in a new timeline on the 11^th floor.

As usual, they first saw the murder scene of Xiong Fei and Li Yuan. This time, the incident took place in room 1111, and the victims were still a couple. The murderer’s method was largely similar to the previous times, with no new tricks.

After skillfully killing the couple, Xiong Fei and Li Yuan left.

Next, based on the pattern, it was time for the animation of the second story—the story related to the handsome man and the woman in the red skirt.

However, this time, Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou waited for quite a while but saw no sign of it. Neither the woman nor the man emerged from rooms 1103 or 1104.

Zhou Qian wasn’t in a hurry. He and Bai Zhou waited in the corridor for about five minutes when they noticed an unusual burning smell. Upon closer inspection, they realized it was coming from room 1103.

Leaning against the corridor wall, Zhou Qian unconsciously lifted his foot and tapped it on the floor several times. After a while, he looked at Bai Zhou, who was standing opposite him, nodded towards room 1103, and finally said, “Zhou Ge, it’s up to you.”

Hearing this, Bai Zhou gave Zhou Qian a few more glances, seemingly trying to gauge his current mood.

Soon, he nodded without asking any more questions and walked over to Zhou Qian. Turning his body slightly, Bai Zhou gave a forceful kick to the door, breaking the lock.

“It might not be safe inside. You want to go in now?” After taking a quick look inside, Bai Zhou asked Zhou Qian.

“We won’t know if it’s safe unless we go in,” Zhou Qian responded, hinting, “Hmm? This time you didn’t throw me onto the bed after breaking the door, did you?”

“Zhou Qian…” Bai Zhou frowned slightly and reached out to grab Zhou Qian’s wrist.

Zhou Qian dodged and went into the room first.

Bai Zhou’s brows deepened. He stepped forward to follow, but Zhou Qian immediately stopped him.

“Don’t come in. Let me check the situation first. We shouldn’t both be caught off guard,” Zhou Qian said.

Bai Zhou shook his head. “I know what you’re trying to do. You go out. Let me handle it.”

“It’s fine.” Zhou Qian glanced at him, pushed Bai Zhou into the corridor, and then closed the door behind him.

Inside the room, it was just as Zhou Qian suspected. The room, covered in pentagrams, had all its windows and doors tightly shut. A man and a woman lay side by side on the bed, and next to the bed was a basin of burning charcoal. They were attempting suicide via charcoal burning.

Zhou Qian had left Bai Zhou outside, fearing that both of them might succumb to carbon monoxide poisoning. He was still unsure if all the scenes involving this man and woman were merely animations. Therefore, he wanted to test it out himself.

After leaving Bai Zhou outside, Zhou Qian approached the man and woman. They both opened their eyes and looked at him. At this moment, Zhou Qian asked, “Did you kill those people?”

The man was the first to reply. “Yes.”

Zhou Qian then asked, “I guess you don’t feel guilty. But aren’t you afraid of dying?”

This time, the woman answered. Her voice was weak, but she smiled and said, “Of course not! Others fear death because they’ll have nothing when they go to hell. We’re different! Those who die by our hands will be our slaves! They’ll serve us in hell! Death will bring us true wealth!”

The man quickly added, “I’m now filled with boundless joy. I’m about to see Lord Satan! This world is filled with sin, betrayal, and pointless desires. Only Satan can give me… the pleasure and peace I desire!”

“If death pleases you, then perhaps you shouldn’t die.” Zhou Qian smirked, picking up a bottle of unfinished mineral water from the table next to him and pouring it into the charcoal stove.

“What are you doing?”

“Stop! Stop this useless and foolish act!”

“To be honest, I think what I’m doing probably doesn’t serve any real purpose. But seeing the two of you so angry and distorted before death, it seems worth it.” Zhou Qian narrowed his eyes and said, “It’s just a shame that this is so much lighter than what you’ve done to other victims. I guess you’ll never get what you want. You’re just brainwashed. There’s no Satan in hell.”

The man and woman could no longer speak because they gradually lost consciousness.

Zhou Qian poured out the entire bottle of mineral water, but the charcoal fire was unaffected. The smoke, mixed with the harmful gasses from incomplete combustion, continued to fill the room.

About three minutes later, the couple was dead. Zhou Qian was unharmed and didn’t even feel any discomfort. He could see the couple and smell the scent of burning charcoal, as if he were in the same space with them. But in reality, it wasn’t the case.

Suddenly, the door was pushed open, and Bai Zhou entered. His pace was unusually hurried. After entering the room, he immediately grabbed Zhou Qian’s wrist and dragged him to the door. “Do you feel okay?”

“I’m fine.”

Zhou Qian looked straight ahead at the man and woman on the bed, their bodies becoming transparent and then disappearing from the room.

At the same time, the charcoal fire and the pentagrams throughout the room also vanished. The room looked brand new, as if nothing had happened.

Zhou Qian reached into his bag and found something:

[Item: Useless Paper]

[Function: No function; transformed from an illusion, its existence is very short-lived. If not placed in the bag, it would have already disappeared.]

[Note: Keeping it in the bag is a waste of space and has no practical use. It is recommended that players take it out as soon as possible. It will disappear immediately when taken out.]

Upon seeing the note, Zhou Qian took the item out. It was the money given to him by the man in room 1103 as a delivery fee.

As the system said, the money disappeared shortly after leaving the bag, just like the suddenly vanished couple and the marks they left in the room.

“So, things didn’t start to go awry until we returned to the 11^th floor from the lobby. The alternate dimension appeared much earlier. The first time we met that couple, they were already ‘illusions’ and not real. They could see us and talk to us, but they couldn’t interact with us in any substantive way. They had already died in ‘history’ and didn’t exist in this time and space.”

Suddenly, Zhou Qian laughed, turned to Bai Zhou, and held up another item—

It was what they bought from the front desk in the lobby.

“So this thing is useless to them after buying.” Zhou Qian said as he walked to the trash can and threw it away. “What a pity it can’t be used.”

After disposing of the item, Zhou Qian stared at the trash can for a moment. Various thoughts crossed his mind.

How does the system train Rank God players? One would think Bai Zhou spent these years cultivating some emotionless path. 

So does he have feelings for me? 

Especially after tying people up and biting ears… What is he doing?

Taking a deep breath and yawning, Zhou Qian turned around to see Bai Zhou leaning against the door, seemingly deep in thought. When Bai Zhou noticed Zhou Qian’s gaze, he looked back and said, “Everything we’ve seen feels like a flashback*.”

*Revolving lantern (走马灯). It’s a lantern consisting of a revolving cylinder that has cutouts of pictures on its surface. When a light source is placed inside, it projects moving images on the surrounding walls, creating an effect similar to a modern film reel. Metaphorically, it’s used to describe rapid flashing of images or replaying of memories (AKA one’s life flashing before their eyes).

There was a saying that people would recall their most important memories before they die. Could the illusions or animations players saw be the memories of these murderers flashing back before their suicide?

Zhou Qian became serious, taking the lead to leave the room and head towards another. “Remind me, let’s check room 1111.”

Room 1111 was where they had witnessed another murder when they first arrived on this floor. If the traces of the “charcoal suicide case” in room 1103 disappeared, what about the other rooms? And were there any clues they might have missed?

Leaving room 1103, Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou quickly headed to room 1111. As they approached, they were hit by a strong smell of blood. The murder scene in this room hadn’t “vanished”.

Indeed, everything inside was intact. Two bodies were tied up, their heads covered with nylon bags, and the room was marked with inverted pentagrams.

The story related to that man and woman is indeed a kind of illusion, akin to an animated existence. Perhaps the story came from the flash of memories like a revolving lantern, or maybe it was the shadow of history cast through time and space to the present.

Regardless, they didn’t really exist in this time and space and wouldn’t have any substantial impact on the player.

However, it could now be determined that the cases committed by Xiong Fei and Li Yuan may not be the same.

Suppressing his disgust at the blood in the room, Zhou Qian said, “The actions of Xiong and Li are indeed closely related to the man and woman. Their behavior is an exact replica of the adulterous killers.”

“The fake He Xiaowei previously claimed that the ghosts of the man and woman possessed the bodies of Xiong and Li after they died. But this claim is untenable. He said that just to clear his name and make me believe he was the real He Xiaowei.”

“So, the question I raised earlier is still unresolved—why did Xiong and Li appear as if they were ‘resurrected from the dead’?”

“Now it’s clear that, unlike the situation with the man and woman, these dead people haven’t disappeared; they are not illusions or animations that vanish after playing. So where did these dead people come from? Where did the fake He Xiaowei and the fake version of you come from?”

As he spoke, Zhou Qian heard the sound of a blade being unsheathed. Turning his head, he saw Bai Zhou holding his incredibly sharp Tang sword.

The Tang sword has a long and straight blade, much narrower than ordinary swords. Compared to a double-edged sword, the single-edged Tang sword was thicker and sturdier. Its hilt was long, allowing for a flexible two-handed grip. But mastering it wasn’t a task of just a few days.

The dim light from the corridor cast Bai Zhou and his Tang sword in two long, narrow shadows. Shifting his gaze from the shadow on the floor, Zhou Qian looked up to see Bai Zhou lifting the sword. Reflected on the slender snow-white blade were Bai Zhou’s shining black eyes.

After a moment, Bai Zhou said, “For a long time, I did nothing but practice with this sword. During that period, every challenge I took on was related to swordsmanship. It took me years to achieve my current proficiency.”

Zhou Qian understood his point. “Yes, I was curious earlier. How could that counterfeit last so long against you?”

Bai Zhou added, “This sword is called ‘Breaking Dawn’. I received it as a reward when I reached god rank. I had defeated the most powerful boss in the game. The system emphasized that it’s unique in the entire game.”

Zhou Qian remembered something and asked, “When I attacked you earlier, you didn’t even touch my weapon. Why? Were you afraid my weapon would get damaged? Is your ‘Breaking Dawn’ so sharp that it can easily shatter the Rib of God?”

“Yes, it can break anything,” Bai Zhou replied. “So, logically, there shouldn’t be another identical sword here. It appears that this instance has somehow duplicated both me and that sword.”

After the word “duplicate” was uttered by Bai Zhou, Zhou Qian pondered on it, piecing together the events in his mind.

The 11^th floor of the Saiya Hotel seemed to be an ominous floor where many had been murdered. The killers were a pair of lovers who ended their lives in a charcoal suicide pact.

Many years later, eleven impoverished tourists checked into this hotel. One of them, likely a hotel staff, murdered two tourists, Xiong Fei and Li Yuan.

After this, an alternate dimension appeared. The birth of the shadows of the man and woman marked the beginning of this dimension.

Suddenly, the hotel seemed off. The 11^th floor seemed to overlap with multiple timelines.

Two killers appeared, replicating the forms of Xiong Fei and Li Yuan. Their actions mirrored the adulterous killer duo.

Meanwhile, the other nine tourists were duplicated, leading to the appearances of another Bai Zhou and He Xiaowei. Victims of the adulterous killers, who should’ve died at different times, were also duplicated, repeating the tragedy.

“So… are the numerous 11^th floors some kind of ‘duplication’ or ‘reproduction’?”

Zhou Qian wondered aloud. He then moved closer to a bedside table in the room. Earlier, they hadn’t found any clues on the deceased, only deducing that they all shared a trait of ‘prone to cheating’. Thus, Zhou Qian had overlooked one detail during his first investigation.

Upon his second entry, he discovered a signed photo with the name “Luo Yu”.

On the back of the photo, written in a different font, were the words: [I finally saw you in Blue Harbor City! You are my most admired idol!]

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 木尺素 / Mu Chisu

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

---

Chapter 94

Approximately 40 minutes ago.

The players had just returned from the tattoo shop to the Seiya Hotel.

Bai Zhou went to take a shower, and Zhou Qian had just finished blow-drying his hair when he heard a knock on the door.

The visitor was Hidden Blade.

Seeing Zhou Qian, he got straight to the point. “Where’s Bai Zhou?”

“He’s showering.” Zhou Qian narrowed his eyes at him. “Are you looking for him?”

What surprised Zhou Qian was Hidden Blade’s response. “Not exactly. It would be better if all three of us discussed this matter together. However, I feel a mission is about to come. In this game, I have an intuition-related talent, and it’s usually right.”

“So… time is of the essence. Since he’s showering, let me talk to you first.”

[System Notification: Based on real-time monitoring and predictions, the content that the Rank God player is about to discuss involves core game secrets. High/low-level gamblers are not authorized to know. The following dialogue has been muted.]

Seeing Hidden Blade’s expression and the system’s notification, Zhou Qian quickly realized what was happening.

He asked Hidden Blade, “When you spoke with Zhou Ge alone in the exhibition hall’s rest area, was it about this?”

“Yes,” Hidden Blade replied. “We decided it’s time to tell you. Long story short—”

“Bai Zhou’s mental energy is nearing its limit, and he’s about to go berserk. ‘Transformation into a Dragon’ is one of his active skills, with a cooldown. However, when he goes berserk, he might involuntarily transform into… something odd, perhaps a monster in your eyes.”

“In any case, when he starts losing his senses, you need to help him revert back before he completely turns into a monster, or the consequences are unimaginable.”

Zhou Qian asked, “What signs will he show before he goes completely berserk?”

Hidden Blade answered, “The most obvious sign is his eyes. When he’s completely turned, his eyes will be blue. But during the transformation process, his eyes will turn red.”

“When the red is at its deepest and purest, his eyes will turn blue. But that’s the most dangerous moment, as it means he has completely transformed and lost his senses. Also—”

Hidden Blade then inquired, “Has he given you something?”

Zhou Qian nodded. “Yes. A scale.”

Zhou Qian took out the scale, and Hidden Blade gave him detailed instructions on its use. He also asked Hidden Blade many details about Bai Zhou’s transformation into a monster.

Recently, Zhou Qian suspected that the “He Xiaowei” next to him was an imposter. With Bai Zhou showing signs of transformation, he thought he could use this to lure the imposter and identify him. Zhou Qian pretended to be unaware of Bai Zhou’s impending transformation, mistaking him for a “ghost” in the game, thus leading “He Xiaowei” into his trap.

That was the plan.

