Lu Yan's tone was very calm, as if he were merely asking about something completely mundane.
With his ear pressed against the phone, Yu Deng heard Lu Yan's question and felt a bit confused. "Doing what? I'm just talking to you on the phone."
Yu Deng was slightly worried, suspecting that his diligent desk mate might have fried his brain from studying too hard. Otherwise, why would he ask such an obvious question?
"Lu Yan, have you been studying so much you've gotten confused?"
On the other end of the call, Lu Yan, though questioned, was clearly cheered up by Yu Deng's remark. He didn't deny Yu Deng's outlandish guess and responded softly, "I'll be there soon."
"Oh… well, hurry up then," Yu Deng said, hanging up the call after giving his instructions.
Lin Qinxu, who had only briefly regained Yu Deng's attention during the phone call, became the focus again as it ended. He clicked his tongue lightly. "…That boy had better not let me catch him using communication devices on campus again."
Yu Deng: "?" What is he talking about?
Lin Qinxu didn't answer and instead leaned in to lightly suck at the side of Yu Deng's neck, leaving a faint red mark on the smooth, delicate skin.
Yu Deng turned around, tilting his head slightly upward, and glared at Lin Qinxu fiercely. "I told you to stop biting me!"
"I didn't bite," Lin Qinxu defended himself. "I just… touched it."
Yu Deng didn't really believe the doctor's excuse and stared at him suspiciously.
Knock, knock.
The office door was knocked on—Lu Yan had arrived.
As the door swung open, Lin Qinxu was still holding Yu Deng, his rough fingertips brushing against Yu Deng's collarbone, drawing another soft hum from the spoiled classmate.
It was the exact same sound as the one on the phone just now.
The frustration and jealousy Lu Yan had managed to suppress surged back with a vengeance. He feigned composure, releasing his grip on the slightly deformed doorframe, and first greeted Yu Deng. Then, with a cold glance at Lin Qinxu, he said, "It seems inappropriate for a doctor and a patient to maintain such close proximity."
Lin Qinxu responded with a gentle smile, his tone laced with provocation.
"But Yu Deng is also my little assistant and helped me out a lot just now. Naturally, I returned the favor with a token of appreciation." He turned to Yu Deng for confirmation, adding, "Isn't that right, darling?"
Darling?
Lu Yan clenched his fists, barely managing to control his emotions.
Yu Deng, however, simply looked up at the two men who started bickering the moment they met and earnestly answered Lin Qinxu while emphasizing, "I guess so… but I'm not entirely satisfied with it."
Lin Qinxu's smile deepened as he deliberately replied ambiguously, "My apologies, I was too rough this time. I'll be more careful next time."
Lu Yan: "…" Wonderful.
The main system emitted faint, frantic static noises, clearly on edge.
After a few seconds of silence, Lu Yan reached out and scooped up the dazed beauty still nestled in the school doctor's arms.
"Deng Deng, if we don't head back now, the dorm lights will go out," Lu Yan coaxed the person in his arms gently. "I promise I won't break your bed again tonight."
Lin Qinxu: "…" Tch. What did this brat do?
The two brooding rivals exuded equally oppressive and dark auras that clashed in the air, momentarily distorting the space around them. Were it not for Yu Deng's presence, things might have turned far uglier.
The two competing males glared at each other with mutual disdain before reluctantly averting their gazes, focusing instead on Yu Deng.
"Oh, right, we need to head back to the dorms. Let me pack my stuff first," Yu Deng said as he nodded in realization under their watchful eyes. He shuffled over to the desk and began hastily shoving the messy pile of documents into his backpack.
Seeing the stack of documents he had sneakily taken earlier, Yu Deng's head began to ache again.
He felt utterly exhausted from pushing the plot forward, but fortunately, he had done it correctly in the end. Otherwise, he might have fainted on the spot.
But... did his mission targets know about these things?
Yu Deng was a little doubtful. He turned around to glance at the two of them.
Lin Qinxu's expression remained calm, as if he had already guessed what Yu Deng was trying to piece together while organizing the clues. Meanwhile, Lu Yan looked at the information for a few seconds before nodding indifferently and saying softly, "So that's how it is."
Huh? Were they not surprised at all? Was it because other students also knew the truth, or were these two just particularly special?
Yu Deng mulled over it for a few seconds before deciding to leave the question for his future self to answer. He had already done enough thinking for today!
That said, as he glanced around, he noticed a subtle change in Lu Yan's presence—and the same was true for Dr. Lin.
The refined young man stood quietly by Yu Deng's side, while the school doctor waited patiently. Both exuded a scholarly elegance, though Lin Qinxu carried the poise of someone older and more experienced, always able to effortlessly charm naïve students like Yu Deng into confusion. On the other hand, Lu Yan's cunning was more youthful and less polished.
