“Aren’t you supposed to be good at fighting?”
Zhang Xiangyi stayed fully focused. The kitchen knife in her hand was already badly chipped, yet she still held the front line, blocking the relentless attacks of white hair.
“Your turn!”
Without even checking whether Xiao Xingzhi was ready, she immediately slipped behind him.
Xiao Xingzhi didn’t drag his feet either. He grabbed his kitchen knife and slashed wildly at the front, still able to talk to Zhang Xiangyi at the same time.
“This isn’t going to work. At this rate the knife won’t last much longer.”
Zhang Xiangyi looked at the figure that stayed neither too close nor too far. Without much hesitation she grabbed the railing for support, lifted herself, and delivered a clean, powerful kick.
Her straight, slender leg cut through the air with a sharp force, kicking the old woman’s head clean off. The attacking white hair instantly recoiled, as if reflexively protecting it, wrapping around the severed head.
Probably… a protective instinct?
The old woman’s head flew like a filthy ball toward the corner window of the stairwell, while her body in the red floral shirt, still leaning on the cane, stayed standing in place. Against the dark stairwell, the sight was eerily unsettling.
Xiao Xingzhi stood frozen, mouth hanging open.
“One way or another, finish it quickly.”
“W-what… what are you doing?”
“Killing… it?”
Zhang Xiangyi tilted her head, completely serious. “I’m not sure this will kill it, but we have to try. If it doesn’t die, we do.”
Xiao Xingzhi stepped forward calmly. The already chipped knife came down without hesitation toward the heart. Watching the blood pour out, he showed no fear and kept talking nonstop.
“That kick was awesome! Of course, I can do that too, I’ve got tons of flashy moves like that. If you want, I can teach you. But only after we get out of here. It’s way too dangerous in here…”
“Shut up!”
Xiao Xingzhi pressed his lips together. Looking at the body he’d already hacked beyond recognition, he muttered, “Still… it does feel pretty real. With this much blood, how are we supposed to clean it up? And what about this headless body?”
“Wait a sec, I’ll go knock on a door.”
“Or—”
Seeing Xiao Xingzhi’s about-to-cause-trouble expression, Zhang Xiangyi fell silent and gestured politely. “Go ahead.”
Xiao Xingzhi clenched his fist. “I’m going.”
“Go on.”
“I’m really going, okay?”
“Move it!”
Tense, Xiao Xingzhi took the lead and knocked on 1-1, the unit closest to the stairwell.
The voice-activated lights, glitchy earlier, flickered on and off with each knock, but no one answered. The corridor stayed eerily quiet.
Zhang Xiangyi frowned as she took it all in. At her feet were black garbage bags holding something unmentionable.
1-2, no answer.
1-3, no answer.
1-4, no answer.
Xiao Xingzhi: ????
Is this normal?
“Can you pick locks?” Seeing nothing happening, Zhang Xiangyi walked over slowly, frowning at the four tightly sealed doors.
The old woman not being home made sense, but what about Fugui?
Even the police were fake. What could possibly keep Fugui from being here?
“I can, but the question is which one we open first.” Xiao Xingzhi pulled Zhang Xiangyi back down to sit beside him. He propped his feet on the black garbage bag. “Let’s analyze it. Before the rooftop incident, that long-haired monster was in 1-4, and it said Fugui was in 1-1. That info should be right, otherwise it would’ve attacked immediately back then.”
Zhang Xiangyi nodded. She sat against the railing, thought a moment, then copied Xiao Xingzhi and propped her legs up too. Not proper behavior, but it felt satisfying.
“But when 1-4 opened earlier, it was that old… long-haired monster. The only thing that changed in between was Fugui’s ‘jump.'”
“And there’s another key point, the police who came earlier were also fake. If you’re right and all of this is a scam, then there must be something they’re trying to hide.”
“And they can’t report it to the police.”