But before Zhou Qian could think it through, Bai Zhou began transforming. The timing was very different from what Hidden Blade had described, much earlier than Zhou Qian had anticipated.

At this moment, Zhou Qian was in a wrecked room, with only one partially functioning light outside that blinked eerily.

Even weirder, he felt his legs being entwined by something slippery and cold, presumably Bai Zhou’s transformed tail, which was growing and tightening around him, restricting his movement.

Zhou Qian couldn’t see clearly what Bai Zhou had turned into.

Despite the chaotic situation, Zhou Qian remained calm. He recalled the events and then, looking into Bai Zhou’s red eyes, spoke.

“I get it. I said, ‘We need to separate’.”

“Did those words hurt you?

“Zhou Ge, in your delirious state, did you think… I wanted to leave you, and that’s why you wanted to bind me?”

The words “separate” and “leave” seemed to agitate Bai Zhou again. He leaned in, biting Zhou Qian’s ear with his now-sharpened teeth. Zhou Qian knew he was bleeding. He winced in pain, and Bai Zhou loosened his bite but didn’t let go.

Zhou Qian couldn’t see Bai Zhou’s face anymore. He tried to push him away but failed.

“Although I want to wait and see what you will ultimately become, are you feeling very uncomfortable?” Zhou Qian raised his right hand around Bai Zhou’s back, and what he touched with the tip of his fingers was a cold and smooth scale. Gently patting Bai Zhou’s back, covered with scales, Zhou Qian’s expression remained unchanged, and he whispered in his ear, “Zhou Ge, let me comfort you now.”

Lowering his eyelids, Zhou Qian could see Bai Zhou’s shoulders. He forcefully tore off the blood-stained clothes, exposing Bai Zhou’s shoulder area.

Through the flickering light coming in from outside the room, Zhou Qian could see the fresh, bleeding wounds on his shoulder and the scales growing from the wounds.

Taking the scale that Bai Zhou had given him earlier and placing it on his own forehead, Zhou Qian then pressed his forehead against Bai Zhou’s cold and bare shoulder.

Thus, a single scale became the medium connecting the spiritual worlds of two people. When Zhou Qian opened his eyes again, he found himself in a dark world.

This was Bai Zhou’s spiritual realm. But where Bai Zhou was hiding remained unknown.

Taking a few steps, Zhou Qian stepped on something. He didn’t know what it was and wanted to see clearly but couldn’t for the moment. In this spiritual world, he couldn’t access his belongings and couldn’t get a flashlight or similar tool.

Left with no choice, Zhou Qian cautiously continued forward. Wandering in a blood-red world, he could barely see anything and almost tripped unexpectedly.

After a slight stumble, he heard a “ding” sound in front of him. Zhou Qian crouched down, felt around, and found a flashlight.

Turning on the flashlight, Zhou Qian saw numerous blood-colored skulls. It was as if he was in a world made of fresh blood and bones.

Taking a shallow breath, Zhou Qian looked down at the flashlight in his hand, the corner of his lips curling up in a smile.

Then he spoke loudly, in a coaxing tone. “Zhou Ge, you gave me this scale as a key. Now I’ve used this key to enter your world. Why are you hiding from me?”

“Can you feel me entering your world, right?”

“Zhou Ge is the best, even thinking of giving me a flashlight at this time. So—”

“Won’t you stop hiding?”

“Zhou Ge, it’s Zhou Qian. I’m here to find you. Can you come out and see me?”

While exploring Bai Zhou’s spiritual world, Zhou Qian kept talking, trying to get him to appear. After an indeterminate amount of time, he heard some sounds. Following the sound, Zhou Qian saw a light.

It was their classroom in the third grade.

Silencing himself, Zhou Qian walked over with light steps and looked through the window. Third-grade Bai Zhou was inside, and so was Zhou Qian. The classroom was filled with cakes adorned with candles. Watching the scene for a moment, Zhou Qian smiled, recalling that past memory.

The story started from the midterm exams three years ago. After the exams, the class teacher organized a parent-teacher meeting. The meeting was held in a small auditorium and attended by both parents and students.

Zhou Qian’s parent-teacher meeting was attended by his father’s assistant. During the meeting, he noticed that class leader Bai Zhou was sitting alone.

It wasn’t until 20 minutes before the end of the meeting that Bai Zhou’s mother hurriedly arrived. She was dressed like a high-ranking white-collar worker and seemed extremely busy, which likely explained her tardiness.

After the meeting ended, the assistant took Zhou Qian to the school gate, asking him to wait while he fetched the car. Zhou Qian nodded and waited on the small path lined with sycamore trees at the school entrance.

At that moment, he saw Bai Zhou and his mother walking out of the school gate. For some unknown reason, instead of waiting for his father’s assistant, Zhou Qian decided to follow Bai Zhou.

Because of the parent-teacher meeting, the school gate was jam-packed with cars and was very noisy. Zhou Qian followed Bai Zhou and his mother for quite some time before reaching a somewhat less crowded area.

Bai Zhou’s mother’s car was parked by the roadside. She rushed towards it in her high heels while pulling Bai Zhou along. Her face turned sour when she saw a parking ticket on the window. She sternly walked to the trunk, opened it, and hurriedly took something out, shoving it towards Bai Zhou. She was in such a rush that by the time Bai Zhou reached out to take it, she had already let go.

It was a birthday cake.

Due to Bai Zhou’s mother’s haste, it ended up smashed on the ground.

Bai Zhou’s mother paused briefly, then quickly took out a wad of cash and handed it to Bai Zhou. “Take a cab home. I have to rush back for a meeting at work. I’ve already been out too long—”

As she was about to leave, Bai Zhou grabbed her hand. “Didn’t you say if I ranked first in the class, you’d celebrate my birthday with me this year? I’ve never celebrated a birthday before.”

“Who told you that you have to have cake for your birthday? Isn’t that just a formality? I often buy you treats, don’t I? How about this? When I have time, I’ll buy you another cake, okay?” Seeing no smile on Bai Zhou’s face, as if sulking, she got somewhat upset. “Bai Zhou, understand the situation. It’s tough for me. I didn’t become a partner in the firm because I was pregnant with you. All these years, I’ve been overshadowed by others! This case is crucial. I can’t lose again. Be a good boy, go home, have dinner, and do your homework. If it’s that big of a deal—”

“I’ll ask your father to celebrate with you!”

Hmm. So, today was Bai Zhou’s birthday. That was what Zhou Qian thought at the time.

The next day was a weekend. His father wasn’t home, and his mother was listlessly watching TV on the couch. Feeling bored, Zhou Qian thought of Bai Zhou. He suddenly recalled how lonely and pitiful Bai Zhou looked, staring down at his smashed birthday cake on the ground after his mother drove off.

Back then, Zhou Qian hadn’t yet encountered the Zhang Yanjun’s incident and was still mentally balanced. In his heart, he was still a generous rich kid, eager to help less fortunate classmates.

So Zhou Qian arranged to meet Bai Zhou in the classroom, using the excuse that he had a question he didn’t understand and wanted to ask Bai Zhou.

When Bai Zhou arrived at the classroom at the agreed-upon time, he saw, to his astonishment, nine cakes in the room, each with lit candles.

Bai Zhou was stunned.

Before he could react, Zhou Qian was already in front of him, holding a gift box and saying with an expectant smile, “Open it quickly!”

Without waiting for Bai Zhou to take the gift, Zhou Qian took his hand and thrust the gift box into it, saying, “Happy 9^th birthday! Has no one ever celebrated your birthday before? So I got you nine cakes to make up for all those missed years at once!

“Do you think I’m a pretty good person?”

While listening to Zhou Qian, Bai Zhou began unwrapping the gift.

Inside was a trendy electronic watch of that year. The time displayed was precisely 13:07.

Hearing some noise, Bai Zhou shifted his gaze from the watch to see Zhou Qian standing in front of him, holding a cake. Zhou Qian blew out the candle with one breath and then looked up and smiled at Bai Zhou.

Sunlight filtered through the sycamore tree leaves, casting a dreamy light into the classroom.

Beneath this filter, Zhou Qian’s smile was the brightest Bai Zhou had ever seen.

Afterward, Zhou Qian rarely smiled like that, especially after the incident with Zhang Yanjun.

From then on, Bai Zhou often reminisced about that afternoon.

If he could pause time, he would have wanted to press the pause button at 13:07, letting that moment linger a little longer, just a bit more.

At that moment, looking through the glass, Zhou Qian saw two children blowing out candles and starting to eat cake.

The empty weekend classroom was used as their birthday party venue. The two kids even sat directly on the podium, each holding a plate of cake. Unexpectedly, Young Zhou Qian smeared some frosting onto Young Bai Zhou’s nose and forehead.

Bai Zhou let him be, not minding his antics.

Back then, Zhou Qian didn’t think much of it. But now, looking back, he found his younger self childish and pampered.

In short, he grew increasingly irritated with his younger self.

Suddenly, Zhou Qian felt the ground shake beneath him.

Glancing to the side, the distant world seemed tumultuous, filled with countless rustling sounds, as if all the flesh, blood, and bones on the ground were crawling over.

The ground began to collapse, and the mental realm seemed about to shatter.

If he left this unchecked, the only illuminated classroom would be completely consumed by darkness.

Without hesitation, Zhou Qian broke the window with a crash and jumped into the classroom.

Hearing the noise, the two children on the podium looked up, both staring blankly.

Zhou Qian quickly walked over, unceremoniously moving his younger self aside, and took his place next to Young Bai Zhou.

Young Bai Zhou, apparently not recognizing him and thinking he was bullying young Zhou Qian, was ready to throw a punch.

Zhou Qian quickly grabbed his wrist. “Look closely. Who am I?”

Staring into his eyes, Zhou Qian asked deeply, “Can’t you tell which Zhou Qian is real and which is fake?”

After a while, Young Zhou Qian suddenly disappeared, seemingly merging with the present Zhou Qian.

The tremors grew more intense.

The dark sky was illuminated by countless lightning bolts, and as a thunderstorm approached, a loud bang was heard as the roof was pierced by lightning. The ceiling cracked open, and a large rock plummeted down, heading straight for Bai Zhou.

Zhou Qian immediately jumped off the podium, holding nine-year-old Bai Zhou protectively.

Stones brushed past Zhou Qian’s shoulder, tearing away a chunk of his flesh. In pain, he didn’t hesitate, grabbing Bai Zhou and running towards the corridor outside.

With debris falling like rain, Zhou Qian dodged while protecting Bai Zhou. The situation was dire. As they ran, Zhou Qian suddenly stopped, almost tumbling to the ground. A vast abyss had opened up in front of them, leading to an unknown destination.

When he landed, Zhou Qian kept Bai Zhou safe in his arms, ensuring he wasn’t hurt.

Zhou Qian’s face and shoulder bore the brunt of the debris. Without catching his breath, he heard something behind him. Turning around, lightning was closing in, inch by inch.

Behind him was lightning, and ahead was the abyss.

But when another bolt was about to strike, Zhou Qian, left with no choice, rolled into the abyss, holding Bai Zhou.

During their fall, Zhou Qian held Bai Zhou by the waist, raising him and locking eyes. “Zhou Ge, wake up!”

Bai Zhou’s eyes flashed blue, then red, finally settling into a deep black.

He stared intently at Zhou Qian, as if trying to etch this moment into his memory.

At that instant, although his manifested body in this mental realm was only nine years old, there seemed to be a shadow of his adult self overlapping with the young form.

Staring into those deep eyes, Zhou Qian felt as if he was being pulled into some dark world within Bai Zhou’s heart.

Then he heard Bai Zhou whisper, “Aren’t you afraid?”

“Afraid of what?” Zhou Qian retorted.

“Of crashing and shattering into pieces with me.”

Zhou Qian chuckled.

Returning Bai Zhou’s intense gaze, Zhou Qian’s tone, which usually sounded mischievous when tricking teammates, now carried a seriousness and certainty that perhaps even he wasn’t aware of.

“I’m not afraid. Zhou Ge, you wouldn’t do that.”

“I’m here to take you back. Leave with me.”

Zhou Qian laughed.

Matching Bai Zhou’s deep gaze, Zhou Qian’s tone seemed similar to how he would cajole and deceive other teammates usually, but upon closer listening, there was an added seriousness and certainty that he might not even have been aware of.

“Don’t be afraid. Zhou Ge, you won’t do that.”

“I’m here to take you back. Leave with me.”

“You have to leave with me now!”

With that said, Zhou Qian pulled Bai Zhou closer, their foreheads touching.

At this close proximity, Zhou Qian stared intently into those eyes, as if engaged in an invisible standoff. Then he emphasized in a deep tone, “You will leave with me.”

Suddenly, there was a flash of light, and another bolt of lightning struck from the sky, bringing with it a rain of shattered rocks.

Zhou Qian watched as the figure of Bai Zhou in his arms began to grow rapidly, morphing into a dragon.

The deep blue dragon tail wrapped around Zhou Qian tightly. The dragon then ascended at an incredible speed, soaring towards the lightning. Like a solitary moon hanging high in the sky—it was the true ruler of this world.

With a flick of its tail, the dragon tossed Zhou Qian onto its back.

Dark clouds gathered from all directions, heralding the birth of another storm.

Yet, the dragon continued to rise against the sky, its tail swiping away the ominous clouds.

Then, as the dark clouds dispersed, daylight broke through, bathing the world in sunlight once more.

Zhou Qian hugged the dragon, feeling it rapidly ascending. The intense speed almost made him dizzy. As the clouds cleared, the blinding light forced him to close his eyes for a moment of relief.

After a while, the brightness faded, and the sensation of flying ceased. When Zhou Qian opened his eyes, he found himself back in the dilapidated room 1107.

The scale had unknowingly returned to his palm, and now pressed against his forehead was Bai Zhou.

The horns on Bai Zhou’s head had disappeared, and the scales on his face were fading away. His eyes were still deep blue, but they were turning darker. Looking into them, Zhou Qian felt as if he were diving from shallow waters into the abyss of a dark ocean.

Their foreheads were slightly damp, either from sweat or perhaps both.

Having journeyed through the mental world of a Rank God player, Zhou Qian felt the fatigue and pain as if they were real. Taking a deep breath, he instinctively leaned backward.

