This is a bizarre rule, isn't it? It's supposed to grant me many children and good fortune

Lin Feng did not stop; the candlelight continued to steadily heat the handprint.

Visible changes are happening slowly:

The dark, spreading bluish-black bruises quickly faded and became lighter, while the wildly writhing outlines under the skin gradually contracted, subsided, and eventually disappeared completely.

Tasia held her breath for a long time, then asked in a low voice, "Is the thing inside... dead?"

"I'm not sure, but at least it's not moving now, and the color has faded."

Lin Feng moved the candlestick aside, took out a burn ointment from his spatial storage, squeezed out the pale yellow ointment, and applied it evenly to the burn on Park Tae-rang's ankle.

"Given the nature of these supernatural tales, as long as the solution is 'correct,' the result will inevitably be good. Let's observe for one night and confirm again tomorrow morning."

He straightened up and glanced at the watch on his wrist—the hour and minute hands were almost overlapping at midnight.

"It's already 11:58. According to the schedule, it's Evelyn's turn in the next hour."

As Lin Feng spoke, he turned and walked to the sleeping bag, leaning over to nudge Evelyn's arm.

She was wrapped tightly in her sleeping bag, with only her profile visible, her eyelashes casting fine shadows in the candlelight.

After being nudged twice, Evelyn opened her eyes groggily, her gaze first falling on Lin Feng's face, then subconsciously turning to Tasia beside her.

"Why aren't you asleep yet?" Her voice was hoarse as she propped herself up halfway from her sleeping bag. "Did something happen?"

"I went to the toilet because of an upset stomach, and I unexpectedly found a clue to treat the thing on Park Tae-rang's foot."

Lin Feng gestured with his chin toward Park Tae-rang, "I just treated him, and he's quiet now."

Evelyn nodded, deftly unzipped her sleeping bag, sat up, rubbed her face, and tucked her loose hair behind her ears.

"Okay, then you two go to sleep. I'll keep an eye on things for the next hour."

Lin Feng nodded, said no more pleasantries, and crawled into his sleeping bag.

Tasia wrapped herself tightly in her down jacket and lay down. After a brief rustling in the room, only the occasional crackling of the candlelight remained.

........................

Nothing happened that night.

The morning light slanted in through the window.

The temperature in the room had risen considerably. Lin Feng sat up first, and the first thing he did was not to fold his sleeping bag, but to look up at the mirror opposite him.

The mirror was clear, reflecting his disheveled hair and sleepy eyes.

He raised his left hand, and the person in the mirror raised their left hand; he tilted his head, and the person in the mirror tilted their head too.

Synchronized, without any errors.

He exhaled and then looked at the others.

Tasia, Wasim, Evelyn, and August woke up one after another, and their first reaction was the same: to stare at their reflection in the mirror.

Park Tae-rang finally opened his eyes, his neck still a little sore. He rubbed his neck groggily and looked down at his ankle.

Lin Feng went over to check and found that the bluish-black handprint on his ankle had almost completely faded away, leaving only a faint ring of marks on his skin.

He gently pressed it with his fingertip; the skin felt soft and normal, without any unusual hardening or wheezing.

"Alright." Lin Feng looked up at Park Tae-rang. "The things inside should be cleaned up."

Park Tae-rang let out a long sigh of relief, then rolled out of bed, stood up straight, and bowed solemnly at a ninety-degree angle to Lin Feng:

"Thank you so much, Brother Feng, for saving my life!"

Lin Feng patted him on the shoulder: "You might not be so lucky next time. Don't mess with things you shouldn't touch or be curious about!"

Park Tae-rang nodded emphatically, still shaken: "I know what's serious this time, and I'll never do it again!"

After all six people got up, Lin Feng casually put all the sleeping bags and down jackets back into his personal space.

Leaving unnecessary items here could easily trigger unknown risks, so we must ensure that there are no loopholes.

As soon as Wasim pushed open the door to walk out of dormitory 305, the door to dormitory 304 across the street also opened.

Four Black men filed out, each with an increasingly grim expression.

Kana Kazuko came out last, head down, shoulders hunched, her condition visibly worse.

Three men and one woman walked out of room 303 one after another, also resulting in a loss of one person.

Several people were freezing all night. Some couldn't help but sneeze repeatedly, while others wiped their noses with their sleeves.

Their eyes were dark and heavy, their lips were dry and cracked, and their steps were unsteady; they had clearly not had a full night's sleep.

The door to room 302 opened, and a group led by Mark from the United States came out, but one person was missing.

The 307 and 309 units to the north were intact, with no casualties, but their condition was exactly the same as that of the 303 unit.

They all had dark circles under their eyes, were sneezing constantly, and had red, frozen noses. Some were rubbing their arms while others were hunching their necks, and some were rubbing their stiff knees.

After taking stock, three more people were lost last night. Including the two who were locked up in the Iron Lady's cell during dinner earlier, the Chosen Ones have lost a total of five people, leaving thirty-one people.

Just then, the door to room 312 at the end of the corridor slowly opened, and Leng Meng, dressed in a neatly tailored black butler uniform, walked out with an upright posture.

Her complexion was fair, and she looked much better than the night before, but there was a hint of anxiety lingering in her eyes.

Her gaze wandered around, and she whispered a name:

"Moor, moor..."

Lin Feng immediately stirred his mind slightly, and his Desire Insight quietly activated.

A light blue system notification instantly appeared in his field of vision:

[My biggest wish right now: to find my lost black Bombay cat, Murr.]

Lin Feng's heart skipped a beat. Wasn't this exactly what he was doing?

I'll find a chance to ask the animals near the castle later; I should be able to find out where this Mumbai cat is going soon.

Unable to find Mu'er immediately, Leng Meng had no choice but to give up, suppressing the anxiety between her brows, and walked up to the group.

Her gaze swept quickly across every face in the corridor, finally lingering briefly on Lin Feng's face before she looked away, her clear, cold voice echoing down the entire corridor:

"As I told you yesterday, starting today, food inside the castle will have to be earned through labor."

"There is no free breakfast today. Everyone must complete the designated tasks in the morning in order to receive lunch."

A murmur of complaints immediately arose from the crowd, many people clutching their empty, rumbling stomachs, their eyes filled with helplessness and frustration.

The night's ordeal had already left me physically and mentally exhausted, and now I had to work on an empty stomach.

Lin Feng stepped forward and asked calmly, "What was the task this morning?"

Leng Meng nodded and slowly explained the mission details:

"With winter approaching, the castle's twelve fireplaces, long idle, are covered in dust, cobwebs, and dead branches and debris. They must be thoroughly cleaned in advance in preparation for winter heating."

"You need to completely clean all twelve fireplaces in the castle before noon."

After saying that, she raised her hand and handed over a neatly folded piece of white paper, on which the positions of the twelve fireplaces were clearly listed.

Lin Feng reached out and took the paper, quickly glanced at it, then looked up and asked:

Where can I pick up cleaning tools?