The early hours of the night were deathly silent.

So silent that not a single sound could be heard.

Chen Ji’s expression darkened instantly, sinking into a pitch black gloom. In the depths of his eyes surged thick, violent hostility. Even without looking at the corpse, he could feel that cold, venomous gaze.

Yang Ruiqing had indeed come out.

This time, Yang Ruiqing seemed especially different.

He had appeared faster than before.

And seemed even less restrained.

No.

That was not right.

As if realizing something, Chen Ji’s gaze suddenly froze. What had come out did not seem to be Yang Ruiqing himself.

If it truly were Yang Ruiqing, both he and Wen Ruyu would already be dead, instead of still being stared at from below.

What had come out seemed to be only a part of Yang Ruiqing.

And a very small part at that.

His main body was likely still bound within the library.

To come out ahead of time, he must have attached a portion of himself to someone else, bypassing the library’s restraint.

This had never happened before.

And all of this seemed to be related to the person in his arms.

This person must have done something even more excessive this time, forcing Yang Ruiqing to suppress his disgust and possess another body just to come out and kill him.

Wen Ruyu was extremely sensitive to gazes. Naturally, he also felt that hair raising stare. He lowered his head and looked down at the figure on the ground.

The height of the sixth floor was nearly eighteen meters. His eyesight was not sharp enough to see the eyes of the figure below, but at the moment he looked down, he clearly saw the figure move.

Wen Ruyu’s eyes widened. His pupils shrank. His whole body froze. The hand wrapped around Chen Ji’s neck tightened unconsciously, his slender fingers turning pale from the force.

A fall from the sixth floor should not leave anyone alive.

Whether it was the amount of blood on the ground or the twisted angle of the limbs, everything indicated that the person was dead.

Yet the figure had truly moved.

Wen Ruyu could not even convince himself he had seen wrong, because the twisted figure on the ground twitched like a corpse coming back to life. After several strange spasms, it stood up in an extremely distorted posture.

The sight made one’s hair stand on end, a chilling fear rising uncontrollably, the heart pounding wildly.

The corpse.

Had come back to life.

"Now you’re afraid?" Chen Ji sensed the trembling of the person in his arms and spoke coldly, his tone full of mockery.

"When you used someone else’s photos to scam people online, why weren’t you afraid then?"

Wen Ruyu did not reply.

His long eyelashes trembled lightly. His beautiful eyes were filled with fragility and panic. His whole body looked so fragile it seemed as if it would shatter at the slightest touch.

Chen Ji paused for a moment, then pulled him closer, as if to comfort him, though his tone remained cold.

"Close your eyes."

"Whatever you hear, don’t look down."

Wen Ruyu buried his face into Chen Ji’s neck. Tears welled in his eyes from the fear, dampening the roots of his long lashes. He curled up in Chen Ji’s arms like a frightened kitten, pitiful and trembling.

His slender body stiffened, not daring to move at all.

Below, the corpse had completely stood up. It stiffly raised its head and looked toward the air, its gaze fixed straight at the sixth floor.

As if seeing something irritating, thick resentment surged within its hollow pupils, its body becoming even more twisted.

The next second, "he" pressed against the front of the dormitory building and began climbing straight upward.

This was not something a human could do.

Nor could a human climb a vertical wall.

Yet the corpse moved as if magnets were embedded in its hands, climbing step by step along the wall. Though not fast, it was steady.

And "his" target—

Was the sixth floor.

The players were all on the sixth floor balcony, still unable to recover from Wei Jiayu’s bizarre fall, when they saw this horrifying scene.

Their faces turned deathly pale. Their bodies grew cold. It felt as if the temperature around them had dropped several degrees.

Han Yi’s face turned grim.

"Run!"

"Leave this building immediately!"

Chen Ji ignored the others. Gripping the edge of the balcony, he exerted force and, carrying Wen Ruyu, leapt toward the fifth floor balcony, landing cleanly and decisively.

The fifth floor dormitory appeared to be empty.

After landing, Chen Ji grabbed Wen Ruyu’s wrist, pulled him inside through the balcony, opened the dorm door, and strode out into the corridor.

Since he had jumped down to the fifth floor, "Yang Ruiqing" must have seen them.

They had to leave as quickly as possible.

Preferably leave the entire dormitory building.

The fifth floor corridor was empty. All the dorm doors were tightly shut.

