"…!!"
The moment that gaze fell upon him, Wen Jianyan's breath hitched, and he subconsciously stumbled back.
His feet left the principal's office.
After a brief pause, the dark shadow slowly turned its head back.
Soon, the feeling of being watched disappeared.
In the hallway, Wen Jianyan let out a long breath, his palm sticky with cold sweat.
It seemed… even though he was in a "memory," he wasn't completely insulated from danger. The dark shadow's gaze just now seemed capable of penetrating the boundary between memory and reality to notice him.
After composing himself, Wen Jianyan looked up again toward the principal's office.
"Wang Ni" stood before the desk, seemingly conversing with the dark shadow behind it.
Due to the distance, he couldn't hear their conversation.
However, it was fortunate that his earlier movement had caused the door to the principal's office to open wider. Even standing in the hallway, he could vaguely make out the scene inside.
He saw "Wang Ni" reach out and take something from the dark shadow in front of her.
Immediately after, footsteps approached the door.
Wen Jianyan's heart tightened, and he hurriedly retreated.
With a "creak", the door to the principal's office opened.
"Wang Ni" walked out of the office. She walked straight ahead without a glance, her eyes sweeping past Wen Jianyan without lingering.
Wen Jianyan breathed a sigh of relief.
It seemed "Wang Ni" couldn't perceive his existence like the dark shadow could.
His gaze moved down to "Wang Ni's" hands, and his pupils contracted slightly.
It was an inconspicuous-looking black box with no patterns or features on its surface, and it didn't seem to be locked.
Judging by its size, it seemed to be just right for fitting into a drawer.
Wait, could this be—
Wen Jianyan subconsciously took a step forward, only to be stopped abruptly the next second.
No.
He quickly came to his senses and halted his movement.
Regardless of whether what "Wang Ni" was holding was their target item for this instance, he couldn't do anything right now.
Not to mention they were still in a memory and it was questionable if he could even touch it. More importantly, Wen Jianyan hadn't forgotten his current situation.
The danger that could penetrate the barrier of reality and memory was still stirring.
If he acted rashly, it was hard to say what would happen next.
He watched "Wang Ni" walk down the corridor, took a deep breath, and prepared to follow.
But, just as he took a step, Wen Jianyan's breath caught.
He staggered, raising a hand to support himself against the nearby wall, and lowered his head.
Why… of all times.
The pain was like an activated seed, taking deep root in his flesh, growing wantonly with his bones and blood as nutrients.
Cold sweat seeped out, making his bloodless skin even paler. His dilated pupils trembled slightly, and his lips were pressed into a hard, straight line. Wen Jianyan clenched his teeth, forcefully swallowing the sound that was about to escape his throat.
In the "Integrity First" live room:
[Hiss… The interval between the badge's side effects is getting shorter and shorter.]
[Yeah, and the intensity is increasing.]
Just then, the darkness that had been coiled motionlessly around Wen Jianyan's wrist suddenly moved. A cold, soft tentacle, like a small snake, climbed up the young man's wrist, bypassing his trembling, tense limbs, and silently shuttled under his clothes, over his forearm, shoulder, chest, and finally stopped at his heart.
The soft darkness spread along the curve of his skin, coldly covering the searing, hot pain.
He didn't know if it was an illusion…
The pain seemed to miraculously lessen.
Wen Jianyan lifted his sweat-soaked eyelashes, only to find that the world in his vision had completely turned upside down.
He blinked and finally, slowly, realized he had fallen to the ground at some point.
…At this rate, two more times at most, and he would reach his limit.
He had to find a solution as soon as possible.
Wen Jianyan propped himself up with one hand on the ground, struggling to get up, and let out a shaky breath.
He undid his buttons and looked at the location of the badge.
But when his eyes fell on his chest, Wen Jianyan couldn't help but be stunned.
The relief he felt in his daze just now… wasn't an illusion?
He looked down in thought for a long moment, then impassively re-buttoned his shirt. As he did, he nonchalantly tugged down the dark tentacle curled up on his chest.
As if sensing the force pulling it down, the tentacle clung even tighter. Small, granular bumps emerged on its once smooth, cold surface, latching firmly onto that patch of skin. When it was pulled, it happened to—
"…Ugh!"
An unexpected cry escaped his throat, only to be bitten back by his teeth the next second and forcefully swallowed.
In the "Integrity First" live room:
[? Does the side effect last this long this time?]
