Another Familiar Face

Although there was only one monster behind the door for the time being, Lin Yu did not feel that the corridor was safe after dealing with it.

Judging from the sounds we just heard, there must be quite a few monsters in this staircase.

"Go up or go down?"

Lin Yu remained vigilant and asked.

Max glanced at the Compass in his hand, then confidently declared, "Up!"

Although the Compass was flat, Lin Yu didn't know how this guy could tell up and down.

But since it's the other party's Item...

Lin Yu chose to believe her.

The two people were looking at the stairs leading upwards.

The hallway lights were much dimmer than those in the corridor, and faint roars and shouts came from above, making Lin Yu's scalp tingle.

Max wasn't particularly afraid. Despite having just narrowly escaped death, she seemed to be a carefree person.

"Damn, that sounds really intense up there... Bro, let me check it out some more."

Max picked up the cow-and-cat plush toy from the ground and swung it high into the air.

"Go! [Cheese Cat Cat]!"

After Max finished speaking, a sharp meow came from upstairs.

"Meow!"

Max's expression turned serious upon hearing the cat's meow.

"Only one meow... that means the cat was destroyed in no time. The monster up there must be pretty fierce."

Max spoke, Lin Yu looked at Stiller.

"It's alright, let Ninja No. 1 go scout ahead."

Stiller glanced at Lin Yu, and three seconds later, he silently walked up the stairs.

At this point, he no longer cared about his ninja characteristics. He pulled out Dagger while pressed against the wall and walked upwards with a very professional and vigilant posture.

Before they had taken two steps, a dull thud suddenly came from above their heads.

"Boom!"

It felt as if something heavy had fallen to the ground.

Max jumped in fright. "Holy crap, the Dragon Stone has fallen!"

Lin Yu was about to retort that this wasn't an ancient tomb, so where would he get the dragon-severing stone? But then he heard a sound from upstairs that sounded like a series of muffled thunderclaps.

Stiller looked up and was even more horrified.

"Run!"

He jumped down the steps and saw boulders rolling down the stairs above, crushing the corpses and fragments of many monsters along their path—a terrifying sight!

"There really are stones!"

Lin Yu was shocked and he and the other two quickly retreated from the Emergency Passage.

The boulder was large, just the right size to go down the stairs—after reaching the corner, it hit the wall twice and continued rolling downhill.

Fortunately, although the stone looked terrifying, it wasn't moving very fast, and the three of them had already retreated back outside the stairwell.

The boulder crashed onto the doorframe with a bang, then rolled downhill.

Lin Yu only realized it when the stone got closer...

It's less a rolling stone and more a stone ball—the stone is abnormally round and smooth, a perfectly standard gray sphere!

That's why it scrolls so smoothly.

The stone ball continued rolling down, and Max spoke with lingering fear.

"What is this thing... Did we trigger some kind of mechanism?"

Lin Yu stroked his chin. "Something's not right. The style of this thing doesn't resemble this Asylum..."

Given the style of this building, that thing was a bit too "new"... and such a perfectly sized and smooth Big Ball is hard to imagine as a creation that meets current world standards.

After all, everything in this building looks rather rough.

And...

Judging from the results, this thing didn't kill them; on the contrary, it cleared out quite a few monsters along the way.

After the stone ball passed, the entire corridor fell silent.

Lin Yu stroked his chin and looked up.

"This stone ball also came from upstairs, could it be...?"

As soon as they finished speaking, the two heard footsteps coming from the stairwell.

Max pulled out a new toy, but this time it wasn't a cow cat but another kind of feline.

"Brother, let me scout this out—go ahead, [Cheese Lynx]!"

Max threw the lynx out, and then there was a noise coming from the stairs.

"Oh!"

But apart from that, there has been no further activity.

Max stroked his chin. "Seems like there's no malice or aggression involved."

Lin Yu nodded. "Then it seems highly likely that it's Player."

The two returned to the hallway. Lin Yu waved his hand and gave instructions to Stiller.

"Stay alert, Ninja No. 1!"

"Clear!"

Stiller replied.

Max looked at Stiller, somewhat puzzled. "Why didn't he say 'Hi'?"

"I set the language; I'm not Japanese."

Lin Yu said solemnly.

At the same time, Lin Yu took out his gun again.

Even though the person coming upstairs might be Player, Lin Yu remained cautious.

After all...

That's hard to say.

Even Player should take precautions.

The footsteps upstairs were getting closer and closer, and finally...

Suddenly, the footsteps stopped completely.

The hallway was silent, as if the person upstairs had realized that there were still living people downstairs after the rolling stones, and was wary of Lin Yu and Max.

Just as Lin Yu was pondering how to break the deadlock...

Suddenly, a periscope slowly descended from upstairs.

Lin Yu and Max looked at the brass viewing mirror and exchanged bewildered glances.

It can't be wrong...

It's most likely Player.

Only Player would pull out something so out of place all the time.

Just as Lin Yu was pondering, Max waved his hand.

"Hey bro, wanna chat?"

Her voice echoed in the hallway.

The periscope was quickly retracted, and soon after, footsteps sounded again.

Now, listening more closely, Lin Yu could glean some information from the footsteps.

The footsteps were light, suggesting either a slender male or a female of average build.

Soft-soled shoes, slow cadence.

I didn't bring anything particularly heavy or inconvenient to move.

Lin Yu gripped the gun in his hand.

Soon, a silhouette appeared at the dimly lit corner of the staircase—a girl wearing a loose gray crew neck shirt and sweatpants walked down the stairs with her hands raised.

"Gentlemen, gentlemen, I meant no harm."

"I'm Player too."

A somewhat weak voice rang out, echoing in the stairwell.

Hearing the somewhat familiar voice, Lin Yu felt a sense of foreboding.

Really...

The next moment, a familiar figure emerged from the shadows around the corner.

"Um... hello! May I ask who you are...?"

Lin Yu looked at the disheveled, somewhat shy girl and sighed.

"Well... it seems this Instance isn't exactly easy either."

Although it's not convenient for Lin Yu to directly "recognize" the other person now as "May May," he knows he doesn't need to speak.

Sure enough, Max, the "boar" from the Night Watcher, spoke up excitedly.

"Robin?! You're Teacher Robin!"

"Hello, hello! Haha, so you're the last Player!"