Wen Ruyu was too slow. Combined with the shock from earlier, his body had gone weak, and he could not keep up with Chen Ji’s pace.

Without hesitation, Chen Ji lifted him into his arms. As they passed the stairwell corner, he supported himself with one hand on the railing and jumped down, saving a great deal of time.

Even while carrying someone, he moved with ease, as if Wen Ruyu weighed nothing.

Just as they were about to reach the third floor, a shrill scream erupted from above, mixed with the sound of bones cracking, exploding into the silent night.

It was those people from before.

They had clearly run into "Wei Jiayu" while coming down.

Wen Ruyu’s eyes reddened with fear. Clinging tightly to Chen Ji’s neck, he trembled as he looked upward, his beautiful eyes filled with terror.

Chen Ji’s steps paused for a moment. He also looked up, danger and vigilance churning in his deep eyes.

The scream was too close.

Only one floor above them.

A distance that could be crossed in mere seconds.

Chaotic footsteps, panicked shouts, and a strange rustling sound drifted down from above.

Those people were running down.

Something terrifying was chasing them.

Too late.

If they continued downward, they would inevitably be caught.

No matter how fast humans were, they could not outrun certain things.

Especially while carrying a burden.

Chen Ji lowered his gaze to the trembling person in his arms. Without hesitation, he turned and ran toward the other end of the corridor.

There were no stairs there.

Only a dead end.

At the end of the corridor, Chen Ji lowered his head and spoke in a low voice only the two of them could hear.

"Hold tight."

Before Wen Ruyu could react, Chen Ji freed one hand, braced against the railing, and jumped straight down from the third floor while holding him.

The sensation of weightlessness struck instantly.

Wen Ruyu’s eyes flashed with panic. He instinctively closed them, clutching Chen Ji’s neck tightly.

Too close.

After landing steadily, Chen Ji did not pause at all. He immediately ran into the darkness at full speed.

He could no longer worry about being exposed by the sound of his footsteps.

Because the moment he jumped, they were already exposed.

And indeed—

Less than ten seconds after they landed, a heavy thud sounded behind them.

"Wei Jiayu" had jumped down.

Unlike Chen Ji’s controlled landing, "he" had simply smashed into the ground, unconcerned whether the body would shatter.

After all, "he" was already dead.

From the third floor, the height was not insignificant. The already twisted body became even more deformed. One of "his" leg bones pierced through the flesh, hanging grotesquely.

Yet "he" only twitched stiffly a few times before rising again in a twisted manner, chasing in the direction Chen Ji had fled.

Because he was carrying someone, Chen Ji was slower than usual. Glancing back at the relentless figure, a trace of gloom and irritation flashed in his eyes.

No.

He could not shake it off.

Chen Ji looked at the time. There were still more than three hours until dawn.

He could not last that long.

He would not even get the chance.

A corpse would not tire.

But he would.

Being caught was only a matter of time.

He had to find somewhere to hide.

Yet the corpse seemed to be able to track them. No matter where Chen Ji hid with Wen Ruyu, it would find them precisely.

Like a shadow clinging to bone.

Impossible to shake.

The hostility in Chen Ji’s eyes grew thicker. The pressure around him dropped further.

When he saw "Yang Ruiqing" approaching again, he abruptly turned into the shadow at a corner, carrying Wen Ruyu with him.

He set Wen Ruyu down silently and watched outside with vigilance.

The corner was a blind spot.

"Wei Jiayu" suddenly lost the target. The twisted body turned stiffly, scanning the surroundings. Its joints emitted cracking sounds that made one’s scalp crawl.

"He" was searching for them.

Chen Ji stared at the approaching corpse, then tilted his head toward Wen Ruyu beside him, his voice extremely low.

"I’ll draw it away."

"You run through the emergency passage. Go straight to the back gate of the school."

"Remember. Do not try to leave the school."

"I’ll come find you."

This school had long become Yang Ruiqing’s hunting ground.

From the moment Yang Ruiqing died, no one could leave.

Until everyone was completely dead.

Even after death, they would enter the cycle again and again, repeating everything day after day until all sense of self was lost.

Until all sanity was gone.

They had already been driven mad by Yang Ruiqing.

Consciousness and reason were gradually fading.

Yet each time everything restarted, everyone would lose their memories and repeat the same fate again.

