Qi Yu froze on the spot, utterly dumbfounded by the enormous, glossy crimson lips that had suddenly appeared right before his eyes.
The pair of fiery red lips shimmered like they’d been smeared with cheap nail polish, animated in an over the top mechanical style that screamed outdated arcade graphics.
For a long moment, he could only stare in disbelief. The game system… actually had this kind of function?!
It even helped Xie Shao send him a kiss emoji, a literal, animated “muah.”
What the hell was this supposed to be?!
You’re a dignified game system! You control dungeons, manage players, calculate death counts, how could you stoop to being a matchmaker for your murderous dungeon boss and an innocent little player like me?! Do you feel no shame? No moral conflict at all?!
Aren’t you afraid that one day, your boss and your player will set aside their differences, hold hands, and skip merrily out of your carefully designed horror dungeon together?!
The system remained utterly silent. Its glowing screen flickered innocently, as if pretending it hadn’t just committed a crime against good taste.
Qi Yu was still frowning at the hovering red lips when Tang Yu leaned over curiously.
“Qi Yu, what are you staring at?” Tang Yu waved a hand in front of his face, “You’ve been looking at that thing for ages. Did the game send you a new message or something?”
Qi Yu really wanted to say no, nothing at all.
But those flaming lips were too much of an eyesore. So instead, he turned to Tang Yu and asked very seriously, “…Is there a place I can file a complaint against the game?”
Tang Yu promptly choked on his own saliva. After coughing for a while, he darted a glance left and right to make sure no one else was listening, then gave Qi Yu a big thumbs-up
.
“Qi ge, I mean it, I really have to call you Ge now. You actually dared to talk about complaining while still inside the game system’s territory? You’ve got guts, man.”
Qi Yu: “…”
“What? Why can’t I say that?” he retorted, expression cold. “What’s the system going to do, monitor every single player in the dungeon? Keep a little notebook of who badmouths it and then secretly take revenge later?”
“Wouldn’t that be a little too petty?”
As soon as the words left his mouth, the holographic light screen popped up again, fast and bright, right in his face.
【Player Qi Yu has made inappropriate remarks. Punishment: Dinner privileges revoked.】
Qi Yu: “…”
Tang Yu patted his shoulder with exaggerated sympathy. “See? That’s exactly what I mean. The game system is that kind of petty but at least it’s fair, it never delays revenge. If it wants to get back at you, it does it immediately.”
Qi Yu: “…”
He had no words left.
If the system was so easily offended, then why hadn’t it reacted when Xie Shao took advantage of him?
Did player innocence mean nothing to this so called impartial game?
Dog of a system!
If the system could hear the curses echoing inside his mind, it would probably explode with indignation, spamming his vision with pop-up screens and shouting:
“Excuse you! The system regulates gameplay, not your love life! We don’t interfere with your romantic misadventures! Do you think I haven’t seen strange cases before? Since this game launched, you’re the first freak who actually started flirting with a boss! Maybe start by reflecting on yourself, huh?”
But Qi Yu refused to reflect on anything. He didn’t think he’d done anything wrong at all and as for the punishment, well, missing one meal was no big deal.
In the game, any dungeon that lasted more than twenty-four hours automatically provided food and clean water.
They’d appear silently beside the players when it was time to eat, take it or leave it. The only problem was that the taste ranged from bland to downright disgusting.
Still, most players didn’t rely solely on the system. Everyone carried a few emergency rations just in case.
Qi Yu had eaten plenty before entering this copy and even packed a few chocolate bars and a slice of honey cake in his bag. He wasn’t the least bit worried. Who needed the system’s awful dinner anyway?
Feeling rather triumphant, he set off again with Tang Yu and Qi Wenyu to explore more rooms.
It had to be said, veterans were veterans for a reason. Within a short time, they’d figured out the most efficient use of that cracked old stethoscope they’d found earlier.
The abandoned hospital rooms were thick with danger; even a slight misstep could trigger a lethal encounter. Despite all their careful probing, another player still managed to die suddenly.
So, to minimize casualties, they decided to use the broken stethoscope one more time, and it worked. The faint static noises on the other side of a door had warned them just in time, preventing another ambush.
Unfortunately, the device only had one use left, and the shell was so corroded it crumbled if you held it too tightly. The player who possessed it almost cried, even though others offered to compensate him with some of their own points.
Tang Yu, ever the generous type, offered his own stethoscope for communal use.
His only request was simple, that if anyone later triggered an important clue, they would share it openly with everyone.
