Chapter 80: Werewolf Community 17

Chapter 80: Werewolf Community 17

In the very last second before sunrise, Qin Fei used his Seer ability on Cui Ran.

It turned out that his speculation was correct.

A monotonous system notification sounded in Qin Fei's ear: "Identity Recognition: Werewolf."

The next moment, as the golden-red sun rose above the horizon, the night-time Werewolf Killing game mode came to an end.

Above Cui Ran's head, a new notification appeared.

"Cui Ran, Resident of the Werewolf Community: Affection - Unapproachable"

Upon seeing this notification, Qin Fei immediately declared without hesitation:

"I accuse Cui Ran of being a ghost!"

Cui Ran, this NPC, wasn't particularly insulting but was incredibly lethal. Including the incident at the kindergarten, she had directly or indirectly caused the demise of five or six players within a single day.

It was clearly impractical to let her remain among the players.

Even if Xue Qijī had known the truth, he would have made the same choice immediately. Qin Fei decided it was better for him to earn that one point of recognition himself.

After deceiving the other players, Qin Fei silently slunk to the edge of the crowd.

Now, everyone was preoccupied with whether Building 14 actually existed and why Cui Ran seemed to be in peril. Most people didn't notice where that deliberately altered voice had originated.

By the time the crowd realized what was happening, dark clouds had already shrouded the sky.

The brightness around them suddenly dimmed as thick, black fog engulfed their vision. The system notification sounded once more.

"Recognition successful! Ghost-hunting phase now begins."

"What the f*ck?! What's going on?!"

"What the hell is this????"

The players were aghast.

Amidst terrified curses, faces turned pale as the group helplessly scanned their surroundings in panic.

Moments later, the thick fog dissipated, revealing that within this short span of time, they had already been transported to another dimension.

All around them was pitch black, with only flickering fluorescent lights illuminating the area from above. Through the dim light, they could vaguely make out their new environment.

It seemed to be the interior of a large building, devoid of any other individuals apart from the players in this spacious space.

The air was chilly, carrying a subtle hint of blood in the scent.

On the left side of the group stood three elevators, their red floor indicators serving as scarce sources of light. On the right, there was a narrow door with "Safety Exit" boldly written across it.

Further away, a glass door stood, accompanied by two potted money trees whose withered branches suggested they had been dead for quite some time.

The players exchanged bewildered glances.

Three players dressed in security guard uniforms were initially stunned before one of them exclaimed in disbelief,

"Isn't this... inside Building 14?"

They had just left this place not long ago.

Why did they come back? !

"Task Prompt: Escape from Building 14!"

A blood-red text prompt appeared in midair, then vanished swiftly, leaving no time for the players to react.

The players were on the verge of tears.

Which damn bastard shouted just now??

They really wanted to swear!

"You guys, listen."

Standing beside Xue Qijie, the girl with twin ponytails shrunk her shoulders in fear at the bizarre scene that suddenly unfolded. "Is there... some kind of sound coming from above us?"

listens carefully, they could indeed hear a series of heavy thuds overhead, as if someone was walking around.

Not just one.

A single thought resonated in the hearts of all the players:

Could someone moving around here truly be human?

To escape this place, they had to hasten their actions.

Otherwise, once whatever was upstairs descended, leaving might no longer be so simple.

The rebellious male player rushed forward and tried to open the glass door, but no matter how hard he pulled, it wouldn't budge.

There was no lock on the door, nor were there any buttons to press on either side of it.

Xue Jiqing stared at the glass door for a moment. "This is a proximity door. It requires a card to activate the sensor, which should be located outside."

Indeed, it was grim news.

Two rookie players immediately lost their composure, rushing to the troublemaker's side and frantically pounding on the glass door:

"Hey! Hey! Is anyone out there? Please save us!"

The troublemaker irritably wiped his face and forcefully pushed away the player who was closer to him:

"What are you doing?!"

"One of us has been teleported into a mission space. Even if there is someone outside, how could they possibly hear our cries for help?"

The troublemaker felt that he had truly fallen on hard times tonight. If he had known better, he wouldn't have followed that smiling tiger with the surname Xue; not only did he gain no advantage, but he also got dragged into this mission.

He raised a finger to point above them: "All of you, quiet down, do you hear me? Don't attract whatever is up there."

The two rookie players nodded palely in agreement.

