139

In the dangerous out-of-control instance, within just a few minutes, Gu Zhan and Xuyu were surrounded by monsters.

These monsters were enormous, with only parts of their bodies resembling human features. Their non-human characteristics were far more pronounced than the creatures on the third floor.

Their speed and strength far surpassed that of normal humans.

At first, Xuyu was still able to manage, but as the monsters kept coming, he began to feel overwhelmed.

The monsters crowded the narrow hallway, packed in so tightly they looked like sardines in a can. Their heads and shoulders stacked together, limbs tangled, and some had non-human wings, tails, and other odd features—like a tangled mass of threads.

Sensing the human scent, the monsters desperately pushed forward. The one at the front, however, hesitated because of the Gatling gun in Xuyu’s hands, unwilling to move forward.

Thus, a strange situation formed.

The monsters and the humans were at a standoff—there were only two humans, but the hallway was packed with monsters. The monsters didn't dare advance, instead keeping their eyes open in strange places like their legs, armpits, and other bizarre spots, staring at Gu Zhan and Xuyu with unblinking eyes.

Gu Zhan couldn’t see how many monsters were in front of them, but judging by the eyes staring back at them, it could be hundreds or even thousands.

“What should we do?” Xuyu whispered, moving closer to Gu Zhan.

His hands were trembling slightly, gripping the Gatling gun.

Gu Zhan placed his left hand on the star-chart watch on his right wrist, slowly saying, “There’s no choice. We’ll have to fight our way out.”

The whole building was likely filled with monsters. If they wanted to find Qin Yue, they would first have to subdue these creatures.

---

Gu Zhan glanced around and said, “I’ll leave for a moment. You hold them off.”

“What?” Before Xuyu could ask for clarification, Gu Zhan turned and left.

After the earlier fighting, they had already advanced a short distance, passing a few cleared rooms.

Gu Zhan entered one of the rooms.

The moment he left, Xuyu immediately felt the pressure increase.

Although Gu Zhan hadn’t directly fought, just his presence, being identical to Xuyu, had exerted an invisible deterrence on the monsters. Once he left, the monsters started to stir.

Xuyu was already near his limit. He could only hold his weapon tightly and do his best to keep fighting.

He couldn’t help but wonder, where was Gu Zhan going?

He really wanted to look back, but the situation didn’t allow for it.

“Whoosh!”

The sound of wind rushed toward him. After realizing Gu Zhan had truly left, the monsters began attacking Xuyu.

They didn’t want to remain stuck at the end of the hallway, being picked off one by one.

It was time for a desperate charge!

The monsters began to stir, their long limbs and tentacles flying out from the mass of their bodies, attacking Xuyu.

Xuyu reacted quickly, using his dual pistols to eliminate the monsters at a distance, and switching to dual blades when they got close, slicing through them.

The number of monsters was simply too great, and their full-force attack quickly overwhelmed him.

He could only retreat step by step, defending himself while silently wondering where Gu Zhan had gone.

Soon, he found himself backed up against the third cell door, with only two more cells behind him. There would be nowhere to retreat after that.

The brief victory only made the monsters more excited. They had no concept of death, and now they were charging forward even more recklessly.

Xuyu continued retreating, knowing he was about to be surrounded. Suddenly, the hallway darkened, and a damp, rusty smell filled the air.

The lights flickered, and then, he smelled a strong metallic scent.

Xuyu was stunned and looked down, only to realize he was standing in a pool of blood.

A head covered in dark seaweed-like hair slowly emerged from the blood.

Xuyu: “...”

The livestream chat was also stunned by this scene.

【What’s going on??】

【Is this a ghost movie?】

【No, this instance doesn’t have horror elements!】

But no matter how shocked the audience was, the red-dressed female ghost had already emerged from the blood.

Her face was pale, her lips red, and she stood facing Xuyu, flashing a bloodthirsty grin.

Then, her body quickly contorted, arching backward in an eerie, reverse-crawling motion, rapidly charging into the monster horde.

