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

The oil lamp still has three uses left, the chainsaw is fully charged, and the shears are in good condition. There's also the "Death Record Book" he acquired last time—he hasn't fully figured out its exact functions yet, only that it allows him to see information about all the dead in a given location.

enough.

At 5:30, Zhao Qiang appeared at the dormitory entrance on time. He had changed into sportswear and was carrying a small bag containing bottled water and compressed biscuits.

Zhou Lang glanced at him: "You think we're going camping?"

"It's better to be safe than sorry. What if there's no food inside?"

"What did you bring into the dungeon last time?"

"...A Swiss Army knife. It was taken by the murdered butler."

"Then don't bring any of these this time either. The system will clear all external items once you go in. Only items acquired in-game will be retained."

Zhao Qiang silently put down his backpack. "Then I'll bring my spirits with me."

Six o'clock sharp.

A white light enveloped Zhou Lang's vision. When he opened his eyes again, he was standing in front of a gray-white building.

The building has six floors, with faded off-white paint on the exterior walls and iron bars welded to the windows. Above the main entrance hangs a wooden sign with faded lettering—"Renxin Mental Hospital".

Mental hospital.

Zhou Lang turned around, and there were eleven people standing behind him.

Zhao Qiang was to his right, pale but still relatively calm. To his left was Han Yingying—she was also in this instance. Further away, a burly, bald man was cracking his knuckles. Zhou Lang recognized him—the boxer, a survivor from the last instance.

Of the remaining eight people, there was a young man in his early twenties, dressed in an expensive suit, his hair meticulously styled, standing there as if waiting for his driver to open the door. Next to him was a woman in her thirties, wearing glasses, with a gentle demeanor, clutching half a half-eaten sandwich in her hand—the transfer had been too sudden.

The other six people were unfamiliar faces, including both men and women, and varied in age.

A new message popped up on the panel:

Welcome to Renxin Mental Hospital

Your Role: Specially Appointed Physician (Psychiatry)

[Mission: Uncover the hospital's secret within 7 days]

The rules will be distributed upon arrival at the hospital.

[Note: Please do not violate the college rules. Violators will be held responsible for the consequences.]

Specially appointed doctor. That's good; doctors should have more freedom than patients.

Zhou Lang glanced at the others' reactions. Zhao Qiang was staring blankly at his panel, muttering something to himself. Han Yingying remained calm, and after looking at it, she looked up and nodded slightly to Zhou Lang.

The boxer walked over, his voice gruff: "Hey, we meet again. My name is Cheng Yan, we survived together last time. Remember me?"

"I remember," Zhou Lang said.

"What roles have we been assigned this time? I'm a hospitalized patient—I injured my head during boxing training." Cheng Yan pointed to his bald head. "That makes sense."

The man in the suit also came over, but not to say hello. He looked around, frowning. "This place is so shabby. I'm assigned to a VIP ward; the treatment should be pretty good, right?"

No one answered him.

"Hey, I'm talking to you." The man in the suit raised his voice in annoyance.

Zhou Lang glanced at him, didn't say anything, and walked straight towards the hospital gate.

The door opened.

The corridor inside was paved with light green floor tiles, and the fluorescent lights hummed with electricity, with two of them flickering irregularly. The smell of disinfectant was so strong it was pungent.

A nurse sat at the front desk, wearing a white uniform and a mask, revealing only her eyes. She looked up at the twelve people who walked in, her eyes moving in a strange way—not scanning, but staring at each one individually, pausing for exactly two seconds with each person.

"New here," she said, her voice flat and monotone. "Please sign in here."

There was a sign-in book on the table, and twelve pens next to it.

Zhou Lang picked up a pen and saw that there were already names on the sign-in book—some unfamiliar names, with dates starting from a month ago. The most recent date was five days ago, marked with a red cross next to the name.

He wrote "Waves in the waves".

Zhao Qiang peeked at the red cross from behind him, and his hands trembled even more violently.

After everyone had signed in, the nurse stood up. She was much taller than when she was sitting, at least 1.8 meters, and her figure was abnormally thin.

"I'll take you to your respective areas," she said. "Doctors and nurses go to the third-floor office area, regular patients go to the second-floor ward area, and VIP patients go to the fifth floor."

She took a stack of papers from the drawer and handed one to each person.

"These are the college rules. Please make sure you memorize them."

Zhou Lang looked down at his own picture:

Renxin Mental Hospital - Staff Code of Conduct

1. Working hours are from 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM. Please stay in the dormitory outside of working hours.

2. Night rounds will be conducted from 10 p.m. to 11 p.m., and will be carried out by the on-duty nurse; doctors are not allowed to participate.

3. The basement level is a drug warehouse, and entry is prohibited without authorization.

The fourth and sixth floors are the dean's offices; no one may go there without being summoned.

5. If a patient exhibits "abnormal behavior", please immediately press the red button in the corridor and return to the safe area.

6. Every Wednesday is a group treatment day, and all patients must attend. Medical staff will be responsible for finding any absent patients.

7. Do not believe what the patient says.

8. Don't believe what you see in the mirror.

The last one was marked in bold red.

Zhou Lang read the rules twice. Several key pieces of information: the basement level and the sixth floor are restricted or prohibited areas; there are special mechanisms at night; rules seven and eight are typical "information interference" rules—restricting players' access to information.

"Abnormal behavior" is most likely a sign of something strange happening.

Han Yingying walked to his side and lowered her voice: "My identity is that of an intern nurse, so I have access to the shift schedule and patient files."

"Okay," Zhou Lang said. "Are your rules the same as mine?"

Han Yingying shook her head: "There's one difference—'When you're on the night shift, if you hear footsteps on the sixth floor, don't look up at the ceiling.'"

Different rules. This means that different identities face different threats.

The woman with glasses was also assigned a medical staff role. She walked over and introduced herself: "My name is Lin Man, and my assigned role is obstetrician-gynecologist. Although this is a mental hospital... why is there an obstetrics-gynecology department?"

good question.

Zhou Lang didn't answer, but he noted down this point of doubt.

The medical staff dormitory was at the end of the corridor on the third floor, consisting of three rooms side by side. Zhou Lang was assigned to the innermost room, Han Yingying and Lin Man were in the middle room, and the other male random player, who was assigned as a caregiver, lived in the outer room.

The room wasn't big, containing a single bed, a desk, and a metal wardrobe. The bed sheets were the standard white ones provided by the hospital, and the blankets were neatly folded.

Zhou Lang put down his things and opened the wardrobe. Inside hung two white coats, with name tags in the pockets—"Special Appointed Psychiatrist Lang Li Ge Lang".

It just looks so out of place to have your name printed on your employee ID card.

There was a folder on the table containing the list of patients he was "in charge of." Three names, corresponding to three medical records.