The instance was divided into two camps. One was the "Hunter," the other the "Survivor."

For some odd reason, the instance had given each side a cellphone for communication. Although it was limited to one-on-one calls, substantial advantages could be gained if they decided to communicate.

However, the advantage was primarily for the Hunter. If they connected a call, the best-case scenario for them was to trace the Survivor's location through clues and capture them on the spot.

This outcome was obviously not something the Survivors wanted.

So, Survivors rarely accepted incoming calls, let alone initiated one.

Nine Lives certainly couldn't blame the player named "Safe Life 658" for not picking up his call.

He gazed at his screen for a moment before pocketing his phone.

The mobile phone was an item provided by the instance and could only be used here, so it couldn't be stored in the item bar.

He then pulled out a flashlight he had prepared earlier, adjusted its brightness to the lowest setting, and illuminated the first floor of the school building.

It was pitch black; no streetlight could penetrate inside. Players venturing in could only rely on their flashlights.

Since game instances were typically shrouded in darkness, flashlights had become essential for players.

Nine Lives began to walk slowly across the first floor.

The school building had two staircases, one at each end. Next to each staircase was a restroom, notorious hotspots for paranormal activity.

Entering the girls' restroom wasn't something a decent person would do, especially a schoolgirls' restroom.

But Nine Lives wasn't interested in maintaining his gentlemanly image right then. He peeked around the restroom entrance like a pervert, even squatting to peer through the gap beneath the stall doors for a long time before confirming no one was hiding inside.

He decided to just observe from the doorway.

He'd experienced 'door-slamming traps'—where a door slams shut behind you after entering a room—many times. Often, a ghost that had been lying in wait for who knows how long would suddenly leap out from some obscure corner, its face as white as if it had rolled in a flour vat, letting out a shriek that scared players witless.

While this description might sound comical, if you were unlucky enough to see a ghastly white face with a gaping, bloody maw lunging at you in the dark, any amusement would instantly vanish, replaced by overwhelming terror.

Nine Lives would rather catch no one than encounter such a terrifying face in the darkness.

He quickly finished searching the first floor.

After confirming he was alone on that floor, Nine Lives headed for one of the two staircases.

The school was eerily quiet; even the wind had died down. The slightest sound would be amplified tenfold in the corridors. His soft footsteps echoed on the dark stairs; the silence was terrifying, yet also somewhat reassuring.

At least he knew nothing else here could make a sound.

At the staircase landing, Nine Lives cautiously peeked upward. Seeing nothing unusual, he continued up the stairs.

Although he was a Hunter and didn't need to worry about being caught by other players, this instance might contain terrifying spirits, so he had to be ready to flee at any moment.

Of course, if he encountered a player from the Survivor Camp, he had to pounce and capture them bravely.

Distinguishing between a human and a spirit in the dark was very difficult.

Fortunately, Nine Lives wore high-prescription glasses, allowing him to see clearly whether distant figures were human or ghost.

A person with 1,000-degree myopia would still have 1,000-degree myopia in an instance, so glasses were indispensable.

As Nine Lives, wearing his 1,000-degree glasses, slowly ascended the stairs, he suddenly heard a strange sound from above.

It was the sound of someone dragging a chair across the floor. It lasted only a second before vanishing, as if the person making the sound was being stealthy, not wanting to be discovered.

Nine Lives was already on the second floor. He heard it clearly: the sound came from the third floor, directly above him.

Someone's hiding on the third floor of this building?

Nine Lives paused, thinking for a moment. He glanced out a nearby window; the grounds outside were still empty. No one had entered the school yet.

Without hesitating long, he continued upward, skipping the second floor.

Ever since this game introduced instance ratings, droves of players had recklessly pursued high scores. If you weren't active enough in an instance, your final rating would be extremely low, and the rewards minimal—almost as if you hadn't even entered the instance.

Nine Lives was one of those players keen on high ratings.

So secretive. If it were a spirit, it wouldn't be this cautious. It's highly likely a player from the Survivor Camp… Nine Lives thought as he quickened his pace, reaching the third floor swiftly while trying his best to remain quiet.

Soon, the third-floor corridor came into view.

To avoid alerting anyone on this floor, Nine Lives deliberately turned off his flashlight.

Streetlight filtering through the windows provided just enough illumination to make things out.

Each floor had six classrooms.

He had come up the east staircase; the sound he'd heard should be nearby.

He tiptoed and first checked the men's and women's restrooms nearby.

The stalls were empty—at least, no feet were visible beneath the stall doors.

After checking the restrooms, he straightened up.

The third floor remained utterly silent, as if the sound from before had never happened. But Nine Lives was certain he had heard that unusual sound.

Capturing just one person would qualitatively improve his final instance rating and yield far more rewards.

Thinking this, Nine Lives strode towards the nearest classroom.

He moved quickly, searching two classrooms in no time.

It didn't take much effort. The classrooms were exceptionally clean; a quick scan from the doorway was enough to see if anyone was hiding inside.

Then, under a desk in the back row of the third classroom, he spotted a huddled, dark shadow.

Not only was it huddled, but it was also trembling.

The trembling was so rhythmic and intense that even the desk was shaking along with it.

He was certain it wasn't a spirit.

No spirit in the world would likely be scared into such a state by a player.

Nine Lives frowned. Is this person an idiot? Trembling so violently, are they afraid people *won't* spot them?

The only exit was already blocked by him; the person inside couldn't escape. Only then did Nine Lives take out his flashlight and shine it inside.

「At this moment, Gu Mian had arrived at the foot of the school building where he had previously seen the figure on the roof.」

He looked up at the roof again, but the figure had vanished at some point.

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