Immediately, Bai Zhou’s not-yet-fully-human hands reached out, supporting the back of Zhou Qian’s head, bringing their foreheads close again.

Forehead to forehead, noses touching.

In this position, Zhou Qian heard Bai Zhou’s hoarse voice ask, “Choosing to use that scale means you’re willing to be my Shepherd. Zhou Qian, so… are you willing?”

“Otherwise, do I have a choice?” Zhou Qian replied with a weak yet teasing tone, making Bai Zhou laugh. “What if you went berserk and tore me to pieces and ate me?”

The fingers on Zhou Qian’s head moved forward gently, barely touching his face. Bai Zhou asked, “Haven’t you ever doubted that I might be fake?”

“You took the elevator alone, so theoretically, it’s possible. But you were flawless. I’d think, at most… there might be a parallel dimension. But the you from that dimension is still you.”

“As long as it’s you, you wouldn’t harm me. Maybe at the end of this instance, the dimensions will merge, and then—”

Bai Zhou interrupted Zhou Qian. “It’s not me.”

“Hmm.” After a moment, Zhou Qian nodded in agreement, emphasizing, “It’s not you.”

Then Bai Zhou went silent.

With Bai Zhou quiet, Zhou Qian said, “Hidden Blade described your berserk form as terrifying. But I think… it seems fine.”

“Really not scared?” Bai Zhou asked.

“No,” Zhou Qian replied.

After a moment of silence, Bai Zhou’s voice deepened. “Don’t you think I’ve become unrecognizable?”

Zhou Qian seemed to suddenly grasp Bai Zhou’s insecurity.

When they were much younger, Zhou Qian often told Bai Zhou, “Zhou Ge, I think you’re really handsome.”

“Yes, definitely handsome.”

“Zhou Ge, in my eyes, you’re perfect in every way.”

……

“Unrecognizable? Because you turned into a dragon and had scales on your face? Too bad—” Zhou Qian feigned nonchalance. “I didn’t get a good look.”

“Zhou Qian—”

“Next time, let me take a closer look at what you believe to be the real you.” After saying this, Zhou Qian felt Bai Zhou lean in, seemingly wanting to get closer.

They were already very close; this movement almost made their bodies touch completely.

Bai Zhou wanted to…

Zhou Qian paused, then gently closed his eyes.

A moment later, he felt Bai Zhou move past him towards the head of the bed.

It turned out, Bai Zhou had only intended to help him untie the restraints on his left hand.

Zhou Qian: “…………”

Two minutes later.

Sitting at the head of the bed, Zhou Qian watched as Bai Zhou held a flashlight in one hand and a cotton ball in the other, cleaning the wound behind his ear and asking if he had any other injuries.

“Was I too rough earlier?” Bai Zhou asked.

Zhou Qian remained silent.

Bai Zhou shined the flashlight on his face, examining it before reaching out to touch his forehead. “Your face is flushed. Do you have a fever?”

Zhou Qian: “…”

After treating Zhou Qian’s wounds, Bai Zhou massaged his wrist and took a clean set of clothes from his bag. “Your clothes are covered in blood; you don’t like that, right? Go change, and I’ll wash my face.”

As Bai Zhou headed to the bathroom, Zhou Qian called out, “Hey, Zhou Ge.”

Bai Zhou turned to look at him. “Hmm?”

Zhou Qian blinked at him. “You don’t see me as… a younger brother, best buddy, or close friend, do you?”

Bai Zhou: “?”

“Never mind. It’s nothing.” Zhou Qian asked him, “What about the injury you had before?”

Bai Zhou: “It’s all healed now. When I transformed back from the monster form, everything was healed.”

“Oh. Alright then. We’ve wasted too much time. Let’s continue with the plot. I bet there’s a surprise on the 1^st floor.”

With that said, Zhou Qian grabbed the clothes beside him and threw them at Bai Zhou.

“Zhou Qian—?” Bai Zhou didn’t dodge and was hit by the clothes.

Zhou Qian said with a hint of annoyance, “Never mind. I’ll just buy from the system store myself.”

---

Kinky Thoughts:

Just a note, the cover of this novel depicts Bai Zhou in his mid-transformation.

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 木尺素 / Mu Chisu

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

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Chapter 93

Lying on the ground, Bai Zhou’s eyes remained wide open in death. A silent tear slid down his face before disappearing.

Upon witnessing this, Zhou Qian’s heart sank.

He didn’t have time to utter a word before the person in front of him turned into ash and dispersed into the void.

For a rare moment, Zhou Qian felt a pang of anxiety.

However, he quickly suppressed it, clutched the Rib of God, and hurriedly headed towards the elevator.

Sure enough, “He Xiaowei” was desperately pressing the elevator button. He had witnessed the previous scene and knew he was exposed, so he decided to flee.

“Although I don’t exactly know what you ‘ghosts’ are, it seems you too need to use the elevator and can’t just vanish at will.”

Zhou Qian stepped forward. Just as he spoke those words, he felt a gust of wind beside him; a bloodshot-eyed Bai Zhou was lunging at him with a knife.

In the nick of time, Zhou Qian leaped forward, grabbed him by the waist, trying to stop him. “Zhou Ge, wait! Let me ask a few questions.”

Bai Zhou indeed stopped in his tracks. But that didn’t mean he spared “He Xiaowei”.

With a swift motion, he surprisingly didn’t kill with one strike but instead pierced “He Xiaowei’s” shoulder with his blade, nailing him to the wall.

Then, Bai Zhou turned his gaze to Zhou Qian.

Filled with a fierce aura, he said nothing, but his eyes seemed to urge: “Ask your questions.”

Zhou Qian deeply looked into his eyes, then turned his attention to “He Xiaowei”. “Do you know where you went wrong?”

“He Xiaowei’s” reactions were rather perplexing.

At first, he displayed anger, fear, and regret—typical responses when one’s plans are foiled and faced with death.

Yet, in the next moment, he looked at Zhou Qian with sadness, as if he truly was He Xiaowei.

He seemed reluctant to turn against his old friend, hence the reaction.

The previous “Bai Zhou”, when he “betrayed” and died, showed a similar response.

Recalling the tear that slid from his eye, Zhou Qian momentarily drifted into thought.

But his eyes sharpened quickly after. “Can you tell me, what exactly are you?”

“He Xiaowei” didn’t reply but painfully shook his head.

Zhou Qian continued, “Tell me, and I’ll let you know where you went wrong, deal?”

Still, “He Xiaowei” didn’t respond. Zhou Qian raised an eyebrow, then said, “From the moment I met you, I’ve been trying to figure out who you really are by talking to you. You revealed many inconsistencies, but they weren’t enough for me to act.”

“After all, people can change and behave differently under different circumstances. I needed more evidence, so I decided to trap you. It’s no fun trapping just one; the bigger fish had to be lured out.”

“After deciding to set you up, many of the things I said to you were deliberate. I intentionally told you first that I suspect there are two of you, two of me, and even two Zhou Ge here. Based on that, I then deliberately put on a show, pretending to believe that he was fake.”

“Sure enough, you really believed it. You believed it, and then another Zhou Ge emerged.

“So now, do you know where your flaw is?”

Zhou Qian walked up to He Xiaowei and said, “If you tell me what’s going on, I’ll let you die cleanly. How about it? At least tell me… why the fake Bai Zhou would shed tears, and why you occasionally show sadness? Why does the fake Bai Zhou also have a Tang sword and use exactly the same moves?”

He Xiaowei actually responded. But he only said one thing. “I have He Xiaowei’s memories of you. In some sense, I am also the real He Xiaowei. That’s why I feel pain.”

Hearing this, Zhou Qian wondered—

Did the “Bai Zhou” shed tears earlier because, at that moment, he truly felt sad as Bai Zhou? Was he a clone of the real Bai Zhou? Did his tears signify that the real Bai Zhou would also feel such pain and sorrow if betrayed by him?

Zhou Qian’s expression changed slightly. Before he could ask further, the figure of “He Xiaowei” turned into ash and disappeared completely.

Zhou Qian suddenly felt a sense of loss, as if he had just personally persecuted Bai Zhou and He Xiaowei. But after all, they were just fakes.

Their feigned concern and real intent to kill him were clear. After all, pretending to protect him while actually wanting to distract the real Bai Zhou in a duel was what the fake Bai Zhou did.

The reason why this “He Xiaowei” was fooled was easy to analyze. He had been lurking by Zhou Qian’s side, looking for a chance to kill him. The reason He Xiaowei hadn’t acted yet was because Bai Zhou was with Zhou Qian. Alone, he couldn’t deal with both of them.

Realizing this, Zhou Qian hatched a plan to trap the “ghosts”.

Upon seeing Bai Zhou acting strange and Zhou Qian considering him fake, without knowing it was all Zhou Qian’s design, “He Xiaowei” believed it was real. The mission of “He Xiaowei” and their group of “ghosts” was probably to kill all the players. They wanted to kill Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou.

At that moment, seeing Zhou Qian mistakenly think the real Bai Zhou was fake, “He Xiaowei” thought it was a golden opportunity and wondered why he hadn’t brought the fake Bai Zhou. Zhou Qian would definitely think the fake was real, and they could team up to eliminate the real Bai Zhou. Once the real Bai Zhou was gone, killing Zhou Qian would be easy to deal with.

So, the fake He Xiaowei brought the fake Bai Zhou, hoping to seize this golden opportunity. In their eagerness to kill, they exposed a major flaw.

No matter how smart a person was, they couldn’t solve a math problem with missing conditions. From the information they had, players still didn’t understand the rules of this instance. They had no idea which number to press in the elevator to reach which time and space.

So far, Zhou Qian only knew one fact: once players enter the elevator and leave, they can’t return the same way as the numbers’ corresponding time-space is always changing.

Given this, it was impossible for the “He Xiaowei” or “Bai Zhou” to find them so quickly.

The overlapping time and space on the 11^th floor turned it into a maze. Their swift arrival could only mean they knew the coordinates and how to get there. Therefore, they knew all the secrets of this space and were “ghosts”, not humans.

Of course, this flaw wasn’t the basis for Zhou Qian’s judgment. He had this plan to further confirm He Xiaowei’s identity, bait the fake Bai Zhou, and eventually eliminate the two “ghosts”. He always knew that the Bai Zhou by his side was real.

After He Xiaowei disappeared, Zhou Qian immediately ran to the blood-covered Bai Zhou, helping him up.

“Zhou Ge, are you okay?”

During the recent battle between the real and fake Bai Zhou, Zhou Qian didn’t intentionally delay, causing Bai Zhou to get injured.

The two “ghosts” came too fast. They might also realize that their approach had flaws and could reveal their “ghost” identities.

However, in their eyes, Zhou Qian might not quickly realize this flaw, so they wanted to test Zhou Qian’s reaction.

Therefore, Zhou Qian had to continue acting as if he was unaware.

In this way, he could ensure that he would succeed in one strike and be able to kill the ghost that was as powerful as Bai Zhou.

Right now, Zhou Qian didn’t get a response from Bai Zhou.

Bai Zhou simply grabbed his wrist and dragged him back into room 1107, which was almost completely destroyed except for a bed.

From the broken furniture on the floor, Bai Zhou quickly pulled out a cloth strip, tied Zhou Qian’s wrist to the bed, and then leaned over to hug him tightly, just as he did before.

“Zhou Ge?” Zhou Qian lifted his other hand and gently touched Bai Zhou’s eyelid.

He watched as deep blue scales appeared on Bai Zhou’s face, one by one, gradually covering his entire face.

At the same time, sharp horns grew on his forehead, and his ears became pointed, completely different from a human’s.

Then, Bai Zhou whispered something in a low voice.

But it was clearly not a human voice anymore; it sounded like a beast suppressing its roar.

However, Zhou Qian actually understood him.

He was asking, “Are you afraid of me?”

“Not afraid.”

Zhou Qian raised his hand and gently touched his horn, which felt very smooth. He whispered, “Even in this state, you haven’t harmed me. I just don’t know which of my words triggered you to transform—”

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 木尺素 / Mu Chisu

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

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Chapter 92

“You’re not Bai Zhou. Who are you?”

Zhou Qian shouted out loud, immediately struggling fiercely. He tried to bend a leg, fiercely kicking the person pressing on top of him. However, his strength couldn’t move the person at all.

At the same time, the Bai Zhou from outside had broken into the room, his Tang sword slashing at the man on the bed, the flash of the blade reflecting his cold, murderous eyes.

Suddenly, another Tang sword was drawn. It was pulled out by the Bai Zhou on the bed.

He didn’t dodge or evade but directly drew his sword to meet the attacker’s strike.

As the two blades clashed, a brilliant white light erupted, illuminating two identical faces. One face looked as usual, albeit angry. The other’s face was increasingly off, with its pupils almost completely turning red, contrasting with a pale, bluish complexion, as if some monster disguised as a person was about to lose control and reveal its true form.

Accompanied by the screeching sound of metal scraping, one blade slid past the other, briefly separating before both swung with powerful killing intent. They continuously clashed, creating massive sounds with each impact.

Thus, two identical figures with identical swords began a fierce duel. Within moments, they had exchanged dozens of slashes, seemingly evenly matched. Sofas, coffee tables, and even the door were shattered, showcasing the sharpness of their blades.

Due to the special rules of the instance, neither could use special skills. Both were relying purely on their strength and combat abilities. The two fought their way from inside the room to the corridor. Carpets and walls broke apart, with shards and dust exploding amidst the flashing blades. Lights overhead shattered, dimming the already dark corridor.

While the two fiercely battled, Zhou Qian, with only one wrist bound, discreetly freed himself.

Though the room was in chaos, he wasn’t injured at all. It seemed both Bai Zhous were cautious around him, adjusting their strikes just before hitting him. Zhou Qian also noticed their techniques were almost identical.

All of this suggested as if Bai Zhou had been magically duplicated. Only one detail differed—the Bai Zhou from outside didn’t have a bite mark on his hand.

Zhou Qian took out the Rib of God from his bag and entered the corridor, where the fight between the two Bai Zhous was intensifying. Near the elevator, he saw He Xiaowei had returned, hiding in a public resting area, seemingly scared of being caught in the crossfire.