A player dressed as a security guard suddenly spoke up, "I... I think I know how to get out."

Immediately, all eyes were on him.

The nervous Security Player said, "There's a rule in the Security Patrol Handbook that seems to apply to this situation."

If you accidentally enter a non-existent building, please promptly call the emergency contact number at the security office.

444-4444.

When the three Security Players entered the building with Cui Ran earlier, they were unaware that they had stepped into the ghostly non-existent building.

After circling the first floor and realizing that Cui Ran and Song Tian were missing, they assumed that the pair had fled ahead of them, so they hastily left through the main entrance.

Nothing like being locked inside had occurred just now.

Since there was a rule, they had to follow it.

Xue Qimai asked, "Let's search around and see if there's a phone anywhere."

Building 14 was different from the other residential buildings in the Werewolf Community, resembling a commercial and residential apartment complex. The first floor was spacious, with a small desk by the entrance that looked like a registration area for visitors.

If there was a phone on the first floor, it would likely be hidden there.

The players immediately swarmed over.

The tabletop was empty, but there were two drawers underneath. Xue Jiqing reached out to pull them open, his expression seemingly calm, though inwardly, he was just as anxious as the others.

If they didn't find a phone here, they would have to go upstairs and borrow one from the residents in the building—a thought that sent shivers down their spines.

Fortunately, it seemed Lady Luck had taken pity on these players on this particular morning.

With a determined heart, Xue Jiqing held his breath and pulled open the drawer, revealing a black telephone lying inside.

The noise from above grew more distinct, the ceiling trembling as bits of plaster peeled off and fell onto the heads of the players.

While Xue Jiqing was still frowning at the various colored wires and sockets at the back of the phone, Phantom Flame rushed forward, snatching the device away. "Let me do it!"

Swiftly, he plugged the wires into the slots on the desk.

"Eh, eh, you—"

Among the players under Xue Jiqing's leadership, someone pointed at the ghostly flame, only to be slapped down by Spiky Hair.

"At a time like this, what's there to be picky about? Whoever knows how to do it should step up!"

With an air of protecting the ghostly flame, Spiky Hair strode forward and pushed Xue Jiqing aside with his bottom.

In truth, having a capable team leader in a dungeon was beneficial for everyone, and Spiky Hair knew that well. However, for some reason, he just couldn't stand Xue Jiqing.

Xue Jiqing himself didn't seem bothered at all by this. He calmly stepped back.

The ghostly flame really did know how to plug in a phone line. While the others were bickering, he had already properly installed the phone.

He picked up the receiver, and a series of busy tones echoed from it.

"Done!" The ghostly flame's expression brightened.

He had also read the security team's rules and promptly raised his hand, pressing down the number 4 repeatedly on the dial pad seven times.

More busy tones followed.

The players behind held their breath, not daring to make a sound. Someone silently took a few books from a desk, tiptoed, and stuffed the books into the doorknob of the emergency exit, attempting to resist the ghosts that might rush down from behind the door in this somewhat pathetic and comical way.

The phone was finally answered.

A voice, barely concealing impatience, echoed through the receiver:

"Hello? Is there something you need?"

While others were still in disbelief, the six players dressed as security guards, including Ghost Fire, instantly lit up with joy.

That voice belonged to the old security guard in the security booth!

"Hello, officer. We got trapped in a non-existent building during our night patrol."

Ghost Fire listened to the phone with his right ear and the monster's footsteps above him with his left. Cold sweat trickled down his face.

"The door here won't open, and we can't get out. Could you come and get us?"

There was a moment of silence on the other end: "...Alright then!"

Then, the phone was abruptly hung up.

Before the line disconnected, Phantom faintly heard a few curses: "What a hassle, damn it!"

In a nutshell.

It seems like salvation has arrived.

The players huddled together nervously, with half of them keeping a watchful eye on the safety passage, while the other half were fixated on the numbers above the elevator, fearful that the numbers might sneakily change without their notice.

The elderly security guard arrived promptly.

A minute later, the sound of a card swipe echoed from the front glass door.

Immediately after, the darkness receded as a voice called out from outside, "Hurry up and get out!"

Even without being told, the players would have scrambled out quickly on their own.

Everyone rushed outside in a frenzied rush. The security guard's expression was sour as he rolled his eyes at each player in turn.

Once everyone had emerged, the security guard closed the glass door without a word and turned away.

