WTNL Chapter 291

(13/20)

Xingwang Hotel
Chapter 291: Continuous rain

“…”

Staring at the newly appeared line on the black notebook, Wen Jianyan felt a chill rise up his spine.

It seemed this was the clue for completing the main quest.

To move from an intern at Xingwang Hotel to a full-fledged employee, he would need to welcome a guest to stay there.

But who would this guest be?

As a former employee of the Changsheng Building, Wen Jianyan almost instantly came to a conclusion. He raised his head, looking at the painting in front of him.

Inside the massive, disproportionate frame was an eerie scene of endless rain, with a blurred, deathly pale figure standing silently within a crooked window. The face, indistinct and unchanging, faced out from the painting, still and silent, yet somehow chilling to the bone.

“Wait…”

Blond, noticing Wen Jianyan’s gaze, gasped, stuttering:

“Y-You mean…the woman in the painting is the guest we need to welcome?”

Wen Jianyan sighed.

“I’m afraid so.”

Although they’d braced themselves, the group still felt a sinking dread at his confirmation.

Clearly, the guests in the Xingwang Hotel instance were not human.

Even without fully grasping the rules of the instance, this fact alone was terrifying enough.

Wen Jianyan continued to scrutinize the painting in front of him.

And the word “welcome”…

That was troublesome.

It seemed that, unlike the last instance where the guests moved on their own, this time the guests had to be “welcomed” before they would enter.

Wen Jianyan seemed to realize something, taking a step toward the enormous painting.

As he approached, a thick, damp odor filled his nose.

Hesitating, Wen Jianyan carefully pressed his hand against the painting. The rough, uneven canvas dented under the pressure, and the frame knocked against the wall with a dull “thump.”

“!”

Yun Bilan gasped, “It’s hollow behind it!”

Without looking back, Wen Jianyan ran his fingers along the edges of the frame and the wall. Suddenly, he must have triggered something—

With a creaking sound, the massive painting slowly opened like a door, and a gust of stale, damp wind swept in.

This oversized painting was actually a door!

Beyond the door was a small town.

And the townscape was exactly like the painting.

Under a dark, gray-black sky, heavy with clouds, rain drizzled down, pooling in small patches along the pitted cobblestone path.

The path stretched into the distance, leading to…

A dilapidated, broken-down house, identical to the one in the painting.

The house’s walls and roof were slanted and covered in moss, the peeling paint revealing dull, gray bricks beneath, as though it had been abandoned for years.

The crooked windows looked like hollow, black eye sockets, staring blankly in their direction.

But the blurred white-clad woman in the painting was nowhere to be seen.

This didn’t bring any comfort to the group.

Chen Mo broke the silence first, “So, our task is to welcome that woman in white to Xingwang Hotel, making her a guest, right?”

“That’s likely the case,” Wen Jianyan nodded.

His gaze stayed fixed on the low house in the distance, as if deep in thought.

“Welcome.”

The word made everyone shudder involuntarily.

This meant that this time, they weren’t just defending against a supernatural encounter—they would need to proactively approach and maybe even…

Make contact.

Blond gulped as he looked at the ominous, decaying house in the distance.

He instinctively shrank back, nervously asking Wen Jianyan, “But…what exactly do we have to do to ‘welcome’ her?”

Wait by the door and bow?

Or…did they have to approach her and say, “Come stay at our hotel for the night”?

The thought scared Blond so much his face turned a faint shade of green.

“Not sure for now,” Wen Jianyan lowered his head, glancing at the black notebook in his hand. Only that single crimson line of text remained on the yellowed paper, without any changes.

He put the notebook back in his pocket, saying, “I’m afraid we’ll have to take it one step at a time.”

Blond: “…”

This answer was anything but reassuring!

Clinging to a sliver of hope, Blond looked to the others, asking hopefully, “But didn’t the system say before that it wasn’t mandatory for anchors to complete the main quest…?”

“That’s true.” Chen Mo raised his head, speaking calmly. “But that doesn’t really help us.”

In low-level instances, hiding out and avoiding any dangers could be the best strategy. However, unfortunately, in high-difficulty instances, this approach was meaningless.

Even though the rules of Xingwang Hotel didn’t explicitly forbid loopholes, instances like these always had mechanisms to prevent easy exploits. Trying to evade the risks with a shortcut mindset would probably lead to the earliest demise.

