In the hall, Qi Dengzui’s gaze was distant and detached: “Candidate 103, Qi Dengzui.”
Pei Su leaned back against his chair: “I’m 102. As for this one here, I’ve forgotten his name, let’s just call him No. 1 for now…”
The person beside Pei Su cast him a faint, sidelong glance and said, “He Zhu. If you can’t remember again, you can get lost.”
From the moment he entered the room, He Zhu had been staring directly at Qi Dengzui without the slightest attempt to look away, yet his gaze didn’t feel intrusive in any way.
〈I remember now! He seems like a candidate with real potential looks like a main defensive position.〉
〈Two veterans in a freshman exam? The newbies are probably going to get their exam points stolen.〉
〈He Zhu and Pei Su don’t seem like the type to steal points, though.〉
“Don’t be so harsh.” Pei Su let out a chuckle, straightened up in his seat, and said to Qi Dengzui, “I ran into Brother He on the way here, so we came together.”
The address “Brother He” was warm and natural, as if it had been used countless times before, leaving He Zhu with nothing else to say.
【All candidates have arrived. Please collect your candidate ID cards.】
〈Wait, there are only three people, how are they all here?〉
〈Look at the ID cards up there aren’t there four?〉
In the center of the hall stood a polished quartz pillar, its surface radiating a faint glow, with four cards suspended in midair above it.
The cards were entirely black, with golden dragon patterns embedded on the backs they looked less like student ID cards and more like VIP gold cards from some top-tier establishment.
Qi Dengzui stepped forward. The moment his hand opened, an ID card flew into his palm, and the instant it landed, a screen of light burst forth from it.
On the light screen, where Qi Dengzui’s portrait should have been, a string of “???” appeared due to the freshman exam, while beside it, the information was clearly recorded:
Candidate Name: Qi Dengzui
Candidate Level: Mediocre Student LV.5
Candidate Points: 0
Candidate Ranking: Unranked
The remaining fields candidate title, candidate team, candidate class, and candidate position were all marked as unknown.
Likewise, Pei Su and He Zhu each received their own ID cards, leaving only the final candidate’s card hovering alone in the air, unclaimed.
〈I’m curious who that person is no one’s taking the card, and we can’t see their identity.〉
〈Huh? No way don’t tell me a candidate just died right at the start? The plot hasn’t even begun yet.〉
〈It doesn’t have to be a plot kill, right…〉
〈Holy shit, don’t tell me it’s like “Demon Hunter” where someone kills off the other competitors right at the start?〉
The people in the hall wore grim expressions as well. Inside his sea of consciousness, Guan Si spoke softly: “Brother Qi, be careful. On my way here, I checked Ward 103 is the closest to the hall. The broadcast just told us to collect our ID cards, yet they arrived before us. Unless, they already knew that candidates need to claim their cards when the exam begins.
“Those two don’t seem like freshmen.”
Qi Dengzui already understood what he meant.
【ID cards have been collected. Candidates are officially admitted. The exam has begun. Please proceed to your respective starting locations.】
Pei Su twirled his card deftly between his fingers a few times, then stood up, looking at Qi Dengzui with a wink. “Looks like this exam is going to be quite the show. See you around.”
Waving a hand dismissively behind him, Pei Su walked toward Ward 102.
The asylum’s opening plot wasn’t particularly long. Taking advantage of the fact that the NPCs hadn’t arrived yet, Qi Dengzui quickly searched Ward 103 from top to bottom.
The ward was eerily empty, there was almost no trace of anyone having lived there, as if the patient in 103 had truly been there purely for treatment.
The broadcast earlier had mentioned: 【The patient in Ward 103 received a letter sent by an unknown patient.】
If the medical record in this room was accurate, then this was indeed the Ward 103 mentioned in the case clues. Was the letter referenced in the clues also in this room?
Suppressing these doubts, he searched meticulously once more and finally found an envelope wedged in the gap between the bed and the mattress.
The envelope bore no sender’s name. Judging by its appearance, it was quite old. the paper had long since yellowed, and some spots had even grown damp and moldy, lending it an inexplicably eerie quality.
Opening the envelope, Qi Dengzui pulled out the letter. On it was written only a string of letters and numbers:
E7DJIU
S19WON
PSAND8
55QHAO
What did these numbers and letters mean?
Before he could think further, a commotion arose outside the door, and then the ward door creaked open as several female nurses in tattered white coats walked in with expressionless faces.
The head nurse at the front stared coldly at Qi Dengzui and said, “No. 3, time for your meds. Hurry it up.”
Her voice was hoarse, as if her throat had been ruined androgynous in a way that, if you listened closely, almost sounded like a man’s.
Qi Dengzui met her gaze and noticed that the head nurse’s eyes were fixed tightly on him, with a strange excitement and mania flickering in them that made one’s scalp crawl.
According to the medical records, the medication the nurse brought was not meant for normal people to take. Although Qi Dengzui had dissociative identity disorder, he wasn’t sure whether he counted as a normal person or a DID patient in this exam.