A “Key clue,” as it was called, was information crucial to completing the mission.
In beginner dungeons, the system would usually spoon-feed these clues. But in higher-level dungeons like this one, they were far harder to come by and worse, they were delivered privately, only to the person who triggered them.
If that person decided to hoard the information or worse, mislead others to gain points or items, the entire team could suffer. Many tragic incidents in the past had started exactly that way, someone’s greed leading to an entire squad’s annihilation.
That was why, over time, the system automatically assigned the most experienced player as team leader. It didn’t guarantee safety, but at least it kept things somewhat orderly.
After finishing their discussion about past tragedies and the reason behind having a leader, Tang Yu smacked his lips and grabbed Qi Yu by the sleeve, excitement glowing in his eyes.
“Alright! Let’s move, comrades! We need to clear as many rooms as possible. If there are usable items, grab them but more importantly, we need to be the ones to trigger the key clue. Otherwise, it’ll just get messy later.”
Qi Yu, who had triggered one such clue in the previous dungeon, asked, “Messy how?”
Tang Yu looked deadly serious. “Because then we’ll have to act like bootlickers and that’s humiliating.”
Qi Yu: “???”
Bootlickers? What kind of bizarre game meta was this?
Tang Yu sighed as if carrying the weight of the world. “Think about it! Those key clues are incredibly valuable. If someone else triggers it, we’ll have to offer them something in return just to get the info, points, favors, whatever and according to our glorious national custom, when someone helps you, you have to flatter them afterward. You know, call them smart, brave, amazing…”
“That’s called basic courtesy!” Qi Yu protested.
Tang Yu slammed his fist into his palm. “Exactly! Courtesy! And too much of it turns into bootlicking! But I, Tang Yu, am a proud man. I refuse to be anyone’s lickspittle. That’s why the key clue must belong to our group!”
Qi Yu: “…”
He was speechless.
Since when has polite teamwork evolved into a moral war against “bootlicking”?
Before he could argue, Qi Wenyu nodded solemnly. “Don’t worry, Tang ge. We’ll get the clue for sure. You and Qi ge are both awesome!”
Qi Yu: “…”
For some reason, maybe thanks to Tang Yu’s weird rhetoric, Qi Yu suddenly felt that Qi Wenyu’s behavior resembled, well, bootlicking.
And not just of Tang Yu but of both of them. A dual-bootlicker.
No. He had to stay calm. He refused to be dragged down into this madness.
Taking a deep breath, Qi Yu threw himself into serious investigation again, determined to be a diligent, rational player in this terrifying survival game.
Tang Yu seemed pleased with his focus, though he couldn’t help noticing one small thing, Qi Yu was way too sensitive to physical contact. A casual brush of the arm made him tense up, and any friendly attempt to pat his shoulder was met with swift evasion.
Tang Yu figured it must be some kind of cleanliness quirk. But oddly enough, Qi Yu hadn’t been like this before, they’d entered the dungeon together just fine. It was only after leaving the archives room that he’d started flinching at every touch.
Tang Yu couldn’t figure it out.
Meanwhile, hidden somewhere in the shadows, Xie Shao, the dungeon’s boss, watched with quiet amusement.
Thanks to his interference, the players’ exploration of the first floor was progressing smoothly, even if they hadn’t uncovered much of actual value.
As night fell, Wang Yicheng took charge of organizing everyone to barricade a few confirmed-safe rooms. Using old door panels and curtains as makeshift bedding, they prepared to rest.
Rest was vital. If your energy dropped and your reaction slowed, even a minor encounter could turn fatal.
Everyone here was fighting for survival; no one could afford a careless mistake.
After coordinating the night watch schedule, dinner finally arrived, delivered by the system as promised.
Well, to everyone except Qi Yu.
Not even a bottle of water appeared beside him.
That, apparently, was the system’s idea of fairness.
Qi Yu didn’t mind. He casually munched on a couple of chocolate bars, but the contrast between his empty spot and everyone else’s meal made him stand out like a spotlight. The newbies especially were gawking at him, their eyes practically saying, “What did you do to make the system hate you so much? We’re dying to know!”
Qi Yu sighed. So this was the real reason for the punishment, to make him a walking sideshow.
Fed up with the curious stares, he decided to take refuge in the bathroom.
The restrooms had already been searched earlier and declared safe. He didn’t need anyone to hold his hand. Calm and composed, he walked off alone.
As he passed the staircase leading to the second floor, he paused and looked up.
