As the nine of them pushed the door open, the silence was suffocating, only their increasingly heavy breathing breaking the stillness.
Contrary to their expectations, there were no mirror ghosts. The room was empty, except for the dim light cast on the floor, following them like shadows. The door behind them had disappeared as well.
“Could we have guessed wrong? Is there no password door this time?” Su Jin whispered.
“But the system said there are still two ways to open the door, and the difficulty increases with each round. Maybe the door isn’t so obvious this time. Don’t you think this room looks different?” Chen Kaijie still trusted Xiao Muyu and Shen Qingqiu’s deductions.
The room was indeed different. It reminded them of the hallway they had seen when they first left the dorm building. As they moved forward, they discovered a passage about three meters wide.
Inside, it was pitch black, like the gaping maw of a devil. They had no idea if stepping inside was walking into a death trap.
“We have no choice,” Xiao Muyu said quietly, meaning they had to go in.
They paired up and began walking inside. As soon as they entered, Xiao Muyu’s movements halted because Shen Qingqiu had grabbed her right hand.
She looked at Shen Qingqiu in surprise and frowned, trying to pull her hand away, but Shen Qingqiu held on tighter.
“Shen Qingqiu,” Xiao Muyu said softly, but her tone was cold.
“So far, no one has been eliminated in this instance. Do you remember the elimination rate for the first instance?” Shen Qingqiu’s voice was serious, and Xiao Muyu understood her point. But why was she being treated specially?
“If you need a reason, I’ll say it’s because you’re an excellent partner. With you, my chances of clearing this increase by at least forty percent.”
“You can clear this round even without me,” Xiao Muyu acknowledged.
“There’s another reason. Even though this is only our second meeting and we’ve known each other for a few days, I admire you, Xiao Muyu.
When it comes to death, I usually don’t have many regrets. But if it’s you, it would be more than just a regret.”
Shen Qingqiu’s words were almost whispered into Xiao Muyu’s ear, making her uncomfortable. She couldn’t help but twitch her ear.
Xiao Muyu stopped resisting, and Shen Qingqiu held her hand firmly but considerately. Her hand was warm and smooth, and despite any personal feelings, it was actually quite comforting.
Suddenly, the group ahead stopped, and Chen Kaijie’s voice broke the silence, “There’s a fork in the road here. What should we do?”
Shen Qingqiu and Xiao Muyu moved forward to assess the situation. The passage split into two paths, each leading into darkness.
“We need to decide quickly,” Shen Qingqiu said, scanning the group.
“I think we should split up,” Xiao Muyu suggested. “It’s risky to put all our eggs in one basket.”
Chen Kaijie nodded. “Agreed. We can cover more ground this way.”
They divided into two groups. Xiao Muyu, Shen Qingqiu, and a few others took the left path, while Chen Kaijie led the rest down the right.
“Stay alert and stick together,” Shen Qingqiu reminded everyone. “We’ll find clues faster this way.”
As they ventured deeper into the dark passage, Xiao Muyu couldn’t shake off the feeling of foreboding. The air grew colder, and the darkness seemed to press in on them.
“We need to keep moving,” Shen Qingqiu urged, sensing Xiao Muyu’s unease.
The path ahead was uncertain, but with their combined skills and determination, they were ready to face whatever lay in wait.
Xiao Muyu took the opportunity to shake off Shen Qingqiu’s hand and walked forward. Shen Qingqiu didn’t mind and followed closely.
In the dim light, they could see that the corridor split into three paths, hidden in darkness and revealing nothing of what lay ahead. The unknown was the root of their fear, and the atmosphere immediately became heavy.
“Do we need to split up?” Chen Kaijie looked at the three paths, his expression heavy.
Xiao Muyu didn’t answer immediately. She felt an inexplicable unease. Could splitting up work?
Lin Hai and Zhang Qiang, knowing they didn’t have the intellect to solve this problem, retreated to the back. As they waited anxiously for a decision, they suddenly heard a faint sound.
“Drip, drip.” It sounded like water dripping. Lin Hai held his breath and listened carefully, but it didn’t sound quite like water.
