Chapter 189: The 15th Floor is About to Close

Gu Yu pressed the elevator button again, but the electronic panel still showed nothing but the number "15" with no other changes.Seeing Xu Huo emerge from the restroom area, she instinctively asked, "Did you find any clues?"

"The restroom is relatively clean," Xu Huo said.

"Hmph," Zheng Liang snorted coldly and walked toward the next elevator.

Having some experience dealing with Xu Huo, Gu Yu didn't press for more information and instead left with her companion.

Xu Huo returned to the spot where he had entered the game, examining the bloodstains on the elevator doors and floor.

These bloodstains were layered with both old and fresh marks. The handprints on the doors included some from outside pounding on them and others from inside prying the doors open. The floor bloodstains showed similar patterns—some facing toward the elevators, others facing outward. Compared to this area, the open workspace was quite clean, with only scattered bloodstains on the floor.

Additionally, there were some minor abrasion marks on the walls near the elevator doors, roughly the same thickness as the sharp spines from the man-eating flowers.

The walls facing the open office area had more of these marks, while the walls on either side near the offices and restrooms had fewer, especially the walls by the restroom area.

After standing by the wall for a while, he crouched by the window at the end of the corridor, pushing aside the vines to carefully inspect the edges of the floor. Finding no abrasion marks there, he returned to examine the edges of the open area.

By this time, the middle-aged man with the backpack and others had already covered the floor-to-ceiling windows with reinforced horizontal strips of tape. Seeing Xu Huo, he said, "It seems like someone tried this method before too—there are some leftover tape residues on the walls on both sides."

"Mm," Xu Huo responded. Just by looking at the size of this space and the number of charging ports on the floor, he could tell the number of desks and chairs didn't match up.

The middle-aged man with the backpack hesitated for a moment before saying, "There's something I'm not sure if I should mention."

"Go ahead."

"It's just that I think the offices and restrooms are too clean," the middle-aged man said. "From what I heard in your conversations, there aren't just mutated plants here—there might be mutated animals too. But when people are attacked, shouldn't their instinct be to hide in covered areas?"

"That's because the previous people didn't stay on the fifteenth floor for very long," Xu Huo said, then extended his hand. "Xu Huo."

"Kang Hong," the middle-aged man shook his hand, then asked, "Why do you say that?"

"The restroom being relatively clean means previous visitors didn't use it frequently. If the people who came here weren't completely wiped out quickly, with nearly two hundred people, they couldn't go three or four days without needing to use the facilities."

Xu Huo glanced back at the floor. "This place doesn't look like it's seen a mass slaughter."

Kang Hong suddenly understood. "So that's it."

"But why would they leave the fifteenth floor?" The young girl who had earlier offered to pay Xu Huo had been following behind him and asked upon hearing his words, "Wouldn't higher floors be safer?"

"There must be reasons," Xu Huo glanced at her, then pulled over a chair to sit and rest.

Meanwhile, Gu Yu and the Flower Basket Girl's group returned empty-handed and also gathered in the office area.

Nearly six hours had passed. After going through panic, tension, and high alertness, everyone was becoming fatigued. Moreover, in the past six hours, aside from Brother Tie who encountered danger when he went to open the elevator doors, no other incidents had occurred, so people were gradually relaxing a bit.

"Regardless, we need to replenish our energy," Gu Yu went to the car's trunk and brought out several bags of snacks and fruits. "Fortunately, the car came in with us too, otherwise we'd all be starving. Everyone, make these last."

"Sis Gu Yu, didn't you used to diet regularly before? Why do you bring so much food everywhere now?" Xiao Ba pulled on the skull-print short-sleeved man's shirt to make a makeshift basket and carried a pile of snacks over to distribute.

"At a time like this, who cares about gaining weight?" Gu Yu took two bottles of water and put the remaining items back in the trunk, then sat on it herself.

This deterred some people nearby who had wanted to ask for food.

Earlier, following Kang Hong's suggestion, they had consolidated the personal items everyone brought in. Most people had been suddenly pulled into the game while out buying supplies. Some had dropped their things when encountering the thick fog, while others had brought items in, though some vegetables and meats couldn't be eaten directly.

There were some snacks and fruits, but not enough to distribute among so many people.

Kang Hong opened his backpack and took out several packs of compressed biscuits. "Everyone, don't panic. Ninety hours is less than four days. Normal people can survive four days on water alone, so with these vegetables added, food is absolutely sufficient."

"There's no need to fight over it either. Let's let the women eat first, and those of us who are young and strong can wait a bit longer."

"Why should women eat first?" A sharp-featured man in the crowd objected. "Men and women are equal, right everyone?"

This wasn't like normal times. People's fear of the unknown intensified their desire for food. When facing danger, good physical strength was also crucial, so many were unwilling to give this opportunity to others.

"This has nothing to do with equality," Kang Hong said. "It's just those of us with stronger physiques helping those who are weaker."

"Isn't this moral coercion?" the sharp-featured man stirred up trouble. "Why should we help them? When danger comes, who doesn't want to run ahead? Oh, we give them food while we go hungry, then end up as cannon fodder later?"

Some others shared the same sentiment and expressed their dissatisfaction.

Zheng Liang sneered at this point. "Let's hope certain people don't come begging us for help when danger strikes!"

Everyone fell silent. Compared to women who had inferior physical strength, the men present were stronger. But compared to players, they were the weaker ones.

"I don't want food," a tall woman stepped forward. "I'm a mountain climber with good stamina. But this mother here is still breastfeeding—could she have a bit more food?"

Kang Hong opened a package and gave a piece of biscuit to the slightly plump woman.

"Thank you, thank you," the slightly plump woman repeatedly expressed gratitude. When she received the biscuit, she didn't keep it all for herself but broke it in half and offered it to the tall woman. When refused, she gave it to another woman.

The women began sharing the food.

At this moment, Xu Huo, who had been sitting in a chair at the back, raised his hand and caught a functional drink that Gu Yu threw to him.

When he looked up, she had already averted her gaze.

Xu Huo placed the drink by his feet, then looked toward another older, bespectacled player sitting in the corner.

The other person met his gaze and nodded at him with a polite smile.

Xu Huo calmly shifted his attention away.

"Screech..." Suddenly, metal scraping sounds came from the elevators. The next second, all fifteen elevators simultaneously made a "ding" sound. As the doors swung fully open, including the elevator that had nearly cost the stubble-faced player his life, the elevator cars appeared completely intact before everyone's eyes.

Then an electronic alarm sounded from inside, "Little Flower Red Red Building fifteenth floor will close shortly. All personnel please enter the elevators and proceed to the fourteenth floor!"