Before entering the exam, Qi Dengzui had already obtained partial clues about the exam questions, knowing that this exam was a game-type rules-based horror exam.
However, when he actually entered the monthly exam, Qi Dengzui discovered that although his exam was still a game-type rules-based horror, his exam hall was not the Day-Night Campus.
[Welcome, examinees, to the Supernatural Academy. All examinees have arrived. Number of participants this session: 5.]
[Now releasing the monthly exam questions…]
Before Qi Dengzui’s eyes, it was hazy like swirling mist, shrouded in a faint layer of black. He raised his hand and, unsurprisingly, touched a black strip covering his eyes.
This black strip seemed to be like the ancient “ice silk,” but under the system’s effect, it carried a function similar to glasses. He had to admit, the system was indeed thoughtful.
[This exam’s topic: The Haunted Inn.]
[This exam’s material: Wanderers in the desert find a moment of rest at an inn, but the constant scratching at the door and terrifying howls outside all indicate that this is a haunted inn. With no support available, will they face death or rebirth?]
The exam questions changed?
As if sensing Qi Dengzui’s confusion, the system announced:
[Hello, examinee Qi Dengzui/Guan Si. Due to a special situation at the Day-Night Campus exam hall, the exam hall has been destroyed. Currently, the Day-Night Campus exam hall cannot be opened normally. You have been transferred to another exam of the same type.]
Qi Dengzui raised his hand to tighten the ice silk and said slowly, word by word, “Special situation?”
The system paused briefly, then said:
[We are currently unable to disclose the details. We ask for your understanding.]
It continued:
[Please combine the material and the clues explored during this exam, organize your thoughts, and complete the following task: Survive until the end.]
[Exam questions have been released.]
[Friendly reminder: All examinees are requested to answer honestly. Do not cheat! Do not cheat! Do not cheat! Once rules are violated, the academy system will impose severe punishment!]
Everything returned to silence.
The misty scene before his eyes suddenly became clear. Several people stood in front of Qi Dengzui. They were now in the lobby of an inn in the desert, all dressed in ancient attire splendid robes of vibrant colors.
Seemingly for easy distinction, each person’s clothing was a different color. In his sea of consciousness, Guan Si’s color was unknown. Aside from that, Qi Dengzui wore black, while the other three wore gold, purple, and green respectively.
The group looked at each other’s outfits, exchanging bewildered glances.
Then, another mechanical voice rang out.
[All examinees have arrived. Please collect your examinee cards.]
Just like the freshman exam, the examinee card only introduced basic examinee information. The only difference was the addition of an examinee team section.
On the light screen, the examinee team column clearly recorded: Your team, Pei Su’s Team.
Qi Dengzui: “…”
That name was simple and straightforward, to say the least.
After all examinees collected their cards, the system spoke again.
[Examinee cards have been collected. Examinees are officially entering. The exam has begun. Please proceed to your respective starting locations.]
[Please choose your room in the inn, light the lamp, and go to sleep. Countdown: five minutes. Violators will be disqualified and permanently erased.]
“Erased?”
The woman in purple shuddered. Watching the people around her hesitate, none of them making a move, she felt anxious enough to stomp her feet. In a weak voice, she asked, “Aren’t… aren’t you all going? There’s only five minutes left.”
She broke the ice, and finally someone moved. The others quickly followed, leaving the lobby to choose their rooms.
At this point, everyone was completely in the dark. The game rules hadn’t been released yet, so they could only passively act according to the system’s broadcasts.
Perhaps to heighten the horror atmosphere, the floors here were made of wood, and footsteps echoed unusually loudly. Compounded by the emptiness of the corridor, the footsteps sounded ethereal and desolate, sending a chill down one’s spine.
Since the rules were unknown and there was no way to choose a better room location based on them, Qi Dengzui casually picked a room and lay down.
He lay flat on the bed, and in that instant, his vision went black. The world spun around him, and by the time he regained his senses, he was already floating in the air.
“Soul-body separation?” he mused, looking at himself lying on the bed.
With two minutes left on the countdown, Qi Dengzui drifted out of his room, intending to check out the others’ rooms. But it seemed the game rules restricted him, his soul couldn’t enter other people’s rooms. He had no choice but to give up and instead drifted toward the inn lobby where everyone had first gathered.
The other souls were also floating in the air, gathered in the lobby, flailing about awkwardly because they weren’t used to the spirit state.
The scene itself looked comical, but everyone wore grim expressions. Their hearts sank as time ticked away, and the atmosphere of fear spread rapidly.
“Brother Qi!”
Qi Dengzui snapped back to attention and saw a young man slowly drifting over from behind him.
The young man was dressed in white, his temperament gentle and refined, with black hair tied high and cascading down his back like satin, adding a touch of spirited elegance. From a distance, he looked like a pure and noble gentleman, but upon closer inspection, his soul was clearer than any other examinee’s, not to be underestimated.
