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

Han Yingying stared at him for a while. "The night my mother died, all the mirrors in the house shattered. Every single one of them was gone. My dad said it was an earthquake, but there wasn't one at all that day."

A mirror. Another mirror.

Zhou Lang nodded. "That's all for today. Be careful at work tomorrow."

He turned to leave, but Han Yingying called him back.

"Zhou Lang".

She called him by his real name for the first time.

Zhou Lang turned his head.

"Do you know something?" Han Yingying asked.

The wind in the corridor was cool. Zhou Lang looked at her; the girl stood under the warm yellow light, her eyes filled with confusion and wariness.

"I'll tell you when I clear the game," he said.

"You promise?"

"ensure."

Han Yingying didn't ask any more questions and closed the door.

Zhou Lang returned to his room and sat down with his back against the door.

He was thinking about something.

After Han Yingying's mother passed away, she became a powerful figure in the supernatural world, and Han Yingying herself later entered the supernatural world and defeated the evil god—all this information came from the top-secret files of the Bureau of Suppressing Ghosts. However, the files never mentioned Hua Ling Shuang's true identity, nor did they contain her photo or detailed information.

In other words, if it weren't for this chance encounter with the same instance, no one would have associated an eighteen-year-old female student with the legendary Hua Ling Shuang.

The evil god erased her memories, making her a normal person again, starting all over again from scratch.

Is this punishment? Or some deeper design?

Zhou Lang didn't know. But he knew one thing—if the evil god discovered that Han Yingying's memories were showing signs of returning, he would definitely take action.

He must protect her. At least until she regains her full strength.

The problem is, given his current "persona"—a novice player who doesn't have a deep relationship with her—there's only so much he can do.

Let's take a step by step.

The wind outside the window suddenly picked up, carrying a fishy smell.

Zhou Lang stood up, walked to the window, and looked outside.

In the back garden of the manor, the large tree that Zhao Qiang had swept leaves for all day was glowing.

It wasn't the green light of an oil lamp, but a white light that shone through the tree trunk.

Zhou Lang frowned.

This was not what he expected.

The white light lasted for about three minutes before disappearing.

Zhou Lang peered out the window for a while, and then the back garden returned to darkness. The tree looked no different from during the day.

But he remembered the location.

On the morning of the third day, when the butler was assigning tasks, Zhou Lang volunteered, "May I work in the back garden?"

The butler tilted his head and looked at him for a moment. "Alright. The back garden needs weeding today."

Zhao Qiang breathed a sigh of relief—he finally didn't have to deal with those fallen leaves anymore. Today he was assigned to clean the windows on the second floor.

Han Yingying was still in the attic. Xiong Batian was in charge of the kitchen.

Zhou Lang took his tools and went out the back door, heading straight for the big tree.

It's much clearer during the day. The tree is huge; its trunk takes two people to encircle, and its bark is rough and black. But upon closer inspection, you can see cracks in the trunk, with faint white veins visible within them.

Zhou Lang squatted down to examine the tree roots. The exposed parts of the roots were thick, coiled in the soil like snakes. He used a shovel to clear away the surrounding soil and discovered something buried beneath the roots.

It was cloth. A corner of gray cloth was sticking out.

Zhou Lang looked around to make sure no one else was nearby, then began digging.

The soil was loose, and it took less than a minute of digging to reveal the whole thing—a piece of clothing. A white long dress, but because it had been buried underground for a long time, it had turned grayish-black.

It's the exact same style as the dress Han Yingying is wearing in the mirror.

Zhou Lang lifted her skirt and shook it. Something fell out of the skirt—a silver ring with the character "Ling" engraved on it.

Ling. The Ling of Hua Ling Shuang.

He held the ring in his palm, turning it over and examining it. Inside the ring was engraved a line of small characters: "The contract endures forever, immortal and indestructible."

These are Hua Ling Shuang's belongings. They were buried here.

Who buried it? The person mentioned in the diary?

As Zhou Lang was thinking, he heard footsteps behind him. He clutched the ring and put it in his pocket, then turned around to see Xiong Batian standing not far away, holding a basin of swill.

"What are you digging for?" Xiong Batian asked.

"Weeding. The roots are too deep." Zhou Lang stood up and patted the dirt off his knees.

Xiong Batian walked over to him and poured the swill into the drainage ditch beside the tree roots. As he poured, he said, "You went out again last night?"

Zhou Lang did not answer.

"I saw it," Xiong Batian said. "You went and knocked on that woman's door."

"If you see it, you see it." Zhou Lang picked up the shovel and continued shoveling soil.

Xiong Batian put down the basin and crossed his arms. "I've been thinking about something. The butler said we couldn't leave our rooms at night, but you did and weren't punished. This means you have special abilities, or... you're not an ordinary player at all."

Zhou Lang didn't stop shoveling soil.

Xiong Batian continued, "I've been observing you for three days. Your evaluation is always 'perfect.' You have an oil lamp that can ward off ghosts, you're incredibly strong, and you dare to go to the basement alone. With all that combined, do you really believe me if I tell you you're a novice?"

Zhou Lang tossed a clump of grass aside and stood up straight.

"What are you trying to say?"

"I want to cooperate with you," Xiong Batian said. "This instance isn't that simple, I can sense that. Instead of each going our own way, let's share resources."

"What resources do you have?" Zhou Lang asked.

Xiong Batian hesitated for a moment, then drew a dagger from his waist. The blade gleamed with a bluish light, clearly not an ordinary item.

"This is a D-grade attack item I brought out from the last dungeon. It'll be enough for a C-grade dungeon."

Zhou Lang glanced at the dagger. A D-grade item, it was no different from a toy in his eyes. But he couldn't show it.

"Okay," Zhou Lang said. "Cooperation is possible, but I have one condition."

"you say."

"Follow my instructions. Do what I tell you to do, and don't ask questions you shouldn't ask."

Xiong Batian's lips twitched. He was a man of pride, and these conditions made him uncomfortable. But he wasn't stupid either; after three days of observation, he was well aware of the gap between himself and Zhou Lang.

"Deal." Xiong Batian stretched out his hand.

Zhou Lang didn't shake hands with him, but just nodded and continued shoveling weeds.

Xiong Batian's hand hovered in mid-air for two awkward seconds before he withdrew it. "Then... tell me what the arrangements are."

"Don't sleep too soundly at night," Zhou Lang said.

Xiong Batian nodded and left with the empty basin.

Zhou Lang waited until he was far away before taking the ring out of his pocket and looking at it again. The ring was engraved with "The contract is eternal, immortal and indestructible"—this was the contract inscription between Hua Ling Shuang and the House of the Strange.

In other words, the small porcelain bottle Han Yingying received yesterday is a matching set with this ring. The porcelain bottle is the main item, and the ring is the token of the contract. The two items were kept in different places and were found separately by Han Yingying and him.

coincidence?

Zhou Lang did not believe in coincidences.

The manor was guiding them. Or rather, some kind of will within the manor was guiding them to piece these things together. The clues left by the person in the diary, the mirror in the coffin, room 307, the dress and ring under the tree—all of these were foreshadowing.