Someone jumped. On the surface it seemed reported, but in reality everyone involved was “one of them.”
But who exactly was “one of them”? The entire building, or only certain people?
If it was the whole building, things were bad. If only some, that was still manageable.
“Since you’ve all been listening this long, shouldn’t you come out and share what you’ve found?” Zhang Xiangyi’s tone wasn’t pleasant. She usually planned for the worst case, and now it seemed clear, the worst case was being enemies with the entire building.
The outcome went without saying. It would end in tragedy, written in blood.
With just the two of them, there was a high chance they wouldn’t survive this beginner instance.
That was something she definitely didn’t want. So she had to pull a few people into her camp. Whether they were truly on her side wasn’t important, what mattered was that she could drag them down with her at a critical moment.
“Tsk—”
The cross-dressing man walked downstairs in a very masculine way. “Discussing things so openly in a public place. If someone overhears, that’s your own problem.”
Passing the black garbage bag at their feet, he couldn’t resist kicking it twice. “What the hell is this?”
The bespectacled man from 4-3 calmly pushed up his frames, glanced at the already unrecognizable “bag,” and said unhurriedly, “A corpse.”
The cross-dressing man jumped back in shock, staring at the two of them in disbelief, his gaze darting between them.
The bespectacled man even helpfully added, “A dismembered one.”
Zhang Xiangyi looked over. Before she could ask, he took the initiative to explain, “I’m a doctor.”
That referred to his real-life profession.
The cross-dressing man’s mouth twitched. After a moment he said in disbelief, “You two… don’t look that old. Did you really… kill someone in real life?”
His voice was soft and cautious, his whole body on guard. “If you really did something wrong, remember to turn yourselves in after you get out. You’re still young, there are plenty of better things to do. And since this is a game instance, you probably won’t face anything too serious anyway, so don’t—”
Xiao Xingzhi grinned. “Guess what we’d do first if people found out our identities?”
The cross-dressing man immediately shut up, shrinking his presence as much as he could.
After all, normal young people wouldn’t stay this calm in front of a corpse…
Zhang Xiangyi raised an eyebrow and forcibly changed the subject. “What did you find?”
The cross-dressing man twitched his mouth and turned more serious. “I knocked on every door on the 5th floor. Aside from that pervert, no one answered. I even went at night on purpose to be sure no one was out during the day.”
The bespectacled man still showed no expression. “On the 6th floor… 6-1 and 6-4 were in the middle of some private interaction. Considering certain factors, I didn’t interrupt.”
“Sounds like fun.” The cross-dressing man snorted. “Why are we even talking so much? There are only four units per floor. Just take one each. Whoever dies is unlucky.”
“Fine. I’ll unlock the doors first.”
Xiao Xingzhi stood and dusted himself off. At each door he barely moved his hand before two “clicks” sounded, signaling the doors were unlocked.
“You two aren’t some kind of international thieves in real life, are you? The kind who steal and kill without a second thought?” The cross-dressing man’s face twisted in confusion. Otherwise, how could they be this calm, and this skilled at picking locks?
Zhang Xiangyi put on an air of mystery and walked straight to 1-4.
Xiao Xingzhi thought a moment and went to 1-1.
The cross-dressing man looked left and right, then finally chose 1-2, the one closest to Xiao Xingzhi.
The bespectacled man went to 1-3.
The four of them set their hands on the knobs and traded glances. Just as the background music should have kicked in, the corridor lights suddenly went out. Xiao Xingzhi shuddered and quickly shoved his door open and rushed inside.
Seeing this, Zhang Xiangyi also cautiously pushed her door open, the chipped kitchen knife still firmly in hand.
1-4 shouldn’t have been dangerous.
The room inside was still dark. She took out her phone and turned on the flashlight. The weak beam lit the interior as Zhang Xiangyi cautiously swept the whole room, all but straining her ears for any movement.
But it had to be said, the soundproofing was excellent.
