Chapter 3: Mission Start, the Horror Behind the Door

Chapter 3: Mission Start, the Horror Behind the Door

Ji Yan had guessed it wouldn’t be so simple.

But after hearing Liu Yitong’s words, his expression still darkened.

What kind of monstrous thing lived inside Room 101?

"Good luck to you."

"Hope I’ll still see you at dinner tonight."

Liu Yitong had never seen such an unlucky newcomer before.

Leaving behind a feeble encouragement, she also left the apartment, hurrying to complete her own mission.

As fellow players, giving a kind warning was already going above and beyond.

Finding a way to survive would still be up to him.

Ji Yan pondered for a moment before turning and leaving the apartment as well.

No matter what, he still had to investigate Room 101—he couldn’t be scared off by just a few words.

Following the location Liu Yitong had mentioned, Ji Yan quickly made his way through the filthy hallway and soon reached the first floor of the apartment.

Outside Room 101, two other players had been waiting for some time.

"What, another newcomer?" Vest Man glanced at Ji Yan emerging from the hallway, slightly surprised.

"Clean clothes, clear eyes—definitely a rookie," Middle-Part Man remarked, arms crossed, yawning.

Ji Yan remained silent.

Upon noticing Ji Yan was a newcomer, Vest Man and Middle-Part Man exchanged a knowing look.

This kind of clueless rookie was easy to manipulate.

In the apartment, tricking new players into scouting danger zones was an unwritten rule among veterans...

"Newbie, I’ve dealt with the resident of Room 101 a few times. If you want to live, listen to me. I don’t mind guiding a rookie," Vest Man offered.

"Then I’ll leave it to you."

Ji Yan nodded calmly.

He wasn’t blind—he’d caught the look they’d exchanged.

In a place like the Eerie World, where everyone was fighting to survive, who had the time to help others for no reason?

He hadn’t even fully trusted Liu Yitong’s words.

Moreover, judging by their relaxed demeanor, it seemed they had no idea how dangerous Room 101 really was?

Ji Yan’s eyes gleamed. With his advantage in information, perhaps he could use these two to gauge just how deep the waters inside the room ran.

The three at the door hadn’t even stepped inside yet, but each already harbored their own schemes.

Creak—

The door to Room 101 slowly opened, revealing a man’s head. His hollow, lifeless eyes fixed on the three of them.

"We’re here to—" Vest Man took a step forward, about to state their purpose, but was cut off.

"Here for the mission. I know."

"Come in first. There’s a queue."

With that, the White-Clothed Man stepped aside, pulling the door open.

Facing the abyss-like darkness inside, the three exchanged glances before mustering their courage and stepping in.

But just as Ji Yan was the last to enter, he suddenly felt a sharp sting at his waist. Looking down, he realized he’d been injected with something!

As the White-Clothed Man expressionlessly withdrew the needle, Ji Yan tried to speak—but the next moment, the world spun, and darkness swallowed him.

......

He didn’t know how much time had passed.

A bone-chilling cold jolted Ji Yan awake. When he opened his eyes, he found himself in a pitch-black room.

If it could even be called a room—it was more like an icy prison cell!

Dim. Damp.

Chains. Shackles!

A metal table covered in unspeakable "torture tools."

Ji Yan tried to move but found his hands and feet shackled with chains. Turning his head, he saw the other two accompanying players had suffered the same fate.

The white-clothed man who had opened the door was now sitting on the filthy floor.

He was eating a plate of mushy, liquid-like food while staring at them with unsettling eyes.

"What the hell is this?"

"We're tenants! You're violating the apartment rules—do you know the consequences? Unlock these damn shackles now!"

Vest Man and Middle-Part Man yanked at the chains, shouting at the white-clothed man.

Even as veteran players, they were completely baffled—this was the first time they'd encountered such an absurd mission start.

Get injected the moment they step in.

Wake up already chained.

What kind of messed-up game was this?

The white-clothed man remained silent, calmly watching Vest Man and Middle-Part Man scream as he ate.

Only Ji Yan stayed quiet, swiftly scanning their surroundings.

In several corners, he spotted shriveled, doll-like figures...

No—those weren’t dolls. They were corpses!

