Chapter 552 Possibility of Cleanup

Chapter 552: The Possibility of Fighting Back

There was no doubt that the temperature inside the ward was dropping at a bizarre and precipitous rate.

The weather in Qingliu City in the real world was cooler than other regions, but autumn hadn't arrived yet. The environment of the Nightmare World was cold, but the most chilling aspect wasn't the ambient temperature; it was the internal coldness that seeped into one's body from being immersed in the power of the Red Moon. It was a bone-deep chill that no amount of clothing could ward off.

Therefore, the clothes worn by the players present were neither too thin nor too thick, making the cold from outside their bodies in the ward even more palpable.

Su Bai stood quietly. Although his body was no longer negatively affected by temperature extremes, his perception remained. He could clearly perceive the ward's temperature rapidly approaching freezing point and continuing to plummet.

He held Le Shiya's wrist, feeling her skin exposed to the air turn icy cold. Even though Le Shiya was deeply unconscious and didn't shiver from the cold, she instinctively curled up, instinctively resisting this bone-penetrating low temperature.

"Is it too cold?"

Only after the friction sounds from those things outside the door had receded a bit did Xiang Feiyu lower his voice and cautiously ask. His voice carried a slight tremor, clearly nearing his limit of endurance for this low temperature.

"It feels like my exhaled breath has turned to mist. I'm covered in goosebumps from the cold," Xu Rui couldn't help but whisper, his tone laced with unconcealed anxiety and worry. "Just as I said that, it seems to have gotten even colder."

"More than just a bit. My teeth are chattering from the cold," Tian Yue hugged herself tightly, wanting to say more, but at that moment, the familiar friction sound outside the door came again.

*Scrape— scrape—*

Everyone's nerves instantly tensed again. All sounds vanished instantly, and the room returned to a silence so profound one could hear a pin drop.

The temperature continued to drop.

Su Bai could hear the breathing of the surrounding players becoming rapid. The other players in the ward might have already started showing physiological reactions to the extreme cold.

If they weren't forced to remain silent, the other players would likely have already started desperately seeking ways to warm up.

They couldn't take it getting any colder.

Yet the surroundings continued to grow colder.

Judging by their heartbeats and breathing, the players' ability to withstand the cold might have already reached its limit.

...

Just as the cold was pushing everyone's nerves to the breaking point, a sliver of light suddenly seeped through the crack in the door.

In that instant, everyone held their breath.

This meant the corridor lights had turned on again after a "long" period of darkness.

The echoing friction sounds of the withered branches in the darkness seemed to take it as a signal and began slowly receding.

However, the temperature inside the ward still hadn't risen.

"We must leave," Chi Yan slowly exhaled a breath of cold air, speaking with the exhaustion of being frozen stiff. "I always knew we couldn't stay in a place like a ward forever, but I didn't expect this damned place to start messing with the ward so early."

As he spoke, he slowly walked towards the ward door, stood there, and listened quietly for a moment, as if confirming the situation outside. Then, he gently pushed the door open a crack.

Cold, white light poured in through the gap.

Chi Yan peeked outside and said in a low voice, "The temperature outside is normal."

"Those nurses have gone back to normal," he pushed the ward door open wider, letting more light flood in, then turned to look at the others.

The temperature inside the ward had become cold enough to suffocate someone. Hearing Chi Yan's words, Su Bai didn't hesitate either. He promptly picked up the unconscious Le Shiya and quickly followed the other players out of the ward, stepping into the corridor.

Relatively warm air instantly enveloped them. Although the corridor temperature wasn't actually warm, compared to the extreme cold inside the ward, the outside temperature at least gave them a feeling of being alive.

"Saved..."

Xiang Feiyu's voice carried a tremor that hadn't yet dissipated, even a hint of relief after a narrow escape.

"I actually feel like this damned corridor is warm right now," Xu Rui also couldn't help but take a deep breath, rubbing his hands to try and restore feeling to his stiff body, then looked at Chi Yan. "Brother Chiyan, what should we do now?"

The players instinctively turned their gazes towards Chi Yan. After all, in this game, he had been playing the role of the guide.

"The 13th and 14th floors have those nurses active, and the 15th floor is a restricted area..." Chi Yan frowned in thought. "Where on earth can we still hide?"

"Constantly hiding isn't a solution either."

A calm voice spoke up from behind the group.

Su Bai, holding Le Shiya in his arms, spoke with a decisiveness unlike before, though his tone wasn't heavy: "If we can't find an area without those nurses, perhaps we should... clear out a space ourselves."

Everyone was stunned for a moment.

"Clear?" Chi Yan looked up at Su Bai, seemingly taken aback by the word. "Clear... those things?"

Su Bai nodded. "We've never truly fought those things, have we? We've always been running, always hiding, always searching for safe zones, always passive."

"Maybe those things can be dealt with?" Tian Yue's eyes gradually lit up, as if suddenly realizing something. "If those things can really be handled, then we can carve out a safe zone ourselves!"

Her words prompted everyone to exchange glances.

They were all survivors of multiple Nightmare Games, with plenty of experience fighting Eerie Entities, and they possessed some life-saving items useful for such battles.

Although Su Bai knew that behind the Neonatal Department lurked something even more terrifying, he also knew the current situation required a breakthrough, even if they had to create one by force.

Before making the suggestion, Su Bai had already prepared himself. Although he didn't frequently use the Mist Shop in short-term Nightmare Games, this Reverse Birth Corridor had no shortage of doorknobs. So even in a desperate situation, they still had a way out.

"Those things don't seem to move very fast," Jie Ying, having learned of Su Bai's proposal through Xiang Feiyu's handwritten words, also nodded in agreement. "Those withered branches and those nurses don't seem indestructible either. It's a pity none of us are powerful fire-ability users, otherwise we could try burning them."

Fire?

Su Bai did have a very useful flame at his disposal. Unfortunately, if he let that guy unleash blue flames indiscriminately, they would inevitably have to face the thing hidden within the corridor.

For Su Bai, the best outcome would be for this game to end normally, like any other, without excessively disturbing that thing.