You Cannot Escape

Xin Xin's eyes went wide, and she instinctively started patting herself down.

But she felt no pain, and only then did she realize she was just playing a game.

At the same time, she felt ashamed of her own pathetic reaction.

Playing a game as if she were actually in danger.

She couldn't help but sigh again: Too real!

Right now, because of the gunshot, her already black-and-white perspective began to darken further, blurring at the edges.

It was just like the painful convulsions after being shot—so realistic.

Xin Xin swallowed hard, momentarily at a loss for words.

The Protagonist was dead? The game was over? Did she have to reload a save?

As the screen slowly faded to black, she thought that was it.

But the next moment, Lacan's voice suddenly rang out from the darkness.

[What!?]

Judging by his tone, he seemed to have discovered something unbelievable.

Instantly, gunfire erupted, bang bang bang in rapid succession.

Accompanied by roars and shouts.

[Aaaaaaah—!!]

Xin Xin, staring into pitch black, had no idea what was happening.

She could only vaguely guess that Lacan, who was firing, had encountered something so shocking that he'd emptied his magazine and screamed out loud.

But the next second, Lacan let out a terrified wail that made her blood run cold.

[What the hell... is this thing!?]

[Please! Stop! He told me to do it! He told me to do it! It's not my fault! Please... stop, stop! Aaaaaaah—!!]

The sound cut off abruptly, leaving Xin Xin stunned.

What did he mean by that...? Was there someone else in the room?

And that person was fine even after the magazine was emptied?

Could even make a hot-tempered man beg for mercy in terror?

When the player's view went black, what exactly had Lacan encountered that scared him so much?

What had he experienced in the scenes the player couldn't see?

But one thing was clear: Lacan had definitely done something, and he knew the other person who had suddenly appeared in the room!

As for the specifics, she had no idea.

With these questions in mind, Xin Xin's perspective suddenly snapped open, but what she saw was a grid-patterned ceiling and a spinning ceiling fan.

It was like a person lying down, staring blankly at the ceiling, blinking occasionally.

It seemed like a new scene.

Xin Xin thought to herself.

Soon, between blinks, a man's voice rang out.

As if reporting something.

[Doctor, hello. I have the file on that manic patient admitted tonight.]

[He claims someone broke into his home and tried to harm him, so he defended himself with a gun, emptied the magazine, and disturbed the neighbors, who called the police.]

[But strangely, the police investigation records show no signs of a break-in at his house.]

[And the scratches on his body, after examination, appear to be self-inflicted, not from the 'intruder' he mentioned.]

[The neighbor across the hall also told the police they saw him throwing books off his bookshelf, as if looking for something.]

[The police tried to ask what he was looking for, but he cursed them, saying they knew perfectly well. Based on his behavior, he thinks we did something to him, even claiming that being admitted to the hospital is part of a conspiracy between us and the police.]

[I looked at his medical records and found he suffers from severe scopophobia.]

[Doctor, you should go check on him. Until you receive further notice, he'll be in the transitional ward, Room 323.]

[But please be careful—he seems very agitated and dangerous.]

The next second, the man's voice stopped abruptly.

At the same time, the perspective that had been staring at the ceiling fan suddenly dropped, returning to normal.

Like a person lying down suddenly sitting up.

Then, getting out of bed, Xin Xin found she could control it.

Now, it was her turn to play as the player again.

Only this time, she was a bit confused.

That line just now was clearly packed with information.

"What's spectrophobia? Forgive me for being pretty, big-chested, and long-haired, but I've really never heard of that."

Some fans in the livestream said they didn't know, while those who did started explaining.

Soon, she had a rough idea of what this phobia was.

In simple terms, it's social anxiety—feeling uneasy and afraid when making eye contact with others, belonging to the category of people with low self-esteem.

Over time, this leads to self-isolation, and eventually, paranoia, which is a type of mental illness.

From the fragments of words, Xin Xin could roughly guess that this person named Lacan probably had something wrong with his mind?

Always feeling like others were out to harm him.

But.

In the videotape world just now, she had indeed found surveillance cameras.

