The dean’s authority was undeniable.
In an instant, all the players returned to their seats, sitting upright and pretending to study with their textbooks. After finishing this charade, they realized something—weren’t they supposed to be breaking the rules and heading to detention? Why bother acting like obedient students?
Ji Linfan’s partner muttered, “Old Ji, you’d better come rescue me from the detention room later.”
“Don’t worry, I will,” Ji Linfan replied nonchalantly. “I’m not ready to change partners just yet.”
His partner decided not to dignify that with a response.
Unnoticed, the dean approached the classroom window.
Her expression darkened when she spotted a few students roughhousing. The players who caught her change of expression felt a chill in their hearts, let alone the actual students. Heads immediately lowered, and no one dared to make eye contact.
With a swift motion, the dean opened the classroom door and sternly announced, “No loud noise or disruptive behavior during self-study! You lot—off to detention.”
Ten players were called out.
The ten promptly stood up and walked out without needing further prompting. Their unusually compliant demeanor made the dean a little suspicious.
As they left, Chai Yingying glanced back at Gu Jiu and the others.
Once the director escorted the ten players away, the students studying in the classroom glanced toward the door, their faces slightly brighter than before—less lifeless, more animated.
The players remaining in the classroom noticed the students’ change in expression and exchanged glances. Someone tried to strike up a conversation with the students.
Unfortunately, even without the dean present, the students remained focused on their studies, not sparing a single glance at the players. Perfect model students.
Seeing their attempts at conversation fail, the players temporarily gave up.
Not long after, a ghostly doll entered the classroom through the back door.
Gu Jiu bent down to pick up the doll, Lisa, and gently patted its head. Standing up, she announced, “Ah Ji, let’s go!”
Pulling Lu Ji along, she left the classroom. The other players, noticing their departure, stuck to the plan: two stayed behind to monitor the situation, while the rest followed Gu Jiu out.
As they exited, the diligent students raised their heads to look toward the classroom door. Their faces returned to the same lifeless state as before.
—
The detention room was located in the teachers’ office building.
This was information Chai Yingying had shared with Lisa, who then relayed it to Gu Jiu, saving them the trouble of searching.
The teachers’ office building was behind the main school building.
Fearing an encounter with the dean on the way, they took a longer route, staying vigilant to avoid being caught skipping class. If the director returned to the classroom and noticed students missing, she might pursue them with the wrath of a storm.
The players left in the classroom were tasked with relaying any updates if the director returned.
By the time they reached the teachers’ office building, there was still no word from the classroom players, indicating that the director had yet to return.
Following Lisa’s guidance, they reached the fifth floor of the office building.
The detention room was there.
The door to the detention room was shut. Looking up at its plaque, they saw the words “Detention Room” written in bold gold letters against a black background. Simple and direct—it almost made them want to laugh.
One of the players confirmed, “I scouted this place earlier today. This room was clearly a storage closet.”
“I also scouted this place last night. Back then, it was definitely a storage room!”
“….”
So, when it wasn’t needed, it was a storage room. But when it was required, the storage room transformed into a detention room—how fitting for a supernatural world.
Through the closed door, the detention room was silent. No one knew what was happening inside or how the ten detained players were doing.
Just as someone reached out to push the door open, an eerie, ghostly voice echoed:
“Bad kids, you skipped class.”
A chilling cold surged up from the soles of their feet, freezing every player in place. Slowly, they raised their heads, only to lock eyes with the dean, who was clinging to the corridor ceiling like a lizard.
She hadn’t yet transformed, but anyone meeting her gaze felt an overwhelming sense of danger.
The dean grinned, her expression sinister as she said, “Bad kids who break the rules all have to go to detention.”
As soon as she finished speaking, she lunged toward them.
The moment the director moved, Gu Jiu reacted. She gathered her strength and punched the detention room door, smashing it open with brute force. Without hesitation, she turned and ran.
The players bolted, running down the stairs faster than they ever had in their lives.
