Players, Please Board the Train

Facing the wide-open door, one player said darkly, ”Of all the dungeons, I hate hospital ones the most. And the mission involves stealing pathogen samples, which means we’re definitely going to run into an infectious disease. Infectious diseases don’t get cured just because you cleared the game.”

Most of them had been led here by Gu Yu and her group, and for a moment, the murderous glares from the crowd cut into them like knives.

Zheng Liang sneered, ”That’s your own damn fault. Didn’t you chase us here? If anyone’s getting dragged down, it’s us!”

The other players had eyes. Now, under the light, the subtle changes in Zheng Liang’s makeup made him look slightly different from Xu Huo in the photos and videos. A Player-Eater rushed over and slammed him into the outpatient building, while two others attacked Gu Yu and Wen Xuelin simultaneously.

Brother Liang and Guan Zuhong stepped in. The former threw something that looked like a bar of soap onto the ground, and the two charging Player-Eaters suddenly froze in an awkward posture, one foot stepping on the soap, causing them to slip forward.

Brother Liang and his group took the chance to enter the hospital. Together, they forced back the Player-Eater attacking Zheng Liang. The five of them retreated behind the consultation desk, facing off against the flood of players pouring in.

”You deliberately disguised yourselves as Xu Huo to lure us here! Seems like you knew about this dungeon all along, you traitors working for the Special Defense Department!” The first Player-Eater to attack glared fiercely at them. He didn’t hide his identity. His torn clothes revealed a red number on his back, and he tore off his sleeve entirely, exposing a large scar on his arm.

”You’re just stupid,” Zheng Liang said. ”This trick of mine was meant to hook the real Xu Huo. Who knew he wouldn’t show, but you idiots would?”

Gu Yu subtly tugged at his sleeve from below, signaling him to stop provoking the group, but Zheng Liang kept running his mouth. ”Oh no, oh no, embarrassed and ready to kill? If you off us, are you gonna kill everyone who saw you make a fool of yourself?”

Although they knew he was trying to stir up discord, the indifferent expressions of some bystanders changed. In a dungeon, anything could happen. Letting the Player-Eater kill Zheng Liang and his group now would effectively weaken a check on their power, and that wasn’t good for the other players.”The worst thing in a dungeon is infighting. I think we should stay out of each other’s way and focus on clearing it,” a delicate-looking female player said.

”Who asked a woman to speak?” the scarred player turned toward her, but at that moment, the two players behind her stepped forward, forming a standoff.

”Everyone, calm down. We’re already in the dungeon, and we can’t leave,” a middle-aged man with blue eyes said in a soothing tone, trying to placate the crowd. ”Let’s get familiar with the hospital first.”

”Who asked a foreigner to speak?” Zheng Liang shot back angrily. ”Coming to our turf to play peacemaker? You think you’ve got a lot of nerve?”

The middle-aged man’s face darkened at the retort. He blocked the people behind him. ”Friend, we’ve lived here for years. We’ve even changed our citizenship. You could at least show basic courtesy.”

”I saw videos online. This whole Special Defense Department mess blew up because foreign forces got involved,” the female player said, scrutinizing the ten of them. ”Xu Huo hasn’t shown up, but the fighting’s already started. This isn’t just some personal grudge between players and organizations anymore—it’s a conflict between nations.”

”I’ve had it with these people,” a player immediately said. ”Let’s do our country a favor and take them out first!”

At that moment, the situation shifted again, but everyone was still wary. No side was sure of their advantage. Just then, a scolding voice interrupted them. ”What are you all blocking the way for? If you want to fight, you’ll be locked in a single room for special treatment!”

The one yelling was a head nurse, leading two female nurses. She held wristbands in her hand and said loudly, ”Line up properly. If you don’t get assigned a room before dinner, you won’t eat—”

Before she finished, a knife thrown from somewhere severed her neck.

Blood sprayed. The head nurse’s head dangled on her neck.

The two nurses beside her stood expressionless, showing no reaction. A second later, the head nurse, half of her clothes soaked in blood, reached up and put her head back in place. She stared coldly at a specific player in the crowd. ”Congratulations. Upon admission, you’ve been given a three-day special treatment package. Security, take him to the seventh deck.”

Several burly uniformed personnel emerged from the depths of the corridor, pouncing on that player like wolves. They pinned him down, fitted a special muzzle over his head, and dragged him up the stairs.

During all this, the player struggled and even pulled out two items, but they seemed useless, falling to the ground. A nurse picked them up like toys and said sternly, ”Toys can hurt people too. If any of you are carrying toys, hand them all over. Otherwise, it’s a single room for everyone!”

The crowd watched the player being forcefully taken upstairs, shock and uncertainty on their faces. The items didn’t work?

Some players didn’t believe it and secretly tried using their own items. The next second, the head nurse spotted them. Two nurses went to search them. The players tried to put their items away but found they couldn’t. In the end, they had their items forcibly taken and were also twisted upstairs by security guards who arrived afterward.

”What’s going on?” The players were stunned. They hadn’t seen any special actions from the guards. ”Does this hospital interfere with the game’s personal interface?”

”How is that possible?” the delicate female player said. ”Didn’t you see the game’s background when you came in? The hospital doesn’t welcome patients with overactive imaginations. This dungeon might be related to mental control.”

Under the head nurse’s orders and the guards’ supervision, the players began to line up to get their wristbands. At that moment, someone noticed a hospital rule posted on the wall.

”First, this rule is not recommended for patients to read,” someone read aloud, scoffing. ”If we can’t read it, why put it here?”

Many felt the same way, so they continued reading. The rule included detailed schedules for medical staff and patients—exact minutes for taking medicine, getting injections, and resting. It also specified visiting hours for family members and each patient’s visitation opportunities, along with reward measures for increasing visit frequency.

Patients had time for recreational activities, could request to purchase items from the hospital, and were encouraged to love labor and maintain hygiene. There was also a weekly cultural performance.

”This hospital is no different from prison,” Zheng Liang said.

Brother Liang glanced briefly at the rules, then refocused on the first one. He subtly signaled Gu Yu and Wen Xuelin not to read further.