Seeing the three people at the door, a look of pleasant surprise immediately appeared on the man's face. “Hello there, I'm Ding Feifan. I was the one on the broadcast just now. Come on in!”
He walked down quickly, reaching out to help them, but then remembered something and pointed toward the side of the stage.
“There are a few other students inside. Everyone is over there. We only met up a short while ago.”
The three of them finally breathed a sigh of relief and stepped into the auditorium.
Sure enough, there were four other people sitting in the lounge area to the side of the stage.
Two girls sat close together, looking like they were traveling as a pair.
One wore a white T-shirt and had her hair tied in a high ponytail. Her gaze was steady as she looked down at the 《Student Handbook》 in her hands. It was Weng Yang.
The other sat beside her, her eyes alert and wary. It was Tan Moli.
There was also a young man wearing a flashy, colorful T-shirt. He sat with his legs crossed, twirling a pen in his hand, an indescribable look of excitement on his face.
This was Zhou Shengsheng.
The last girl sat in the corner, wearing a dress. She kept her head lowered, quiet and still, with almost no presence at all. This was Fu Qinqin.
Including Ding Feifan, there were five people in total.
Counting Liu Guilan's group of three, that made exactly eight.
“Let me introduce myself first,” Ding Feifan said, pushing up his glasses and keeping his tone as gentle as possible. “My name is Ding Feifan. I'm the freshman counselor for the School of Economics. Last night, I was working overtime to organize files when a sudden wave of fog rolled in, and I ended up here. This morning, I found the broadcasting room and tried to make an announcement. I didn't expect to actually find you guys.”
He pointed to Weng Yang and Tan Moli. “These two were the first to arrive. Weng Yang and Tan Moli, members of the school's Youth League Committee. They spent the night hiding in an office in the Administration Building.”
Weng Yang looked up and nodded to the three of them in greeting.
Tan Moli gave a slightly distant smile.
“That one over there is Zhou Shengsheng from the School of Computer Science. He arrived not too long ago.” Ding Feifan pointed again. “He was pulled in from his dorm. He was playing video games before he arrived.”
Zhou Shengsheng raised his chin slightly, acknowledging the three newcomers.
However, his eyes swept over them, sizing them up with a scrutinizing gaze that made them feel quite uncomfortable.
“The one in the corner is Fu Qinqin from the School of Liberal Arts. She was pulling an all-nighter at the library yesterday to study for her postgraduate entrance exams when she was suddenly pulled in as well,” Ding Feifan added.
Fu Qinqin looked up, gave the three of them a gentle nod, and then lowered her head again.
Deng Ziwen and the other two also introduced themselves.
“My name is Deng Ziwen, a senior. This is my girlfriend, Zhao Weilai. We were having an argument by the lake last night, and then we ended up here. This is Auntie Liu Guilan, an employee at the cafeteria. We ran into her near the artificial lake, and she actually saved our lives.”
Liu Guilan smiled warmly. “Oh, it was nothing. We just happened to run into each other. As long as everyone is safe, that's all that matters.”
After the eight of them got to know each other, the atmosphere eased up slightly.
But only slightly.
After all, being inside a bizarre Instance, no one could truly let their guard down.
...
“Everyone, let's talk about what happened last night,” Ding Feifan was the first to speak. “Let's pool our information so we can figure out what exactly is going on.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhou Shengsheng let out a scoffing laugh.
“What else could it be? It's an Instance, obviously. A supernatural one at that. Just like in novels—if you complete the missions, you get to leave, and you even get superpowers. Who knows, maybe you can even become a superhero.”
His face was flushed with excitement, and his eyes gleamed.
“Let me tell you, I've felt for a long time that there was something off about this world. And sure enough, it's finally my turn! The Chosen One, you know? Once I clear a few Instances and get some superpowers, I'll have it made!”
The others were momentarily stunned, looking at his hyperactive state with a sense of speechlessness.
What kind of situation did he think this was, still dreaming of striking it rich?
