***
Bonus chapter! Thank you to --- for the donation! ^^
***
The problem was, Xiao Mingyu was already dead—he had died before Ruan Qing even entered this instance. How was he supposed to find him now?
By going to the Nightmare World?
That seemed to be the only possibility. If there was one place where Xiao Mingyu might still exist, it would undoubtedly be the Nightmare World.
While entering the Nightmare World was inevitable, what one feared there could be controlled.
For example, he could choose to fear encountering Xiao Mingyu.
This wasn't impossible to achieve, but the risks were enormous. If his guess was wrong, he could very well die in the Nightmare World.
Without thorough investigation and proper preparation, entering the Nightmare World would be far from wise.
Ruan Qing went to the school's computer lab and hacked into the school's system, searching for records of any supernatural incidents—particularly deaths.
The findings were shocking. The school's death rate was alarmingly high, to an almost absurd degree.
Especially in recent months—suicides had become frequent, and some had died under mysterious circumstances with unexplained wounds. All these victims, like Xiao Mingyu, had engaged in severe self-harm before death.
Ruan Qing quickly pulled up photos of the deceased. Many were clearly players, their deaths gruesome beyond what mere suicide could explain.
Staring at these images, Ruan Qing's eyes widened, his heart skipping a beat as a terrifying realization struck him.
Had this instance... never been reset?
In the Infinite Horror Game, instances were supposed to reset after players either cleared them or died, returning to their original state for the next batch of players.
But this instance seemed to have never reset! How was that possible?
The players had left plenty of traces. Ruan Qing checked the earliest death records—the first wave of players had died three months ago.
Meaning, this instance hadn't reset for at least three months, with every player group meeting total annihilation.
Even more chilling, Ruan Qing recognized some of the dead—including high-ranked players and even the vice president of the Yong'an Guild.
Was this the instance's final boss reclaiming its power? Was 'He' luring players who carried fragments of 'His' power into this instance, only to kill them and take that power back?
But how could a single instance boss defy the entire Infinite Game's rules? The system should never allow something like this to happen.
Could it be... that this dungeon's final boss has already surpassed the game's main system in strength?
Just as Ruan Qing was struggling to contain his shock, his phone rang. It was the online romantic partner who had previously called to break up with him.
To maintain the original owner's persona, Ruan Qing steadied himself and answered the call.
"Why haven't you replied to my messages?" A cold, accusatory voice came through the moment the call connected.
Ruan Qing paused, only now noticing the 99+ unread notifications on his phone - most of them from one person.
— Ling Qishuo.
"Sorry, I hadn't checked my phone," Ruan Qing answered, his voice slightly hoarse.
"A whole day and night without checking your phone?" Ling Qishuo's mocking laugh came through the receiver. "Couldn't you come up with a better lie?"
"I'm sorry, something unexpected happened. I really didn't check my phone."
Though Ruan Qing's expression remained calm, his low, raspy voice carried a hint of distress that somehow evoked pity.
Ling Qishuo immediately faltered, his tone softening slightly though still laced with sarcasm. "Serves you right for deceiving so many people. Getting exposed was inevitable."
Growing angrier as he spoke, Ling Qishuo's voice burned with barely contained fury. "'You only love me' - I bet you say that to everyone, don't you?"
"If you really loved me, why won't you even let me hear you moan for me?"
Exhausted, Ruan Qing rubbed his dry, tired eyes - then froze as he suddenly realized something was terribly wrong.
He had only gone without sleep for two nights, yet he felt as though he hadn't rested in three or four days.
Had he overused his abilities? Or was time passing differently in this dungeon? Ruan Qing couldn't be certain.
Listening to the ongoing accusations from the phone, he answered weakly, "...It's not about that."
Not getting the response he wanted, Ling Qishuo's tone turned cold and harsh again. "Then what is it about?"
Ruan Qing's eyelashes fluttered slightly as he glanced at his computer screen. Lowering his gaze, he spoke with a trace of unease: "Have you heard... of the 4444 call?"
Ruan Qing had only meant to probe, but Ling Qishuo's reaction was unexpectedly violent - his voice rising uncontrollably.
"You received it!?"
Ruan Qing's eyes narrowed slightly - clearly this Ling Qishuo knew about the 4444 phone call.
"...I received it." Ruan Qing's voice trembled with unease, as if terrified.
"Come to my dorm," Ling Qishuo's voice carried a hint of urgency. "Never mind, I'll come to you. Where are you?"
After a brief hesitation, Ruan Qing reported a location very close to him: "The cafeteria next to Building A dormitory."
***
Ling Qishuo arrived incredibly fast, having practically run at full speed.
Watching the male student anxiously scanning the area trying to find him, Ruan Qing slowly emerged from the shadowed corner of the cafeteria.
