The atmosphere in the dining hall was strange.
The veteran trainees naturally split into small groups, while the newcomers sat stiffly in their seats, nerves written all over their faces. Most of them had only one thought in mind: find someone strong enough to rely on.
Dinner had barely reached the halfway point before several people began approaching the veterans, flattering them shamelessly in hopes of securing protection.
The man with glasses was one of them.
Before entering the Infinite Loop, he had been nothing more than an ordinary office worker. He followed every rule, worked diligently, and never once dared to step out of line.
But now he had been thrown into the horrifying world of the Thriller Trainee competition—a place where death could arrive at any moment, and where there was no returning to normal life.
Years spent sitting behind a desk had left his body soft and unimpressive. Aside from office work, he possessed no useful skills whatsoever. His F-rank badge reflected that reality perfectly. If he failed to raise his evaluation to at least E-rank during the reassessment, he would die.
No one wanted to die.
And neither did he.
So from the moment he entered the first round, he had already begun calculating.
After the nurse opened the door earlier, he had immediately crawled upstairs to the dining hall and hidden himself there, silently observing everyone who entered.
That caution paid off.
By now, he had already formed a rough understanding of the trainees participating in this round.
There were two S-ranks, three A-ranks, around ten B-ranks, and countless C- and D-ranks.
But the majority, just like him, were still E- and F-rank nobodies.
One of the S-ranks was a man with long black hair. His expression was cold and distant, and the air around him felt frozen.
The other had golden hair and a warm smile that felt like spring sunlight. Even in a hospital gown, the holy aura surrounding him was impossible to ignore.
The man with glasses had originally wanted to approach them himself.
Unfortunately, before he could gather the courage, several other low-ranked trainees had already rushed over with their trays.
Zhuge An didn’t even bother lifting his eyes.
He merely set down his chopsticks.
That alone was enough to make the newcomers around him tremble in fear.
The blond S-rank, however, reacted very differently.
Rather than showing impatience, he smiled gently.
“You’re all newcomers, right? I’m Messiah. Just call me that.”
His approachable attitude immediately eased everyone’s nerves.
The newcomers hurried to introduce themselves one after another, pouring out their fears, confusion, and helplessness about the current situation.
The man with glasses hesitated for a moment before shamelessly squeezing himself into the group as well.
Messiah listened quietly from beginning to end without interrupting anyone.
Only after the final person finished speaking did he nod.
“You’re right. Most high-ranked trainees have already survived inside the Infinite Loop for a long time. Compared to them, you’re still beginners. Throwing you directly into the trainee competition without any room to grow really is cruel.”
His golden eyes softened.
“Don’t worry. This is only the first round. If there’s anything I can do to help, I’ll do my best.”
Meanwhile, the livestream bullet chat exploded.
[WAAAAH the Holy Son is still as gentle as ever, I’m crying.]
[He really deserves that title. Just like a saint saving people from suffering—sob sob sob.]
[I met him once in another instance before. He saved me too, and even comforted me afterward. He’s literally a living philanthropist.]
“…The Holy Son really hasn’t changed.”
He Jianlan took a bite of ham, his tone complicated.
“These newcomers are exaggerating way too much. They’re obviously just trying to cling to him.”
As he spoke, one wealthy newcomer loudly declared that if Messiah protected him, he would repay him with a seven-figure sum after returning to reality.
Messiah could only laugh helplessly and wave it off.
“There’s no need for that. It’s just a small matter.”
Qin Ye glanced over lazily.
“He wasn’t always like this.”
Among the current top ten trainees, Messiah’s popularity was second only to that terrifying existence at rank one.
His personal strength was overwhelming, and he possessed a massive faction of loyal followers. Even those who secretly disliked him or considered him hypocritical could never openly challenge him.
Strength silenced everything.
Now those newcomers practically looked ready to build a shrine for him on the spot.
Their eyes shone as if the Virgin Mary herself had descended before them.
If possible, they would probably cling to his side for the next three days straight.
He Jianlan silently sighed.
