What Gu Zhan wanted to do was very simple.
He wanted to find other monsters in the side space and transfer the seal on Zhao Xiaoyue to them.
Just like he did with the female ghost before.
The hospital was quiet; the monsters were certainly hiding. Gu Zhan was too lazy to search, so he directly asked Zhao Xiaoyue, “Where are they?”
Zhao Xiaoyue could never have imagined that one day she would be running after ghosts… and the key point was that Gu Zhan said the seal could be stamped back!!
She could still leave this ghostly place and have the chance to eat her grandmother's sweet and sour pork!!
“They’re in the building next door, everywhere!” Zhao Xiaoyue quickly shared everything she knew. “The system said that once four seals are stamped, they will become the dean's collection. Until the dean uses us, all the collections will stay here.”
“Hide and seek can transfer the seals on yourself to others. If the ghosts transfer their seals, they can shed their identities as the dean's collections… players can transfer seals among each other too…”
At this point, Zhao Xiaoyue suddenly paused.
However, Gu Zhan had already keenly sensed something was wrong.
Zhao Xiaoyue didn’t mention anything further and only said, “Maybe there are really no ghosts; they are all players who have been sealed here.”
Gu Zhan replied, “I know a ghost; she definitely cannot leave this place. We can stamp the seal on her.”
Zhao Xiaoyue: “…”
Was that the point?
【Female Ghost: I know her; do you call that knowing?】
【Run, female ghost! They are coming!】
【Writing a female ghost is making a complaint.】
【Haha our female ghost will be scared】
At that moment, a large crowd suddenly flooded into the livestream.
【What is he going to do?】
【It seems like he is going to find the female ghost to stamp the seal.】
【He says he will stamp the seal on the female ghost; will she let him? The ghost won’t resist?】
【What a load of nonsense; how could a player possibly fight against the monsters in the instance? He’s looking for death!】
【Turns out he is just reckless.】
【Hahaha, there’s only one woman in this instance it’s understandable that he wants to curry favor!】
【? The Wen Dog people are back???】
【Always talking about Wen Dog we’re just passersby; what does it have to do with Wen Ge?】
【Exactly! No. 707 is so reckless does his fan not allow people to talk?】
【Hmph you can tell by the smell that this is a Wen Dog no need to argue.】
【Whether he can do it, you’ll know when you wait and see after all, if No. 707 is looking for death he’ll lose his own life.】
The barrage became heated due to Gu Zhan’s actions. Occasionally, newcomers entering the livestream, not understanding the situation, saw the lively barrage and thought it was some famous streamer.
So they stayed to see what was happening…
As a result, Gu Zhan's livestream popularity saw a slight increase.
However, all of this had nothing to do with Gu Zhan. He took Zhao Xiaoyue into the inpatient building and headed straight for the punishment room.
Zhao Xiaoyue didn’t expect his movements to be so practiced, as if he had been to this place many times before… Seeing him like this, a hint of hope unexpectedly rose in her heart.
Maybe… maybe it really could work?
She didn’t dare to think too much, fearing her hopes would be dashed, and she closely followed behind Gu Zhan.
The punishment room door was surprisingly closed. Gu Zhan pushed it a couple of times and found it slightly loose.
He told Zhao Xiaoyue, “Step back a bit.”
As soon as Zhao Xiaoyue stepped back, Gu Zhan kicked the punishment room door open.
Inside the punishment room, the female ghost was desperately trying to crawl into a cabinet. Hearing the noise, her whole ghostly form trembled, and without turning her head, she crawled into the cabinet even faster.
Zhao Xiaoyue: “…”
Wasn’t this the female ghost who had brought them into the side space before?
She remembered that when she brought them in, she was fierce and terrifying; she was nothing like this now!
Gu Zhan didn’t immediately pull the female ghost out; instead, he looked at the table in the corner of the punishment room.
Sure enough, Xiao Ling’s doll was still there.
Gu Zhan picked up the doll and approached the female ghost.
Female Ghost: “…”
The two locked eyes, and the atmosphere grew increasingly awkward.
After a long moment, the female ghost cautiously asked, “What do you want to do?”
Gu Zhan replied, “That doll is Xiao Ling’s; you tore it up, so you need to compensate.”
“Xiao Ling? What Xiao Ling…” The female ghost only realized after speaking that the “Xiao Ling” Gu Zhan referred to was the child she had been forced to give birth to.
When she was still alive, she had a bit of maternal instinct.