Leaving the group standing there, staring at each other in a daze.

So, they were... out?

The mission had been risky, but not overly so.

Some players, still in a trance, checked their status panels. Indeed, both the Red and White factions had gained a few points.

"Damn it!"

After the narrow escape, someone finally couldn't hold back and shouted, "What the hell! Which idiot suddenly pointed at the ghost?"

Players' angry gazes bounced off each other like laser beams, searching for the culprit.

Lin Ye huddled behind the crowd, locking eyes with the Three Paths Ghost Fire. All three of them wore worried expressions.

Qin Fei didn't join them outside.

In fact, Qin Fei hadn't even entered the building with them.

Back in the lobby of Building 14 on the first floor, they had searched among the crowd, but Qin Fei was nowhere to be found.

Other players might not know, but they did.

That high-pitched voice that pointed them out belonged to Qin Fei.

Lin Ye was certain that Qin Fei had entered Building 14 with them, but now he was missing, probably transported to another scenario within the building.

For now, no one had noticed that their NPC guide, Wang Mingming, had vanished, but with someone as perceptive as Xue Jiqing around, Qin Fei's cover was in great danger.

The discussion grew louder, showing no signs of subsiding.

At this critical moment, the Ghost Fire stepped forward:

"I was the one who shouted!"

Over a dozen pairs of eyes instantly focused on Ghost Fire.

If glares could kill, Ghost Fire might have already been sliced into sashimi at this point.

"What's wrong with you?!"

Someone reproached him bluntly, seemingly having completely forgotten that their escape had also been facilitated by this person's quick installation of the phone.

With one player taking the lead, the others immediately chimed in.

"Exactly, exactly. You should have at least informed us first."

"Isn't what you did a bit too selfish?"

Some were also curious:

"How did you figure out that Cui Ran was a ghost?"

The players approached Ghost Fire with hostility, while Sanmu stood beside him with a cold expression. In her palm, a talent whip shimmering with light blue electricity materialized.

She swung the whip fiercely, its tip leaving a pale white mark on the hard concrete ground.

"Earlier, my teammate acted on impulse. I apologize," Sanmu said, though her tone was icy, revealing no genuine remorse.

"If you have any issues, you can come to the Dark Flame Guild after the instance is over."

She made no attempt to hide her intention of using her status as a high-ranking guild member to intimidate others, saying this with an emotionless face.

Backed by a guild and wielding a combat-oriented talent weapon, she silenced the agitated players instantly.

"Alright then." Qijī looked back and forth between Sanmu and Ghost Fire before deciding to defuse the situation.

"Let's return to the Activity Center first. After staying up all night, everyone must be tired. We can take a short rest."

"Teacher Xue, Xue... Teacher."

The girl with twin braids raised her hand hesitantly.

Xue Jiqing treated his new obedient follower quite well. His brows were gentle, and he asked her with a smile, "What's the matter?"

The girl with twin braids looked a bit odd. "That... that old man seems to be gone."

...

In the pitch-black corridor, Qin Fei was recklessly dashing forward as if his life depended on it.

Not far behind him, thunderous footsteps echoed, shaking the entire corridor like an earthquake.

Qin Fei had no time to look back. He focused solely on running swiftly. As he turned a corner, he forced himself to take a quick glance using the corner of his eye.

—An endless stream of monsters.

Countless monsters formed a crowded line, resembling a pack of starved wild dogs that had caught the scent of fresh flesh after seven days, blindly following Qin Fei in a frenzy.

Qin Fei now firmly believed that this damned rule-based live broadcast was essentially just a parkour game.

The swift survive, while the slow are doomed.

In Qin Fei's live stream, the viewer count was skyrocketing like mad.

100,000, 150,000, 200,000.

Numbers lost their significance at this moment.

Yet, for Qin Fei, this was not an auspicious sign. The constant pinging of system reward notifications sounded more like death knells, urging him to rush headlong down the path to the afterlife.

Damn it!

Damn it to hell!

Qin Fei inwardly cursed the system and the source of contamination he had only encountered twice.

Was it insane? Why were all these damned ghosts chasing after him??

Unlike the players who were dropped into the first-floor lobby, Qin Fei appeared directly in an upper-level corridor upon entering the mission scenario.

Judging from the nearby door numbers, he was currently on the 18th floor.

Just a few minutes ago, when the mission began, every residence on both sides of the 18th floor had their doors firmly shut.

