Chapter 59: The Virtue of Honesty
Opening his eyes, Han Fei saw the electronic clock on the wall pointing at midnight. He got up from the floor and looked around the gloomy living room.
"This place is mouldy and cold, but after staying here for a while, it actually feels like home."
The sound of crackling electricity entered his ears as the TV in the living room turned on by itself. Faint images appeared on the black-and-white snowy screen.
The bedroom door in the depths of the haunted house was open, and a child walked out from inside. He kept his head down, as if possessed, dragging his injured body to the living room, and sitting on the sofa.
"Cui Tianci?"
The child's facial expression constantly changed, sometimes terrifying and intimidating, sometimes innocent and confused. It seemed like he was struggling to suppress something.
Han Fei didn't dare to approach, and the child didn't cause any trouble for Han Fei either.
Whether it was because the child had gotten used to Han Fei's presence or for some other reason, he completely ignored Han Fei.
"Today is the day the victims watch TV?" Han Fei knew that the victims didn't watch TV for entertainment. They did it to remember their past and preserve their last shred of humanity.
After spending enough time with them, Han Fei gradually realized it.
The victims of the body puzzle were in a difficult situation. They were constantly battling the monsters within their own bodies. When they completely lost themselves, they would likely merge into a single monster and never be separated again.
"I wonder if they can find their true selves once the case is solved."
The victims kept coming out of the bedroom and watching TV in the living room. Han Fei sat on a chair next to them, watching them with a deep sense of concern. This scene unexpectedly had a strange harmony, as if they were a family.
By three o'clock in the morning, after three hours had passed, Han Fei walked to the corridor in the living room and looked towards the bedroom in the depths of the haunted house. "Wei Youfu is the most special among all the deceased. He retained more memories than the other victims. I should use him as a breakthrough."
Now was a rare opportunity. The victims came to the living room one after another according to the time of their deaths. Wei Youfu's time of death was precisely at three o'clock and four minutes, so he should still be in his bedroom at this time.
Without any interference from the other victims, Han Fei believed he could obtain more information from Wei Youfu.
He quietly entered the bedroom in the depths of the haunted house. At that moment, Wei Youfu and Gu Ye were standing by the wall. Black veins crawled all over their pale skin, giving them a chilling appearance.
The expressions of the two deceased were extremely terrifying, as if they were on the brink of losing control.
"Youfu?" Han Fei called out softly.
Upon hearing his voice, Wei Youfu's eyeballs twitched madly in their sockets, and countless blood vessels surged onto his eyeballs, as if they were about to burst.
Han Fei didn't dare to provoke Wei Youfu further. He slowly backed away, and as he was about to leave the bedroom, he suddenly noticed some clothing in the corner behind the door.
Among them was a piece of clothing that he recognized—it was the one worn by the neighbour on the sixth floor.
The neighbour had disappeared without a trace, but his clothes remained.
Han Fei quietly picked up the clothes from the floor and slipped out.
"It's still impossible to communicate normally."
Without disturbing his roommate further, Han Fei placed the clothes worn by the neighbour on the sixth floor on the dining table. He was curious about what kind of things a serial killer like him would carry in his pockets.
As his fingers touched something, Han Fei heard the cold voice of the system in his mind.
"Player with ID 0000, please take note! You have discovered a Grade G blood-coloured item—human chrysalis."
"Human Chrysalis (Blood-coloured item): The chrysalis of a certain insect."
Han Fei looked at the object in his hand—it was a thumb-sized, greyish-yellow stone. It felt hard to the touch, and faint blood vessels could be seen on its surface.
"This is a chrysalis. Why is the chrysalis of a certain insect calling a human chrysalis?"
He stored the human chrysalis in his inventory and continued searching the other pockets. "After the unexpected death of an NPC in the game, their belongings are also a great fortune. I was so focused on escaping that I forgot about this."
After searching through the neighbour’s clothes, Han Fei only found the human chrysalis, which seemed to have no apparent use.
"At the very least, he was a deranged serial killer. All he had on him was a single chrysalis. That doesn't seem right." Han Fei took the chrysalis out of his inventory. Looking at the chrysalis, which resembled an ordinary stone, he said, "Now, the residents on the sixth floor are all outsiders. If I want to obtain the hidden profession, I must eliminate ten outsiders before reaching level ten. This chrysalis must be important to them."
An idea slowly formed in Han Fei's mind. "It's not good to take other people's belongings without reason. The owners must be anxious. It's better for me to return the chrysalis while bringing the sister from the fifth floor and eliminate all of them at the same time."
This idea firmly occupied Han Fei's mind. Holding the chrysalis, he pondered how to proceed. At that moment, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his palm.
Looking at his hand, Han Fei discovered an inconspicuous thorn-like projection beneath the stone-like chrysalis. The thorn had pierced his skin and was absorbing his blood.