Raising his eyes, he unexpectedly met Zhou Qian’s, and he showed a terrified expression.

“Thank you for not abandoning me and calling for help,” Zhou Qian said to him.

He Xiaowei swallowed. “Ah… yes. You should come hide too. It’s too terrifying!”

Hearing this, Zhou Qian’s expression remained unchanged, but he felt a sinking feeling inside. His last doubts had vanished, and he now had a definite answer.

“I can’t. I have to help. If they keep fighting like this, they might both end up dead. Thank you for bringing the real Zhou Ge here. I’ll go help him defeat the fake one now!”

“You shouldn’t go. Zhou Ge and I can handle him!”

Having said that, Zhou Qian continued forward, his face full of rage. “I’ve been deceived for so long! I’ll kill him!”

Seeing that he couldn’t persuade Zhou Qian, He Xiaowei simply said, “Be careful then!”

“Mm. I can do it.”

Without paying further attention to He Xiaowei for the moment, Zhou Qian, holding the Rib of God, dashed towards the area where the two were fiercely battling.

At this moment, both Bai Zhou’s bodies were injured, their arms and legs covered with wounds of various sizes and severity.

However, both seemed equally unfazed.

They continued to fight as if they were numb to pain. As they moved, wounds would constantly burst open with fresh blood, staining their clothes completely red.

By the time Zhou Qian arrived, one of the Bai Zhou’s, whose eyes were almost blood-red, was slashing at him with his sword.

The other Bai Zhou, without hesitation, held his sword with both hands and slashed upwards, clashing fiercely with the oncoming blade.

The moment the two blades collided, the screeching sound of metal friction resonated once again. After that, Zhou Qian confronted the red-eyed Bai Zhou with a question: “Bastard, who the hell are you?”

Hearing this, Bai Zhou’s blood-red eyes squinted slightly, revealing a strong hint of restlessness, as if heralding the imminent arrival of an extreme danger, like a volcanic eruption or a raging tsunami.

“You’re not Bai Zhou. You’ve deceived me all along. I’m going to kill you!”

Zhou Qian yelled at him, raising the Rib of God and swinging it hard.

Bai Zhou shifted his body to the side, avoiding the attack from the Rib of God, and retreated half a step.

Seizing this opportunity, Zhou Qian swung his weapon again at him, launching a second attack in quick succession.

Yet, the sword continued to pull back, and the red-eyed Bai Zhou took another half step backward. Like this, he kept retreating, not retaliating. After a moment, he just looked up, gazing deeply at Zhou Qian through sweat-soaked hair with eyes that seemed like they were brewing a storm.

Zhou Qian bravely met his gaze, showing an unmistakable murderous intent.

After a while, he raised the Rib of God in front of his chest with his right hand while holding onto the arm of the other Bai Zhou beside him with his left. Turning his head, Zhou Qian looked at him with concern. “Thank goodness you came. Otherwise, I might have been killed by him. Zhou Ge, thank you—”

“There’s no need for that between us. Zhou Qian, step back. I’ll kill him.”

Bai Zhou looked at Zhou Qian with equal concern, grasping his hand.

While trying to pull Zhou Qian to his side and about to say something, a rapid strike from the opposing sword came swinging at them.

The normal-looking Bai Zhou quickly sidestepped to Zhou Qian’s right, wrapping an arm around him and raising his own sword, striking with lightning speed.

As the blades clashed again over the next 30 seconds, they exchanged numerous blows. Both were ruthless, aiming for vital areas; each strike was fiercer than the last.

In a fleeting moment, the opposing red-eyed Bai Zhou’s gaze slid down to the hand on Zhou Qian’s waist. The blood in his eyes seemed to boil with rage, as if blood would spurt out at any moment.

With hands clasped, he stepped back several paces, then lunged forward, delivering the fiercest blow, aiming straight for the head of the Bai Zhou beside Zhou Qian.

The blade gleamed with unprecedented sharpness, painted with red marks, prominently reflecting the murderous intent in Bai Zhou’s eyes.

Seeing this, the Bai Zhou holding Zhou Qian quickly retreated a few steps. His palm exerted a slight force, perhaps intending to push Zhou Qian away and confront the blade charged with murderous intent.

However, Zhou Qian advanced instead of retreating, swinging the Rib of God horizontally.

As the Rib of God was about to meet the incoming blade, the blade unexpectedly stopped in its tracks.

The blade’s glow dimmed, and the red-eyed Bai Zhou stepped back, spitting out a mouthful of bright red blood.

The normal-looking Bai Zhou, seeing this, immediately pulled Zhou Qian close again, gripping his sword tightly and launching another fierce strike at the opposing red-eyed Bai Zhou.

A new round of combat began, but this time, the red-eyed Bai Zhou seemed to be on the defensive, as if he was holding back something. He retreated all the way to the end of the corridor.

At this end of the corridor, one door was sealed with cement, and the other led to the chaotic room numbered 1107.

Most of the lights here were broken. From the other half of the corridor, a dim yellow light shone, suggesting that this duel was nearing its climax.

Zhou Qian felt the hand around his waist release him. Then he heard Bai Zhou beside him say, “Get behind me. I’ll handle this.”

Zhou Qian shook his head. “You can’t defeat him on your own. Let’s do it together. You distract him, and I’ll seize the opportunity to strike!”

While saying this, Zhou Qian stared intently at the red-eyed Bai Zhou across from him.

His tone was cold, filled with the intent to kill, as if he had made up his mind to put the opponent to death.

After speaking, when he looked at the Bai Zhou beside him, his gaze had softened.

His voice also softened. “Zhou Ge, be careful.”

Zhou Qian’s gentle reminder gave Bai Zhou by his side endless courage. In contrast, it seemed to evoke infinite anger in the Bai Zhou on the opposite side.

Two identical Tang swords were held by two people who looked the same, and they began their deadly duel once again.

Multiple streaks of blade light flashed and then faded. The floor curled up one after another, the wallpaper shattered inch by inch, and dust and smoke spread everywhere. By the time it all settled, both Bai Zhous were drenched in blood.

With a “clang”, the two swords met again.

The two Bai Zhous stood facing each other at the end of the corridor.

At this moment, their physical strength was obviously exhausted, with their sword-holding hands slightly trembling.

At this point, whoever lost stamina first would be the one defeated.

The deadly fight had reached its critical moment!

Zhou Qian whispered to the normal-faced Bai Zhou close to him. “Now is the time.”

Having said this, Zhou Qian gripped his Rib of God and walked step by step towards the Bai Zhou with red eyes. The red-eyed gaze shifted from his opponent to Zhou Qian, a suppressed emotion in them so intense it was suffocating.

Through these blood-red eyes, Zhou Qian felt as if he was witnessing the end of the world. Gripping the Rib of God, Zhou Qian took a deep breath and lifted it.

At this moment, the red-eyed Bai Zhou had to grip his sword with both hands just to barely withstand his opponent, trying to remain undefeated.

Looking back at the entire battle, even at the most dangerous moments, he never harmed Zhou Qian. The reason he was at a disadvantage earlier was because Zhou Qian was held by the other Bai Zhou, making him hesitant in his moves.

Given this, Zhou Qian could easily kill him if he chose to attack. And it seemed Zhou Qian intended to do just that.

He seemingly couldn’t understand all the emotions hidden deep within those red eyes, only approaching with the intent to kill.

Holding the Rib of God with both hands, Zhou Qian raised it high and swung it forcefully towards the red-eyed Bai Zhou. However, in a split second, with a twist of his ankle and a tilt of his body, the Rib of God suddenly changed direction, striking hard at the Bai Zhou originally standing behind him!

Caught off guard, the Bai Zhou took a heavy blow to the forehead and started to tilt backward, losing the standoff. The next moment, the Tang sword from the other side ruthlessly lunged forward, piercing his heart with astonishing speed and precision.

Due to Zhou Qian’s proximity, the gushing blood immediately drenched him.

Regardless of Zhou Qian’s aversion to blood, he couldn’t care less at the moment—he looked into the eyes of the fallen “Bai Zhou” who was lying in a pool of blood.

His expression was strange; initially, it was filled with deep hatred from a broken conspiracy, but a moment later, it was filled with endless pain and sorrow.

Suddenly, his eyes became extremely red, and in an instant, tears slid down from the corners, glistening like dew or stars. However, they quickly merged into the blood, leaving no trace behind.

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 木尺素 / Mu Chisu

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

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Chapter 91

Two more people died in Room 1112.

An old grandmother and her granddaughter died here. Both of them died in a similar manner: their heads covered with nylon bags, their faces beaten beyond recognition, and their limbs tied into bizarre shapes. As for the floor and walls inside the room, they were all painted with inverted pentagrams.

Xiong Fei and Li Yuan seemed to have become Satan’s minions, constantly killing in the human world and sending them to hell to serve the devil.

After the murders, they left Room 1112 and headed for the elevator.

While waiting for the elevator this time, a wound suddenly appeared on Xiong Fei’s neck, and blood spurted out instantly.

Xiong Fei quickly held his head, seemingly trying to prevent it from falling off.

Afterward, the two of them took the elevator and left.

After the two left, the door to Room 1104 opened, and a woman in a red dress came out.

Before leaving, she yelled into the room, “That’s right, what you’ve given me has never been what I wanted!”

Perhaps because she was too angry, the woman stumbled as she walked out. Her high heels slipped off, and she twisted her foot.

The opposite door of room 1103 opened, and a handsome man walked out.

When he saw the woman, he looked at her with a hint of pity.

Meeting his gaze, the woman lowered her head, as if feeling ashamed to be seen by him in her current state.

The man, however, seemed unconcerned. He walked over to help her up, and seeing that she couldn’t walk, he simply carried her to the elevator entrance.

In a seductive tone, he said to her, “Being with the wrong person isn’t your fault. You deserve better.”

The woman blushed and buried her face in his chest.

The elevator doors opened, and the man carried the woman inside. A moment later, both of them had disappeared.

“My god, what the hell is going on here?” He Xiaowei couldn’t help but say.

“I have some guesses. Let’s get on the elevator first.”

Having said this, Zhou Qian took Bai Zhou’s hand and walked forward, pressing the elevator’s up button.

Inside the elevator, the digital display still showed they were on the 9^th floor.

Zhou Qian glanced at the number and pressed the button for the 11^th floor.

The elevator soon arrived.

Exiting the elevator, Zhou Qian immediately turned left and walked to the end of the corridor.

This time, at the end of the 11^th floor corridor, there was only Room 1107.

As for the old room 1108 where a family of three had died, it had once again appeared to be sealed off with cement.

Seeing this, Zhou Qian went to the opposite room 1107 and swiped his key card.

The room was still empty.

However, this room didn’t have the lampshade decorated with swastikas and human skin tattoos, nor the cold towel with ice cubes left by Bai Zhou. Clearly, this wasn’t the room they had originally stayed in.

After a quick look around the room and making some kind of confirmation, Zhou Qian left room 1107.

Unsurprisingly, they encountered the third murder.

This murder took place in Room 1110.

The victims were still a couple. However, this time there were no children at the scene.

The details of this case were somewhat similar to the previous one, where a family of three were the victims, only this time the roles were reversed.

Initially, the husband was alone in room 1110 and was beaten to death by the fat man Li Yuan.

Later, the wife appeared, accompanied by the bald-headed man Xiong Fei.

The wife didn’t immediately enter the room but clung to Xiong Fei’s hand, seemingly reluctant to let go.

“Once I go back… I’ll have so many troubles.”

She sighed. “This vacation with my husband was supposed to mend our relationship. We used to argue about our child all the time, so we thought we’d try traveling alone… but it seems it didn’t work.”

“He’s not like you. You’re so considerate. You’re the best.

“Ah… The thought of seeing his face later makes me uncomfortable.”

Xiong Fei’s expression changed slightly, but only for a moment.

He quickly returned to his usual demeanor and said, “Don’t you want to go back? But if he finds out… maybe you should go back first. We have plenty of time in the future.”

“Yes, yes, I’ll go back now.”

She sighed and approached the door of Room 1113.

Perhaps because she no longer had any feelings for her husband, unlike the victims in the previous cases, when she saw the blood flowing from under the door, her first reaction was not to check on him but to turn and run.

However, this didn’t change her fate.

The moment she turned around, a small hammer raised by Xiong Fei from the side knocked her out.

The door to Room 1113 then opened, and Li Yuan came out. He grabbed her by the ankles and dragged her into the room.

After killing the two individuals and leaving behind a room with a pentagram ritual circle, Xiong Fei and Li Yuan took the elevator and left.

After the two killers departed, the story of the handsome man living in 1103 and the woman in a red dress from 1104 played out again unexpectedly. This time, as if on cue, they both emerged from their respective rooms at almost the same moment. The instant they opened their doors, they exchanged smiles, showing a deep connection. Afterward, they walked hand in hand down the corridor.

“Why do you always wear a red dress when you see me?”

“Because the first time I met you, I was wearing a red dress. I bought many identical ones… I want to commemorate that day.”

“I get it. Every time we meet, it’s as if it’s our first.”

“Yes. Every time I see you… it feels like the first time.”

After a brief conversation, the two entered the elevator and left.

Subsequent to this, Zhou Qian and his two companions didn’t make any moves for the time being.

They went to the public resting area opposite the elevator; Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou sat side by side on a couch, while He Xiaowei sat on a single soft-back chair beside them.

Looking at Zhou Qian, He Xiaowei was the first to ask, “What… What does all this mean?”

Zhou Qian replied, “It was a bit confusing at first. But after watching it a few times, it’s actually not that hard to understand. Even though it seems the man and the woman can see us, and so can Xiong Fei and Li Yuan, and they even talk to us, there’s no substantial interaction between them and us.”

He Xiaowei scratched his head. “So, does this mean… we can treat everything they do as just an animation or cutscene?”

“Yes. As to the real situation, it’s hard to tell. But for now, we can treat it as an animation.” Zhou Qian explained, “The hotel has 12 floors, but now every floor has become the 11th floor. So, my theory is—”

“We’re always on the 11^th floor, and the elevator acts as a medium connecting different time spaces. The numbers on the elevator’s panel no longer determine which floor we’re going to, but which time on the 11^th floor.”

