Chapter 193: The Special Thirteenth Floor

The two players following Dai Wenqian did as he instructed—one placed the flashlight inside, while the other aimed a camera through the crack to film. But the moment the phone pressed against the elevator door, a sudden change occurred. A shadow swift as lightning flashed past the door gap, followed immediately by splattering blood. The phone was sliced in half, and the player holding it had half his hand and head severed clean off!"Ahhh!!!" Everyone scrambled backward in panic. The players closest to the door immediately slammed the elevator shut.

No sound came from the elevator shaft. The attack had been so fast it was nearly impossible to catch with the naked eye, but with their companion's corpse lying right there, Dai Wenqian and the others looked grim.

Less than ten hours into this dungeon, they had already lost four players.

"That should have been a Mutated Animal just now," Zheng Liang said. "We need to find another way. We can't keep letting the game lead us by the nose."

"Are we really supposed to go downstairs?" Brother Tie touched the wound on his face left by the Man-eating Flower. "If we had just stayed on the fifteenth floor, maybe there wouldn't have been any danger at all."

Dai Wenqian didn't even glance his way. Staring coldly at their dead companion on the floor, he said, "The Mutated Animal that killed Wu Kun can't possibly stay confined to the elevator shaft. If it did, it would have been crushed long ago with the elevators moving up and down."

"He's right," analyzed Wei Bin, who also wore glasses. "No one can guarantee those elevator doors won't open and release the Mutated Animals. If we stay on the fourteenth floor, there's no telling what other dangers might appear."

"I think you're all overthinking this," Zhang Biao said. "If those things could move freely through the building, they would have shown up on the fifteenth floor when we first arrived. The fact that they didn't means they're definitely trapped."

Some players agreed with his reasoning and suggested staying on the fourteenth floor.

Gu Yu couldn't unify both sides, and the twelve other players became divided.

Dai Wenqian, Wei Bin, Xiao Ba, and three others—six in total—planned to continue downward. Meanwhile, Zheng Liang, Zhang Biao, Brother Tie, and three others—also six—wanted to remain on the fourteenth floor.

"Gu Yu, think carefully," Zhang Biao said. "The windows on the fourteenth floor are sealed shut. Staying here is relatively safe. If we go down to the thirteenth floor, who knows what might be waiting there?"

Gu Yu hesitated, secretly glancing at Xu Huo. Noticing he was watching the elevator as if he hadn't heard their discussion, she paused before saying, "I'll go with Dai Wenqian's group."

Hearing this, Zheng Liang became less certain than before. With a dark expression, he shouted toward Xu Huo, "Hey! Are you going down or not?"

Xu Huo glanced back at him. "Of course I'm going down."

Zheng Liang looked somewhat unwilling, but after a couple of seconds, he also sided with Gu Yu and Dai Wenqian.

With only five players left in Zhang Biao and Brother Tie's group, and the majority choosing to descend to the thirteenth floor, the other non-players also joined the larger faction.

Zhang Biao and Brother Tie exchanged looks with their remaining companions, then stepped aside and fell silent.

"Screech..." The friction sound echoed in the elevator again. All fifteen elevators opened simultaneously as an electronic alarm blared: "Xiaohua Honghong fourteenth floor closing soon. All personnel please proceed to the thirteenth floor."

"No more than thirteen people per elevator," Xu Huo reminded everyone before stepping inside first. The Flower Basket Girl and her companion, Kang Hong and the Tall Woman, and others quickly followed.

Gu Yu, Dai Wenqian, and their group entered as well. After holding out for a moment, the stubborn Zhang Biao and Brother Tie finally chose to enter the elevators too.

"Ding!" When the elevator descended to the thirteenth floor, everyone tensed up, fearing a repeat of what happened on the fourteenth floor. But when the doors opened, the thirteenth floor proved more peaceful than they had imagined.

A few unbroken fluorescent tubes still provided light. Though not particularly bright, it was enough to clearly see the floor's layout.

This level was a plant cultivation laboratory.

Directly opposite the elevators stood rows of glass rooms. From outside, they could see the crops growing inside. Facing Xu Huo was a type of small potted plant. Unlike common flowers from the real world, this plant somewhat resembled a miniature sunflower, but its flower head was covered in dense clusters of tiny blossoms whose colors shifted depending on the viewing angle.

Walking over, he picked up the logbook hanging by the door and flipped through its contents.

"Ultra-small insectivorous flower. A single blossom can display up to thirteen colors. Typically appears blue when viewed straight on and brown from the side. Its colors have temperature variations, making them even more deceptive."

Scattered notes followed about plant discoveries. The research base seemed to be studying these plants to develop temperature-altering methods. The back cover of the logbook bore the sponsorship logo of some military equipment organization.

"Buzzing Flower?" In the adjacent glass room, the Flower Basket Girl was examining a flower that somewhat resembled a bee. Curiously looking up from the information, she asked, "If you touch these flowers, do they really make a vibration sound like bees?"

The Burly Man beside her quickly stopped her. "Don't you dare touch anything carelessly!"

No sooner had he spoken than a crashing sound came from nearby—someone had accidentally kicked over a potted plant placed beside the corridor.

The person who knocked it over tripped and fell. Before they could say anything, deep blue powder flew off the plant's leaves, quickly adhering to their calf and rapidly burning through their skin!

The person screamed in agony. Not only did the areas touched by the powder begin to fester, but the surrounding blood vessels also turned blue, quickly crawling up the limb toward their chest and abdomen.

Everyone around backed away in terror, afraid to approach either the poisoned person or the plant on the floor. They could only watch as the victim convulsed for half a minute before going still.

Dai Wenqian picked up the logbook on the wall, flipped through a few pages, and said, "This plant releases toxic powder when attacked. As long as you avoid the powder, you'll be fine."

"Goddammit, traps are everywhere here!" Brother Tie scratched his face.

Wei Bin glanced at him. "Your face is bleeding. Stop scratching."

Brother Tie didn't stop. "You think I want to? The wound is itching!"

Dai Wenqian subconsciously frowned and immediately said, "Check if there are any plants nearby that release toxic gas on their own."

At this, everyone's expressions changed. Gu Yu and the other players immediately split up to inspect each glass room. But not every room had a logbook—out of eighteen glass rooms on the thirteenth floor, seven were missing their records.

Moreover, the thirteenth floor was also sealed, and the temperatures varied between glass rooms, making the outer area feel somewhat stuffy.

"There's a ventilation system here!" The Flower Basket Girl discovered a switch mechanism at the far right end. She pulled it down forcefully, and more than a dozen rectangular hidden panels popped open in the ceiling. Fans inside began operating, quickly relieving the stifling air in the room.

Only when Brother Tie stopped scratching his face so vigorously did everyone breathe a slight sigh of relief.

"Let's look around more," Gu Yu said to those nearby. What they needed most right now was information about this building.