That meant someone was watching him.

So what was going on here?

A person with spectrophobia, discovering that their home had been secretly fitted with mini cameras, would essentially be constantly exposed to someone else's deliberate gaze.

Let alone Lacan—even she herself probably couldn't handle that.

This game's plot was too convoluted and confusing!

At this moment, Xin Xin found herself in a hospital ward.

Only, it wasn't as clean and tidy as the hospitals she'd been to before.

In the game, especially this ward of his.

It was piled high with clutter and containers, more fitting as a storage room than a ward.

Plus, the lights weren't on, making it dim, so it felt eerie and unsettling instead.

"It seems I've left that haunted house and come to a new scene?"

Xin Xin looked around, not acting rashly.

A new environment meant more unknowns.

But even though she didn't move, events would come to her on their own.

At that moment, a red glow suddenly lit up not far away.

A faint crimson light stood out sharply in the dimness, catching Xin Xin's attention immediately.

It was an LED sign, spelling out the word 'EXIT' in English.

So it was obvious—she was meant to leave this place.

Xin Xin swallowed her saliva, picked up a shovel from the pile of junk, and gripped it tightly in her hand to use as a weapon for self-defense.

Then she cautiously approached the door, peered through the glass, and saw a corridor hallway.

There was even faint light, so it wasn't pitch black.

Xin Xin glanced at the shovel in her hand, steeled herself again, then slowly reached out to push the door open and stepped out.

Outside was the hospital corridor, long and winding.

The overhead lights shone brightly, dispelling the gloom.

Although this was a hospital, there wasn't a single person in sight, not even a sound.

It was as if, aside from her, there were no extra NPCs in this game world.

Standing on the eerie, silent corridor, she felt a sense of strangeness and unease.

But staying put wasn't an option either. Urged on by the livestream fans, she tried walking toward the brighter area.

And so, she moved cautiously, taking slow steps.

Under her feet, the ceramic tiles made crisp tapping sounds, echoing through the dead hallway with repeated reverberations.

Adding even more suspicion to the oppressive atmosphere.

At that moment, for some reason, an image popped into her head.

She felt that the corner ahead was mysterious and unsafe.

As if something would be waiting for her the next second.

Though she knew it was just her imagination, this thought grew stronger in the current horror game, to the point where her pace slowed down.

"So oppressive... why does it feel even more uncomfortable in the hospital than in the house? Hospitals are supposed to be places that save lives, right..."

Xin Xin's voice was as faint as a mosquito's in the livestream, trembling.

And the livestream fans were comforting her, creating an atmosphere of care.

But just then, a sudden female voice over the intercom made her jolt in fright.

[Attention staff, Room 323 requires emergency rescue. Room 323 requires emergency rescue.]

Hearing the broadcast, Xin Xin let out an inexplicable sigh of relief.

She wasn't stupid—she knew this was a hint.

It was telling her to go to Room 323.

But wasn't Room 323 the ward where that guy named Lacan was staying? Going there now felt like walking straight into the tiger's den.

"Damn it, why does this game keep pulling these 'scary but harmless' stunts? If there's a ghost, just come out already! Grinding me down bit by bit like this, I'm gonna lose my mind sooner or later."

Xin Xin cursed bitterly, then pressed forward until she reached a fork.

Now, staring at the corridor ahead and the one to her left, she had no idea which way to go.

"Is this hospital really this big? Did the devs actually build a full hospital model in here? How am I supposed to choose at this fork?"

She glanced down the left passage and noticed the lights at the far end flickering, dimming and brightening erratically.

Moreover, the doorplates along that corridor were completely blank—no indication of what department or room they belonged to.

Clearly, that path was trouble!

Xin Xin swallowed hard and shook her head.

"I'll just go straight. Not taking that route for now."

This drew a burst of laughter from the livestream, with a flood of comments rolling in.

Xin Xin glanced at the barrage, then chose to walk forward.

Under the glow of the ceiling lights, visibility wasn't an issue, so the walk was relatively safe.

And along this path, the doors on both sides had clearly labeled nameplates.

She first passed Room 304B, then a storage room and the 3F Meeting Room.

