Shush

While helping move the body, it was impossible not to get blood on his hands. The contrast between the dark red blood and his pale skin was both eerie and unsettling, hinting at something out of the ordinary.

Yu Xing bent down and arranged the body in a more dignified pose. He wiped his blood-smeared fingertips on his pants, then turned at the sound of Fang Rui's startled voice.

He smiled. "Shh... I've calmed down now."

Fang Rui wasn't entirely convinced. He wanted to get farther from the corpse, but was afraid of moving too far from Yu Xing in case something happened. After all, horror movies were full of scenes where people leaning against a wall were dragged away by hands reaching out from inside it.

He had no idea what to do now. They couldn't get out of this lousy factory, and neither taking the batteries nor leaving them alone seemed like an option. Were they just supposed to get themselves killed?

"Maybe we could... talk for a bit?" He scratched his head. To keep himself from dwelling on all the hopeless possibilities, he started negotiating with Yu Xing.

Yu Xing readily agreed. "Sure. What should we talk about?"

"Um... I heard you just graduated from university. Where did you go?" Though they hadn't known each other before today, they'd all gotten at least a little information about their fellow applicants.

Apparently, at some point, someone with a big mouth had let Yu Xing's information slip, and Fang Rui had happened to hear it.

"Ruibo University, here in town." Yu Xing stood up and wandered toward the lockers in the changing room.

The open lockers had been ransacked. Yu Xing didn't even need to put his knowledge of trace analysis to use; one glance told him the person who'd searched them had been in such a hurry that they hadn't cared what they knocked around.

Dust-covered shoes, an abandoned hard hat, and a face mask had been tossed carelessly on the floor. The locker boards had several patches where the dust had been disturbed.

Yu Xing thought, Zhang Shuya had searched here desperately for the batteries, but hadn't found them. There was no way a place this big didn't have any. Had someone taken them beforehand, or were they in a locked locker?

"Ruibo?" Fang Rui exclaimed. "I went to Ruibo too, but I'm a year ahead of you. Guess that makes me your senior!"

Yu Xing was about to pick a locked locker when he heard that. His fingers paused, and his expression changed slightly.

Then Fang Rui asked uncertainly, "How come I never saw you on campus? With a face like yours, wouldn't girls in every department be going wild talking about you? I never saw your name on any of those campus polls for best-looking guys, either."

"Well..." Yu Xing turned his back to Fang Rui. Beneath his bangs, his eyes narrowed. "I was in poor health, so I applied to study from home. I only had to go to campus for midterms and finals. It's not surprising that a lot of people never saw me."

"Huh? You don't look that sick." Fang Rui came closer and examined Yu Xing through the camera. "Oh, your complexion is a little off. Too pale. Even with night vision, I can tell there's no color under your skin. If you don't mind me asking... what's wrong with you?"

Usually, someone asked a question like that and got either an honest answer or a polite refusal.

But Yu Xing glanced at Fang Rui, who was in the way of the locker, and replied casually, "If you know it's rude, then maybe you shouldn't ask?"

Yu Xing's bluntness left Fang Rui awkward. He gave a couple of dry laughs, watched Yu Xing deftly pick the lock with a wire, then tried another topic. "Well, I'm in the journalism department. What department are you in?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the lock clicked open.

Yu Xing opened the locker without hesitation. Inside lay two cold batteries.

So they really were in here.

"Aw, if I'd known, Zhao Yijiu wouldn't have had to leave. What a shame. I should've tried the locked lockers earlier." Yu Xing didn't answer Fang Rui's question, instead letting out a regretful sigh.

"Yeah, at least if he'd stayed here, he could've saved himself the time on the road. But if a ghost came, we'd be in trouble too." Fang Rui tugged at Yu Xing. "Let's wait until our camera's almost out of power before touching those. As soon as we take them, the ghost'll come!"

The thought that the batteries were connected to the ghost sent goose bumps rippling over Fang Rui's skin. "Maybe we should just close the locker. I'm getting freaked out looking at those batteries."

He reached to push it shut, but Yu Xing grabbed the locker door and stopped him. His fingers came to rest on the back of Fang Rui's hand.

"Since you're in journalism, I get it now. I was thinking that when I helped you earlier." In the darkness, a glimmer of excitement appeared in Yu Xing's eyes. They seemed to shine as he spoke softly. "Are you cold? Your skin's so icy. Almost like... a corpse."

Zhao Yijiu ran down the hallway, gripping the camera in one hand and pulling a sharp little knife from his pocket with the other.

The knife had an unusual design, with both sides of the blade sharpened. A dull stone shaped like a heart was set into the wooden handle, and fine, blood-red veins spread from it like a web.

A faint warmth seeped into the palm holding the knife. His feet moved fast, his stride agile. Just as he'd expected, at this speed he'd make it in time.

But the moment he stepped into the narrow corridor on the right, a figure suddenly appeared ahead, blocking most of his way.

A short-haired girl was crouched in the corridor with her head buried in her arms. He could hear her crying softly. It was Tang Yuan.

Hearing Zhao Yijiu's footsteps, Tang Yuan flinched in fear. When she looked up and saw him, despair turned to delight. She asked quietly, "Why are you here..."

"Don't block the way. Move!" Zhao Yijiu cut her off coldly, never slowing down.