“That makes sense! But I can’t find a pattern.” He Xiaowei continued, “I met you guys on the 9^th floor. But before that, I took the elevator in and out of the 9^th floor several times. Every time I got out, the situation on the 11^th floor was different!”

What He Xiaowei said makes sense.

The reason Zhou Qian went back to the 11^th floor was to check the situation there again.

From his perspective, he entered a strange space when he went down to the lobby to buy something and then returned to the 11th floor.

At that time, he encountered Xiong Fei and Li Yuan, who had “resurrected” and “changed their personalities”.

When he returned to room 1107, the ice cubes and towels were still there.

But now, after he went to the 9^th floor and met He Xiaowei and then returned to the 11^th floor with him, the items in room 1107 had changed. Although he was back on the 11^th floor, the situation was completely different from before.

“Yes. The elevator panel leads to different time spaces, but it’s not fixed. We need to find out the specific pattern. However, we can ascertain one thing— “

Zhou Qian added, “As we previously discussed, for now, we can treat Xiong Fei and Li Yuan’s murder story and the love story between the man and the woman as animations. They’re playing out two entirely different storylines. So, whenever we exit the elevator, we see different parts of these two animations.”

The woman in the red dress had a troubled relationship with her original husband, with marital discord likely being one of the main reasons.

Additionally, for some unknown reason, they didn’t stay at home but lived in the Saiya Hotel. At least the woman in the red dress did. Hence, she had ample opportunities to cheat. And indeed, she fell in love with the man in room 1103 across from her.

Now, as players traverse different floors, they witness fragments of their story—their meeting, getting to know each other, and falling in love.

After hearing Zhou Qian’s explanation, He Xiaowei nodded. “I get it. When we go to different floors, we’re actually watching different parts of their story. But, we only see what’s related to the 11^th floor. We don’t know what they did in other parts of Blue Harbor City.”

“Well, about the story of Xiong Fei and Li Yuan, it’s actually quite easy to understand,” Zhou Qian said. “The ‘animations’ we see are actually the system’s way of vividly showing us their methods of killing. So far, from the three cases we’ve seen, their method of killing has always been the same, involving a well-coordinated collaboration. They don’t target individuals who are alone; their targets are always pairs.”

“To kill two people, it would be much easier to use methods like drugging. However, before Xiong Fei and Li Yuan kill, they clearly need to conduct a specific ritual. Not only do they have to physically beat their victims to death, but they also require their victims to recite words swearing loyalty to Satan.”

“So, they can’t use indirect means like drugs; they have to do it bluntly.”

“In such a situation, if both victims are in the room, it might be hard for them to act.”

“Hence, in each case, one killer lures one victim out while the other enters the room to kill the remaining victim.”

In the first case, a family of three was victimized.

It appeared Li Yuan seduced the husband and lured him out.

Thus, it became much easier for Xiong Fei to deal with the wife and daughter alone.

After Xiong Fei finished the act, Li Yuan, timing it perfectly, brought the husband back. Upon his return, he walked into an ambush and was also murdered.

In the second case, the victims were an elderly grandmother and her granddaughter.

The granddaughter was a female athlete. With both present, and a direct approach, the killers might not have had an easy opportunity.

So, Xiong Fei seduced the granddaughter, taking her out on a date, while Li Yuan killed the grandmother left alone in the room.

In the end, the granddaughter was killed upon returning with Xiong Fei.

The third case followed the same logic.

Xiong Fei seduced the wife.

The husband left alone in the room was then killed by Li Yuan.

Finally, Xiong Fei brought the wife back and killed her at the same crime scene.

After a pause, Zhou Qian said, “What I’m wondering now is—if there’s a pattern among the victims of these three cases.”

Bai Zhou took over. “In the first case, the husband had an affair, in the third, the wife did, and in the second…”

He Xiaowei interrupted, “In the second case, I suspect it’s also related to having an affair!”

Zhou Qian asked, “How so?”

He Xiaowei explained, “Didn’t I mention earlier that the system asked me to help an elderly woman downstairs to the lobby? She must be the recent victim. Although she was unrecognizable due to the beating, I recognized her clothes.”

“When I was helping her downstairs, she chatted with me. She mentioned she came to Blue Harbor City to accompany her granddaughter, who was participating in a competition. She mentioned I seemed nice and would have introduced me to her granddaughter if she wasn’t already married.

“So, her granddaughter was married. And if she was out dating Xiong Fei, isn’t that cheating?”

“Hmm… So maybe when the killers choose their targets, it’s related to infidelity.”

Zhou Qian reflected, then self-corrected, “No, if we phrase it that way, the causality is wrong. The decision to target the victims precedes the seduction. It should be said that the victims are primarily those prone to infidelity, possessing a trait of ‘prone to cheating’.”

Take the first case as an example.

Perhaps the husband was already known to be unfaithful and was easily seduced.

The killers targeted this kind of person.

Given the victim’s personality, he was easily lured.

Therefore, one of the killer duo was sent to seduce him, and once successful, they seized the opportunity to kill his wife and even their child. Then, finally, the husband was also killed.

The subsequent cases follow a similar pattern; only the “easy-to-cheat” target switches from male to female.

After hearing Zhou Qian’s explanation, He Xiaowei speculated, “Shh… I might have found a connection between the two storylines! The woman in the red dress also cheated! She’s likely one of the victims!”

Zhou Qian neither agreed nor disagreed; he just listened while shaking his head.

He Xiaowei continued, “But wait. I still don’t get one thing… If the killer hates cheaters, why not just kill the one who cheated? Why kill their family too?”

“This goes into the killer’s specific motive,” Zhou Qian answered. “That’s something we still aren’t clear about.”

“The killer’s motive… Why are the killers Li Yuan and Xiong Fei?”

He Xiaowei pondered, seeming perplexed. “What’s their motive? Oh right—”

“One of the killers seduces and lures the victim out, while the other takes advantage of the isolated victim. I get that. But why Li Yuan… I mean, no offense to heavy people—I’m overweight too. But how can he easily seduce someone’s husband? It doesn’t make sense.”

“And Xiong Fei, to be honest, looks average. Why could he easily lure and seduce a woman?”

After a long silence, Zhou Qian said, “Xiong Fei does indeed look average. But… the man from room 1103 is handsome and charming.”

“Li Yuan is overweight, and being gay is still a minority. So theoretically, he shouldn’t be able to easily seduce men. However, the girl in the red dress is undeniably stunning.”

He Xiaowei gasped. “Wait… are you suggesting…”

Zhou Qian looked at the closed elevator for a moment, then got up and pulled Bai Zhou with him. He pressed the up button on the elevator. “Let’s go. Whether the truth is as I’ve guessed, we might find out after the next ‘animation’.”

One minute later.

Zhou Qian, Bai Zhou, and He Xiaowei arrived on the 12^th floor.

Of course, it was only the number “12” displayed on the elevator’s panel.

They left the elevator, but they were still on the 11^th floor.

At the end of the left corridor, room 1108 was sealed off with cement.

This time, the incident took place in room 1212.

The deceased were still a couple.

The husband was, as usual, seduced by Li Yuan and wasn’t present as he had a date with her.

Seizing this opportunity, Xiong Fei sneaked into the room and killed the wife.

Later, when the husband returned holding Li Yuan’s hand, he noticed blood under the door. Upon entering to inspect the situation, Xiong Fei suffocated him with a nylon bag.

After the murder and drawing a pentagram, Xiong Fei and Li Yuan took the elevator and left.

Shortly after, a man and a woman appeared.

Unlike their previous passionate encounters or their initial reserved interactions, this time the two ran out from room 1103 where the man was staying.

The tall, handsome man looked furious, striding forward with a stern face.

The woman, still in her red dress, fell to her knees as she ran out, holding onto the man’s leg.

“Please, don’t go! Don’t leave me. What happened today… It was an accident. I don’t know why he came looking for me! We are already divorced!”

“No. On reflection, we were both wrong. You were wrong. I was wrong too.”

“I…I didn’t…”

“No. We are both married. We betrayed our spouses.”

“It’s not like that. He—”

“I heard it, your husband was asking you to come back. What’s wrong with him… Why? Why would he indulge a wrongdoer like you? You’re a sinner. I’m a sinner. He, who led you astray and indulged your mistakes, is also a sinner.”

“We’re all sinners. We should go to hell to atone.”

After saying this, the man shoved the woman aside and tried to leave.

The woman lunged at him again, falling to her knees. The moment her knee hit the ground, it made a loud impact noise, indicating she was probably seriously hurt.

It seemed the man had no pity for her. “We have to atone. We did wrong.”

The woman, breaking down, said, “I… I’ll atone with you. As long as you don’t leave me, anything is fine!”

Hearing this, the man took out a badge from his sleeve and handed it to her.

At this moment, Zhou Qian could clearly see that the design on the badge was an inverted pentagram.

The man said to her, “Then atone with me. We have to repay.”

After saying this, the man took the hand of the woman in the red dress and left with her by elevator.

Watching the elevator doors close again, Zhou Qian said, “Hmm. I’m pretty sure now that my deduction is correct.”

“Not long ago, He Xiaowei said that the woman in the red dress had an affair, so she’s also a victim. This connects two storylines.”

“But as you all saw…”

“The woman in the red dress is likely not a victim. She’s probably one of the killers. That’s the real connection between the two storylines. So—”

“I need to correct something. In Hall C’s serial murder case, there’s more than two killers.”

“The killer related to the swastika and tattoos, without other evidence, is temporarily considered as one person.”

“But in the nylon bag and inverted pentagram serial killings, the real culprits are a man and a woman working together. The male killer lures female victims, and the female killer lures male victims, cooperating in the murders.”

“I think they do this firstly to test if the victims are prone to infidelity or making mistakes; secondly, for the convenience of murder; and thirdly, after killing so many, they turned it into a ritualistic act.”

Zhou Qian concluded, “So… the animation of the man and woman is about how two normal people became killers. Clearly, this girl was brainwashed by the one she had an affair with, joining a Satan-related cult.”

“They stayed in the Saiya Hotel, becoming hunters of the hotel, targeting promiscuous or conflicted individuals.”

“I guess, in the end, they might have died. They killed all they could within their capabilities. Before getting caught by the police, they might have committed suicide. After all, the man just said he was going to hell to atone.”

“These murderers worship Satan, not fearing death. They not only want to go to hell but also send as many servants to Satan as possible before they do.”

“Perhaps they even believe that killing is an achievement. After going to hell, they will be praised by Satan.”

“Anyway… I think the two of them are dead.”

“Their existence, like a process animation, is a hint from the system for us to clear the level.”

“Assuming this place is some alternate dimension, they might have turned into ghosts after death. After becoming ghosts and using someone else’s identity, they reenact the story of their past crimes. This might also be a direct hint from the system.”

“The most crucial hint hidden here is…”

“Ghosts can take on the appearance of our teammates, like the Xiong Fei and Li Yuan we see now.”

“After the male and female killers died and turned into ghosts, these two ghosts appeared as Xiong Fei and Li Yuan, repeatedly enacting the crimes on different floors to different victims.”

“Of course, I still don’t understand what this space is. The actual situation might be much more complicated. After all, after killing, Xiong Fei and Li Yuan greeted us. They have the memories of players.”

“But for now, I can’t find another term to describe this unknown entity, so I’ll just call it a ‘ghost’.”

“How ghosts become players and why they have their memories, I still haven’t figured out. However—”

At this point, Zhou Qian gave He Xiaowei, who stood in the dim corridor light, a meaningful look.

“One thing is certain. There might be many ‘ghosts’ in this space. They can take on the appearance of players, appear beside us, and then potentially look for an opportunity to kill us.”

He continued, “So, the reason I’ve been talking to you for so long, explaining in such detail… is to test whether or not you’re a ‘ghost’.”

He Xiaowei was stunned, then burst out laughing. “Qian’er, are you joking? How could I possibly…”

“Yes, how could Xiaowei be a ghost? We’ve been talking for so long, and I feel that you’re still you. A ‘ghost’ couldn’t possibly imitate so perfectly. So, it’s not possible.”

Zhou Qian smiled, raised Bai Zhou’s arm that he was holding, and then looked at him. “Zhou Ge is also one of us. From now on, it’s better for the three of us to act together so as not to give the ‘ghost’ an opportunity. I guess—”

After a pause, Zhou Qian said, “The exhibition hall designs virtual game instances with a function to explain the killer’s motive. Since this male-female killer duo worship Satan… the exhibition hall might really construct a hell in the game.”

“So, this alternate space is probably something like hell.”

“Now that so many people have died, if they all become ghosts, and subsequently take on the identity of players, then that’s troublesome.”

After Zhou Qian finished speaking, he noticed that Bai Zhou seemed lost in thought, as if unresponsive to his words.

He Xiaowei didn’t say anything for a while either, seemingly deep in thought.

Zhou Qian narrowed his eyes, scratched Bai Zhou’s palm, and then noticed a hint of red fleeting across Bai Zhou’s pupils. It was so brief that it seemed like Zhou Qian’s imagination.

Finally, He Xiaowei spoke up. “Wait, that’s not right—”

“How do they obtain these identities?” He Xiaowei asked with confusion, “The two Hall D players, Li Yuan and Xiong Fei, were killed by the swastika killer and died in reality. Were their souls taken over and possessed by ‘ghosts’? Can I understand it that way?”

“That’s indeed a possibility,” Zhou Qian replied. “Hmm… your thought is quite reliable. If ghosts only change their appearance, that doesn’t explain the memory issue.

“The ghosts imitating Li Yuan and Xiong Fei recognize us and can call out our names… The theory of possession is indeed more plausible. They take over the player’s body and subsequently acquire the related memories of the player.”

Upon hearing this, He Xiaowei patted his chest. “From what you’re saying, there won’t actually be a second me or a second you. If I die in reality, only a ghost could possibly possess me. Right?”

“True. That makes sense.” Zhou Qian pondered. “If there isn’t anything like parallel universes, but just spirits possessing bodies to revive them, then yes, that’s the case.”

“So, what we need to guard against next isn’t one of us! What we should really be wary of are those killed by Xiong Fei and Li Yuan. Who knows when they might start a killing spree against us. But…”

“We don’t have anyone here with the ‘prone to cheating’ characteristic, do we?!”

