Although Ferdinand was fast, the group was young and strong, plus they had the buffs from the dungeon.
Soon, they managed to widen the gap between them and Ferdinand.
Even Qin Yue, who had just entered the game, didn’t fall behind.
But just as they were putting distance between them and Ferdinand, the ground beneath their feet began to tremble.
A flat road suddenly folded up and shrank like origami.
The distance between them and Ferdinand was closing in.
“What the hell?!” Qin Yue shouted.
Gu Zhan came back to his senses and said, “This is also the world of the book. Everything in the book is controlled by Ferdinand. We can't escape!”
While he was speaking, An Heyan turned around and shot Ferdinand twice.
It had no effect at all!
“How are we supposed to fight?” An Heyan asked anxiously. “Shouldn’t we not have uncovered this truth in the first place?”
But they hadn’t sought out Ferdinand! The library had actively swallowed them up after they discussed the conclusion!
Could it be that this issue couldn’t be discussed within the library?
That was clearly impossible.
If this was the world of a book and Ferdinand was the author, then it didn’t matter where they were; it was all the same to Ferdinand!
“What do we do now?”
After the world changed, the area outside the library was no longer a wilderness but a blend of countless scenes from the worlds of books they had experienced, with buildings positioned incredibly close to each other.
These buildings were both familiar and strange.
An Heyan spotted a narrow path and said, “Let’s turn this way!”
The others followed his lead and squeezed into the narrow path, which twisted and turned until they finally shook off Ferdinand.
However, before they could catch their breath, the surrounding buildings began to change again. The ground shifted like a carpet being pulled, quickly dragging them back in front of Ferdinand.
“How can we possibly win? The opponent is practically omnipotent in here!”
Qin Yue shouted in despair.
An Heyan cast another glance at Gu Zhan. Throughout their escape, he hadn’t said a word, which was unlike him.
Qin Yue also looked at Gu Zhan, who was still frowning, seemingly at a loss.
It was bad! They were about to be caught by Ferdinand!
Qin Yue couldn’t bear to imagine the terrible fate that awaited him after being caught.
This damn game, this damn Ferdinand!
Qin Yue felt like a tightly stretched guitar string, about to snap at the slightest touch.
Just then, Ferdinand came charging at him, dragging an axe.
They could only run in circles around Ferdinand in the narrow space.
Qin Yue was losing it, shouting as he ran, “What a crappy dungeon! It doesn’t leave anyone a chance to survive. And that damn teacher, why study the life of someone like Ferdinand? He’s just a pervert; what’s there to study?!”
The moment he finished speaking, Gu Zhan's eyes lit up, and he finally spoke, “Right!”
“Right what?” An Heyan asked as he turned back, but before he could finish his sentence, Ferdinand's axe swung toward him.
An Heyan barely managed to dodge, but the blade grazed his ear, causing blood to flow instantly.
Holding his ear, he rolled to the side, grimacing, “Right what? If you don’t speak up soon, we’re going to be done for!”
Gu Zhan quickly replied, “That teacher is the real key figure in this dungeon!”
“What?”
“In Ferdinand’s life story, there’s a missing piece that has never appeared in the world of the book, which is his experience as a teacher. The first time we heard Ferdinand’s name was also through this teacher. If Ferdinand just wants to use the world of the book to rewrite his past, then he’s not a true author. How did that teacher come to know Ferdinand's name, and why did they want us to study him?”
Gu Zhan’s tone grew more certain. “Because he is the real Ferdinand!”
This unexpected twist stunned everyone.
But upon reflection, Gu Zhan’s argument made sense.
Every character appearing in the dungeon had a purpose.
That teacher had appeared first.
Her role was undeniable.
Yet Qin Yue protested, “But that teacher is a woman!”
It was no wonder they hadn’t thought of the teacher before.
Ferdinand was obviously male.
Gu Zhan glanced at him. “The world and the buildings can change; why can’t gender?”
“Alright, you win.” Qin Yue quickly capitulated. “So what do we do now?”
An Heyan suggested, “Let’s head to the school first.”
But given the current situation, saying they would go to the school was easier said than done.
They couldn’t even find the way.
“Let’s get out of here first,” An Heyan said.
This place seemed to have been transformed into a maze by Ferdinand, and in the narrow environment, they could only dodge Ferdinand’s axe to the left and right.
They were in a very passive position.
“There are walls everywhere; how do we get out?” Qin Yue asked.
Suddenly, Xu Ke spoke up, “Get out of the way.”
“What?”
Qin Yue didn’t have time to react before Gu Zhan pulled him back several steps.