However, as the system's notification sounded, almost instantly, all the doors creaked open in unison.

From each room emerged ghosts of all shapes and sizes, some with heads, others without; some with faces, others devoid; both those Qin Fei recognized and those he didn't.

They all rushed out in a frenzy, as if they wouldn't rest until they had torn Qin Fei to shreds.

Without even a moment to catch his breath, Qin Fei started sprinting forward like a madman.

Building 14 had a square-shaped layout, and as Qin Fei circled around the hallway, he caught sight of the emergency exit door beside him. He kicked it open and dashed inside.

But soon, he realized that no matter how many floors down he ran through the stairwell, when he opened the door, he would still find himself back in the corridor of the 18th floor.

And there was something even worse.

As Qin Fei kicked open the emergency exit doors on the 17th and 16th floors, then returned to the 18th floor, he suddenly realized that the 18th floor seemed to be expanding.

Based on Qin Fei's first lap, he should have already circled the 18th floor three times by now.

Yet, the safety exit door that should have appeared before him never materialized.

What was going on??

Qin Fei's forehead throbbed with each beat of his heart.

The monsters trailing behind him like kites were increasing in number. These creatures weren't particularly fast, nor did they seem very intelligent; they merely chased after him foolishly.

But there were just too many of them!

So many that Qin Fei dared not relax for even a moment. If he were tripped by one, the rest would swarm him, tearing him apart with a single bite, leaving only his bones behind.

As Qin Fei ran, he kept an eye on the numbers on the doors lining the corridor. The last one he passed read 1602, but around the corner, the room numbers switched back to starting with 18. Another turn, and they became 17.

Qin Fei's expression faltered slightly.

He understood why the area of the 18th floor seemed to be expanding with each run.

Every time he rushed out through an emergency exit, the floor below would merge with the previous levels.

Now, he was no longer on a normal 18th floor; it was a flattened amalgamation of the 16th, 17th, and 18th floors.

The structure of this level had also transformed, no longer a simple square layout.

Instead, they transformed into the shapes of the character 'hui', the character 'pin', and even more complex forms.

How on earth do we get out of this haunted building???

According to the security patrol manual, Qin Fei should be finding a way to make a phone call.

Given the current situation, it was utterly impossible for Qin Fei to search room by room just to find a telephone.

With an overwhelming number of ghosts trailing behind, circumstances didn't permit any delay. He could only spin like a top, frantically rushing through the corridors.

Thud! Thud!

The sound of heavy footsteps echoed like an oncoming tidal wave.

Yet, upon closer listening, the source of the noise didn't seem to be entirely behind him.

Huh?

Qin Fei's eyes flickered slightly.

Could it be that there were other players in this building?

- Qin Fei had separated from the other players right from the start, so he was unaware that most of them had already completed their missions and exited nearly half an hour ago, with the entire mission taking no more than ten minutes.

From the sound of the footsteps, it seemed that the player was also being pursued by a large number of ghosts, which gave Qin Fei a small sense of relief after being chased all the way.

Being in the same space, Qin Fei sensed the presence of the other player, who undoubtedly had also detected Qin Fei.

The footsteps, which were initially turning left, seemed to change direction at some point, drawing closer and closer to Qin Fei.

It was an impending situation.

Qin Fei almost instantly grasped the intention of the person facing him.

He wanted to rush over.

Using Qin Fei to shake off the pursuers behind him.

But...

Qin Fei glanced back at his own back again.

The overwhelming horde of monstrous NPC ghosts crowded the hallway, their dark forms filling the entire space almost entirely.

The ghosts in this building were peculiar; it seemed that their number wasn't fixed. As long as Qin Fei kept running, more and more ghosts would appear.

The newly arrived ghosts had no room to push forward, so they could only trail pathetically at the end.

In such a scenario, if another group of ghosts were to emerge from the opposite side...

Qin Fei: "Ahhhhhhhh, don't come any closer!!!"

Qin Fei sincerely didn't wish to witness the horrifying scene of ghosts blocking both ends of the corridor, sandwiching two players in the middle like fillings in a bloody burger.

He swore that his advice was purely based on an objective analysis of the situation, without any personal emotions involved.

However, the other party seemed to have a different perspective.

Upon hearing Qin Fei's scream, the runner across from him picked up even more speed.

Qin Fei: "!!!"

Damn it!

