Based on the clues they had pieced together, Gao Hai, Kaguya, and Maki had already formulated some ideas about the situation inside the Shirakawa Apartments and its shifting time periods.
First, there was the earliest period, when the Shirakawa Apartments had not yet shown any anomalous phenomena, or at least none known to the outside world. At that time, the Shirakawa Apartments existed in the real world, a normal place connected to everything else.
The most direct evidence for this was the newspaper report about the local government evacuating the Shirakawa Apartments' residents during the flood. Furthermore, they could be certain that the moment of transformation, when the apartments went from normal to abnormal, occurred during this evacuation. To be more precise, it happened as rescue workers were evacuating the residents of Room 304. Just as they were about to lead the people out of the building, the old apartment complex underwent a terrifying change, becoming a place of strangeness that would henceforth pull people from all over the world into its confines out of thin air.
Room 304 was the root of it all.
As for who lived in that room, Gao Hai couldn't be absolutely certain, but he believed it was a married couple with at least one child—a girl, likely very young. And it was highly probable she had suffered inhuman abuse, such as… being scalded with boiling water.
Children were a taboo in the Shirakawa Apartments. Perhaps this referred to the occupants of 304, to the child of that family.
A significant number of the rescue team members who came to evacuate the Shirakawa Apartments' residents never managed to leave. They were trapped on the first floor, becoming a part of the building itself. It now seemed these rescue workers had mostly lost their humanity and sense of self, but they still retained a certain degree of instinct and intelligence.
Therefore, when Gao Hai explored outward from the kitchen, his actions resembled those of the residents being evacuated. At that time, he wouldn't be attacked; even if anomalies appeared, they were mostly harmless. However, when he turned to go back, attempting to return inside, the anomalies formed from those rescue workers would begin to manifest—be it the human wall blocking his path in the darkness or the final spoken words. It was clear these anomalies wanted to prevent Gao Hai from returning indoors, from going back to the second floor.
However, for the anomalies within the Shirakawa Apartments to be effective, 'interaction' was essential. So, aside from that final spoken phrase which caught him off guard due to his lack of experience with such things, the human wall before, no matter how crowded, could not truly stop him.
But considering that was the first time the first-floor anomalies had revealed themselves, getting back would not be so easy this time around.
But Gao Hai was already prepared for the possibility of not being able to return.
The first floor's anomalies were tied to the critical phase when the entire apartment complex transitioned from normal to abnormal; they were one of the origins for understanding its secrets. To find the correct way to escape the apartments, a deep exploration of the first floor was absolutely necessary. Whether it was Room 109 where Sanchez had lived, or the scene that might appear in the hallway, Gao Hai was determined to investigate to the very end.
When the time came, if he could remain conscious and use the rope to signal for a timely reset, he would. If the enemy was too strong and he couldn't reset, then he would just have to reload.
He was prepared to risk his life for this exploration.
Splash—
Amid the sound of flowing water, Gao Hai had already walked through the corridor and reached the area where the main entrance was.
However, there was still a certain point on which the three of them—who had analyzed the situation—shared a similar view.
Investigating rooms 109 and 304 would touch upon the secret of how the Shirakawa Apartments became a deathly place of strangeness.
But, for the purpose of finding an escape route, perhaps… this path of exploring from 109 to 304 wasn't the right one. Perhaps even if they learned the truth, they still wouldn't be able to find a way to escape.
After all, what they needed to know was a way to leave the Shirakawa Apartments alive.
This path might not be the right one.
Gao Hai continued to ponder as he slowly stepped into the hallway.
[The messages of predecessors hide the path to life, the reset door leads to hope, a precious object in the dust brings happiness, the secret is hidden in a place you must never go…]
He suddenly recalled these four sentences, remembering the incomprehensible words spoken in his mind by some unknown entity at the very beginning.
'The messages of predecessors'… The rule sheets, supply boxes, and other such things had indeed helped them a great deal. Xusheng's message after turning back the clock was also one; without that information, they would have had no way of knowing that Room 206 was the correct path to the first floor and would have wasted a huge amount of time and energy.
'The reset door'… He couldn't figure it out. They hadn't found any clues related to it so far. The same went for 'a precious object in the dust.' Although they had various speculations about what this 'precious object' could be, no relevant clues had emerged, and Gao Hai didn't dare to guess wildly.