Guan Si drifted over to Qi Dengzui and said, “Brother Qi, do you recognize me?”
Qi Dengzui looked at the pale-faced young man before him and raised an eyebrow slightly. “You look exactly like a certain white ball, hard not to recognize you.”
“Ding-ding ” The countdown hit zero.
【Now, all examinees, please carefully read the following announcement!】
In the center of the hall floated a piece of leather, on which the game announcement was written in black ink.
【Haunted Inn Announcement:
1.
At any time, do not open the door for vengeful spirits. No matter what happens, do not get out of bed. PS: Even if the ghost breaks through the door, you must not!
2.
If someone is damaging the door, you may find ways to reinforce it and resist the destruction. PS: It might also be a ghost scratching at the door!
3.
If a vengeful spirit breaks through the door, immediately extinguish the lights in the room and remain silent. PS: Those who do not follow the rules will be killed by the ghost!
4.
If you notice that someone else’s lights have gone out, do not go to check their room, and do not use anything in their room. PS: Taking a dead person’s belongings to strengthen yourself will bring you bad luck!
5.
There is a shop in the inn. If you enter it, leave immediately and do not purchase any items. If you purchase items, we will no longer be able to provide you with any protection measures. PS: Guess whether the items are meant for humans or ghosts?
“Haunted Dormitory?” the young man in blue said after browsing the announcement.
The four of them looked at him in unison. He smiled lightly, easing some of the tension. “I once watched my roommate play a tower defense game called Haunted Dormitory. It had the same gameplay, almost identical to the announcement.”
Qi Dengzui said, “You’ve played this game?”
The young man in blue nodded. “I only played one round, and I died right at the start, so I never played again.”
The young man in gold frowned. “Died at the start? That’s pretty bad. Whatever tell us about your experience in that round.”
The young man in blue nodded, recalling the scene at the time: “The game starts with a thirty-second countdown. Everyone finds a room, lies down on the bed, and then you start earning gold coins. You can use the coins to upgrade your bed and door. After twenty seconds, the dream hunters. I mean, the ghosts come, and they break down the doors from outside.”
He said, “The ghost came for me right at the start. I wasn’t very good at the game. After the door was destroyed, the ghost came in. I tried to get out of bed and run, but my body couldn’t move at all. I could only watch helplessly as the ghost killed me, and the game ended.”
“That’s it?” The young man in gold looked at him, seemingly in disbelief. “That’s all?”
The young man in blue nodded. “Yeah.”
Qi Dengzui fell into thought.
The young woman in purple spoke up, trembling. “So, once the ghost enters the room, we’re doomed?”
She gripped the young man in blue’s hand even tighter, almost losing her composure as she sobbed quietly, “I don’t want to die. I don’t want to die.”
The young man in blue seemed to be her boyfriend. He patted her back but couldn’t find any words of comfort.
They were all ordinary people. Trying to survive here was like a mayfly trying to topple a tree no different from climbing to the heavens.
〈What is that woman doing? Acting like it’s her first time in the exam hall.〉
〈She’s just a slacker who scraped through the previous exams.〉
〈Watch your mouth, okay?〉
〈Why are you all arguing? Can’t we just admire the handsome guys? I didn’t expect Brother Qi and Guan Si to be this good-looking. I thought they’d be a burly muscle man and a skinny weakling.〉
〈Even the sub-personality gets a skin these days. The system is way too humane.〉
The viewing website was buzzing with heated discussion, while the hall echoed with an urgent broadcast.
【The game is about to begin. Please do not linger. Return to your rooms and prepare. The game will pause every half hour, and all examinees may gather in the hall to exchange information. The pause will last ten minutes.】
With that, everyone silently returned to their rooms.
Qi Dengzui and Guan Si’s room was the farthest from the hall, so they were the last to enter.
The door here was a sliding type, pulling inward into the room.
However,
Qi Dengzui straightened up, looking through the black veil over his eyes at the body below, his gaze full of contemplation.
He and Guan Si shared only one body, yet there were two souls floating above wasn’t that a built-in cheat?
In the last exam, Guan Si’s appearance caused the examinees to be one short, which actually increased the difficulty. In this exam, Guan Si had, by a twist of fate, become an external advantage.
Could it be that the system was compensating him?
Guan Si approached Qi Dengzui, looking at the opaque black cloth over his eyes, and waved a hand in front of Qi Dengzui’s face. “Brother Qi, can you see me?”
Qi Dengzui said, “Yeah, it’s a special effect of this instance.”
Game-type instances usually have a game panel. Qi Dengzui tapped open the panel and noticed something written in the top right corner:
Cultivation: 0%
Health: 100%
There was still no movement at the moment, and Qi Dengzui couldn’t help but think of the contents of the announcement.
The inn had shops, yet candidates were not allowed to enter them to purchase items, why was that?