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

"This place... is even more eerie than down there." Lin Yu became extremely vigilant, activating his Sharingan and slightly opening a crack in his Heavenly Eye to scan his surroundings.

He proceeded cautiously along the corridor.

As he passed through a cubicle, the beaded curtain swayed, and a slender hand, painted with bright red nail polish but with skin covered in bluish-black lividity, reached out, seemingly trying to grab his clothes.

Lin Yu didn't stop walking, but stepped aside to avoid it. The hand withdrew awkwardly, and a resentful sigh came from behind the curtain.

In another cubicle, a "female technician" wearing a revealing cheongsam, with a pretty face but empty eyes, was combing her hair in the air while humming an off-key tune.

As Lin Yu passed by, she slowly turned her head, revealing a half-rotten face crawling with maggots, and gave him a strange smile.

Jin Ling stood on Lin Yu's shoulder, her feathers ruffled slightly.

These "beings" don't seem particularly aggressive; they're more like environmental backdrops. But the mental pollution and discomfort they cause far exceed those straightforward monsters downstairs.

The compass needle eventually pointed to the largest room at the end of the corridor, which had a sign that read "VIP Room".

The door was ajar, and from inside came an even richer pink light and that sweet, cloying fragrance.

Lin Yu did not rush in; he peered inside through the crack in the door.

The room was spacious, with a huge massage bed in the center covered in white sheets—but the sheets were covered with suspicious yellow stains and dark red spots.

An obese monster, wearing only shorts and with loose, greasy skin, was facing away from the door, busy in front of a cabinet filled with all sorts of bottles and jars.

It hummed an off-key tune, holding a mortar and pestle, and was crushing something that looked like a mixture of fingernails and hair.

On a coffee table in the corner of the room, the last fragment of the "Dissipated Nightmare" floats quietly above an incense burner.

The goal is right in front of us!

Lin Yu could sense that the energy fluctuations emanating from this monster, while not as strong as those of the archivist, were still at the platinum level, and carried an extremely uncomfortable, viscous feel.

Seemingly having heard the noise or sensed Lin Yu's presence, the fat monster stopped what it was doing and slowly turned around.

On its fat face, a smile that seemed warm but was actually chilling was forced out.

"Oh, a new customer?" Its voice was greasy and slick, and it said in a very obsequious tone, "Welcome to Golden Radiance Foot Bath. I am the manager here."

What services would you like, guest? We offer the "Forget-Your-Worries Package," the "Ecstasy Package," and the newly launched "Night of Debauchery"... guaranteed to leave you wanting more and forget all your troubles.

Its gaze swept over Lin Yu, whose eyes were clear, and a hint of surprise flashed in its eyes, but it was quickly covered up by its hypocritical smile.

Another monster that can communicate with Old Chen.

Although they had been discovered, the other party did not attack directly but chose to communicate, so Lin Yu did not take action directly.

He thought for a few seconds, then pointed directly to the shard on the coffee table in the corner: "I need that. Want it?"

If the problem can be solved without fighting, that would be even better, since the monsters in this game are invincible and can be quite troublesome.

Hearing Lin Yu's words, the manager's smile became even more enthusiastic: "Oh, you have excellent taste, sir! That's our store's 'treasure,' the core essence of 'Dreamy Aromatherapy'! However..."

It drawled out its words, rubbing its thick palms together: "This thing can't be given to you so easily."

"Conditions?" Lin Yu asked succinctly.

The manager chuckled, a sly glint in his small eyes: "The customer is a discerning person. In our business, we believe in making money through harmony."

I can tell you, sir, aren't particularly interested in our services. How about this: you do us a small favor, and I'll give you this 'essential' dish as a gift, how about that?"

help?

Is this a task being posted?

Lin Yu thought for a moment and asked, "Tell me first what kind of help you need?"

The manager smiled, as if he had expected this outcome: "It's actually very simple. A customer who doesn't know the rules came into our shop, enjoyed the service but didn't pay, and even injured several of our technicians."