They didn't even know if they would make it out alive.
Ding Feifan frowned and tried to reason with him.
“Classmate, don't get too excited just yet. I don't think things are that simple. This whole 'Instance' thing is far too far-fetched. Personally, I'm leaning toward the theory that we've suffered some kind of unknown attack. For example... perhaps a new type of nerve gas, or some kind of optical weapon that's causing collective hallucinations. Or maybe... it's aliens.”
“Aliens?” Zhou Shengsheng curled his lip. “Counselor Ding, aren't you being a bit too naive? Can hallucinations cause ten people to experience the exact same thing at the same time? Can hallucinations make people vanish into air? I think you've just read too many books and gone soft in the head. A golden opportunity is staring you right in the face, and here you are, worrying and hesitating.”
“You!” Ding Feifan felt a surge of anger, but he managed to hold it back. “Regardless of what it is, we still have to rely on science.”
“Science?” Zhou Shengsheng let out a chuckle. “Go ahead and talk about science with a ghost when you actually run into one.”
“Alright, stop arguing.” Weng Yang interrupted them, her voice exceptionally calm. “There's no point in arguing over this. Whether it's a hallucination or a real Instance, our current situation is exactly the same. The priority right now is to pool our information and figure out a way to get out.”
She pointed to the campus map on the floor.
“Moli and I hid in an office in the Administration Building last night. Because of the rules, we didn't dare to wander around, so we just locked the door and stayed inside all night. Following the rule that said 'go to sleep as soon as possible after lights out,' we went to sleep very early, and nothing happened to us. Except there was a hand constantly slapping against the window glass all night. We didn't dare to look.”
Tan Moli added in a low voice, “Yes, it kept slapping all night... It scared me to death. Fortunately, Weng Yang said we shouldn't look, so we just covered our heads and slept.”
A chill ran down everyone's spines as they listened.
Slapping against the glass all night?
What on earth was that?
“The three of us stayed in the cafeteria,” Liu Guilan said, glancing at Zhao Weilai and Deng Ziwen. “Actually, in the middle of the night, something entered from the second floor. It was dripping wet, though I couldn't tell what it was. It wandered around the second floor for half the night and eventually started scratching at the door. I held the door shut to keep it from getting in, and it didn't leave until just before dawn. I was worried you two would be terrified, so I didn't say anything at the time.”
Naturally, Zhao Weilai and Deng Ziwen felt a fresh wave of lingering fear.
Ding Feifan's expression grew solemn as he listened, jotting things down in his notebook.
“As for me, I was relatively lucky,” Zhou Shengsheng said casually. “I woke up in my dorm. I was going to head out to take a look, but then I saw something in white drifting back and forth in the hallway. So I just locked the door and slept. I only came out after daybreak and followed the broadcast to get here.”
He spoke nonchalantly, but everyone could tell that he had likely encountered a ghost last night as well.
He just wasn't willing to share the details.
Finally, everyone's gaze landed on Fu Qinqin in the corner.
Fu Qinqin was taken aback. She looked up, her voice barely a whisper:
“I... I was in the library. After the power went out, everyone disappeared. I hid behind a bookshelf and stayed there all night. I didn't really run into anything, but... I kept hearing the sound of someone flipping pages right next to my ear.”
Her voice was soft and carried a slight tremor, making it clear that she had indeed been terrified.
“Flipping pages?” Weng Yang frowned. “In the library?”
“Yes.” Fu Qinqin nodded, lowering her head once more. “Right behind my head. It just kept flipping and flipping.”
Everyone fell silent.
“Wait, weren't you scared?” Zhao Weilai couldn't help but ask. “If it were me, I would've died of fright.”
Fu Qinqin pursed her lips and murmured softly, “I thought it was just some senior sister who had gone crazy from studying for the postgraduate exams.”
For a moment, no one could find a word to refute her.
After all, ghosts were nothing compared to postgraduate entrance exams.
...
In the end, Ding Feifan summarized their findings.