He Xiaowei scratched his head. “There aren’t even couples here. How does this death condition get triggered?”

Hearing this, Zhou Qian smiled and glanced at Bai Zhou, releasing the hand he was holding.

At this moment, Bai Zhou’s pupils looking at Zhou Qian suddenly deepened, his demeanor drastically different from usual.

Yet Zhou Qian seemed oblivious to any change.

He simply said, “He Xiaowei’s idea is quite accurate. That man and woman are the real culprits behind the serial killings. They have now possessed Li Yuan and Xiong Fei. After finishing the animation and the game hint function, they’ll likely make their move on us. So, based on their analysis—”

“Their targets are always couples. We shouldn’t stay together.”

“So, Zhou Ge—”

Staring into Bai Zhou’s eyes, Zhou Qian emphasized word by word. “Zhou Ge, we need to split up.”

At this very moment, the three were right outside room 1107.

Across from them, room 1108 had turned into a wall again.

As for the situation inside 1107, no one knew.

Bai Zhou’s expression changed dramatically, showing an unprecedented level of seriousness and gloom.

He stared at Zhou Qian without blinking, knocking hard on the door of room 1107. When no one answered, he kicked the door open with force.

Seemingly sensing something was amiss, Zhou Qian’s face changed instantly.

His pupils constricted, and he warily looked at the now unfamiliar Bai Zhou.

Taking a few steps back, he shouted to He Xiaowei, “He Xiaowei, something’s off with him. Run! We need to run! Head to the elevator!”

“Okay, okay, I’m on it…” He Xiaowei turned and ran, heading in the direction of the elevator.

Zhou Qian backed up a few steps, quickly turning to follow He Xiaowei.

The next moment, his wrist was suddenly grabbed.

Zhou Qian almost cried out, “What’s going on? Who are you?”

Bai Zhou seemed to ignore him.

He gripped Zhou Qian’s wrist tightly with one hand while swiftly wrapping his other arm around Zhou Qian’s waist, quickly pulling him into the room.

Once inside, Bai Zhou didn’t hesitate, swiftly delivering two powerful kicks. The first one slammed the door shut, causing a loud bang. The second kick sent a sofa, along with a coffee table, crashing against the broken door, effectively barricading it.

In the ensuing struggle, Zhou Qian seized a moment to free his wrist and tried to run.

However, without the ability to use any skills, he was no match for Bai Zhou.

Bai Zhou grabbed him by the waist and shockingly threw him onto the bed!

As the back of his head and spine hit the bed, Zhou Qian, disregarding the pain, sprung up from the bed. The next thing he heard was the sound of fabric tearing.

The next moment, his right wrist was gripped, and he was uncontrollably thrown back onto the bed, his wrist then being tied tightly to the bedpost with a strip of torn cloth.

It turned out that Bai Zhou had torn the cloth with one hand while subduing Zhou Qian.

His speed and strength were almost unbelievable!

Struggling to lift his head and glance in the direction of the room door, Zhou Qian’s expression had changed significantly from when he looked at He Xiaowei in the corridor earlier.

Taking a deep breath, Zhou Qian looked at Bai Zhou, his voice somewhat heavy. “Zhou Ge, can you hear me? You—”

Bai Zhou didn’t respond but simply lay sideways on the bed, with one arm pulling Zhou Qian into his embrace while staring intently into his eyes.

Bai Zhou looked at Zhou Qian.

Zhou Qian was also gazing at him.

Zhou Qian could clearly see that deep within Bai Zhou’s pitch-black eyes, a faint redness was emerging, as if they were about to bleed.

“Zhou Ge?” Zhou Qian tried calling his name again.

He then felt Bai Zhou tightly grip his hand, the strength almost causing him pain.

Zhou Qian immediately furrowed his brows and then felt Bai Zhou lean in even closer.

Staring at Zhou Qian, Bai Zhou remained silent. His heavy breathing and the rise and fall of his chest conveyed a deep, powerful heartbeat clearly to Zhou Qian, who was very close.

Holding Zhou Qian tighter, Bai Zhou then lifted a hand and gripped the back of Zhou Qian’s head, pulling him even closer. Accompanied by this movement, Bai Zhou leaned forward, gently kissing Zhou Qian’s earring.

After a moment, a loud banging sound came from the door.

Zhou Qian heard another Bai Zhou’s voice from outside.

“Zhou Qian? Are you in there?”

Zhou Qian remained still, just gazing deeply at the Bai Zhou in front of him, who seemed completely off.

Soon after, the door of the room, along with the sofa and coffee table blocking it, was flung open.

The next moment, there was a flash of silver, and a Tang sword, which Zhou Qian was very familiar with, slashed through the air with endless killing intent!

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 木尺素 / Mu Chisu

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

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Chapter 90

At that very moment, inside the virtual game lobby.

The gamblers belonging exclusively to Zhou Qian seemed a bit stunned.

A moment later—

“Damn, I think he has a point!”

“Who is this gambler? He’s kind of awesome! Isn’t he here?”

“If he’s not watching here in the lobby, he must be one of those gamblers who’ve been following Qian Ge all along.”

After discussing among themselves, many sent these insights to Zhou Qian.

[I think he’s right. This is terrifying!]

[I agree. Also, hey Qian Ge, it’s our fault for not sending you any alerts earlier as your gamblers.]

[Mainly, we feel we aren’t worthy.]

[Yeah, it’s not that we don’t want to help. It’s just hard for us to keep up with your thought process!]

……

Messages flooded Zhou Qian like a snowstorm.

After glancing at a few, he didn’t seem to mind and just looked back at Bai Zhou beside him.

Bai Zhou, catching his gaze, seemed to pick up on something and asked, “What is it?”

“Nothing, just received some tips from my gamblers,” Zhou Qian replied. “Don’t you Rank God players have gamblers?”

“No,” Bai Zhou shook his head, then questioned Zhou Qian. “What did your gamblers say?”

“It’s nothing. Just things I’d already considered.”

Zhou Qian stared at Bai Zhou for a while, then smiled. “However, there is one gambler who’s been consistently helpful, occasionally sending useful tips my way.”

“Who?”

“Someone I know in reality. He takes care of me in the real world too. Sometimes I feel…” Zhou Qian whispered into Bai Zhou’s ear, “He’s a bit like you.”

Hearing this, Bai Zhou didn’t respond. His expression remained unchanged, but Zhou Qian could feel him gripping his hand tightly and noticed Bai Zhou’s jawline tighten subtly.

After a thoughtful look at Bai Zhou, Zhou Qian smiled again and turned his attention to He Xiaowei, who was bouncing over.

Once He Xiaowei reached Zhou Qian, he took a deep breath. “Damn, Qian’er, I finally saw a familiar face. I think I’m going to cry. Did you notice? This building is terrifying!

“I can’t get out, you know! No matter which floor I press, when I come out, it’s always the 11^th floor.”

“Ah… isn’t this like the legendary ghost hitting the wall*?”

*Idiom referring to losing one’s way in a maze-like place and ending up back where one started (AKA going in circles).

Zhou Qian looked at him. “Is it? But I’ve been on the 11^th floor this whole time, and I haven’t seen you.”

He Xiaowei responded, “That means there are countless 11^th floors! Damn, what is this sorcery… Wuwuwu, and I keep seeing this man and woman. The guy’s pretty handsome, and the girl’s in a red dress. They seem to be acting out a scene.”

Ignoring his ramblings, Zhou Qian asked, “Where’s Hidden Blade?”

“I don’t know. We got separated!” He Xiaowei replied.

“How did you lose him?” Zhou Qian inquired.

He Xiaowei explained, “Soon after we got back to our room, I went to take a shower. When I came out, Hidden Blade was gone. I tried to contact him but found I couldn’t send messages, as if there was no signal.”

“Then I received a system notification for a compulsory task. I went to the hallway and saw an old woman who had fallen. She asked me to help her downstairs. So I did.

“When I came back via the elevator… everything was off. I even knocked on your door at 1107. No one was there!”

From He Xiaowei’s detailed account, it appeared that perhaps everyone was carrying out a compulsory system task. Regardless of the task’s specifics, everyone had one thing in common—they had all been to the first floor and, upon trying to return to their own rooms via the elevator, ended up in a lost space.

Zhou Qian pondered for a moment, intending to ask He Xiaowei for more details, when suddenly there was a commotion from the direction of room 1112.

Without hesitation, Zhou Qian, Bai Zhou, and He Xiaowei quickly approached room 1112 to investigate.

Then they heard a very familiar voice.

It was from the chubby Li Yuan.

From behind the door, he menacingly demanded, “Swear your loyalty to Satan!”

“I don’t know any Satan!”

An old, frail voice responded, “I…I don’t understand what you’re saying!”

Li Yuan: “You don’t need to understand. Just repeat after me, or I’ll kill you right now!”

Presumably under some form of torment, the elderly voice, unable to bear it any longer, coughed loudly a few times before weakly repeating the words, “Fine… I… I will worship Satan—be loyal to Satan!”

“Good! Now go to hell and meet him!”

As Li Yuan’s words fell, the sound of a blunt object striking echoed.

Soon after, the old voice was silenced.

Another murder had taken place right under everyone’s watch.

After this, Li Yuan didn’t immediately exit the room.

As Zhou Qian was speculating whether Li Yuan was drawing an inverted pentagram inside, the elevator door opened.

A man and a woman emerged.

The woman was an NPC that Zhou Qian hadn’t seen before. She appeared strong and athletic, with pronounced muscles—perhaps she was an athlete or something similar. Intimately holding onto her was the bald man, Xiong Fei.

As Xiong Fei walked, he conversed with her. “Do you think your grandma will really accept me?”

“Of course. No problem,” the woman replied.

“Alright then. I was a bit worried. By the way, you’ve been competing for so many days, aren’t you tired?” Xiong Fei asked.

The woman shrugged her shoulders, smiling at Xiong Fei. “Tired, yes. But if I hadn’t come to Blue Harbor City for the boxing match and stayed at the Saiya Hotel, I wouldn’t have bumped into you! It’s fate!”

As she said this, the woman approached the door of room 1112.

The sight of blood seeping out from beneath the door caught her eye, immediately alerting her that something was amiss.

In a panicked rush, she quickly swiped her card, opened the door, and burst inside.

“Grandma! Grandma, are you okay? Are you—”

Before she could finish, Li Yuan, who had been lying in wait inside, lunged out and quickly pulled a nylon bag over her head!

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 木尺素 / Mu Chisu

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

---

Chapter 89

The disappearance of the ring had a plausible explanation: another guest staying here had come out after hearing the quarrel and picked up the ring from the floor.

However, the room that should have been empty but wasn’t not only made this event inexplicable but also added a layer of mystery to the disappearance of the ring.

Zhou Qian immediately had an idea about what was going on. He grabbed Bai Zhou’s hand and bit the back of it fiercely, leaving a deep bite mark.

Afterwards, Zhou Qian extended the back of his own hand to Bai Zhou. “Come on, bite me too.”

Bai Zhou obviously understood Zhou Qian’s intention. He took Zhou Qian’s hand, but instead of biting the back, he gently bit the index finger, leaving a slightly bloody mark.

The reason Zhou Qian did this was, of course, to take precautions.

Having witnessed the strange phenomenon before him, he had a subtle hunch. Although he knew his guess might not be correct, it was always good to be prepared.

After biting Bai Zhou’s hand, when Zhou Qian tried to communicate with him through a private chat tool, he discovered the tool was unusable. This development seemed to align with his suspicions.

As for the secret hidden within the exhibition hall, before entering Hall C, Zhou Qian had a guess: different exhibition rooms corresponded to different points in time, suggesting that the exhibition hall could potentially connect to different time periods.

Analyzing from a game design perspective, if one considered the entire exhibition hall as a large instance and each virtual game within as small instances, hiding various secrets of the larger instance within the smaller ones was a common game design approach.

Zhou Qian and He Xiaowei had played in Halls A and B, but the information these two revealed was very limited and had no mention of “time connectivity”. Hence, the now more challenging Hall C might be linked to the concept of time.

Given this, when they returned to the 11th floor and witnessed a series of abnormalities, Zhou Qian’s first reaction was that they had been transported back to the 11^th floor many years ago.

Since the concept of “time” was in play, there could be a parallel timeline trick at work. Zhou Qian was concerned that another version of himself and Bai Zhou might exist in this “past” space, which was why he marked their hands with bites.

What Zhou Qian thought of, Bai Zhou immediately realized as well. He tightly held Zhou Qian’s hand and said in a low but certain voice, “We’ll stick together.”

By now, more and more blood was flowing from room 1108. The woman’s screams grew fainter and eventually disappeared. The sounds of beating stopped briefly, presumably because the woman had died.

But after about 30 seconds, the beating sounds resumed. This time, instead of a woman’s cries, it was a child. The child, not as resilient as an adult, didn’t cry for long before falling silent.

Horrific brutality was taking place just beyond the door, its sounds causing Zhou Qian to frown deeply. Then he heard the “ding” of an elevator door opening. Looking towards the elevator, he saw two men walk out.

One man, an NPC Zhou Qian didn’t recognize, was dressed in a suit with oiled hair, appearing quite respectable. The other was the fat player from Hall D, who, by all accounts, should have been dead.

The reappearance of a supposedly dead player made Zhou Qian wonder: did this instance involve parallel timelines? Were the same group of “budget travelers” staying in the hotel from years past?

As Zhou Qian pondered this, he noticed something else. The fat man was walking effeminately, holding the hand of the man beside him.

They seemed intimate, even sharing a kiss once out of the elevator. But shortly after, the suited man quickly let go of the fat man’s hand, as if afraid of being caught in an illicit affair. The fat man stepped back, keeping a considerable distance.

The suited man walked straight down the corridor, passing Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou, and stopped in front of room 1108. He obviously noticed the blood seeping out.

Panicking, he hurriedly used his keycard to open the door. But the moment he did, he was met with a nylon hood.

His head was quickly covered, the door was shut, and a ruthless male voice demanded, “Swear to me—”

The suited man pleaded, “I swear! Please let me go! I’ll swear to anything!”

The aggressor demanded, “Swear that you will worship Satan and be forever loyal to him!”

