Survival in an apartment, starting with a stroke of luck on a plane

The bookcase creaked and groaned as it scraped against the floor, the noise particularly loud in the quiet basement.

With some effort, he moved the bookshelf more than half a meter away, and sure enough, a dark hole, barely wide enough for one person to pass through, was revealed behind it.

The edges of the opening are jagged, as if it was hastily carved out later, rather than being part of the original building structure.

An indescribable aura, a mixture of decay, death, and faint resentment, wafted from the cave.

Lin Yu aimed his flashlight at the cave entrance, bent down, and crawled inside.

The space inside was extremely cramped, indeed only the size of a toilet stall, completely empty and devoid of any furnishings. The flashlight beam moved downwards, finally settling on the floor in the center of the small, enclosed room.

A skeleton sat there quietly.

The skeleton was wearing a black lace dress that, though covered in dust, still revealed its original exquisite design.

Looking at the somewhat familiar long dress, Lin Yu quickly remembered that he seemed to have seen it before. Wasn't this the same dress that the screaming lady wore when she appeared?

Lin Yu immediately understood that this was probably the remains of the screaming woman before her death.

He stepped forward, squatted down, and examined it carefully.

The skeleton's bones are slender, consistent with female characteristics.

In addition, Lin Yu had several rough hemp ropes wrapped around the bones of his wrists and ankles, which were loose but still showed signs of being tightly bound.

Clearly, the screaming woman was bound and imprisoned in this dark and sunless underground chamber before she died.

As for the cause of death... Lin Yu's gaze swept over the skeleton, but he did not find any obvious fatal wounds on the bones. It was probably due to hunger or some other reason.

Lin Yu shook his head, temporarily setting aside these speculations.

He is now more concerned about the "reward" that the screaming woman mentioned.

His gaze fell on the skeleton's neck.

There, above the black lace collar, hung a thin silver chain, the pendant being a black gemstone about the size of a thumbnail, cut into a multifaceted shape, which faintly gleamed with a dark luster even when covered in dust.

This should be it.

Lin Yu carefully reached out and gently removed the necklace from the skull's cervical spine.

He blew away the dust, and the black gemstone immediately refracted a faint yet profound light from the flashlight.

【Netherworld Stone Necklace】

Category: Equipment

Grade: Silver

Durability: 100/100

Effects: Spirit +2, Agility +2, Maximum Mana +50

Netherworld Mist: When activated, it creates a huge, dense black mist area centered on the wearer, lasting for 1 hour (after which it can be extended by consuming mana, consuming 20 mana per minute).

Within the fog area, all units except the equipment owner will be affected by the following: all attributes -2, vision and perception abilities greatly limited, special damage reduced, damage per second (this damage slowly increases over time), and prolonged stay (more than ten minutes) may result in negative mental states such as "fear" and "confusion", and continuous mental erosion.

The wearer is immune to all negative effects of this fog. (Can be used 3 times per day; after use, it resets the following day.)

"A very good control item." Lin Yu was indeed quite satisfied with this item.

Although it only has one active skill, the effect of [Netherworld Mist] is indeed very powerful.

Wide-range attribute weakening, vision loss, perception deprivation, damage reduction, continuous damage, and mental interference can play a decisive role in group battles or when you need to escape.

Of course, the problem of not being able to distinguish between friend and foe does exist, but for Lin Yu, who has always been a lone wolf, this is not a shortcoming at the moment.

His ability to control the situation was quite good; he put the chain around his neck without hesitation.

A cool energy instantly flowed into his body, boosting his spirit and agility attributes, and expanding his mana pool.

He examined the skeleton carefully again, but unfortunately found nothing else.

After thinking for a moment, he took out a large storage bag, carefully collected the remains of the screaming lady inside, and put it into his backpack.

"Maybe I can use these remains to get some other benefits from her in the future..." Lin Yu thought to himself.

After doing all this, he left the small, secret room and pushed the bookshelf back into place, covering the entrance.

Then, he turned off his flashlight and walked up the stairs, preparing to leave the uncomfortable house.

However, as soon as he stepped out of the basement and back into the living room on the first floor, his body suddenly stopped.

Near the entrance of the living room, a tall, semi-transparent figure stood silently, as if it had been waiting for a long time.

It was a male ghost dressed in a Western medieval-style noble robe, with long hair and a large beard. His face was so gloomy it was almost dripping with water, and his pair of venomous eyes were fixed on Lin Yu, who had just come out of the basement.

Oh wow~

They were caught red-handed for breaking into a private residence and looting it.

Lin Yu muttered to himself, but his face remained expressionless. He even took the initiative, speaking first with a blunt and accusatory tone: "Who are you?"

It was as if he were the master of this place.

The male ghost was clearly not expected Lin Yu to react this way. His eyes widened suddenly, and the surrounding yin energy trembled because of his emotional fluctuations.