There were screams from the monsters, and with a swift motion, the ghost wielded a knife, causing the large monsters to dissolve into black smoke.

Amidst the chaos, Xuyu heard a small, eerie laugh.

A cold breeze swept across his neck, sending a chill down his spine.

Someone tugged at his clothes and cheerfully asked, “Big brother, do you want to play a game with me?”

Xuyu: “... Gu Zhan!!”

Unable to hold it in any longer, Xuyu called out Gu Zhan’s name.

At that moment, Gu Zhan emerged from the room behind him.

It was the only restroom on the second floor, and now the tap was running, with blood flowing out at an unnatural rate, spilling across the entire room.

Before he came out, the red-dressed female ghost had been face-to-face with Xuyu in the hallway. Now, beside her, a spider-like female ghost was crawling on the wall, and behind her stood a small girl.

They all radiated a chilling, ghostly aura, clearly not ordinary humans.

Having already encountered Xiaoxiu, Xuyu realized at once that these were all Gu Zhan’s doing.

Even so, the scene still made him feel creeped out!

What was this?

Using magic to counter magic?

Before Xuyu could respond further, Xiaoxiu and Sun Jingqiu had already charged into the monster crowd.

Monsters had rank limitations, and Xiaoxiu’s level was clearly much higher than these non-human creatures, easily ripping them apart.

Sun Jingqiu was slightly weaker but could still maneuver within the monster ranks with ease.

Xiaoling didn’t join the fight, instead watching quietly from the side.

At this moment, Gu Zhan emerged from the room. His face was pale, and he was drenched in sweat, looking quite unwell.

Xuyu hadn’t expected him to look like this. He quickly stepped forward to support him and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Gu Zhan shook his head. “I’m fine.”

He had just summoned too many beings at once, overextending his power.

Xiaoxiu quickly cleared the hallway of monsters, and Gu Zhan said, “Let’s go.”

Outside the screen, many people were shocked by what they saw.

【What’s going on? Why did they suddenly get two extra teammates??】

【Did you not notice? That woman isn’t even human. She seems like a monster...】

【Isn’t this a sci-fi instance? Why are there horror-type monsters, and why are they helping the players?】

The barrage of comments was filled with confusion, and viewers like Yu Yezhou watching the livestream also couldn't help but smile bitterly.

Last time, the family that was supposed to be loving and united—although Xiaoxiu appeared, her combat abilities hadn't been fully showcased. They had seen Xiaoxiu before but didn’t realize how deadly this monster actually was.

It was like carrying around a nuclear bomb.

“How did he manage to tame such a powerful monster?” Yang Lin couldn’t figure it out.

“I did the instance with Xiaoxiu, and it seems like he encountered her many times. In the end, he helped her fulfill her wish by killing another monster NPC,” Sang Yue said.

“Fulfilling a monster’s wish can tame it?” Yang Lin turned in disbelief.

The recent discussions about monsters had long surpassed her understanding.

She had originally thought that monsters only existed within instances, confined by the instance's setting. But now, it seemed that these monsters, when rational, were no different from humans.

Sang Yue shook her head. “I’m afraid it’s more than that. He probably has an item that can contain monsters.”

Yang Lin thought of Gu Zhan’s watch. She realized he had been wearing that watch ever since she met him.

She quickly dismissed the thought of trying to tame a monster herself.

Meanwhile, in the livestream, Gu Zhan and Xu Yu had already left the second floor and were heading to the first floor.

As the elevator reached the first floor, they heard a loud noise coming from outside.

Gu Zhan said, “There might still be monsters outside. Be careful.”

Xu Yu nodded.

The elevator doors opened, and the two stepped out.

There were quite a few people rushing toward them in the hallway, but they weren’t monsters. They were a group of real humans.

They were all wearing lab coats from the research institute, with numbered badges on their chests. Their movements were slow, and their combat abilities seemed very low.

Gu Zhan had consumed a lot of mental energy earlier, so he didn’t step forward and left handling these people entirely to Xu Yu.

