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

The battle lasted about ten minutes. Gray, after all, had been sealed away for 130 years, and his condition was far from his peak. Killer Butler slashed him in the chest, and Gray staggered back, a clear crack appearing on his blurred face.

"The same old story." The butler raised his knife, preparing to deliver the final blow. "Master, you can never beat me."

Zhou Lang made a move.

He started the chainsaw and charged at the butler from the side. The chainsaw's teeth tore a gash in the butler's back, and black liquid gushed out.

The butler let out a shriek and turned to slash at Zhou Lang with his sword. Zhou Lang was prepared; he leaned back to dodge the blade and simultaneously raised an oil lamp.

Green light shone on the butler's face.

The expressionless face changed—it was filled with fear.

Oil lamps have a natural suppressive effect on ghosts, but the butler was no ordinary ghost. It only hesitated for half a second before recovering and swinging the cleaver down again.

Half a second is enough.

Gray's hand pierced through the butler's body from behind, and five half-foot-long fingernails protruded from its chest like five black tree branches.

The butler looked down at the fingernails on his chest, and his body began to crack.

"Master..." it uttered the last two words before its entire body turned into black smoke and dissipated in the hall.

Gray withdrew his hand, and the kitchen knife fell to the ground with a crisp sound.

[Ding—Hidden quest in the Horror Manor complete: Former Manor Owner Before Liberation]

[Rating: SSS]

[Rewards being processed...]

A system panel popped up in front of Zhou Lang's eyes.

[Item Obtained: Manor Owner's Key (can open any lock)]

[Gold Coins Earned: 5000]

[Special Reward Received: Terror Value +500]

[Current terror level: 3200]

Zhao Qiang's panel also popped up, and he was so excited he almost jumped up: "I got 2000 gold coins! And a defensive item!"

Han Yingying didn't say what her reward was, but the corners of her mouth curled up slightly.

Gray looked at the three people, and a smile reappeared on his blurry face.

"Thank you, living person," he said to Zhou Lang. "As a way of repaying you, I'll tell you something."

"explain."

"The end of this game isn't what you think it is," Gray's voice lowered. "Those who reached the top all know the truth. And none of those who know the truth dare to go any further."

Zhou Lang frowned.

What is the truth?

Gray shook his head: "I'm just a ghost, and my knowledge is limited. But I've seen it—those human players at the top, their eyes are filled with fear."

His body began to fade.

"The manor is mine now, you're no longer needed to work there," Gray said. "Let's go."

A white light enveloped the three people.

The instance has ended.

Zhou Lang opened his eyes and found himself lying in bed. His phone screen was lit up; the time was three in the morning.

He sat up and checked his inventory. All the items and coins he had acquired in the manor were still there.

My phone vibrated; it was a message from Zhao Qiang.

"Brother Lang, I'm back! That defensive item is called 'Iron Wall,' it can block one fatal attack! Isn't that awesome?!"

Zhou Lang replied with an "Mm".

Zhao Qiang sent another string of messages, roughly about how scared he was, how powerful Zhou Lang was, and how much he had made this time. Zhou Lang locked his screen before he finished reading them.

He was thinking about what Gray had said.

"Those who reached the top all knew the truth. And none of those who knew the truth dared to go any further."

What's the truth?

Zhou Lang wasn't one to ponder these kinds of questions. He entered the game with only one purpose—to find his sister. Since his sister was missing in the game, he would keep moving forward until he reached the end.

Who cares about the truth?

Another message came in, this time from Han Yingying.

"Next dungeon, S-rank. Are you in?"

S-rank. Zhou Lang's highest difficulty level to date is A-rank; S-rank means greater danger and richer rewards.

"When?"

"Three days from now. We need a team of six. Currently, we have you, me, and Zhao Qiang, so we're short three more."

"You make the arrangements."

Okay. Good night.

Zhou Lang tossed his phone next to his pillow and closed his eyes.

Three days is enough time for him to prepare.

Three days later, Zhou Lang met the other three people at the agreed location.

The meeting point was an abandoned coffee shop. After the horror game began, many shops closed down; the owners either went into the game and never came out, or they fled to other cities. The coffee shop's sign was still hanging there, reading "Time Coffee," but half of the character "Time" was missing, making it "Inch of Light Coffee."

Zhao Qiang arrived first and was sitting on the steps by the door, eating a steamed bun. When he saw Zhou Lang walking over, he raised the bun and waved it as a greeting.

Han Yingying was standing inside the door, talking to a middle-aged man.

The man appeared to be in his early forties, with half his hair already gray. He wore a faded jacket and his trousers had patches at the knees. He had an honest face, the kind of face you'd give an extra two ounces of scallions if you bumped into him at the market.

"Zhou Lang, this is Lao He," Han Yingying introduced. "He Yuanshan, a healing-type player, Rank A."

Old He nodded to Zhou Lang without saying anything more. His eyes were dark, as if he hadn't slept well for a long time.

"Old He's skill is healing," Han Yingying added. "If he gets injured in a dungeon, he can recover most of his injuries."

"Most of them," Old He corrected, "lost hands and feet can't be reattached, and they can't be brought back to life even if they're dead. Don't have too high expectations of me."

Zhou Lang sized him up for a few seconds without saying a word.

Just then, the roar of an engine came from the entrance. A bright orange sports car screeched to a halt in front of the café, nearly crashing into a fire hydrant. The door opened, and a young man in his early twenties stepped out, wearing a limited-edition trendy jacket, three gold chains around his neck, and a smartwatch and two diamond rings on his wrists.

"We're here! We're here! We're here!" the young man shouted as he ran, his hair a mess in the wind. "Sorry everyone, there was a traffic jam!"

He rushed into the coffee shop, his gaze sweeping over the group of people before settling on Han Yingying.

He was completely stunned.

"You are..." He pointed at Han Yingying, his finger trembling, "You are Han Xing? Boss Han Xing?"

Han Yingying looked uncomfortable for a moment: "Don't call me 'boss'."

"Good heavens!" The young man spun around on the spot, grabbing his hair with both hands. "I've been reading your walkthrough every day. Your strategy for that A-rank dungeon last time was absolutely brilliant. I spent three days figuring out how you found that hidden NPC's trigger conditions—"

"Stop," Han Yingying interrupted him. "What's your name?"

"Qian Duoduo!" the young man puffed out his chest. "It's my real name. My dad named me that. He said a good name means good fortune."

Zhao Qiang chuckled as he bit into his steamed bun.

Han Yingying turned to look at Zhou Lang, her eyes conveying the message, "He's the most reliable person I could find."

Zhou Lang also felt like laughing.