It growled angrily, its voice hoarse and icy: "You dare ask me? This is my home!"

But to its surprise, Lin Yu was not afraid at all. Instead, he raised his eyebrows and shouted even louder than it: "You're talking nonsense! This is clearly Ms. Scream's house!"

Upon hearing the name "Screaming Lady," the male ghost froze, his face flashing with a complex mix of emotions—astonishment, disbelief, and a deep-seated fear.

But this fear was quickly overwhelmed by an even stronger anger.

It shrieked like a cat whose tail had been stepped on: "You were sent by that bitch!"

Before it finished speaking, it suddenly raised its hand, and a huge, ferocious long-handled battle axe, formed entirely from cold, misty air, instantly appeared in its hand.

It roared, its body transforming into a pale shadow, carrying a biting cold wind, and pounced towards Lin Yu!

Lin Yu was already on high alert, and the moment his opponent made a move, his counterattack was already underway.

Lin Yu, of course, would not sit idly by and wait for his doom.

Facing the male ghost rushing towards him, he formed a sword-like gesture with his hand and suddenly shouted:

"kill!"

The Seven Secrets of Subduing Demons in the Green Mountain Path: The Killing Technique!

A condensed, blood-red magical power, imbued with the pure will to vanquish demons, shot out like an arrow, piercing straight at the ghost.

Just as the opponent was about to dodge, Lin Yu uttered his second true words:

"end!"

As the "Stop" technique was activated, the male ghost's forward-leaning figure suddenly froze, as if it had sunk into an invisible quagmire. Its movements instantly became stiff and slow, and a hint of astonishment and struggle flashed in its eyes.

In that brief moment of stillness, the crimson power of the Killing Technique had already struck.

"Bang!"

With a muffled thud, the male ghost let out a painful howl, his soul body violently trembled, and he was sent flying several meters away, the cold aura surrounding him dissipating considerably.

"You bastard! You're asking for death!" The ghost was completely enraged and let out a fierce roar.

It suddenly opened its arms, and the yin energy from the basement and even the entire small house rushed towards it.

Its body rapidly expanded and deformed like an inflating balloon, transforming in the blink of an eye into a terrifying evil spirit nearly ten meters tall, with a blue face and fangs, and surrounded by thick, inky black mist.

A powerful sense of resentment and oppression filled the entire living room, almost suffocating the senses.

"Summon the soul!"

Lin Yu showed no weakness. With a thought, the Demon Sword behind him hummed.

The next moment, an equally enormous figure roared out—the sword spirit Liu Xiangxiang appeared, also transformed into a ten-meter-tall evil spirit. Although her aura was slightly inferior to her opponent's, her eyes were sharp, and she met the attack without flinching.

Boom! The two enormous evil spirits collided instantly, their claws tearing and corroding each other, emitting a hissing sound that made your teeth ache.

Buildings and walls were easily torn and smashed like paper in their struggle.

Liu Xiangxiang was indeed at a slight disadvantage, her soul body was slightly eroded by the black mist containing the opponent's intense resentment, but she clung to the opponent tightly, buying time for Lin Yu.

At this moment, Lin Yu below had already begun to gather his strength.

He made a fist with his right hand, and the vast magical power within his body, mixed with the lightning power enhanced by the [Charging Ring], gathered wildly. The dazzling azure lightning danced and compressed in his palm, emitting crackling sounds, and the majestic heavenly might emanating from it caused the yin energy in the entire space to retreat.

The male evil spirit sensed this terrifying energy that naturally restrained it, and a look of fear immediately appeared on its face.

It desperately tried to break free from Liu Xiangxiang's entanglement, but Liu Xiangxiang, under Lin Yu's orders, disregarded her own depletion and used her arms like chains to tightly bind it, allowing the black mist to erode her soul.

"Control it!" Lin Yu shouted, his eyes sharp as knives.

Liu Xiangxiang's soul shone brightly, binding her even tighter.

It is a sword spirit, and is not afraid of lightning.

Besides, even if it's afraid, so what? As a sword spirit, as long as the Demon Sword isn't damaged, it won't die. No matter how serious the injury, it can recover by staying in the Demon Sword for a while.

The male evil spirit let out a terrified roar, but was unable to break free for a time.

"Palm Thunder!"

Lin Yu seized the opportunity and hurled the highly compressed ball of lightning, which contained destructive power, out of his hand.

Whoosh—Boom!

The blinding lightning struck the male evil spirit's massive body instantly, unleashing a deafening roar.

The extremely powerful and masculine force of thunder raged wildly, like countless electric snakes burrowing into the evil spirit's body.

The thick black mist melted and evaporated rapidly like ice and snow meeting the scorching sun. The evil spirit let out a heart-wrenching scream, and its ten-meter-tall body convulsed and twisted violently, shrinking and fading at a speed visible to the naked eye.