Xu Yu quickly sprang into action. After knocking a few of them down, the others hesitated and didn’t dare to advance.

They were holding mops, brooms, and other tools, nervously facing Xu Yu.

This scene was eerily similar to the earlier confrontation with the monsters, but Gu Zhan quickly realized that these people were not NPCs from the dungeon; they were human players.

He realized this when he overheard one of them muttering while facing Xu Yu: “How are we supposed to complete the main quest with such strong monsters?”

Gu Zhan stepped forward and said, “We’re the same as you—dungeon players. There’s no point in fighting us.”

“Impossible!” the leader shouted. “All players are supposed to stick together! You must be monsters, disguised as humans to trick us!”

Gu Zhan thought, If you really think I’m a monster, you shouldn’t even be talking to me.

It seemed these people were not only players but also a group of rookies.

He gave Xu Yu a signal, and Xu Yu swiftly moved forward, knocking the speaker down.

With a sharp blade pressed to his throat, the leader finally became compliant.

Gu Zhan asked, “Am I a monster or a human?”

The man quickly replied, “A human, a human! Definitely a human!”

Gu Zhan turned to the others, “Can we talk now?”

The rest looked horrified. They didn’t understand how a human could be this fast, but none of them dared to resist anymore, and a few even lowered their brooms.

Five minutes later, Gu Zhan had explained his identity.

The players began whispering to each other.

“This game really has experienced players.”

“He’s a big shot! Let’s listen to him!”

Seeing this, Gu Zhan furrowed his brows.

These people were far too new to the game.

He asked, “Is this your first time in a dungeon?”

“No, no, it’s our second time.”

“Same here, our second time.”

“I’m the same…”

After asking around, everyone said it was their second time.

However, the first dungeons they experienced were all very simple, and they hadn’t really understood what had happened, just blindly completing the quest.

“After clearing the dungeon, a big shot told us we could join his guild, but we had to pass a test, so here we are.”

“Right, right, the big shot said it’s easier with more people, so he used an item to stuff us all into this dungeon.”

“I think this dungeon is pretty tough, maybe that big shot was lying.”

They all chattered about why they were here.

The more Gu Zhan listened, the deeper his frown became.

This seemed like a deliberate arrangement by someone.

But why gather so many clueless rookies in one place?

Gu Zhan asked, “Is the guild you’re joining called Hai Chao?”

The group exchanged glances and nodded, surprised. “How did you know, big shot?”

Gu Zhan’s head started to throb. Why would Hai Chao bring so many rookies here? Are they overestimating the probability of clearing this dungeon?

“Since that’s the case, someone should be guiding you, where’s your guide?” Xu Yu asked.

The group exchanged unsure looks and said, “They said this is a test to join the guild, and we have to complete it on our own. The dungeon is simple, and no one will die, so it’s just us, no guide.”

This whole situation felt bizarre.

But thinking about it wasn’t going to help.

Gu Zhan decided not to waste any more time on it. He changed the topic, asking, “Are there monsters on the first floor?”

“No, the layout of the first floor is very simple, we’ve already explored it,” they replied.

“Have you seen anyone…” Xu Yu opened his mouth, about to ask about Qin Yue’s situation. He paused midway, unsure of how to phrase it. After a moment, he said, “Someone like us, but not a rookie? They might not be in the best mental state. You might find they don’t respond well to conversation.”

Everyone shook their heads.

“No, it’s just us on the first floor.”

Gu Zhan and Xu Yu’s hearts sank when they heard this.

Qin Yue wasn’t here.

So where was he?

There were no windows in this corridor, and they had no way of knowing what was going on outside.

Gu Zhan paused, then said, “Alright, step aside for now. We need to check the first floor ourselves.”

After their earlier conversation, the group had already confirmed that Gu Zhan and Xu Yu weren’t monsters, and their hostility had mostly faded.

However, they didn’t realize that in this game, danger didn’t only come from monsters. Sometimes, other players, who shared the same status, could pose even greater risks than the monsters.