Now, their unique traits seemed even more pronounced. Their obsession with Yu Deng became increasingly evident, while their regard for everything else seemed to fade into indifference.
Of course, Yu Deng couldn't put it into words. He simply felt intuitively that there was something subtly different about them.
"Let's go; we'll be late if they turn off the lights," Yu Deng said, shaking his head to clear his thoughts.
"Heading back already?" Lin Qinxu watched as Lu Yan carried Yu Deng on his back. His arm muscles tightened slightly as he barely managed to restrain his emotions.
Yu Deng didn't understand why he sounded so reluctant. "Of course, I still need to rest."
"...Alright, see you tomorrow," Lin Qinxu finally said, suppressing his emotions and refraining from forcing Yu Deng to stay.
Yu Deng waved politely at him. "Bye-bye. I'm heading back to the dorm now."
---
As soon as Yu Deng stepped out of the school doctor's office, he realized how much the second stage of the dungeon had changed.
Everything had become so eerie. Most of the streetlights were no longer lit, a faint mist filled the air, and the temperature had dropped noticeably.
The surrounding buildings were a dull gray, strange noises echoed sporadically, and the students they passed on the road looked vacant, like walking corpses.
In the livestream chat, comments finally started flooding in again after three hours of blackout. The viewers, who had been waiting patiently for so long, were shocked by the sudden reveal of the dungeon's new phase.
[Holy crap, I was gone for three hours, and Baby's already pushed the dungeon into the second stage!!??]
[Baby is the best!!!]
[This environment is seriously creepy—like, not the usual violent gore, but just outright spine-chilling.]
[Looks like it's another death trap. To clear it, you have to figure out the dungeon's backstory, but doing so triggers the second stage, which makes things even more dangerous.]
[I'm just worried about whether our beloved Baby got bullied by those bad men again. Why are his eyes red like this? And what's with that expression? (Enraged)]
Yu Deng had no idea what the audience was wailing about. On his way back to the dormitory building, he encountered a girl dressed in a black shirt.
When she saw them, it was as if she had finally found her target. She slowly approached, her hoarse voice directed at Yu Deng:
"Tell me... why is it that no matter how hard I try, I never get any results? Are you a top student? Could you lend me your brain?"
She walked closer, her hand outstretched. When she approached, Yu Deng finally realized that it wasn't a black shirt she was wearing—it was a white shirt stained black with blood.
Yu Deng couldn't hold back his tears and began to cry with a soft plop. Trembling, he refused, "No, you can't… My brain is empty. Even if you borrow it, it won't be of any use." After saying that, Yu Deng quietly added, "Trying your best is already… already amazing. Your brain isn't worse than anyone else's."
Instinctively responding, Yu Deng clung fearfully to Lu Yan's arm. Lu Yan comforted him with a pat, "Don't be scared, Deng Deng."
After speaking, Lu Yan turned his head toward the approaching girl, his gaze calm. "Don't scare him."
The girl instinctively felt a wave of fear. She didn't dare look at Lu Yan, instead staring at Yu Deng for a few more seconds, as if contemplating what she had just heard. After a moment, she slowly walked away.
Yu Deng finally stopped trembling. Lying on Lu Yan's back, he felt his heart race with fear all the way back to the dormitory building.
The sights he saw along the way were definitely a test of his courage. He spent most of the journey burying his face in the crook of Lu Yan's neck, too scared to look around.
The lights hadn't been turned off yet when they reached the dormitory. The dorm mother still appeared normal, but when the light hit her body, her shadow behind her was bloated and massive—undeniably one of the most horrifying things Yu Deng had ever seen.
The floor of the dorm building's entrance was filthy, with dark red stains in some places. Students returning to rest walked quickly, none of them speaking a word.
Looking at the eerie school and the strange behavior of both teachers and students, Yu Deng felt small, pitiful, and helpless.
Ugh, is this level of difficulty really something I'm supposed to handle on my own??
[Scared me so much I turned on Teen Protection Mode.]
[Feels like there's a constant threat of death in the second stage. Any seasoned livestream watchers here? Is this really the difficulty level of a B-rank dungeon?]
[No, this feels harder. If players don't find someone reliable like Deng Deng did, and rely only on their own abilities, survival seems nearly impossible.]
[Just look at the girl from earlier. If things hadn't been handled properly, someone might've lost their head.]
[Our baby may be a little clueless, but they're super skilled at clearing dungeons. After all, being able to "train dogs" is one of baby's key survival tactics.]
---
Yu Deng finally made it back to the dorm and breathed a sigh of relief. Inside, Zhuang Lin was already there.
"Baby, you're back."