Besides, even if the medication in the exam really was for treating mental illness, he wouldn’t dare take it. If something went wrong after taking it, a short-term effect would be manageable, but if he passed out for too long, it would be trouble, minor issues could delay things, and major ones could cost him his life.
Sensing Qi Dengzui’s resistance, the head nurse grew impatient. She urged him again, “Patient No. 3, only after taking the medicine will your illness get better.”
Qi Dengzui endured the head nurse’s stare and asked Guan Si, “Patient No. 3 has bipolar disorder, so it wouldn’t be strange for him to hit someone, right? What do you think they’d do if the medicine got destroyed?”
“Following the dungeon’s logic, if your behavior matches a patient’s behavior, Brother Qi, it probably won’t trigger a death condition. But even if something really goes wrong, isn’t there still that missing Patient No. 1?”
“I might not be in great physical shape, but I can briefly disguise myself as someone else.” Guan Si’s voice was light, shameless as he said, “If worst comes to worst, I’ll just hide in Pei Su and He Zhu’s room at least I can drag someone down with me first.”
As Guan Si spoke, the little white orb representing him in the sea of consciousness sprouted a small green shoot sticking up from its head, radiating a mischievous, sly vibe.
The corner of Qi Dengzui’s lip curved up, and he let out a rare laugh. “Alright.”
He looked at the head nurse, his tone natural. “Bring the medicine over. I’ll take it now.”
Seeing him so cooperative, the head nurse wore a satisfied smile. She walked forward with the medicine, extended her hand, and said hoarsely, “Patient No. 3, take the medicine quickly. After you take it, rest well.”
Qi Dengzui took the medicine from her hand.
The head nurse grew even more agitated, her withered, gaunt face filled with urgency, as if she were afraid Qi Dengzui wouldn’t take the medicine.
The moment they touched, Qi Dengzui grabbed the head nurse’s hand tightly and twisted it hard.
With a sound of bones dislocating, the head nurse let out a high-pitched shriek, her face contorting like a vengeful ghost.
Qi Dengzui curled his lips into a smile and kicked her with his foot.
<Oh my god, how dare he hit her? That scared me.>
<This newbie really isn’t afraid of death?>
<Maybe he’s just a fearless rookie who doesn’t understand the exam rules.>
The head nurse’s body flew backward instantly, slamming against the door with a loud “bang.” A miserable, piercing scream escaped her throat. Her already tattered nurse’s uniform became even more ragged, and the medicine that had been in her hand fell to the floor.
The nurses suddenly panicked, letting out deafening howls, but they didn’t check on the head nurse first instead, they scrambled to pick up the medicine from the ground.
In their minds, the medicine seemed more important than the head nurse.
Qi Dengzui didn’t give them the chance. He casually stomped down, crushing the medicine into powder.
Even though he’d mentally prepared himself, Guan Si couldn’t help but sigh, “Brother Qi, you’re so violent.”
Qi Dengzui’s expression was cold, his tall, upright silhouette making the head nurse across from him look even more pathetic. His lips were beautifully sharp, carrying an inexplicable sense of restraint. “You’re so fragile. If I weren’t violent, how could I protect you?”
The little white orb gave a faint glow.
What was a matter-of-course statement to Qi Dengzui carried a different weight to Guan Si’s ears.
The green shoot perked up and said playfully, “What can you do about it, Brother Qi? Ending up with an alter like me is your bad luck.”
Qi Dengzui flexed his fingers, which hadn’t moved in a long time, and said, “Only in the sea of consciousness can you be this energetic.”
After all, whenever Guan Si came out, it was never without some injury, big or small.
The little shoot on his head seemed to wilt, drooping listlessly.
The head nurse seemed to have been kicked pretty hard; it took her over ten seconds to slowly get up. Dragging her numb hand, she glared viciously at Qi Dengzui, her eyes bloodshot and carrying an unusual glint.
She stared at Qi Dengzui for a long while, her gaze deep and her voice hoarse. “Patient No. 3, you’d better not cause trouble. I’ll go find the director to get you new medicine.”
Then she left with the nurses.
Qi Dengzui mused, “It seems as long as you stay in character, you won’t incur their hatred.”
Guan Si asked curiously, “It looks like they can only bring one dose at a time, and if it’s destroyed or taken, they have to go back for more. Brother Qi, want to go out and take a look?”
Qi Dengzui nodded. “Let’s go, take a quick scan outside the ward.”
Once he left the room, Qi Dengzui realized his room was special. The other three examinees’ wards were all on the same corridor, numbered 101, 102, and 104 in sequence. Only his room, 103, was on a different corridor.
After a brief look down the hallway, Qi Dengzui roughly figured out the route to Room 101. He stepped back into the room, ready to take another look at the letter.
“Bang bang bang, bang bang bang.”
A knock came at the door.
The head nurse’s voice carried noticeably more warning than last time.
“Number 3, time for your medication.”