Chapter 78

Chapter 78

Everyone had been in this instance for almost a day. Yet, during this day, not just Ji Shanshan and the others, even Xie Yinxue had only consumed one cup of bubble tea and nothing else.

Uncharacteristically, he felt hungry.

The problem was that, after years of spiritual discipline, he had suppressed his physical desires to a minimum. Were it not for his weak body needing regular meals, he could go without food or drink for days without feeling hunger.

Moreover, the instance provided them with no food.

The bubble tea he had just consumed alleviated his hunger temporarily. By Xie Yinxue's estimation, it would last only about half an hour. With this rate of hunger, even if they had prepared seven days' worth of food before entering the instance, it wouldn't suffice.

Could it be that this instance is similar to the situation on the "Helios Dream"? One must pay a certain price to obtain food?

On the "Helios Dream", one had to work in order to eat. Since this instance is related to a school, does it require teachers to meet performance assessments and students to complete their assignments? Their lack of classes today might explain the absence of food in the cafeteria.

Of course, all of these are mere speculations by Xie Yinxue. Without verification, he couldn't be entirely certain.

Regardless, there's no hope of them having a meal today.

Xie Yinxue also didn't plan to conjure up some food to ease the hunger, as this degree of hunger was bearable for him. For now, he intended to observe the dormitory's structure from the window.

But as he pulled back the curtain, he saw a woman dressed in red outside his window - a familiar face, the escape room "staff" who had now become the guidance counselor.

She just stood there, gazing at Xie Yinxue with resentful, cold eyes, reminiscent of the eerie colored ghost photos from "Xu's Photography Studio."

A normal person, even if greeted by a friend outside their window, might scream in surprise from such a sudden sight, let alone when faced with this ghostly-looking guidance counselor.

Yet, Xie Yinxue remained unfazed, even pulling a chair to sit by the window, sipping his bubble tea, letting her watch.

After what seemed like an eternity of staring, just when Xie Yinxue was growing weary and somewhat drowsy, a mournful sobbing came from outside.

The weeping figure sniffled pitifully, lamenting, "My mouth hurts... I'm so hungry, and climbing the stairs is so exhausting. I want to go home..."

Wasn't that Liu Yi's voice?

Xie Yinxue recognized it immediately.

But Liu Yi's room is on the fourth floor. Why does it sound like his voice is coming from outside, so clear and loud, as if amplified?

Xie Yinxue, rejuvenated, narrowed his eyes to look outside. The guidance counselor was still obstructing most of his view, but it was clear enough that there was no one else outside his window.

Given Liu Yi's timid nature, he surely wouldn't venture out after dark. So, where was this voice coming from?

As Xie Yinxue pondered, another voice rang out, belonging to Zhang Caixia: "Damn it, I'm so hungry. What's the point of our luggage being in the room? I'd rather have a bowl of white rice."

It turned out that the luggage of the old participants who drew student identity cards wasn't missing; it was placed directly in their rooms. Perhaps the logic was that their shrunken bodies couldn't carry their original suitcases?

Even if the luggage remained, Xie Yinxue didn't see much utility in it. The contents were mostly weapons, food, and medicine. Food could stave off hunger, medicine couldn't even alleviate hunger (though it could help with injuries), but how many of the weapons could be used by their shrunken selves?

So even after learning the whereabouts of the luggage, a new question arose: Can everyone hear these voices, or is it just the teachers?

Before Xie Yin Xue could ponder the answer, Pei Qing Rong's voice followed from outside the window: "That man with long hair... I think his name is Xie Yin Xue. Why was he staring at me all day? Sadly, he looks rather frail, probably can't protect me well."

Then there was Ji Shan Shan's voice: "I can't believe I ran into the campus heartthrob, Pei Qing Rong, here! I've had a crush on him for so long! And I'm living right next door to him! Oh my god! Suddenly, climbing four flights of stairs to the dorm doesn't seem that tiring."

Sun Ling Xi said: "The NPC mentioned that the dormitory is safe, so there won't be any incidents at night, right? But I still have to be careful and not sleep too soundly."

Yun Mei Zhen lamented: "Why am I staying here alone? I'm so scared. I need to sleep with the lights on."

Wei Xiao inquired: "Are there any dormitory rules that we shouldn't break? In high school, our dormitory lights had to be off by 11 pm. Is it the same here?"

……

As Xie Yin Xue listened, he suddenly had a suspicion: These voices likely represented the true inner thoughts of the participants. Even though he didn't know when these thoughts emerged, they probably represented the matters they cared about the most.

For instance, Liu Yi, who's timid and injured, is probably preoccupied with his mouth pain and hunger. As for veterans like Pei Qing Rong, Wei Xiao, and Sun Ling Xi, having been previously roughed up in the duplicate realm, they weren't too afraid. Instead, they pondered matters of survival and clearing levels. It's only natural for Yun Mei Zhen, a total newbie, to be consumed by fear.

And then there's Ji Shan Shan, another newcomer. To still be thinking of her crush in such a place, Xie Yin Xue could only marvel at her audacity.

But in the next moment, someone with even greater audacity appeared. It was Liu Bu Hua, musing: "The dean might look terrifying, but she does have a good figure. Is it because of the pencil skirt she's wearing? Do they make pencil pants? I'd like to try them on."

