(3/3)
Xingwang Hotel
Chapter 316: The Third Line
In the deathly silent room, the young man on the bed fluttered his eyelashes slightly and slowly opened his eyes.
Wen Jianyan had awakened.
He propped himself up by the edge of the bed, sitting upright, and turned his head to scan the surroundings.
Everything was just as it had been before he fell asleep.
Hearing the movement, Blond looked over, his eyes lighting up slightly. “Captain! You’re awake!”
Wen Jianyan nodded.
As he got out of bed, he instinctively touched his side—his clothes, already half-dried from his body heat, tightly covered the small patch of hidden skin. The intricate golden-red markings beneath were completely concealed. If it weren’t for the faint lingering pain in the spot where Wu Zhu had touched him, it would almost seem as though nothing had happened.
“How was your rest?”
Yun Bilan approached, asking.
“Hmm,” Wen Jianyan dropped his hand.
He shrugged, giving a vague response, “Not bad.”
He couldn’t reveal what had actually happened while he was asleep, so he could only let the others assume he had been resting.
However…
Wen Jianyan discreetly glanced in Bai Xue’s direction.
The other man sat silently in a soft chair in the corner of the room, his head lowered. His pale, bloodless face was shrouded in shadows, making him appear just as withdrawn and silent as before. It was hard to tell whether he had noticed anything unusual.
Even if the medium had picked up on something, Wen Jianyan wasn’t particularly worried.
What he had experienced was far too unique. Whether it was Wu Zhu or the Ouroboros, they were top-secret existences within Nightmare. Without any clues, it was nearly impossible for other anchors to figure out what had happened.
Moreover, Bai Xue’s introverted and taciturn nature made it unlikely for him to speak up, even if he had realized something was amiss.
“So,” Wen Jianyan turned to his teammates. “Did anything happen while I was asleep?”
The air turned strangely quiet for a moment.
Chen Mo and the others paused, exchanging glances.
Wen Jianyan keenly sensed the oddity and pressed further, “What’s going on?”
“Well…”
Chen Mo took a deep breath, stepping forward with an unusually serious expression on his face. “Captain, there’s something I think you need to see.”
As he spoke, he reached into his pocket.
Wen Jianyan’s gaze fell on the item Chen Mo retrieved, and his heart skipped a beat.
It was the small black notebook.
Since it had revealed the method to complete the instance’s mainline task at the beginning, the black notebook hadn’t changed. Now that Chen Mo had taken it out, could it mean…
A foreboding feeling rose in Wen Jianyan’s chest.
As if to confirm his suspicion, Chen Mo flipped to a page in the notebook, turned it around, and handed it to Wen Jianyan.
“Captain, look.”
Wen Jianyan steadied himself and lowered his gaze to the notebook.
On the yellowed, blank page were those familiar crimson words:
[Intern Employee Assessment]
1. Please welcome a guest to check in at Xingwang Hotel.
But at some point…
A third line had appeared.
2. At all costs, fulfill the guest’s request.
Upon seeing this new instruction, Wen Jianyan’s breath caught for a moment.
Chen Mo’s voice came from the side, “We only discovered this new directive in the notebook shortly before you woke up.” Hearing this, Wen Jianyan looked up.
“Yes, actually, we were just debating whether to wake you up,” Yun Bilan said. “We didn’t expect you to wake up so timely.”
“…”
Wen Jianyan lowered his head again, looking at the notebook.
The line of text seemed to have just been written, appearing fresh, with a dense crimson that seemed ready to drip down. Under the dim light, it looked even more eerie and ominous.
He gathered his thoughts and asked, “So, regarding the guest request mentioned in the notebook, do you have any leads?”
The group exchanged glances and shook their heads.
“No.”
To be precise, during the time Wen Jianyan had been asleep, nothing noteworthy had happened. The entire corridor was unusually calm—not only were there no supernatural occurrences, but not a single anchor had entered their restricted area. The appearance of that small line of text had been completely without warning, and nothing unusual had occurred either before or after it.
If it hadn’t been for Chen Mo’s sudden whim, they might not have even noticed that the notebook had gained a new line of text.
