A bizarre and terrifying experience; I messed up the dungeon world.

That ID, those four words, and the missing person case in the news—all of this tells her that the dungeon is not a dream, and that the real world is becoming increasingly strange.

After dinner, the two strolled around the mall. Lin Xiaoyu tried on several outfits, while Han Yingying stood beside her, offering her opinions absentmindedly.

"How about this one?" Lin Xiaoyu twirled around, her skirt billowing up.

"nice."

"And this one?"

"It looks good too."

"You weren't even watching!" Lin Xiaoyu poked her cheek. "Tell me honestly, are you in a relationship?"

Han Yingying was amused by her: "What are you thinking about?"

"Then why are you so distracted?" Lin Xiaoyu leaned closer to her. "Could it be that you really have someone you like?"

Suddenly, Zhou Lang's face flashed through Han Yingying's mind.

In the haunted manor, he walked at the front, holding an oil lamp, the green light shining on his face, and the ghosts automatically parted to make way. In the cable car instance, he stood on the edge of a cliff, turned back and said to her, "Stay close," without a trace of hesitation in his eyes.

"I guess so," she said.

Lin Xiaoyu's eyes lit up: "Really? When did this happen? What did you look like? What did you do for a living? Tell me quickly!"

"Just... a friend," Han Yingying mumbled, "We haven't officially defined our relationship yet."

"Then you'd better hurry!" Lin Xiaoyu patted her shoulder. "A good man doesn't wait for anyone."

Han Yingying nodded with a smile, but in her heart she thought that the relationship between her and Zhou Lang probably couldn't be described as "dating".

They are allies, comrades-in-arms, and companions who support each other on the brink of life and death.

As for the rest...

She hasn't thought it through yet.

At four o'clock in the afternoon, Han Yingying and Lin Xiaoyu parted ways. On her way home, she deliberately detoured to the entrance of the residential area and glanced at the bulletin board.

A missing person notice was posted on it, and the woman in the photo was the Aunt Wang that Lin Xiaoyu had mentioned.

"Please contact us if you have any leads..."

Han Yingying stared at the photo and suddenly felt a chill.

It was the middle of summer, and the sun was shining so brightly that the asphalt was steaming, but she still felt cold, so cold that her fingers were trembling.

She walked quickly home, closed the door, and leaned against it, panting heavily.

No, this world is wrong.

Those missing people, those "automatically completed" memories, and the warning left by Zhou Lang—all of this tells her that the real world is no longer safe.

Or rather, it has never been safe.

Han Yingying entered the room, turned on the computer, and searched for keywords such as "horror game," "dungeon," and "missing person case."

The webpage displayed a bunch of results, mostly introductions to novels, movies, and games, but there were also some strange posts.

"I had a very vivid dream last night; I dreamt I was in a horror game..."

"Does anyone else feel like something's not quite right in the real world?"

"Help! My friend said he joined a game and then disappeared!"

Han Yingying flipped through the pages one by one, becoming increasingly alarmed with each reading.

These posts were all published recently, the earliest being only a month ago. Moreover, the posters came from all over the country, and their ages, occupations, and backgrounds varied. The only thing they had in common was that they all mentioned "games."

She clicked on one of the posts, where someone replied: "Don't talk nonsense, there are no scary games in this world. Are you under too much pressure?"

The original poster replied: "I'm not crazy, I really have been through it! If you don't believe me, just wait, one day you'll experience it too."

There have been no updates since then.

Han Yingying glanced at the posting time—ten days ago.

She exited the thread and continued scrolling down, when she suddenly saw a familiar ID.

"Like waves in the sea."

She clicked on it and found that the account had only posted one message, which was very simple: "If you come back from 'there', remember to check the mirrors in your house."

There were no replies.

Han Yingying stared at the line of text, her palms starting to sweat.

Mirror?

She turned to look at the full-length mirror in the room, where her reflection was shown, along with the bed, desk, and curtains behind her.

everything is normal.

But she just felt that something was wrong.

Han Yingying stood up, walked to the mirror, and reached out to touch the surface. It was cool, smooth, and showed no abnormalities.

She breathed a sigh of relief and was about to turn around when she suddenly noticed a strange smile curving up her lips in the mirror.

But she clearly wasn't smiling.

Han Yingying suddenly stepped back, knocking over a chair.

The "she" in the mirror was still smiling, and the smile grew wider and wider, with the corners of her mouth almost reaching her ears.

"Hold."

Han Yingying grabbed the table lamp and smashed it at the mirror.

With a crash, the mirror shattered on the floor.

The fragments were scattered on the floor, each reflecting a different image—her terrified face, the ceiling of the room, and a pale hand reaching out from the mirror.

Without saying a word, Han Yingying turned and ran.

She rushed out of the room. Her stepmother and stepsister were still watching TV in the living room. They turned around when they heard the noise.

"What's wrong?" the stepmother asked. "I heard something break."

"It's nothing, I just accidentally broke a mirror." Han Yingying tried her best to make her voice sound normal. "I'm going out for a bit."

"Where are you going so late?"

"Find a friend."

She grabbed her bag and headed out. Her stepmother called after her a few times, but she ignored her and rushed out of the house.

The elevator was still going up, but Han Yingying couldn't wait. She pushed open the emergency door and ran down the stairs. Her footsteps echoed in the stairwell; she was running so fast that she almost tripped.

I rushed out of the building; it was already dark outside.

The streetlights came on, casting a long shadow over her. Han Yingying stood by the roadside, took out her phone, her finger hovering over the contacts for a few seconds before finally dialing Zhou Lang's number.

The phone rang three times before being answered.

"Feed?"

Hearing that familiar voice, Han Yingying almost burst into tears.

"It's me, Han Yingying." She took a deep breath—never mind, she'd just say it directly, "There's something wrong with the mirror in my house. Just now it...it had something inside it."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone.

"Where are you now?" Zhou Lang asked.

"At the entrance of the residential area."

"Don't move, I'm coming right away."

After hanging up the phone, Han Yingying leaned against the streetlight, clutching her phone tightly.

People came and went around her; some were walking their dogs, others were strolling. Everything seemed so peaceful. But she knew that this peace was just a facade; the real danger lurked in unseen places.

About twenty minutes later, a taxi stopped in front of her.

The car door opened, and Zhou Lang stepped out. He looked the same as always, in a black T-shirt and jeans, his hair a little messy, but his eyes were clear.

"Get in the car," he said.

Han Yingying got into the car, and Zhou Lang followed her in, giving the driver an address.

Han Yingying finally breathed a sigh of relief as the car started.

"How did you get my phone number?" she asked.

"Don't you have mine too?" Zhou Lang leaned back in his seat. "We exchanged contact information before the cable car instance ended."