Xu Ke took out a black object and threw it at one of the walls. With a loud “boom,” the ground shook, and the wall in front collapsed in a cloud of smoke.
Qin Yue: “…”
That worked?
He realized that An Heyan and Xu Ke were the muscle of the group.
Gu Zhan was also surprised to see the two of them with such lethal gadgets.
“Run!” An Heyan shouted.
They had to leave before Ferdinand could react.
A group of them dashed through the maze, and as Ferdinand roared in realization, the ground beneath them began rolling again, rising in waves as a high slope appeared under their feet.
He was trying to block their path with this.
“Run!”
They had to leap over the slope before it fully rose.
The ones in front moved quickly, but when it was Jiang Su's turn, things got a bit complicated.
He was naturally slow-moving, trailing behind everyone.
Suddenly, Ferdinand exerted himself, making the slope even steeper.
Jiang Su, who was already struggling on the slope, slipped and tumbled down!
At the end of the slope stood Ferdinand, swinging an axe and sneering at everyone.
Jiang Su was instantly drenched in cold sweat. He flailed his arms and legs, trying to climb back up the slope, but it was too steep. Once he lost his grip, it wouldn't be easy to get back up!
Just when he thought he was done for, a hand suddenly reached down from above, grabbing his collar and halting his downward slide.
Startled, Jiang Su looked up to find it was Gu Zhan who had saved him!
“Thank—”
Jiang Su wanted to express his gratitude, but the collar was pulled too tight, causing him to roll his eyes and unable to say a word.
Qin Yue shouted from the side, “You’re going to strangle him!”
An He Yan said, “Strangling is better than falling into Ferdinand’s hands.”
Jiang Su felt his vision darken, and all he could hear were his teammates' nonsensical remarks.
In such a situation, he couldn’t help but let out a bitter laugh, wondering if he would really survive.
In the next moment, he was pulled back up the slope, and Gu Zhan released him, fresh air rushing into Jiang Su’s throat.
Jiang Su coughed hard, realizing he had survived again!
Gu Zhan didn’t change his expression and said, “Let’s go.”
With that, he dragged Jiang Su and jumped down the slope.
Now, they were separated from Ferdinand by the slope, giving them some time to escape while Ferdinand had to maneuver the terrain.
Even so, everyone couldn’t afford to relax because they knew Ferdinand would soon catch up.
“Where’s the school?”
Qin Yue looked up, seeing unfamiliar buildings all around; they had no idea where the school was.
Gu Zhan could only rely on memory to run toward the school’s direction.
“This way.”
They could only hope that Ferdinand didn’t have the ability to change the school’s location.
They sprinted, encountering many panicked players along the way who seemed unaware of what was happening.
The good news was that there was only one Ferdinand. As he chased Gu Zhan and the others, he didn’t have time to go after anyone else.
Realizing this, Gu Zhan immediately suggested, “We should split up!”
An He Yan nodded instantly, but they needed to decide who would go to the school and who would divert Ferdinand.
After some thought, An He Yan said, “I’ll lure Ferdinand away; you guys hurry to the school.”
With that, he fired two shots at Ferdinand, instantly diverting the monster’s attention.
Seeing An He Yan lead Ferdinand away, Qin Yue let out a sigh of relief and wiped the sweat from his forehead. “I didn’t expect An He Yan to come through for us at a critical moment.”
Gu Zhan replied, “He’s not helping us; he’s helping himself.”
The dungeon was nearing its conclusion. With all the previous puzzles solved, he now understood that Ferdinand was their biggest enemy, and everyone was united against him.
As long as they dealt with Ferdinand, they could leave this place.
This required unity and a common purpose. Why would An He Yan betray everyone when that would not benefit him?
It could only be said that all the love and hatred in this dungeon were unrelated to personal emotions; it was purely about interests.
Qin Yue, who had just arrived in this world, seemed unaccustomed to its style.
“Let’s go, we don’t have much time,” Gu Zhan reminded them.
They ran toward the school, but they still didn’t know where it was.
More players noticed the commotion, and those Gu Zhan had previously contacted, intending to join forces, quickly gathered to inquire about the situation.
Soon, news of Gu Zhan and the others seeking the school spread, and more players joined in.
Meanwhile, the ground beneath them was rapidly changing; Ferdinand seemed unwilling to let them easily find the exit. Even as An He Yan held him back, he persistently obstructed the players.
Having more players was advantageous; soon someone spotted the school and ran in the direction with Gu Zhan.
After running for a while, the players realized that the map wasn’t very large.
The constant changes in the map created a false sense of space.