*
Blond hesitated for a moment and said, “Uh…”
“I remember that the main quest of this instance isn’t mandatory, right?” He took a deep breath, mustering his courage, and said weakly, “Maybe we don’t have to deal with it for now?”
Indeed.
The main quest of the “Xingwang Hotel” instance had been marked on the identity cards from the start: “Completion not required.”
This meant that in this instance, the anchors didn’t have to become new employees here. Since that was the case, the so-called intern assessment wasn’t necessarily mandatory either.
In other words, it wasn’t absolutely necessary to follow the notebook’s instructions and complete the task.
“I disagree,” Yun Bilan frowned and said.
“Don’t you remember how disgusting this instance’s so-called ‘not required’ is? It claims it’s not required, but every step forces the anchors to choose the necessary path; otherwise, they’ll die in this competition… Although we don’t yet know the reason for this task, it’s better to follow it for now.”
Blond hesitated. “But… aren’t these tasks traps as well? What if it’s like the first task, luring us into an even worse situation?”
“But isn’t inviting guests itself beneficial to us?”
Chen Mo spoke up from the side.
“Although bringing ghosts into the Xingwang Hotel will disrupt its originally stable and safe state, under the premise that this state is inevitably going to be broken, the more guests we bring into the hotel, the more benefits we’ll gain, right?”
None of them could convince the others.
In the end, their eyes fell on Wen Jianyan: “Captain, what do you think?”
“…”
Wen Jianyan didn’t answer immediately.
After a few seconds, he raised his eyes and said slowly:
“We have to complete it.”
Wen Jianyan added, “However, not for any of the reasons you just mentioned.”
The group was stunned. “What?”
Wen Jianyan took a deep breath and said, “Do you remember back in the town when I stopped you from taking that double portrait and instead decided to take a detour to confront that ‘guest’ directly and obtain the single portrait?”
They nodded.
To be honest, they still didn’t understand why Wen Jianyan had made that decision back then.
From any perspective, the double portrait would have been a better choice. Not only could it have brought more guests to their side as an advantage, but it also could have avoided walking too long in the rain and being targeted by indistinct ghosts. Yet in the end, Wen Jianyan had chosen the most difficult and dangerous path.
Even after leaving the town and returning to the hotel, they hadn’t found a chance to ask for the reason.
Until now.
“We’ve already realized just how sinister this instance is.”
Wen Jianyan looked at the group before him.
“In that case… do you think those so-called ‘ghosts brought to our side’ will be good entities?”
The air fell into dead silence.
“Ghosts brought into the hotel will kill humans on the opposing side but won’t harm the anchors on our side. From this perspective, they indeed serve as an advantage for us. But the problem is…” Wen Jianyan took a deep breath, “I suspect all of this comes with conditions.”
He flipped the notebook in his hand, his fingertip resting on the words “at all costs” as he narrowed his eyes slightly:
“It proves my theory.”
The group was stunned, subconsciously chewing over those six words in their minds.
—At all costs.
“The ghosts help us not because they have reason, a conscience, or know that they are on our side… You’ve already seen it before. The ghosts in this instance aren’t that kind of entity.”
“They cannot be communicated with, negotiated with, or influenced. They only kill.”
“They don’t kill us simply because they cannot kill us.”
It was just like the “customers” in the Changsheng Building instance. In the earlier levels, they were temporarily unable to act. But once certain conditions were met or violated, that rule no longer applied.
Blond couldn’t help but shudder, his face showing a look of sheer terror:
“S-So, that’s why you wouldn’t let us bring more guests into the hotel?”
“Exactly.”
Wen Jianyan nodded, closing the notebook and handing it back to Chen Mo. “Haven’t you noticed? The core theme of this instance is malice.”
“Anchors, in order to gain the upper hand in the battle against the opposing faction, desperately pull so-called ‘allies’ into the Xingwang Hotel. But after these entities begin to act, they realize their own actions have brought greater fear and more severe danger. When they finally understand this, how desperate do you think they’ll feel?”
Wen Jianyan suddenly smiled, his light-colored eyes glinting under the dim light.
