Chapter 5: Who Calls This a Relaxing Healing Game
The shadow that had appeared next to the sofa at some point was now standing at the entrance of the bedroom. Han Fei could vaguely make out the outline of a person crouching on the floor, their head lowered.
His body felt petrified, and Han Fei half-knelt on the bed, still covered by the slightly mouldy red blanket.
"If I had known in advance that this was a combat game or a puzzle game, I would have mentally prepared myself, but the store owner and all the information on the internet said it was a healing game. Who the hell knows how to escape in a healing game!"
He stared fixedly at the bedroom door, his brain quickly spinning into action after a brief freeze.
The situation had already unfolded, and thinking about why he couldn't quit the game now was meaningless. He had to survive within the rules!
To quit the game, he needed to fulfil two conditions: the game duration had to exceed three hours, and he had to complete at least one task.
"I have already completed the task of installing the fuse at Auntie's house. I remember when I entered the game, the clock on the wall showed midnight, and the last time I checked it was 2:44 in the morning. So, I just need to find a way to buy myself a maximum of sixteen minutes to leave this place!"
Han Fei's mind had never been so clear. He stared intently at the bedroom door, his muscles tense, and his fingers firmly gripping the kitchen knife.
"I checked earlier, and there was no one in the bathroom, nor any hiding places. What the hell is this thing? Why did it open the bathroom door in the middle of the night?"
Han Fei just needed to hold on for sixteen minutes to survive. The problem was how to endure these sixteen minutes. Things were spiralling towards a worse direction, and he wasn't sure if the kitchen knife in his hand would be of any use. Clutching the knife tightly was just seeking a shred of psychological comfort.
Lying in bed in the early morning, seeing a person crouching next to the living room sofa, then blinking and finding that person at the bedroom door—just the thought of it made his scalp tingle.
Stay calm! I must stay calm!
The inability to quit the game had greatly impacted Han Fei. Before he could recover, he was hit by sudden fear. Despite these relentless assaults, the ordinary office worker had yet to collapse. Han Fei himself found it somewhat unbelievable.
"The old lady said this house had some incidents and was unsafe. That should refer to the person crouching on the floor. The fact that the other residents in the building haven't moved out means this guy rarely leaves the room. If I can escape, I should be temporarily safe."
Saying it was easy, but doing it was difficult. Han Fei looked at the blurred figure at the bedroom door and couldn't find the courage to approach.
"No, the situation hasn't reached its most desperate point yet! It's blocking the door and not coming in. This is the perfect opportunity to buy time. I just need to endure for sixteen minutes, then I can immediately quit the game. If it moves further inside, I'll run out of the bedroom directly!"
In a race against time, with his life at stake, Han Fei no longer cared about the newbie tasks.
His gaze slowly shifted towards the electronic wall clock in the living room. But before he could see the time clearly, a bone-chilling coldness washed over him!
His pupils contracted, and Han Fei looked back at the bedroom door. The person who had been crouching on the floor had disappeared.
At that moment, Han Fei made the right decision. Instead of foolishly turning on the lights, stepping back, or searching around, he jumped off the bed and sprinted towards the living room door!
He knew that the person had entered the bedroom. Staying even a second longer would be suicide. Rather than holding onto any hope or curiosity about who or what the other person was, it was better to leave quickly.
Every second mattered, and Han Fei felt like he had never run so fast in his life.
He rushed towards the security door and quickly opened it, all while keeping his speed.
As the sound of the door opening and closing echoed through the hallway, the motion-sensitive lights flickered on, casting a dim light into the room. However, Han Fei dared not look back. In that split second when he was going downstairs, he glanced at the room from the corner of his eye.
In the dilapidated and desolate room, there was a person twisted into an eerie posture, crouching beneath the bedroom lamp. If Han Fei had turned on the lights just now, he might have seen the person's ghastly pale face!
Slamming the door shut, Han Fei was afraid that the figure would chase after him. After a moment, he heard a horrifying sound coming from inside the room, as if someone was desperately scratching at the door with their nails.
"That thing wants to come out?"
Without hesitation, Han Fei ran downstairs with the kitchen knife in hand. He knew that the old lady downstairs was also a problem, but compared to the unknown entity, the threat from the old lady was relatively small.
Han Fei arrived on the third floor and immediately caught a familiar meaty scent. He noticed that the old lady's door was partially open, and there were several black bags discarded outside. These bags were different from what he had seen in the refrigerator earlier.
Taking a few steps back, his body bumped into the door of another apartment on the third floor. A cracked mirror, hanging above the door, fell suddenly, narrowly missing him.
Turning his head, Han Fei noticed that the door of this apartment was covered in numerous talismans, giving it a terrifying appearance.
"Is there no normal person in this building?"
Continuously subjected to stimuli, Han Fei's nerves were on edge. Just then, all the motion-sensitive lights in the hallway went out. No matter how much noise he made, the lights remained off as if they had all malfunctioned.
