034

Back in the neighborhood, Jiang Huali said goodbye to Zhou Cui.

Zhou Cui smiled and said, "Maybe we'll meet again soon."

Jiang Huali returned home following the memories of her character in the dungeon. The house was a bit messy and not very big, about fifty or sixty square meters.

Jiang Huali sat down on the sofa and opened the game's quest panel.

[Survival time: 1:58:06]

This mission doesn't seem too difficult.

She had been in this instance for almost two hours and hadn't encountered any supernatural events yet.

But sometimes, calm waters aren't necessarily a good thing.

Jiang Huali went to the bathroom to wash her face, and when she returned to the living room, she suddenly felt a little sleepy.

Sleepiness washed over her, her eyelids grew heavier and heavier, and she accidentally drifted off to sleep.

Half an hour later, the person lying on the sofa suddenly opened their eyes.

She sat up, her expression somewhat obscured in the dim living room. She reached for a plastic bag on the coffee table and took out a bag of Chinese medicine.

She tore open the bag of Chinese medicine and was about to put it to her mouth.

Just as the foul-smelling liquid was about to touch her lips, her movements suddenly stopped.

Seemingly enduring immense pain, she was struggling.

Finally, the bag of Chinese medicine in his hand fell to the ground with a "thud," hitting the edge of the coffee table. The liquid was squeezed out and splashed onto the floor.

She stood up, unmoved by the splashes of medicine on her clothes, and walked towards the door.

The moment the door opened, light flooded in.

It illuminated the fleeting darkness in her eyes.

-

"Many residents have died in this neighborhood recently."

Qi Man spoke to her teammates as she walked.

Qi Feng said absentmindedly, "Sister, don't be afraid, I'll kill every ghost that comes."

Qi Man's eye twitched. "This isn't our destination."

Yin Mengshu held a compass in her hand, a guiding tool that could lead them to the location of the core.

"Let's go."

Xin Mingqing, who had been silent, spoke up.

-

Jiang Huali was completely stunned. She and the system trembled in the corner as she watched her body leave the residential area, take a taxi, and arrive at the entrance of the private hospital she had visited that afternoon.

She tripped over a stone on the roadside as she got off the bus.

Jiang Huali: 【…What am I doing? Is this part of the original story?】

The system is querying: [Hmm... This plot does exist in the original work. In this instance, the original owner and the main characters reached the core of the instance, and the original owner destroyed the core just as they were about to obtain it.]

It seems the core of this instance is in this hospital.

In the previous world, because the target of the mission didn't have much of a role in the "original work," Jiang Huali didn't feel the limitations of the plot.

"Is the core so easily destroyed?" Jiang Huali asked.

The original owner gave the core to the dungeon's final boss.

"...So now I need to find the core and give it to the dungeon boss?"

That's theoretically correct.

When Jiang Huali regained control of her body, she was already standing in front of the stairs leading to the second floor.

It was already getting dark; according to the game's time, it was 6:30 PM.

Jiang Huali entered the instance at 3 PM.

She could feel a resistance forcing her to follow the "plot".

Jiang Huali touched her wrist. Since that's the case, let's go see what's on the second floor.

With no one around, Jiang Huali crossed the cordon and headed upstairs.

Jiang Huali wasn't sure if it was just her imagination, but as she stepped onto the stairs leading to the second floor, she felt as if the surroundings had suddenly darkened.

As Jiang Huali walked up to the second floor, she looked at the scene before her, her palms sweating slightly.

The second floor has no windows, no balcony, and not even... a light.

The second floor has rooms with closed doors on both sides, and a long corridor in the middle.

The only source of light was a paper lotus lantern placed in front of the tightly closed door of each room.

A red candle was lit inside the lotus lantern, which was placed quietly on the ground, and the light it emitted was somewhat eerie in this environment.

There was no such discarded medical equipment as Dr. Ouyang described.

Jiang Huali slowed her pace and walked slowly along the corridor.

She held her breath slightly, for no other reason than the incense and candle smell in the corridor was too strong, so strong that it made her uncomfortable.

The lotus lanterns in front of the doors made her cautious, and she dared not enter rashly.

Suddenly, voices came from the darkness.

"We've just received another batch of goods... You won't be disappointed... If you're not in a hurry to choose... the underground area... a performance..."

Jiang Huali frowned, her heart pounding faster. Footsteps came from not far behind her. She pressed herself against the walls on either side and carefully moved forward.

It's too dark here; even with lotus lanterns, you can't see the way. However, the advantage for Jiang Huali is that she might not be discovered by the people coming.

Because the visitors also did not light any lamps.

Although it was a bit strange, Jiang Huali breathed a sigh of relief.

The footsteps grew closer, and Jiang Huali lowered her head, staring at the feet that were barely visible in the darkness.

Suddenly, her forearm was grabbed.

The door next to her opened silently at some point, and a strong hand pulled her behind it.

"!"

Jiang Huali stared wide-eyed until the door was closed silently.

The room was very dark; you couldn't see your hand in front of your face.

Only after the footsteps faded away from the door did the person who had been holding her in the darkness release her grip.

"It's me."