She did care for that child somewhat, and it seemed she even named her… what was it, Sun Ling.
She even made her a doll.
But that was all in the past.
Now, she wasn’t even human anymore; how could she be expected to love a child of her rapist?!
The female ghost grinned ominously, revealing her sharp teeth: “Her? She’s still alive; I hate her so much, I wish she would die immediately! Why should I compensate for a doll? Don’t even mention a doll; even if she were here, I would still tear her apart!”
Gu Zhan held the doll out in front of her.
Female Ghost: “…”
Gu Zhan looked at her calmly.
Female Ghost: “…There are no needles and threads here.”
Zhao Xiaoyue suddenly interjected, “I have some!”
Both the person and the ghost turned their heads abruptly.
The female ghost glared sharply at Zhao Xiaoyue.
Zhao Xiaoyue felt a chill down her back and hid behind Gu Zhan, whispering, “I… I just found it in the cabinet…”
Female Ghost: “……………”
Five minutes later, Gu Zhan and Zhao Xiaoyue squatted on one side, watching the female ghost sew the doll.
【………】
【………………】
【Where are the Wen Dog people who said my wife couldn’t do it? Where did they go? Come out and apologize to my wife!】
【You were so confident earlier; I ask you, does your face hurt now!】
【Although this scene is really weird.】
【…this instance suddenly isn’t scary anymore.】
【Even though the instance hasn’t cleared yet, No. 707 has already killed his way through it alone.】
【After all, it’s just a D-grade instance, and there’s no real danger; as long as his sanity doesn’t collapse, he can dominate this instance.】
【But don’t speak too early; think about his personal task… the director is not so easy to deal with.】
【Oh! Right! There’s also the director!! The last hope for the whole instance.】
The female ghost felt more humiliated than ever. After finally finishing sewing the doll, she pushed it forward and said, “Is it okay now?”
Gu Zhan asked, "What about your stamp?"
The female ghost replied cautiously, "What are you planning?"
Gu Zhan said, "Transfer the stamps from her to you."
"Why?!" The female ghost protested. "You’re already squeezing me dry why do you want to drag someone else into this?"
Gu Zhan didn’t bother reasoning with her. "Hurry up. You already have so many stamps; you can't leave this place."
If she lost those supernatural powers, the half of her body that remained would die. The part cut off by the director wouldn’t regenerate.
The female ghost fell silent.
【Hahaha, he makes a good point.】
【If I were the ghost, I might agree too.】
Feeling desperate, the female ghost finally pulled out her stamps, giving in. "Just stamp me! Hurry up and get out of here!"
She didn’t want to see them anymore!
Gu Zhan handed the stamp to Zhao Xiaoyue, who received it in shock.
If she stamped the female ghost, she could finally leave this place?
Gu Zhan added, "Stamp two."
Zhao Xiaoyue: "……"
That’s a bit much, bro.
She trembled as she took the stamp and grasped one of the female ghost's hands.
When she rolled up the sleeve, the ghost didn’t resist. Only when the sleeve was pushed aside did Zhao Xiaoyue notice that there were way more than five stamps on the ghost's arm.
The blue stamps were densely packed, almost covering her skin beneath her clothing.
She stared at the stamps in shock, but the ghost impatiently bared her teeth at her. "Hurry up."
Zhao Xiaoyue: "……"
She stamped the female ghost, and as she returned the stamp, she quietly said, "Thank you."
The ghost: "……"
As they left, Zhao Xiaoyue asked quietly, "When I was playing hide-and-seek, I overheard other ghosts chatting. Is this psychiatric hospital fake? The director is a pervert who likes to collect human organs..."
Gu Zhan was surprised that Zhao Xiaoyue had guessed part of the truth of the mission.
It seemed that this little game was not entirely a disaster. He had an idea he wanted to test, so he said, "No, it's not a psychiatric hospital; it's a black live stream."
"We're both serious criminals; the drugs injected during our entry made us forget everything. The identity of a psychiatric patient was given to us by the head nurse. She lied to us."
He poured out all the remaining information, leaving Zhao Xiaoyue bewildered.
Is this something you can just say?
At the same time, a notification sounded in her ear.
【Congratulations, player Zhao Xiaoyue, you’ve discovered the truth of the mission 1/2.】
【Congratulations, you have unlocked your true identity. You are……】
Zhao Xiaoyue: "……"
【He is so kind-hearted, sharing clues directly with your teammates!】
【Wow, I didn't know my wife was such a good person.】
【Sometimes, missions need a few teammates.】
Indeed, missions often require teammates, and Gu Zhan had chosen Zhao Xiaoyue because of her.