“Did anyone else hear something?” He swallowed, his voice trembling uncontrollably.
They didn’t need his reminder. In the silence, the dripping sound became clear, slow and irregular, almost like something viscous.
“Drip.” Shen Qingqiu squinted as a dark shadow fell in front of Xiao Muyu, hitting the ground with a splat.
Her body was like a bowstring, taut and ready to spring.
She and Xiao Muyu simultaneously looked up. Although they couldn’t see the full form of the creature above them in the dim light, the gaping mouth and the sticky, bloody drool were clearly visible.
Seeing them look up, the creature let out a roar. One, two, three… There were too many heads to count, all rushing towards them. It wasn’t just one head!
“Run!” There was no time to hesitate. Shen Qingqiu grabbed Xiao Muyu and rolled into the leftmost passage as the creature crashed down.
“Holy crap!”
The nine of them scattered in panic.
Xiao Muyu got up from the ground, finally seeing what the creature looked like.
Even after seeing it clearly, it was hard to describe. It had numerous heads, male and female, fused together like a mass of rotten flesh. Protruding limbs, covered in pieces of flesh, made a squelching sound as it moved.
“Run!” Shen Qingqiu could feel the creature’s hunger almost as if it were salivating.
The group started running, but their two legs couldn’t outrun the creature with its many limbs. In no time, it caught up.
At the same time, Shen Qingqiu gripped the dagger in her hand, her thumb rubbing the hilt as she locked eyes on the creature.
“Did it split into three?” Su Jin, her throat dry, swallowed hard and asked.
Xiao Muyu’s expression was tense but suddenly complex as she glanced at Shen Qingqiu, who had written something in her palm.
Shen Qingqiu glanced at her, then locked her eyes back on the creature, smiling. “If you keep looking at me like that, I’ll think you have a crush on me.”
Xiao Muyu frowned, not responding. Su Jin was taken aback. She had sensed something strange between them but didn’t expect this flirtation amidst such danger.
Su Jin’s thoughts didn’t last long as Shen Qingqiu suddenly sprang forward, stepping on the corridor walls like a cat, directly confronting the creature.
With precise force, she cut through the head of the long-haired monster. The severed head fell and rolled to Su Jin’s feet.
Su Jin was terrified, staring at the head, which stared back at her, creating a surreal and horrifying scene.
“Go!” Shen Qingqiu’s voice was sharp and clear.
Xiao Muyu didn’t hesitate, squeezing through the gap. She looked back at Shen Qingqiu before running with all her might. Other than Shen Qingqiu, they had no other means to rely on.
Su Jin, usually the calmest of the girls, was overwhelmed by the severed head staring at her and began to freak out.
“Ah!”
She screamed, closed her eyes, and kicked the head away, distancing it from its body.
“Ew… gross!” She couldn’t stand it and jumped around.
Shen Qingqiu was momentarily startled by Su Jin’s move but quickly pulled her away as the creature lunged at them.
Patting Su Jin on the shoulder, Shen Qingqiu gave her a thumbs up. “Nicely done!”
The creature, though terrifying, was somewhat foolish. Losing its head, it stopped chasing them to retrieve it.
If they could sever all its heads, it wouldn’t be a problem. Shen Qingqiu stood up and followed the creature.
Su Jin, her worldview shattered once again, couldn’t believe someone would chase after a ghost.
After calming down, Su Jin realized Shen Qingqiu had sent Xiao Muyu ahead to find the door while they held the rear.
Looking around, she gritted her teeth and chased after Shen Qingqiu.
She didn’t run back very far. The commotion was immense, and the entire corridor was shaking. Shen Qingqiu had driven the creature into a frenzy, causing it to thrash about wildly, desperate to tear her apart.
Before they even made eye contact, something flew straight at Su Jin. Instinctively, she caught it, only to let out a short scream when she realized it was another head. Nearly having her nose bitten off by this ghastly head, she threw it away in disgust, the sticky feel on her hands almost making her break down.
The creature with three remaining heads turned to retrieve the head she had thrown, letting out enraged howls.
When Shen Qingqiu saw Su Jin, she was clearly surprised but then smiled slightly and said, “I didn’t realize you were so brave.”