From these details, she figured out she was on the third floor of a hospital.

As she ventured deeper, she spotted a room at the end that looked like a waiting area.

That must be the transfer zone, right?

She quickened her pace, her footsteps echoing through the entire corridor.

Just then, a creaking sound suddenly rang out.

The door to the Nurse Station ahead slowly swung open, and a wheelchair rolled out on its own, wheels clattering—clunk, clunk—reverberating through the silent hallway.

Staring at the anomaly ahead, her throat tightened. She dared not approach.

But standing there frozen wouldn't make for good streaming.

So, after checking her channel's viewer count, she gritted her teeth and pressed on, summoning every ounce of caution.

"Isn't this the same wheelchair from that mansion earlier?"

Gripping her shovel, she crept cautiously up to the wheelchair. Nothing unusual happened.

But on it lay a key.

A key!

A critical item!

Xin Xin snatched it up immediately, and the game notified her that she'd obtained the key to Room 323.

"So it really is telling me to go to Room 323! Damn it! I don't want to go!"

Just then, the female voice broadcast rang out again.

[Attention, staff. Room 323 requires emergency rescue. Room 323 requires emergency rescue.]

Hearing the broadcast again, Xin Xin curled her lip.

"So this broadcast is just rushing me to get to Room 323, huh?"

She looked ahead. The waiting hall before her was filled with movable chairs, a wall-mounted screen beside them, and two vending machines placed near the only passageway at the far end.

That single passage was clearly the way to go.

After all, the nearest room's doorplate read Room 311.

That meant heading inward would lead to Room 323.

Xin Xin gritted her teeth, and spurred on by her livestream fans, she walked forward.

The moment she stepped past the doorway of Room 311, Lacan's furious roar echoed from deep within the corridor.

[Don't fucking touch me!]

The voice, amplified by the silent hallway, seemed both near and far, drifting and indistinct.

Then came the echo of another man's voice.

[Sir, if you won't cooperate, we have no choice.]

[Grab him! Give him the sedative!]

Then came the chaotic commotion, the clatter of things overturning, and angry shouts.

Xin Xin stood at the corridor entrance, momentarily too afraid to step forward.

Because the normally steady electric lights began to flicker erratically amid those ethereal echoes.

The entire hallway corridor alternated between bright and dim, as if synchronizing with the echoes, heralding something ominous ahead.

At that moment, a strange and dangerous sound effect began to play, adding a layer of tension to the scene before her.

Meanwhile, the broadcast system emitted a woman's eerie sobbing, along with inexplicable clicking sounds.

It was as if the female announcer in charge of the broadcast had also gone off-kilter.

Faced with this situation, Xin Xin panicked, bracing herself against the wall, her legs weak, unable to move an inch.

"What the hell, what the hell, I haven't even gone in yet, and you're pulling this on me?"

Though she said that, the commotion before her didn't stop, and the echoes continued.

The next second, a furious shout rang out.

But this voice came from behind her!

[Where do you think you can run to, you piece of trash!?]

Xin Xin's hair instantly stood on end!

The sound effect immediately grew frantic!

She whipped her head around, her eyes nearly splitting open!

She saw, in the corridor she had come from, a man leaning on a cane, highly decayed and withered, stepping out.

Who else could it be but Lacan!?

Or rather, the deceased Lacan!

His movements were hobbled and uneven, his face twisted and contorted.

That crisp clicking sound was precisely the noise of his cane on the ceramic tiles!

Even more terrifying, his speed was not slow!

Xin Xin screamed in terror on the spot, turned around, and ran.

The next second, the neatly arranged chairs suddenly shifted eerily, instantly stacking layer upon layer in front of her, blocking the only path.

"Fucking hell!! Damn it!!!"

Even Xin Xin, a two-dimensional goddess streamer, broke down and cursed in fear at this moment.

Just then, her livestream fans reminded her that she still had the shovel, to use it to carve a path.

She snapped back to reality and quickly swung the shovel in her hand.

Boom--

Clatter--

With a single strike, the stacked chairs scattered all over the floor.

