"We were among the earliest to come in. Most of the players before us are pretty much dead, and it's only today that more people showed up. There's no way anyone could have found the dungeon items." Long Aotian said.
Xu Huo sized up his expression. It looked like Xiao Ling and the others had already told him about the dungeon's time trap.
"How did you run into each other?" he asked.
Long Aotian scratched his head. "Don't even mention it. I had bad luck and got cornered by that group of dead guys ahead. I busted my ass to escape and happened to bump into Xiao Ling and them, so we just decided to move together."
"Liu Chengyi is probably dead. When I ran, he was just caught."
Xu Huo thought back to the players he'd encountered when leaving the treatment room—they were likely part of that same group. The leader had been relentless in pursuit, probably eyeing the items in his hands.
"Let's get back to the topic." Xiao Ling said. "If the items were really taken by a player, are they going to kill every player who comes in?"
"Whether they can kill everyone is another matter. If their goal is just players, they don't need to bother clearing the dungeon—they can just wait." Long Aotian said. "They'll always pick up scraps."
At night, the major venues were unsafe too. Whether a player got caught or ran out of a venue, they were at a disadvantage compared to those who hadn't expended any resources.
If they weren't using tickets, it meant they might never be able to leave from the moment they entered.
"This group knows there are high-grade items in the dungeon, so they probably understand how it operates. Best-case scenario, the time trap has a solution, or they're using tickets and already knew the ins and outs of this dungeon." Xu Huo said.
"So you're saying they might actually be able to lead us to clear it?" Xiao Ling narrowed her eyes. Her intentions were plain as day.
"That's just speculation. I'm not going to take that risk." Xu Huo said. "There are too many venues. It's easy enough to avoid them, and five people can't search every place."
Long Aotian agreed with him. "Venues are safer."
Xiao Ling hesitated briefly, then said, "Let's take this time to search the hotel."
She was about to head out through the window when Xu Huo stopped her. "Take the stairs."
At that moment, Yu Guangnan also spotted the players standing outside the venue across from them. Frowning, he said, "They've probably posted people at both ends. The moment we show ourselves, we'll be exposed."
It wasn't clear what that group was planning, but no one was moving around on the stairs. However, when Long Aotian and Yu Guangnan stepped onto them, the concrete and metal staircase suddenly started moving like an escalator. The two lost control and flattened themselves against the steps, sliding down rapidly.
Xu Huo and Xiao Ling each grabbed one of them and looked down through the gaps in the stairs—sure enough, figures were moving fast below!
Dodging a few flying darts, Xu Huo melted the metal in several nearby stair sections, causing the unsupported steps to collapse. Long Aotian and Yu Guangnan, no longer stuck flat to the ground like corpses, leaped back up. Yu Guangnan then took out a large bucket and tipped it over. The liquid inside flowed down the stairway on its own.
Ignoring the commotion below, the four of them hugged the wall and climbed up. After a few floors, they slipped into a hotel corridor. To be safe, they didn't split up. Instead, they picked a room in the middle and hid inside.
It was a small suite facing the Beheaded Cemetery, with two bedrooms and a living room—not very spacious. With four people moving around, it felt cramped.
Xu Huo stood by the door, Xiao Ling went to the window, while Yu Guangnan and Long Aotian inspected the room's furnishings. Half a minute later, they all exchanged glances. Xu Huo gave a nod, and the other three finally relaxed a bit.
"Only three are tracking us. The other two are at the front and back of the hotel," Xiao Ling said. "If they split up, that's our chance."
With the remaining three confirmed to be inside the hotel, they could break through from either the front or the back.
Xu Huo had no intention of leaving. The Corpse Hotel was one of the tallest buildings in Museum City, with a large footprint and plenty of rooms. It was far more confusing than most venues. Unless the people following them had the energy and ability to tear down every floor, this would be a game of hide-and-seek.
The enemy was coming on strong. There was no need to force a head-on confrontation. Given enough time, an opportunity would arise.
"It's almost dark," he said.
"The hotel isn't safe either." Xiao Ling's brow furrowed.
"At least the hotel isn't sealed off. If things go south, we can escape." Long Aotian glanced at Xu Huo.
But Xu Huo was thinking about those three wax figures that had run out yesterday. He wondered if they had made it into the hotel.
As soon as night fell, most of the lights in the hotel shut off automatically. Their room was left with only a small desk lamp, and the view plunged into darkness. Meanwhile, all kinds of strange sounds emerged around them—faint TV static, music, children running inside rooms, adult footsteps, chairs being moved, and the noise of water and toilets flushing.
"I'm not hearing things, am I?" Long Aotian shuddered. "Kinda need to go to the bathroom."
"In any horror or suspense movie, going to the bathroom alone is a death trigger." Xiao Ling shot him a glance. "Not afraid there's a secret passage in there and you'll never come out?"
"Probably how the players with Liu Chengyi disappeared too," Yu Guangnan added.
Anyone smart knew not to split up, yet players were still vanishing. That said a lot.
"You're the same way. It was at the cemetery, wide open space." Long Aotian wasn't intimidated at all. "I'll go in first. If something happens, I'll call you guys... If something really does happen, it might be a breakthrough. Could fill in some progress here."
With that, he actually went to the bathroom. The door wasn't locked, and soon the sound of water came from inside. But then Long Aotian opened the door and walked out, drying his hands. "Sorry to disappoint you—nothing happened."
"I'll go too." Yu Guangnan also stepped into the bathroom.
Three minutes passed, and he still hadn't come out. Xiao Ling immediately rushed over and kicked the door open, but inside, it was empty.
She checked left and right. "He didn't leave any clues."
"There shouldn't be a secret passage in the bathroom," Long Aotian said. "We already checked it out earlier. Even the mirror."
In fact, aside from the ventilation ducts above, this room really didn't have any hidden space. That was why Xu Huo's eyes went straight to the window beside them.
That's right—in this hotel room, even the bathroom had its own window.
Xiao Ling slipped a mechanical bee the size of a finger through the crack. It crawled around outside, and the view from outside appeared on her phone screen. As the angle shifted, all three of them saw a human face flash past the corner of the screen.