As you know, in our line of work, the customer is king. As service staff, we can't lay a hand on our customers, lest we ruin our reputation.

So, I'd like to ask you, sir... to help 'persuade' him. If you get him to pay the bill and promise not to cause any more trouble, this 'essential' piece is yours.

[Trigger Task: The Manager's Troubles]

[Task objective: Help the manager of Jinhui Foot Massage subdue the troublesome customer "Liekou" and get him to pay the fee (or equivalent).]

[Quest Reward: Scattered Nightmare Fragment (1/3)]

A side quest pops up.

Lin Yu looked at the task, then glanced at the fat manager in front of him, and fell into thought.

Lin Yu's thinking was simple: he was weighing whether to directly seize the item or accept the mission.

This monster is about as strong as the chef we encountered before; if we fight it directly, I'm confident I can defeat it.

The manager seemed to see through his thoughts, and the smile on his face faded, replaced by an eerie calm: "Guest, I advise you not to resort to violence."

Here, rules... are sometimes more important than power. If you try to take action, I guarantee you'll never get your hands on the essence, and you'll get into a lot of trouble.

After all, we're following the rules.

Its tone carried a sense of certainty, as if there were some powerful rules supporting it from the back.

Lin Yu remained silent for a moment.

He was pondering the veracity of what this guy had said.

After careful consideration, Lin Yu decided to agree. After all, he didn't want any complications before obtaining the fragment. If the manager really had a way to make the fragment disappear, it would be a loss.

Lin Yu asked directly, "Where is that guy?"

The manager pointed upstairs: "That guy has taken over the 'Emperor's Hall' on the sixth floor and is throwing a tantrum there. You can see him by going up the internal staircase here."

It pointed to an inconspicuous little door on the other side of the room.

"I understand." Lin Yu nodded and turned to walk towards the small door.

"I wish you all the best, dear guest," the manager said with a smile behind him, though his tone carried a hint of anticipation.

Push open the small door, and behind it is a narrow, steep, oil-stained staircase leading to the upper floor.

An even stronger aura of violence and destructive noise emanated from above.

Lin Yu climbed the steps, with Jin Ling following closely beside him.

The layout of the sixth floor is similar to that of the fifth floor, but the decoration is more "luxurious" and more dilapidated.

The corridor was a mess, with broken decorations and torn curtains everywhere.

From inside a magnificent door at the end of the corridor, violently kicked open and decorated with golden dragon patterns, came roars and the sound of things being smashed.

Lin Yu walked to the door and looked inside.

The so-called "Emperor's Hall" was extremely spacious, but at this moment it looked as if it had been swept by a hurricane.

Expensive furniture was reduced to pieces, the walls were covered with claw marks, and an unidentified liquid was flowing on the floor.

In the center of the room stood an unusually tall, nearly three-meter-tall humanoid monster.

It wore a tattered suit that was stretched to the point of bursting, and its exposed skin had an unhealthy bluish-gray hue. Its muscles were bulging and full of explosive power.

The most striking feature was its head—its mouth, split from one ear to the other, was covered in fangs and was now opening and closing, emitting a roar like a broken bellows.

As it roared, foul-smelling saliva dripped continuously from the corners of its mouth.

Its eyes were bloodshot, filled with madness and destructive desire.

This is the "crack".

The energy fluctuations emanating from its body had clearly reached the platinum level.

At its feet lay several grotesque "female technicians," their bodies battered to pieces and slowly turning to black ash as they came back to life.

"Get out! All of you get out of here! What kind of garbage service is this! You dare to ask me for money? I'm being lenient by not making you pay me back!" Kuchi roared as he grabbed a vase about half his height and smashed it against the wall, shards flying everywhere.

Lin Yu's appearance immediately caught its attention.

"Hmm? Another one sent to its death?" The Rift turned its terrifying head, its crimson eyes fixed on Lin Yu, its gaping maw revealing a cruel smile: "Was it that fat bastard who sent this? Perfect, I haven't had enough fun yet!"