As for 'a place you must never go'… The only place he could think of was 304. It was the forbidden ground of the Shirakawa Apartments. Yet, based on the clues they had gathered, Sanchez had likely opened the door to 304 twice. Nothing happened the first time; it was the second time that led to the entire apartment's deterioration.
Perhaps the door to 304 itself wasn't the most severe taboo. Even entering 304 might not mean the worst would happen.
Perhaps, inside 304, there was a certain place, a certain secret, that must absolutely not be entered, must absolutely not be revealed. That might be the real key.
Tsk… There were still too few clues about the third floor. That damn place was a chaotic mess right now, like a scene out of *The Evil Within*. It was too difficult to search for valuable clues in the various rooms there. Wasn't there any way to improve this situation?
And in the end, just as the rule sheets left by Xusheng had a serious lag problem, were the hints given to them by this unknown voice really all correct?
After all, the name of this game was the [Sacrificial Game]. Gao Hai didn't think a normal 'infinite-flow' instance game would be named something like that.
Splash—
Amid the sound of flowing water, Gao Hai had stepped into the stairwell and felt his way to the wall directly opposite the door to 106.
He walked steadily.
Even though he couldn't see, even with the floodwater rising past his calves, he continued to walk steadily.
Because someone was holding his shoulder, steadying him as he walked.
Although Gao Hai couldn't see a thing in the pitch-black darkness, he could clearly sense someone beside him, helping him along, following him.
It wasn't just beside him; there were people in front and behind him as well. He was completely surrounded by a group of people.
These people followed him silently, advancing together with him through the darkness.
As long as he didn't stop walking, they didn't seem to stop either.
But if he were to take a different action—for instance, trying to enter 109 instead of heading to the main entrance to evacuate the Shirakawa Apartments—Gao Hai suspected their behavior might become something else entirely.
So, it was time for a little gamble.
Gao Hai took out the chest badge he had torn off earlier from his pocket.
Before setting out, he had asked Sun Dajun to push a small nail through the badge to fashion a makeshift pin. Now, he fastened it to his clothes, wearing the rescue team's badge.
The sound of footsteps around him suddenly vanished.
The strength from the arm that had been steadying him was also gone.
Had the presence of the badge temporarily fooled these things?
Gao Hai quickened his pace slightly. He reached out to touch the wall beside him, his fingers sliding lightly across it, and soon felt a distinct change in texture.
Then, he continued to feel his way along and quickly found what he was looking for.
The room number… That's right, it's 109.
He reached out and grabbed the doorknob.
Click—
He twisted it, but it didn't turn.
Gao Hai's expression turned awkward.
The door to 109 was locked.
Although Gao Hai, being a web novel author, had learned a bunch of strange things for research, lock-picking was not one of them. The only two people on the team with such skills were Sun Dajun, who lacked the physical strength and courage for a mission to the first floor, and Green, who was even more out of the question—throwing him down here would probably make him piss his pants on the spot.
What now?
Gao Hai could feel his heartbeat gradually accelerating.
The damp air seemed to be growing colder, as if the figures watching him from all sides were slowly seeing through his clumsy disguise and were about to act again.
Huuuh—
He could even feel a cold breath on the back of his neck.
What should I do?
What should I do next?
Gao Hai took a deep breath.
He knew that if he just tugged the rope to give the signal, Kaguya would immediately start turning the clock to reset. And even if the reset failed, he had his 'cheat' of reloading. Although he only had 11 chances left, using one now would be acceptable; after all, he still had plenty of attempts for trial and error.
Regardless, this was no time for hesitation. Procrastinating wouldn't change anything.
Gao Hai slowly exhaled the deep breath he had just taken.
He couldn't interact with the anomalies because in this apartment, 'interaction' itself was the medium through which the anomalies exerted their effects.
But, was it truly impossible to interact at all?
His willpower seemed stronger than others', and he had a higher resistance to the anomalies' mental contamination. Moreover, the anomalies themselves had a certain behavioral logic. For example, the knocking horror would try every trick to persuade the person inside to open the door, the anomaly that stole Kaguya's and the others' identities would act as a member of the apartment, and the corpses in the rooms would act as protectors, and so on.
So, what was the behavioral logic of these rescue team members who never made it out of the apartment?
They didn't obstruct him at all as he explored outward from the room; one could even say they assisted him to some extent. In that case…
'Huuuh…'
Gao Hai took another breath, clenching his fingers into a fist, readying himself.