Having not seen Yu Deng for half a day, Zhuang Lin reached out to take him into his arms and fuss over him, but Lu Yan dodged.
"…" Zhuang Lin's expression showed faint irritation, and his tone carried a sharp edge. "Lu Yan, aren't you supposed to be the ex-boyfriend now?"
Lu Yan showed no visible emotion, responding blandly, "And you? You're just a roommate, aren't you?"
The implication was clear: as a mere roommate, Zhuang Lin had even less right to interfere than he did.
Zhuang Lin scoffed.
Yu Deng was already feeling sleepy. Nestled in Lu Yan's arms, he shook Lu Yan's arm, then grabbed Zhuang Lin's hand and tugged at it, speaking to both of them.
"Don't fight… I'm really sleepy."
The two immediately stopped trying to provoke each other and competed instead to help Yu Deng wash up.
Yu Deng temporarily ignored the two of them and headed to the bathroom. He turned on the faucet in the bathroom. The rusty faucet creaked a few times before releasing a small stream of water. It wasn't clear and pure but slightly murky and carried a faintly unpleasant odor.
Yu Deng's mind immediately conjured unpleasant thoughts, like the faucet suddenly spewing out blood instead of water…
But… he'd been messed with by Lin Qin Xu tonight. Even though he had cleaned up with tissues, he still felt sticky and uncomfortable…
"Zhuang Lin, Lu Yan, is the dormitory faucet broken?" Yu Deng asked nervously, backing away from the bathroom and seeking help from the two outside.
"It's fine, let me take a look." Zhuang Lin squeezed in and gave the faucet a few firm taps. The creaking faucet, seemingly threatened, started to flow with warm, clean water after a few seconds.
Thanks to his enthusiastic roommate's repair, Yu Deng was able to use hot water again and thoroughly washed himself until he felt clean and refreshed.
When Yu Deng came out after washing up, he froze, realizing his bed still hadn't been fixed. He was then informed of the dreadful efficiency of Gui Huai High School's maintenance staff.
"So, where am I supposed to sleep tonight..." Yu Deng yawned drowsily, rubbing his eyes, which turned a little red from his fingers.
"Here! I've already made the bed for you!" Zhuang Lin declared eagerly.
"I've also prepared a spot for Deng Deng," Lu Yan chimed in.
They vied for his attention. Yu Deng considered for barely two seconds before collapsing onto Lu Yan's bed.
Zhuang Lin's heart broke: "..."
After all the mental stress, Yu Deng quickly fell asleep, completely unaware of how the other two almost came to blows several times but restrained themselves at the last moment.
---
Late at night.
In his sleep, Yu Deng heard a slow knocking sound, followed by a voice asking, "Excuse me, can you help me solve this question?"
The voice seemed to be whispering right by his ear, repeating the same sentence over and over. Yu Deng felt a momentary dizziness. A strong urge to answer the question surged in his heart, quickly consuming all his thoughts.
Without realizing it, he had climbed out of bed and was swaying as he moved toward the door.
"Deng Deng."
Suddenly, a warm hand covered Yu Deng's eyes, and Lu Yan's voice called out firmly.
Yu Deng struggled to open his eyes, only to find himself standing at the dormitory door, his hand already on the handle. Most of his sleepiness instantly vanished as he shivered, remembering the dormitory rules:
— After lights out, no matter what you hear, do not leave the dormitory.
So... did the rules, while emphasizing compliance, also hint that there was real danger lurking in the dormitory at night?
Not just patrolling dorm supervisors, but possibly other unknown threats?
Yu Deng turned his head, looking at Lu Yan, who was holding him, and then at Zhuang Lin beside him. His voice trembled with a hint of tears: "What's going on..."
"It's probably their obsession," Lu Yan replied without elaborating, keeping his explanation vague.
Yu Deng didn't quite understand and shrank fearfully into Lu Yan's embrace, turning his head to look toward the door.
The knocking and questioning at the door continued. Listening to the mechanical knocking sound, Yu Deng suddenly became curious about what might be outside.
After all, Gui Huai High School in its second phase was so bizarre. He thought... maybe he'd have to take action at night eventually.
"If baby is curious, you can go and take a look. I'll protect you," Zhuang Lin said softly, noticing Yu Deng's hesitation. "But you might need to mentally prepare yourself."
Yu Deng blinked, belatedly realizing that Zhuang Lin's demeanor also seemed to have subtly changed, becoming a bit harder to grasp.
Still, with their reassurance, Yu Deng mustered a bit more courage. One hand clung tightly to Lu Yan's arm, while the other opened the door.
Creak—
Standing outside was a person who was... incomplete. From his neck up, there was nothing but empty space, with dangling, unsevered skin and flesh dripping with gore and blood. As for the missing head, it was held in the person's hands, its eyes dull and lifeless.
