Lu Mi felt a little dizzy from her barrage of questions. He thought for a moment.
"Maybe it's because I have a Special Ability and want to protect as many people as I can. And I have no memories of my past, so death isn't really something I fear."
Ning Zhuangzhuang nodded.
Over there, "Mom" had already carried her daughter up to ground level, holding her tightly as though she were her entire world.
Both of them were crying, their eyes brimming with the joy of reunion.
The toys they had brought out of the basement were still piled beside the Trapdoor.
"Mom" opened one of the wooden boxes and took out the puzzle, her tears falling onto it.
In an instant, the puzzle dissolved into specks of light, gathering into a key entwined with two snakes.
"Child, go open the door," "Mom" told Lu Mi.
Seeing this, Xu Zhi signaled with his eyes for Zhang Mei to grab the key first.
Zhang Mei still wanted him to guide her through the next instance, so despite her fear, she had no choice but to steel herself and approach.
But before she could touch the key, "Mom's" long hair wrapped around her and flung her far away.
"I only promised not to kill you. I never said I wouldn't hurt you."
"Mom" spoke coldly, dealt Xu Zhi a nonfatal blow as well, then handed the key to Lu Mi.
Supporting Ning Zhuangzhuang as he reached the main door, he took a deep breath.
It was finally going to end. In the Public Rest Area, at least we could have a moment of peace.
"You have to show me around the rest area." Lu Mi smiled and turned his head, only to find Ning Zhuangzhuang silently watching him, her face streaked with tears.
A sudden sense of foreboding came over Lu Mi.
"If you believe that with great power comes great responsibility," she said, "then go make a few friends. Friends worth having. Don't always shoulder everything alone."
"Why are you suddenly saying all this?" Even his own voice sounded unreal to Lu Mi. The girl was leaning right against him, yet somehow she felt farther and farther away.
"You never asked me why I took that knife for an NPC," she said, her tone faintly reproachful.
"Remember this. It was because I believed in you, and in your understanding of what this instance meant. I wanted to protect you, and... my mom."
Lu Mi couldn't bear to listen anymore. He turned the key in the lock, opened the door with a click, and forcibly pulled her outside.
Beyond the door, the torrential rain was gone. There was only an expanse of white.
We just have to get through this door. We'll go to the Healing Area, and everything will be fine...
But the moment Ning Zhuangzhuang stepped through the doorway, her body began miraculously dissolving into fiery red petals.
"It's no use. You didn't know, did you? My wristband stopped glowing a long time ago. That means the system already judged me dead."
"I took that knife for the NPC knowing I was going to die." As she spoke, she smiled amid the swirling petals. "So I wasn't quite as stupid as you said."
With no one leaning against it anymore, Lu Mi's shoulder felt light again. Dazed, he asked, "Why..."
Ning Zhuangzhuang's voice faded into the surrounding air:
"Because this is the price of survival."
Xu Zhi recovered from the blow "Mom" had dealt him and stepped through the door, clutching his stomach. "I told you. That item has serious side effects."
His figure turned into a speck of light and vanished ahead.
Zhang Mei slowly dragged herself outside as well. "Hurry... the door only stays open for one minute. It's about to close."
Lu Mi could no longer process what they were saying. He remained rooted to the spot.
Suddenly, someone shoved him hard from behind.
Lu Mi lost his balance and stumbled several steps forward. He heard a familiar voice beside him:
"I told you I wouldn't let you die."
When he opened his eyes again, he was surrounded by an entirely new world.
The sky was a blank expanse of white, with only a sun that gave off no warmth hanging overhead.
People came and went across the broad concrete plaza before him, talking quietly.
An announcement came over the loudspeakers:
"Congratulations to the new players on clearing the instance. Please take note of the following:
First, revealing instance content to other players in any form is prohibited.
Second, disrupting order in public spaces in any form is prohibited.
Third, please visit the administrative office after 14:00 to apply for a wristband and register for a dormitory room."
Many people merely glanced at Lu Mi's sudden appearance as they passed, then hurried away.
Someone whispered to a companion, "Judging by the look of him, he probably only got out because Brother Xu carried him."
"Yeah. Brother Xu just cleared another instance. It won't be long before he escapes the game. Too bad he never teams up with us. All we can do is hope we get matched with him next time."
Of course Xu Zhi only dares to lead clueless newcomers who can pave the way for him, Lu Mi thought.
But he soon noticed that those people didn't seem able to see Roman, who had come out with him.
Banners with white lettering on red backgrounds hung around the plaza:
"Welcome to the Divine Punishment Game."
"Cleanse your sins. Enter Utopia."
Ahead stood an enormous display, scrolling through every player's ranking. A line of small print at the bottom read: Rankings are determined by a combined assessment of game points and popularity points.
The top three were fixed at the top of the screen. Xu Zhi was in second place, while the name in first place struck Lu Mi as familiar.
Cheng Cheng.
He remembered now. Ning Zhuangzhuang had mentioned this man and suggested he get to know him.
After his experience with Xu Zhi, he didn't dare approach these "big shots" lightly.
"What a clean, orderly place." The man beside him stretched casually.
After thinking it over, Lu Mi still felt he ought to thank him. "Roman, thank you for pushing me out."
Roman was still covered up from head to toe. Hearing his thanks, he said, "Then stop being angry with me, okay?"
"Those are two separate things." Lu Mi looked calm on the surface, but Ning Zhuangzhuang's death had shaken him deeply.
Now Roman was asking him to forgive his disrespect toward Ning Zhuangzhuang, and he couldn't do that yet.
"Oh," Roman said, then fell into thought.
"You two, please don't block the instance exit. Players could come out at any moment."
A man in an aqua-blue uniform with an ID badge approached to remind them.
There was something inhuman about him. He reminded Lu Mi of an emotionless robot.
Judging by his gaze and words, he could see Roman.
"All right." Lu Mi walked down the steps with Roman, only then noticing that the exit behind him was orange and shaped like half an eggshell.
It looked like a children's slide, making it impossible to associate it with the terrifying world inside.
Having completed his task, the man started to leave. As he turned, Lu Mi saw the words "Guard number" on the badge on his chest, followed by a string of digits. He moved away too quickly for Lu Mi to make them out.
There was no name.
Lu Mi was considering walking around to get familiar with the place when he heard crazed laughter behind him:
"Hahahaha! I finally got out! I finally got out of that hellhole!"
Before you continue