Su Jin, her face pale, blushed a little, embarrassed. “I wanted to help.”
As the two spoke, the creature suddenly grabbed two arms and tore them out. Su Jin turned even paler. “What’s it doing?”
Shen Qingqiu realized something was wrong and took a sharp breath. “It’s trying to throw out a body without a head.”
Su Jin: …
Indeed, the creature pulled out not just the arms but a headless body. The body, despite having no head, wobbled but moved quickly, chasing after its head.
With this hindrance gone, the main body with three heads became more agile and lunged at them.
Shen Qingqiu narrowly dodged, and the wall where she had been standing was dented.
The creature’s speed increased, and its limbs slashed like blades, striking at the two women. If not for Shen Qingqiu pulling her along, Su Jin feared she would have been torn apart.
“Retreat.” Beads of sweat appeared on Shen Qingqiu’s forehead. No matter how skilled she was, she was still human. Humans have limits and can’t compete with ghosts and monsters. This was her physiological limit.
They hadn’t run far when they encountered Xiao Muyu.
Xiao Muyu quickly assessed Shen Qingqiu, then exhaled slightly. “That way is a dead end. I couldn’t find the password door.”
“It wouldn’t be that easy. It must be in another passage. I just hope the others can open the password door.” Shen Qingqiu’s eyes darkened as she spoke, simultaneously blocking a limb of the creature with her dagger.
The force was immense, splitting the skin of Shen Qingqiu’s hand. She gritted her teeth and rolled under the creature’s legs, aiming for its heads again.
The creature had learned and immediately retracted its heads. Shen Qingqiu’s dagger only slashed its body, causing it to howl in pain.
Xiao Muyu watched in horror. She suddenly realized why Shen Qingqiu was so formidable—she wasn’t afraid of ghosts or even death!
But in the next instant, things took a turn. Xiao Muyu saw Shen Qingqiu’s movements falter, and the creature’s hands swiped at her. Shen Qingqiu dodged one hand but was clawed on the shoulder by the other, sending her flying.
“Shen Qingqiu!”
Xiao Muyu gripped her burning talisman, darting forward to grab Shen Qingqiu and rolling away together.
In the rush, she touched Shen Qingqiu’s wound, feeling the sticky blood. Yet, this woman seemed impervious to pain. She used her core strength to roll them both away from a second attack.
The fresh scent of blood drove the creature into a frenzy. It charged like a battering ram, smashing through the corridor wall and revealing a hole.
Su Jin, unable to help, stood helpless. Shen Qingqiu shouted, “The password is 714285!”
Both Su Jin and Xiao Muyu were stunned, quickly realizing that Shen Qingqiu had seen the numbers on the creature’s body: 5! No wonder she had hesitated.
Su Jin, eyes reddening, gritted her teeth. “Hold on, you guys!”
There was no time for emotions. They needed to open the door.
Seeing Su Jin crawl through the hole, Shen Qingqiu remained tense. They only had eight minutes left. If they didn’t hurry, the creatures would disassemble and consume them.
The hole wasn’t large. As the creature prepared to attack, Shen Qingqiu and Xiao Muyu dodged and squeezed through one after another.
As they turned back, the creature’s limbs and multiple hands were trying to force through, but its body was stuck. Its fingers were just inches from Xiao Muyu’s face, horrifyingly close.
Cold sweat broke out on Xiao Muyu. The two women got up and walked a few meters before stopping.
The air was thick with the stench of blood, heavy with the smell of death. Xiao Muyu held her breath to avoid the nauseating scent.
The ground was covered in dark, dried bloodstains. Judging by the amount of blood, the person was unlikely to have survived.
Xiao Muyu covered her nose, trying to ease the impact of the blood stench, her heart tightening. “Could it be Su Jin…”
Suddenly, Shen Qingqiu heard a crunching sound nearby, like an animal chewing. She immediately covered Xiao Muyu’s mouth.
The soft, warm lips against her palm felt like touching petals, and the warm breath made Shen Qingqiu’s heart skip a beat. She quietly signaled for silence and led Xiao Muyu forward stealthily.
