Chapter 19

Chapter 19

“Run!” Wei Sen suddenly realized what was going on and shouted.

Everyone turned to look at her in confusion.

“Run from what? The rules say we can’t refuse any request from a student during recess. Don’t get clever and drag everyone down with you!” Xia Susu’s eyes were still filled with contempt.

Seeing the figure in the fog draw closer and closer, Wei Sen didn’t bother arguing. She turned and ran.

Sichuan Girl glanced at her compass, her expression growing even graver, then chose to follow Wei Sen.

Seeing that, Xiao Tudou hurried after them as well. “Taoist Sister, wait for me!”

The other girl, Glasses Girl, saw them all running. After a moment’s hesitation, she jogged after them too.

“I think we should leave too!” Huang Mao said, frowning at Xia Susu.

Xia Susu gave a delicate snort. “People who think they’re clever die the fastest. If you want to run off and get yourself killed, I won’t stop you!”

Then Xia Susu looked at the boy holding the ball and said, “Why haven’t you kicked it to him yet? Are you trying to break the rules?”

“O-okay.” As the boy spoke, he prepared to kick the soccer ball toward the figure in the fog.

“Wait!” Bai Xue quickly stopped him. “It’s been more than ten minutes since we woke up! If this were recess, there’s no way we wouldn’t have heard either the dismissal bell or the class bell! Run!”

After saying that, Bai Xue swiftly gathered the members of Group A and fled in another direction.

Among the remaining members of Group C, some chose to run after Bai Xue, while the others automatically banded together and escaped as a group.

“Here, you take it!” The boy holding the ball shoved the soccer ball into Xia Susu’s arms, then turned and followed Group A.

“Ah!” Xia Susu screamed, still not quite able to process it. “What the hell? Why does no bell mean today is the weekend? What if this school just doesn’t ring bells?”

Huang Mao finally couldn’t stay put either. The figure in the fog had already stretched out a hand.

That hand didn’t look human at all.

Long, pitch-black nails, pale knuckles-it looked like something that had crawled out of a grave.

“Run!” Huang Mao grabbed Xia Susu’s hand and bolted.

Xia Susu had seen that hand too. Her legs went weak with fright, and Huang Mao practically had to drag her away.

Wei Sen and the others rushed into the fog. Vaguely, they spotted a low, squat building ahead. Its walls were mottled and weathered, as if it had been there for many years.

“Taoist, check whether that place is safe,” Wei Sen said, looking back at Sichuan Girl.

Sichuan Girl checked her compass and said, “Safe!”

Hope instantly surged through everyone, and they sped toward the building.

Only when they arrived did they see a mottled metal nameplate hanging at the entrance. It read: Infirmary.

“Such a tiny Infirmary? That’s way too shabby,” Xiao Tudou said in surprise.

Wei Sen opened the door, and everyone went inside. The room was very small, with only an old desk, a chair, and a sickbed.

Sichuan Girl shut the door, then took a talisman out of her pocket and stuck it to the doorknob.

“Taoist Sister, you’re amazing!” Xiao Tudou looked at Sichuan Girl with open admiration.

“This talisman doesn’t really do much. It’s just there for peace of mind,” Sichuan Girl said honestly.

Xiao Tudou’s smile froze. Then, catching sight of Wei Sen from the corner of their eye, they turned to her in confusion. “Sister, how did you know it wasn’t recess right now?”

Wei Sen quietly hid the watch displaying the value 120 inside her sleeve and explained, “First, it’s been more than ten minutes since we woke up, but we haven’t heard any recess bell. Second, didn’t any of you notice the date on the watch?”

“I noticed,” the ever-quiet Glasses Girl said softly. “But it said May 5, 2002. It didn’t say what day of the week it was.”

Xiao Tudou said in shock, “2002?! A hundred years ago?! Isn’t today June 8, 2102?!”

“The Instance’s time probably isn’t the same as our real-world time,” Wei Sen said.

Glasses Girl was puzzled, her voice still as faint as a mosquito’s. “Then how did you know May 5, 2002, was a weekend?”

