Chapter 93 It's on fire, why are you still alive?
Thump, thump!
Heavy footsteps echoed in my ears, and the manager's roar drew closer: "I've found you—"
Fang Zhiyi and Chu Zhao huddled close to the door, hiding in one of the guest rooms, planning to wait for things to calm down before escaping. However, the manager was still there, and almost half an hour had passed without him showing any sign of leaving.
Bang!
A door on the side was smashed open.
"Not here..."
The manager grew increasingly agitated, pounding on the door, shaking the walls, and sending plaster and lime dust falling everywhere. "You can't escape!"
At this rate, it's only a matter of time before the manager finds them. And with the manager blocking their way in the corridor, they don't even have the option to escape.
To avoid attracting the manager's attention, Fang Zhiyi had already turned off the flashlight. Now, everything was dark except for a glimmer of light reflected in her amber eyes, faint yet resolute.
Since there's no way to escape, the only option is to find a way to get rid of the manager.
In the darkness, he felt Chu Zhao squeeze his hand, as if he had something to say.
He understood immediately and turned on the light screen.
A semi-transparent light screen appeared in their line of sight, and in the dim light, a private chat box popped up, containing a message from Chu Zhao.
They were separated from the manager by only a wall, and any noise they made would attract attention, so they could only communicate in this roundabout way.
[Chu Zhao: I'll distract him]
[Chu Zhao: You go first]
[fzy: What about you?]
[Chu Zhao: I will find a way to escape]
Fang Zhiyi blinked and rejected the suggestion without the slightest hesitation. [fzy: If we're going to leave, we'll leave together.]
[Chu Zhao: If we drag this out any longer, we'll be found.]
[fzy: There must be a way]
[fzy: Trust me]
Fang Zhiyi turned off the light screen, exchanged a glance with Chu Zhao, his eyes filled with determination. He stood up quietly and searched the room for anything he could use.
At the manager's command, the furniture in the room came to life and ran out, leaving the room in a mess, with sheets, duvet covers, and a jumble of documents scattered all over the floor.
In the dim light, nothing could be seen clearly, and fearing to attract the manager's attention, Fang Zhiyi dared not turn on the flashlight. Then, he had a sudden inspiration and turned on the light screen.
The light from the light screen was faint, but enough to illuminate the documents in front of it.
Hotel Feedback Form
The hotel staff are very concerned about this.
Fang Zhiyi looked at the options for "Opinions", "Good Reviews", and "Complaints" on the screen, stuffed a thin A4 sheet of paper into his pocket, picked up the telephone cord from the ground, and gave Chu Zhao a look.
The two people stood on opposite sides of the door, each holding a section of the telephone cord in one hand.
Footsteps approached from outside the door, accompanied by heavy breathing, and the manager's sinister voice rang out: "We've got you."
As soon as he finished speaking, the door blocking their way was ripped open. The manager's head was pressed against the door frame, his bloodshot eyes almost bulging out of their sockets as he stared intently at the figure inside the room.
The manager crushed the door in his hand and strode towards it. Halfway there, a telephone cord silently wrapped around his foot. The cord tightened, and he was caught off guard and bumped into it, stumbling forward and falling.
"Damn it!" the manager roared, waving his hands in mid-air trying to maintain his balance. But before he could even stand up, an A4 sheet of paper was slapped down on him. The words "rating," "opinions," and "complaint" were clearly visible, especially the word "complaint," which was bright red and eye-catching, awakening a shiver from the depths of his soul.
[The service was terrible; this is the worst hotel I've ever stayed in.]
I've never seen such terrible service.
Negative review, negative review, negative review...
The manager paused, "No—don't!" He panicked, grabbing the review sheet with both hands, trying to erase the negative review.
Tear.
The A4 paper split in the middle, and just as the negative review was falling apart, a cold light rushed towards me.
The manager's attention was completely focused on the negative review, and he didn't notice the approaching danger. His eyes widened as a hammer struck him squarely between the eyebrows, and a trickle of blood stained everything in his vision red.
[Seriously injured]
[Stamina-50]
The manager's body jolted, and his hand involuntarily loosened its grip. Behind him, another axe fell towards the back of his head.
[Stamina-50]
The manager's stamina instantly ran out, and he deflated rapidly like a punctured balloon, eventually turning into a wisp of white light and disappearing before our eyes.
You killed the manager.
[Received: 1 work badge, 1 access card, 1 map of hotel floors 40-50, 1 positive review card]
[Work badge]
Bringing it along can temporarily make you a hotel employee.
Access Card
[Open some mysterious doors]
[Positive Review Card]
Giving a waiter a good review might bring unexpected rewards.
Fang Zhiyi stuffed all the dropped items into his backpack.
After the manager was killed, the 70th floor returned to calm. Walking into the corridor, furniture was scattered all over the floor. Wardrobes, candlesticks, and clothes racks were piled up together, leaving no place to step.
Fang Zhiyi and Chu Zhao struggled to move the furniture blocking their way and successfully reached the 69th floor.
The 69th floor is a VIP lounge area, which has a different layout from the 70th floor. It includes a fitness area, a swimming area, and a large floor-to-ceiling window with a wide view overlooking the scenery below.
After spending a long time in a dimly lit environment, the sudden sight of an open view instantly refreshes the mind and body.