“Go this way!” Someone was leading the way for Gu Zhan and the others. They twisted and turned, finally finding the school hidden behind the skyscrapers.
The once infinite school seemed diminished in the shadow of the tall buildings.
Gu Zhan quickly discovered something: everything in this dungeon was constant. Since Ferdinand had diverted too many resources to chase An He Yan, he had relaxed his vigilance regarding the school.
They successfully entered the school, where the familiar classroom awaited, and the teacher was sitting behind the podium, quietly waiting.
However, his appearance had changed; he was now taller and stronger. Though still dressed in a women’s suit, it was evident he was a man who had served in the military.
He didn’t look as old as everyone had imagined, probably just over fifty.
The real Ferdinand sat quietly until everyone had entered the room. He then turned his head, smiled slightly, and said, “You’ve finally arrived.”
Gu Zhan stood at the door, with players behind him.
“Since that’s the case, let’s solve the final riddle I have for you.” He opened his arms, smiling at Gu Zhan. “Kill me, and you can leave this book’s world.”
Gu Zhan fell silent.
Qin Yue raised an eyebrow. “What’s his deal?”
He wants them to kill him?
Could it be that, like the previous librarian, he couldn’t be killed?
To confirm his thoughts, Qin Yue swung a stick at the real Ferdinand, smashing the chair to pieces. But it seemed that the stick didn’t actually touch Ferdinand, who stood there unharmed.
“What’s going on?” This sudden event caused panic among the crowd.
The players who had come with Gu Zhan voiced their confusion.
Ferdinand slowly stood up from the chair and said softly, “Are your actions finished? Then... it’s my turn to act.”
“Damn.” Qin Yue shouted, taking a step back. “He can’t be controlling the scene around us too, can he?”
“Calm down.” Gu Zhan said, “His ability to control this world from the book must be limited. If we use our abilities here, it might cause An Heyan to relax a bit on the other side.”
“What good does that do?!” Qin Yue yelled. “We still can’t find a way out!”
Gu Zhan frowned. If neither of these key characters from the book was the key to breaking the situation, then where did the key lie?
Could it be that they really had to be slaughtered by the author in a book?
A book… a book?
Gu Zhan’s eyes suddenly lit up as he grasped the true key.
In a book, the weak point was never the author or the characters.
Characters only existed within the world of the book; this was their world. Defeating them here was nearly impossible.
The author, however, existed in reality, directly controlling the content of the book.
“Fire!” Gu Zhan suddenly turned and ran outside. “Where can we find fire?”
Hearing his voice, the player who had led them here shouted, “There’s a cafeteria! The cafeteria must have fire!”
The moment he spoke, everyone heard a broadcast.
【Congratulations, you have discovered the truth of the instance. However, Ferdinand is very angry with your reckless actions. He will eliminate you unwelcome guests from the world of the book. As the author, he can modify the work and erase characters in a very short time. You all need to work harder; you have ten minutes to solve the riddle Ferdinand has left for you. Otherwise, you will be erased as characters in the book, and this time, you won’t even have the chance to turn into monsters.】
The system's voice was rarely tinged with emotion, but it was malicious, filled with gloating laughter.
Then, the countdown began.
【Countdown: Nine minutes and fifty-nine seconds…】
“How can this be?”
“Is this an update to the main quest?”
“Ten minutes! Everyone is going to die! Is this really the difficulty of an A-level instance?!”
Everyone was in shock, discussing fervently, while Gu Zhan stood still.
The last sentence of the system broadcast confirmed his long-held suspicion.
Some people who died in the instance… or rather, died due to their sanity value hitting zero, would turn into monsters, forever remaining in the instance.
Mo Tuo and Xiao Xiu had both said similar things to him, implying that he did not belong to humanity.
Gu Zhan had experienced multiple instances of his sanity value hitting zero, but he had never turned into a monster.
Or was it that he had already been a monster all along?
He just had been hiding among humans.
“Brother, what are you doing? Hurry up and go! There’s not much time left!”
Qin Yue’s shout snapped Gu Zhan back to reality, reminding him that the most urgent thing now was to solve this instance.
“Fire, let’s go.”
Regaining his senses, Gu Zhan ran toward the cafeteria.
The crowd surged out of the cafeteria, but the world behind them began to change again.
This time, it was different from last time; instead of just terrain shifting to block their escape, the buildings were collapsing. A pitch-black abyss loomed behind them, continuously swallowing this world and chasing after them.
Qin Yue looked back and felt a chill. He couldn't understand, “Isn’t this book something he painstakingly wrote? Why is he destroying his own world for us?”