Following Messiah wasn’t necessarily a bad choice. In a dangerous instance, staying near him could indeed save their lives.
But in this kind of one-man show, those newcomers would never achieve impressive ratings themselves.
Messiah could protect them temporarily.
He couldn’t protect them forever.
Eventually, they would still die.
Every newcomer entering the Infinite Loop had to crawl through the line between life and death themselves. Only then could they develop true combat instincts.
If all they learned was dependence and cowardice, then once they lost their protection, only death awaited them.
As He Jianlan withdrew his gaze, his eyes accidentally swept across a corner of the dining hall.
Then he paused.
A white-haired young man sat quietly there alone, mechanically raising and lowering his spoon.
His head was lowered slightly, revealing only a clean, elegant jawline from the side.
Interesting.
He Jianlan narrowed his eyes.
Almost every newcomer in the room had already gathered around Messiah. Even a few C-ranks were tempted to join the crowd.
Yet this white-haired youth remained entirely indifferent.
He neither showed humility nor eagerness.
He didn’t even bother glancing in Messiah’s direction.
That calmness felt abnormal.
“Old Qin, what do you think about that hidden mission?”
Qin Ye immediately frowned.
“If you’ve got something to say, then spit it out directly. Stop talking in circles.”
What he hated most was people who made simple conversations complicated.
Unfortunately, He Jianlan loved exactly that kind of euphemistic speech.
Although He Jianlan was only B-rank, the special item he possessed made even A-ranks wary of him. After partnering with Qin Ye, the two of them had become even more troublesome together. Many veterans in the dining hall envied them.
He Jianlan shrugged helplessly.
“I’m just saying… stop staring at Zhuge An all the time because you’re suspicious of him. If he notices, you won’t even realize when you’ve already become a piece on his chessboard.”
“Have you forgotten what happened during the ‘Cursed Mask’ instance?”
Qin Ye’s expression instantly darkened.
He immediately lowered his eyes.
He Jianlan nearly laughed.
At the same time, he silently moved the white-haired newcomer several places higher on his internal suspicion list.
Meanwhile, Zong Jiu had already finished eating.
Completely ignoring the countless stares directed at him, he quietly set down his chopsticks and fell into thought.
Objectively speaking, beautiful people naturally attracted attention.
But the aura surrounding the white-haired young man was too cold and distant.
For a while, nobody dared approach him.
Until finally, a teenage boy who had been secretly observing him from afar gathered enough courage to carry his tray over.
Zong Jiu closed his livestream interface and lifted his eyes indifferently.
During a single meal, the viewer count in his livestream had already jumped from zero to several thousand.
Maybe being attractive really was a privilege.
The boy sitting across from him looked extremely shy.
He seemed no older than seventeen, with an immature face and nervous eyes filled with both gratitude and unease.
“I-I-I’m Sheng Yu.”
The moment Zong Jiu looked at him, Sheng Yu immediately started stuttering.
“A-About earlier… thank you.”
Afraid the other party might not remember, he hurriedly added quietly:
“In the dormitory earlier. Thanks for warning me.”
Only then did Zong Jiu remember.
This was one of the eight people from the E-rank dormitory.
He watched Sheng Yu silently until the boy’s scalp began tingling from nervousness.
Then he finally replied flatly:
“You saved yourself by making the right choice.”
That statement was true.
Xia Chuan had chosen not to believe him.
If Sheng Yu had done the same, his ending would have been no different.
Sheng Yu still wanted to say something else.
But suddenly, the noisy dining hall fell silent.
Clack. Clack. Clack.
The sharp sound of high heels echoed across the tiled floor.
A group of nurses entered the dining hall in uniform.
Their expressions were cold and lifeless.
Leading them was the same nurse who had opened the door for Zong Jiu earlier, an oil lamp flickering in her hand.
Their skin was deathly pale.
Not ordinary paleness.
Not sickness.
But the eerie white of corpses.
Several experienced veterans instinctively glanced toward the floor behind them.
Under the bright dining hall lights, dark shadows stretched quietly beneath the nurses’ feet.