The suited man responded in sheer terror, “I s-swear, I’ll worship Satan and be forever loyal to him!”

The response to him was a swift and powerful blow.

“Very well, I give you this opportunity! Now, I’ll send you to hell to serve! You’re going to be a loyal servant of Satan!”

After the malicious words, another quick and intense blow was heard.

After a while, the room became silent again, indicating that the man in the suit was probably dead.

However, the killer inside didn’t leave immediately. It seemed he was still doing something in the room.

By the time he emerged, three minutes had passed.

Three minutes later, holding a baseball bat, a man pushed open the door of room 1108 and entered the corridor.

After a few steps, he stopped, turned his head, and looked at Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou.

His baseball bat was covered in blood, and droplets of blood also adorned his forehead, nose, and face.

With a bloody, eerie smile on his lips, his bloodshot eyes squinted slightly, and he said in an incredibly hoarse voice, “Bai Zhou, Zhou Qian. Hello… I hope you’ll join me in serving Satan.”

Hearing this, Zhou Qian tried to read his data and the chubby man beside him through the system panel and, surprisingly, could get information about them as players—

The man with the shaved head holding the baseball bat, who had just killed someone in the room, was called Xiong Fei. The chubby man was called Li Yuan.

Through Xiong Fei’s words, Zhou Qian realized that they still recognized him.

But their personalities had drastically changed.

Li Yuan, the chubby man, gave Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou a glance that was somewhere between a smile and a smirk.

Xiong Fei picked up the baseball bat again and naturally draped his arm around Li Yuan’s.

The two turned around and headed towards the elevator.

Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou exchanged glances and went to room 1108.

The door was wide open, revealing three dead bodies inside: a man, a woman, and a young girl.

All three had nylon bags over their heads, their faces brutally beaten, and their organs damaged to varying extents.

As for the walls and floor, they were smeared with inverted pentagrams in fresh blood.

A family of three died in room 1108 on some date. The room was sealed with cement, and the room number was removed.

Later, the other rooms in this corridor were renumbered.

The room known as 1108 was no longer this one but was on the other side of the corridor near the elevator.

Years later, Zhou Qian and a group of tourists checked in here.

This should be the sequence of events.

Initially, Zhou Qian thought he had traveled through time, returning to the scene of the crime before room 1108 was sealed with cement.

However, if it was just time travel, they shouldn’t have met Xiong Fei and Li Yuan.

Zhou Qian hypothesized that there existed two parallel timelines, “past” and “present”.

In both timelines, eleven budget tourists checked into the Saiya Hotel.

However, if this were true, Xiong Fei and Li Yuan shouldn’t have changed so dramatically.

Thus, it seemed that the concept of time travel alone couldn’t explain the situation.

Why Xiong Fei and Li Yuan, both supposedly dead, appeared in a timeline that resembled the “past”; why Li Yuan appeared to have turned into a woman, leaning against the man in the suit as they emerged from the elevator… These questions remained to be answered as they continued further.

Zhou Qian pondered seriously for a while, then opened the system panel to check. “Can’t send messages to He Xiaowei. The system has a new restriction.”

Bai Zhou, holding Zhou Qian’s hand, led him back to the corridor. “There’s so much blood here. Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.”

Zhou Qian replied, catching something out of the corner of his eye and looking towards the elevator.

He noticed that Xiong Fei and Li Yuan were still standing by the elevator doors, probably because someone on another floor had pressed the elevator button, and it hadn’t returned to their floor.

While waiting, Li Yuan raised his head, yawned, and, to everyone’s shock, his head dropped to the floor.

His head was rather bouncy, as it bounced a few times before settling.

Li Yuan’s headless body seemed to panic and clutch onto Xiong Fei’s arm.

Shortly after, a huge wound opened up on Li Yuan’s neck, gushing blood.

Xiong Fei patted him on the shoulder, picked up his head, and placed it back onto Li Yuan’s neck.

The wound on Li Yuan’s neck vanished, and his head was securely in place. With Xiong Fei’s support, Li Yuan stood up.

Finally, the elevator arrived. The two, hand in hand, entered it and left.

Zhou Qian stared at the closed elevator doors for a moment, then walked with Bai Zhou to the room opposite the crime scene 1108. The door of this room still bore the number 1107.

Not long ago, Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou were eavesdropping behind this door. They wondered if the door they had listened at was still the same now.

Taking out the room card, Zhou Qian tried swiping it. With a “click”, the door actually opened. No one was inside, and everything was as he remembered from his last visit. Even the towel filled with ice cubes that Bai Zhou had used to soothe Zhou Qian’s injury was still there.

Upon seeing the towel, Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou exchanged a knowing look. Both had the same thought and left room 1107 together, heading in unison towards room 1109.

That room should have been occupied by He Xiaowei and Hidden Blade. If they hadn’t left, they might still be inside.

Bai Zhou pulled Zhou Qian behind him with his left hand and, with his right, held his Tang sword, knocking on the door with its hilt. However, no one answered. It seemed the two were indeed not there.

Zhou Qian had suspected this. With all the noise in the corridor, if they were inside, they would have responded.

After a brief consideration, as Zhou Qian was about to suggest they check another floor, suddenly, the door of room 1104 opened.

Not long ago, there had been an argument in room 1104 between a couple, ending with the wife being pushed out into the corridor.

A man from room 1103 soon joined her, and they were openly affectionate, even asking Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou to buy condoms. Now, from the same room 1104, a woman in a red dress identical to the previous one emerged.

The first time Zhou Qian saw her, she was on the corridor floor, looking very upset, until she saw the man from 1103, and then her mood lifted.

Her expression now was quite different. She seemed less than pleased but was not despondent. Her eyes and expressions were free from malice. After leaving room 1104, she headed for the elevator, walking lightly, showing she was in a relatively good mood.

As the woman in red waited for the elevator, suddenly, the door to room 1103 opened, and a man came out. This was the same man who had asked Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou to buy him condoms earlier.

Previously, he and the woman in the red dress couldn’t keep their hands off each other in the corridor. Now, they seemed like strangers. The man quietly approached the elevator and waited with the woman. When their eyes met, they just nodded as a polite greeting.

After a while, the elevator door opened, and the two entered, one after the other. Zhou Qian, exchanging glances with Bai Zhou, followed the two NPCs into the elevator.

The entire corridor was silent as a church. Except for the man and woman, there seemed to be no other NPCs around, and the whereabouts of the other players were unknown. Given the inability to forcibly break into all the rooms for the time being, Zhou Qian speculated that exploring this floor further would yield no new findings. Thus, he decided to take the elevator and assess the situation on another floor.

Inside the elevator, upon seeing Bai Zhou and Zhou Qian, the man and woman looked up at the two of them. They both took a few steps back, almost pressing their backs against the elevator wall, evidently making space for the newcomers. Following suit, Zhou Qian, holding onto Bai Zhou, entered the elevator and casually pressed the button for the 9^th floor. No other floor numbers lit up on the elevator’s digital panel.

It appeared that the man and woman hadn’t selected any floors.

As the elevator doors slowly closed, Zhou Qian asked, “Which floor are you heading to? Shall I press it for you?” Turning his head around after posing the question, he found the space behind him empty.

The man and woman had vanished out of thin air!

Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou exchanged glances, remaining silent. The grip they had on each other tightened just a tad more.

The elevator quickly descended to the 9th floor. As they stepped out, they noticed that the entire corridor—from the ceiling to the sofa and tables in the lounge area across from the elevator—all of the furnishings were identical to those on the 11^th floor.

Having a certain hunch, Zhou Qian, still holding onto Bai Zhou, headed straight to the end of the corridor.

As suspected, where there should have been a room, there was instead a wall. On the other side of this wall was a door with the number “1107” on it.

It was clear that they were still on the 11th floor.

Zhou Qian was about to frown when he heard a voice exclaim, “Qian’er! Damn! Finally, I see a familiar face!”

Recognizing the all-too-familiar voice, Zhou Qian turned around to see He Xiaowei rushing towards him.

At that moment, his wrist vibrated. Zhou Qian received several messages from Li Xuehai—

[The elevator might now be a medium leading to different spaces.]

[Something’s not right here. The teammates you see might not be the actual teammates, like this He Xiaowei. Also…]

[Given your intelligence, I probably don’t need to remind you. But I’ve noticed that your relationship with Bai Zhou is special, and he might deceive you.]

[So, I still want to remind you. Don’t forget, earlier, when you were showering in the room, he went down on the elevator by himself to ask the front desk for ice cubes. Have you ever thought…]

[Maybe the one who returned isn’t the real Bai Zhou?]

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 木尺素 / Mu Chisu

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

---

Chapter 88

The lights in the workroom were brightly lit. The tattoo master Chang Shu started working quickly.

When He Xiaowei saw the dense needle piercing Zhou Qian’s arm, he watched and clicked his tongue twice. “Fuck, Qian’er, does it hurt? It’s a pity that the instance is special; I can’t heal you, or I would have healed you immediately.”

“It’s okay.” Zhou Qian replied to He Xiaowei, but his eyes were on Bai Zhou. “It’s better than when I ate that apple. Zhou Ge, you were pretty ruthless.”

Before Bai Zhou could respond, He Xiaowei curiously interrupted, “What apple? Does eating an apple hurt?”

Zhou Qian, Bai Zhou, and Hidden Blade: “……”

Bai Zhou seemed to want to say something but was interrupted by He Xiaowei. After glancing at Zhou Qian, Bai Zhou turned to Chang Shu and gestured for him to tattoo a “Z” on him as well.

Seeing this, He Xiaowei was even more surprised. “I understand Qian’er getting the ‘Z’, but what does your ‘Z’ mean, boss? Don’t follow Qian’er’s quirky trends. That—”

“Would you keep it down?” Hidden Blade interrupted, covering He Xiaowei’s mouth, and quickly pulled him towards the door to observe the situation in the main hall of the tattoo shop.

Inside the hall, a man and a woman stood by the entrance. The four from the Invincible Legion were quietly chatting in a corner. Even though their voices were very low, with his enhanced senses, Hidden Blade could hear them clearly.

Dami: “Boss, what do you think?”

Erdan: “I peeked outside and listened a bit. They really did tattoo the ‘卐’ on their hands. This is genuine.”

Batu Fei sighed. “Actually, the new recruit we had not long ago, Wen Bin, was pretty smart. It would have been great if he was here to give advice. Unfortunately… Unfortunately, he’s dead.”

Wen Bin was indeed present, but under the identity of “Liu Wansan”. Maintaining his cover, he responded in Liu Wansan’s tone, “Actually, I think we should listen to Zhou Qian. He led me and Erdan to clear the instance. As long as we don’t provoke him and decide to make peace, he won’t harm us.”

Batu Fei snapped, “You want me to ask him for peace? What have I become? Ma Luoluo probably died at his hands! I need to avenge Ma Luoluo!”

Liu Wansan reasoned, “Right now, we have no choice but to yield. The instance is designed to match Rank God players with ordinary players. We made a mistake there. I think the system favors Rank God players.”

“Why did the tattooist only choose two Rank God players? It’s all pre-arranged! So, Zhou Qian has a Rank God player to rely on, and there’s nothing we can do.”

“Yes, we made a mistake.” Batu Fei looked grim. “But isn’t he asking for too much?”

Liu Wansan: “We can hand over our items to friends outside the instance for safekeeping. This way, we will minimize our losses. As for gold, we can negotiate with him.”

“Right, you did remind me. Damn it, who do I give the items to? My only brother, Ma Luoluo, just died like that. If I give it to someone else, they might not return them to me!

“Damn… If I list them on the trading market and sell them, I might not even be able to buy them back! Besides, the gold coins from selling will still have to be given to Zhou Qian! I might as well not bother at all!”

Batu Fei grumbled and cursed all the way, his face as pale as a vegetable.

As for Wen Bin, who was using the alias Liu Wansan, the one thing he was grateful for was that he had already used up his secret camera.

This camera was compact and made almost no noise when pressing the shutter. He quietly took two photos of the people next to Zhou Qian without anyone noticing. After using up the film, he discarded the now-useless camera.

A short while later, after Zhou Qian finished getting his tattoo, he negotiated with the four of them and agreed to give them a 20% discount.

As a result, Zhou Qian successfully took 80% of the gold coins they had, as well as all the items they handed over.

“I know you guys took the opportunity to send away some of the valuable items you have just now, not wanting to give them to me. I didn’t fuss about it with you. See, I’m not really greedy. I take what I can get, and I’m content with that.”

The four who just handed over their items: “…”

In the end, Zhou Qian fed each of them an “I Can Only Speak the Truth” pill and asked, “I have only one question for you all. Have you truly handed over 80% of your gold coins and all the items you can offer?”

Everyone replied: “Yes.”

None of them were judged to be lying.

Zhou Qian scrutinized each of them with a discerning gaze. He didn’t further trouble them, though. After returning to the workspace and having the tattoo artist mark them with the swastika, he waited by the shop entrance.

At this time, the tour guide was hurrying everyone to board the bus, mentioning he had received a call from the hotel’s Receptionist Wang, saying the police were urging them to return for questioning.

Zhou Qian and his three companions, along with a skinny man from Hall D, boarded the bus first.

As they waited for Batu Fei and the others, Zhou Qian’s gaze drifted outside the bus window, as if he was observing anyone passing nearby. He seemed lost in thought, not really focused on anything in particular.

During the ride, the newly tattooed areas on his forearms began to itch and sting. As he unconsciously raised his hand to scratch, Bai Zhou stopped him in time. “Don’t scratch. We’ll apply some ice when we get back to the hotel.”

Zhou Qian turned to him, asking, “How will you apply ice for me? You’re not staying in the same room as me.”

Bai Zhou turned his head, directing his gaze to He Xiaowei seated behind. “We’ll swap rooms tonight.”

He Xiaowei: “…Oh.”

Even though I have no idea what’s going on from start to finish, it’s fine as long as I don’t encounter any ghosts.

Patting Zhou Qian’s shoulder, He Xiaowei asked, “Qian’er, you were staring out the window earlier. Do you think the murderer might be nearby?”

“Not necessarily,” Zhou Qian replied in a low voice. “I suspect the killer might be a hotel employee or even the owner.”

