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

After Li Feng finished explaining the action plan, he asked everyone to form groups on their own.

The fifty-odd players were divided into six teams, each with eight to ten players. Zhou Lang was assigned to the third team.

Zhao Qiang and Han Ying were not in the same group. Zhao Qiang was assigned to the first team as a forward, while Han Yingying was assigned to the fifth team as a support. The two wanted to switch groups, but Li Feng refused.

"The groups are based on your ability types, so don't try to get special treatment."

Zhou Lang glanced at the members of his team.

Eight people.

Standing at the front was a middle-aged man wearing a faded jacket and carrying a first-aid kit. It wasn't one of those system-generated items; it was just an ordinary white first-aid kit with a hospital label on it.

The man had obvious dark circles under his eyes, and his beard was unkempt, making him look like he hadn't slept well for several days.

He noticed Zhou Lang looking him over and nodded: "My name is Xu Mingyuan, therapeutic type."

"Zhou Lang, combat type."

Xu Mingyuan didn't say anything more and lowered his head to organize the contents of the first-aid kit.

Zhou Lang shifted his gaze to the second person.

A young man in his early twenties, wearing a limited-edition streetwear jacket and custom sneakers, was looking down at his phone, typing rapidly.

"Dude, are you here to clear dungeons or to go shopping?" Zhou Lang couldn't help but ask.

The young man looked up, revealing a set of white teeth: "Yes, yes. Hey buddy, my name is Gu Chen, a B-level player."

Grade B?

Zhou Lang glanced at him. This person didn't possess any ghostly aura, nor did he even carry a decent weapon. He was just carrying a designer backpack with several cartoon charms hanging from it.

"You didn't bring any equipment?"

"I brought some," Gu Chen patted his pocket. "I brought several bank cards."

Zhou Lang: "..."

He thought he was crazy.

The third person was a girl who looked to be under twenty. She had her hair in a ponytail and was wearing a regular hoodie and sweatpants. She stood at the very back of the line, her presence barely noticeable.

Zhou Lang almost didn't notice her.

The girl kept her head down, twisting her fingers around the cuffs of her hoodie. After Zhou Lang glanced at her, she shrugged and whispered, "Lin Xiaolu, support type."

The sound was so soft it was almost inaudible.

Zhou Lang didn't recognize the remaining four people; they were two men and two women, and all appeared to be either B-level or A-level. Zhou Lang greeted them briefly and memorized their names.

There was another person standing a little further away from the group.

The man leaned against a wrecked bread cart, hands in his pockets, his gaze lazily sweeping over everyone present. He wore a black trench coat over a turtleneck sweater. A long, old scar ran from his eyebrow to his ear.

Zhou Lang felt that something was off about this person.

It's not the kind of feeling that "looks strong," but rather—

This person stood there, seemingly out of place with the surrounding atmosphere. Like a gun thrown into a pile of toys.

"Who is that?" Zhou Lang asked Gu Chen.

Gu Chen looked up and swallowed hard: "Shen Ye. S-rank player."

Zhou Lang paused.

S grade?

Horror games are ranked from E to S, with S being the highest difficulty level, signifying someone who has cleared the most challenging dungeon and is at the very top.

"Why would an S-rank officer participate in this kind of operation?" Zhou Lang asked in a low voice.

"Who knows?" Gu Chen said softly. "But I heard he used to have a very famous team, which disbanded later. I don't know the specific reasons."

Zhou Lang didn't ask any more questions.

Li Feng confirmed the identities of each group and issued the order to enter the instance.

The gates of the abandoned factory slowly opened under the control of the soldiers. Behind the gates was complete darkness; nothing could be seen.

Zhou Lang took a deep breath and followed the group inside.

The moment I stepped into the darkness, a familiar system notification sounded.

Welcome to the dungeon "Ghost Realm".

[Instance Level: A]

Objective: Destroy the instance core.

[Note: Death here means actual death.]

Zhou Lang blinked, adjusting his eyes to the light.

The interior of the instance is completely different from what you see from the outside. It doesn't resemble an abandoned factory, but rather a massive underground city. Gray stone walls, narrow passages, and a faint green light emanating from the ceiling.

"Good heavens, this is huge." Gu Chen looked around.

"Quiet," Xu Mingyuan said in a low voice, "Don't attract anything."

Gu Chen quickly shut up.

The six teams proceeded along pre-assigned routes. The third team was responsible for the central route, heading straight down to the second basement level from the main passage.

After walking for about ten minutes, the first team's radio signal came from ahead.

"Team 1 has encountered two three-star monsters. They are currently engaged in combat and do not require support."

Five more minutes passed.

"Team Two encountered an enemy, a three-star unit."

Zhou Lang gripped the chainsaw tightly. At this rate, they'd run into each other soon.

really.

A fork in the road appeared ahead. Something was standing in the middle of the fork.

It is over two meters tall, and its body is pieced together from different parts—some parts are men's arms, and some parts are women's legs. All the seams are sewn together with thick black thread.

Stitching Corpse Demon.

It hasn't found them yet.

Zhou Lang gestured for his teammates to stop. He turned to Shen Ye, wanting to seek the opinion of this S-level expert.

Shen Ye didn't even look at them. He leaned against the wall, his eyes closed, as if he were asleep.

"..."

Okay, I'll rely on myself.

Zhou Lang began to give instructions: "Xu Mingyuan and Lin Xiaolu will stay behind to provide treatment and support. Gu Chen—can you handle it?"

"Yes, yes." Gu Chen took out a stack of things from his bag.

Zhou Lang took a closer look.

money.

A thick stack of hundred-yuan bills.

"Are you trying to throw money at a ghost?"

"That's roughly the idea." Gu Chen pulled out a bill. "My skill is called 'Money Power,' which allows me to turn money into weapons. One hundred yuan is equal to one bullet, and one thousand yuan is equal to one grenade."

Zhou Lang was silent for two seconds: "It's good to be rich."

"Right, right?" Gu Chen was very happy.

Zhou Lang briefly explained the battle plan. He and three other combat-type teammates would be responsible for close combat, while Gu Chen would provide ranged fire support.

"When I yell 'start,' I charge."

Everyone nodded.

Zhou Lang started the chainsaw.

"start."

The roar of the chainsaw echoed through the passage. The stitched-up corpse demon suddenly turned its head, opened its mouth, and let out a piercing scream.

Zhou Lang rushed to the front, his chainsaw aimed at the corpse demon's neck.

The corpse demon swung a deformed arm to block, sparks flying. Zhou Lang felt a jolt in his arm; the creature's flesh was tougher than he had expected.

"Get out of the way!"

Gu Chen shouted from behind and threw out a RMB note.

The hundred-yuan bill transformed into a golden bullet of light in mid-air, striking the corpse demon's shoulder with a "smack." The corpse demon was forced back two steps.

The other three teammates seized the opportunity to flank from both sides. A female player wielding a sword severed the corpse demon's right leg, while another smashed its kneecap with a hammer.

The corpse demon collapsed to the ground, still struggling. Zhou Lang stepped on its chest and began to slice downwards with the chainsaw.

It took a full thirty seconds to cut off its head.

[Defeat 1 Stitched Corpse Demon to gain 300 points of Unpredictability.]

Zhou Lang turned off the chainsaw and took a couple of breaths.

It's quite a challenge to fight a three-star monster with eight people.

"Great job, great job." Gu Chen clapped his hands. "You worked together very well."