As he put the keys into his mouth, his throat bulged visibly. The protrusion was clear as it moved slowly down his neck before finally disappearing beneath his collar, looking as though his body had completely absorbed them.
Zhang Qiuqiu stood by, watching quietly without the slightest hint of surprise.
"There, now they're safe," Ren Yi said, patting his stomach with a relaxed tone, as if he hadn't swallowed four hard keys but rather four ordinary candies. "I'll just take them out when they're needed."
Zhang Qiuqiu nodded. "Good, that's the most secure way. It's getting late; we should head back to our own rooms."
"Yeah," Ren Yi replied with a nod. Without another word, he turned and walked toward his room.
Although a room without a key lacked a certain sense of being sealed, it didn't affect him at all. He was an Anomaly himself; he had no reason to worry about his safety.
The darkness gradually receded, and the first light of dawn touched the horizon. Nights in the Anomaly space always passed exceptionally fast, as if daylight returned in a mere instant.
Ren Yi rose early. Just as the sky brightened, he arrived in the hall and took his seat.
His face still bore that exaggerated clown makeup, but his eyes were exceptionally sharp. He scanned everything in the hall, observing every movement as he waited for the others to arrive.
Before long, the others began to trickle into the hall, one by one. Their expressions were grim; clearly, after the Anomaly hunt of the previous night, everyone was shaken, and their vigilance was at its peak.
But when their gazes fell upon the dining table, they all froze, their faces twisting with shock and fear.
In the hall where only Lord Cha's stone statue had stood, there was now another. That statue was none other than Player 8, Lu Zihan.
"Player 8? How did he become a stone statue too?" The old man with the little mustache, Player 10, was the first to react. His voice trembled with panic as he instinctively took two steps back. "Does this mean the Anomaly struck again last night?"
"This isn't how the Anomaly acts. It's obvious he was poisoned," Player 6 said, frowning as she corrected him.
Just then, the figure of Player 2, the Peeper, slowly entered the hall.
He looked terrible. His brow was tightly furrowed, and his eyes were bloodshot. He appeared exhausted, even carrying a hint of dejection. He looked like a completely different person compared to the confident, determined man from yesterday.
Seeing this, Player 10 immediately rushed over and asked urgently, "Player 2, which room did you watch last night? Did you see something? How did Player 8 end up as a stone statue?"
Everyone's gaze instantly focused on Player 2, their eyes filled with desperate expectation.
As the Peeper, Player 2 could observe one room every night. His word was undoubtedly the most credible; perhaps he knew everything that had transpired.
Player 2 rubbed his nose irritably and ran a hand through his hair. His voice was low and heavy with defeat as he spoke slowly. "Last night... I watched Room 7."
"Room 7?" Doubt flashed in Player 10's eyes as he pressed further. "What was her identity? Did anything happen last night? Does Player 8's death have anything to do with her?"
At those questions, Player 2's expression darkened further. He remained silent for a moment before slowly shaking his head, his tone laced with helplessness and sorrow. "She won't be coming back."
"Won't be coming back?" Player 10 froze, a look of confusion crossing his face. "What do you mean? Where did she go?"
Player 2 didn't answer. He simply lowered his head, the gloom in his eyes deepening.
A dead silence instantly fell over the room. Everyone understood what Player 2 meant—Player 7 was dead.
Last night, Player 2 had observed Zhang Qiuqiu's room. For him to say she wouldn't be coming back meant that she had met with disaster last night, most likely killed by the Anomaly.
After a brief silence, a chill rose in everyone's hearts, yet no one dared to say another word.
Finally, someone started moving toward Room 7, where Zhang Qiuqiu had stayed. The others followed in a tacit agreement, their faces heavy with dread.
The door to Zhang Qiuqiu's room was slightly ajar. With a gentle push, it swung open.
A thick scent of blood immediately rushed out, pungent and nauseating, making several people gag.
Everyone covered their noses and frowned as they slowly stepped inside. When they saw the scene within, they all gasped in horror. Their faces turned deathly pale; some even stumbled back, nearly falling over.
The room was a total wreck. Tables and chairs had been overturned, and debris was scattered across the floor. The walls and ground were splattered with dark red blood, which had already dried into a deep brown, creating a grotesque and terrifying sight.
And in the center of the room lay Zhang Qiuqiu's body.
To be precise, it was a headless corpse.
Her neck had been severed cleanly, the wound smooth and even. It was clearly a fatal blow delivered by a sharp weapon in a single stroke. The blood from her neck had stained the surrounding floor, forming a dark red pool.
Her head had been tossed into a corner, eyes wide and staring. A look of terror remained frozen on her face, and her mouth was slightly agape, as if she had let out a desperate cry in her final moments.
Blood splattered the area around the head as well. Her hair was a mess, matted with dust and gore. It was a truly wretched sight.
"Ah!" Player 11—the current Zhang Qiuqiu—screamed the moment she saw "her own" corpse, stumbling backward repeatedly.
The class monitor was clearly committed to playing her role as the Best Actress to the very end.
"This is... this is too horrific..." Player 9, the Lost Soul, trembled violently. He covered his eyes, unable to look further, his voice choking up.
Ren Yi stood at the back of the crowd, also pretending to be horrified as he took a few steps back.
Was this a bit much? Had Lu Zihan and Zhang Qiuqiu overdone the "disguise" yesterday?
He, of course, knew exactly who had done this.
Since Zhang Qiuqiu had possessed Player 11's body, her original body had to be disposed of.
Last night, before heading to the hall, Lu Zihan had entered the room and killed Zhang Qiuqiu. He had also taken her True Eyes with him in secret.
And Player 2 had observed this process last night.
He just didn't know that the real Zhang Qiuqiu had already become Player 11 and was standing right there among them.
The group lingered in the room for a moment, but no one dared to stay long. The thick smell of blood and the gruesome scene were simply too suffocating.
Eventually, they all retreated from the room, closed the door, and returned to the hall, silent and grim-faced.
However, just as they left the room, a loud crash echoed from behind them.
Everyone spun around, only to see that the safety pod in that room had suddenly collapsed.
Rate on N.U.