Thump!
His raised fist came down hard.
The loud sound of pounding on the door echoed through the dark hallway.
'Resident of 109, please open the door! There's a flood! Please open up and evacuate with us!'
Gao Hai yelled with all his might, then slammed his fist against the door of 109 again.
'Please hurry and open the door, the water is already flooding the apartment!'
'It will be very dangerous if this continues! Please open the door quickly and evacuate with us!'
One pound after another, the sound echoed in the dark corridor.
Gao Hai shouted at the top of his lungs, trying his best to get into character as a rescue team member, imagining himself as a rescuer who had rushed into an old, flood-stricken apartment, desperately knocking on a door, hoping the resident inside would cooperate and leave quickly.
Of course, Gao Hai's acting was terrible. He had never studied performance, and his on-the-spot improvisation wasn't very effective.
But it didn't need to be that convincing.
Because after he shouted his first sentence, all sorts of voices began to emerge around him.
[The door is locked, the resident of 109 isn't responding! Please open up, a new flood crest is about to hit! We have to evacuate immediately!]
[Hasn't the first floor been completely evacuated? Is there still someone here? Never mind, we have to get them out!]
[Requesting permission to breach! No response from comms? Forget it, saving people is what matters, they can punish me later! Team 1, prepare to breach!]
One voice after another rang out to Gao Hai's left and right.
Although it was still pitch-dark around him, and he still couldn't see a thing.
But Gao Hai could almost see rescuers standing in the surging floodwaters, shouting as they sprang into action.
No, he could indeed see…
A sharp pain suddenly shot through his left wrist, where he wore his watch.
But the badge on his chest seemed to grow warm, emitting a faint, warm current.
Following that, like a hallucination, scenes began to appear, shifting from blurry to gradually clear.
Gao Hai saw face after face.
Every one of them was young, passionate youths in their twenties.
[The flood crest is early! The evacuation of Shirakawa Apartments isn't complete! Any brothers with energy left, follow me!]
[Roger, Captain! Let's go! Teams 1, 2, and 3, move out! Act according to your assigned floors—1, 2, and 3! Hurry!]
[Roger! Everyone, check your gear! Let's move, we have to complete the Shirakawa Apartments evacuation mission before the crest arrives!]
Figure after figure waded through the murky water, rushing into an old apartment building.
They knocked on door after door, escorting person after person.
Gao Hai found that he had seemingly become one of these rescue team members, or rather, he was witnessing everything from the perspective of the badge's original owner, watching events that had happened countless years ago.
[Here, sir, I'll carry you. Hey, be careful, we'll be out of here in a moment.]
[Hey kid, don't be scared, we're here. There are rescue boats waiting outside, everything will be okay.]
[Go, go, go! Put on your life jackets! Don't be afraid, we're with you!]
The water rushing in from the main entrance was a constant torrent, making it almost impossible to stand firm.
Yet those figures darted back and forth through the current, leading out the people who hadn't evacuated in time.
And at that moment, Gao Hai saw the figure at the very front of the team, reaching out a hand to an elderly man who had difficulty moving.
[Here, give me your hand.]
[I'll get you out.]
As the figure spoke, he hoisted the old man onto his back and turned to move, allowing Gao Hai to see his face.
And the speaker's voice was now clear enough to be identified.
Xusheng?!
Even though the voice itself had changed somewhat, sounding younger and more energetic, and the voice he heard in the clock's illusion had been somewhat distorted, Gao Hai recognized it at that moment. This young man's voice was identical to Xusheng's.
How could this be? Could it be that Xusheng was the captain of the rescue team responsible for the Shirakawa Apartments evacuation back then? Was this man actually a witness? A witness to the critical moment when the Shirakawa Apartments transformed into an anomaly?!
BANG!
Gao Hai's thoughts were abruptly cut short.
Because the door to 109 in front of him flew open with a loud bang.
Then, a force from behind shoved him forward, sending the unprepared Gao Hai stumbling into the hallway inside Room 109.
Click—
The next moment, with the crisp sound of a lock tumbling, the door to 109 closed automatically.
Gao Hai was left alone to pick himself up from the floor. He stood up in the corridor under the light of an incandescent bulb overhead and looked at the dry, dilapidated hallway before him.
________________________________________
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