Fang Zhiyi pushed open the window, wanting to breathe in some fresh air, but unexpectedly, what she smelled was a burnt smell.
"Cough cough—" The smell of smoke was pungent, and I couldn't help but cough.
Chu Zhao closed the window, shutting out the outside air. Looking out, the street below was in chaos due to the power outage; the traffic lights at the intersection had stopped working, cars were jammed together, and the sounds of horns and brakes filled the air.
Fang Zhiyi rubbed her nose, her eyes slightly moist from the physical stimulation, and asked with a nasal voice, "What's wrong?"
Chu Zhao looked for a while and said, "It looks like it's on fire."
I just don't know where the fire started.
Fang Zhiyi had a bad feeling: "Could it be that the hotel is on fire?"
The Jiahua Hotel has a total of 88 floors, making it a standard super high-rise building. At such a height, even fire ladders cannot reach it, so there is no way to escape. If a fire breaks out in the hotel, the difficulty of escaping will be greatly increased.
Chu Zhao opened the window again.
The hotel's windows were not like ordinary windows; they could only be opened a crack. Peering through the crack, one could only see plumes of black smoke rising due to the angle, and it was impossible to determine where they were coming from.
He shook his head at Fang Yi.
Fang Zhiyi didn't hesitate for long: "Let's go."
【41:00:00】
The countdown was still decreasing, and there was no way to stop. Even if the fire really broke out, they could only close their eyes and rush in.
69th floor, 68th floor, 67th floor...
As I descended floor by floor, I finally reached the 66th floor when a thick cloud of smoke billowed out of the corridor. The pungent, burning fumes irritated my nasal mucosa, my chest tightened, my vision went black, and I couldn't even catch my breath.
Fang Zhiyi promptly lay down on the ground.
In a fire, the gases produced by combustion are toxic. Inhaling too much can easily lead to suffocation and unconsciousness, causing one to lose the ability to escape. After lying on the ground, the murky gas rose, and he could barely breathe. He turned to his side, took a towel and bottled water from the supermarket, wet the towel, covered his mouth and nose, and crawled forward to check the situation in the thick smoke.
There were no signs of fire on the 66th floor. The smoke was rising from downstairs. In the passageway between the 66th and 65th floors, the temperature in the air was clearly rising, and my palms felt scorching hot against the floor.
"hiss--"
Fang Zhiyi gasped as she was burned, her palm quickly turning bright red.
The heat was intense; even the towel pressed against my face was scalding hot. Every breath brought a stinging sensation, and my eyes were burning so badly I couldn't open them.
Fang had no choice but to retreat to the 66th floor.
I don't know how bad the fire is down there; it definitely can't go on like this.
The two returned to a place unaffected by the smoke, closed the door, and the temperature dropped.
Fang Zhiyi wiped his face, his hands were covered in black dirt, and tried to turn on the faucet in the bathroom. With a "whoosh", the tap water quickly flowed out.
Fortunately, only the power was cut off, not the water.
Fang Zhiyi splashed water on her face, turned on the tap on the bathtub, filled it about halfway with water, then took off the blanket from the bed and soaked herself in it.
The cotton wadding inside the quilt absorbed water and quickly swelled up, becoming damp and heavy.
They made another one in the same way. Fang Zhiyi put the soaking wet blanket on himself and said to Chu Zhao, "Let's go down and take a look first."
The fire spread very quickly; staying on the 66th floor would eventually lead to being engulfed in flames.
Staying here until the time is up will definitely lead to elimination, while going down might just result in being burned to death. It's better to take a gamble and see if we can break through the fire to a safe place before it gets completely engulfed.
Chu Zhao picked up a wet quilt and said, "I'll go see. I have a reputation for being heat-resistant."
Chu Zhao had experienced a world where high temperatures could reach 80°C. In order to survive in such a harsh environment, one had to adapt to high temperatures and flames.
This time, Fang Zhiyi did not refuse.
He knows what kind of person is suited for what kind of thing, so there's no need for him to be stubborn in this matter.
Chu Zhao switched to the nickname "Sunflower" and rushed into the 65th floor.
A faint halo surrounded him, and with the water stored in the blanket protecting him, his figure quickly disappeared at the entrance of the 65th floor.
About five minutes later, footsteps sounded again. Chu Zhao stood on the 65th floor and looked up. "The fire didn't start on the 65th floor; it started lower down."
As long as you avoid inhaling the toxic fumes, the 65th floor is safe for the time being.
Upon hearing his words, Fang Zhiyi immediately jumped down and also arrived at the 65th floor.
Chu Zhao led the way.
The 65th floor was shrouded in thick smoke, and the temperature gradually rose. Fang Zhiyi huddled under the covers to shield himself from the toxic smoke and high temperature, and quickened his pace as he crossed the corridor.
Smoke enveloped everything, blurring the view.
Fang Zhiyi's vision blurred as the wallpaper warped and peeled from the flames, footprints littered the floor, the air distorted, and black handprints appeared on the wall, as if they were making their final cry for help in despair.
"Help."
"I don't want to die."
"Help me!"
The cacophony of voices mingled together into one sentence: "Why are you still alive!"
The charred figure wriggled, its shadowy form appearing and disappearing in the smoke. Its withered, twisted hands reached out and frantically grabbed at the only two living people in the hotel.
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