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

Meanwhile, Lin Yu also returned to his apartment safely.

Back in the safe apartment, he first checked the situation in the Taoist study.

The core of world power remained quiet, and the statues of Zhenjun and Nezha showed no abnormalities, except that the aura of the statues seemed to have become slightly thicker.

It seems they absorbed a lot of twisted energy.

He sorted and organized the large amount of materials, equipment, and knowledge he had acquired that day into categories.

The materials aren't needed for now, so I'll stockpile them. The equipment stats are too poor; I'll sell them on the auction house or dismantle them later. Those knowledge scrolls are quite interesting, especially the [Nightmare Meditation] skill. Although it's only at the Platinum level, it involves utilizing nightmare energy, which might provide some clues about the nature of this game world.

He directly used all the knowledge scrolls, and a massive amount of information flooded into his mind, which was quickly absorbed and understood by his mental power.

After doing all this, he looked at the player chat group again.

Survivors: 79/100.

Six more people are gone.

There weren't many players discussing it in the channel; most of them probably went to explore Nightmare Mansion.

"The liquidator killed two more players!"

"Any pros want to team up and take him down? This guy is way too arrogant."

"I think I've found the stairs to the top floor. Anyone want to come along?"

"Whatever you do, don't go to the second floor. There are a huge number of undead creatures there that you can't kill. It's terrifying."

……

It was all meaningless chatting.

Lin Yu thought for a moment and then contacted the player with the ID "Fox Charm" through the private chat function of the player group chat.

I received a reply shortly after the message was sent.

[Fox Spirit]: A witcher? Introduced by Wang Junyue? I heard you wanted to buy a bracelet?

The other party replied quickly and directly.

[The Witcher]: Yes, how many do you have? How do I exchange them?

【Fox Charm】: Hehe, looks like a straightforward boss. I currently have three of them, each with more than an hour of free time remaining.

As for the price... I don't want in-game currency, just items. Gold-grade or higher materials, equipment blueprints, skill cards, knowledge, or rare functional items are all negotiable.

It's really dark.

Lin Yu shook his head, pondered for a moment, and selected three gold-grade items of moderate value from the items he had just obtained from the first-floor storage room that he didn't need. He then sent the information to them.

After the message was sent, the other party remained silent for a few minutes, seemingly assessing its value.

[Fox Spirit]: ...The boss is indeed powerful. How about we exchange these three items for two bracelets? This is already a fair price. After all, time is life here.

Lin Yu's eyes turned slightly cold. The other party's asking price was too high, clearly an attempt to raise the price on the spot.

[The Witcher]: Exchange three items for three bracelets.

[Fox Spirit]: Boss, you have to make me some money, right? I went to great lengths to get these bracelets.

[The Witcher]: This is my final price.

After a moment of silence, Fox Charm said, "Alright, let's consider this a friendship. Go to Nightmare Building first, then take a picture and send it to me privately. I'll find you myself. Don't worry, the transaction is honest and fair."

Lin Yu did as instructed and entered Nightmare Building again. He then used the private chat function on the friends panel to take a picture and send it to Fox Charm.

The other party replied very quickly.

[Flirtatious]: Just a moment.

About ten seconds later, ripples appeared on the empty corridor wall in front of him, and a petite female player wearing a pink tutu and a fox mask "seeped" out from it.

Lin Yu was taken aback; that wall was the very background of the photo he had just taken.

He then took a closer look at the vixen in front of him.

This is interesting. It's not the real person; it seems to be some kind of doll or something.

Sure enough, players who can act as vendors in games all have these strange and unusual methods. The vice-president craftsman in the game "Seeking Immortals" did the same, and now this vixen is the same.

"The Witcher boss?"

Her seductive voice was tinged with laughter, but her gaze swept quickly over Lin Yu and the golden feather on his shoulder, especially lingering for a moment on Lin Yu's unusual eyes, a hint of fear flashing deep within them.

"Goods." Lin Yu said succinctly, placing the promised items on the ground.

Fox Fairy inspected the materials, nodded in satisfaction, and took out three [Guardian Bracelets] from her storage space and placed them on the ground.

Lin Yu checked them over and found no problems; all the bracelets had more than an hour left.

"It's a pleasure doing business with you. If you have any other good products, feel free to contact me anytime."

With a seductive laugh, she slowly retreated, disappearing back into the wall.

Lin Yu put away the bracelet. Including the original bracelet, he now has three protective bracelets, with a total duration of about four hours.

For the time being, exploration should be sufficient.

……

Meanwhile, outside the game, deep within the Black Mist world, lies an underground space.