It didn't give Lin Yu a chance to speak at all. Its massive body, accompanied by a gust of evil wind, charged forward like an out-of-control truck. Its huge claws, covered with sharp nails, went straight for Lin Yu's head, moving at an incredibly fast speed.

"We can't communicate." Lin Yu was prepared. A flash of lightning appeared under his feet, and he instantly shifted several meters to the side, avoiding the fierce pounce.

boom!

The claws with their fissures gripped the door frame, tearing a large hole in the hard wall as easily as if it were tofu.

"Hide? Let's see where you can hide!" Rift roared, his legs cracking the ground as he lunged at Lin Yu once more.

It seemed to have completely abandoned its defenses, focusing solely on tearing the creature in front of it to shreds.

Lin Yu's eyes remained calm as his Sharingan spun rapidly, capturing every detail of the crack's movements.

It possesses immense strength and considerable speed, but its attack methods are straightforward and lack variation.

At the same time, although this guy can talk, he seems to have no rationality at all.

He stopped dodging and abruptly stopped in his tracks the instant the rift lunged at him again.

Susanoo!

Lin Yu's Sharingan slowly circulated, and then countless black energies around him quickly condensed, instantly enveloping him and transforming him into a half-humanoid energy body wearing armor, with three heads and six arms, and a third eye on his forehead.

This is Lin Yu's Susanoo form.

boom!

The gaping hole punched Susanoo, but it failed to leave any mark.

"It's my turn."

Seeing the slightly bewildered expression on Rift's face, Lin Yu sneered, and Susanoo's six arms began to swing.

Bang! Bang...

The enormous black fist slammed into the cracked body again and again. The creature raised its arms to try to block, but Susanoo's six arms were too fast. In just two seconds, its arms were shattered.

At the same time, Lin Yu was not idle either. He raised the Azure Rose and quickly shot it at the split legs.

Bang bang bang!

The demon bullet exploded, and although it failed to sever its leg, the impact and the burning pain of the hellfire caused the rift to stagger and let out a painful roar.

"Insect! You have angered me!" It roared, its arms rapidly healing and its body growing, soon surpassing Lin Yu's Susanoo in size. It withstood the attack, opened its arms, and closed them like a bear hug, trying to trap Lin Yu.

Big, clumsy guy.

Lin Yu sneered and canceled Susanoo, while his Sharingan began to circulate again.

To blur or obscure.

His body instantly became ethereal, the embrace through the gaping hole missed its mark, and it even passed right through his body.

And just as the body tilted forward due to excessive force, the tear opened.

Kamui!

Lin Yu activated his pupil technique.

The target was the split head.

The moment the rift stopped, he felt something strange in his head. Only then did he realize that the space in front of him was distorting and had already enveloped his entire head.

Swish!

There was no time to react. By the time it realized what had happened, Kamui had already been activated, and its head had been twisted off by Kamui.

Of course, this amount of damage wasn't enough to kill the monster.

Therefore, Lin Yu was able to witness a rather interesting scene: the ripped-out body could still move after its head was severed, but because it had lost its eyes, it could not see anything and could only rampage around the room, attacking indiscriminately.

However, its head is recovering rapidly.

Lin Yu naturally wouldn't let it recover for nothing.

Spatial jump.

He activated his skill, appearing beside the rift. The Demon-Slaying Sword, imbued with sharp sword energy and compressed lightning, pierced straight for its vital point in the ribs.

laugh!

The sword tip pierced the flesh.

"Roar!" He winced in pain and slapped Lin Yu beside him with his backhand, the force of the blow making his cheek sting.

Lin Yu drew his sword and retreated swiftly, gripping the Demon-Slaying Sword tightly with both hands, circulating his magical power within his body.

Samadhi True Fire instantly covered the sword.

At the same time, the kaleidoscope pattern in his eyes began to rotate again.