The group stepped aside, and Gu Zhan and Xu Yu took a walk down the corridor.

The layout of these three floors was quite similar, with the difference being that the second and third floors housed monsters in varying degrees of mutation, while the first floor contained various functional rooms.

Gu Zhan found a monitoring room, and the machines inside were all running.

Through the monitoring screens, they could see the situation outside the building.

This was a white, three-story building situated on a small island, surrounded by lush vegetation and carefully cultivated flower beds and trees.

The island wasn’t large, and from the surveillance, it was clear that just a few dozen meters from the building was the coastline.

There were no other buildings on the island except for the main structure, though there was a door outside the building with an unclear purpose, resembling an entrance to a subway.

Gu Zhan quickly deduced, “The main research facility is underground.”

“Ah?” Xu Yu looked confused for a moment before quickly realizing, “We need to get out?”

Gu Zhan nodded.

Qin Yue should be in another building.

Now, the problem was figuring out how to get out.

“There’s a control room over here,” someone outside suddenly shouted.

Gu Zhan put down the monitor and moved toward the adjacent room.

Inside the control room, a large console nearly covered half the wall. Gu Zhan searched through it, finally finding the button for the main door.

However, they would need someone to press the button for them.

Gu Zhan had planned to leave Xu Yu in the control room.

But Xu Yu said, “There are so many people here. We can just ask anyone to help us press the button.”

Gu Zhan thought for a moment and agreed.

Together, they approached the main door and waved toward the dense row of surveillance monitors, signaling that they were ready.

The main door creaked open.

“It’s opening,” Xu Yu said, a little nervous.

As he spoke, the door slowly opened, and the hot, humid air from outside rushed in. The temperature was unbearable for humans. Even standing at the doorway for just a moment made them sweat lightly.

Gu Zhan looked up at the sun, deep in thought.

Xu Yu said, “We need to plan a route to quickly get to the next building. The sunlight is too intense, we’ll get sunburned if we stay out too long.”

Gu Zhan considered it and replied, “Look for some cover.”

They stepped back from the doorway and removed a few outer layers of their clothing.

The research facility uniforms were white windbreakers, which, when spread out, provided enough shade from the sun.

With this makeshift protection, they finally stepped out into the sunlight.

Despite their preparations, the heat from the ground still surprised them.

Without speaking much, Gu Zhan said, “Let’s move quickly,” and they rushed toward a nearby door.

The distance between the two buildings wasn’t far, and they reached the door quickly.

The door had some shade nearby, allowing them to rest and remove their coats temporarily.

At that moment, the door was tightly shut, with only a central screen glowing faintly.

Gu Zhan approached, and the screen began to recognize their faces automatically.

With a “ding” sound, the facial recognition was successful, and the door opened automatically.

“Detection successful for Research Institute 4-56 and 4-57. Identity verified, welcome to the Central Sea Research Lab.”

The door’s AI voice greeted them as they entered, and the cool air from the air conditioning swept over them.

The AI continued to introduce, “This is one of the top research institutes in the country, dedicated to enhancing human capabilities. The institute is divided into two sections: staff dormitories and the main laboratory.”

Behind the white door was a spacious, well-lit space.

Directly opposite the door was a corridor, and beyond the glass railing was a vast downward space.

At the bottom, various testing equipment was running.

From the glass railing, they had a clear view.

However, the place was eerily quiet—no one was around.

Xu Yu said, “The players are probably in the other building.”

Gu Zhan shook his head. “Even for a B-rank dungeon, it shouldn’t be this simple.”

They observed the area by the glass railing for a while, and Gu Zhan said, “Let’s go down and take a look.”

There were stairs on both sides, and they took the one on the right, heading down to the bottom of the building to approach the equipment.

Each button on the machines had a label explaining its function, such as “Open Door,” “Activate Gas System,” and “Switch Surveillance,” which seemed to be related to the dungeon.