The interior space is simple and austere, with no superfluous decorations, only cold metal walls and floors.

Four figures were present within it.

Three of them were dressed in matching black suits, their faces covered with plain black masks without any markings. Their aura was heavy and composed, as if they had blended into the shadows around them.

The man sitting in front of them, dressed in a sharp white suit and wearing a pure white, holeless mask, stood out conspicuously.

He was sitting cross-legged on the ground with three dark gray crystals beside him, which seemed to be some kind of formation.

Suddenly, the man in the white suit trembled slightly and opened his eyes.

His voice came through the mask, carrying a flat, electronic-like quality: "Plan A failed. The distorted energy of Nightmare Tower was blocked by an unknown entity I cannot observe as it approached the target apartment, and failed to successfully penetrate and interfere with the [Core of World Power]."

"An unobservable existence?" The voice of the man on the left among the three men in black sounded slightly surprised.

"How is that possible? The target is just a Platinum-level player. How could his privileges be high enough to block your observation? Even if he has Level 2 privileges, it's impossible."

The slender woman in black, clearly in the middle, calmly asked, "Can you determine the nature of this? Is it interference from the system's own permissions, or some kind of special permission within the game world?"

The man in the white suit shook his head, his white mask reflecting a cold light: "It shouldn't be a system direct intervention permission mismatch."

But it doesn't seem like typical game world permissions... In short, it's strange; my observation methods can't analyze it, and I can't even 'gaze' at it for long."

Upon hearing his words, the three men in black exchanged glances, their expressions behind their masks undoubtedly quite interesting.

It's not a system, yet it possesses the authority to block the containment facility's special observation methods? This is beyond their conventional understanding.

After a moment of silence, the man in black on the right, who hadn't spoken until now, spoke in a deep voice with a metallic quality: "Since we can confirm that it's not direct protection of system permissions, let's activate Plan B."

We cannot allow such a high-risk item as the [World Power Core] to remain unclaimed, especially in the hands of a player with whom we cannot fully control it.

The woman in black seemed hesitant before saying, "How about... we reassess it?"

The system has been acting strangely lately, though very subtly. But I think we should be more cautious at this juncture and avoid overstimulating it…

"Being overly cautious is cowardice!" The man in black on her left interrupted her: "We both know how dangerous the [World Power Core] is. Once its 'narrative distortion force' gets out of control, it can cause irreversible damage to the stability of the game world."

"Taking it in is our duty, and it's a rule written in the 'Tank and Custody Ordinance'!"

The man in black on the right echoed, "The problem with the system shouldn't be too big. Over the years, we've seen a lot of storms, and we've always weathered them smoothly."

The most urgent task is to ensure the safe containment of the [Core of World Power]. This is the rule, and there is no room for doubt.

Hearing the two men's resolute words, the woman in black fell silent for a moment and stopped arguing.

She lowered her head slightly, a hint of helplessness flashing in her eyes beneath the mask.

Rules? She sighed inwardly. When had the system ever explicitly given them "forced containment" rules in this situation?

This is more of an operational guideline derived from the shelter's own philosophy.

But she knew that raising objections at this moment would be pointless.

"I understand," she replied softly, saying no more.

With opinions aligned, the order was silently issued.

The man in the white suit closed his eyes again, his cross-legged posture resembling a lifeless sculpture, re-establishing a connection with a certain node in the distant game world.

……

Nightmare Building, the second floor of war ruins.

The liquidator had just pinned a gold-level player, who was trying to hide among the piles of tattered armor, to the wall with his slender silver rapier.

His movements were clean and swift, without a single wasted movement. He drew his rapier, leaving the man's corpse slumped to the ground.

Just then, he paused slightly, and a cold, ruthless voice, audible only to him, resounded directly in his consciousness:

[Liquidator, Plan B activated, the requirement is to leave no survivors.]

This command was like injecting a final confirmation code into a cold, killing machine.

The liquidator's eyes, which had previously been merely indifferent even through his mask, suddenly erupted with an almost fanatical light.

"Finally... I can clean up to my heart's content!" He chuckled, his voice filled with barely suppressed excitement and cruelty.

He glanced at the silver rapier in his hand, which was spotless and untouched by blood, then his figure flickered and he vanished from the spot in an instant.

……

Meanwhile, Lin Yu had already returned to his apartment.

He didn't go out to explore; instead, he planned to wait until the third night's knocking had passed, and after obtaining the new guardian bracelet, he would then venture into the Nightmare Mansion.

He used this time to study the knowledge scroll he had acquired that day, especially the platinum-level book, "Nightmare Meditation Techniques."

