Chen Ge stood in the moldy female dormitory room, the shattered remnants of the ballpoint pen scattered across the chair, his mind reeling from the Pen Spirit's cryptic answer and the unexpected surge in his livestream's popularity. When did the views hit 20,000? he wondered, recalling that only ten viewers were present at the stream's start, a stark contrast to the current frenzy.
He raised his phone toward the ceiling, hoping to catch a stronger signal, but the rural isolation of Mu Yang High School kept the connection weak, the video feed plagued by lag and black screens. The chat was a chaotic mess—one moment, comments refused to load, the next, a flood of messages overwhelmed the screen, their words blurring into an indecipherable jumble. The black phone's Pen Spirit mission, now complete, had pushed his viewership to a new record, but the ratio of 20,000 views to under 5,000 followers nagged at him, a reminder of the gap between fleeting curiosity and loyal support. Zhang Ya's crimson presence stirred, her "Yours forever" vow a spectral whisper, urging him to capitalize on this moment while warning that the remaining missions—Sealed Classroom, Deep Well, and Fifth Cubicle in the Toilet—could test his survival in ways even the Pen Spirit's eerie ritual hadn't.
Determined to engage his audience, Chen Ge used his phone to snap photos of the four white papers from the Pen Spirit game, their chilling questions—"When will I die?" "How will I die?" "Who will be the next to die?"—and the red circle on the blank sheet, stark against the dormitory's decay.
He panned the camera to the broken pen, its pieces a testament to the ritual's intensity, and spoke directly to his viewers:
"Can you see this? I played the Pen Spirit game until the pen itself broke apart! Aren't you going to follow me? I'm out here alone, no team, no fancy equipment, risking everything in this haunted school. My setup might not match Qin Guang's, and I can't even read your comments, but I'm bringing you the realest supernatural experience you'll ever see—one of a kind, impossible to replicate."
His voice carried a mix of pride and urgency, the black phone's weight in his pocket a reminder of the mission's stakes, tied to Fan Yu's haunting drawings and the woman's tale of the sealed classroom. Zhang Ya's mark flared in his eyes, her sadistic allure fueling his resolve as the follower count began to climb, his raw authenticity resonating despite the technical flaws.
The rising follower count was a small victory, but Chen Ge knew his livestream's appeal lay in its stark contrast to Qin Guang's polished production. While Qin Guang's team relied on scripts and hired actors to stage their haunted scenarios, Chen Ge's content was raw, unpredictable, and authentic, a direct result of the black phone's missions thrusting him into real supernatural dangers. Qin Guang's actor, no matter how convincing, couldn't match the visceral fear of Chen Ge's experiences, where even he didn't know what horrors awaited—whether in the sealed classroom or the deep well tied to Fan Yu's trauma.
The key to a successful livestream, he realized, was freshness and creativity, qualities his unscripted journey through Mu Yang High School's cursed grounds delivered in spades. "Thanks for the support," he said to his viewers, his voice steady despite the lingering unease from the Pen Spirit's "Zhang Ya" answer. "That was the Pen Spirit game—do not try this at home. Now, we're moving to the next location." Zhang Ya's crimson presence pulsed, her "Yours forever" vow a reminder that each mission was a step toward unlocking the School of the Afterlife scenario, where survival until dawn demanded he harness this popularity without losing focus.
Chen Ge's heart lifted as the livestream's popularity continued to climb, the view count a validation of the risks he was taking at Mu Yang High School. I can't see the chat, but rising numbers are a good sign, he thought, the boost in confidence tempering the dread of the three remaining side missions. Since the black phone required him to complete these tasks, turning them into livestream content was a strategic move, converting supernatural peril into public support for his Haunted House. The Pen Spirit mission's unexpectedly smooth completion, despite the pen's dramatic shattering and the unsettling "Zhang Ya" answer, gave him a surge of momentum.
He donned his raincoat, the storm outside still raging, and left the dormitory, its moldy air and eerie silence no longer holding answers. Three missions left: Sealed Classroom, Deep Well, and Fifth Cubicle in the Toilet, he mentally cataloged, the black phone's weight a constant reminder of the 11 p.m. deadline. Zhang Ya's sadistic whispers urged him forward, her presence a double-edged sword as he stepped into the rain, determined to make every moment count, both for the mission's survival and the livestream's growing audience.