“Zeller’s Formula. h=(q+⌊513(m+1)⌋+K+⌊4K⌋+⌊4J⌋+5J)mod7. Determine the variables, plug them into the formula, and h equals 1, so today is Sunday.”
After Wei Sen finished speaking, the other three girls looked at one another.

What formula???

“Then how do you know that rule is real?” the girl with glasses asked in a small voice.

Wei Sen pressed her lips together. “It’s a guess. It still needs to be verified. I’ll tell you more later.”

Xiao Tudou looked from Wei Sen to Sichuan Girl, then said excitedly, “One superbrain and one evil-spirit banisher! I really did latch onto the right thighs!”

“My name is Lin Xiaoxue. I just turned eighteen. I was originally preparing for the college entrance exam, fell asleep while doing practice problems, and woke up here. Please take care of me, big sisters!” Xiao Tudou flashed the three of them a sweet smile.

“I’m Xu You. As you can see, I’m a Daoist priest.” Xu You put away her compass and looked at the other three.

“I’m Chen Lin. I’m, uh… an office worker.” Chen Lin pushed up her thick glasses.

“What about you, big sister?” Lin Xiaoxue looked at Wei Sen.

Wei Sen was still lost in thought.

Zeller’s Formula…

How had she known that formula?

Why had it suddenly popped into her mind, and why had she calculated it so smoothly?

Could the System have given her an intelligence boost?

“Big sister?” Lin Xiaoxue called again.

Wei Sen came back to herself and said, “My name is Wei Sen. I’m a… pig slaughterer.”

“Huh?!” All three girls looked shocked.

“Look outside. It’s getting dark!” Wei Sen ignored their surprise and looked out through the window.

The originally gray sky was gradually turning black, the light being devoured at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Chen Lin swallowed nervously and murmured, “Rule 8: When it gets dark, you must return to your own dormitory. Do not stay outside alone. It is very dangerous!”

“Unless we have a flashlight!” Wei Sen said gravely, looking at them.

“Search!” Xu You nodded and was the first to move.

They all understood without saying it. Night was falling too fast; going out now was basically a dead end. Their only hope was the room in front of them.

So, with tacit agreement, they split up and began searching.

Lin Xiaoxue searched the hospital bed, Chen Lin searched the walls and corners, and Xu You searched the cabinets.

Wei Sen was in charge of the desk. There was a medical record on top of it, but right now she had no time to read it.

She pulled open a drawer. Inside were many tools doctors commonly kept on hand: thermometers, stethoscopes, blood pressure cuffs, tongue depressors, percussion hammers, ophthalmoscopes, cotton swabs, and the like.

At a glance, there was no flashlight. Wei Sen was about to close the drawer when she suddenly froze.

Something felt off. Among that pile of tools, there was actually a duckbill speculum!

The rules clearly stated that this was an elementary school. Why would there be something used for gynecological exams here?

Did the teachers at this school also come here for checkups?

Wei Sen had no time to think too deeply. She shut the drawer and continued searching.

The sky was getting darker and darker. If there was no flashlight in this room, then they would probably have to sit here and wait for death!

Unfortunately, Wei Sen searched every drawer in the desk and found no flashlight.

“Nothing here!” Wei Sen said.

“I didn’t find one either…” Chen Lin shook her head.

“I… found something here…” Lin Xiaoxue pointed at the bed, her expression stiff.

Wei Sen strode over.

There was no flashlight on the hospital bed. What was there was a huge pool of blood.

In the dim, darkening light, the blood looked especially vivid, as if it had only just stained the sheets.

The next second, the last trace of light sank into darkness.

The entire room instantly became so dark they couldn’t see their own hands in front of their faces, as though a chilling, sinister cold were pouring in from all directions.

“Big sister, I’m scared!” Lin Xiaoxue grabbed the nearest person, Wei Sen, and hugged her.

Immediately after, something icy-cold touched the back of Wei Sen’s hand. She was just about to shake it off when she heard a tiny voice in the darkness.

“I-I’m scared too…” It was Chen Lin. Her hand was ice-cold from fear.

“Bang!” Suddenly, a violent crash came from outside the door, startling all three of them.

“Xu You, is that you?!” Wei Sen quickly asked.

But Xu You’s voice came from farther inside the room. “Not me. I didn’t move!”