Chapter 17: It's Just a Coffee Shop, After All.
Lost in wild thoughts, Chen Kun took a deep breath to calm himself. He pulled out a cigarette from his pocket, lit it, and exhaled a long plume of smoke.
At that moment—
A cold sneer came from the young man nearby: "You still have the mood to smoke at a time like this?"
“Hei Hao, take him down.”
Chen Kun glanced up at the man, tightened his clothes, and whispered.
“Got it!”
Hei Hao rubbed his shaved head, grinning fiercely as he strode forward. Without a word, he swung his right fist and knocked the young man to the ground with a single, decisive blow.
Only then did the woman in the suit with short hair shout for him to stop. But it was too late—either she spoke too slowly or Hei Hao’s punch came too fast. There was no warning, just a clean, forceful strike.
...
“Hmm.”
Chen Kun nodded with satisfaction, feeling much more relaxed. He then began searching online for any information about this abandoned dormitory building’s game instance.
After a while, he found nothing relevant. The middle-aged police officer who brought him here only said that this instance posed no danger and didn’t reveal much more. The only information he found related to the dormitory’s past, before the eerie events began.
This dormitory had been a female-only residence. After seven people died there, it was completely abandoned even before the strange phenomena arrived.
“This is bad.”
When Chen Kun learned it had been a girls’ dormitory, his heart skipped a beat. For some reason, female ghosts always felt more terrifying than male ones. Thinking of this, he looked sideways at Hei Hao and asked, puzzled, “Are there male ghosts in horror movies?”
Hei Hao was glaring fiercely at the young man who had just been knocked down. The young man got up reluctantly, mumbling a few defiant words to save face, then avoided Hei Hao’s gaze, his eyes darting around as if observing something.
Seeing this, Hei Hao snorted and then thoughtfully rubbed his bald head, pondering Chen Kun’s question. After a moment, he said thoughtfully:
“Kun, I haven’t watched many horror films, but now that you mention it, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a male ghost. Usually, the scary ones are female ghosts, and the males tend to be zombies. I’ve seen a lot of zombie stuff. If this were a zombie world, I’d have plenty of chances to show what I can do—I’m very familiar with Uncle Lin’s moves.”
At that moment—
The middle-aged man with a scruffy beard, who had been silent all along, spoke in a hoarse voice as if he had a decade-old cough stuck in his throat: “A mother is the greatest source of security for any young creature. When that security is betrayed, the fear becomes absolute.”
“When a wild animal cub is abandoned by its mother in the wilderness, it usually screams in terror.”
“From a psychological perspective, female ghosts evoke the strongest fear.”
...
“Secondly, from a cinematic perspective, whether it’s embroidered shoes, long hair, red dresses, or other adornments, these are much easier and more effective at creating atmosphere than dressing up a male ghost. They offer the highest cost-effectiveness for the greatest sense of oppression.”
“Hmm, that makes sense.”
Hei Hao nodded appreciatively and said, “Uncle, you really know your stuff.”
“That’s why many orphans grow up with unstable mental states.”
“You know your mother well,” Hei Hao added expressionlessly.
“Looks like you’re an orphan.”
“Heh.”
Hei Hao, both angry and amused, rubbed his bald head and rolled up his sleeves, striding forward: “I really am—”
Before he could approach, the middle-aged man calmly said, “I’m an orphan too. I was abandoned on the streets and raised by a beggar.”
“Uh...” Hei Hao, now in front of the man, lowered his raised fist and slapped the man’s shoulder heavily. “Next time, finish your story in one go.”
...
At that moment—
The girl in the tactical jacket with a neat ponytail, who had earlier suggested destroying all the mirrors in the dorm rooms, spoke again: “Even though everything will revert to the original state once the instance starts, we should at least familiarize ourselves with this dormitory first.”
“Agreed.”
Chen Kun was the first to raise his hand in support, liking the idea. He needed to plan an escape route in advance. Seeing Kun agree, Hei Hao naturally had no objections.
The middle-aged man also raised his hand in agreement.
The young man standing behind the woman in the suit looked at Chen Kun with a trace of resentment, gritted his teeth, and muttered, “Agreed.”
With a consensus reached, the group of seven began a careful search starting on the first floor. Upon entering, they saw two staircases flanking the entrance, with student dorms lining either side. The dorm doors had been forcibly removed. They checked three or four rooms in a row.
Almost completely empty.
All the clothes had been taken, leaving only the beds—each room had four bunk beds with desks beneath, housing four occupants.
The lights in the corridors and rooms flickered intermittently.
“Let me predict.”
Hei Hao glanced around and clicked his tongue: “Once the instance starts, these lights will probably go out. The stairs might suddenly have an extra step, or you might keep walking up the stairs but never reach the seventh floor. Or maybe...”
“Shut up.”
Before he could finish, Chen Kun, standing behind him, snapped with a dark expression. He looked down at his fear meter, now at 62%, and felt as if someone was silently staring at him from behind.
“Oh...” Hei Hao shrank his neck weakly and whispered a quiet “Yes.”
Damn it!
Hei Hao’s few words had already set Chen Kun’s nerves on edge. He was completely tense, vividly imagining all these possible scenarios playing out.
If it got too much, he’d just return to the hotel.
Filled with a desire to retreat, he instinctively turned to glance at the exit door, but after Hei Hao’s warnings, he hesitated to look back.
It’s just a café, right?
Whoever’s looking for him, he’ll just send them away. Is it really worth diving into this instance just for a café?
Logic told him that the café was his foothold in this world, and he had to enter the instance to defend it.
But his emotions screamed: If the sky were falling, get out of this damned dormitory first!
The young man who had stayed behind the woman in the suit took all this in with a thoughtful squint. Seems like this guy’s a little timid...
Once the instance starts, he thought, I could find a chance to scare him back for that punch.
...
“Um...”
After a long pause, Hei Hao whispered, “Kun, I know a bit about electrical work. Once the instance starts, I’ll fix all these bulbs immediately.”
“You reminded me.”
Chen Kun glanced at his wristwatch. “There are still a few hours until midnight. Let’s go buy a flashlight first. Maybe... maybe...”
His voice trailed off abruptly.
He suddenly remembered that in horror movies, the protagonists who carry flashlights often act like bomb disposal experts, constantly sweeping the darkness. Then, suddenly, a ghostly face appears in the beam, and the psychological shock from that is just as intense as encountering a ghost in the dark.