Even Chen Ji could not preserve his memories no matter what he tried.

This time, he had regained his memory at the very moment Yang Ruiqing died.

But it was already too late.

Chen Ji looked at the approaching "Wei Jiayu" and rushed out of the shadows, deliberately knocking over a trash can to create a loud noise.

"Wei Jiayu" was instantly drawn to the sound, turning stiffly and chasing after him.

Wen Ruyu remained curled in the shadows, his slender body rigid, not daring to even breathe loudly.

He did not dare to look out either.

Only after the footsteps outside completely disappeared did he brace himself against the wall and stand, trembling as he walked toward the emergency passage.

In the direction of the back gate.

He would wait for Chen Ji there.

Following Chen Ji might not guarantee safety.

But alone, he might not survive even until tomorrow.

The campus was deathly silent. Only the dim yellow streetlights illuminated the roads, the only light in this silent place.

Yet even that light seemed shrouded in shadow, unable to reach far.

There seemed to be a sound in the darkness.

Faint.

Indistinct.

It pulled at one’s nerves.

Wen Ruyu was not sure if he had imagined it. He bit his lower lip unconsciously and finally mustered the courage to glance back.

There was nothing in the darkness.

Even the sound seemed gone.

But within seconds, it returned.

This time, it was clear.

The sound of flesh grinding.

Wen Ruyu suddenly turned his head.

A twisted figure emerged from the darkness.

The moment he saw it clearly, his beautiful eyes widened uncontrollably.

It was—

"Wei Jiayu."

"Wei Jiayu’s" body was grotesquely twisted. His leg bone seemed completely broken. Blood soaked through his clothes. His limbs bent at unnatural angles, barely able to stand.

Each step looked like he was dragging his body forward.

The sight was horrifying.

Wen Ruyu’s mind went blank. He turned and ran without thinking.

This seemed to enrage "Wei Jiayu," who sped up, moving even more twistedly toward him.

Wen Ruyu’s physical condition was poor. Even at full effort, his speed was pitiful.

The distance between them shrank rapidly.

But that was not the most despairing part.

The most despairing part—

Was that Wen Ruyu ran into a dead end.

In front of him stood cold iron bars.

The school’s back gate.

Locked tightly with chains.

All paths were sealed.

Wen Ruyu trembled as he turned back, his back pressed against the cold bars. Facing the approaching "Wei Jiayu," his face was deathly pale, his slender body shaking slightly.

He could not run.

The only thing left for him—

Was to pray.

Pray that another player would clear the dungeon.

Wen Ruyu watched as "Wei Jiayu" came closer and closer. He could already smell the thick stench of blood. His face grew paler, tears filling his eyes.

Just as he thought he was doomed—

"Wei Jiayu" suddenly collapsed stiffly onto the ground.

His knee had completely snapped.

Wen Ruyu’s heart skipped a beat. After swallowing hard, he immediately ran toward the direction behind "Wei Jiayu."

"Wei Jiayu" seemed unable to react in time. As Wen Ruyu passed, "he" instinctively reached out, trying to grab him.

But failed.

"He" looked at Wen Ruyu running away, then lowered his head to look at his own body.

Only after noticing that his knee was completely broken did "he" react slowly.

This body was ruined.

Completely unusable.

It did not matter.

A wisp of black mist emerged from "Wei Jiayu’s" body.

It clung to the ground like a venomous snake stalking its prey, silently and swiftly chasing after Wen Ruyu.

Night was the perfect cover.

And Wen Ruyu did not look back.

He did not notice anything.

The next second—

Wen Ruyu’s body suddenly froze.

As if the pause button had been pressed.

His limbs no longer obeyed him.

Not even a finger could move.

Just like when Wei Jiayu had jumped.

Wen Ruyu’s eyes widened, filled with extreme terror. The corners of his eyes reddened, tears spilling uncontrollably.

He wanted to run.

To struggle.

But he could do nothing.

His body felt bound by invisible threads, completely controlled by a terrifying force.

It no longer belonged to him.

He had lost all control over it.

He might end up like Wei Jiayu—

Climbing a tall building.

Then jumping.

His eyelashes trembled, heavy with tears. He looked fragile and pitiful, yet had no room to resist.

The next second—

His body moved.

Stiffly, it turned.

Facing a direction.

Step by step, he walked forward.

That direction was—

The library.

Chapter 33

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