Blond knew this, but the instinct for self-preservation made him cling to wishful thinking. After hearing Chen Mo’s response, Blond looked as if he were on the verge of tears.

Although he was reluctant, he had no choice but to admit it.

Crossing this door and entering the small house in the painting had become the only option left.

Suddenly, a voice, youthful yet hoarse, sounded: “Thirty seconds.”

The voice was unfamiliar, but it unmistakably came from within their group. Everyone froze, turning in the direction of the voice.

A pale-skinned, light-haired boy stood not far away. At some point, he had stopped lowering his head and lifted his lashes, revealing his eerily dark, lightless eyes.

…Bai Xue.

Clearly, he had been the one who just spoke. This was also the first thing Bai Xue had said since entering the instance.

After finishing, Bai Xue lowered his head again, resuming his silent, cold demeanor.

Wen Jianyan was the quickest to respond.

His gaze lingered on Bai Xue briefly before turning back to the gloomy, rain-soaked landscape in front of them. He quickly understood what Bai Xue meant: “Once we’re in the rain, we need to run. Got it?”

Yun Bilan: “You mean…?”

“I’m not exactly sure, but following his advice is probably safest.”

Wen Jianyan looked at the others: “From the moment we cross this door, we’ll have only thirty seconds. We must reach that house within that time. Understood?”

The others exchanged glances, then nodded. “Understood.”

Wen Jianyan took a deep breath. “Ready?”

Behind him lay a shadowy, deserted town under the rain, with a long, stone path stretching out to a dilapidated little house.

The house was pitch dark, eerie and ominous, yet it had become their destination.

Everyone took a deep breath, steadied themselves, and slowly nodded.

“Run!”

With Wen Jianyan’s command, all five of them dashed into the rain!

As soon as Wen Jianyan stepped into the downpour, he understood why Bai Xue had warned them so urgently.

The icy rain poured down from the sky, carrying an unnatural chill. It pelted them, almost as if it were drawing out their body heat and life force with each drop.

The distance was only a few steps, yet they were rapidly growing weaker.

Fifteen seconds left.

“Don’t stop! Keep running!” Wen Jianyan gritted his teeth and shouted.

The crooked house loomed closer.

It stood in the rain like an ancient, decaying man—rotten, desolate.

Ten seconds left.

Chen Mo and Wen Jianyan were the fastest, charging toward the door.

The door was only slightly ajar and swung open with a gentle push, releasing a strong musty, moldy smell from the darkness inside. Wen Jianyan had no time to be picky.

Bracing the door open with one hand, he wiped rain from his face with the other and called out, “Hurry!”

Blond and Yun Bilan followed, diving into the pitch-black room.

Five seconds left.

Bai Xue was the slowest, but only a few steps remained. Just as he was about to reach the door, he stumbled on the uneven cobblestone path, losing his balance and nearly falling—

“!”

Gritting his teeth, Wen Jianyan rushed forward.

Three seconds left.

Quickly, Wen Jianyan grabbed Bai Xue’s soaked arm, his palm warm and his fingers gripping tightly, pulling him up against the pounding rain.

“Run!”

He caught his breath, raising his hand to push his damp bangs back, exposing his smooth, pale forehead.

It seemed that, as long as they didn’t stay out in the rain too long, they’d be safe.

Suddenly, without warning, rapid footsteps emerged from the rain outside. Wen Jianyan froze, turning toward the sound.

Outside the door, beneath the dark, rainy sky, he could faintly see a group of people running toward them. The rain obscured their faces, but Wen Jianyan recognized them from their clothes.

—It was the group they’d clashed with right before lights out.

It seemed that, though Wen Jianyan had quickly left that room, the content within the painting hadn’t changed.

Because of this, the other group must have also entered the painting.

They, too, must have realized something strange about the rain after getting drenched.

“Don’t close the door!”

Someone shouted.

Yun Bilan looked to Wen Jianyan for silent confirmation.

Wen Jianyan nodded.

Despite their earlier skirmish, he had no intention of letting these people die in the rain because of minor disagreements. He wasn’t that ruthless.

Yun Bilan braced the door, shouting, “Hurry!”

Despite the rain and the uneven cobblestone path, they weren’t too far from the house.

Soon, they entered the room one by one.

Wen Jianyan counted down silently in his head.

Ten seconds remaining.