But her shovel also shattered, becoming unusable.

Seeing a path open, Xin Xin didn't dare look back, immediately bolting away.

But behind her, the clicking sound pursued relentlessly.

At this point, the entire corridor, or rather the entire hospital's lights, were all flickering continuously, alternating between bright and dim.

This made it nearly impossible for Xin Xin, fleeing in terror, to distinguish directions.

Coupled with the fact that the place was a maze of interconnected passages and crossroads everywhere, she had even less idea of how to go, so she just ran blindly, leaving it to fate.

Yet this behavior of hers only allowed the malevolent spirit chasing her to draw ever closer!

"This hospital is like a maze! What do I do! What do I do!!"

Xin Xin was now drenched in sweat, her lips and throat parched. She had just rounded a corner when she saw, at the far end ahead, around another corner, a hobbling shadow on the wall, approaching step by step amid the flickering lights!

It had appeared in front of her!

Xin Xin could hardly believe it!

Sure enough, the next second, the withered and decayed malevolent spirit emerged from that corner, accompanied by the clicking sound, walking swiftly, its target squarely on Xin Xin!

This scared the latter out of her wits, and she screamed on the spot, turning to run back.

"It can teleport! It can teleport ahead to block me! If I hadn't seen the shadow just now, I'd definitely have been caught by it at that corner! Why is this hospital so big!! How do I run through this maze! How do I run!!"

At that moment, a prominent message worth 1,500 yuan floated by.

It read: Pay attention to the room numbers.

Seeing this message, Xin Xin suddenly snapped awake as if from a dream.

She immediately looked at the doors on both sides—sure enough, they all had room numbers!

She was now standing in front of Room 302, with Room 303 on the other side, and Room 304 ahead!

She understood!

As long as she reached Room 323, she would be safe!

And at that moment, the terrifying, deathly tap-tap sound was drawing closer from behind.

At the same time, its eerie words came with it.

[So itchy. White maggots burrowing through the flesh. So itchy.]

[So hungry. Nothing to eat in the basement. So hungry.]

[So hateful. You shut the door and locked it. So hateful.]

[You did this. You did this. Why pick me why me!!]

Xin Xin had no mind to dwell on the meaning of these senseless howls.

Her only thought was to flee the rotting, withered monster behind her!

So, panic-stricken, gritting her silver teeth, she sprinted for her life while counting the door numbers.

"309, 310, 311."

Reaching a cross intersection, she hurriedly checked the first room's number on each of the three paths ahead.

The first on the left was 312, the first on the right was 362, and the first straight ahead was 336.

So she dashed straight into the left path toward 312.

"313, 314, 315."

At the next cross intersection, the numbers on the three paths had changed again.

Left was 394, straight ahead was 351, right was 319.

It was 319!

Just a few more rooms and she'd reach 323!

Xin Xin ran straight into the right path toward 319.

But a sudden change occurred—the withered, rotting ghoul was actually limping toward her from the end of this very corridor!

She was shocked.

"Why is it here!! Why is the ghost on this path!!"

But the crisis left no time for thought; she could only turn back and run to the previous intersection.

This time, the numbers had changed again.

Left was 377, straight ahead was 301, and the number on the right was splattered with blood, only the digit 3 visible—the last two numbers were completely hidden!

With no other choice, Xin Xin ran straight ahead toward 301.

"302, 303, 304."

At another cross intersection, she froze in place, unable to believe her eyes.

The three paths before her.

Only straight ahead showed 340; the numbers on the left and right both revealed only the digit 3, the last two covered in blood and unreadable!

This was—

"Increased randomness!"

Xin Xin said bitterly, staring at the three paths, unsure which way to run.

But she had no time; the tap-tap sound was right behind her, constantly shredding her nerves!

If she didn't choose soon, it would catch up!

So, gritting her teeth, she ran straight ahead toward 340.

But she completely failed to notice that the first room on the corridor she had just run out of bore the number 320 on its front.

"341, 342, 343."

Along the way, the sobbing female voice from the broadcast had turned sinister and eerie.

It kept muttering in a low tone, words that filled her with dread.