But the dean’s speed was terrifying. She moved like a ghost in the dark, traversing the walls and ceiling at a pace that defied logic. Even though the cramped corridors and the floor’s height made it difficult for her to transform fully, her ability to maneuver through walls and ceilings was nothing short of monstrous.
She caught up to a player and grabbed his shoulder.
The player let out a pained scream, feeling as if his body was about to be torn apart. At that critical moment, a dark red whip lashed through the air, wrapping around the director’s body.
Gu Jiu leapt off the wall, landing behind the director. Her nails gleamed crimson as she forcibly pried the director’s hands off the captured player and shoved her away.
“Run!”
She shouted at Lu Ji, shoving the injured player toward the staircase.
The players, in a state of panic, stumbled and scrambled down the stairs.
The dean roared, her once neatly combed hair falling loose. Her body hunched as her limbs elongated unnaturally. Her grotesquely extended arms reached forward, clawing at the fleeing players.
The fifth-floor staircase wasn’t long, and the group quickly made it out of the office building.
As they exited, the dean’s limbs grew even longer, and her speed increased.
Seeing her close in, Lu Ji jumped to the side and cracked his Infernal Blood Whip again. The dark crimson whip coiled around the director’s grotesquely elongated legs and tightened. With a forceful tug, her legs were bound together.
The dean fell hard onto the ground.
“Well done, Lu Ji!”
The players cheered and showered him with praise.
But their relief was short-lived. They soon realized it was futile. The dean’s movement wasn’t hindered much by this. Her long arms reached forward, grabbing onto a player’s jacket.
Cold sweat poured down the player’s face. Without hesitation, he shrugged off his school jacket and dived forward, narrowly escaping her grasp.
The dean rose from the ground and yanked the whip off her legs with brute force. Once free, she resumed chasing the players.
Realizing there was no other option, the players decided to split up.
Gu Jiu contributed a fog pill for the effort. As the dean turned her attention to the others, Gu Jiu and Lu Ji quietly slipped back into the office building. They made their way to the fifth floor and once again stood before the detention room.
The plaque above the detention room still bore its unchanged inscription. The door Gu Jiu had broken remained ajar, revealing a pitch-black silence within. It was so quiet that it felt as though no one was inside. However, Gu Jiu was certain that Chai Yingying and the others had not left. During their earlier escape, she had kept a close eye on the fifth floor and saw no sign of the players.
“Ah Ji, I’ll go in and check. You stay here and keep watch.”
Lu Ji didn’t stop her, though he looked somewhat worried. He reminded her, “Be careful. If anything happens, use the substitute paper doll.”
“Don’t worry, I value my life too much to risk it—after all, I’d hate to leave you behind,” she said with a teasing smile.
Meeting her amused gaze, Lu Ji felt his face grow warm. He gripped the Infernal Blood Whip tightly and silently watched as she stepped into the detention room.
The moment Gu Jiu entered, Lu Ji realized he could no longer sense her presence. It was as though the space inside had been severed from the outside world.
His lips tightened as he stood silently, staring into the darkness of the detention room.
Suddenly, he turned toward the staircase. A pair of pitch-black eyes met his from the shadows—the eyes of the dean, now fully transformed.
The monstrous ghost froze for a moment, then slowly backed away and disappeared from the fifth floor, retreating into the depths of the teacher’s office building.
—
Inside the detention room, Gu Jiu found herself surrounded by ghosts lunging toward her.
Her expression remained calm, and she didn’t spare them a second glance as she began searching the space. Two ghostly dolls perched on her shoulders, grabbing and devouring any spirits that came too close.
The room felt like a cage—a prison for countless malevolent entities.
But that wasn’t her main concern. What drew her attention was the flickering red glow in the distance.
The light felt ominous, exuding an aura of pure evil. It seemed to draw on countless negative emotions, instinctively repelling anyone who approached.
It wasn’t far away—just the right distance to keep her both wary and intrigued.
Gu Jiu’s instincts urged her forward. She moved closer, step by step, until a sudden sharp pain shot through her ankle. She stopped abruptly and looked down.