[Hmm… Is the anchor still in pain? But doesn't his voice sound a little weird?]
"…"
Wen Jianyan's face was grim as he re-buttoned his shirt one by one, all the way to the top.
A pathological flush had appeared on his previously bloodless face.
Damn it.
Although he knew that since Wu Zhu dared to leave a part of his darkness for him to take, he must be confident it wouldn't be detected by the Nightmare. Even if it was occasionally exposed to the livestream's camera, it wouldn't attract attention—but that didn't mean Wen Jianyan was willing to unbutton his shirt and wrestle with it in front of everyone, to forcibly pull this thing off from where it shouldn't be.
Losing face was secondary; being targeted by the Nightmare due to the audience's unusual reaction would be disastrous.
So, no matter how much Wen Jianyan gritted his teeth in hatred, he could only let it be for now.
Fortunately, after he moved his hand away, it stopped moving and remained still against his skin, as obedient as some kind of ornament, easily forgotten if not paid attention to.
Wen Jianyan expressionlessly got up.
…He would remember this debt and pin it on Wu Zhu.
After standing up, Wen Jianyan looked up into the corridor ahead—the spot where "Wang Ni" had been was now empty, and even the dark shadow in the principal's office had disappeared without a trace.
Wen Jianyan frowned, pushing his sweat-dampened bangs back, his expression unable to hide his frustration.
The timing of the badge's side effect was truly terrible. Temporarily being unable to move was a small matter; losing track of "Wang Ni" was the major issue.
It seemed he had to carefully consider his next strategy.
However, before Wen Jianyan could start thinking, a very light footstep sound came from downstairs.
"?!"
Wen Jianyan was startled and subconsciously stepped back, his gaze fixed on the source of the sound.
The footsteps grew closer.
The higher it went, the lighter the sound became, as if deliberately suppressed to avoid being heard by others.
Soon, a black shadow fell on the floor of the third-floor corridor, followed by a foot stepping up.
Then, a young face appeared in Wen Jianyan's line of sight.
It was a pale and neurotic face, with deep, dark circles under the eyes, looking as if it had endured a long period of torment and torture. He looked around nervously, as if searching for something—his gaze swept past Wen Jianyan without stopping.
But likewise, this was also a strange face.
So strange that Wen Jianyan had no impression of him at all—which proved that he had not seen this person since entering the instance.
However, upon seeing the other's startled-bird-like expression, Wen Jianyan almost immediately knew his identity.
Richard.
Wen Jianyan watched intently as he walked forward, looking around nervously. After confirming there was no one else around, he took a deep breath and reached for the principal's office doorknob.
"…"
Wen Jianyan watched silently as the other person entered the principal's office and came out a few minutes later.
And this time, his hand was tightly clutching something Wen Jianyan couldn't be more familiar with:
An oil lamp.
Perhaps because it wasn't lit yet, it could be carried easily at the moment.
Watching the other person slip away like a thief, Wen Jianyan slowly let out a long breath.
He knew this meant his previous speculations were being verified and re-enacted, one by one.
The questions that had been hanging in the air were now being filled with their corresponding answers.
Following the direction Richard left, Wen Jianyan once again gave chase.
Inside the library.
Staring at the rows of bookshelves before them, Tian Ye hesitated and spoke, "Uh… how are we supposed to search?"
He asked in a low voice:
"Just flip through them one by one?"
Hugo looked up: "Hand of Guidance has no reaction."
It seemed he had activated the item as soon as he entered the library.
But apparently, he hadn't obtained any useful information either.
Everyone's heart sank.
Although the previous movie plot had guided them, narrowing down the general area where the clue was located.
The most critical problem had not been solved.
—They didn't know what they were looking for.
A book's title page? A signature? A paragraph? Or just something tucked inside a book?
In this directionless situation, even if they searched the entire area, it would be difficult to find anything.
Did they really have to resort to the most stupid brute-force method?
Did they really have enough time?
Just then, Su Cheng, who was beside them, spoke up: "I might have a clue…"
The others were stunned and turned to look at him.
Su Cheng: "Before, in the library, I remember before I was affected, our president asked me a few questions, then stopped in front of one of the bookshelves. From the way he looked, it seemed like he had found a clue."
Upon hearing this, everyone's heart filled with joy.
They also had an impression of this matter.
However, at that time in the library, they were too scattered. At most, they had only heard Wen Jianyan asking Su Cheng questions from a distance, but they didn't know what followed.
