Zhenxie Guiqi

Pulling back his thoughts, Bai Yuze looked at the monster outside the room. The monster remained standing there, showing no intention of leaving.

"Oh ho! So you've taken a liking to me, have you?"

Bai Yuze chuckled, fiddling with the kitchen knife in his right hand, and upon seeing the blade, the monster actually retreated.

"What kind of knife is this? Could Zhu Daqiang also be possessed within it?"

Having witnessed the deterrent power of the kitchen knife, Yukino was also filled with curiosity about the blade in Bai Yuze's hand.

"This thing is just an ordinary kitchen knife, but this Minzhai has imbued it with a different kind of value."

"Value? Is it rare?"

Tuanzi examined the knife curiously, but no matter how she looked at it, she couldn't detect what made this kitchen knife so different.

"How should I put it? Do you remember me saying that each floor can only accommodate one supernatural entity?"

"Wasn't that a lie you fabricated to intentionally deceive Zhu Daqiang?"

Yukino was a bit puzzled; could a lie actually turn into reality?

"Hahaha, you overestimate me. No matter how agile my brain is, I couldn't possibly improvise a plausible-sounding lie on the spot, unless that lie..."

"Was originally adapted from the truth. This method is called a 'montage lie.' You used this technique to instantly craft a lie that Zhu Daqiang would believe without question, didn't you?"

"Uh... well... little Xue... what is a montage lie?"

Tuanzi looked blank. What the heck! Trying to show off how educated you are, huh!

"It means every sentence spoken is the truth, but by reversing the chronological order of events, you achieve the effect of lying. For example, 'I saw the entire crime, but I didn't see the killer's face' translates to 'I am the killer.'"

"Wow! That's terrifying! Little Ze, you wouldn't use this trick to deceive innocent girls, would you!"

Bai Yuze: ???

"Damn! Tuanzi, I'll pay for your postgraduate entrance exam fees!"

Bai Yuze had anticipated Tuanzi's reaction, but he never expected her to pull such a stunt. Indeed! Humanity's development of Tuanzi is less than one percent.

"Alright, stop messing around. In my opinion, you replaced certain words while using the montage lie, didn't you?"

Yukino felt exhausted. Why were the two people around her like children? Especially Bai Yuze; he was clearly very smart, yet sometimes he acted like a child who hadn't grown up. Could what the books say be true? That male psychology is rooted in child psychology.

"Fine, I did replace some words. For instance, the phrase 'each floor can only accommodate one supernatural entity' was actually 'each floor has only one item that can suppress supernatural entities.' I call these items Zhenxie Guiqi."

"Items that suppress supernatural entities? Zhenxie Guiqi? Are you saying this kitchen knife in your hand is one?"

"Exactly. There's also the scalpel on the first floor. Both of these exert a deterrent effect on supernatural entities and can protect us from their harm."

"This feels like..."

Yukino thought of a term, but she just couldn't get it out.

"A dormitory warden. Every floor has a dormitory warden, and the 'key' in the warden's hand is the Zhenxie Guiqi we are looking for."

Bai Yuze acted as Yukino's mouthpiece. He had the same feeling; every floor had its own order and rules, each managing its own jurisdiction.

"That's so strange, though. Why were there two supernatural entities on the second floor?"

Tuanzi couldn't figure it out. If every floor had one warden, then it would only make sense for Zhu Daqiang to be the only supernatural entity on the second floor.

"Because the difficulty of clearing the second floor is too low. The rules assigned the identities of residents to Zhu Daqiang and Yuan Xing, so Zhu Daqiang doesn't count as a warden; at most, he's just the dormitory head for these few rooms."

"Then is the monster on the first floor also a dormitory head?"

Tuanzi tried to draw an inference, but the answer wasn't as simple as she thought.

"No, there are two wardens on the first floor, but the real warden is the front desk. As for the other monster, I suspect it ran out from the fourth floor, which is the basement."

Tuanzi's face was full of worry, her furrowed brows almost twisted into a knot.

"Stop looking so miserable. Frowning causes wrinkles! You won't look good with a wrinkled face later."

"What is that supposed to mean! I'm here worrying about our future plans, and Little Ze is just annoying! Big idiot!"

After Bai Yuze's teasing, the atmosphere finally livened up a bit. A three-person team couldn't afford to lose anyone, and Yamauchi Haruki was still asleep.

"By the way, it's almost ten o'clock. Do we need to go back to Room 202?"

"No need. Just closing the door is enough. Zhu Daqiang and Yuan Xing are already dead, and no one lives in this room anymore. We can stay wherever we want."

"Since that's the case, let's discuss our next plan."

Seeing this, Yukino quickly steered the conversation toward the plan. She never participated in actions without a plan; in this supernatural world, even with a plan, it would be called an adventure, so having no plan was equivalent to suicide.

"Yukino is right. We've already obtained the item from the second floor, so next, we need to go to the third floor to get the third floor's Zhenxie Guiqi."

"Should we bring the scalpel from the first floor? An extra weapon means extra strength."

Yukino looked at the knife in Bai Yuze's hand. Since it could exert a deterrent effect on supernatural entities, it meant this object could harm them, or perhaps... kill them.

"Better not. That artifact is suppressing the front desk, preventing it from harming us for the time being. Besides, it's hard to say whether the male corpse in 102 is good or bad."

"Once we lose the suppression of the Zhenxie Guiqi, it will be difficult if we get caught in a pincer attack."

"So we're just going to sit here?"

"I've got it!"

Tuanzi suddenly had an idea; she thought of a game that wouldn't be boring and could help pass the time.

"Hehehe, since we're just sitting around anyway, why don't we talk about our respective ideals?"

Ouch!

Tuanzi's forehead was flicked by Bai Yuze. She looked at Bai Yuze with puffed-up cheeks, her expression clearly demanding an explanation, her little canine teeth trembling as if she might turn into a predatory tiger at any moment and pounce on him.

"What time do you think it is? If you have time for that, you'd be better off enjoying this rare break. Besides, talking about one's ideals in a godforsaken place like this? I don't want to trigger a death flag!"

Bai Yuze reached out and pinched Tuanzi's cheek, and after satisfying his urge, he lay down on the ground and closed his eyes to rest.

"Hmph! What is that supposed to mean! You really are a boring guy."

Tuanzi snorted coldly and turned her body to the side, calculating in her heart how long she should give Bai Yuze the cold shoulder.

(Hmm... one day! No... that's too long... maybe an hour! Tsk... that's still a bit long. I've decided! I won't talk to that guy for one minute! Just one minute! Hmph!)

Seeing the two of them acting like this, Yukino couldn't help but cover her forehead and sigh, though she didn't dislike this scene at all.