"Wait, there's a ghost inside! I got separated from my brother earlier. I saw a Female Ghost drag him, drag him away! Don't go in—" As Zhao Yijiu ran past, Tang Yuan urgently reached out and grabbed him.

Zhao Yijiu hadn't thought much of it until the pull threw him off balance. His expression changed, and a chill entered his eyes.

How was Tang Yuan so strong?

Right—the Female Ghost. He and Yu Xing had both seen her.

There was a ghost among the applicants, and only two of them were women. One was dead, so the other...

But if she had any sense, she wouldn't have warned him about it now. Unless the ghost didn't know about the clue Assistant Hao had left in the camera?

Zhao Yijiu's thoughts raced. Tang Yuan brought Tang Li into the picture too—they were siblings. If one of them was a ghost, could the other be human?

The hand that had grabbed Yu Xing in the rat hole was a man's hand.

So there were two ghosts, Tang Li and Tang Yuan!?

He regained his balance and calculated the time, his brows knitting together.

He couldn't waste time here. Tang Yuan hadn't attacked him yet because he hadn't triggered the death condition.

A little struggle was fine, but once the five-minute limit passed, wouldn't Tang Yuan climb all over him—poke out his eyes and tear off his head?

"Get lost."

When it came to bluntness, Zhao Yijiu was every bit Yu Xing's equal.

"I'm telling the truth. You'll die if you go in..." Tang Yuan brushed her hair behind her ear and used the wall to stand. Her eyes were red, and she looked like a tearful beauty, with a charm all her own.

"Whether I die or not is none of your business. Don't make me waste any more time." Zhao Yijiu broke free of Tang Yuan's grip, shot her a warning look, and hurried toward Office 02.

There were two batteries in Office 02, inside a cabinet. They wouldn't be hard to get.

He had just reached for the door when someone tugged his sleeve again.

"It's in there!" Tang Yuan had silently come up behind him. She lowered her voice and pleaded, "Don't go in. My brother's already gone. I don't want anyone else applying with me to get hurt. There's something wrong with this whole application process..."

"You're so kind." Zhao Yijiu spoke sarcastically. He'd had enough. He hated people who wouldn't stop nagging, and even if she weren't a ghost, he wouldn't listen to someone who tried to force her views on others.

Some people in his life had said he was heartless because they had to deal with him.

Heartless? Maybe. He'd never been a people person. This was just how his mind worked. Take it or leave it.

"No!" When Tang Yuan saw Zhao Yijiu still trying to enter, she reached to wrap her arms around his. The next moment, the knife blade gleamed coldly in the dark and sliced through her sleeve.

"Don't touch me." Zhao Yijiu was getting angry. He was in a hurry, and here was a ghost, thinking she hadn't blown her cover, putting on a show of concern.

"It's too late." Tang Yuan flashed a triumphant smile. With time running out, her interference had successfully cost Zhao Yijiu precious time.

All at once, the surroundings fell silent and turned icy.

Zhao Yijiu's pupils contracted. He lunged forward, and the next instant, the door to Office 02 burst open. A deathly pale arm reached out from inside and grabbed at empty air.

"Bro~" Tang Yuan giggled sweetly at the arm. "You couldn't catch that woman in the bathroom, and I slipped through the cracks. How come you still can't catch him now? Hehehe..."

As she spoke, her whole body began to swell and wrinkle, gradually losing its human shape.

A white face appeared behind the door.

The glasses perched on the face fell to the ground. Zhao Yijiu scrambled to his feet, even more certain that the ghost, with his tongue nearly hanging down to his chest, was the seemingly refined and scholarly Tang Li!

At the very last moment, Zhao Yijiu remained calm, keenly noting where the two ghosts were standing.

They're blocking the door, still not letting me into the office... Could it be that once the five minutes are up and the death condition is triggered, I'll still be safe if I replace the batteries?

There's a way out!

After recalling his own speed and the Female Ghost's earlier, Zhao Yijiu figured he still had a chance to save himself.

He tightened his grip on the knife, turned, and ran, planning to lead the ghosts on a chase.

Someone had once told him that in deduction scenarios, ghosts were invincible. Only the right method could make a ghost disappear; fighting back could only delay death, not solve the problem at its root.

This new recruit test—in other words, this hiring test—followed the same rules.

At once, one man and two ghosts raced after Zhao Yijiu, following the path he'd taken.

On the other side, the word "cold" seemed to flip a switch.

Seeing Fang Rui's expression turn dark in an instant, Yu Xing laughed with delight. "As I thought, this test isn't hard at all."

He let go and picked up the two batteries. "Temperature's the most obvious clue. When Assistant Hao handed out the cameras, he gave every living person a chance to touch his hand. Then he left a video in the camera proving he was a ghost, telling the living that ghosts have a different body temperature from ordinary people.

"The only tricky part is that of the six applicants this time, only three are alive. You, Tang Li, and Tang Yuan are all ghosts."

Fang Rui watched Yu Xing standing there without a hint of fear. Blood suddenly seeped from his eyes, and his body turned white with a purplish tinge. A strange laugh rose in his throat as his swollen hand grabbed Yu Xing at close range and squeezed his neck.

Pressure built in Yu Xing's throat, making it hard for him to breathe.

He simply raised the batteries, his tone even scornful. "Oh, so the ghosts can attack once someone takes the batteries, huh? Here, look. I took both of them~ Come attack me. At least put a little strength into it~"