Although everyone's experiences differed, there was one commonality:
This empty campus was fraught with danger at every turn.
Moreover, those entities seemed to share a specific characteristic—as long as you didn't look at them, ignored them, and didn't violate the rules, they wouldn't actively attack you.
Just like how Weng Yang and her companion forced themselves to ignore the hand slapping the window and remained safe.
Liu Guilan and her group held the door shut, and the water ghost didn't force its way in.
Zhou Shengsheng locked his door, and the white-clothed ghost didn't enter.
Fu Qinqin didn't turn around, and the sound of flipping pages didn't harm her.
“It seems that following the rules, not looking around, not acting recklessly, and not actively provoking anything is the safest approach,” Weng Yang agreed with the conclusion. “The Instance rules say to 'follow the Student Handbook,' which probably implies this. If we behave ourselves and don't court death, we shouldn't run into too much trouble.”
Everyone nodded, finding her words highly reasonable.
Just then, black ink-wash characters materialized before everyone's eyes simultaneously.
【Warning: Players Luo Yiming and Fang Wei have violated the Student Handbook by intentionally damaging campus public property, triggering the penalty mechanism.】
【Penalty: Placed in the Punishment Room and confined for twelve hours. Automatic release after twelve hours.】
【Penalty Countdown: 11:57:32】
The sudden notification caught everyone off guard.
The Punishment Room?
Out of ten people, two had already been locked up for violating the rules?
“No wonder we hadn't heard anything from the remaining two. Logically, they should have arrived long ago,” Ding Feifan's expression changed. “What on earth did they do to violate the rules?”
“Damaging public property...” Zhao Weilai repeated in a whisper, her heart tightening.
Fortunately, they had been cautious enough.
“Who knows,” Zhou Shengsheng sneered, making no effort to hide his schadenfreude. “Haven't you guys read any novels? In these game Instances, the first to die are always the idiots who break the rules.”
No one paid him any attention; they were all worried for the two who had been penalized.
Twelve hours.
Out of a total mission time of seventy-two hours, they had just lost a sixth of it in an instant.
No one knew what was inside the Punishment Room.
Was it just simple solitary confinement, or did the room harbor something even more terrifying?
Regardless of the case, the survival rate of those two had drastically plummeted.
The atmosphere instantly grew heavy.
Those who had still harbored some wishful thinking were now thoroughly jarred awake.
This wasn't a game. People could truly die here.
The rules weren't just for show; violating them carried real consequences.
...
“Alright, everyone, don't panic,” Ding Feifan was the first to snap out of it, clapping his hands to reassure everyone. “Even though two of our fellow students have been penalized, at least they're still alive and will be released in twelve hours. The most important thing for us right now is to make the most of our time to complete the check-in mission. During the time they're out of commission, we can scout ahead for them. Once they get out, they can catch up with us directly.”
He paused, looking at the group with an earnest expression.
“My suggestion is that we don't split up. We should form a group and move together. After all, there's strength in numbers, and we can look out for each other if we run into danger. We'll locate the three ghost story sites in order and check in one by one. I can take the rear to cover us. As long as we work together, we can definitely make it out.”
Having finished his piece, he looked around, waiting for their response.
Zhao Weilai nodded immediately. “I agree! Grouping up is safer!”
Deng Ziwen naturally followed his girlfriend's lead. “I agree too.”
Liu Guilan quickly chimed in, “I agree too! I feel much more secure with more people around.”
Tan Moli grabbed Weng Yang's arm. “Weng Yang, let's go with them.”
Weng Yang pondered for a moment before nodding. “Alright. Moving as a group is indeed safer than going alone.”
Fu Qinqin also whispered, “I... I'll go with everyone too.”
Out of the seven people, six had agreed.
The only one left was Zhou Shengsheng.
Everyone turned to look at him, but he merely shook his head and let out a cold laugh.
“Group up? Dragging a bunch of dead weight around will only get me killed faster.”
He squinted at the crowd, his tone dripping with disdain.