Amid complete silence, Han Fei distinctly heard the sound of the door slowly being pushed open, and something was approaching in the darkness.
His heartbeat accelerated rapidly, and Han Fei ran desperately towards the ground floor. He could sense that something was chasing him in the darkness.
Gritting his teeth, Han Fei made it to the first floor in one breath. It was only then that he realized the entrance door was locked, and he couldn't leave the building.
Swinging his arm, Han Fei hacked at the door lock with the kitchen knife, relentlessly. Until darkness enveloped him, something seemed to have appeared behind him.
His neck was slowly being constricted, and on the surface, Han Fei seemed to have gone mad, repeatedly attacking the door lock. His entire focus was on the attribute panel.
A chilling sensation permeated his body, and Han Fei could no longer hold onto the kitchen knife. As he was about to lose consciousness, the grey "Quit" button on the attribute panel finally lit up.
The three-hour time limit had passed!
"Quit!"
Bang!
A loud noise echoed in his mind as the world spun around him, and a sharp pain emanated from deep within his brain.
Enduring the agony, Han Fei regained control of his body and forcefully removed the game helmet, slamming it down on the table.
Night had fallen, and the projected screen on the wall displayed the time as 3:01 AM.
Han Fei had entered the game during the day, but when he returned to reality, it was already late at night.
Exhaustion washed over him from head to toe, and he still felt a surreal sensation as if he hadn't fully escaped from the game.
"Player with ID 0000, please take note! You have completed your first game in Perfect Life's first edition. Please expedite your exploration progress!"
A cold mechanical voice resounded in his mind, leaving Han Fei dumbfounded in place. He was certain he had removed the game helmet, yet the voice directly appeared in his head.
"How is this possible?"
"Player with ID 0000, please take note! You have completed your first game. Please begin your second game within 24 hours!"
"Why do I hear this voice in my head?" Han Fei touched the throbbing pain at the back of his head and carefully picked up the heavy game helmet. It was then that he noticed bloodstains inside.
Upon recollection, Han Fei vaguely remembered something piercing his head after he put on the helmet.
"Does this count as attempted murder?" Han Fei took out his phone, ready to dial emergency services, but as he had the thought of reporting the incident, the voice in his mind resurfaced.
"Player with ID 0000, please take note! Do not disclose any game content to anyone, or the black box will detonate inside your brain, ensuring your brain death at precisely 12:01 AM."
"Black box? Brain death?" Han Fei looked at the leisure and healing genre label affixed to the helmet, and his headache intensified.
His body felt petrified, and Han Fei half-knelt on the bed, still covered by the slightly mouldy red blanket.
"If I had known in advance that this was a combat game or a puzzle game, I would have mentally prepared myself, but the store owner and all the information on the internet said it was a healing game. Who the hell knows how to escape in a healing game!"
He stared fixedly at the bedroom door, his brain quickly spinning into action after a brief freeze.
The situation had already unfolded, and thinking about why he couldn't quit the game now was meaningless. He had to survive within the rules!
To quit the game, he needed to fulfil two conditions: the game duration had to exceed three hours, and he had to complete at least one task.
"I have already completed the task of installing the fuse at Auntie's house. I remember when I entered the game, the clock on the wall showed midnight, and the last time I checked it was 2:44 in the morning. So, I just need to find a way to buy myself a maximum of sixteen minutes to leave this place!"
Han Fei's mind had never been so clear. He stared intently at the bedroom door, his muscles tense, and his fingers firmly gripping the kitchen knife.
"I checked earlier, and there was no one in the bathroom, nor any hiding places. What the hell is this thing? Why did it open the bathroom door in the middle of the night?"
Han Fei just needed to hold on for sixteen minutes to survive. The problem was how to endure these sixteen minutes. Things were spiralling towards a worse direction, and he wasn't sure if the kitchen knife in his hand would be of any use. Clutching the knife tightly was just seeking a shred of psychological comfort.
Lying in bed in the early morning, seeing a person crouching next to the living room sofa, then blinking and finding that person at the bedroom door—just the thought of it made his scalp tingle.
Stay calm! I must stay calm!
The inability to quit the game had greatly impacted Han Fei. Before he could recover, he was hit by sudden fear. Despite these relentless assaults, the ordinary office worker had yet to collapse. Han Fei himself found it somewhat unbelievable.
"The old lady said this house had some incidents and was unsafe. That should refer to the person crouching on the floor. The fact that the other residents in the building haven't moved out means this guy rarely leaves the room. If I can escape, I should be temporarily safe."
Saying it was easy, but doing it was difficult. Han Fei looked at the blurred figure at the bedroom door and couldn't find the courage to approach.
"No, the situation hasn't reached its most desperate point yet! It's blocking the door and not coming in. This is the perfect opportunity to buy time. I just need to endure for sixteen minutes, then I can immediately quit the game. If it moves further inside, I'll run out of the bedroom directly!"