Since entering this instance, they had gained a very clear understanding of Wen Jianyan's intelligence. If there was anyone who could change their current predicament, it would probably be him.
But unexpectedly, they only heard Su Cheng continue apologetically:
"But… it was too dark at the time, and there was some distance between us. I don't remember which specific bookshelf he found… I'm sorry."
This…
Everyone looked at each other in dismay.
Hugo looked at Su Cheng and asked thoughtfully:
"Where were you standing at the time?"
Su Cheng walked to the spot from his memory: "Around here."
"And him?" Hugo asked.
Su Cheng looked around and pointed: "Around that direction."
Hugo walked over and stood still: "Here?"
Su Cheng thought carefully for a moment, then shook his head: "No, it should be a bit more to the left…"
With Hugo's patient and tireless questioning, the two finally managed to reconstruct Wen Jianyan's approximate position at the time.
From not far away, Su Cheng's voice came:
"That should be about right."
Hugo turned his head and looked at the bookshelf in front of him—
His gaze stopped on the lower left corner of the side of the bookshelf. There, a small, seemingly old copper plate was nailed, with two words written on it:
"School History".
At this moment, the other members of the team had also walked over.
"Let's start looking."
Hugo said.
"Don't miss a single one."
Even though they still had no specific direction, the scope had been narrowed down to one bookshelf, which would greatly reduce their burden.
Everyone quickly divided the areas and began to take out books from the shelf, flipping through them one by one. However, the further they flipped, the more hesitation appeared on their faces. In the end, they even started looking at each other.
"…Isn't this the same as the library outside!"
Looking at the gibberish in the book, Tian Ye cried out in disappointment.
He didn't control his voice, and it sounded very clear in the quiet library, attracting the attention of a few students in the distance.
Wei Cheng, expressionless, reached out and gave his head a heavy smack.
"Ouch…"
Tian Ye clutched the spot where he was hit, his expression contorted.
"Shh," Yun Bilan turned to him, her eyes filled with reproach, "Keep it down."
Tian Ye grumbled softly: "Sorry… I forgot…"
Although the others didn't show it as obviously as Tian Ye, they were just as disappointed.
After flipping through several books, they finally confirmed that even though this was a memory, the books in the library were still the same as outside. All the text was unreadable gibberish, completely indecipherable.
This meant that the information here was also hidden… and perhaps hidden even deeper than outside.
After all, this time, they hadn't encountered any danger.
Which also meant there would be no hints.
Wei Cheng hesitated and spoke: "Could it be… the clue we want isn't actually here, but in the library outside?"
If that were the case, it would be terrible.
The library outside had already been burned down and could not be restored no matter what.
Hugo didn't answer but turned to look at the bookshelf in front of him.
He raised his hand and made the sign of the cross on his chest. The gesture didn't look like a prayer, but more like the activation ritual for some item.
Then, Hugo reached out, his well-defined fingers pressing on the spine of a book, and pulled it out, slowly flipping through it.
The rustling sound of pages turning echoed in the dead silence.
Soon, he stopped.
Hugo used his finger to hold a page of the book and turned it around to show everyone.
The text was still illegible, but on the right-hand page was a somewhat blurry, low-pixel photo.
"Do you remember this person?"
Wei Cheng leaned in, his gaze falling on the person Hugo was pointing at, and was suddenly startled: "Wait, isn't this one of the people in the photo on the principal's desk?"
A person who appeared in the photo in the principal's office and also appeared in the school history, there was, and could only be, one.
—The principal of 'Yuying Comprehensive University', who has had no presence in the instance so far, but seems to have never completely disappeared from everyone's sight.
Zhang Yunsheng.
Hugo: "The text is unreadable, perhaps because the clue isn't hidden in the text."
As he spoke, he raised his hand and tossed the book to Tian Ye.
Tian Ye fumbled to catch the book.
"Remember this face."
Hugo turned his head, his gaze falling on the bookshelf in front of him, and continued, "Find the pages in every book that have this face—if there really is a clue here, it should appear after we've found them all."
On the other side.
Wen Jianyan's gaze was tightly fixed on Richard's back not far away, sprinting with single-minded focus.
Finally, after an unknown amount of time, Richard stopped.
Wen Jianyan panted, looking up.
The dome of the gymnasium appeared not far away.
—As expected.
Looking at the familiar building, Wen Jianyan was not surprised.
Richard stood in front of the gymnasium, looking up at the building before him. Due to the angle, Wen Jianyan couldn't see his expression.