“Counselor Ding, with that bleeding-heart attitude of yours, you wouldn't survive three episodes in an Instance. Do you know what it means to be decisive and ruthless? Do you know what self-preservation is? The nice guys are always the first to die.”
“Watch your mouth!” Deng Ziwen frowned, growing a bit angry. “What's wrong with moving together? Looking out for each other is always better than being alone.”
“Better? Better my ass.” Zhou Shengsheng curled his lip. “When danger strikes, the slow runners are just meat shields. If I'm with you, I'll have to worry about you guys, which will only slow me down.”
He walked to the door, paused, and turned back with a smirk.
“Let me give you a piece of advice: don't trust the people around you too much. In the face of life and death, classmates and teachers don't mean a thing.”
With that, he pulled the door open and walked out without looking back.
The door slammed shut with a loud clank, and silence returned to the auditorium.
“What a jerk,” Zhao Weilai said, feeling a surge of irritation. “He's incredibly selfish.”
Reality was not a novel, let alone a movie.
Ordinary people rarely faced life-or-death crises in their daily lives.
If someone could suddenly become ruthless and cold-blooded the moment they left reality behind, that would be the truly terrifying thing.
“Forget it. Everyone has their own path,” Ding Feifan sighed. “If he doesn't want to join us, we shouldn't force him. I just hope he stays safe on his own.”
Although he said this, he didn't actually have high hopes for Zhou Shengsheng.
Acting alone meant that if he encountered danger, there wouldn't be a single person to lend a hand.
...
Weng Yang stared toward the doorway, lost in thought.
“This is the 《Student Handbook》 and the Jiangcheng University promotional brochure that Moli found in the Administration Building office. There's a paper map inside, so we can search for the ghost story locations along these routes.”
She looked down at the locations of the "artificial lake" and the "Administration Building" on the map, forming a hypothesis in her mind.
“I think we can check these two places first. Of the two, the artificial lake is closest to the Great Auditorium, only a five-minute walk away. We should start with the closest one and work our way out. Let's head to the artificial lake first, what do you think?”
Everyone agreed that her suggestion made sense.
“When I was browsing the forums before, I did see some ghost stories about Jiangcheng University. They mentioned a water ghost in the artificial lake, a red-clothed jumping ghost in the old classroom building, and a toilet ghost in the abandoned restrooms of the old dormitory.”
Ding Feifan nodded immediately. “I think it's highly likely those are related to our mission.”
Since their lives were on the line, no one dared to delay. They quickly packed up and prepared to set off.
Zhao Weilai walked over to Deng Ziwen and whispered, “Ziwen, let's be extra careful in a bit and look out for Auntie Liu.”
Deng Ziwen smiled, trying to cheer both of them up. “Don't worry, we'll definitely make it out. Once we do, we can go right back to arguing.”
Meanwhile, Liu Guilan gripped her wooden stick tightly, her palms slick with sweat.
She anxiously scanned the expressions of those around her, her gaze drifting and momentarily pausing in mid-air before she looked away.
Tan Moli clutched the hem of Weng Yang's shirt, her face pale.
Fu Qinqin remained expressionless, making it impossible to tell what she was thinking.
Ding Feifan walked at the very back.
As they pushed open the auditorium doors, the white fog rushed in instantly, carrying a damp, fishy stench.
Whether the road ahead led to life or death, no one knew.
...
“Another special player with a Talent Class?”
Meanwhile, outside the Instance, inside the rented house near the barren hill, Song Mo's eyes lit up as she watched the progress of the Instance in real-time.
“Auntie, I've got high hopes for you. You'd better not die!”
The screen, framed by ink-wash text, slowly panned upward, finally settling on the honest-looking Liu Guilan.
【Clay Sculptor (Blue)】
【Talent Skill: Clay Doll Sculpting (Allows the creation of clay dolls using special soil. There is a 10% chance to block a single non-lethal attack. The more similar the doll is to its model, the higher its defensive capability.)】
【Cooldown: 24 Hours】
Rate on N.U.