Amaterasu!

Black flames silently ignited on the massive arm that slammed in from the rift.

The rift had clearly never encountered such an unquenchable and bizarre flame before. It let out a roar of shock and rage, frantically swinging its arms in an attempt to shake off the black flames.

Lin Yu made a move!

He pushed off with his feet, his figure moving like a ghost as he approached the crack that had been exposed by the panic.

A sword thrust out.

puff!

boom!

As the sword tip pierced its body, the Samadhi True Fire and the power of thunder erupted within it.

"Awoooooo!!!"

The rift let out its most agonizing scream since the start of the war. Its entire right leg was blasted to pieces by the violent energy from the joint, and its massive body could no longer maintain its balance, collapsing to its knees with a thud!

At the same time, Amaterasu's black flames spread along its arm to half of its body, frantically burning its flesh and energy.

Under the double blow, the aura of the crack instantly weakened by more than half, and the madness in his eyes was replaced by pain and a trace of fear.

Lin Yu didn't stop. With the tip of his sword pressed against the back of its head, he coldly said, "Pay up, or die."

He didn't kill him, after all, the mission requirements were "subdue" and "pay the fee".

Besides, even if you kill it, it can still revive, so it's not very meaningful.

With his mouth ripped open, he knelt on the ground, breathing heavily, the black flames still burning on his body, bringing him continuous excruciating pain.

It glanced at the terrifying sword tip pressed against the back of its head, and then felt the two completely different yet excruciating powers within its body. Its previous frenzied rage was completely extinguished.

"I...I'll pay..." it managed to squeeze out a few words through gritted teeth, its voice hoarse and weak: "Don't...don't burn it..."

Clearly, the pain caused by the burning of the Samadhi Fire and Amaterasu flames led its mind to return to a higher realm.

With a thought, Lin Yu controlled the spread of the Amaterasu Black Flame, but did not extinguish it completely.

Kagutsuchi's ability allows him to precisely control black flames.

"Where's the money?" Lin Yu asked.

With difficulty, Liekou raised the hand that wasn't covered by black flames, rummaged in the tattered pocket of his trousers for a while, and pulled out a stack of paper that looked like ghost money, which he threw next to Lin Yu.

"Is...is it okay now..." she gasped, looking at Lin Yu with pleading eyes, hoping he would extinguish the terrifying black flames.

Lin Yu nodded, manipulated Kagutsuchi to slowly retract the Amaterasu Black Flame, and at the same time used his magic to extinguish the Samadhi True Fire.

As the black flames dissipated, large charred marks remained on the rift's body. The granulation tissue at the wound began to wriggle and slowly repair itself, but at a much slower pace than the previous monsters. Clearly, the Samadhi True Fire had been continuously suppressing its "immortality."

"Get lost, and don't come back again." Lin Yu sheathed his Demon-Slaying Sword and said calmly.

As if granted a pardon, the man with the crack struggled to support himself with one leg and his hands, crawling miserably toward the stairwell and quickly disappearing downstairs.

Lin Yu glanced at the chaotic Imperial Hall. The shattered technician monsters had reformed and were secretly observing him with a mixture of fear and curiosity.

He ignored it, turned around and went downstairs, returning to the VIP room on the fifth floor.

The fat manager seemed to have been waiting there the whole time, and when he saw Lin Yu return, a bright yet disgusting smile appeared on his face.

"Oh my, sir, you are truly remarkable. You resolved that problem so quickly." It rubbed its hands together, its tone full of flattery.

"That 'essence' is yours!"

It walked to the coffee table, waved its hand, and the pink mist on the incense burner dissipated, and the [Dissipated Nightmare Fragment] floated lightly to Lin Yu's front.

Lin Yu reached out and took it; it was icy cold to the touch, and he could feel the twisted power of the rules contained within.

【Fragments of a Lost Nightmare】(3/3)

We've collected them all.