Not a single sound could be heard.
The layout was the same as 4-4, but the style was much plainer, with a lot more floral patterns, tablecloths and aprons, all covered in various florals.
Zhang Xiangyi immediately thought of the long-haired monster.
She wondered if that head was still alive.
The household items around the place fit an elderly person very well.
1-4 was most likely the long-haired monster’s room. But earlier it had appeared in 1-1, what was its connection to Fugui?
Could it really be Fugui’s grandmother?
It wasn’t strange for a grandmother and grandson to live near each other. Nor strange for a grandmother to turn up in her grandson’s home.
And a grandson freeloading at his grandmother’s place would be even more normal.
Zhang Xiangyi almost talked herself into it.
But her hand unconsciously slid the kitchen knife into her backpack, leaving it unzipped so she could draw it fast if needed.
She searched the room quickly.
Tables, sofas, everything was thoroughly checked. It was so clean it felt like no one had ever lived there. Not only were there no useful items, there weren’t even ordinary daily necessities.
Zhang Xiangyi stood in the center of the living room with her hands on her hips, looking around. Something was off. Being this clean usually meant something even more important was hidden.
Where do elderly people usually hide important things?
She went into the bedroom and forcefully lifted the mattress, biting her phone to angle the light. When the beam shone under the bed, she fell silent.
So… “clean” was only on the surface, huh?
Staring eye-to-eye with a few rats, she gently loosened her grip. With a loud bang the mattress dropped, startling the rats into scattering, and she felt inexplicably pleased.
She walked to the wardrobe and opened it. A stench like a biological weapon hit her face. Zhang Xiangyi shut her eyes and held her breath, instinctively stepping back a few paces.
After a few minutes, she finally opened her eyes. Once she saw what it was…
“Ugh…”
She couldn’t hold it back and bent over the edge of the bed, dry-heaving.
How could a wardrobe be this disgusting?
Clumps of flesh were piled inside, made up of various body parts. Some were already rotting, maggots wriggling over them. At the very bottom a thick liquid was still seeping out, dripping down the inner walls of the cabinet. Flies and mosquitoes buzzed everywhere, an extremely “spectacular” scene.
That stench clung to the tip of her nose, impossible to shake.
Without a word, Zhang Xiangyi slammed the wardrobe shut, out of sight, out of mind.
She could let the bespectacled guy come check this later. It was time for him to prove his usefulness.
Standing before the bedside cabinet, Zhang Xiangyi took a deep breath. Her hand hovered a long time, but she still couldn’t work up the nerve to open it. Her mind was still full of what she’d just seen.
After several rounds of mental preparation, she finally yanked it open.
Inside was nothing but a booklet.
She let out a breath of relief and picked it up to read.
A tenant list?
> Xiao Hong: moved into 203 on 09/15/Year XX33, moved out 01/21/Year XX34.
> Xiao Cheng: moved into 201 on 07/31/Year XX33, moved out 10/04/Year XX33.
> … Xiao Zi: moved into 603 on 04/19/Year XX38, moved out 05/03/Year XX38.
> Zhang Xiangyi & Xiao Xingzhi: moved into 404 on 06/03/Year XX38.
> Xi Zirui: moved into 403 on 06/03/Year XX38.
That bespectacled man.
> Zhong Ziqian: moved into 401 on 06/03/Year XX38.
> Su Xian: moved into 401 on 06/03/Year XX38.
Aside from the four of them, every other name on the list had a red cross struck through it.
So the cross-dressing man was Zhong Ziqian.
And 4-2 was never actually rented out at all.
Their initial guess had been right.
So… were there really no tenants besides them?
Then where did the crowd standing around the building on the night of the jump come from?
While she was thinking this, in the dark bedroom, strands of white hair suddenly shot in through the window at high speed. They wrapped tightly around Zhang Xiangyi’s waist, binding her fast before yanking her backward like something out of a ghost story.