At least they were still human.
“You are all newly admitted patients.”
The head nurse’s voice was icy.
“The asylum’s daily schedule has already been posted on the wall. Other than that, there are several rules you must remember.”
“First: nighttime wandering is forbidden.”
“Second: fighting between patients is forbidden.”
“Third: all patients must absolutely obey medical staff.”
Her gaze swept slowly across the room.
“Anyone who violates these rules will either be placed in solitary confinement or subjected to mandatory treatment, depending on the severity of the offense.”
“Trust me. Neither is something you want to experience.”
The entire dining hall was silent.
No one dared speak.
The head nurse seemed satisfied by their obedience.
A rare smile appeared on her sharp, unpleasant face.
“Very good. You’re far more cooperative than the previous batch of patients.”
“Working with our treatment will only benefit your condition.”
The newcomers around Messiah were already trembling uncontrollably.
None of them dared ask what had happened to the “previous batch.”
“Now then.”
The head nurse waved her hand.
“It’s time for your medication.”
Several nurses stepped forward from the shadows carrying bottles of pills and cups of water.
One by one, they distributed medicine to every trainee in the dining hall.
The trainees exchanged uneasy glances.
In a whisper, Sheng Yu asked Zong Jiu what they should do.
Zong Jiu didn’t answer.
Instead, he raised the pill to his nose and sniffed it lightly, brows furrowing almost imperceptibly.
Should they eat it?
Or not?
The bottle carried no label whatsoever, making it impossible to identify the drug.
But combined with the dizziness and weakness everyone had experienced upon waking up, it was most likely some kind of sedative or antipsychotic medication commonly used in psychiatric hospitals.
An unknown drug from a horrifying asylum filled with mysteries.
Anyone with half a brain could tell swallowing it probably wasn’t a good idea.
Especially considering none of them were mentally ill.
As if sensing their hesitation, several nurses remained standing nearby, watching each trainee carefully to ensure the pills were swallowed before moving on to the next person.
Refusing the medication would clearly violate the third rule.
And no one wanted to become the first person dragged into solitary confinement.
“Hurry up,” one nurse snapped impatiently. “Stop stalling.”
Everyone hesitated.
Then each person began trying their own tricks.
The man with glasses secretly glanced toward Messiah.
The blond man calmly tilted his head back and swallowed the medicine with water.
Unfortunately, because of the angle, nobody could tell whether he had actually swallowed the pill.
The nurse watching Messiah seemed satisfied and turned her gaze toward the man with glasses.
The moment their eyes met, cold sweat broke out across his back.
Terrified, he hurriedly shoved the pill into his mouth.
“What else can we do…? Just eat it…”
At the same time, Zong Jiu’s fingers moved subtly.
The pill disappeared directly into his mouth.
After everyone finished swallowing, the head nurse suddenly ordered:
“Roll up their sleeves. Open their mouths. Lift their tongues.”
The dining hall instantly froze.
The man with glasses felt his heart slam against his chest.
Many people had secretly hidden their pills in their mouths instead of swallowing them.
Now panic spread everywhere.
One especially nervous trainee coughed violently from shock, accidentally spitting the pill onto the floor along with his saliva.
His face instantly turned as pale as the nurses’.
The head nurse sneered coldly and waved her hand.
Several huge nurses appeared from nowhere.
Without giving the trainee any chance to beg for mercy, they grabbed him by the legs and dragged him screaming into the dark corridor.
A moment later—
The screams stopped abruptly.
Then came the heavy sound of an iron door locking shut.
Solitary confinement.
The dining hall became deathly silent.
Satisfied by the fear she had created, the head nurse nodded.
“You now have free time.”
With that, she turned and left.
Not every trainee had come to the dining hall tonight. Some had gone exploring immediately after waking up.
The nurses were likely heading to force-feed those people next.
Zong Jiu watched the white uniforms disappear into darkness.
Then suddenly—
He smiled.
His palm flipped open.
Resting there quietly was a completely intact white pill.