[You can't escape.]

[You can't escape.]

[You can't escape.]

These sounds lingered in her ears, tormenting her unbearably.

But she could only lower her head and keep running, trying her best to ignore the broadcast.

Yet when she reached another cross intersection, she was dumbfounded.

All three corridors ahead were covered in blood, only the number 3 visible!

What was more despairing was that in the left corridor, the withered, rotting evil spirit was limping toward her.

At the same time, an identical ghost appeared in the corridor ahead!

There were ghosts in both corridors!?

Xin Xin's small face instantly turned pale, panic-stricken and utterly lost.

She couldn't see the room numbers.

Counting the path behind her, three out of four routes had ghosts.

"What's going on, is this forcing me into a dead end?"

As the lights flickered and the tapping sound rang out incessantly, she finally ran into the right-hand passage.

All the room numbers on this path were covered in bloodstains, making it impossible to tell what they were.

Even if Room 323 were on this path, she wouldn't know!

But she had no choice; she could only rush to the next cross-corner as fast as possible and figure things out from there.

But then, something that utterly crushed her happened.

Ahead, under the flickering light, a limping shadow swayed and shook against the wall.

At the same time, the tapping sound rang out clearly, growing louder and closer.

The eerie female voice from the broadcast stopped whispering and let out a bone-chilling, piercing laugh.

It seemed to mock Xin Xin's helpless performance.

This pushed her to the brink of collapse, forcing her to turn and run back.

But the moment she turned around, she froze in place.

"That's impossible. This... so that's how it is. I understand, I understand."

Xin Xin stared behind her, muttering to herself.

At the far end of the opposite direction, another withered, rotting ghost was closing in step by step.

On this corridor where she stood, ghosts appeared on both sides, limping toward her.

The lights flickered, and the broadcast cackled.

In that moment, she understood the game's mechanics.

"So... this is a timed escape. Once you miss the correct route, the numbers get blocked, and the ghosts increase. In the end, they corner you into a dead end, forcing you to wait for death!"

In her final moment, Xin Xin realized this.

But it was too late.

Behind the two evil ghosts, several more identical withered ghosts emerged.

They rose and fell in waves, limping along.

The mass of tapping sounds turned into a terrifying noise.

Trapped in the middle, Xin Xin could only watch helplessly as they closed in.

But she didn't want to give up!

She wanted to survive!

At that moment, following the barrage suggestions in the livestream, she picked up a chair, smashed open the fire cabinet on the wall, and pulled out a fire extinguisher.

Then she used the extinguisher to try breaking the door lock, hoping to hide in one of these rooms.

But anyone who had played the game knew these doors were just decorations.

They functioned like invisible walls.

There wasn't even a model inside!

Still, she wanted to try—this was VR, with high freedom, and she refused to give up hope, wanting to exhaust her last bit of strength to try!

So she raised the fire extinguisher high and slammed it down hard.

In an instant, a loud crash rang out, and the door handle in front of her bent sharply—it seemed to be working.

Hope surged in her heart as she lifted the extinguisher again, smashing it down wildly.

As the horde of ghosts approached, her movements grew more frantic, and the door handle gradually deformed.

Finally, just as the ghosts were about to reach her, the door burst open!

With a creak, Xin Xin couldn't wait to dive inside.

But the next second, she suddenly froze, then let out a desperate scream.

The entire livestream audience only saw a pale, withered, rotting face emerge from the pitch-black room, along with a hand large enough to cover the entire field of view.

And then the final voice that sealed her fate.

[You can't escape]

Yesterday was Dragon Boat Festival, and there were guests at home, including some hell-raising kids, so I really couldn't write. Also, the game has been slightly modified; I won't write Zai Zong's part anymore—time to get into the main plot. Writing too much would risk padding the word count.

Thanks to 'Little Troll Fake' for the 12 monthly ticket support! Thank you! Thank you!

Thanks to 'Mi Youyou', 'Ye Yeye', 'Clear Moon Return', 'Qianmo, n1x', 'Hei L', and 'BAKANEET' for the monthly ticket support! Thank you all!