Gu Zhan stopped in front of a screen and made a few adjustments. Soon, the entire layout of the adjacent dormitory building appeared on the screen.

On the second and third floors, various monsters were resting in their “cells.”

On the first floor, most people were gathered in a lounge, though a few others were walking the halls, either scouting around or patrolling.

Gu Zhan was about to change angles to get a better view when suddenly, a prompt popped up on the screen.

“Would you like to release poison gas into the staff dormitory? (Note: This gas is extremely lethal and will kill all monsters within five minutes.)”

Gu Zhan hesitated for a moment. Could he really wipe out the monsters in the dormitory with the gas?

If so, then clearing the dungeon would be as simple as breaking through the second and third floors to reach this research facility.

The poison gas had a history of use, and Gu Zhan looked at the records. It appeared to be used once every two or three days, with the most recent usage being twelve hours ago.

“Hm.” Gu Zhan clicked on the record from twelve hours ago and asked, “Do you think this might have been done by Qin Yue?”

Xu Yu leaned over to look. “The monsters in the dormitory didn’t die. His game session hasn’t been cleared yet.”

“You’re right.” Gu Zhan gave up on researching the gas and stood up straight. “Let’s check other areas.”

They began walking through the main laboratory. This space was much larger than the dormitory building, and although there were no above-ground structures, it extended deep underground.

Each room had a different function, all seemingly related to the monsters.

However, after seeing so much, it felt increasingly unsettling.

After all, based on the AI system’s introduction at the entrance, these monsters had been modified from humans.

“Gu Zhan, over here.”

Xu Yu’s voice came from not far away. Gu Zhan turned and saw him standing in front of a closed door, his brow furrowed.

"What's wrong?" Gu Zhan asked as he walked over.

Xu Yu knocked on the door and said, "There's someone inside."

They had already explored most of the main laboratory and hadn't found anyone.

Gu Zhan quickened his pace and approached the door. Indeed, faint sounds could be heard from behind the thick door.

It sounded like someone was quietly sobbing.

Xu Yu knocked again. "This door is thick and hard to open."

Gu Zhan glanced at him with a slightly helpless expression. "There’s a control panel in the central hall. We don’t need brute force."

Xu Yu paused, then cleared his throat in a pretended nonchalance, not saying anything further.

The two returned to the control panel and opened the door.

Back at the room's entrance, they saw Qin Yue huddled in the corner, tears streaming down his face.

He was clearly in a disturbed state, sitting on the floor with his head down, his face buried in his knees, occasionally muttering to himself.

Xu Yu was about to approach, but Gu Zhan stopped him with a firm hand.

Gu Zhan motioned for him to look behind Qin Yue, where something was rising and stirring.

It seemed to have been waiting for them to fall into its trap. Once it realized it had been spotted, it stopped pretending and leapt out from under Qin Yue’s clothes.

With a painful scream from Qin Yue, a pair of emaciated "wings" stretched out from beneath his clothing.

Though they were only about half a meter long and hadn't fully formed, they were already aggressive, reaching out toward Gu Zhan and Xu Yu.

Instead of feathers, these wings were covered in small, writhing tentacles. All of them were taut, seemingly trying to grab Gu Zhan and Xu Yu.

Qin Yue, in agony, screamed out!

It seemed he didn't recognize who was standing nearby, only reacting to the monstrous appendages tugging at him. He desperately held onto a nearby table, his body being pulled at an angle, unwilling to let go.

Xu Yu frowned at Gu Zhan, silently asking what to do next.

Gu Zhan carefully studied the wings and motioned for Xu Yu to draw his twin daggers.

"Do you see where the wings are connected? The base is weak, we can cut it there," Gu Zhan instructed.

Xu Yu was startled. "His SAN value must have already dropped below the human threshold for him to grow something like this. Can we really solve it this way?"

If it were that simple, then what about the humans who had transformed into monsters before...?

Gu Zhan replied, "His condition is different from others. Let’s try."

If it didn't work, he’d have to seal Qin Yue into his watch and treat him as a monster to take back.

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