Two more people rushed inside.

Five seconds left.

In the rain, only three people remained.

The thirty seconds were up.

Two of them made it into the room at thirty-two and thirty-three seconds. Though they were slightly late, apart from looking a bit paler than the others, nothing major seemed to have happened.

Until the last person—

Suddenly, that person’s foot slipped, tripping over something, and they fell, losing their balance. But unlike Bai Xue, there was no quick-reacting teammate to catch him.

He fell face-first, collapsing right at the threshold.

Wen Jianyan was stunned.

Thirty-eight seconds had passed.

The drenched person crawled up from the ground.

Whether it was an illusion or not, Wen Jianyan couldn’t shake the feeling that, looking through the rain, that person’s face looked strange.

Their skin appeared swollen and pallid, like paper soaked too long in water, almost translucent—like an overfilled bubble about to burst.

A dazed expression hovered on his deathly pale face as he stared into the room.

Wen Jianyan froze.

He recognized the person as the anchor who had clashed with Bai Xue in Xingwang Hotel earlier.

The arrogant look had vanished from the anchor’s face, replaced by a numb and vacant expression. His teammates called his name, but he seemed not to hear them. His soaked, swollen eyes rolled lifelessly.

Then, he took a shaky step toward the room.

But as he stepped forward, something horrifying happened.

The previously solid shinbone that could support an adult’s weight seemed to vanish, turning into a swollen liquid that collapsed under the pressure.

Rather than breaking, it distorted—

“Ah!”

With gasps from the group, he fell again.

It was as if a water-filled balloon had been smashed onto the ground—

His skin could no longer contain the moisture within, and it burst open.

A flood of thick, metallic-smelling liquid, mixed with rain, spilled out, and his skin rapidly deflated, life fading instantly. Then, he… melted.

In an instant, the room fell silent.

Everyone stared blankly at the spot where he’d disappeared, almost unable to believe that, in mere seconds, a living human had vanished without a trace, unable to resist or react.

A chill ran up their spines.

Now, everyone understood the terrifying nature of the rain, feeling a deep fear about their recent actions.

Had they not run fast enough, any of them could have been the one who melted.

Wen Jianyan looked at the spot where he had fallen, then turned toward Bai Xue.

Bai Xue stood there, dripping wet, his already pale skin looking almost ghostly white. He lifted those hauntingly black eyes, staring silently out the door.

If Wen Jianyan remembered correctly, the spot where that man tripped was nearly identical to where Bai Xue had stumbled.

Wen Jianyan turned away, wet lashes veiling his thoughtful eyes.

The man had clashed with Bai Xue in the hotel hallway, then tripped in the same place where Bai Xue had fallen, meeting his end in the same posture… Coincidence?

But regardless, this wasn’t something he needed to ponder now.

Wen Jianyan wiped his face and looked at the tall man leading the group. “I think we met in the hallway earlier?”

The man turned to Wen Jianyan and recognized him as well. “…Yes.”

He hadn’t yet recovered from the recent events; his face paled and his earlier arrogance nearly gone.

The man’s eyes flickered awkwardly as he said, “Anyway, thanks for keeping the door open for us.”

“No problem.”

Wen Jianyan shrugged.

He smiled gently, his light-colored eyes lifting through damp lashes, looking sincere and warm. “Since we’re all in the same place now, why not work together? We might have a better chance that way.”

“Of course!”

The man hadn’t expected such a gracious offer and agreed immediately.

A hint of deeper meaning flickered at the corners of Wen Jianyan’s smile.

He was not only the Black Side’s target but also bore the curses of both Lucky E and Bai Xue. Under these circumstances, teaming up with others was to his advantage. After all…

He wasn’t exactly a saint who turned the other cheek.

Outside, the rain continued to pour.

The rain fell into puddles, where the surface reflected the dull, gray-black sky.

Near the doorway, at the very spot where that person had fallen, was a small depression in the cobblestone.

A small puddle had collected in the indentation.

There was nothing above the water’s surface, but within it, a shadow appeared.

The shadow stood straight in place, its outline blurred by the relentless downpour, but it was undeniably there.

Slowly, the shadow turned its head—

Revealing a face identical to the recently deceased.

Yet, unlike before, the face now appeared ghastly pale and rigid, as if covered by a white porcelain mask.

Its mouth stretched into a high, eerie, ritualistic grin.

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