As the lightning dissipated, the male ghost transformed back into his aristocratic human form, but his soul became extremely transparent and thin, with wisps of black smoke rising from his body. He had clearly suffered severe injuries, and his aura was extremely weak.

Its eyes were filled with fear and disbelief, and it turned around, trying to turn into a wisp of smoke and escape.

Bang bang bang... How could Lin Yu let the tiger return to the mountain? [Azure Rose] was already raised, coldly pulling the trigger.

Several bullets imbued with demonic power whistled out, one of which was burning with a ghostly blue demonic fire, precisely blocking its retreat.

The male ghost sensed the terrifying power contained in the bullet and was terrified, desperately trying to dodge. But Lin Yu's attacks were perfectly coordinated.

"Press!"

The Seven Secrets of Subduing Demons of Qingshan Path - The Suppression Technique followed closely behind.

The ghost felt an invisible, immense force crashing down on its body, as if it were carrying a mountain on its back. Its already severely injured soul suddenly sank, and its movements instantly stiffened.

*Thud! Thud! Thud!* The demon bullet pierced through its illusory body without any resistance.

Especially that Hellfire bullet, which exploded instantly upon impact, with eerie blue flames clinging to its soul and burning wildly, causing continuous pain and damage.

"ah--!"

The male ghost let out a desperate and piercing scream, its soul flickering violently like a candle in the wind under the dual corrosive power of the demon and the hellfire.

Its soul, corroded by the demonic fire, let out an extremely mournful howl, and was on the verge of complete collapse.

Lin Yu's eyes were icy, and his movements did not falter in the slightest.

He quickly stepped forward, simultaneously communicating with the Demon Sword in his mind, and directly dismissed the weakest Black Iron-level ghost residing in the Soul Nest, making room for it.

Then, he raised the buzzing demon sword, its tip aimed at the dissipating, tattered soul.

hum-

A dark suction force emanated from the demon sword, and the remnant soul of the male ghost had almost no power to resist.

It also lacks the ability to resist.

It was easily absorbed into the sword and sealed within the Soul Nest.

The whole process went surprisingly smoothly.

Lin Yu could sense an extremely weak but venomous consciousness within the Demon Sword, which was being suppressed by the power of the sword spirit Liu Xiangxiang.

"You should be able to suppress it, right?" Lin Yu asked Liu Xiangxiang, whose figure had become much more solid beside him.

Liu Xiangxiang sensed the situation inside the Soul Nest and answered honestly, "Given its current state of being on the verge of dissipation, suppressing it should definitely not be a problem."

However, if it were to fully recover, that would be quite difficult. Its power is now greater than mine, so it's unlikely I'll be able to use it in battle for the time being.

Lin Yu scratched his head, thought for a moment, and said, "Then let's not let it recover for now. Keep it locked in the Soul Nest. I'll find a way to help you improve your strength as soon as possible."

Liu Xiangxiang nodded, then transformed into a beam of white light and returned to the Demon Sword, focusing on suppressing the newly arrived "prisoners".

"I feel like I've been used as a pawn." Lin Yu sheathed the Demon Sword, glanced at the completely destroyed hut, and stroked his chin.

He increasingly felt that the screaming woman had deliberately brought him here.

Although the other party wasn't lying and he had indeed obtained a rather good silver-grade necklace, he had inexplicably encountered a silver-grade ghost. Although this guy wasn't difficult to deal with, he was still a little annoyed.

After all, anyone with eyes can see that there must be a story between this male ghost and the screaming woman.

"I'll 'ask' them while I'm doing my mission with the Faceless Man tonight," Lin Yu secretly decided.

He also happens to have a hidden quest called "Invitation" from the Faceless Dancer, with the agreed time being midnight at the Ghost Opera House.

When I see that screaming lady, I'll definitely have to get to the bottom of this.

Lin Yu didn't linger. He turned around, got on his electric scooter, and casually accepted a newly generated nighttime order on the delivery app. After setting the navigation, he had his shadow clone drive the vehicle towards the area outside the station.

He had no intention of giving up the title of King Dan and the rewards.

On the way, he idly opened the in-game player chat channel, hoping to see if there was any new information.

The atmosphere in the channel remained gloomy and desolate.

The number of online players has now dropped to 62.

"It's only the first day, and almost half of them are already dead..." Lin Yu shook his head slightly.

The elimination rate of this "delivery service" is indeed terrifying. Those monster customers and bizarre road conditions are a nightmare for ordinary players.

Lin Yu scrolled through the chat messages in the channel, and soon, several messages caught his attention.

Players are discussing him.

[Liu Bai: Holy crap! Guess what I just saw?! Just now, some amazing guy took on eight people single-handedly! He slaughtered all the robbers at the station entrance!]

