Chapter 221: Huaishu Road Construction Site Strange Tale 19

Chapter 221: Huaishu Road Construction Site Strange Tale 19

After the announcement ended, the dim and spacious office fell back into a deathly silence.

Qin Fei and the source of contamination both breathed so quietly that they were almost imperceptible. In the entire room, only NPC Hu Xiao's suppressed and fearful breathing could be heard.

Qin Fei lowered his eyes, silently replaying what he had just heard.

"Please think carefully. Is this really what you want?"

The meaning of these words was quite clear.

Players trapped in the instance, caught in a dangerous game, what would they truly desire?

—Nothing more than to survive.

However, safely passing the eighth round of the game did not guarantee their survival.

After all, the strange tale was far from over.

The system was trying to tell the players that if they passed the game in such a stable manner, they would gain temporary safety but lose a longer-term chance of survival.

Because they had not seen the female ghost in the corridor.

And on the female ghost, there might be crucial information that could truly lead them through the strange tale.

"Friendly reminder: the female ghost will kill only one person per round."

As long as one person was sacrificed, they could get closer to the truth.

The announcement seemed like a kind-hearted tip, but in reality, it was an obvious attempt to sow discord.

It was inducing the players to suspect, distrust, and turn against each other, even...

Qin Fei raised his face, gazing at the chaotic void.

In the world of rules, fairness was never absolute.

The controlling entity hidden in the shadows had long tipped the scales in favor of the ghosts.

Or perhaps, it simply wanted to see the players die.

This was not a novel viewpoint; the system was filled with malice, a fact well-known among the player community.

Although the instances maintained apparent fairness in most cases, this was ultimately a live broadcast, and the players existed to entertain the audience.

To achieve this goal, bloodshed, violence, despair, and extraordinary drama became essential elements during the live broadcast.

Qin Fei blinked and typed two words in the guild channel.

Qin Fei: "Be careful."

Since the announcement had been made, in the final round of the game, the system would undoubtedly favor the female ghost.

There were multiple players in both the Property Management Office and the Accounting Room, making neither side safe now.

Mi Yang had indeed also heard the system's announcement and quickly responded after seeing Qin Fei's message.

Mi Yang: "I understand."

Mi Yang: "You too, be careful. Things are still okay here."

In Mi Yang's mother's view, compared to the Accounting Room, the Property Management Office was undoubtedly the more dangerous place.

Firstly,

the female ghost had already shown an unusual interest in the Property Management Office in the previous round.

Although she was tricked away by the players in the sixth round, in the final round, she was likely to return to this unexplored location.

Secondly,

at this moment, Chen Zaocha, who was beside Mi Yang, was clearly more concerned about his own safety.

Mi Yang's innate skill was no longer a secret among the players. Due to its special nature, even when facing a player with genuine combat skills, there was still room for maneuver. How much more so for Chen Zaocha, a scout with no combat skills whatsoever.

If the female ghost really opened their door, it was Chen Zaocha who would most likely end up dead, not Mi Yang.

Currently, Chen Zaocha was trembling, staring at Mi Yang with X-ray-like eyes, wanting to say something but not daring to speak, looking pitiful.

Mi Yang gave Chen Zaocha a friendly smile.

His intention was to reassure him, but Chen Zaocha seemed to misunderstand his goodwill.

Chen Zaocha shivered and shrunk even smaller.

Mi Yang: "..."

Thirty-five minutes felt like an endless night.

In the Property Management Office, NPC Hu Xiao kept glancing at the other two people in the room.

He wanted to speak but dared not make any sound, or even move much, fearing it might attract the female ghost's attention.

Hu Xiao bit his lip.

He lowered his head, the darkness concealing the details of his face and hiding the fear and struggle in his eyes.

The countdown in the air ticked away second by second, like a series of large death warrants plastered before his eyes.

Hu Xiao closed his eyes and then opened them again, unable to stop glancing at the door.

20 minutes.

10 minutes.

Sweat trickled down Hu Xiao's forehead, streaming down his cheeks and into his neck.

The room was cold, and with his shirt drenched in sweat, Hu Xiao couldn't help but shiver.

Since entering this room, his hands had remained in the pockets of his coat, never once taking them out.

At some point, he stopped looking at Qin Fei and the pollution source. He hunched over, as if pondering something in secret.

5 minutes.

30 seconds.

0.

Qin Fei suddenly lifted his head!

"Tap, tap."

The familiar footsteps sounded again from outside the door.

This time, the owner of the footsteps seemed particularly cheerful, their steps becoming lighter.

Mi Yang: "Damn it!"

Mi Yang: "No surprises at all, this is getting old."

Their guess was right.

It was the female ghost again.

Qin Fei glanced at the message Mi Yang sent, then closed the panel.

The ghost in the corridor abandoned her previous hesitant behavior; this time, her target was clear.

The footsteps grew closer.

Although the female ghost hadn't yet stopped, everyone understood that she had already precisely identified the Property Management Office as her target.

"Tap, tap."

With every step the female ghost took, Hu Xiao trembled slightly.