Recalling the mission details, Chen Ge deduced that the Fifth Cubicle in the Toilet was likely in the education block, as the dormitory's toilets had only four cubicles, and the office building's layout likely mirrored it. He checked his phone: it was nearly 9 p.m., the Pen Spirit ritual having consumed more time than expected, leaving three hours until midnight. One hour per mission should be doable, he calculated, planning to complete the side missions quickly and find a safe corner to hide until dawn, as the black phone's survival directive loomed.
The education block loomed ahead, its charred facade more menacing in the storm's gloom, its blackened walls evoking not just an abandoned building but a giant coffin, housing the restless dead tied to the school's crematorium past. Zhang Ya's crimson allure surged, her "Yours forever" vow a warning that the building held secrets as deadly as the Pen Spirit's ritual, potentially linked to Fan Yu's drawings and the woman's haunted photo. Chen Ge gripped his flashlight, the beam his only guide as he entered, the weight of the remaining missions pressing against him.
The education block's interior was a labyrinth of shadows, the empty classrooms lining the corridor amplifying Chen Ge's unease as he moved cautiously, his flashlight sweeping the darkness. The Fifth Cubicle mission didn't specify which floor's toilet, meaning he'd need to check all three levels, a daunting task with time ticking toward midnight. The thought of passing through these deserted rooms at night sent a chill through him, his imagination conjuring visions of spectral figures—perhaps the faceless students from the woman's photo—lurking just beyond his beam. What if I turn and see something that shouldn't be here? The fear was visceral, heightened by the black phone's stakes and the memory of the Pen Spirit's chaotic end.
He hurried toward the first floor's toilet, his footsteps echoing in the silent corridor, the mallet in his hand a reassuring weight. Zhang Ya's presence pulsed, her sadistic whispers urging him to face the next mission head-on, the Fifth Cubicle in the Toilet a looming unknown that could either advance his progress or plunge him into the heart of Mu Yang High School's horrors, where survival until dawn hung in the balance.
Chen Ge stepped into the first-floor toilet of Mu Yang High School's education block, the air thick with the musty scent of neglect, the space miraculously spared from the fire that had ravaged the building's exterior years ago. The cracked flooring revealed tufts of weeds pushing through, a testament to the school's three-year abandonment, while brownish stains marred the walls, their origins unsettlingly ambiguous—perhaps rust, perhaps something worse.
The lone window creaked eerily in its frame, swayed by the storm raging outside, its sound a haunting counterpoint to the silence within. The black phone's Fifth Cubicle in the Toilet mission loomed large, its connection to Fan Yu's black-and-red drawings and the woman's tale of the sealed classroom amplifying the stakes of this night. Zhang Ya's crimson presence stirred, her "Yours forever" vow a spectral whisper urging him to stay focused, warning that the toilet's deceptive normalcy could hide horrors tied to the school's crematorium past. Chen Ge gripped his mallet tightly, the weight of the 11 p.m. deadline pressing against him, his flashlight's beam cutting through the gloom as he steeled himself for the mission, determined to survive until dawn in a place where every creak felt like a prelude to danger.
"Focus on the mission, there's no time to waste," Chen Ge muttered to himself, his voice barely audible over the rain's relentless patter, the black phone's directive to complete all four side missions—Pen Spirit, Fifth Cubicle, Deep Well, and Sealed Classroom—driving him forward. Each of the education block's toilets had six cubicles, their doors ravaged by time, most hanging ajar or broken entirely, allowing him to peer inside without touching them.
The state of disrepair was stark, with rusted hinges and chipped tiles, yet the preservation of the interior hinted at an unnatural force at play, perhaps tied to the school's haunted legacy. As he moved past the cubicles, his flashlight illuminated the grime-covered walls, the beam trembling slightly in his hand, a reflection of the tension coiling within him. Zhang Ya's mark flared in his eyes, her sadistic allure pushing him to proceed cautiously, the memory of the Pen Spirit's chaotic end—its shattered pen and cryptic "Zhang Ya" answer—reminding him that the Fifth Cubicle could unleash something equally unpredictable, demanding every ounce of his vigilance to navigate the school's growing menace.