When Ling Qishuo's gaze landed on him, he froze completely, staring dumbfounded at the youth walking toward him. He'd thought that someone with such a beautiful voice couldn't possibly be ugly, but he never expected this level of beauty.
His mouth opened and closed before finally blurting out a curse: "F*ck! Which blind idiot picked you?"
"Picked"? Ruan Qing's eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly as he instinctively looked up.
With others present in the cafeteria, Ling Qishuo barely restrained his urge to swear and instead grabbed Ruan Qing's wrist. "Come with me."
Ruan Qing didn't resist, obediently letting himself be led, because he'd immediately recognized this person as the System's avatar in this instance. The System was becoming increasingly less subtle, even making their appearances similar - as if afraid Ruan Qing might mistake them.
They reached the small woods behind the cafeteria. Likely because it was class time, the area was completely deserted.
Halfway there, Ling Qishuo suddenly realized he was holding the other's hand. His entire body stiffened - even through the sleeve fabric, he could feel that softness. A softness that seemed to melt straight into his heart, making him want to squeeze tighter.
He wanted. Wanted so badly. Wanted this person to belong completely to him.
Despite this being their first meeting, this thought was already driving him mad.
But there were more pressing matters now. Forcing down the darkness welling inside, Ling Qishuo stiffly released his grip.
He looked at Ruan Qing with a serious expression and got straight to the point, "When did you receive the call?"
Ruan Qing answered truthfully, "I got the call the night before last, but I actually answered it last night."
Hearing this, Ling Qishuo frowned, "Before that, had you come into contact with anyone? Someone who gave you an unsettling feeling."
Ruan Qing bit his lower lip slightly and finally admitted, "...Yes."
"Xiao Mingyu."
Ling Qishuo's frown deepened. He stated with certainty, "Not him. Someone who died in the Nightmare World wouldn't have that capability."
Ruan Qing looked at Ling Qishuo in shock, his beautiful eyes filled with confusion, "What do you mean?"
Ling Qishuo glanced at Ruan Qing and, seeming to accept that he had already received the call, began explaining everything slowly.
At some unknown point, this world had split into two: the real world and the Nightmare World.
Once a person enters the Nightmare World, they must face their greatest fear until they die in the nightmare.
The trigger for entering this nightmare is being chosen by a Nightmare Emissary.
Ling Qishuo coldly stated, "Those who are chosen will die without exception unless they become Nightmare Emissaries themselves."
Ruan Qing didn't quite understand, "Become a Nightmare Emissary?"
Ling Qishuo nodded, "If you can kill the manifestation of your fear within the nightmare, you become a Nightmare Emissary."
"The weaker your fear is, the higher your chances of succeeding."
Ruan Qing fell silent. While this sounded simple in theory, for players it was devastating.
Because for players constantly teetering on the edge of death, their greatest fears would never be weak.
Wait - fears could potentially be altered through hypnosis or other means. If it were really that straightforward, recently arrived players wouldn't have been getting wiped out one after another.
It would be extremely difficult to overpower the game's main system. Ruan Qing suspected the Nightmare World itself had undergone some change - perhaps this very change was why game instances would never reset again.
Unaware of Ruan Qing's thoughts, Ling Qishuo pressed his thin lips together and continued, "Once you become a Nightmare Emissary, you must keep selecting targets, otherwise you'll have to face an even greater fear."
"The stronger the target you choose, the more time you can buy."
He genuinely couldn't understand why anyone would choose someone like Ruan Qing - someone so weak they probably couldn't even buy an hour's worth of time.
Thinking of the Nightmare Emissary who had chosen the person before him, Ling Qishuo's eyes darkened with a flash of concealed killing intent before he suppressed his emotions.
"Forget it. There's no point in finding out who selected you now. First, I'll help you counter whatever it is you fear."
Having said this, Ling Qishuo looked at Ruan Qing. "What are you afraid of?"
"I... don't know either." Ruan Qing pressed his lips together, speaking uncertainly. "Maybe... ghosts?"
Ling Qishuo frowned but ultimately said nothing.
The small grove wasn’t the best place to enter the Nightmare World. After discussing their plan, Ling Qishuo took Ruan Qing to his dorm.
Ling Qishuo’s dorm was a four-person room, currently empty of anyone else.
He pulled Ruan Qing down to sit on his bed, then took out a red string and tied one end around Ruan Qing’s wrist and the other around his own.
As he fastened it, he instructed quietly, "Stick close to me at all times in the Nightmare World."
Ruan Qing nodded obediently.
Once the red string was secured, Ling Qishuo set an alarm on his phone, then pulled Ruan Qing with him into the Nightmare World.
Neither of them noticed that, after they had entered, three shadowy figures slowly stepped into the dorm room.