Under the terrifying effect of the 500% comprehension boost from the Taoist study, he quickly grasped the essence of this meditation technique.

This meditation technique is very interesting. Its concept is to actively guide nightmare energy into the body, and while maintaining a clear self-awareness, simulate and control nightmares in the mental world, thereby refining mental strength, improving the quality and quantity of magical power, and even having a certain chance of comprehending special abilities related to nightmares and fear.

"It's a bit of a waste of resources. The outside world doesn't have the pure nightmare energy of the Nightmare Mansion," Lin Yu commented.

Furthermore, this method is actually quite radical, especially since the nightmare energy in this world is not pure; it contains more distorted energy. If one absorbs it rashly, one may suffer mental damage or even be assimilated by the nightmare.

Of course, for someone like him who possesses the Sharingan, the (pseudo) Heavenly Eye, and the Samadhi True Fire protecting him, the risks are still manageable.

The problem is that he won't stay in this world forever, so unless he can store a lot of nightmare energy, this meditation technique is not very useful.

"Alright, let's try it out and see how it goes."

Lin Yu shook his head.

He then attempted a brief "nightmare meditation".

As soon as he entered a meditative state and absorbed a trace of nightmare energy, all sorts of distorted and terrifying illusions came rushing in, frantically assaulting his mind.

But the Heavenly Eye firmly guards the clarity of the mind, and the heart fire of the Samadhi True Fire flows between the heart meridians, burning and purifying all invading negative energy.

After a moment, he exited meditation and indeed felt that his magical power had become more condensed and his spirit more resilient.

"The effect is remarkable. It's probably because the nightmare energy in this world is too concentrated and pure," Lin Yu concluded.

Feeling the condensation of a trace of magical power within his body and a more resilient spirit, his evaluation of this platinum-level knowledge scroll improved considerably.

"In this specific environment, the effect is surprisingly good. Unfortunately, outside of this nightmare building, the effect would probably be much less effective."

He turned his gaze back to the [World Power Core] on the offering platform.

It lay there quietly, like a sleeping black hole, continuing to emit a faint gravitational pull, capturing the distorted energy permeating outside the apartment.

However, all this attracted energy, the moment it invaded the apartment, was like a stream flowing into the sea, silently absorbed and transformed by the statue of Zhenjun and the portrait of Nezha.

The effects of this continuous, small-volume "feeding" are gradually becoming apparent.

The majestic aura emanating from the statue of Zhenjun became increasingly profound and serene, while the malevolent energy in the painting of Nezha fighting the sea seemed to come alive, with faint traces of wind, thunder, and fire flowing within the painting.

Also benefiting were the Demon-Slaying Sword and the Heaven-Shattering Cloak, which were bound to the True Lord's statue. Lin Yu could sense that their spirituality had increased slightly, and their power had also improved.

Even the golden feathers perched beside the statue seemed to have clearer and more vibrant wind and thunder runes on their feathers.

"Killing three birds with one stone, no, killing four birds with one stone." Lin Yu nodded to himself, quite satisfied with this unexpected virtuous cycle.

He even had a thought: "Perhaps... we could try to more actively guide the distorted energy from the outside in to accelerate this process?"

However, this idea is only in its initial stages and requires more careful planning.

He calmed his mind, stopped thinking about it, and continued to use the shadow clone and the high comprehension bonus from the Daoist study to digest the other scrolls of knowledge he had gained that day.

Time slipped away quietly amidst focused practice and study. The simulated scene outside the window once again changed from a dusky yellow to nightfall, foreshadowing the arrival of the third night.

As the clock struck nine o'clock at night, the familiar and rhythmic knocking sounded precisely on time, neither hurried nor slow.

"Thump...thump...thump..."

Lin Yu awoke from his meditation, a glint of light flashing in his eyes. He got up, tidied his equipment, and headed towards the gate.

Having learned from the experiences of the previous two nights, he felt little emotional; his main concern was the identity of the "guest" outside the door.

He remained vigilant, his Sharingan subtly activated, and his Heavenly Eye ready to be activated as well. His right hand rested lightly on the hilt of the Azure Rose gun.

Then, he turned the doorknob.

The door opened.

The scene outside the door startled Lin Yu slightly.

Standing outside the door was not the monster as expected, but the "maintenance worker"—Old Chen—whom he had met once on the first floor of the Nightmare Building.

He was still wearing his work clothes, which were stained with a little oil. His hair was messy, and behind his thick glasses, his small eyes gleamed with a cunning yet knowing light.

He had his hands in his pockets, smiling at Lin Yu. There was no tension or hostility on his face; instead, he looked like an old friend visiting.

