Players, Please Board the Train

On the second day, after the lights came on, the players emerged from different locations on this floor. Gathering together, they discovered that He Chunsheng was missing.

”That scream last night... could it have been him?” Miao Yu said hesitantly. ”But it didn’t sound like a man’s voice.”

”Let’s search all the rooms first,” the remaining players suggested. They took action, scouring the rooms but found nothing. Finally, they discovered his body in a restroom. He was slumped beneath the washbasin, his face purplish-blue, eyes bulging, mouth agape.

”Death by asphyxiation,” Miao Yu concluded after a cursory examination, then closed his eyelids.

”Why would he die in a restroom?” Gan Qing asked, puzzled. ”Surely he didn’t come out just to use the toilet at night?”

This was indeed strange.

Given that all players had tacitly chosen to remain on the same floor, even if He Chunsheng had wanted to exploit a loophole and hide on a different level, he should have headed for the elevator. Why would he come to a restroom?

”There are bloodstains on the floor where he clawed at it. He died right here,” Ge Pan said, frowning. ”Could he have been chased here by the ghost?”

Among the players, there was a ”ghost.” Killing could allow the ghost to regain a ”human” identity. Since the players hadn’t received any game prompts, it was likely He Chunsheng was killed by the player who drew the ghost lot.

”The problem is, we don’t know if the ’Humans Catch Ghosts’ game provides prompts. Who knows if the ghost is currently dead or alive? What if He Chunsheng was the ghost? He was killed, the ghost is gone, but no one informed us the game is over. Wouldn’t we just blindly fight each other for the next few days?” Wu Xiaonan said.”Let’s go check the topic board,” Mao Wei said in a low voice.

The group snapped back to attention and hurried to the room where the topic board was placed. Below the whiteboard where the game rules were written, there was now a ”2” drawn in blood.

”Great, now we know for sure He Chunsheng wasn’t the one who drew the ghost lot,” Miao Yu said, turning to scrutinize the others. ”Two ghosts. The ghosts don’t have any special markings either...”

The players subtly increased the distance between themselves, eyeing each other warily.

Chu Yuan spoke up then. ”The ghost only appears after the lights go out. After a player becomes the ghost, there must be some special changes, like becoming elusive, moving like a ghost.”

”Tonight, after the lights go out, if we all stay together, we’ll know who the ghost is.”

”With two ghosts, how do we clear this level?” Gan Qing asked, looking around.

”This game is inherently contradictory,” Zhu Rumin mused. ”The ’Humans Catch Ghosts’ game requires maintaining a human identity to win. Does ’maintaining a human identity’ apply to all remaining players, or only to those who catch the ghost?”

”We can’t kill the ghost for now, but we can try to catch one first. If catching a ghost allows us to clear the level, then the rest will know what to do.”

That’s what they said, but the question arose: who was willing to voluntarily offer themselves to be the caught ”ghost”?

”Do we need the ghost’s consent?” Miao Yu clenched her fist. ”Tonight, everyone stays in this room. Whoever dares not to is the ghost. If it’s a ghost, tie them up first.”

No one objected this time. All players maintained a superficial calm.

”Should we go check the floors below?” Wan Yunrong suggested. ”I have a feeling this dungeon won’t be as simple as just making us play a mutual-killing game. There might be clues elsewhere. We have plenty of time today.”

”You’re not thinking of finding a place to hide, are you?” Qiu Xiangdong, who hadn’t spoken much, scratched his floral shirt. ”There are at least a hundred rooms here. With only ten of us, finding you wouldn’t be easy.”

Seeing everyone’s eyes on her, Wan Yunrong quickly explained, ”Don’t look at me. I’m not a ghost. I just mean it’s a rare opportunity. Instead of sitting here staring at each other, we might as well go out and search.”

”What’s your characteristic?” Mao Wei suddenly asked.

Wan Yunrong’s expression shifted slightly. ”What do you mean?”

”He Chunsheng died from asphyxiation. The cause can only be a characteristic or an item. Although items aren’t completely based on one’s own characteristic, if you can prove your characteristic, the risk of being suspected decreases,” Mao Wei said in a low voice. ”Well?”

”’Well’ what?” Wan Yunrong snorted coldly. ”By your logic, you’re also a suspect. Why don’t you show your characteristic first? Oh, and better bring out your items too while you’re at it.”

”Sounds good to me,” Gan Qing said, happy to stir the pot. ”Might as well all show our hands, so everyone knows where they stand.”

”I don’t think Wan Yunrong is the only one who wants to go down. Everyone has their own thoughts. To avoid all this trouble, we might as well just supervise each other,” Chu Yuan said, tilting his chin towards Wan Yunrong. ”I don’t suspect you. You can come with me if you want.”

This inexplicable goodwill surprised not only the other players but Wan Yunrong herself. She opened her mouth, then finally said, ”Thank you.”

”Groups of two or three are fine,” Ge Pan said. ”If anyone has trouble, just shout. It’s broad daylight; everyone will hear.”

Others also had the idea of searching the remaining two floors. After a brief argument, they formed groups to head downstairs.

Xu Huo, Chu Yuan, Wan Yunrong, and Miao Yu formed one group.

Mao Wei, Gan Qing, and Wu Xiaonan formed another.

Ge Pan, Zhu Rumin, Chang Chengyong, and Qiu Xiangdong formed the third.

The three groups entered the elevator together and descended to the second underground level.

This floor was similar to the one above. The lights turned on only after people entered. The laboratories were also cleaned spotlessly. The difference was that this level had a living area: bedrooms, a recreation room, a gym, and even a small store.

They searched from both ends towards the middle. Xu Huo’s group of four went to the small store first. Most of the food here was expired, and the practical tools had been completely depleted.

”Looks like they were all taken by previous players,” Miao Yu said.

”This dungeon has probably been swept clean countless times. We’re latecomers; anything out in the open is definitely gone. But hidden things are a different story,” Chu Yuan said, tapping and feeling around the checkout counter. He found a hidden compartment at the very bottom. He took out an item, fiddled with it, and the compartment door sprang open with a click.

”Ah...” A low, hoarse gasp accompanied a human head that popped out from the compartment, startling Chu Yuan so much he fell on his rear. Xu Huo, behind him, pushed him aside and then pressed down on the jumping simulation figure. ”It’s just a dummy.”

”Your courage is really something,” Wan Yunrong chuckled.

”Anyone would be startled if a head popped out of a compartment,” Chu Yuan said, trying to save face. ”You were just standing farther away.”

”This is a pleasure toy figure,” Miao Yu said, feeling the material of the simulation figure. ”The appearance is passable, but the material is outdated.”

At first glance, it resembled a real person. After charging, it could even mimic human behavior.

It couldn’t compare to the two massage simulation figures.

Xu Huo removed its battery and set it aside, gesturing for Chu Yuan to head to the room opposite.

First was the public area. The recreation and fitness areas had nothing noteworthy; all the equipment had been removed. Only some small items like playing cards and indoor golf remained in the recreation room.

Past this area were the private bedrooms for the laboratory staff.