The live stream viewers were on the verge of laughing their heads off.

"Damn, the opponent probably never imagined there'd be so many ghosts here that he wouldn't make it out alive."

"Why is that idiot still running towards us?!!"

"Oh no, oh no, oh no! My wife won't actually sacrifice herself, will she?!"

"My tender and lovely wife, you're dying so tragically tonight!"

"Don't die, don't die, don't die!!! I placed bets on you! My money, my gold coins!!"

Qin Fei had no time to glance at the live chat messages.

The player on the other side was determined to run towards him. Qin Fei could only try his best to speed up and secure a favorable position before the opponent reached him.

After a moment, Qin Fei finally reached a three-way intersection.

On the left side of the fork, the player who had been watching Qin Fei through the walls finally appeared.

It turned out to be the elderly man.

Hunched over with a dark, wrinkled face, the old man skipped and leaped as he ran, almost as if he was scaling walls. His speed was by no means slower than Qin Fei's.

Spotting Qin Fei from afar, a glint of delight shone in his eyes, and a smile appeared on his face.

Until both of them dashed to the intersection, he finally discerned in the darkness the astonishing number of ghosts behind Qin Fei.

Old Man: "!!!"

Damn it!! ????

The Old Man went berserk on the spot. Who could withstand such a sudden encounter of love?

He cursed loudly, "Are you f*cking insane???"

Where did you get so many ghosts? This isn't how one would raise parasites!

Qin Fei ignored him.

Survival was the top priority, so Qin Fei just kept running forward.

The Old Man didn't give an inch, blocking two out of the three paths, leaving the two players no choice but to run side by side.

Behind them, countless ghosts intertwined, creating an exceptionally chaotic scene.

Two packs of monsters chasing the players collided head-on, merging into a chaotic mix. Some monsters looked around in confusion, unsure whom they should follow next.

Others slipped and fell to the ground, wailing as they were trampled by their fellow creatures.

The two players, both males, wore grim expressions as they fled, silently throwing daggers at each other with their eyes.

They continued running forward, but it seemed as if the system was determined to bury them within the building. Their survival space visibly narrowed with each passing moment.

There was no path ahead.

Qin Fei's eyebrows twitched violently.

Turning back was out of the question unless they wanted to be flattened by the ghosts directly.

Big Uncle took a deep breath. "Let's hide in that room for now."

At the end of the corridor stood a door.

It was by no means an ideal choice; one could hardly expect to exit once they entered, but even buying time was better than simply waiting to die where they stood.

"Bang!"

The elder kicked the door open, and both of them dashed inside. Immediately after, they turned to lock it securely.

Click.

Hundreds of ghosts were left stranded outside.

Perhaps due to being separated from the human scent by the door, the area outside soon fell eerily silent.

Qin Fei and the elder leaned against the wall, both panting heavily.

"You're a player, right?"

Exhausted from being chased by the NPCs for so long, the elder slumped down onto the ground, propping himself up with one hand against the wall. He struck a pose that was unusually youthful and spirited, given his character's persona.

"Mm," Qin Fei acknowledged frankly. There was no point in hiding anything at this stage.

Casually, he tossed out a small bombshell: "You actually guessed it, Mi Yang."

Mi Yang was taken aback.

He found it hard to believe, his brows arching high in surprise.

How did this person know who he was??

They even called out his player nickname?

"You…"

Just as Mi Yang was basking in the small triumph of figuring out the other's identity, he realized that he had been completely exposed, down to his last secret.

Feeling a bit defeated and annoyed, Mi Yang asked, "What's your name?"

Since he knew Mi Yang's name, it wasn't too much to ask for him to reveal his own, right?

As Qin Fei listened to Mi Yang, he scanned the chat interface, searching for any hidden clues that might point to a way out.

No useful information was found, just an abundance of trivialities.

A particularly conspicuous bullet comment drifted across Qin Fei's vision.

Ah, ah, ah, my wife's breathless demeanor is so endearing, my wife is a princess!!

"I'm asking you a question."

Miyang was still chirping beside them.

Qin Fei was now quite a figure in Central City. The Butterfly's bounty for his capture still hung at the Service Center.

Of course, he couldn't possibly reveal his real player nickname.

After a moment of thought, Qin Fei smiled and extended his hand. "Nice to meet you, Mi Yang. Allow me to introduce myself, I go by Princess Feifei."