It was clearly a very gentle, almost innocent smile, yet it seemed to carry something deeper and darker hidden beneath, making everyone feel a chill run down their spine:
“At least, if I were the instance designer and harbored extreme malice toward every human in this instance—I would do exactly that.”
The group was shaken by the dangerous undertone in his smile.
Chen Mo frowned and said, “If that’s the case, the priority of completing the guest’s request has completely changed… We must resolve it as soon as possible.”
*
“Let’s go.”
Wen Jianyan stood up and headed for the door. “The first thing we need to do now is figure out exactly what the guest’s request is.” He placed his hand on the doorknob and turned to look at the others:
“So, next, we’ll probably have to return to the real Room 408.”
The group left the room.
After confirming that there were no enemies nearby, they cautiously made their way toward the stairwell.
Throughout the entire process, No. 08 and 10 did not reappear, seemingly having left long ago.
Soon, Wen Jianyan and the others returned to the fourth floor.
Back in their own territory, everyone unconsciously let out a sigh of relief. Although the danger hadn’t entirely disappeared, at least they no longer had to constantly worry about being discovered and cornered by the opposing faction.
They quickly moved down the familiar hallway and soon arrived at the door to Room 408.
The door was tightly shut.
The red “Do Not Disturb” light was on, standing out sharply in the dimly lit corridor. Everything appeared the same as before.
At least, from the outside.
The air was deathly still.
“Should we go in?” Yun Bilan asked cautiously.
As soon as she said this, everyone’s expressions turned equally grave.
Although they knew that, in theory, the guest inside the room was unlikely to attack them, that didn’t mean they could step into a room full of danger—knowing there was a ghost inside—without any psychological resistance.
Wen Jianyan gritted his teeth. “We probably don’t have a choice.”
After all, they had no other way to obtain information.
He placed his hand on the doorknob and slowly pressed down.
The door wasn’t locked.
Wen Jianyan took a deep breath and applied a bit of force—
With a creak, the door slowly opened.
Inside the room, there wasn’t a single trace of light. It was pitch black, terrifyingly so.
A damp, foul stench wafted out from the darkness through the crack in the door, as though something had been rotting in the room for a long time, making it almost impossible to breathe.
Wen Jianyan instinctively raised his hand to cover his nose and mouth.
He steeled himself, gritted his teeth, and stepped into Room 408.
*
The darkness inside Room 408 was overwhelming.
The previously functional lighting system had ceased to work since the arrival of the “guest,” plunging the room into complete darkness.
As soon as Wen Jianyan entered the room, he sensed something was off.
The texture under his feet felt… strange.
He looked down, using the faint light from the corridor to examine the floor.
It was damp and sticky as if soaked with water.
“?!”
Wen Jianyan froze, a sudden realization dawning on him.
He pulled out his phone from his pocket and turned on the flashlight.
A pale beam of light pierced through the darkness, barely illuminating the space in front of him. Slowly, he moved the light around, revealing various corners of the room.
Beneath the old wallpaper, faint traces of dampness seeped through, leaving uneven stains on the walls. The carpet was soaked with an unknown liquid, appearing pitch black under the flashlight’s beam, an unsettling sight.
“…”
Wen Jianyan’s brows furrowed deeply.
He recalled the room he had encountered in his “dream,” where he had met Wu Zhu.
The peeling wallpaper, the water-stained walls, the floor covered in dark puddles… If this room continued to deteriorate, would it eventually become like the one in his dream?
And if so, would the painting—
“What’s wrong?” Yun Bilan asked from behind, sensing something was amiss.
“Nothing.” Wen Jianyan shook his head and carefully stepped further into the room.
The deeper he went, the darker it became. Although the flashlight in his hand hadn’t dimmed, it seemed as though the darkness was encroaching, shrinking the area it could illuminate.
The darkness felt almost tangible, pressing down on everyone, making it hard to breathe.
The room was icy cold. The damp air carried a faint stench of rotting flesh.
*
Everyone in the group knew there was a “ghost” in this room.