"It's a pleasure doing business with you, dear guest. Welcome to visit us again. We hope you'll enjoy our service then. Trust me, you'll want to come back again and again," the manager said with a smile.

Lin Yu ignored the disgusting thing and put the three fragments together. They immediately and automatically merged into a slightly larger purple crystal with what appeared to be liquid flowing inside.

[Condensed Nightmare Core (Quest Item)]

Description: Hand it over to Lao Chen, and he might give you a generous reward.

He could sense that the twisted power of the rules contained within this core was several times stronger than that of a single fragment, but it was also much more unstable.

He didn't study it much and put it away.

Now, it's time to go find Old Chen and hand over the task.

He quickly returned along the same route, and this time it went smoothly; he didn't encounter any dangerous monsters along the way.

Most people just ignore him as long as they don't get close.

Soon, he returned to the vicinity of the "safety exit" where he had met Old Chen before.

Old Chen was still waiting there, but now there was another person in front of him.

Players?

Lin Yu frowned, but he wasn't particularly surprised. After all, Old Chen was right there, so it was normal for other players to notice him. However, he didn't go forward immediately but waited at a distance.

Old Chen and the other player seemed to sense Lin Yu as well, and both turned to look at him.

At this moment, Lin Yu also saw what the player looked like.

The player was wearing a white trench coat, white trousers, a white shirt underneath, a white top hat, and a pure white faceless mask.

Even her hair, shoes, and socks were all white.

Good grief, does this guy have some kind of obsession with white?

Old Chen fiddled with the instrument in his hand. When he saw Lin Yu, a smile appeared on his face: "Not bad, kid, faster than I expected. Got the stuff?"

Lin Yu thought for a moment, then walked over.

Interestingly, the guy in all white seemed to have been watching him ever since he appeared, whether he knew him or was interested in him.

Lin Yu also felt his gaze. He frowned, but still handed the [Condensed Nightmare Core (Quest Item)] to Old Chen first.

Old Chen took the core and nodded in satisfaction: "Not bad."

He put away the core, then took out a shimmering silver card from the pocket of his work clothes and handed it to Lin Yu.

"Here's the agreed-upon reward. It's valid for three hours. Take this, and you can open all the doors on this floor marked 'Resource Room' or 'Storage Room'."

How much you can take from inside depends on your own abilities. Remember, once the time is up, the card expires, and the door will automatically lock. Don't get trapped inside.

Lin Yu took the card; it was icy to the touch, and complex data flowed across its surface.

[Temporary Access Card (Level 1)]

Category: Special Items

Effect: Within three hours, unlock all access control to the "Resource Rooms/Storage Rooms" on the first floor of the Demon Building.

Time remaining: Three hours (Once used to open the first door, time will continue to pass and cannot be stopped. Please use with caution.)

Old Chen said, "Alright, the deal's done. I have to get back to work. Good luck, kid. I hope to see you alive and well next time."

Then, he looked at the masked man and said, "You can do whatever you want, but don't interfere with the normal operation of Nightmare Tower, or no one can save you."

After saying that, Old Chen waved his hand, pushed open the "emergency exit" door, and disappeared into the spiraling stairwell behind him.

Next, only Lin Yu and that guy in white were left at the scene.

This guy was still staring at Lin Yu.

"Do we know each other?"

Lin Yu put away the access card, looked at that guy, and raised an eyebrow.

"I know you, but you don't know me."

The masked man spoke in a muffled voice.

Then, before Lin Yu could speak, he continued, "My ID is Liquidator. I look forward to seeing you again. I hope you can hold on until then."

After saying that, he snapped his fingers lightly, and his body instantly disappeared from Lin Yu's sight.

Lin Yu frowned.

In fact, he really wanted to take action and capture this guy, since he hated the Riddler the most.

But... it's impossible.

Lin Yu realized that the guy in front of him was just an illusion. His disappearance just now was not a skill, but simply the real body canceling the illusion. Even if he had stayed, it would have been meaningless.