"Hey kid, why are you looking so fierce? Trying to kill me?" Old Chen spoke first, his tone relaxed and slightly teasing.

Lin Yu narrowed his eyes slightly, his mind racing. Old Chen's appearance was completely unexpected.

What was the purpose of this mysterious NPC taking the initiative to come to his door? His face remained expressionless; he even stepped aside to let the other party pass, gesturing for them to enter, his tone calm yet carrying a subtle, almost imperceptible, probing tone:

"I've been thinking about that. Why don't you come in and have a seat?"

He wanted to see if this old Chen dared to step into his apartment.

Upon hearing this, Old Chen's smile froze for a moment, then he shook his head vigorously, waving his hands repeatedly: "No, no, no! Forget it! This place is really weird, kid. I want to live a few more years and see a few more excitements!"

He exaggeratedly took half a step back, as if the doorway led to some kind of dragon's den or tiger's lair.

This behavior only made Lin Yu more certain that Old Chen knew something about the "guardian" in his apartment and was even quite wary of him.

Seeing that Lin Yu didn't insist, Old Chen breathed a sigh of relief and then resumed his smiling demeanor.

With a flick of his wrist, he magically produced a Guardian Bracelet emitting a soft white light and casually tossed it to Lin Yu.

"Well, here's three hours of... well, a little perk the maintenance staff gives to outstanding visitors?" Old Chen said casually, but his eyes held a deeper meaning.

Lin Yu took the bracelet, confirmed it was genuine, and put it away. He looked at Old Chen and asked directly, "You came all this way just to give me a bracelet, didn't you? What's the matter? Just say it."

Old Chen's playful expression faded, and he sighed, his expression becoming somewhat complicated: "You little rascal... you've brought a lot of trouble to our world."

Lin Yu's heart skipped a beat, but his face remained expressionless: "What do you mean?"

Old Chen pointed inside the apartment. Although there was a wall between them, his finger vaguely pointed to the location of the Taoist study: "The thing you brought in is no ordinary item."

He paused, then lowered his voice: "If it weren't for the strange protection in your apartment... you'd probably be dead by now. Those jackals are incredibly ruthless."

Lin Yu's eyes sharpened; Old Chen's words confirmed some of his guesses.

He followed up on Old Chen's words and asked, "'Jackals'? You mean... that 'shelter'?"

He wanted to see if Old Chen knew anything about the containment center, since it was an extremely rare NPC who knew the player's identity and the game system.

Hearing Lin Yu's question, Old Chen smiled and said, "Looks like you're not so stupid after all."

"They are not a threat. What I'm most curious about is what this thing is used for that so many people are fighting over it."

Lin Yu stroked his chin and asked.

"You've got quite the nerve. The shelters are nothing to worry about..."

Hearing Lin Yu's words, Old Chen was speechless, but he didn't pay much attention to them. Instead, he replied, "That thing doesn't mean much to you players, but it's of great significance to us in the game world, the NPCs you players talk about."

To put it simply, it helps us NPCs escape game limitations and become...players.

"...Player?"

Lin Yu repeated it, his brows furrowed; this answer was indeed unexpected.

"You mean, the [World Power Core] can grant you... native beings of the game world the same 'player' status and privileges as us?"

"That's one way to understand it, but it's not entirely accurate." Old Chen adjusted his thick glasses, organizing his thoughts.

More precisely, it can give us "possibilities," break the predetermined trajectory and rules that bind us, and give us the potential to break free from the "script," choose our own path, and even... leave this "stage."

In your words, it means you've obtained the ticket to become a "player," or rather, you've ignited the "spark" to become a "player."

He paused, looking at Lin Yu with a complex expression: "For those of us who are well aware of our situation but powerless to break free, the allure of this thing is fatal. It represents not only power, but also... freedom."

Lin Yu fell silent.

He recalled his experience since entering the apartment game. Although the player identity was accompanied by danger, it did have unlimited possibilities and room for growth. Compared to those NPCs who were trapped in a game world and followed fixed rules, he was undoubtedly lucky.

If he were someone like Lao Chen, he would probably fight for such a life-changing opportunity at all costs.

"So, the shelter..." Lin Yu said thoughtfully.

"A world power core would destroy the core of a world at its very foundation, which is completely unacceptable for a game world."

"In this situation, some lucky worlds might survive, but most worlds won't be so lucky and will be directly destroyed due to core damage," Old Chen interjected.

"And the containment facilities... they call themselves the maintainers of order, and anything that might cause 'chaos' and disrupt the existing balance is on their containment list."

Something that could grant NPCs player potential and destroy the entire game world is, in their eyes, undoubtedly the highest level of risk.

......