After standing for a long time, he finally made a move, slowly pushing the door and walking in.
Wen Jianyan followed.
He placed his hand on the heavy iron door and slowly applied force. A familiar scene appeared before his eyes.
Bright sunlight poured down from the skylight at the top of the gymnasium, but it didn't seem to have much warmth. From Wen Jianyan's angle, he couldn't see the water surface in the pool, but he could see the shimmering light reflected on the walls.
Richard walked step by step toward the edge of the pool.
Wen Jianyan followed.
However, just as he took a step forward, a familiar "watched" feeling that made his hair stand on end appeared again.
…Something was 'watching'.
He shivered and reflexively retracted his step, staying outside the swimming hall.
The feeling of being watched disappeared, but Wen Jianyan did not relax because of it.
He looked up, looking around in surprise and uncertainty, searching for the source of the anomaly.
What was going on?
Suddenly, Wen Jianyan's gaze fell on the wall not far away.
His eyes sharpened.
The wall was empty, without a speck of light.
Generally, even if the sunlight dimmed, the light reflected from the water surface would also dim, but it wouldn't disappear completely. There would always be some faint ripples reflected.
But…
On the wall, the blue shimmering patterns that had been there just a moment ago had now disappeared—completely, without a trace.
For this to happen, there were only two possibilities.
First, all the water in the pool had been drained.
Second… the nature of the water surface had changed.
From a bright surface that could reflect light to a dark one that could only absorb it.
For some reason, Wen Jianyan recalled the pool they had jumped into before entering this "mirror world."
The dark, inky water that seemed to swallow all light, and the strange, non-malicious attraction from the depths of the pool, dragging him deeper.
"…"
Seeing this, Wen Jianyan couldn't help but shiver.
He didn't dare to continue forward and could only stand at the entrance of the gymnasium, looking inside from afar.
He saw Richard standing motionless by the pool, his head bowed, looking at the water surface that had changed into an unknown state.
Time ticked by, but he did nothing.
Staring at his back, Wen Jianyan had a strange feeling…
He didn't seem to be deep in thought… but rather as if he were conversing with something under the water.
Wen Jianyan was startled by his own guess.
Unfortunately, due to the distance, not only could he not see the current state of the pool, but he also couldn't confirm Richard's condition. He could only continue to wait from afar.
He didn't know how much time had passed…
Suddenly, the sound of water echoed. Under the surface, something seemed to be surging, rising.
The next second, a drenched girl slowly emerged from the pool.
The moment he saw her face, Wen Jianyan's breath caught.
…It was Wang Ni.
Or perhaps, Chu Chu?
The girl had a smile on her face and extended her arms toward Richard.
Richard stood by the pool, his body clearly trembling violently—even though he couldn't see his face, Wen Jianyan could still read the strong hesitation in his body language.
The next second, Richard's hand loosened.
With a "clang," the oil lamp fell from his hand, tumbled to the ground, and rolled to the side.
He slowly knelt on the damp ground and reached out to the girl in the pool.
Watching Richard's actions, Wen Jianyan's heart sank.
In the "Integrity First" live room:
[Tsk tsk tsk, Richard, you're so foolish!!]
[That's not your girlfriend, that's the mirror image that burst out of Wang Ni's body!]
Wait a minute.
Wen Jianyan frowned. Was it really a mirror image?
He remembered seeing a similar scene in the illusion with the fake "Hugo"—Richard and Wang Ni kissing by the pool.
The problem was, according to the rules of the illusion, all supernatural presences were eliminated.
If he reasoned based on that logic, then the "Wang Ni" in the pool now was actually the real person…?
While Wen Jianyan was confused, the previously open door was suddenly pulled by some invisible force and slammed shut with a "bang," startling him.
He blinked, looking blankly at the closed iron door in front of him.
…What's happening?
Wen Jianyan walked forward, tentatively reaching for the doorknob, trying to open it again. But despite his forceful shaking, the iron door in front of him was like cast copper and iron, showing no sign of reopening.
He looked up, suspiciously at the gymnasium in front of him.
If the plot continued according to the movie, Richard would strangle Wang Ni by the pool… and then what?
How did Wang Ni's body end up stuffed in the locker in the changing room?
Suddenly, the doorknob under his palm began to grow scorching hot.
Wen Jianyan was startled by the heat and abruptly let go.