They hadn’t explored that level yet. Partly because time had run short, but mostly because the stairway had been nailed shut, thick planks hammered across it, with two large red characters painted over the boards: “Do Not Enter.”
Under the dim, flickering light, those red strokes gleamed wetly, and dark liquid dripped slowly along the wood grain like sluggish blood.
Even with his nerves of steel, Qi Yu felt a prickle of unease crawl down his spine.
He quickened his pace, heading toward the bathroom, but just as he passed the stairwell, a long, dragging screeeech echoed behind him.
The sound was faint but sharp, like fingernails scraping across wood. It wasn’t loud, but it made the hairs on his neck stand on end.
Qi Yu stopped mid-step and turned his head.
Through the narrow gap between the planks, he saw it, an eye.
A single, bloodshot, inhumanly red eye staring straight back at him.
The blood-colored pupil gleamed cold and wet, brimming with hunger.
The scraping grew faster, more violent, scratch, scratch, scratch, like saws grinding against each other. It wasn’t the work of one or two ghosts. There were many of them behind that barricade.
And in that instant, Qi Yu realized the truth.
The real danger of this dungeon wasn’t the ghosts quietly waiting inside rooms, harmless as long as you didn’t disturb them.
It was what lay sealed beyond that nailed-up stairway.
The spirits trapped upstairs… were stirring.
They were restless…..
They were starving….
They were waiting for someone to set them free….
They were thirsting…. Thirsting for the taste of human blood…..
And then, with a soft crack, the wood began to splinter…..
✦ ✧ ✦
Cresvynia
[Translator]
☕ A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR THE TRANSLATOR
A small offering may keep this translator’s soul attached to their body.
☕ BUY THEM A COFFEE →
✧ (づ｡•ㅅ•｡)づ ☕ ✧
✦ thank you for reading ✦
← PreviousNext →
ChaptersChapter 1 · Enter the GameChapter 2 · Pick a roomChapter 3 · DeadChapter 4 · AtticChapter 5 · ResponsibleChapter 6 · A bamboo BasketChapter 7 · DiaryChapter 8 · Song QingChapter 9 · Sent to HospitalChapter 10 · Second CopyChapter 11 · Leaking InformationChapter 12 · Special Prop!Chapter 13 · Doctor GhostChapter 14 · Store RoomChapter 15 · Psychiatry HospitalChapter 16 · Things of PastChapter 17 · Second FloorChapter 18 · He’s adorableChapter 19 · You Like Him?Chapter 20 · Kiss meChapter 21 · Group women’s clothing PlayChapter 22 · Where’s my Skirt?Chapter 23 · Wife of Murder Doctor….Chapter 24 · Go to Third floorChapter 25 · You must find me!Chapter 26 · See you in the next dungeonChapter 27 · VideoChapter 28 · Player ForumChapter 29 · Two women vying for one manChapter 30 · The Giant WolfChapter 31 · A Kind and Benevolent FatherChapter 32 · Preparing the change clothesChapter 33 · Red Heart FruitChapter 34 · In what ways do I fall short of him?Chapter 35 · KissChapter 36 · Bald performanceChapter 37 · The Prince Has ArrivedChapter 38 · Prince Song QingChapter 39 · Should we…Chapter 40 · A Kiss of True LoveChapter 41 · BanquetChapter 42 · Snow White KingChapter 43 · KingChapter 44 · I miss you so much!Chapter 45 · LeavingChapter 46 · Wanting to See HimChapter 47 · Resource Type InstanceChapter 48 · The Banquet BeginsChapter 49 · KissChapter 50 · Full-Dive Virtual RealityChapter 51 · Everyone Is a LiarChapter 52 · MegaphoneChapter 53 · Dragon???Chapter 54 · Fire DragonChapter 55 · A powerful Fire DragonChapter 56 · Want Some Barbecue?Chapter 57 · The Characteristics of the GameChapter 58 · A little DragonChapter 59 · Searching for her sonChapter 60 · We’re Going to Tear Up the HostageChapter 61 · Mountain CollapseChapter 62 · DiscussionChapter 63 · Digging for Crystals?Chapter 64 · Making Money Selling LiquorChapter 65 · A KissChapter 66 · I’m the Best LookingChapter 67 · Ghost Ship 101Chapter 68 · Has the Competition Begun Yet?Chapter 69 · LotteryChapter 70 · First PlaceChapter 71 · The Sea Monster ArrivesChapter 72 · CooperationChapter 73 · The Man in the MaskChapter 74 · WarChapter 75 · The Players’ RevengeChapter 76 · ReturningChapter 77 · The End