Although they couldn’t see it with their eyes, there was no doubt about its presence. This knowledge left them all on edge, their nerves taut with tension.
Wen Jianyan stood cautiously in place.
He shifted the direction of his phone, aiming the flashlight toward the location of the oil painting.
The weak beam of light illuminated the frame and the painting within it.
The landscape painting they had seen before the lights first went out was gone, replaced by a portrait of a woman.
It was the very painting they had brought back from the rainy town.
The woman stood motionless within the painting, dressed in a pitch-black gown. Her face was eerily pale, as though covered by a stiff, ghastly mask. Under the flashlight’s beam, the details of her face appeared unnervingly vivid. Whether it was an illusion or not…
Compared to when they were in the rainy town, the painting seemed noticeably clearer.
Blond gasped softly, “Wait, the painting—”
At his prompt, Wen Jianyan shifted the flashlight downward to illuminate the bottom edge of the painting.
The pale beam swept across the rough canvas, revealing messy, dark, damp stains—
Everyone’s pupils contracted involuntarily.
Scrawled in distorted, chaotic handwriting, three large numbers stood out:
[329]
It seemed this was the clue they were looking for—next, they needed to follow the painting’s guidance to this room to understand what the guest’s “request” truly entailed.
Having obtained the clue, there was no need to linger in the room any longer.
The group exchanged glances, silently reaching an understanding.
They turned and quickly but orderly withdrew from Room 408.
The door closed behind them.
The damp, dark, and foul-smelling space was sealed off behind the door, and the dimly lit corridor bathed in reddish light came into view, greatly relieving their tense nerves.
Everyone let out a long breath.
“So,” Chen Mo steadied himself and turned to Wen Jianyan, “we’re heading to Room 329 next?”
“…Yes.”
Wen Jianyan nodded.
Although they had obtained a clue, his expression remained grim—worse than before they had entered Room 408.
Yun Bilan keenly noticed this. “What’s wrong, Captain?”
“There are two possibilities for Room 329,” Wen Jianyan said, turning to look at them. His eyes gleamed faintly. “First, it’s already occupied by a guest invited by the opposing faction. This would mean that to fulfill Room 408’s guest’s request, we’d have to face the guest in a direct confrontation. If that’s the case, it’s not too bad…”
“Huh? That’s not too bad?” Blond exclaimed, looking aghast.
“Yes,” Wen Jianyan replied, raising a hand to rub his face. He continued slowly, “The real problem is if there’s no guest inside.”
The expressions of the others darkened as well.
In that instant, they grasped the underlying implication of Wen Jianyan’s words.
If there was no guest in Room 329…
It would mean that the guest’s request was for them to enter the rainy town through the painting in Room 329 after the next blackout.
But the problem was that earlier while being pursued by the opposing faction on the second floor, they had been forced to hide in one of the rooms. According to the unwritten rules of the Prosperity Hotel, the painting in the first room they entered after the lights came on would “follow” them. No matter which room they entered during the next blackout, the painting in that room would always be the same one.
This was a dangerous signal.
It meant that no matter what, they couldn’t use the painting in Room 329 to enter the rainy town during the next blackout. Even though they now had the clue, they wouldn’t be able to fulfill the guest’s request immediately.
*
The air turned deathly still, and the atmosphere grew heavy.
Wen Jianyan lowered his head, seemingly lost in thought.
“But we still need to take a look at the third floor,” Chen Mo said. “At the very least, we should scout the area in advance, just in case.”
“Agreed.”
Wen Jianyan nodded and raised his eyes.
“However, before heading to the third floor, there’s something else we need to do.”
“Huh? What else?” Yun Bilan asked, her expression puzzled.
Wen Jianyan turned his head, his gaze falling on the far end of the corridor. There, a familiar figure could be vaguely seen.
“That’s…”
Blond froze. “A member of the Gentalman’s team?”
“Correct.” Wen Jianyan squinted slightly, a fleeting, mischievous smile playing on his thin lips. It was innocent yet cunning. “This is a confrontation game, but it’s also a faction game, isn’t it?”
“I think it’s time we had a little… chat with some of the other anchors in our faction.”
