Chapter 99
Chapter 99
No one interrupted the Landlord. He nodded in satisfaction and led the group over to the building plan.
According to the diagram on the wall, Apartment 444 had seven floors. Apart from the lobby on the first floor, each floor contained four apartments.
In other words, aside from the seventeen players, the building had seven original residents.
“Our apartment currently has five tenants. All five of us will evaluate your performance and decide whether you can Become a Permanent Tenant.”
The Landlord pointed to two rooms on the second floor. “These are the Assessment Rooms. No one lives in them.”
Then he pointed to the space beside Room 703 on the top floor. “There was a problem during construction, so this room was never opened up. There is no Room 704.”
The Landlord tossed out a bundle of keys. “One room per person. Once you choose, you cannot switch rooms.”
No one rushed to snatch a key. With the entrance gone, nobody knew where the path to survival might be or what the tenants were like. What good would fighting over rooms do?
Qin Musong collected the entire ring of keys. Cheng Miao examined them and soon formed a rough plan.
The Longtime Tenants all lived upstairs. Two apartments each on the seventh and sixth floors were occupied by them, leaving the empty second through fifth floors for the players to choose from.
Cheng Miao did not deliberate for long. She took the keys to the two remaining apartments on the sixth floor and two apartments on the fifth.
Living beside Longtime Tenants who were not human would hardly be pleasant, but danger often came with opportunity. There might be discoveries to make, and Cheng Miao could not let the chance pass.
As for the other rooms, they were probably all the same. There was no meaningful difference between them.
The others relaxed when they saw Cheng Miao take keys on the same floor as the original residents. Freckles chose a room on the fifth floor, and everyone else picked through the remaining keys until they were gone.
Cheng Miao noticed that Gu Jian had chosen a room beside Su Yang’s. It seemed he really did take an unusual interest in the man…
“Would you mind trading?” A rich, deep voice spoke beside her. Cheng Miao looked up to find Baili Qianqiu standing before her with the last fifth-floor key in his hand and a faint curve to his lips.
After a moment’s thought, Cheng Miao traded him one of the sixth-floor keys.
Powerful players did not avoid problems inside an instance. They confronted them and found a way to solve them.
When everyone had chosen a key, a smile finally appeared on the Landlord’s face. “This is an old building, and there are many taboos. Every household here takes such beliefs seriously. Starting tonight, you may draw lots to decide who participates in each test.”
“May I ask what kind of tests they are?” Yang Ke raised a hand, irrepressible youthful vigor shining from his open face.
“Just a few little games. You’ll find out tonight.” The Landlord offered nothing more. “Dinner will be delivered to the second floor, so come downstairs to eat. The Longtime Tenants are quite hospitable and may invite you to dine with them as well. You can use the opportunity to build a closer relationship.”
The group followed him onward. The building had only one elevator, and it was so old that even the doors creaked whenever they opened.
Elevators featured in plenty of horror stories, but one look at the pitch-black stairwell convinced everyone to file inside anyway.
Cheng Miao worried that they might exceed the weight limit, but the elevator traveled smoothly, dropping off the players floor by floor.
The Landlord had said they could visit one another, but everyone had to report to their own room first.
No matter how reluctant the players were, they could only steel themselves and step out when their floor arrived.
At last, only Cheng Miao, Baili Qianqiu, and the Landlord remained in the elevator. Baili Qianqiu gentlemanly extinguished his cigarette before entering. Standing beside him, Cheng Miao caught the faint scent of tobacco and cologne.
His beauty did not distract her. Instead, she turned to the Landlord. “Which room do you live in?”
The Landlord looked at Cheng Miao. Whatever crossed his mind made him smile in a vaguely lecherous way. “Right beside you. Room 602.”
Instead of showing discomfort or disgust, Cheng Miao smiled openly. “Then we’ll be neighbors. I hope you’ll look out for me, Landlord.”
The Landlord nodded without replying. He stepped out of the elevator and led them down the corridor.
The hallway was brightly lit, without the usual horror-movie atmosphere. Cheng Miao noticed that the Landlord ignored Baili Qianqiu. He said goodbye only to her, then stopped outside Room 602.
Knock, knock, knock. The Landlord rapped on the door to Room 602. Then he pulled a key from his pocket, unlocked it, and stepped aside with an inviting gesture.
He held that faintly ridiculous yet inexplicably chilling pose for half a minute, ignoring Cheng Miao and Baili Qianqiu’s scrutiny. Finally, he straightened and smiled. “A personal superstition of mine. I hope you’ll forgive it.”
Cheng Miao smiled and assured him she did not mind. She watched the Landlord close the door, and the sweet expression immediately vanished from her face.
She studied Room 602 thoughtfully. The residents clung to strong traditional superstitions, yet the building bore such an unlucky number. Then there were the assessment games beginning that night…
Cheng Miao had a theory now, but what did the four “wu” syllables in the hint mean?
She walked forward and was surprised to discover that she could go no farther than the door to Room 602. Room 601 was right in front of her, yet she could not reach it.
It was as though a natural barrier divided the corridor.
Cheng Miao reached out but felt nothing. As she considered the problem, a sudden chill of revulsion shot through her and her sixth sense screamed a warning.
She tilted her head slightly. She was standing directly outside Room 602, and the peephole that had been lit from behind was now a dark, empty hole.
The Landlord was watching her through the peephole!
It was easy to imagine the strange, terrifying Landlord politely closing the door, then greedily pressing himself against it and staring at Cheng Miao without moving. How long had he been watching her?
Without betraying the slightest fear or panic, Cheng Miao calmly backed away.
Baili Qianqiu had not entered his room yet. He leaned lazily against the door and watched Cheng Miao with appreciation in his eyes.
Only after she returned did he let a trace of lingering fear show on his face. He curved his lips and walked over. “You were staring at me for quite a while.”
It was a statement, yet Cheng Miao still felt a wave of pressure bearing down on her. She kept her face blank and stood her ground. “I like beautiful people.”
Baili Qianqiu raised a brow and bent slightly closer. “Oh?”
He could tell she was telling the truth, but he also knew there was another reason.
Cheng Miao suppressed her instinct to look away and flee. “You remind me of someone.”
Baili Qianqiu froze. Then all the aggression abruptly left him, revealing a relaxed and genuine side.
He gave Cheng Miao a captivating smile. His voice lost its coldness and became far gentler. “It seems you’ve met my wife, and the two of you are on rather good terms.”
Cheng Miao’s pupils shook. “Lian Ge is your…?!”
Baili Qianqiu bowed slightly, his smile deepening. “She is my wife.”
Even after entering her room, Cheng Miao was still marveling at how strange and wonderful the world could be.
On second thought, it made perfect sense. Both of them were extraordinarily beautiful and immensely powerful. Of course they belonged together.
As for why husband and wife had not entered the instance together…
Cheng Miao recalled the helplessly indulgent expression on Baili Qianqiu’s cultured-scoundrel face. “Ge’er is having a little fit of temper.”
Cheng Miao swallowed the unexpected dose of romantic sweetness and forced her attention back to the instance.
It was an ordinary studio apartment with every basic amenity. Nothing looked unusual.
Cheng Miao made a circuit of the room, but the crease between her brows never eased.
She could not shake the feeling that someone was staring at her without blinking.