Xie Yin Xue: "..."

Xie Yin Xue silently looked up, continuing his quiet stare-off with the dean outside the window, temporarily pretending he didn't know Liu Bu Hua.

Amidst the whirlwind of the participants' wild thoughts, someone suddenly recited a poem: "Snow reflects the dim light, frost embodies the clear chill."

It was Bu Jiu Zhao's voice, and he was the last student to "speak" his inner thoughts.

Xie Yin Xue paused, then heard the voice continue: "That clear chill color... It looks quite good on Xie Yin Xue. It makes his skin appear even fairer."

But hadn't he said before that he disliked this color? Why did he now find it appealing on Xie?

This only further confirmed: The voices emanating from outside the window truly reflected the innermost thoughts of the students. Because those were words Bu Jiu Zhao would never voice out loud.

Reflecting on the design of the dormitory building he saw during the day, Xie Yin Xue finally realized what it resembled—a bell facing downwards.

The teachers resided on the first floor, with all the students living above. The most private and intimate thoughts from the depths of their hearts would be channeled through this "bell", reaching the ears of the teachers.

Or perhaps... reaching the ears of everyone.

How many people can actually hear these words remains to be determined tomorrow.

Xie Yin Xue glanced at the time and realized it was almost nine in the evening. Instead of aimlessly staring at the NPC through the window, he might as well go to bed early. Wei Xiao's earlier concerns reminded him that there might be a school rule requiring lights out at night. With the dean standing right outside his window, she might be waiting for him to break this rule so she could reprimand him, perhaps?

Xie Yin Xue waited by the window for a few more seconds. Not hearing any new voices and confident that the teachers' inner thoughts would not be revealed, he stood up, intending to put away his chair, turn off the lights, and go to bed.

To his surprise, while there were no new voices, Bu Jiu Zhao's earlier words were not yet finished. After a lengthy pause, he continued, "Is Xie Yin Xue's skin also this pale? I'd like to see. Maybe I should take him sunbathing some time, let him tan a little. Just as long as his heart isn't darker than his skin."

Xie Yin Xue: "..."

What on earth is going on with Ji Shan Shan, Liu Bu Hua, and Bu Jiu Zhao? They're already inside the duplicate realm; shouldn't they be focusing on how to complete the levels instead of dwelling on love and romantic notions?

And since when did he have a dark heart?

The action of Xie Yin Xue bending over to pick up the chair froze in place, feeling no need to tan himself now since his face probably turned dark with annoyance. If Bu Jiu Zhao were here, Xie Yin Xue would want him to know that apart from having a "dark heart," he could also be cold-hearted and ruthless.

Taking several deep breaths, Xie Yin Xue finally calmed himself. After putting the chair away and turning off the chandelier, he lay down to rest.

Just before closing his eyes, he glanced at the window— he hadn't drawn the curtains, but the dean's silhouette outside had vanished.

With that, Xie Yin Xue stopped worrying, and slept dreamlessly until morning.

When daylight came, he opened his eyes.

He immediately noticed the dim light filtering in from the window, indicating another cloudy day.

As Xie Yin Xue stepped out of his dorm room, he coincidentally ran into Chen Yun.

Chen Yun greeted him, "Good morning, Mr. Xie."

With a smile, Xie Yin Xue replied, "Good morning."

"Are you all awake?" Chen Yun, however, didn't linger long in conversation with Xie Yin Xue. After a brief greeting, she turned to knock on the doors of Wu Yue Han and He Wei, saying, "Get up quickly, don't be late for class."

Waking Wu Yue Han was easy since she was a teacher in real life and had a biological clock; she usually woke up at dawn. Thus, after a couple of knocks from Chen Yun, she opened her door.

He Wei, on the other hand, was a different story.

Chen Yun and Wu Yue Han knocked on his door for a solid minute before a groggy voice from inside responded, "I'm up, I'm up."

By now, all the teachers on the first floor had risen.

It remained uncertain about the students upstairs.

Wu Yue Han asked Xie Yin Xue and Chen Yun, "Should we go wake the students?"

"You should be asking if we're even allowed to go upstairs," Chen Yun cautioned, "We don't know the rules for this dormitory yet. If there are any, we don't know the consequences of breaking them. We better be careful. It's still early; let's wait a bit and see if the upstairs students wake up on their own."

"Bu Hua wakes up early like me and he's on the third floor. He'd probably wake the students on both the third and second floors. As for the fourth floor—" Xie Yin Xue paused briefly, "With Pei Qing Rong there, I don't think it will be an issue."

After all, judging by the sudden "inner thoughts" that appeared outside the window last night, of the twelve participants who drew the student identity cards, Pei Qing Rong was the most cautious and treasured his life. Such a meticulous person would not make a basic mistake like oversleeping.

Indeed, Wu Yue Han's worries proved unnecessary.

It wasn't until all the upstairs participants had gathered on the first floor that He Wei, dressed hurriedly, emerged from his room.

Author's Note:

Ji Shan Shan, Liu Bu Hua, and the NPC: I think...

Mr. Xie: Please have some dignity; everyone can hear.

Ji Shan Shan, Liu Bu Hua, and the NPC: Isn't that even more thrilling?

Mr. Xie: ?