“Indeed,” He Xiaowei added, “the tattoos in the tattoo shop don’t have the swastika. But the human skin decorations in the hotel do. This indicates that those in the hotel weren’t bought from the tattoo shop but rather made by the murderer after killing someone and then carving the symbol into them.”

“Wait a moment… That’s not necessarily true. Since the murderer is fond of tattoo art, he might have bought a regular human skin tattoo ornament from the tattoo shop and added the swastika later on.”

“Regardless, since the murderer has the authority to arrange the rooms, the probability of him being a staff member is quite high!”

“Hmm. Besides what you mentioned, there’s another reason. We can infer why those two players died.”

Zhou Qian said, “The ‘risk of death’ they faced might be because the killer was pondering who to kill that night. Knowing that there were new tourists checking in, he suddenly decided to target them.”

“If there were two people in a room, the real risk of death might not be triggered, as the killer, facing two, might not be confident. But if someone is alone, according to this killer’s character, he might go all out. The two tourists from Hall D happened to be staying separately, one in 1101 and the other in 1102. They just walked right into his trap.”

“So, why would the killer know that a batch of new people checked into the 11^th floor of the hotel? From this perspective, the probability of him being a staff member is quite high.”

“It could be the receptionist; it could be the cleaner who needs to clean the rooms in advance; it could be the lobby manager or the bellboy helping tourists with luggage; and the probability of the hotel owner being the killer is especially high.”

“So, the characteristics of this killer might be: first, he’s tall and powerful, very strong in combat. In a one-on-one fight, no one can match him; second, he’s a hotel staff member.”

By the end of the conversation, Zhou Qian, as if realizing something, seriously added, “Of course, this is just my preliminary judgment.”

“Haa. We must stay together tonight, always sticking together,” He Xiaowei said earnestly, looking towards the silent Hidden Blade. “Master, we need to protect each other.”

Hidden Blade: “……….”

“Ahem, I feel we’re getting close. Since we’ve identified the killer’s characteristics… we should be able to pinpoint who he is soon. Shouldn’t we try to kill him then? In this instance, everyone’s just a regular person, using ordinary means to kill.”

As He Xiaowei spoke, he leaned forward from the chair, positioning his head between Bai Zhou and Zhou Qian’s lines of sight.

Then he turned his head to Zhou Qian and asked, “Right, Qian’er? What do you think?”

Zhou Qian pushed his head away, looking serious. “Not necessarily.”

He Xiaowei: “You’re scaring me again!”

“It’s true. It’s really not necessary,” Zhou Qian said earnestly. “If you were the game designer, would you design similar scenarios?”

He Xiaowei: “Um…”

Zhou Qian continued, “Both groups of us and the people from Hall D have visited different exhibit halls, but just one each. The three exhibit halls had parallel difficulties and similar risks and solutions.”

“However, this time, the system seems to be leading all three groups here together, which obviously increases the difficulty. Don’t forget, this is a virtual game within the exhibit hall. While Blue Harbor City might lean towards reality, anything can happen in a virtual game. Maybe there really are ghosts behind that wall.”

“Damn, Qian’er, don’t scare me!” He Xiaowei cried.

Hidden Blade couldn’t take it anymore. “Enough. I’ll protect you. Among all your brothers, none of them cry as much as you. Don’t embarrass me.”

He Xiaowei: “…”

After the other four were tattooed with the swastika, the nine players boarded a bus back to the Saiya Hotel. The hotel was bustling with police investigating the two bodies.

Receptionist Wang from the front desk had been waiting at the hotel entrance. As everyone got off the bus, he quickly ushered them to sit in the waiting area of the lobby.

Soon after, two policemen came over to question them about their activities, whereabouts, and if they knew the deceased.

Everyone had a consistent answer, claiming they were just part of the same tour group and didn’t know the victims personally.

During the process, Zhou Qian overheard a conversation between two junior police officers nearby, roughly discussing how the hotel was cursed and frequently had deaths.

After some thought, Zhou Qian addressed the police officer in front of him. “Officer, may I ask how they were killed? If… If the killer hasn’t been caught, we can’t afford to stay anywhere else. If we’re staying here and he wants to kill again… can you tell us whether he used a knife or a gun, or something else? We’d like to be prepared!”

“The victims were killed with a knife,” the police officer replied. “Their throats were slit with a single cut, but after that, out of anger or spite, the killer stabbed them once more, as if venting frustration. So, rest assured. He probably had a grudge against those two. You don’t need to worry.”

Judging from the police officer’s response, there seemed to be no restriction in this instance against police revealing details of the murder case.

So Zhou Qian asked further, “Were there any symbols left at the scene?”

Hearing this, the two police officers exchanged uneasy glances, clearly becoming suspicious of Zhou Qian.

Zhou Qian quickly explained, “I’m afraid of ghosts, officer. I just got a protective tattoo at a tattoo shop based on the tour guide’s recommendation, so I’m naturally curious. I have an alibi. I was at the tattoo shop when the crime occurred.”

After a brief pause, the police officer responded, “Yes, a swastika symbol was drawn at the scene.”

Having said that, the police officers proceeded to question Receptionist Wang at the front desk.

Watching their retreating figures, Zhou Qian turned to the four members of the Invincible Legion. With a hint of malice, he said, “I’ve suddenly found a foolproof way to survive: turn yourselves into the police and get jailed. I doubt the killer would murder someone in a police station.”

“Why don’t you do it?” Batu Fei immediately retorted.

Zhou Qian replied, “Because I want to complete the hidden mission. How would I follow the plot or counter the upcoming conspiracies from inside a cell? But I advise you, if you have a chance to stay safe, take it. Don’t be like me.”

Flaunting his protective charm, Zhou Qian once again showed off Bai Zhou like a mascot and arrogantly said, “After all, I have the protection of a Rank God player, which you don’t have.”

Batu Fei was so angered by Zhou Qian’s words that he nearly spat out blood.

Wen Bin, impersonating Liu Wansan, quickly stepped forward, patting Batu Fei’s back to calm him down.

Then, something no one expected happened—

Erdan suddenly turned, ran towards the police, and shouted, “I’m the murderer! Arrest me!”

Surprisingly, he was indeed handcuffed and taken into a police car.

Letting out a regretful sigh that the “Egg Fried Rice” team hadn’t formed properly before splitting ways, Zhou Qian saw the police leaving in succession, while the hotel’s main entrance was completely sealed.

Erdan’s unexpected action stunned the other three members of the legion. Probably no one expected him to take such a step.

Eventually, it was Wen Bin who spoke, looking at Zhou Qian with a complicated expression. “Seems like after the last instance, he really trusts your words.”

“Compared to him, you fall short. I have no reason to harm the innocent,” Zhou Qian responded, walking towards the elevator with Bai Zhou. “Opportunities to stay safe are fleeting. Brace yourselves. The killing is about to begin.”

Inside the elevator, Zhou Qian’s expression grew cold and serious. Through the closing elevator doors, he stared at the glass entrance of the hotel’s lobby.

The police had cordoned off the entire hotel.

If this place was full of tourists, why set up a cordon?

The story was beginning to feel off.

Zhou Qian’s uneasy feeling seemed to be on the verge of coming true.

……

11 p.m.

Zhou Qian had taken a shower and was standing by the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing out. The entire city was still shrouded in fog, making it impossible to see clearly.

While he was deep in thought, he heard footsteps behind him. Turning around, he saw Bai Zhou, fresh from his shower, approaching.

“Did your tattoo get wet during your shower?” Bai Zhou asked.

“No, it’s just a small tattoo. It doesn’t matter,” Zhou Qian replied. He noticed that Bai Zhou was holding a bowl of ice cubes.

Wrapping several cubes in a towel, Bai Zhou approached Zhou Qian. “I went downstairs to get these from the front desk while you were showering. Let’s use them to cool down the swelling.”

Zhou Qian extended his hand, watching as Bai Zhou carefully placed the cold compress on his swollen skin. For a moment, Zhou Qian’s thoughts drifted to memories of his friends facing various perils.

When his focus returned to the present, all he could see was the red and swollen skin on Bai Zhou’s arms. Zhou Qian asked, “You always ask if I’m in pain. What about you?”

While continuing to apply the cold compress, Bai Zhou replied, “Zhou Qian, no matter what happens to me, it’s worth it.”

“Why?”

“Because if I hadn’t chosen this path, I would have died a long time ago.”

Zhou Qian understood.

If Bai Zhou hadn’t sought treatment for his ALS at the Spring Hill Mental Asylum, he might have succumbed to the disease by now.

“But that might not have been the case,” Zhou Qian countered. “Stephen Hawking had the same condition and lived a long life without letting it hinder his achievements.”

He stopped mid-sentence, seemingly coming to a realization. If it were him, he would have made the same choice as well. If given the chance to walk independently, who would want to rely on machines or others for their entire life?

The only thing Zhou Qian couldn’t understand was why Bai Zhou hadn’t told him everything at the start. Was it to protect him from the game, or was there another reason?

Before Zhou Qian could voice his question, a loud argument from the hallway interrupted them. The run-down hotel had poor soundproofing, allowing them to clearly hear a woman’s voice exclaiming, “You’re useless!”

A man retorted, “I’ve given you all my fucking money! What more do you want? After so many years of marriage, you’ll never be satisfied with me, right?”

The female voice replied, “Are you thinking it’s about the money? Can’t I earn money myself? What I’m saying is, you’re not even a real man!”

Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou both pressed their ears against the door to eavesdrop on the argument outside. This action brought their bodies incredibly close. Zhou Qian’s nose was so close to Bai Zhou’s face that he could even feel the warmth of Bai Zhou’s freshly bathed skin clearly transmitting to him.

Zhou Qian chuckled, nudging Bai Zhou’s leg with his knee. “If she’s not complaining about the money, she must be unsatisfied with… well, something else. Seems like her husband isn’t up to the mark.”

Bai Zhou looked expressionlessly outside, but Zhou Qian noticed a slight blush on his ears.

Reaching out, Zhou Qian grabbed the cold towel in Bai Zhou’s hand, filled with ice cubes, and tried to grab his ear. “Feeling hot? Let me cool you down?”

Bai Zhou swiftly grabbed Zhou Qian’s hand, stopping his teasing gesture, and gestured outward with a tilt of his chin.

Zhou Qian stopped teasing and once again pressed his ear against the door, hearing what sounded like a body being forcefully pushed out and falling to the ground. This was quickly followed by the loud sound of a door slamming shut.

From what they gathered, two people had been arguing with the door open, and now one had pushed the other out into the hallway and then shut the door on them.

Meanwhile, Zhou Qian saw the message notification sent by the system:

[Players from room 1107, please proceed to the corridor to view the storyline. This is a mandatory action.]

[NPCs will interact with players. Players must fulfill the NPC’s request.]

Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou exchanged glances, opened the door, and walked into the corridor together.

They saw a woman lying on the ground.

She was wearing a red skirt and had stunning makeup on. However, her expression was grim, sharply contrasting with her bright attire.

She slowly got up from the ground, took off the ring from her ring finger, and threw it away with force.

With a few “ding” sounds, the ring rolled into a corner of the corridor.

She didn’t even glance at it and spat toward the door of room 1103.

It seemed that she had just been pushed out of that room by her husband. Clearly, she was extremely disgusted with him.

At that moment, a man emerged from room 1104, which was opposite room 1103.

The man was tall and handsome. He quickly approached the woman and helped her stand.

The moment the woman leaned on his shoulder, all sorrow vanished from her face, and she seemed to melt, leaning heavily against him.

Zhou Qian watched the scene with interest and said to Bai Zhou, “I guess they had an affair before. Tsk, such cuckoldry, right across each other’s doors.”

Soon after, there were some flirtatious whispers. Zhou Qian looked up to find the two of them kissing right there in the corridor.

After the kiss, the woman hurriedly entered the room, while the man turned to Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou, handed them some money, and said, “I ran out of condoms. Can you help me buy some from the front desk?”

Zhou Qian thought to himself that he had checked his room 1107 thoroughly and hadn’t seen any. Moreover, given their role as frugal tourists, they would indeed run errands for money.

So, the system’s prompt did fit the storyline logic—players must fulfill the NPC’s request.

The only problem was… This man was too eager and hasty about intimacy, even having others buy such items for him?

Raising an eyebrow, Zhou Qian quickly took the money from the man and, together with Bai Zhou, headed downstairs.

In the elevator, Zhou Qian jokingly asked Bai Zhou, “It’s quite fun, isn’t it? Ever imagined one day we’d be taking an elevator together to buy that sort of thing?”

“In the past? If I’m not mistaken, are you referring to our first year in high school?”

Bai Zhou looked at him with a sidelong glance, asking rather seriously, “Did you ever think about it?”

“Not really,” Zhou Qian responded earnestly. “I’m not like you, getting love letters from girls all the time. Who would I buy it for? To blow up as balloons for myself?”

Bai Zhou: “…I never received love letters.”

Zhou Qian continued with a straight face, “And besides, we were underage! What were you thinking about all the time, Zhou Ge?”

Bai Zhou: “……”

After making their purchase without any fuss, Zhou Qian and Bai Zhou returned to the 11th floor via the elevator.

As they reached the end of the corridor, Zhou Qian noticed something odd.

The room opposite theirs, 1107, was supposed to be just a wall.

According to Tour Guide Hua, a family of three died there. Afterward, anyone who stayed there committed suicide, so the room was sealed off with cement.

But now, there was a door labeled “1108”.

Suddenly, a chilling scream echoed from room 1108, followed by sounds resembling a bludgeon striking someone’s head.

Zhou Qian heard a fierce male voice sounding through the door. “Having made a mistake, who do you hope will protect you now?”

A faint female voice, filled with extreme fear, began to speak almost incoherently: “God, Buddha, Guanyin Bodhisattva… I don’t know. Whoever is there, save me, please…”

With a “bang”, another muffled blow landed.

The menacing male voice rang out again. “You’re wrong. You must believe in Satan. Swear allegiance to him; always be loyal to him!”

Sounds of several blows followed, and blood began to seep out from under the door, staining the carpet.

Zhou Qian frowned in displeasure and took a few steps back. Thinking of something, he turned to look at a certain corner of the hallway.

The discarded wedding ring was gone.

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