Qin Fei thought that he probably wanted to run but didn't dare to move, so he could only squat there, hugging himself tightly, his head buried between his knees, like a frightened quail.

A moment later, the footsteps outside finally paused.

The live-stream hall fell silent.

The system had considerately synchronized the announcement to the audience, causing their hearts to race once more after just settling down.

Would anyone take the risk?

What would happen to the eighth round of the game, which should have been safe for everyone?

Tension and curiosity gnawed at the spirits' hearts like countless ants, devouring their flesh.

Countless eyes stared intently at the screens, glowing with intense anticipation.

Open the door, open the door!

The spirits silently screamed in their hearts.

Under such fervent anticipation, the female ghost's pale, withered hand finally touched the doorknob.

...

"The room you are in has been selected. Do you choose to open the door?

Yes or No"

A fluorescent prompt box appeared in the air. Qin Fei lazily lifted his eyelids but did not move.

The pollution source, sitting beside him, glanced at Qin Fei thoughtfully.

The room remained deathly silent.

In another room halfway down the corridor, Mi Yang was pinching his own nose hard with one hand.

Of course, he wasn't scared to the point of fainting because of this; he merely wanted to relieve some stress.

The corridor was so quiet that a pin drop could be heard.

Chen Zaocha looked at Mi Yang, swallowed hard, but in the next second, suddenly heard the sound of a distant door hinge creaking.

The door... opened??

Was it the door to the Property Management Office?

The two players in the accounting room widened their eyes instantly.

In the live-stream hall.

The audience wore the same expression, their intense gazes almost burning a hole in the area belonging to Qin Fei.

The prompt to open the door did not appear only in front of Qin Fei; the contamination source, Hu Xiao, received it at the same time as well.

Among the three, if any one of them chose "yes," the female ghost could enter the room without any hindrance.

The moment the door creaked, the crowd erupted into chaos, with screams, curses, and loud discussions blending into an ear-piercing cacophony.

"Damn! The door really opened!!!"

"Which idiot opened the door?!"

"Emmm, I think it might be Xiao Qin?"

"It's definitely Xiao Qin +1. Players have ways to protect themselves; he must want to sacrifice his teammates."

"The system's prompt is indeed tempting. What if this round's clue is crucial?"

"That's true. Now, sacrificing someone means one death, but if we miss key information, we might all die in the end."

"I'm really speechless. Can you guys check the screen before speaking?"

"It's not Xiao Qin at all; it must be that NPC by the door!"

"I agree. Look at his expression; it's different now."

...

Hu Xiao stood by the door.

When the sound of the door opening echoed, he finally lifted his head after a long time.

Unbeknownst to him, the fear and panic that had been etched on his face had vanished, replaced by a deep-seated madness.

He stood by the door, turned back to glance at the two people behind him who were frozen in place, seemingly still unaware of what was happening. He moved his lips silently, uttering a phrase.

Qin Fei saw clearly what he said: "Go to hell."

Thick darkness seeped into the room through the open door, causing the air to suddenly turn cold, as if the room had become a giant freezer.

In an instant, Qin Fei was certain that the female ghost who had been tormenting them for eight rounds on the sixth floor was the same one who had followed them up to the third floor last night and killed two players under the cover of darkness.

The door opened slowly, and the first thing to enter was a blood-soaked crimson corner of her dress.

For some reason, Hu Xiao by the door didn't dodge. He turned around and looked at the two people who were "scared stiff."

Just a few minutes ago, he was still hesitating, worried whether things would go as smoothly as he imagined.

Now, he was completely reassured.

Those two were indeed useless, just like the others he had encountered in the ghost stories.

People simply couldn't stay calm when facing ghosts; extreme fear would rob them of their basic reactions, just like these two, standing there like wooden stakes.

Hurry up! Faster! Hu Xiao's heart raced as he watched the skirt getting closer.

Come in, kill one of those two, leave a clue, and end the game.

Hu Xiao didn't feel guilty about his meticulous plan. In the world of ghost stories, survival of the fittest was normal, and those two weren't good people either.

Did they think he didn't know?

During the seventh round, they definitely heard his footsteps outside. If they had any conscience, they should have given him a hint.

God knows how terrifying his journey was, fearing he might knock on a room with a ghost inside.

Fortunately, even the heavens favored him.

Not only did he survive the game, but he also got the chance to obtain crucial clues.

Once he had this clue, he would have a say in future ghost stories against the other dozens of people.

Hu Xiao's hands remained in his pockets, and in the blind spot of the camera, his right hand tightly gripped a small, gourd-shaped object.

This was his lifeline in this meticulously planned scheme.

The door opened wider, revealing half of the female ghost's pale face. Qin Fei and the contamination source, as Hu Xiao had expected, did nothing but stare dumbfoundedly at the door, as if they had lost their minds.

The corners of Hu Xiao's mouth curled higher.

The female ghost was right in front of him, yet she seemed to ignore him entirely, her pitch-black eyes staring straight into the depths of the room.

However, in the next second.

An unexpected scene unfolded.

Hu Xiao, hiding beside the door, suddenly stumbled forward as if tripped by something, rolling towards the hem of the female ghost's dress with a look of shock!