This vengeful spirit looks so pitiful, doesn’t it?
One of its arms hung limply at its side, and the entire figure huddled in the corner behind the door, curled up like a mistreated, miserable soul. Its aura of malevolence was even weaker than those spirits outside who had already been mercilessly taken down by the players. It was as though it had suffered some severe trauma before.
The other players also noticed the appearance of the vengeful spirit, and they were all a little surprised.
They had initially assumed that the yet-to-appear spirit would be the toughest to deal with. Who would have thought it would turn out to be such a pitiful figure?
Wan Xingzhou suddenly turned to ask, “Young Master Hong, did you do something to this spirit earlier?”
Zhan Shaohong was baffled. “Why me? Why would I have done something to it?”
“Look at how badly this spirit is injured. Aside from rare and highly destructive items, I can’t think of anything else that could’ve caused this. Among the players here, who else but you, with your wealth and resources, could pull that off?”
The reasoning was so straightforward and confident that Zhan Shaohong was left speechless.
He racked his brain, trying to recall what exactly he had done when trapped on the third floor and faced with the spirits. But at the time, he’d been terrified—it’s normal for a guy to be afraid of ghosts, after all—and couldn’t remember which of his items he had used. His older brother had given him a mountain of life-saving tools, so much so that he honestly had no clue which one might’ve caused this.
Seeing Zhan Shaohong struggling to piece it together, the other players couldn’t suppress their jealousy. Thoughts of “kill him and steal his loot” began creeping into their minds.
Being a second-generation rich kid might not guarantee survival, but it certainly came with perks—like powerful tools from influential backers. In the world of Multiverse games, who wouldn’t want to be a second-generation player?
In the end, not only did Zhan Shaohong tacitly accept responsibility for the spirit’s current state, but the other players also collectively agreed that it must’ve been his doing.
Meanwhile, Lu Ji, the real culprit, stood inconspicuously among the crowd, quietly relishing the moment.
With Zhan Shaohong as the scapegoat, no one would ever suspect him. How wonderful.
Chai Yingying, however, didn’t care who was responsible for the spirit’s condition. All she wanted to know was the location of the Lingyuan. Once they found the Lingyuan, they could clear this level.
She turned to Gu Jiu and asked, “Gu Jiu, where exactly is the Lingyuan?”
Her question echoed the sentiments of everyone present, and all eyes turned toward Gu Jiu.
Gu Jiu was staring at the vengeful spirit inside the room, lost in thought. When she came to her senses, she replied, “Wait here for a moment.”
Without paying any further attention to the spirit hiding in the room, she headed toward the manager’s office.
Although the others were confused, they didn’t press her. Given the current circumstances, they simply followed her into the manager’s office.
The manager’s office was the only clean area on the third floor.
Perhaps it was because no spirits haunted this space, or maybe because the manager’s office held some special significance. While the vengeful spirits might chase players into this room, they never caused any damage to it.
Gu Jiu’s gaze swept across the office, and understanding dawned in her eyes.
She pulled out a bloodstained, black leather notebook.
The others stared at the notebook in puzzlement. “What’s that?”
“It’s the manager’s work journal,” Gu Jiu said with a faint smile. “It’s closely tied to this third floor. To be precise, it represents the vengeful spirit.”
Everyone was stunned, their gazes fixed on the black leather notebook.
That said, it wasn’t too hard to understand. Since the notebook had belonged to the hotel manager in life, and the manager had now become a vengeful spirit, it wasn’t surprising that the notebook symbolized him.
Gu Jiu suddenly asked, “Ever since we checked into this hotel, we’ve been under constant attack from an unknown force. What do you think that was?”
The players exchanged glances. Chai Yingying speculated, “Wasn’t it the work of the female attendant? Based on what we’ve uncovered so far, she seems to be the boss of this game world.”
Even the vengeful spirits couldn’t match her strength.
But Gu Jiu shook her head. “At first, I thought so too… When we didn’t yet know about the waitress’s experiences, I believed the attacks came from a pervasive force—the Lingyuan—that sought to kill all the players.”
At this point, Gu Jiu paused, as if gathering her thoughts and organizing her words.
The players, guided by her reasoning, also fell into contemplation.
“When I reached the hidden third floor, I found this black leather notebook left behind by the hotel manager in the office. After learning about the female attendant’s tragic experiences, I did feel sympathy for her. However, seeing the deaths of the other people in the third-floor rooms made me realize she had already transformed into a malicious ghost. The nature of such a ghost is inherently evil, and it harbors no goodwill toward the living. ”
“When I placed the Red Thread of Fate on her hand, revealing her true form, it confirmed my suspicion—her hatred for this world runs deep, and she cannot be trusted.”
The players nodded in agreement. They had witnessed her transformation into a vengeful ghost with their own eyes under the influence of the Red Thread of Fate. It was indeed terrifying.