Drained of flesh and blood, leaving only a thin layer of skin clinging to the bones, appearing almost weightless...

Clearly, these were former players.

Ji Yan’s expression darkened. This matched exactly what Liu Yitong had described.

Once Vest Man and Middle-Part Man had shouted themselves hoarse, the white-clothed man stopped eating and asked, "Finished?"

Before they could respond, the white-clothed man suddenly stood up, pulling a knuckle duster from his pocket and slipping it on.

Then, without warning, he smashed it into Middle-Part Man’s skull—once, twice, the spikes piercing through bone, blood splattering.

Thud—squelch—thud—squelch—

Soon, the scene was a gory mess. Middle-Part Man was officially "logged out."

The white-clothed man turned to Vest Man and asked, "Can you be quiet now?"

Vest Man, pale-faced, nodded.

Wiping blood from his face, the white-clothed man sneered, "Pathetic. A little blood and you fold."

A little blood?! His brains are splattered everywhere!

Ji Yan stared at the white-clothed man, wondering—Is this the master of Room 101?

But the next second, the man spoke again: "Let me introduce myself. I’m Cheng Fang, a player living in Room 101."

Both of them froze.

This guy, who had just coldly bashed someone’s skull in without a second thought, was also a player?

Noticing their shocked expressions, Cheng Fang waved a hand, feigning helplessness. "Don’t look at me like I’m some psycho. I’m just a poor worker stuck in a bad job."

"Killing him? First, to shut you up."

"Second, that Supernatural entity doesn’t like skinny ones—no nutrients. I have to filter out the low-quality stock."

Hearing these absurd reasons, Vest Man instinctively glanced at Ji Yan, as if to say, Isn’t this guy just as skinny?

Cheng Fang also looked at Ji Yan. "He’s quiet."

Ji Yan: "..."

"I’ll keep it short. It’s simple."

"See that room behind me? Go in, come out, and your mission’s done."

Vest Man’s expression screamed, You think we’re idiots?

Ji Yan finally spoke up: "Going in is easy. Coming out... probably not so simple, right?"

Cheng Fang didn’t mince words, pointing at the shriveled corpses in the corner: "If you can’t make it out, you’ll end up like them."

"Don’t worry, though. My job is to handle the bodies. If you don’t come back, I’ll try to bury you in a nicer spot."

"If you serve the supernatural entity inside well, not only will you leave alive, but you’ll also get the mission item you want."

As he spoke, the door behind him creaked open slightly.

Cheng Fang quickly stood up and hurried toward the passageway, putting on an obsequious smile outside the room: "Master, are you satisfied?"

From the pitch-black room came a voice both alluring and languid: "Inferior goods."

"Keep screening and sending them in until I’m satisfied."

"Understood, right away!"

As he spoke, Cheng Fang dragged out another shriveled corpse from the room and carefully closed the door.

Piling the withered body in the corner, he turned to Ji Yan and the other man: "See? This is what happens if you don’t make it out."

"And you’re unlucky—that entity’s desires are unusually high today."

"Five have already been sent in, and it’s still not satisfied. Now it’s your turn."

"Who’s going first?"

"Fuck! What kind of bullshit mission is this? It’s just walking to your death! Let me the hell out—I’m abandoning this mission!"

By now, Vest Man finally grasped just how twisted this mission was, his emotions boiling over.

"Abandon? The moment you stepped through that door, the mission was locked in."

"Once a mission starts, there’s no backing out. Whatever happens to players during the mission doesn’t count as breaking the apartment’s rules."

Wiping blood from his hands, Cheng Fang smirked. "It’s not necessarily hopeless. There’ve been successful cases before. Sure, that guy was nearly drained dry, but at least he left alive."

Unlike Vest Man, who was screaming and only thinking of escape, Ji Yan asked quietly, "So, what exactly is that entity inside?"

"What kind of entity? I don’t know."

"All I know is that female entity has bottomless desires every day. Men aren’t just her nourishment—they’re her cravings."

"Isn’t that just a succubus?"

Vest Man broke out in a cold sweat.

Cheng Fang sneered. "A measly succubus would just wreck your kidneys."

"The one in there? She’ll drain you dry—everything but your skin and bones!"