"Hello," a voice came from the head. "May I ask you a question?"
Yu Deng's eyes widened, realizing that the severed head belonged to the student from the dorm next door. He even looked a bit familiar.
Staring at the eerie scene, Yu Deng froze entirely, his beautiful face drained of all color. His legs nearly gave out, and he had to lean against Lu Yan for support.
So scary, huhuhu...
Was Gui Huai High School at night filled with terrifying beings like this? They might as well rename it Ghost High School!
The student at the door, holding his head, repeated his question twice more. Then he finally realized which dorm he had disturbed, and the dazed look in his eyes became a bit clearer.
"Uh…" The head broke out in a cold sweat. "It's just that… I can't figure out some of the problems."
Yu Deng couldn't help but glance at the head again. A flash of realization hit him—he finally knew why the student seemed familiar.
Earlier that day, he'd read several reports about student suicides, and one of them included this student's file.
The report stated that his cause of death was decapitation by his own hand.
Recalling this information triggered a burst of memory for Yu Deng, and he suddenly remembered an incident from a few days ago. When he greeted this very student from across the balcony, the student nodded with an exaggerated motion and even reached out to steady his neck.
...Well, if the head's going to fall off, of course the nod would be that big.
There was a moment of silent tension between them. Yu Deng didn't notice, but the two boys behind him both gazed darkly at the head, their eyes carrying a warning.
Tearing up, Yu Deng mustered all his courage and, trembling, said to the student at the door, "Um, I'm really sleepy right now, so I can't think straight. Could we talk about this another time?"
The head stiffly replied, "Alright, I'll come back another time. Thank you, sorry to bother you."
Yu Deng was confused. "...?"
What's going on? It was terrifying, but strangely... polite?
The student who had his head knocked off stopped bothering Yu Deng. Though he was puzzled, Yu Deng let out a sigh of relief and slowly moved back, preparing to continue sleeping.
Lu Yan and Zhuang Lin didn't immediately close the door. They turned their backs to Yu Deng, blocking his line of sight. Lu Yan looked at the student outside the door and silently made a strange request: "Make some noise, but don't scare him. Understand?"
"Make sure they know there's still danger," Zhuang Lin added.
The student: "...?" He looked at the two of them, who exuded an intimidating aura, somewhat confused, before hesitantly cradling his head and leaving.
Lu Yan and Zhuang Lin, on the other hand, weren't too pleased with each other.
Forget it, since they were on the same page, whoever could get what they wanted would have the upper hand.
The night grew deeper.
Yu Deng fell back into a drowsy sleep. He wasn't sure how long it took, but he seemed to hear knocking again, along with some eerie crying sounds. This time, the knocking was much lighter, almost hesitant, and he didn't feel the dizziness from earlier.
But in this instance, any noise in the dungeon was still a challenge to Yu Deng's courage.
He shrank under the covers, letting out a small whimper.
The next second, Lu Yan, who had moved to the lower bunk to give up his bed, climbed back up to the top bunk.
Lu Yan softly comforted him: "Deng Deng, go to sleep. I'm here, nothing will happen."
Yu Deng, his head still fuzzy with sleep, couldn't help but feel scared: "But the sounds outside…"
"Maybe it's something else, but don't worry about it." Lu Yan hugged Yu Deng, pulling him close to his chest, and gently coaxed, "When we're together, the things outside will know they can't do anything, so they won't hurt you."
Yu Deng, still half-dazed, lay on Lu Yan's chest, feeling a little safer. He turned his head to glance at the door. To his surprise, he could faintly see blood seeping in!
"Wuu…"
"Baby, don't be scared." Zhuang Lin, who had somehow appeared by his bed, held his hand. "The things outside probably just want to catch the ones who are alone."
Yu Deng was still frightened but felt something was off—this blood, why did it smell a bit different?
Yu Deng began to doubt his sense of smell or wondered if he was suffering from lingering effects from the last dungeon.
Otherwise, why would he be smelling a sweet and sour scent and suddenly feel hungry? This was so strange...
Yu Deng was confused and couldn't understand what the problem was.
He drowsily held someone's hand and hesitated, saying, "Really...?"
Lu Yan's gaze turned cold, unable to suppress the urge to break Zhuang Lin's hand, but Zhuang Lin just kept adding fuel to the fire, provocatively glancing at Lu Yan while coaxing Yu Deng.
"Yes. These kinds of ghosts are most afraid of yang energy. I'm a sports student, I train more often, so I'm definitely better than Lu Yan. How about you come sleep with me instead?" Zhuang Lin not only threw subtle insults but also tried to coax, "Baby, how about giving me a kiss? That will definitely exorcise the evil and make the things outside too scared to come near."