Chapter 107: The Dragon's Plan, The Tiger's Crushing Defeat

Chapter 107: The Dragon's Plan, The Tiger's Crushing Defeat

Drip.

Blood trickled from the tip of the scalpel.

The Horse-Faced Doctor wiped his glasses clean and put them back on. Paired with his long face, the sight was oddly unsettling—like a reformed bandit turned doctor.

"A doctor riddled with infection."

"This is the price the Zodiac Goat pays for becoming the [Chief Doctor]. No wonder none of the previous Goat Players ever cleared the second phase of the Instance Plot."

"After all, which player would dare kill even a Supernatural Doctor?"

The Horse Player said with a grin.

Ji Yan didn’t understand the point of his words.

He remained wary of every player.

"Now that your patient is calmed down, I’ll take my leave if there’s nothing else."

Ji Yan waved his hand and prepared to slip away.

"Xu Jiaojiao took me two whole days to pacify."

"Thanks to your interference, it’s back to square one."

Hearing the Horse Player’s words, Ji Yan sighed helplessly. "To be honest, I’m a victim here too."

"I don’t care about such trivial matters. Right now, the only one I’m interested in is you."

The sudden remark made Ji Yan’s skin crawl. He never expected to be on the receiving end of cheesy pickup lines from a man.

Of course, Ji Yan could discern the Horse Player’s true meaning.

The "interest" wasn’t in him as a person—but in the Sheepskin Scroll in his possession!

Unbelievable.

Just how valuable was this Sheepskin Scroll that everyone was eyeing it?

"I have to admit, you’re far more capable than we anticipated. You dismantled every single trap the Dragon Player set for you."

"But what comes next is the real climax. He’ll still be coming after you relentlessly."

Ji Yan listened, then countered, "Oh? So you’re not on his side?"

The Horse Player replied, "We’re adversaries."

Ji Yan smirked silently, as if to say, Do you really expect me to believe that?

"Goat Doctor, I know you don’t trust me. But after today, the [Main Plot] will inevitably begin, and your troubles will only multiply."

"Right now, you’re completely in the dark about the Main Plot, why the Dragon Player is targeting you, and why he’s so desperate for the Sheepskin Scroll in your hands."

"That’s your greatest disadvantage."

"But we can give you the answers."

Ji Yan frowned slightly and stopped in his tracks.

He studied the Horse Player, who removed his surgical gloves. "How about coming with me to a certain place?"

"Don’t worry, it’s broad daylight."

"And since we’re not in a Mission, players are forbidden from harming each other. You even dared to kill the Goat Supernatural Doctor—surely you’re not afraid I’ll eat you?"

Without waiting for a response, the Horse Player turned and walked away.

Curiosity was human nature.

After a moment’s consideration, Ji Yan followed.

It was true. After his promotion to [Chief Doctor], he knew nothing about the third phase of the plot.

With zero information, he’d be at the Dragon Player’s mercy—an unbearable thought.

The two moved single-file down a hidden passage.

Soon, they arrived at a large ward filled with elderly Supernatural Patients.

Judging by their conditions, most suffered from symptoms like "Alzheimer’s Disease." Some even had the minds of children, happily playing with building blocks despite their aged bodies.

Ji Yan was taken aback.

The [Emergency Building] had a place like this?

Even more astonishing was the fact that when he checked the basic information of these Supernatural Patients, he discovered that all of them had already been "conquered" by players!

What kind of powerhouse could manage to win over this group of notoriously difficult elderly patients from the Emergency Building?

The Horse Player entered and sat to the side. Soon, another player appeared in Ji Yan’s line of sight—a man with half his face wrapped in bandages, snow-white hair, and dressed in a white coat. He had a handsome face and appeared to be around thirty years old.

The moment he arrived, all the Eccentric Old Men and Eccentric Old Women crowded around him, addressing him as "Tiger Doctor" in unison.

The Tiger Doctor remained calm and composed, soothing these Supernatural Patients before finally making his way toward Ji Yan.

