Chapter 1

Chapter 1

[Staff No. 003 Yun Youyou, please take your position immediately! Staff No. 003 Yun Youyou, please take your position immediately!]

It was clearly a flat, mechanical voice, yet one could somehow detect a hint of gritted teeth behind it.

Yun Youyou unhurriedly pulled on her work uniform and slowly walked toward a door.

“Nag, nag, nag. All you do is nag. Even a turtle wouldn’t be as pushy as you.”

The mechanical voice paused and said no more.

Fortunately, the door was close by, and Yun Youyou pushed it open a moment later.

A flash of blinding white light erupted, and her surroundings changed instantly.

A dark, gloomy office. On a dilapidated desk lay a few yellowed papers and a crude ID card.

Yun Youyou picked up the ID card with a look of disdain.

Name: Yun Youyou.
Position: Homeroom Teacher of Class 303.

Homeroom Teacher?

Yun Youyou set down the ID card and leaned back in her chair, letting out a long sigh.

Just a few days ago, she had been an ordinary college student.

It was the end of summer break, and like every other student, Yun Youyou was praying that school would never start.

Little did she know, her dream was about to come true.

The day before she was due back at school, she opened her eyes to find she had become a female ghost and an employee of this Horror Game.

Yun Youyou never imagined she would be forced to work before even graduating, getting a premature taste of life as a corporate slave.

When she received the offer, Yun Youyou pondered for a moment.

“Can I decline this job?”

The mechanical voice nodded. [Of course. We are a legitimate company; everything we do follows rules and regulations.]

Yun Youyou felt a surge of joy.

Before she could say she was out, the mechanical voice added: [It just so happens our other employees are still hungry. Eating you should satisfy them.]

Yun Youyou’s breath hitched, and she stiffly turned her head.

Pairs of glowing green eyes lit up in the darkness behind her. Malicious, covetous gazes fell upon her, sending a chill down her spine and making her skin crawl.

Yun Youyou immediately chickened out. “Um… actually, I think I quite like this job.”

She would rather scrape by here for a while than become a monster’s meal.

The mechanical voice sounded somewhat satisfied. [Welcome to the team, Staff No. 003. From now on, all employees must help one another and work together to contribute to the company’s growth!]

The monsters behind her clapped reluctantly, feeling a bit regretful they hadn’t swallowed the new ghost.

Yun Youyou silently raised her hand. “I have one more question.”

Having just recruited a new employee, the Game was in a good mood.

[Dear Staff No. 003, what is your question?]

“Does our company provide social security and housing fund benefits?”

[No.]

“Then there’s at least a salary, right?”

[Also no.]

“Can I have weekends off?”

[Weekends off are not guaranteed, and during the week, we guarantee no rest. Dear Staff No. 003, our company operates on a 24-hour work system, requiring you to be ready for work at all times.]

“…”

Yun Youyou fell silent.

She had thought the 996 and 007 work schedules in the human world were miserable enough, but she hadn’t expected the ghost world to be even more competitive, jumping straight to a 000 Work System.

Truly worthy of capitalists; this level of exploitation would make even a ghost weep.

A word of advice to everyone: cherish your life, because the pressure is even greater once you’re a ghost.

The mechanical voice probably also felt that its company was a bit inhumane.

It cleared its throat. [Actually, our company does provide certain benefits.]
Yun Youyou’s eyes lit up. “What kind of benefits?”

[Our employees can eat those who are disobedient. Consider it a bonus meal benefit.]

“…”

Yun Youyou could clearly feel the eyes of the monsters behind her light up instantly.

The light vanished from her eyes.

*Are you sure this is a benefit? Are you sure you’re not just encouraging the other employees to eat me?*

There was no helping it; in the world of ghosts, weakness was the ultimate sin.

To avoid being eaten by those monsters, Yun Youyou had no choice but to strive to be an “obedient” employee.

As the lowest-ranking employee in the Game, Yun Youyou could only humbly play the role of a minor extra.

[Instance: School Life is about to begin. All employees, please prepare yourselves and wait for the Players to enter.]

A minute later, the entire Instance world seemed to wake up. Even the dilapidated, old office became significantly cleaner and brighter.

There were five teachers sitting in the office.

Yun Youyou peeked at them out of the corner of her eye.

Although these teachers looked presentable enough, Yun Youyou could sense they were all veteran ghosts, far more powerful than her.

A chilly draft crept up Yun Youyou’s pant leg, making her shiver.

“Teacher Yun, are you cold?”

Yun Youyou hadn’t expected a ghost colleague to show concern for her.

Turning her head, she saw a refined, gentle-looking male teacher standing beside her with a look of worry.

Yun Youyou glanced at the ID badge hanging around his neck.

It was Teacher Huang, the Chinese teacher.

*As expected, there is still true sentiment among ghosts.*

Yun Youyou felt a bit touched, a warm feeling welling up in her heart. “I’m fine, I’m not cold…”

Before she could finish, Teacher Huang’s face suddenly split open halfway. A crimson tongue darted out and quickly licked Yun Youyou’s cheek.

Teacher Huang drooled, a glint of greed flashing in his eyes. “Teacher Yun, why don’t you come inside my stomach? It’s very warm in there, not cold at all.”

Yun Youyou: “…”

She had overthought it. How could there possibly be true sentiment among ghosts?

She wiped the foul-smelling saliva from her cheek, her hands moving like lightning to tie the tongue into a bow before stuffing it back into Teacher Huang’s mouth. Then, she gave him a gentle smile.

“Teacher Huang, please do not harass your colleagues.”

At least at the start of an Instance, ghosts weren’t allowed to attack Players or colleagues at will.

Teacher Huang smacked his lips and returned to his seat with an air of regret.

The other teachers watched the two coldly; seeing that Teacher Huang hadn’t succeeded, they looked away.

The office fell into a dead silence.

[Homeroom Teacher, please take your position and read the Instance rules to the Players.]

The stiff, mechanical voice could only be heard by the Ghost NPCs.

Inside the classroom, four Players sat in their seats, trembling with fear.

“This Instance seems a bit strange. Why hasn’t an NPC appeared yet after all this time?”

A young girl huddled in the corner, her eyes filled with terror.

The young man beside her had been observing their surroundings. Hearing his girlfriend’s anxious voice, he quickly comforted her, “Don’t be afraid, I’ll protect you.”

They were students from B University who had woken up to find invitations in their hands.

[Welcome to my world!]

[This is a high-stakes gamble. It costs no money, only lives. Dance with ghosts, and make the world your enemy!]

At first, everyone thought it was a prank.

That was until they all discovered bracelets had appeared on their wrists.