“Don’t try to understand monsters,” Gu Zhan replied.
“Okay… okay.”
As soon as Qin Yue finished speaking, a scream echoed from a distance. The corridor was too narrow; the person stuck at the back got scraped by the black abyss.
A large chunk of flesh instantly ripped away from him, blood gushing out!
It was Qin Yue's first time facing the death of an instance, and his face changed.
Gu Zhan pulled him and urged, “Run!”
The corridor was too narrow; if the people in front didn’t run, it would endanger those behind them!
They quickened their pace, creating more space for those behind.
The countdown in the instance continued.
【Three minutes have passed, six minutes and fifty-eight seconds remaining.】
“The cafeteria is that way!” someone shouted.
Gu Zhan and Qin Yue rushed toward the cafeteria.
But as they pushed open the cafeteria doors, they were stunned. The cafeteria was modern, with steel countertops and meticulously arranged white porcelain sinks. Even the stove was hidden under the countertop, making it impossible to find a way to ignite a fire!
Gu Zhan quickly approached one of the pots and turned the knob.
No flames emerged.
“Damn, this school uses electric stoves?” Qin Yue cursed again.
But it was hard for him not to curse.
This instance clearly hadn’t planned to leave them any way out.
Qin Yue couldn’t help but say, “If he’s this powerful, why not just kill us all? Why make it so complicated?”
“Not quite.” Gu Zhan forced himself to stay calm. “This place is also a trap. There must be somewhere else that has fire…”
After several failed attempts and seeing the time slipping away, even the players who had previously trusted Gu Zhan began to doubt him.
“Are you sure fire is the key to breaking this? If we guess wrong now, we’ll all die.”
Suddenly, Gu Zhan’s eyes brightened. He remembered something.
At the school entrance, there was a guard, an old man.
He recalled seeing the old man smoking after school.
"Go to the school gate."
This time, Gu Zhan was very certain. He didn't wait for anyone else but quickly ran toward the school gate by himself.
Among the players, some believed Gu Zhan, while others did not.
They all ran in different directions.
The power of the abyss was ultimately limited; it couldn't chase so many people at once.
As its power was divided, the speed at which it chased Gu Zhan slowed down a bit.
Ferdinand himself was still standing in the teaching building, watching the events unfold outside the window, his expression filled with hatred.
These detestable outsiders, why couldn’t they just obediently modify the content of the book as he instructed?
He just wanted to be a good person. What was wrong with that?
He had already thought it through: once this world was destroyed, he would create a new one. This time, he would be a knowledgeable old professor… with a happy family, where his wife loved him dearly… And as for a son, he didn’t want one anymore; this time, how about a little daughter instead?
While Ferdinand was lost in his fantasies, Gu Zhan had already reached the security room at the school gate.
There was no one inside; the security room was empty, with only a lighter quietly sitting on the table. The fate of the entire instance seemed to hinge on this lighter.
Gu Zhan picked up the lighter and pressed it gently. Great! The lighter was still functional.
The small flame illuminated his face, bringing hope to this instance.
But what should he ignite?
Gu Zhan looked around. The security room had nothing but hard concrete walls.
Looking outside, the school's landscaping was alarmingly sparse; steel and concrete buildings loomed on the cement road. At first glance, it didn't look like a school but rather a prison.
There were things inside the buildings that could be ignited, but at this moment, only two minutes remained before they would all be engulfed.
The nearest building was at least three minutes away.
Qin Yue said in despair, “Are we really going to die here?”
Gu Zhan held the lighter close to the security room wall.
Qin Yue watched his actions, thinking he had lost his mind. How could fire possibly burn a concrete wall?
But he didn't stop him. After all, they were all going to die; let him be crazy for a moment.
In the next second, the small flame of the lighter licked the concrete wall, and the wall was instantly burned through.
Moreover, the fire quickly spread outward.
Qin Yue sat up straight.
No, what was happening?!
He watched in shock as the concrete wall burned away as if it were paper.
In the blink of an eye, the flames reached the ceiling.
The entire security booth was about to collapse. Gu Zhan quickly pulled Qin Yue away.
They stood in the open area at the school gate, witnessing the flames spread.
Walls, roads, buildings—everything turned to ash in the fire.
Even the sky had a large hole burned through it.
Through that dark hole, Gu Zhan saw a pair of eyes filled with interest.
Immediately afterward, the system's completion broadcast echoed.
【Congratulations, you have cleared the instance】
“……”
It seemed that he hadn't encountered Mo Tuo this time.
Gu Zhan was a bit surprised; he thought that monster had been chasing him all along.
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