"Why didn't we make a move just now?"
Inside the study.
Li Hai looked at Wang Gang, his voice filled with clear dissatisfaction.
"You've already cleared an instance before. What if we pushed that kid too hard and he panicked? What if he went berserk and jumped the wall?"
Faced with Li Hai's questioning, Wang Gang looked very calm. He replied in a faintly mocking tone.
"..."
Li Hai heard this and didn't refute him. Instead, he fell silent.
"Still… why didn't that kid fall for it?"
Seeing the atmosphere turn awkward, Wang Shan spoke up to break the silence.
"Yeah. Honestly, I thought my acting just now deserved an Oscar."
Li Hai replied with a pensive tone, but his expression hadn't changed at all.
Because—
Even though they hadn't managed to scam Lin Yu, the 100 Horror Coins he'd paid were very real, and they were now firmly in Wang Gang's pocket.
Given the current situation, Wang Gang clearly wasn't planning to return the money.
That alone made Li Hai feel extremely irritated.
But due to Wang Gang's strength, he didn't dare speak up, and could only swallow his anger.
...
"Enough. We should get moving too."
"Once we clear this instance, I'll return your Horror Coins."
After saying that, Wang Gang took the lead and walked toward the study door, speaking without even turning his head.
"!"
Li Hai and Wang Shan were startled. Surprise flashed through their eyes.
After exchanging a glance, the two of them quickly followed Wang Gang out.
Wang Gang stepped into the corridor outside the study, looked left and right, then chose a direction and walked off.
Li Hai and Wang Shan followed behind him in order.
...
At the same time—
On Blue Star.
On a certain computer screen, a livestream was playing.
On the screen was a handsome young man walking through a medieval-style castle corridor.
From time to time, scrolling bullet comments passed across the screen.
[Amazing! This is seriously amazing! This player called Lin Yu is interesting!]
[This newbie is insane—using a move like that?!]
[I don't know why, but when I saw Lin Yu bite his tongue, my own tongue started hurting too.]
[This is great. Wang Gang and his group probably never imagined they already stepped in blood.]
[Are all newbies this terrifying now? That was brutal!]
...
If they hadn't seen it with their own eyes—
The viewers would never have believed that Lin Yu, who now looked calm and focused while searching for items, had actually bitten through his tongue and left blood at the study entrance.
Given the situation earlier, most people would have chosen to flee the area immediately to avoid retaliation.
...
[Attention!
The safety phase has ended!
The Blood Clan Queen has awakened!!!]
[Attention!
The safety phase has ended!
The Blood Clan Queen has awakened!!!]
[Attention!
The safety phase has ended!
The Blood Clan Queen has awakened!!!]
...
At the instant the countdown ended—
Three identical system alerts rang out in succession.
"Hah… figures. Items really aren't that easy to find."
Listening to the system prompts, Lin Yu let out a quiet sigh.
At this moment, he was hiding inside one of the castle's rooms.
At first, he'd thought he might be able to find at least one item during the safety phase.
Reality proved he'd been overly optimistic.
From start to finish, he hadn't even seen the shadow of a single item.
With the safety phase over, he had no choice but to hide in the nearest room.
After his brief exploration, Lin Yu had already gained a rough understanding of the castle's layout.
The entire castle had three floors, and he was currently on the second floor.
Since he had no idea where the Blood Clan Queen would appear from, he didn't dare act rashly.
After all—
If he opened the door and ran straight into her, that would be a nightmare scenario.
Right now, Lin Yu could only hope that his earlier move would pay off—
That Wang Gang and the others would be targeted first, buying him more time.
Thinking about it—
The three of them had wasted time putting on an act in front of him, trying to lure him into teaming up.
Their plan was obvious.
If they were discovered, they could use him as bait to distract the castle master and escape.
"Hah…"
"This beginner instance really is troublesome…"
Lin Yu muttered as he quietly searched the room.
...
At the same time—
In another room inside the castle.
At the center of the room stood a Western-style coffin.
The coffin lid slowly slid downward, as if pushed by invisible hands.
Countless black bats flapped their wings and flew out through the gaps, vanishing into the darkness in the blink of an eye.
Moments later—
A figure slowly sat up inside the coffin.
In the darkness, a pair of blood-red eyes appeared, glowing faintly with a sinister light.
...
Elsewhere in the castle—
Three men were gathered in a room.
They were Wang Gang, Li Hai, and Wang Shan.
"The instance just started. The danger shouldn't be too high yet."
"Let's split up and search."
Wang Gang glanced at the other two and spoke calmly.
"Alright."
Li Hai and Wang Shan exchanged a look and didn't object.
This instance didn't require teamwork.
Moving together would only increase the risk—if one was discovered, the others would be implicated.
All three of them had already cleared an instance before and possessed items.
Naturally, none of them opposed splitting up.
"Then I'll go first. Let's hope we all make it."
Wang Gang turned and left the room.
"Should we two…?"
Li Hai whispered while looking at the doorway.
"Forget it. Wang Gang definitely has more items than we do."
Wang Shan shook his head, then added thoughtfully,
"Too bad we didn't trick Lin Yu. Otherwise, we'd have had extra insurance."
"Yeah."
"Thinking about that bastard just pisses me off."
Li Hai's face twisted with anger.
"Enough. Let's split up too."
Wang Shan didn't respond further. He stood up and left.
"Tch."
After both Wang Gang and Wang Shan left, Li Hai snorted and followed.
In the corridor—
There was no sign of the other two.
Li Hai randomly chose a direction and walked off.
He knew very well that in this instance, finding items was his best chance of survival.
Right now, all he could hope for was that he'd be the first to find one.
However—
What none of them noticed was—
On the ceiling of the corridor, several bats were hanging upside down.
As the three men separated and walked away—
Three bats unfurled their wings one after another and silently flew off.
.