He took a few steps back and looked up at the top of the gymnasium. Through the narrow glass of the skylight, he could see a strange firelight soaring into the sky, burning fiercely inside the gymnasium, gnawing at the steel and concrete, metal and glass like a living creature.
Wen Jianyan's heart went cold, and he continued to retreat.
—No one knew better than him how terrifying this fire was.
In almost the blink of an eye, the flames spread from the gymnasium windows, crawling down the walls. The steel melted into molten iron, trickling down. Through the damaged door, he could vaguely see the apocalyptic scene of the gymnasium's interior being eroded into black char by the flames.
The dome of the gymnasium made a cracking sound, and flames erupted from the top, burning the sky a terrifying red.
Wen Jianyan held his breath, watching all of this.
He knew that this "round" was about to end.
Wen Jianyan turned his head and looked behind him.
He was suddenly stunned.
What appeared behind him was not the familiar, normal campus from memory—a strange black and red sky, an empty path, dark buildings like dead spirits, their windows empty, with not a single person in sight.
It's the instance!
No, that's not right, it's the mirror world behind the mirror on the first floor of the administration building!!
The one they were supposed to enter after jumping into the pool.
Wen Jianyan felt the hair on his back stand up. He subconsciously took a step forward—
But before he could, his vision went black.
"Splash!"
Wen Jianyan once again fell into the cold swimming pool, becoming a drenched chicken.
He coughed and choked as he surfaced from the water and climbed onto the bank.
Although he hadn't had time to do anything, at least this time, through that brief moment just now, Wen Jianyan had vaguely glimpsed a way to leave.
Wen Jianyan, completely soaked, sneezed.
He looked up, turned his head to look around, and was suddenly stunned.
—The gymnasium was empty.
His teammates, who should have appeared with him in the gymnasium after the last round ended, were not by his side this time as they had been before.
Wen Jianyan's heart skipped a beat, sensing something was wrong.
…Could it be?
Even after one round had ended, he still hadn't left that abnormal space from before??
In the "Integrity First" live room:
"Ah, what's going on?"
"I don't know? I just went to the other anchors' livestreams, they're also by the pool now, but they just can't see our anchor…"
"Tsk tsk tsk, I didn't expect that separation by the invisible wall was permanent. It's going to be difficult to reunite with his teammates now."
The young man stood there alone, shivering from the water, his wet hair clinging to his cheeks, water dripping down, looking quite pitiful.
He hung his head, lost in thought.
In the "Integrity First" live room:
[And if I remember correctly, their communication methods are all blocked now, right?]
[Sigh, their situation was already passive enough, and now it's just adding insult to injury…]
[Huh? Wait a minute? What is the anchor trying to do?]
The previously still, lonely, and pitiful-looking Wen Jianyan by the pool suddenly moved.
He turned around and rushed out of the gymnasium.
The scene outside the gymnasium was no different from the memory.
Bright sunlight, a clean campus, ordinary students.
Wen Jianyan sprinted forward.
In the "Integrity First" live room:
[? Where is the anchor going?]
[The main thing is, in this situation, it doesn't matter where he goes…]
Finally, Wen Jianyan stopped, slightly out of breath. He looked up at the familiar building in front of him—
The Administration Building.
He stood at the entrance, thought for a moment, then picked out half a brick from a nearby flower bed and placed it in a corner around the bend.
In the "Integrity First" live room:
[?]
Wen Jianyan tilted his head, thoughtfully examining the brick's position, as if considering something.
He walked forward and carefully moved the brick by a small angle.
In the "Integrity First" live room:
[???]
[Brothers, I'm completely lost… What is the anchor doing?]
Next, Wen Jianyan took a deep breath and walked straight in.
Since there was no Hugo to escort him this time, strange looks were cast at him from all around.
"Hey, classmate, what are you—"
A teacher-like person stopped him.
Wen Jianyan turned his head. Although he was still soaking wet and looked disheveled, his two eloquent lips were already wearing a pleasing smile.
"Hello, teacher. I was just helping the gymnasium's janitor aunty clean the pool and just accidentally fell in."
He blinked: "Anyway, the PE teacher asked me to find the principal. It seems there's some safety issue with our newly built gymnasium?"
In just a few words, Wen Jianyan was easily allowed to pass.
In the "Integrity First" live room:
[…]
"Hugo: ?"
"You wouldn't have guessed it, no item needed at all, just a deceitful mouth is enough. LMAO!"
After getting rid of the person who stopped him, Wen Jianyan successfully made his way up to the door of the principal's office.