Some familiar voices came from inside.

Jiang Huali asked uncertainly, "...Zhou Cui?"

The man chuckled and seemed to move away from Jiang Huali. A few seconds later, the room suddenly became as bright as day.

Jiang Huali subconsciously covered her eyes with her hand.

When she could finally see her surroundings clearly, she couldn't help but exclaim to the system, "This dungeon is truly... full of elements!"

This was a fairly large room, crammed with more than twenty children.

These children all have white hair and light skin, and they are all wearing white clothes. Each piece of clothing has a number on the left chest.

The children watched Jiang Huali with wide, curious eyes, without saying a word.

The room's lighting fixture was a luminous pearl the size of an ostrich egg.

The luminous pearl was placed on a table in the center of the room, with thick black cloth piled up next to it.

Clearly, the luminous pearl was covered by a black cloth when she was pulled in.

Moreover, what is striking is that there are more than a dozen bunk beds arranged neatly on both sides of the room, and a cross is placed above the luminous pearl.

The room was actually dark and gloomy, but the bright light from the luminous pearl made it less scary.

“These children are all ‘experiments’.”

Zhou Cui, who was standing to the side, suddenly spoke up.

Experimental subject?

Jiang Huali looked at Zhou Cui and asked first, "How did you know it was me outside?"

Zhou Cui smiled and tapped her nose. "I told you, my nose is very sensitive."

Jiang Huali agreed, "Indeed."

Even through the door, I could smell her scent amidst the pungent smell of incense and candles; her nose is truly remarkable.

"Thank you for bringing me into this." Jiang Huali looked at Zhou Cui. "What's this about the experimental subjects you just mentioned?"

Zhou Cui said, "My identity here is that of a doctor's sister. My older sister worked at this hospital and suddenly passed away a few days ago."

“I found her work log at home, and the contents were all related to the human experiments that this hospital was secretly conducting.”

As Zhou Cui spoke, she seemed to remember something, "Oh, she was buried in the cemetery next to the hospital."

"So I came to take a look." Zhou Cui shrugged. "You came to this hospital for a checkup today, right? The medicine you got is the result of their experiments."

Jiang Huali recalled the foul-smelling, herbal liquid-like substance and felt a churning sensation in her stomach.

Fortunately, she didn't drink it while she was being restrained, otherwise she would probably be vomiting uncontrollably now.

According to Zhou Cui, this hospital has been secretly conducting human experiments. They extract something from the experimental subjects and then make it into medicine to sell to patients.

This hospital is expensive, but many people come here because it is very effective in treating certain diseases.

The original owner was one of them.

This room, located near the end of the corridor, is one of the living quarters for the experimental subjects, but the other rooms on the second floor are reserved for "VIPs".

Therefore, Jiang Huali was right not to rush into those rooms.

"Those lotus lanterns?" Jiang Huali asked.

Zhou Cui said nonchalantly, "Maybe it's because I've done too many bad things, and I'm using it to ward off evil spirits, don't you think?"

These children all know they are experimental subjects, but what good does it do them? They can't escape from here.

When Zhou Cui arrived, she also encountered danger. It was only by being pulled in by them that she avoided a direct confrontation with the hospital staff.

A little girl was staring at Jiang Huali. When Jiang Huali looked at her, she hesitated for a moment, then reached out a small hand and gently took Jiang Huali's hand, revealing an innocent smile.

"Sister, you are so beautiful."

Jiang Huali reached out and touched the little girl's hair.

While Jiang Huali and Zhou Cui were exchanging information, footsteps suddenly sounded outside again.

The children were clearly nervous this time. They pushed Jiang Huali and Zhou Cui under the bed to hide them, and then returned to their own beds.

The door opened, and several people in white coats walked in.

They were all wearing masks. They pointed to a few children and said in a cold voice, "You, you, and you, come with me."

The child who was called on dared not resist, quickly got off the bed, and walked to the person in the white coat.

Jiang Huali observed them through the crack until they left the room and the door was closed.

The little girl was also taken away.

Jiang Huali and Zhou Cui exchanged a glance and came out from under the bed.

The other children just watched them without saying a word.

Jiang Huali touched a child's pale cheek, instructed them to cover the luminous pearl, and then she and Zhou Cui opened the door and slipped out of the room.

Both of them used invisibility items to quietly follow the group of people in white coats.

They walked to the end of the corridor, felt around on the wall, and a device popped out. After pressing the switch, an entrance appeared there.

Entering through the entrance, there are stairs leading down.

After passing through several doors, a cacophony of cheers erupted as the last door opened.

Jiang Huali and Zhou Cui looked ahead and saw what looked like a huge performance hall. Many audience members were sitting in their seats, and on the stage, a clown was grinning and performing for these distinguished guests.

Unusually, the red carpet on the stage was an excessively dark color, resembling dried blood at first glance.

The clown on stage was still performing energetically, while the audience below had unnaturally flushed faces and cheered from time to time.

"Tonight, we will have a special program performance, and we would like to extend our greetings once again to our guests from afar—"

Welcome to the underground carnival!

"I hope you have a wonderful evening here!"