At that moment, they heard Gu Jiu say, “Because I had the waitress’s registry book, the third floor failed to trap me, allowing me to return to the first floor and meet the female attendant.”
Since the first day when she had registered their check-in, the female attendant had been absent. The only way to see her again was to descend from the hidden third floor.
The players suddenly understood—the true purpose of the registry book was now clear.
Chai Yingying felt conflicted. She had suspected the registry book would be useful in this game world but had been one step too slow to act, letting Gu Jiu take the lead.
Gu Jiu smiled faintly. “At the time, the female attendant asked if I needed any assistance and hinted that I could make requests she would fulfill. That made me suspect it was a trap, so I declined. Later, she asked if I could help her. I responded by saying my companions could assist her…”
Chai Yingying immediately followed Gu Jiu’s line of thought. “We were trapped on the third floor, and later, when the elevator appeared, it was because of the female attendant, wasn’t it?”
After entering the hidden third floor and encountering its vengeful spirits, Chai Yingying had realized things weren’t as she had imagined.
Not only had they failed to locate the Lingyuan on the third floor, but they had also found themselves surrounded by malevolent ghosts. With the elevator and emergency exits gone, the players were left with no means of escape.
Now that the players understood this point, they couldn’t help but feel relieved. Luckily, Gu Jiu had made the request to the female attendant, enabling the elevator’s appearance.
Gu Jiu’s face lit up with a smile, clearly pleased that Chai Yingying had caught onto her train of thought. This made it easier for her to explain her deductions.
“Exactly! You also know this is the original third floor. The original third floor had been hidden within the hotel. The reason for this concealment was to specifically target the female attendant. As powerful as she is, she cannot locate or enter the hidden third floor.”
Zhan Shaohong, still puzzled, asked, “If she couldn’t find it, then how did she manage to make the elevator appear?”
Gu Jiu explained, “Because she’s a malicious ghost—one who brutally killed the hotel manager and guests, leaving them to die horrific deaths and transform into vengeful spirits themselves. To escape her relentless pursuit, the spirits hid the original third floor, including the manager’s office. They concealed this space to avoid being hunted further. While the malicious ghost likely senses their presence and suspects where they’re hiding, she cannot find the entrance to this hidden third floor or enter it.”
The vengeful spirits turned the original third floor into their territory to evade the malicious ghost’s attacks. Unable to breach this sanctuary, the malicious ghost resorted to external help.
The players became her external help.
The malicious ghost and the vengeful spirits were natural enemies. To prevent her from using the players to find the hidden third floor, the spirits tried their best to kill the players.
Thus, all the attacks the players faced had been orchestrated by these vengeful spirits.
—
After hearing Gu Jiu’s explanation, the players fell silent for a moment before asking, “So, what do we do now?”
Gu Jiu smiled faintly. “I used the registry book to leave the vengeful spirits’ territory on the third floor and return to the first floor. I could even request help from the malicious ghost to let you all leave because the registry represents her authority. It allows players to borrow her power to exit the spirits’ domain. Similarly, this notebook represents the spirits’ domain. Earlier, I brought it to the first floor and then returned it to the third-floor territory…”
At this point, a smile spread across her face.
Though her smile was as soft and beautiful as ever, it sent shivers down the players’ spines.
Was she helping the malicious ghost locate the spirits’ hiding place—and even planning to let the malicious ghost breach the third floor?
“Goddess, wh-what are you trying to do?” Zhan Shaohong stammered, his tone filled with reverent awe. His gaze toward Gu Jiu had shifted from adoration to fanatical devotion.
Gu Jiu replied calmly, “Of course, I’m going to destroy the spirits’ barrier and let the malicious ghost in.”
“How?” Wan Xingzhou asked eagerly.
The other players grew excited too. They had grasped her intent: to use the malicious ghost to kill the vengeful spirits outside.
Just because the players couldn’t kill the spirits didn’t mean the malicious ghost couldn’t.
After all, the spirits were the malicious ghost’s enemies in the first place. Letting her continue her revenge seemed only natural.
Without elaborating, Gu Jiu took out a dagger and drove it through the black leather notebook. Thick, viscous blood poured out from the notebook.
The moment the dagger pierced the notebook, the players felt a terrifying presence descend upon the third floor. They looked up to see a dense blood mist surging through the now-open elevator doors, engulfing the entire floor in an instant.
Horrific screams echoed as the vengeful spirits wailed in agony within the blood mist. Compared to the players’ earlier skirmishes, this was pure torment for the spirits.
The blood mist swirled and halted just before the manager’s office.
Seeing that the mist didn’t enter the office, the players finally breathed a sigh of relief. Gu Jiu’s deductions had been correct.
Still, someone couldn’t resist asking, “You’ve said a lot, but you still haven’t told us—where is the Lingyuan?”
After all, finding the Lingyuan was the most critical task. As long as they found it, they could clear the level. Revenge and retribution were secondary concerns.