He carefully opened the door to the principal's office.
The room was empty.
Wen Jianyan went straight to the desk and opened a drawer.
Like every time before, the drawer was empty.
No black box, no oil lamp. Nothing.
In the "Integrity First" live room:
[Too naive, something so important can't be obtained so easily.]
[If it were really here, wouldn't Hugo have found it long ago?]
But strangely, Wen Jianyan didn't look very surprised. He squinted his eyes and let out a short laugh.
He closed the drawer, restored everything to its original state, then turned and walked out of the office.
But Wen Jianyan did not continue to leave.
He found a hidden spot in the corridor, sat on the floor, leaned against the wall, propped up his chin, closed his eyes, and began to wait.
In the "Integrity First" live room:
[?]
[Can any expert explain what the anchor is trying to do now?]
[He should be waiting for 'Wang Ni'. I remember in the last round, the anchor originally wanted to follow Wang Ni, but because the badge's side effect flared up, he missed a part of the plot… I feel the key to breaking the situation is probably here.]
However, no matter how many directions the audience in the livestream guessed, Wen Jianyan remained as still as a mountain. He leaned against the wall, eyes closed, waiting for time to pass.
After an unknown amount of time, a familiar footstep sound came from the stairwell.
Wen Jianyan lifted his eyelids and looked over.
"Wang Ni," with a familiar face, arrived on the third floor of the administration building and reached out to push open the door to the principal's office.
Everything was no different from the previous round.
In the "Integrity First" live room:
[Oh oh oh! It's just as I thought!!]
But before the audience could get excited, Wen Jianyan's eyelids drooped, and he leaned back into his original position, looking somewhat uninterested.
[?]
A few minutes later, "Wang Ni," holding the key item, left the office. Wen Jianyan made no further movements until her back completely disappeared down the corridor.
[???]
Ten minutes later.
Richard appeared.
Up to now, everything that had happened was exactly the same as the previous round.
Wen Jianyan stood up, stretched his legs, and unsteadily followed Richard who was coming out of the principal's office.
In the "Integrity First" live room:
[??????]
[No, dude, I can understand you following Wang Ni, but why are you following Richard? Didn't you already try that last round? What's the damn use!]
Wen Jianyan was oblivious to the comments in the livestream—of course, even if he knew, he probably wouldn't care.
He just followed Richard from a distance, leaving the administration building with him.
Richard rushed out of the administration building, running wildly in a daze. He rounded the corner next to the building, suddenly staggered, and almost fell.
He looked down.
Blocking his path was half a brick.
Richard shook his head, preparing to move forward again, but before he could run two steps, a gust of wind sounded from behind him.
The next second, with a "thwack,"
Richard swayed and fell to the ground with a thud.
—The other half of the brick had been swiftly and accurately applied to the back of his head.
In the "Integrity First" live room:
[…]
[.........]
[Huh?!]
The audience stared blankly at Wen Jianyan on the screen. They saw him drop the brick in his hand, take a step forward, step over the other's body without any guilt, bend down, pick up the oil lamp from the ground, and then start running.
The whole process was smooth and natural, whether it was the sneak attack or the knockout blow, there was no hesitation or delay, so smooth it was as if it had been practiced a million times.
In the "Integrity First" live room:
[Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh what are you doing, you punk!]
[I'm having a breakdown, why did you hit Richard!!]
[What the hell!!!]
As Wen Jianyan quickly ran away, the shadow cast by Richard's body on the ground flowed and was pulled up by some invisible force, gradually detaching from the ground.
It looked very similar to the dark shadow in the principal's office… equally cold, terrifying, and out of place with the entire normal memory world.
It slowly turned its head, 'looked' in the direction Wen Jianyan had disappeared, and then slowly began to walk.
In the "Integrity First" live room:
[…]
[Damn.]
[I finally get why the anchor was smiling when he opened the drawer earlier…
Before an NPC gets their hands on it, the item doesn't exist. Which means, if the anchor wants to get the item, he has to snatch it from the NPC's hands.
Damn it, you punk, you were planning to rob an NPC from the very beginning, weren't you!!]
[And I figured out how he did it…]
[Huh? What?]
[In this memory world, all NPCs related to the key plot can't see the anchor. As long as he's in a scene involving the key plot, surrounded by an invisible wall, this kind of black shadow will appear to prevent the anchor from participating.
But the problem is, other than that, the anchor can interact with anything else—doors, the aunty in the swimming hall, the teachers in the administration building, including bricks…
So you guys get what I mean?]