In a race against time, with his life at stake, Han Fei no longer cared about the newbie tasks.
His gaze slowly shifted towards the electronic wall clock in the living room. But before he could see the time clearly, a bone-chilling coldness washed over him!
His pupils contracted, and Han Fei looked back at the bedroom door. The person who had been crouching on the floor had disappeared.
At that moment, Han Fei made the right decision. Instead of foolishly turning on the lights, stepping back, or searching around, he jumped off the bed and sprinted towards the living room door!
He knew that the person had entered the bedroom. Staying even a second longer would be suicide. Rather than holding onto any hope or curiosity about who or what the other person was, it was better to leave quickly.
Every second mattered, and Han Fei felt like he had never run so fast in his life.
He rushed towards the security door and quickly opened it, all while keeping his speed.
As the sound of the door opening and closing echoed through the hallway, the motion-sensitive lights flickered on, casting a dim light into the room. However, Han Fei dared not look back. In that split second when he was going downstairs, he glanced at the room from the corner of his eye.
In the dilapidated and desolate room, there was a person twisted into an eerie posture, crouching beneath the bedroom lamp. If Han Fei had turned on the lights just now, he might have seen the person's ghastly pale face!
Slamming the door shut, Han Fei was afraid that the figure would chase after him. After a moment, he heard a horrifying sound coming from inside the room, as if someone was desperately scratching at the door with their nails.
"That thing wants to come out?"
Without hesitation, Han Fei ran downstairs with the kitchen knife in hand. He knew that the old lady downstairs was also a problem, but compared to the unknown entity, the threat from the old lady was relatively small.
Han Fei arrived on the third floor and immediately caught a familiar meaty scent. He noticed that the old lady's door was partially open, and there were several black bags discarded outside. These bags were different from what he had seen in the refrigerator earlier.
Taking a few steps back, his body bumped into the door of another apartment on the third floor. A cracked mirror, hanging above the door, fell suddenly, narrowly missing him.
Turning his head, Han Fei noticed that the door of this apartment was covered in numerous talismans, giving it a terrifying appearance.
"Is there no normal person in this building?"
Continuously subjected to stimuli, Han Fei's nerves were on edge. Just then, all the motion-sensitive lights in the hallway went out. No matter how much noise he made, the lights remained off as if they had all malfunctioned.
Amid complete silence, Han Fei distinctly heard the sound of the door slowly being pushed open, and something was approaching in the darkness.
His heartbeat accelerated rapidly, and Han Fei ran desperately towards the ground floor. He could sense that something was chasing him in the darkness.
Gritting his teeth, Han Fei made it to the first floor in one breath. It was only then that he realized the entrance door was locked, and he couldn't leave the building.
Swinging his arm, Han Fei hacked at the door lock with the kitchen knife, relentlessly. Until darkness enveloped him, something seemed to have appeared behind him.
His neck was slowly being constricted, and on the surface, Han Fei seemed to have gone mad, repeatedly attacking the door lock. His entire focus was on the attribute panel.
A chilling sensation permeated his body, and Han Fei could no longer hold onto the kitchen knife. As he was about to lose consciousness, the grey "Quit" button on the attribute panel finally lit up.
The three-hour time limit had passed!
"Quit!"
Bang!
A loud noise echoed in his mind as the world spun around him, and a sharp pain emanated from deep within his brain.
Enduring the agony, Han Fei regained control of his body and forcefully removed the game helmet, slamming it down on the table.
Night had fallen, and the projected screen on the wall displayed the time as 3:01 AM.
Han Fei had entered the game during the day, but when he returned to reality, it was already late at night.
Exhaustion washed over him from head to toe, and he still felt a surreal sensation as if he hadn't fully escaped from the game.
"Player with ID 0000, please take note! You have completed your first game in Perfect Life's first edition. Please expedite your exploration progress!"
A cold mechanical voice resounded in his mind, leaving Han Fei dumbfounded in place. He was certain he had removed the game helmet, yet the voice directly appeared in his head.
"How is this possible?"
"Player with ID 0000, please take note! You have completed your first game. Please begin your second game within 24 hours!"
"Why do I hear this voice in my head?" Han Fei touched the throbbing pain at the back of his head and carefully picked up the heavy game helmet. It was then that he noticed bloodstains inside.
Upon recollection, Han Fei vaguely remembered something piercing his head after he put on the helmet.
"Does this count as attempted murder?" Han Fei took out his phone, ready to dial emergency services, but as he had the thought of reporting the incident, the voice in his mind resurfaced.
"Player with ID 0000, please take note! Do not disclose any game content to anyone, or the black box will detonate inside your brain, ensuring your brain death at precisely 12:01 AM."
"Black box? Brain death?" Han Fei looked at the leisure and healing genre label affixed to the helmet, and his headache intensified.
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