A ghost lay sprawled on the ground, its clawed hand gripping her ankle tightly. The black claws dug into her flesh, causing crimson blood to seep out.
The mermaid doll roared in fury and lashed out with its tail, sending the ghost flying before devouring it whole.
Gu Jiu glanced at her bleeding ankle. The pain, the warmth of the blood, and the faint metallic scent in the air all felt unnervingly real.
She looked up at the red glow, still hovering at the same distance.
Then, she smiled.
Ignoring the swarm of ghosts rushing toward her, she pulled out a cold, gleaming crossbow and aimed at the red light. Without hesitation, she fired.
The arrow pierced the darkness, striking its target. With a loud crack, the red glow shattered into fragments and disappeared.
Instantly, the ghosts vanished. Although the room remained dark, the suffocating sense of imminent danger was gone.
—
“Miss?”
Chai Yingying’s tired voice called out. Gu Jiu followed the sound and found her slumped against the wall, exhausted. Not just her—every one of the ten players was there.
They looked terrible. Each one bore the marks of a grueling battle, their faces pale and covered in fear. They were utterly spent, battered, and bruised.
Gu Jiu helped Chai Yingying to her feet and asked, “Are you alright?”
Chai Yingying didn’t hold back, leaning heavily on Gu Jiu. “Not dead yet, but if you’d been any later, we might’ve been done for.”
Seeing that Chai Yingying still had the energy to joke, Gu Jiu helped her out of the detention room.
At the doorway, Lu Ji felt Gu Jiu’s presence return and immediately understood that she had unraveled the mystery of the detention room.
When he saw Gu Jiu supporting Chai Yingying as they approached, he pressed his lips into a thin line. With a flick of his fingers, he summoned a few small paper figures. They transformed into larger ones—one went to assist Chai Yingying, while the others entered the detention room to help the remaining players out.
Chai Yingying, now supported by a paper figure instead of the fragrant and soft Gu Jiu, couldn’t help but roll her eyes.
“I’ve said it before, I’m as straight as a steel rod. I’m not interested in the Miss…”
Lu Ji ignored her muttering. His sharp eyes were fixed on Gu Jiu, and they immediately fell to the blood staining her white sock. His lips pressed tighter as he knelt down to inspect her injury.
Leaning against the corridor wall, Gu Jiu lifted her injured foot slightly and smiled. “It’s just a superficial wound. Nothing serious.”
The players emerging from the detention room were all battered and bruised. Their first instinct was to gulp down medicine to treat their injuries. Resting against the wall, they began to recover. Upon seeing the wound on Gu Jiu’s ankle and how seriously Lu Ji treated it, they collectively rolled their eyes.
“Lu Ji, we’re way more injured than she is, alright?” Pei Yongyong remarked, trying to remind him that Gu Jiu’s wound was nothing compared to theirs.
But to her boyfriend, even a single hair out of place on his girlfriend was a major issue, let alone a bleeding injury.
Lu Ji, undeterred, continued tending to the wound with utmost care. Only after he applied a salve from the Boundless City to heal the cut and replaced her socks with a fresh, clean pair did he seem satisfied.
Gu Jiu leaned lazily against the corridor railing, smiling as she waited for him. When he stood up, she grabbed the lapel of his shirt and pulled him closer for a kiss.
The crowd: “!!!!!” So this is the kind of relationship they have?!
Pei Yongyong’s face froze slightly, her eyes darting between the two of them. She quickly reassessed her earlier assumptions—they probably weren’t the people they were supposed to find.
According to rumors from the Lingxing District, the high-ranking figures there were searching for a man. But as for what he looked like, what kind of personality he had, or any distinguishing features… there was absolutely no information.
The only certainty was that the person would be “special.” Anyone who stood out in some way was worth paying attention to.
Pei Yongyong thought to herself, How are we supposed to find someone with such vague criteria? There are tons of special players. Take Gu Jiu, for example—she’s definitely unique. Too bad she’s a woman.