Chapter 146 · Volume 1

【Wuxia World】 The Dream Begins

Moreover, the players already knew that the school uniforms the natives had left in the dorms were gone as well. However, since the natives had their own clothes to wear, they weren't in any rush about losing their uniforms.
But as players, they couldn't afford to be so relaxed! They only had two uniforms in total!
Zuo Lin'an watched the farce outside for a while before gradually losing interest.
“I'm going to take a shower first. Don't push your luck too much.”
He said this to prevent anyone from noticing something was amiss. Otherwise, so many players would definitely come to settle the score with him.
Even if Xu Youyou was currently an NPC and couldn't be killed, giving him a good beating was certainly not out of the question.
“I know, I know.”
Xu Youyou wasn't so foolish as to expose his own identity; he just wanted to watch the spectacle.
The chaos outside lasted for about half an hour. Many players had their uniforms stripped right off their bodies, leaving them in nothing but their underwear.
Though some of them looked young, their speech and behavior clearly marked them as older adults. Valuing their pride above all else, they looked ready to end their own lives right then and there.
Fortunately, the dorm auntie showed up just in time.
Although she arrived a bit late, she managed to restore a basic level of order.
The stolen uniforms certainly couldn't be recovered. After all, the situation had been so chaotic that no one knew who had stolen whose uniform.
Still, the players who had even their worn uniforms stripped and stolen couldn't just remain naked forever.
Looking at the naked players before her, the dorm auntie was truly at a loss.
She could only count their numbers first. In the end, the count came to 261 in the boys' dorms and 230 in the girls' dorms.
While the boys' dorms had seen clothes-stripping brawls, the situation in the girls' dorms was even more tragic. Strands of torn hair littered the now-quiet corridors.
Countless hairpins and jewelry pieces lay scattered on the floor. Broken jade and loose pearls were strewn everywhere.
Just picking them up off the ground would likely net a fortune worth five or six figures.
After the dorm auntie reported the situation, the school quickly responded, even delivering two truckloads of clothes immediately.
However, these clothes were just simple short-sleeved shirts and shorts without any school badges. They were likely just ordinary garments.
But for the naked players, how could they care about such details?
Keeping an eye on the clock, the dorm auntie quickly distributed two sets to each person. Fortunately, no one caused trouble during the distribution, so no extra time was wasted.
Besides, those who had been weak enough to have their clothes forcibly stripped in the first place weren't the type to start trouble anyway.
But with all this commotion, the time was now close to ten o'clock.
The dorm auntie roared at the dormitory building.
“Everyone, back to your dorms! It's almost ten o'clock. Get into bed and prepare for lights out!”
Lying in bed, Zuo Lin'an checked the time. It was 9:58 PM.
Excellent.
In just a little bit, the Scarlet Dream would begin.
Zuo Lin'an said, “Youyou, turn off the light.”
Xu Youyou was closer to the light switch.
Upon hearing this, he didn't refuse. He got out of bed and flipped the switch.
With a soft click, the dormitory room instantly plunged into dimness.
However, because there was still light coming from outside, it wasn't completely pitch-black.
Zuo Lin'an slowly closed his eyes, reaching one hand into his backpack to grip the gold hairpin specter item inside.
This was something he absolutely could not afford to lose.
Time ticked by, second by second.
The other dorm rooms that hadn't turned off their lights yet followed suit one after another.
The moment ten o'clock arrived, the entire campus fell into a deathly silence.
Zuo Lin'an slowly opened his eyes and found himself standing near the bulletin board, right where they had first entered the school gates. However, he couldn't control his body at the moment and could only watch helplessly.
He watched his body glance at the paper on the bulletin board, stand there in thought for a moment, and finally tear down the Class One student roster before quickly departing.
So that's how it is.
Only now did Zuo Lin'an understand. This was the moment he had violated the school rules.
Even though he was an NPC—a specter arranged in advance to hunt down players—he still had to violate the school rules during the day to enter the Scarlet Dream.
The scene he had just witnessed was the very first time he had broken a school rule today.
Just then, the scene before his eyes suddenly went dark. He closed his eyes instinctively, but in the next instant, he felt control return to his body.
Snapping his eyes open, Zuo Lin'an found that the world before him had undergone an earth-shattering transformation.
What had clearly been dusk just a moment ago had turned into night in the blink of an eye.
A blood-red full moon hung high in the sky.
As the moonlight spilled down, the entire campus seemed to be shrouded in a hazy, crimson glow.
So this was the Scarlet Dream.
【As a student of Lingyang First High School, you have lost your student status for violating school rules. As punishment, you must struggle to survive within the Scarlet Dream. If you survive until midnight, you will regain your student status.】
Another dungeon notification.
Zuo Lin'an figured this notification was meant for the players.
The one meant for NPCs shouldn't be far behind.
【Congratulations, you have obtained a temporary Death Rule: Anyone who enters the Scarlet Dream shall die! Method of execution: Up to your discretion! During the dream, you may only execute this rule!】
【As a specter of the Scarlet Dream, it is your responsibility to hunt down players.】
【Enjoy the slaughter!】
Feeling the temporary Death Rule that had been added to his arsenal, Zuo Lin'an felt deeply satisfied.
The meaning of this rule was clear.
He could kill any player who entered the Scarlet Dream however he pleased!
He raised his hand and looked, realizing he still possessed the appearance of a normal human.
However, now was not the time to focus on that. He had to quickly find a place to settle his living body, then release his specter body to hunt down the players.
Zuo Lin'an looked left and right, noticing that a massive crowd of people had gathered here.
At first glance, there seemed to be far more than three hundred of these densely packed figures.
Just then, from the front of the crowd near the academic building, someone suddenly let out a terrified cry, followed by a woman's shriek.
“There's a ghost!”
“There's a ghost over here!!”
“Run, run!”
“Get the hell out of my way! Don't block the path!”
“Ouch! Don't push me! Don't step on me!”
Chaos erupted in an instant.
Just as Zuo Lin'an managed to react, many martial artists around him were already using qinggong to flee at high speed. Those without martial arts scurried around blindly like headless chickens.
Caught off guard, he was shoved directly into the green belt by the surging crowd.
Fortunately, given the unusual circumstances, no players were paying attention to an NPC like him.
Still, he couldn't stay here either.
It wouldn't be long before the players realized that most of these specters were transformed from the native students.
If his living body were discovered, it would surely spell trouble.
Zuo Lin'an immediately stood up and swept his gaze backward. He saw many slaughtered players. Some had their heads half-smashed, their brains spilled all over the ground.
Others had been decapitated, their heads rolling off to who knew where.
Still others had been disemboweled, their entrails spilling out.
Some had even had their limbs hacked off, their corpses reduced to mangled fragments.

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