Chen Ge paced past the first four cubicles, their interiors mundane despite the eerie atmosphere, but the fifth and sixth cubicles stopped him cold, their doors firmly shut. A gentle push revealed they were locked, a detail that sent a chill through him. Locked doors in an abandoned school?
The thought was absurd—Mu Yang High School had been deserted for three years, and no human could be occupying these cubicles. If something's in there, it's not human, he concluded, his grip on the mallet tightening as he recalled the forum tales of ghostly students and the woman's story of the sealed classroom's faceless figures.
The black phone's weight in his pocket felt heavier, its mission urging him to investigate, yet warning of the dangers lurking within. Zhang Ya's crimson presence pulsed, her "Yours forever" vow a reminder that the locked doors could conceal a spectral entity tied to the Fifth Cubicle mission, one that might test his survival. He steadied his breathing, the storm's howl outside amplifying the toilet's oppressive silence, and resolved to check the sixth cubicle first, hoping to rule it out before facing the fifth, where the mission's true horror likely awaited.
With a deep breath, Chen Ge swung his mallet at the sixth cubicle's door, the rusted lock giving way with a splintering crack, and the door flew open, unleashing a flurry of dark shapes that lunged toward him. "What is that‽" he shouted, leaping back, his heart pounding as he raised his flashlight to confront the assailants. Embarrassment washed over him as the beam revealed not spirits but a jumble of cleaning equipment—mops and brooms tumbling out in a chaotic heap.
The false scare left him shaken, a reminder of the school's ability to toy with his nerves. He shoved the cleaning tools back into the cubicle, checking the fifth and finding more of the same, confirming that the first floor's toilet held no supernatural secrets. The mission must be on another floor, he thought, the black phone's urgency spurring him on. Zhang Ya's sadistic whispers urged him to keep moving, her presence a double-edged sword as he exited the toilet, glancing back at the creaking cubicle doors, their motion like ghostly waves in the dim light, an effect he noted for his Haunted House, even as the mission's dangers loomed larger.
As Chen Ge stepped out of the first-floor toilet, the creaking doors behind him sent a shiver down his spine, their eerie motion like spectral hands bidding him farewell, a chilling detail he mentally cataloged for future Haunted House scenarios. He climbed the stairs to the second floor, the education block's oppressive atmosphere intensifying, the boarded-up window in the toilet plunging the space into near-total darkness. The lack of light heightened his sense of pressure, as if the room itself pressed against him, a sign that this might be the Fifth Cubicle mission's true location.
The toilet's layout mirrored the first floor's, but its preservation was uncanny, the tiles and fixtures less decayed, as if frozen in time. Zhang Ya's crimson allure surged, her "Yours forever" vow warning that this floor's toilet held secrets tied to the school's haunted past, perhaps linked to Fan Yu's drawings or the crematorium's legacy. Before he could check the first cubicle, footsteps echoed from the corridor outside, sharp and deliberate, cutting through the rain's drone.
Someone's out there, he thought, his pulse quickening, the sound too clear to be a trick of the storm, hinting at a presence that could complicate his mission.
Chen Ge ducked into a corner of the toilet, raising his mallet in a defensive stance, ready for an intruder—human or otherwise—to burst in. The footsteps paused, leaving only the rain's rhythm, and no one entered, but the interruption left him on edge.
The school's coming alive as midnight nears, he realized, the black phone's 11 p.m. deadline now less than two hours away, urging him to hurry. He pushed open the first four cubicles in quick succession, their interiors as unremarkable as the first floor's, but as he reached the fifth, the footsteps resumed, clearer now—two distinct sets, one heavy, one lighter, moving in tandem down the corridor.
The sound sent a chill through him, the black phone's weight a reminder of the Fifth Cubicle mission's stakes, potentially tied to the ghostly students or the deep well's secrets. Zhang Ya's presence pulsed, her sadistic whispers urging him to confront the fifth cubicle despite the approaching footsteps, the mission's completion critical to unlocking the School of the Afterlife scenario and surviving the night's escalating horrors.