[......Damn.]
[Ahhhhhhh I get it too ahhhhhh!]
[Uh, I didn't follow…]
[In short, the anchor exploited a bug in the rules again.]
[Because the key plot takes place in locations protected by invisible walls where the black shadow exists, and even getting close will get you targeted.
So, he chose to act after leaving the first scene and before entering the second.
And the brick the anchor placed was to test if he could indirectly affect the NPC's actions by changing the environment without directly contacting the NPC—the answer is obviously yes.]
What happened next was self-evident.
—After getting an affirmative answer, he picked up a brick, which was also part of the campus environment, and knocked the person out with it.
[…Wen Jianyan, you've done every evil thing imaginable.]
[Done every evil thing!!!]
[Uh… but I still don't get one thing. Even though he went through all this trouble, he didn't actually change anything, did he?]
Even though Wen Jianyan snatched the oil lamp, the terrifying black shadow that could penetrate the barrier of memory and reality still appeared.
And, the closer it gets to the time of the fixed plot event, the stronger it will become.
And its terror level is based on the strength of the instance's rules—which means, unless he has a 3S-level item, even if Wen Jianyan has successfully snatched the oil lamp from Richard, there is absolutely no possibility of changing the plot.
As soon as this was said, the livestream went silent for a moment.
[…Damn, that's true.]
While the discussion in the livestream was raging, Wen Jianyan finally stopped his full-speed sprint. He looked up at the building in front of him.
The Academic Building.
He panted and turned to look behind him.
Under the sunlight, the dark shadow exuding a cold aura advanced step by step. Although it looked slow, it still kept up with Wen Jianyan, who had been running with all his might.
Even though there was still a distance of more than ten meters, Wen Jianyan's hair stood on end.
He could feel that he was no longer just being watched.
That intense, endlessly malicious gaze was locked on him. A boundless sense of threat came from all directions, making the soul inside his body shrink and fear.
That was killing intent.
Every cell in his body was screaming—run, run!
Drop the source of danger and run!
Wen Jianyan gritted his teeth, the veins on the back of his hand bulging, forcefully suppressing his urge to flee.
In fact, before he knocked Richard out with the brick, he had already anticipated this step.
Although he had exploited some small bugs in the instance to snatch the item from the NPC, the instance would absolutely not allow this behavior.
[What has happened cannot be changed].
In other words, Wen Jianyan versus the black shadow was like a tiny individual fighting against the entire set of rules of the instance. It was like a mantis trying to stop a chariot, an act of overestimation.
He could never win.
Wen Jianyan lowered his head and carefully examined the oil lamp in his hand.
It had a simple and old-fashioned design, looking unremarkable and very ordinary. Below the wick was a small dish of solid lamp oil, emitting a sweet, rotten smell.
Like corpse oil rendered from something unknown.
Wen Jianyan looked up, watching the black shadow that was only ten steps away from him, and slowly took a deep breath.
—However, his original goal was not to win.
From beginning to end, all he needed was a gap.
A gap to bring the lamp to the academic building.
Wen Jianyan took out the match he had prepared from his pocket, struck it lightly, and a flame rose.
The black shadow was only seven steps away from him.
The cold breath of death was almost upon him, but Wen Jianyan's fingers were still calm and steady, without a hint of trembling.
He brought the match close to the wick. With a soft "hiss," the oil lamp was lit.
But the moment the oil lamp was lit, a strong burning pain rose from the palm holding the lamp. Wen Jianyan could clearly feel his skin becoming dry and charred, his moisture and life force being squeezed out together.
—The black shadow was only five steps away from him.
Cold sweat trickled down Wen Jianyan's back, his pupils dilated in fear.
He raised his hand and threw the oil lamp toward the academic building on the side.
The next second, a strange flame surged. It gnawed at the stone blocks and metal, releasing infinite heat, and expanded at a speed that couldn't be explained by common sense. In almost the blink of an eye, the entire building was engulfed in a sea of fire.
And at the same time the academic building was engulfed in flames, the sky was also torn apart by the firelight.
The fake blue sky was melted and dissolved, revealing the black and red firmament beneath.
At the same time.
Inside the library.
"Hey! Look!" Wei Cheng suddenly exclaimed in surprise.
The others were startled and turned to look in the direction Wei Cheng was pointing—
Through the library window, they could see that a corner of the sky not far away had been dyed a crimson red.
