Chapter 123

Chapter 123

The noisy corridor suddenly fell silent.

Time seemed to stand still.

Under the strange gazes of the crowd, Jiang Li walked up to the door of Room 206.

At some point, a “Check-out Slip” had appeared in her hand.

Holding the slip, she raised her hand and knocked on the door.

“Hello, check-out service.”

Jiang Li knocked three times in succession.

With a creak, the door to Room 206 opened.

A mangled face peered out from the crack in the door.

The face looked as if it had been smashed to pieces with a hammer; the features were soft and pulpy, a mess of blood and shredded flesh.

“Hello, I’ve come specifically to process your check-out service,” Jiang Li said, offering a professional smile.

“Not checking out,” the thing inside the room said, its deformed mouth opening to emit a chilling voice.

Guest 206 moved to close the door after speaking. Seeing that she was about to be rejected, Jiang Li immediately used her strength to brace against the door.

Jiang Li tried her best to persuade it. “Sir, your room has expired. Please check out!”

But the thing inside seemed to be provoked.

It reached out a blood-stained claw, grabbed Jiang Li by the collar, and gave a violent yank.

Jiang Li was dragged into the room.

Then, with a loud bang, the door to Room 206 slammed shut.

Jiang Li’s eyes flew open as she jolted awake from the dream.

Her heart was racing, and she gasped for breath.

What a strange feeling. Why would she have a dream like that?

Jiang Li could feel that her clothes were completely soaked through. As a breeze blew past, she felt a terrifying chill all over her body.

Looking closer, she realized she was actually standing right in front of the door to Room 206.

Jiang Li was standing, and her hand was even raised, poised to knock.

Was she… sleepwalking?

Jiang Li quickly pulled back her right hand.

A cold wind brushed against her side, and she looked over.

At the end of the empty corridor, a glass window reinforced with a security mesh had been opened by someone.

The wintry wind howled into the hallway, hitting Jiang Li’s sweat-drenched clothes and sending a shiver through her.

Outside the window, the night was as dark as ink.

Jiang Li glanced at the electronic screen hanging in the corridor.

It showed that the current time was… exactly 4:00 AM!

“Go close the window,” a soft female voice whispered right against Jiang Li’s right ear.

Jiang Li looked to her right, but no one was there.

“I’m not asking you, I’m reminding you,” the female voice continued.

Only this time, the voice shifted from her right ear to her left.

This Girl speaking to her was different from the one she had encountered when she stepped out of the elevator.

The girl at the elevator had a rougher, more boisterous and blunt voice.

But the Girl reminding her now had a delicate, dainty voice that carried a hint of a sob.

“Don’t ask why, just listen to me, or you’ll regret it.” The more the girl spoke, the more her voice choked up.

Jiang Li hesitated for a moment before walking quickly toward the window.

Since it wasn’t a request, regardless of whether this Girl was Guest 206 or not, it should be fine.

On her way to close the window, Jiang Li kept tripping over strange things in the empty corridor.

“You kicked me,” a Fatty said.

“Be careful, don’t step on my doll,” a child clamored as well.

It was as if these people were all lying in the corridor, fast asleep.

Jiang Li’s progress was anything but smooth.

She stumbled through the long corridor until she finally reached the window.

The window opened inward toward the corridor.

Jiang Li grabbed the frame and quickly pushed it out to close it.

She pressed against the window, preparing to engage the Lock.

Right at that moment, a powerful cold wind, carrying a swirl of black mist, let out a howling roar and slammed inward.

That Black Wind came with such violence that it didn’t just force the window open-it blew a person as large as Jiang Li over a dozen meters away.
If the physical damage hadn’t been transferred to Jiang Lianlian, Jiang Li would likely have suffered several broken bones from that fall.

Jiang Li propped herself up on the carpet and scrambled to her feet. It was only then that she noticed her fingers had become slightly translucent.

Was there something wrong with this Black Wind?!

Becoming transparent meant she wouldn’t be able to pass Facial Recognition.

Jiang Li instinctively turned her head toward the Elevator Entrance. In front of the Staff Elevator, the “Up” and “Down” buttons had vanished. In their place stood only a cold, metallic Facial Recognition Machine.

Did staff members have to use Facial Recognition to use the elevator now?

If Jiang Li’s body became completely transparent like the guest in Room 206, then never mind seeing the guests off-it would be a struggle for her to even leave this place!

Jiang Li realized the gravity of the situation immediately.

No matter what, she couldn’t let this Black Wind keep blowing.

She glanced around. The spot where she had been thrown was very close to the Staff Lounge. Her first instinct was to hide inside!

Jiang Li ran to the Staff Lounge door and twisted the handle frantically. But no matter how much she struggled, the door remained stubbornly shut.

“It’s useless. After four o’clock, none of us can go back,” that Ethereal Female Voice whispered in her ear again.

Jiang Li looked up at the hallway window. The Black Wind was still pouring in through it relentlessly.

There was no other way; she had to close that window!

Jiang Li’s gaze hardened. She tried to walk toward the window against the force of the Black Wind. However, every time she managed to get close, a stronger gust would blast her right back to where she started.

Meanwhile, her palms were now nearly ninety percent transparent.

She couldn’t afford any more delays!

Jiang Li had to find a way to reach the window and close it to block the intrusion of the Black Wind.

Currently, she was too light and the wind was too fierce; she simply couldn’t make it across. If the Chosen One for this round were a heavy person, reaching the window would be much easier.

But in this situation, the Chosen One was Jiang Li herself. Where was she supposed to find a heavy person on short notice?

…Wait.

Jiang Li’s eyes suddenly lit up.

Wasn’t there a heavy person right here in the hallway? When she had first tried to close the window, she had accidentally kicked Fatty.

Recalling his position, Jiang Li felt her way over. Bracing herself against the wall, she aimed two kicks at the empty air.

Sure enough, Fatty spoke up.

“You kicked me again.” Fatty’s voice sounded a bit slow, giving off a simple-minded impression.

Considering his gullible nature, Jiang Li thought for a second before speaking in a serious tone.

“Sir, I’m sorry to disturb you. Someone reported that you’ve been scribbling on the windowsill in the hallway, writing things like ‘I was here.’ Is that true?”

Fatty froze, his voice suddenly sounding aggrieved. “I didn’t… Who said that about me? I never scribble on anything.”

He seemed to have fallen for it.

Jiang Li smiled inwardly and seized the opportunity to fan the flames. “Sir, although your name is indeed written up there, I’m sure you didn’t do it on purpose!”

Hearing that he was being falsely accused, Fatty grew furious on the spot.

“Impossible! That definitely isn’t my name up there. Someone must be framing me!” Fatty’s face flushed red with anger.

Jiang Li looked troubled. “Really? …I don’t believe you.”

The simple-minded Fatty scrambled up from the floor, grabbed Jiang Li’s arm, and stomped toward the window in a huff.

“I’ll prove it to you right now! That name is definitely not mine!” Fatty declared.