The Horse Player leaned against the wall, yawning lazily. "Brought the Goat."

The Tiger Player stared at Ji Yan’s bloodstained clothes. "What happened to you?"

The Horse Player gestured toward Ji Yan. "Ask the Goat Doctor here."

"..."

Ji Yan spoke coolly, "Let’s get straight to the point. I don’t have much time."

The Tiger Player smiled amiably. "Since you agreed to come with Old Horse to see me, you must have your own questions. Why don’t you ask first? What do you want to know?"

Ji Yan raised an eyebrow, surprised by the directness. Without hesitation, he asked, "Why is that Dragon Player so fixated on obtaining the Sheepskin Scroll in my possession?"

"From what I know, he wants to tell a massive lie—though I don’t know what it is."

The Tiger Player pulled up a chair and sat down. "But you’re aware of the Privilege of the Sheepskin Scroll, right? Once a lie deceives its target, that lie becomes reality!"

"And it’s not just the Lies Parchment he wants—he’s after the Truth Parchment as well."

"But the only way to seize a Supernatural Artifact is by killing another player. Plus, players can’t 'conquer' Supernatural Doctors belonging to other Zodiac signs."

"That’s why he’s been waiting all this time—waiting for a Zodiac Goat player to pass the Death Trial, get promoted to Chief Doctor, and possess both parchments."

"You could say he’s been waiting since the Undead Hospital Instance first opened. And now, finally, you’re the first to break the Instance Progress for Zodiac Goat and become Chief Doctor."

Ji Yan, however, noticed a flaw in the logic. "That doesn’t add up."

"You said he’s been waiting since the Instance began, meaning he’s survived for nearly two hundred days."

"But the Instance forces the plot forward every day. How could he stay in the Instance for so long?"

"Normally, it’d be impossible."

"But if someone deliberately stalls at a certain plot point, preventing progression, then the player can repeat that same plot daily, effectively extending their survival time in the Instance."

The Tiger Player continued, "That guy was the first to enter the Main Plot of the Undead Hospital—a plot involving the Instance’s ultimate boss, the Hospital Director."

"He used some method to put the Supernatural Hospital Director into a deep slumber, effectively freezing the Main Storyline Task."

Ji Yan’s eyes widened slightly.

You could play it like that?

"Because he stalled the Main Plot, all subsequent players have been stuck, unable to progress."

"And the only way to clear this Instance and leave is by completing the Main Plot."

"We’re like birds trapped in a cage—either die or remain stuck forever."

The one who spoke this time was the Horse Player, who had somehow produced a cigarette and was now lazily puffing on it.

Hearing this, Ji Yan fell into deep thought.

In other words, since the Undead Hospital was opened, not a single player has ever cleared it and left!

Everyone has to be eliminated to escape this instance.

Ji Yan frowned and asked, "What’s wrong with that Dragon Player?

He doesn’t want to clear the instance himself, yet he’s blocking the way for other players?"

The Tiger Player replied in a low voice, "The reason he’s stubbornly clinging to this instance is that he doesn’t want to endlessly enter new instances and face unknown dangers and torment."

"He wants to turn the Undead Hospital into his own controlled instance—a paradise exclusive to him."

"That way, he can truly stay in this instance forever, with all the Supernatural Entities obeying him, and the instance rules no longer binding him."

"He’s almost completed the puzzle for this goal."

"The only missing piece now is the two Sheepskin Scrolls in your hands!"

The Tiger Player coughed twice as he spoke.

Hearing this, Ji Yan couldn’t help but ask, "Has no player resisted? Tried to kill him?"

"There was—me, for example."

The Tiger Player smiled faintly.

But his smile was bitter.

"From the moment I entered this instance, I fought against him, but in the end, I suffered a crushing defeat… Now, I can only hide here, relying on the protection of these elderly Supernatural Entities to barely survive."

"And for that, I ended up like this."

The Tiger Player lifted his white coat.

Ji Yan’s eyes twitched slightly—because the other man’s chest was hollow, his Heart nowhere to be seen…