"Has it been six hours?" Tian Ye was surprised.
Yun Bilan shook her head: "No."
Tian Ye: "Then why…"
"No." Suddenly, Hugo squinted his eyes and shook his head: "The direction is wrong."
He stared at the crimson sky and said slowly, "The gymnasium is not there."
—This time, a new area was ignited.
—The black shadow was only five steps away from him.
The cold, terrifying aura was almost upon him. Wen Jianyan could almost smell the rotten scent of death.
He didn't even have time to think. Only one final thought remained in his mind:
Run!!!!
Wen Jianyan gritted his teeth and charged desperately toward the corner torn by the flames.
He had almost never run so fast in his life. Every muscle was screaming, and he could even taste the blood welling up in his throat.
Three meters, two meters, one meter.
The rift between reality and memory was right before his eyes.
Wen Jianyan steeled his heart, closed his eyes, and threw himself forward—
Then, the world turned upside down.
Wen Jianyan fell heavily to the ground, his injured palm scraping harshly against the rough surface, but he could hardly feel the pain. His back was tense, his whole body like a bowstring stretched to its limit, trembling under extreme pressure.
A full twenty seconds passed before the darkness in front of him finally faded.
Wen Jianyan shakily got up from the ground and turned to look.
Behind him was the empty, silent academic building.
The flames, the black shadow… all had disappeared.
In their place was an old building submerged in a black and red sky. It was clearly a nightmarish scene, but in Wen Jianyan's eyes, it was like a wonderland.
Wen Jianyan panted heavily, feeling dizzy.
He… succeeded?
In the previous round, outside the gymnasium, Wen Jianyan had seen the flames tear the sky apart, stripping away the false peace and revealing the original mirror image.
Although it was only a brief glimpse and the round restarted the next second, Wen Jianyan still understood one thing:
This fire could not only burn through the buildings in the instance, but it could also tear apart the false memory, revealing the true mirror space.
So, to leave the Memory and return to the Instance, he had to wait for the moment the fire burned.
Of course, it wasn't impossible to wait until the end of the next round when the gymnasium burned, but he still chose the most difficult option.
Wen Jianyan turned to look at the building behind him. Even though he was already out of danger, his breathing was still trembling and rapid.
—He and his teammates were separated by an invisible wall.
The purpose of the invisible wall was to prevent anchors from affecting the plot.
Due to an accident, Wen Jianyan was trapped inside the invisible wall.
Even though he had later left the area where the key plot was taking place, he still couldn't reunite with his teammates. But theoretically, they were still in the same space, just separated by the invisible wall.
If he remembered correctly, Hugo had once told him…
In the memory, there were invisible walls around the "library," "cafeteria," and "gymnasium," but not the academic building.
The academic building was not protected.
This meant that if Wen Jianyan set the academic building on fire… as long as Hugo and the others saw it and came to investigate, they wouldn't be blocked by an invisible wall. They could also find the rift to leave the memory.
More importantly, the change Wen Jianyan made to the building happened inside the invisible wall.
This meant he had created a new plot that could cycle with each round.
Even if Hugo and the others didn't make it this round, they could wait for the next round, and the round after that.
—In other words, he had completely destroyed the prison built by the memory.
In the "Integrity First" live room:
[…]
[Wait, this place looks so familiar. Isn't this the world connected to the mirror on the first floor of the administration building?]
[That's right, this is it.]
[!!! From here, you can go to the third floor of the administration building, and through the cabinet in the vice principal's office, you can get to the principal's office, right?]
[Yes, yes, yes!]
[Damn, I've finally straightened it out. Holy shit, the anchor didn't just kill two birds with one stone, but three birds with one stone!!]
[Without any way to communicate with his teammates, he not only escaped on his own but also left a spark of hope for his still-trapped teammates, and even returned to the mirror world they were originally supposed to enter but couldn't due to an accident… This is truly awesome.]
[Really, so damn awesome.]
[Filled with awe, brothers. Is this the high-end operation of a high-end anchor?]
[I really didn't expect that he could actually pull the derailed plan back on track!!]
And the young man who caused all this shakily turned around. He was covered in dust, soaking wet, looking extremely pathetic, his expression listless, as if he had been beaten up badly.
He took two steps forward, stopped by the academic building, then leaned against the wall and slowly bent over.
"Retch—"
__
Author's note:
Wen Jianyan: Let me perform a traditional skill of this livestream for everyone—handsome guy dry heaving.