Gu Jiu didn’t answer immediately. She seemed tired from explaining so much and sat down on the office sofa to rest.
Lu Ji and Wan Xingzhou flanked her, sitting on either side like devoted guardians, as if protecting a flower.
Chai Yingying coldly snapped, “If you’re too dumb to understand, stop talking. You’ll figure it out soon enough.”
She had already guessed what the “Lingyuan” was, but seeing Zhan Shaohong’s follower acting foolishly and then comparing it to Gu Jiu’s calm demeanor, she couldn’t help but get angry.
Zhan Shaohong was equally annoyed and retorted, “My goddess has already explained so much. How can you still not get it?”
The follower timidly asked, “Young Master Hong, do you understand?”
Zhan Shaohong, in truth, still didn’t understand what the Lingyuan was. However, seeing that both Gu Jiu and Chai Yingying seemed to comprehend, he didn’t want to admit he was clueless. Instead, he pretended to be confident.
“Of course I understand. Just wait and see. Stop babbling.”
The wait wasn’t long. As the anguished screams of the vengeful spirits outside gradually faded, the crimson mist beyond the door began to thin.
When the mist cleared entirely, the world seemed brighter and more vivid. Standing in the corridor was the female attendant, dressed in a pristine, well-tailored suit. Her youthful, beautiful face radiated a calm elegance.
She looked toward the office and flashed a smile so sweet it seemed otherworldly.
The players, already scarred by her prior transformations, shrieked in terror at the sight and nearly scrambled to escape.
The female attendant began walking toward the office.
Inside, the players held their breath, retreating instinctively deeper into the room. They feared she would once again transform into a hideous and vengeful ghost and slaughter them all.
The attendant stopped at the doorway. Her gaze swept over the office before settling on Gu Jiu. With that same sweet smile, she said, “Thank you for your help.”
Her aura was calm, devoid of the malevolence typical of a malicious ghost. She seemed kind and peaceful.
Gu Jiu approached her. Taller by half a head, Gu Jiu stood before the ghost without a trace of intimidation. Smiling gently, she said, “Now that your wish is fulfilled, shouldn’t the Lingyuan also vanish?”
The female attendant nodded, a look of sorrow crossing her face.
“I am the Lingyuan,” she said softly, her eyes briefly flashing with hatred. “Even after I killed them, they transformed into vengeful spirits and hid the third floor, making it impossible for me to find them… After becoming vengeful spirits, they continued to harm innocent young women. My resentment and anger didn’t dissipate, and eventually, I became the Lingyuan.”
The Lingyuan, a terrifying and potent supernatural force, had been born from her undying grudge and fury.
The female attendant herself was the Lingyuan.
From the moment she first encountered the players and had them register in the guestbook, she had been subtly signaling her existence. She wanted the players to notice her, to be wary, and not to fall victim to the Lingyuan’s harm.
Although her actions seemed contradictory, it was the only way she could provide a warning.
The Lingyuan, born from her own being, had long shrouded the hotel.
“The vengeful spirits used the Lingyuan to harm others. I, as a malicious ghost, couldn’t help you. In fact, I became an accomplice to their atrocities…” Her voice faltered as tears of blood streamed down her face.
Despite having become a malicious ghost, driven by her nature, she still retained a sliver of the kindness she had possessed in life.
But she had been powerless to resist her malevolent instincts.
Only after killing all the vengeful spirits was she finally able to suppress the Lingyuan born from her gathered hatred, restoring her pre-death appearance and breaking free from the shackles of being a malicious ghost.
The female attendant wiped the blood tears from her face and smiled at Gu Jiu. “Thank you. I’m finally free. I can leave now.”
Gu Jiu returned the smile. “You’re welcome. I hope you’ll have a peaceful and joyful life in your next reincarnation.”
“Thank you.”
The female attendant spoke her final words and vanished from the doorway of the office.
The players then felt the familiar pull of a stretching force, signaling that they had successfully cleared the level.
At long last, they had uncovered the Lingyuan. The journey had been full of twists and turns, with hidden traps at every step. One wrong move could have led them astray.
The players sighed with relief and awe as they left the game world.
Before leaving, Chai Yingying remarked, “Gu Jiu, I hope we don’t end up in the same game world again next time.” If they did, she was sure Gu Jiu would steal her points again. The thought left her deeply dissatisfied.
Gu Jiu waved her off casually.
After all the players exited the game world, a small paper frog appeared on the third floor.
The paper frog hopped into the elevator shaft, made its way back to the first floor, and arrived at the front desk. There, it opened its mouth and swallowed the now colorless, blood-red registry book.
The registry book, saturated with the malicious ghost’s resentment and rage, had become a sinister artifact imbued with Lingyuan’s energy.
After the paper frog consumed the registry, the hotel dissolved into thin air, vanishing like smoke. The gray mist that had surrounded the hotel dissipated…
—
Another game world completed! Don’t just lurk—come say hi! 😊