"This thing also sucks blood?"
Han Fei almost threw the chrysalis out of his hand. He noticed that after sucking his blood, the blood vessels on the surface of the chrysalis had darkened slightly.
"I hate bugs. It's better to return it to its rightful owner."
He stored the chrysalis back into his inventory. Holding the neighbour’s clothes, Han Fei stood at the door of his apartment. "I still have to complete the main quest of exploring the fifth floor. This is a good opportunity while visiting Xu Qin."
After experiencing the previous task of not looking back, the corridor had left a psychological shadow on Han Fei. Before he left his apartment each time, he observed his surroundings for a long time.
"It's very quiet. No one around."
Quietly pushing open the anti-theft door, Han Fei slowly ascended the stairs, pressing his body against the wall. He had become accustomed to doing this and unconsciously even wiped the wall of his apartment entrance clean.
The apartment corridor had a peculiar sense of oppression, which seemed to come from nowhere. It appeared every time he left his apartment.
This time, Han Fei was lucky and didn't trigger any hidden plot. He smoothly arrived at the corner between the fourth and fifth floors.
The door to Room 1051 was still open, and the pitch-black doorway looked like the mouth of a beast.
"To turn a room into a pet, this sister is truly extraordinary."
Han Fei quietly approached the door of Room 1052 and lightly knocked. "Are you home? I'm your neighbour downstairs."
After a long time, the door to Room 1052 remained closed. However, from the adjacent Room 1054, sounds of cutting and bone chopping could be heard.
Standing alone in the dark corridor, listening to the horrifying sounds of cutting, Han Fei felt a sense of panic in his heart.
After waiting for more than ten minutes, the door to Room 1054 suddenly opened. Xu Qin came out carrying a black bag. Her red coat became even more vibrant, and in her sickly eyes, the excitement had not completely faded.
"Sister, I have prepared a small gift for you again."
Upon seeing Han Fei, Xu Qin didn't appear surprised. Her bloodshot eyes stared at Han Fei's face, and she took a few steps closer. "Do you know what it means when a boy keeps giving gifts to a girl?"
Holding the human chrysalis that he had just taken out from his inventory, Han Fei found Xu Qin standing very close to him, leaving him somewhat bewildered. "What does it mean?"
A bone-chilling smile appeared on Xu Qin's lips, seemingly painted with blood. She didn't speak but threw the black bag she was holding into Room 1051, then opened the door of Room 1052 with her bloodstained hand.
"Come in."
"This place is mouldy and cold, but after staying here for a while, it actually feels like home."
The sound of crackling electricity entered his ears as the TV in the living room turned on by itself. Faint images appeared on the black-and-white snowy screen.
The bedroom door in the depths of the haunted house was open, and a child walked out from inside. He kept his head down, as if possessed, dragging his injured body to the living room, and sitting on the sofa.
"Cui Tianci?"
The child's facial expression constantly changed, sometimes terrifying and intimidating, sometimes innocent and confused. It seemed like he was struggling to suppress something.
Han Fei didn't dare to approach, and the child didn't cause any trouble for Han Fei either.
Whether it was because the child had gotten used to Han Fei's presence or for some other reason, he completely ignored Han Fei.
"Today is the day the victims watch TV?" Han Fei knew that the victims didn't watch TV for entertainment. They did it to remember their past and preserve their last shred of humanity.
After spending enough time with them, Han Fei gradually realized it.
The victims of the body puzzle were in a difficult situation. They were constantly battling the monsters within their own bodies. When they completely lost themselves, they would likely merge into a single monster and never be separated again.
"I wonder if they can find their true selves once the case is solved."
The victims kept coming out of the bedroom and watching TV in the living room. Han Fei sat on a chair next to them, watching them with a deep sense of concern. This scene unexpectedly had a strange harmony, as if they were a family.
By three o'clock in the morning, after three hours had passed, Han Fei walked to the corridor in the living room and looked towards the bedroom in the depths of the haunted house. "Wei Youfu is the most special among all the deceased. He retained more memories than the other victims. I should use him as a breakthrough."
Now was a rare opportunity. The victims came to the living room one after another according to the time of their deaths. Wei Youfu's time of death was precisely at three o'clock and four minutes, so he should still be in his bedroom at this time.
Without any interference from the other victims, Han Fei believed he could obtain more information from Wei Youfu.
He quietly entered the bedroom in the depths of the haunted house. At that moment, Wei Youfu and Gu Ye were standing by the wall. Black veins crawled all over their pale skin, giving them a chilling appearance.
The expressions of the two deceased were extremely terrifying, as if they were on the brink of losing control.
"Youfu?" Han Fei called out softly.
Upon hearing his voice, Wei Youfu's eyeballs twitched madly in their sockets, and countless blood vessels surged onto his eyeballs, as if they were about to burst.