But Zhao Xiaoyue didn’t know this! She was just a newbie who had only completed one mission and didn’t realize that finding teammates was an option. She was deeply moved that Gu Zhan saved her and even shared crucial clues about the mission!
For a moment, she was so touched that she didn’t know what to say.
Gu Zhan asked, "Did you receive a personal mission?"
Zhao Xiaoyue replied, "What personal mission?"
Gu Zhan pondered; it seemed like they needed to check the monitoring room.
After the tumultuous night, she didn’t want to return to the ward where she’d run into Jiang Weichen, so she decided, "I’ll think of a way to handle it."
"Okay." Gu Zhan casually supported her, knowing that what she did next depended on her.
Returning to the ward alone, Gu Zhan found it empty. He knocked on the wall to let Xiao Ling pull him in.
Xiao Ling was curled up in the corner, looking very dejected.
Gu Zhan handed her the repaired doll.
Xiao Ling was surprised to receive it, holding it as if it were a treasure. "How did you… It was torn apart!"
Gu Zhan said, "Your mother helped sew it back together."
"Mom..." Xiao Ling’s expression turned confused. She missed her mother, but she had almost no memories left, making it hard to remember her face.
Gu Zhan reassured her, "She is still alive and in this hospital, but she’s not here… She’s in another place. Have you been there?"
"What?" Xiao Ling looked confused.
Gu Zhan carefully described the appearance of the side space and asked, "There are many people there; have you seen them?"
Xiao Ling tilted her head, thinking carefully. "I think there is a place like that, but they are very fierce, so I didn’t dare go over."
"You've been there?"
"Yeah, I’ve been there… But it was very cold, and I couldn’t stay long. The people there were scary; they kept chasing me. I was so afraid; I only went a little way before I came back."
Gu Zhan was puzzled by this side space. Zhao Xiaoyue had briefly explained it to him, and he thought it was independent of the mission. He assumed one could only be pulled in during punishments, side missions, or mini-games.
But why could Xiao Ling also go there? And why could she return?
Moreover, the formation of this side space clearly related to the people and events within the mission.
Otherwise, why would it be a hospital and not any random location in the world?
And those ghosts covered in stamps.
Right, the stamps…
Accumulating four stamps would make one a collection of the director.
The stamps… the director…
He vaguely recalled overhearing the head nurse say that the director had been in the hospital these days.
To get his watch, he had to observe and understand him.
The only way to watch the director now was through Xiao Ling’s abilities.
Gu Zhan asked, "Xiao Ling, can you take a look at the director’s office? Find a corner where I can sneak a peek."
Even if he was in the wall, Gu Zhan felt an unsettling sense that the director might see him.
But he had to do it.
As the core of the hospital, many internal mechanisms were set up according to the director's preferences. Even though the director seldom appeared in this mission, his presence was crucial.
Xiao Ling said, "I can."
As soon as she finished speaking, the wall’s imagery began to shift. It was dark at first, then footsteps echoed.
Gu Zhan realized the lights in the director's office hadn’t been turned on.
It seemed the director had just arrived.
Once the lights were on, a magnified face appeared on the wall.
The man on the wall smiled gently, staring straight at Gu Zhan. For a moment, Gu Zhan even saw his reflection in the director's pupils.
No! That’s impossible!
Gu Zhan’s pupils constricted suddenly; he was in the wall! The director couldn’t see him!
It must be said that this director looked quite handsome; from bone structure to skin, everything was perfect. Especially those long, dark eyes, which held a smile that seemed to look fondly at everything… even a wall.
But that fond gaze was anything but comforting; it made anyone who met his eyes feel a chill down their spine… After all, his hobby was collecting various human organs. Perhaps when he dismembered someone, he looked at them with the same fondness.
It was unclear whether he was looking at the wall, Gu Zhan, or a specific part of Gu Zhan’s body.
Xiao Ling curled up in the corner, hugging her doll tightly, whispering, "It’s so cold…"
On the wall, the director smiled at the wall for a while before turning to leave. When he did, he raised his hand, and Gu Zhan spotted the watch on his wrist.
The watch was unique, with a light green dial, and instead of numbers, there were star-like glowing dots inside.
The glowing dots were raised, forming a familiar shape.
Exactly like the stamps on Gu Zhan’s arm.
This watch was always on the director’s wrist.
How on earth was he going to steal it?
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