[Zhang Kai: Really? Those guys had pretty good gear, didn't they?]

[Liu Bai: Absolutely! I saw it clearly. That tough guy was incredibly cool, wearing a blood-red cloak, a gas mask and helmet, and what looked like moving red vines wrapped around his body. He looked like a futuristic warrior.]

[The unscrupulous businessman: Oh? I seem to vaguely remember this person...]

[Liu Bai: You guys didn't see it, he raised his hand and unleashed a sea of ​​fire and lightning, instantly taking down several people. Then he pulled out a super cool revolver and fired a few headshots. So cool.]

[Zhang Kai: Wow...that sounds pretty strong. Why did he make a move?]

[Li Yue: What else could it be? Those idiots must have been trying to rob us! They've really messed up! Haha, this is so satisfying!]

[Wang Junjie: Good riddance! Let's pop the champagne! This kind of black sheep should have died long ago.]

[Zhang Jingjing: +1, good riddance.]

[Liu Bai: Of course the big boss is fine. He's completely unharmed. After looting the spoils, he rode his bike back to the station, looking incredibly cool! It's a pity I didn't dare to go up and talk to him...]

Lin Yu watched the discussions calmly.

He didn't expect there were any witnesses at the time.

Fortunately, public opinion is on his side. It seems those eight guys were notorious, and no one will sympathize with them even after they've died.

That's quite normal, since nobody would probably like this kind of guy.

He didn't pay much attention to these contents and continued scrolling up, looking for other valuable information.

Soon, a message from a slightly earlier time caught his eye.

[Running Boy: Guys, I got a bad review. [crying face]]

[Strongman: Holy crap? What's going on?]

[Ruthless businessman: My condolences, brother... And then? Did the captain punish you?]

[Running Boy: Sigh, the captain sent me a message and scolded me. Now all the regular orders in the app have disappeared, and only one special order that was just refreshed is left.]

The call has been automatically accepted; I can neither refuse nor cancel it. The system tells me I must complete it within three hours, or I will be "fired."

[Strongman: Fired?! That doesn't sound like good news. By the way, what exactly is this special order? Is it dangerous?]

[Running Boy: Sorry, the game system doesn't allow me to disclose specific order information, I can't even post a screenshot.]

All I can say is... the process looks similar to a regular order, but the names of the pickup and delivery locations are just incredibly weird. Guys, pray for me, I think I'm doomed.

After this message, the player with the ID "Running Boy" never spoke again.

The other players in the channel discussed it for a while, and most of them felt that he was in grave danger. After all, even ordinary orders were fraught with danger, so the difficulty of this kind of "special order" which was a punishment was unimaginable.

Lin Yu noted down this information. He actually hoped that the running boy wouldn't die and could come back alive to send out more intelligence.

Lin Yu then browsed through the chat channel again, and after confirming that there was no more valuable information, he closed the interface and focused his attention on the road.

Soon it was almost 11 p.m.

The monsters that roam at night are indeed more active and powerful, and the number of bronze-level monsters has increased significantly.

Fortunately, Lin Yu was quite strong, and he also had the ghost and the Hun Tian Cloak to clear the way, so even when the monsters became stronger, he did not run out of time.

However, his delivery speed was inevitably affected.

He had originally planned to deliver more orders, but in the hours after leaving Black Oak Street, he only managed to complete two.

"Total deliveries: 9 orders... 810 points." Lin Yu glanced at his phone.

He was less than 200 points away from getting the [Multi-functional Electric Vehicle] worth 1000 points, but the process was slower than he had expected.

He originally thought he would be able to accumulate enough points during this period of overtime work.

Even so, he doesn't plan to take any more orders; he has more important things to do next.

Head to the Ghost Opera House to complete the Faceless Dancer's "Invitation" quest.

He needs to set aside some time for preparation.

Without further hesitation, Lin Yu temporarily stopped accepting orders, turned on the ignition, and returned to the station at full speed.

He quickly returned to the station entrance.

After paying the 10-point "entry fee," he returned to his apartment in the dormitory building.

Without wasting time resting, they went straight into the [Taoist Study].

He sat quietly for a moment, adjusted his breathing, and recovered his depleted magical power.

When it was 11:40, he got up and went to the statue of the True Lord of Qingyuan Miaodao in the center of the study.

They respectfully lit three incense sticks and then offered prayers.

Then a beam of light flew out from the statue of the True Lord and landed on him.

Lin Yu glanced at the status bar and successfully obtained the [True Lord's Protection] buff for 30 minutes.

A gentle yet powerful force instantly enveloped Lin Yu, making him feel refreshed, his mind clearer, and his limbs filled with strength.

Feeling the boost in his condition, Lin Yu immediately took action.

He stepped out of the apartment, hopped on his electric scooter, and sped off again from the station gate like an arrow, heading towards the Ghost Opera House.

......