Han Fei didn't dare to provoke Wei Youfu further. He slowly backed away, and as he was about to leave the bedroom, he suddenly noticed some clothing in the corner behind the door.
Among them was a piece of clothing that he recognized—it was the one worn by the neighbour on the sixth floor.
The neighbour had disappeared without a trace, but his clothes remained.
Han Fei quietly picked up the clothes from the floor and slipped out.
"It's still impossible to communicate normally."
Without disturbing his roommate further, Han Fei placed the clothes worn by the neighbour on the sixth floor on the dining table. He was curious about what kind of things a serial killer like him would carry in his pockets.
As his fingers touched something, Han Fei heard the cold voice of the system in his mind.
"Player with ID 0000, please take note! You have discovered a Grade G blood-coloured item—human chrysalis."
"Human Chrysalis (Blood-coloured item): The chrysalis of a certain insect."
Han Fei looked at the object in his hand—it was a thumb-sized, greyish-yellow stone. It felt hard to the touch, and faint blood vessels could be seen on its surface.
"This is a chrysalis. Why is the chrysalis of a certain insect calling a human chrysalis?"
He stored the human chrysalis in his inventory and continued searching the other pockets. "After the unexpected death of an NPC in the game, their belongings are also a great fortune. I was so focused on escaping that I forgot about this."
After searching through the neighbour’s clothes, Han Fei only found the human chrysalis, which seemed to have no apparent use.
"At the very least, he was a deranged serial killer. All he had on him was a single chrysalis. That doesn't seem right." Han Fei took the chrysalis out of his inventory. Looking at the chrysalis, which resembled an ordinary stone, he said, "Now, the residents on the sixth floor are all outsiders. If I want to obtain the hidden profession, I must eliminate ten outsiders before reaching level ten. This chrysalis must be important to them."
An idea slowly formed in Han Fei's mind. "It's not good to take other people's belongings without reason. The owners must be anxious. It's better for me to return the chrysalis while bringing the sister from the fifth floor and eliminate all of them at the same time."
This idea firmly occupied Han Fei's mind. Holding the chrysalis, he pondered how to proceed. At that moment, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his palm.
Looking at his hand, Han Fei discovered an inconspicuous thorn-like projection beneath the stone-like chrysalis. The thorn had pierced his skin and was absorbing his blood.
"This thing also sucks blood?"
Han Fei almost threw the chrysalis out of his hand. He noticed that after sucking his blood, the blood vessels on the surface of the chrysalis had darkened slightly.
"I hate bugs. It's better to return it to its rightful owner."
He stored the chrysalis back into his inventory. Holding the neighbour’s clothes, Han Fei stood at the door of his apartment. "I still have to complete the main quest of exploring the fifth floor. This is a good opportunity while visiting Xu Qin."
After experiencing the previous task of not looking back, the corridor had left a psychological shadow on Han Fei. Before he left his apartment each time, he observed his surroundings for a long time.
"It's very quiet. No one around."
Quietly pushing open the anti-theft door, Han Fei slowly ascended the stairs, pressing his body against the wall. He had become accustomed to doing this and unconsciously even wiped the wall of his apartment entrance clean.
The apartment corridor had a peculiar sense of oppression, which seemed to come from nowhere. It appeared every time he left his apartment.
This time, Han Fei was lucky and didn't trigger any hidden plot. He smoothly arrived at the corner between the fourth and fifth floors.
The door to Room 1051 was still open, and the pitch-black doorway looked like the mouth of a beast.
"To turn a room into a pet, this sister is truly extraordinary."
Han Fei quietly approached the door of Room 1052 and lightly knocked. "Are you home? I'm your neighbour downstairs."
After a long time, the door to Room 1052 remained closed. However, from the adjacent Room 1054, sounds of cutting and bone chopping could be heard.
Standing alone in the dark corridor, listening to the horrifying sounds of cutting, Han Fei felt a sense of panic in his heart.
After waiting for more than ten minutes, the door to Room 1054 suddenly opened. Xu Qin came out carrying a black bag. Her red coat became even more vibrant, and in her sickly eyes, the excitement had not completely faded.
"Sister, I have prepared a small gift for you again."
Upon seeing Han Fei, Xu Qin didn't appear surprised. Her bloodshot eyes stared at Han Fei's face, and she took a few steps closer. "Do you know what it means when a boy keeps giving gifts to a girl?"
Holding the human chrysalis that he had just taken out from his inventory, Han Fei found Xu Qin standing very close to him, leaving him somewhat bewildered. "What does it mean?"
A bone-chilling smile appeared on Xu Qin's lips, seemingly painted with blood. She didn't speak but threw the black bag she was holding into Room 1051, then opened the door of Room 1052 with her bloodstained hand.
"Come in."
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