Chapter 74

Feng Bujue and Siyu parted ways on the playground. The former walked around the main building and headed deeper into the campus, while the latter entered the teaching building directly opposite the school gate.

If the two of them could act together, this script wouldn't be too difficult. They could discuss puzzles, share the burden in battles, and having someone by their side during terrifying scenes would make things much better. But now, they were limited to acting alone and had to complete the phone call setup that seemed to be full of conspiracy... It could be said that the danger and difficulty of the script had at least doubled.

In the previous nursery rhyme, there were already many clues about locations and specific objects, such as the well, stairs, mirror, piano, etc...

Leaving aside the others, the well was likely not inside a building or near a sports field. It was most probably in a corner close to the fence.

Following this line of thought, Feng Bujue walked around the main building and continued forward. The moonlight was bright, like silver frost covering the ground, so he didn't need to turn on his flashlight to see the path ahead. He didn't walk fast, often checking the script time displayed on his phone. He needed to make the call at the tenth minute.

In the five elements, water is in the north, and Feng Bujue found a well in the north of the campus. The well's rim wasn't very high, made of white stone blocks with uneven surfaces. The well mouth was not sealed, but there was no rope or bucket.

About ten meters away from the well was an L-shaped bungalow. Peering through the window, he could see a long water trough and a row of faucets. Feng Bujue walked to the door and found some iron buckets, mops, and other cleaning tools, indicating that this place was used for storing cleaning supplies.

Feng Bujue first entered the bungalow and searched it thoroughly, even counting the number of faucets and mops, but found no useful clues. When he stepped outside, the time on his phone showed nine minutes and twenty-seven seconds. He picked up his phone and pressed the speed dial button.

However, the phone didn't automatically dial; instead, a message appeared on the screen: [Time not yet reached. Your next dialing time should be 10:00-10:45]

"So, I can only dial within forty-five seconds after reaching the specified time..." Feng Bujue muttered. He waited for half a minute, and the moment the time on his phone turned to ten minutes, he pressed the speed dial button again. A series of numbers quickly appeared on the screen, and the first call began.

The dial tone only lasted once before Siyu answered.

After all, they were in-game friends, and they hadn't exchanged a single word since entering the script. Feng Bujue wanted to be polite and say something like, "What a coincidence," but he didn't have time for such trivialities. Siyu got straight to the point: "The main building is larger than expected, and none of the lights work. There are a few rows of shoe lockers at the entrance, and after passing them, there's a horizontal corridor with a floor plan on the wall. I'm currently on the first floor and plan to search each floor, from 1F to the rooftop, checking every door. I haven't encountered anything unusual yet. How about you?"

Feng Bujue was surprised to hear her speak so much at once, but he understood that the one-minute call time was precious. Siyu was likely holding the phone to her ear with one hand and a lantern in the other, making her vulnerable to attacks. He quickly replied, "I found a well, which is probably the place mentioned in the first line. I'm about to investigate it." He paused for a second, "Let me briefly explain the nursery rhyme. The second line refers to the 'Thirteen Steps' urban legend. I checked, and there are three relatively tall buildings on campus. The main building is the tallest, with seven floors plus a rooftop. I think you have a high chance of triggering this plot when you go upstairs. Remember to count the steps. If you find thirteen steps on a certain floor, it means you've entered a space filled with ghosts."

"The third line probably refers to the toilet. If you hear continuous dripping water from a toilet, it's likely..."

Beep— Beep— Beep—

Short busy tones sounded, indicating that the one-minute call time had passed. Their first call ended abruptly. The next call would be fifteen minutes later, with Siyu dialing Feng Bujue's phone.

Although Feng Bujue didn't finish his sentence, that was as far as it could go. His reminder was somewhat unnecessary because Siyu had heard the story of the Thirteen Steps and remembered the content of the nursery rhyme. In terms of combat ability, Feng Bujue was overly worried about her; he should have been more concerned about himself.

Putting his phone away from his ear, he looked at the screen and tried to dial again. The message refreshed: [Time not yet reached. Your next dialing time should be 40:00-40:45]

"Hmm... I think I understand the significance of these calls," Feng Bujue thought. "One minute isn't enough to say much. The main purpose of this contact isn't to help each other but to burden each other..."

He was right... The system created this setup for two players with very strong individual abilities. Even if they were separated, it wouldn't create unbearable pressure.

However... The concern for their teammates could become a burden.

The system clearly informed them that they couldn't travel together and couldn't communicate even if they met. They had to call each other at regular intervals. If one failed to dial or answer the call, they would be pursued by ghosts.

Imagine if one of them didn't receive the expected call or if they dialed and the other didn't answer. The person would naturally worry, wondering why the call didn't happen. Did they miss the dialing time? Or did something happen to them? Additionally, could their teammate handle the ghost pursuit?

Although the team menu in the game showed whether the teammate was alive, it didn't provide much information. It only indicated survival, not injuries, location, or fear levels. Even if one was trapped and bleeding in a storage cabinet, the other couldn't help. The person not being pursued would only worry and make mistakes due to the emotional impact.

So... This setup might as well not exist. It would be simpler to prohibit any communication or meetings, allowing each to play solo.

...

Because the phone couldn't be stored in the backpack, and the pockets on the newbie outfit were designed to be shallow, Feng Bujue had to hold the phone in his hand. Although unsure if it would be useful, he took out a pipe wrench and held it in his other hand, slowly approaching the well. His steps were steady, and his nerves were taut. If any flag was triggered, he would react immediately.

The surrounding air suddenly turned cold. As Feng Bujue approached the well, a groaning voice came from below: "Save... save... me..."

After the voice, the scene before Feng Bujue changed. In a second, night turned to dusk.

Next to him appeared a small, thin boy in a school uniform, wearing glasses. Three delinquents surrounded him, talking and occasionally hitting or pushing him.

"Is this a replay of a death scene..." Feng Bujue muttered, reaching out to touch the boy. His arm passed through the boy's body, confirming that he couldn't interact with them.

He watched patiently, curious about what would happen next.

It was a simple extortion. The boy said he had no money left, and the delinquents, unsatisfied, punched him in the stomach, causing him to crouch in pain. They then dragged him to the well, one grabbing his collar and suspending him over the well, while the others held his legs at the well's edge.

The boy was terrified, grabbing and shouting for them to stop, but the delinquents laughed, seemingly unconcerned. After less than a minute, tragedy struck. The boy fell into the well, his fate unknown.

The delinquents were scared, saying things like, "I... I didn't mean to let go... He... He moved and... fell, right?"

"Yeah... Yeah... He was just careless..."

They left the boy, not calling for help, and fled.

The next second, the illusions disappeared.

It was still a cold night, and Feng Bujue was still standing a few meters from the well, unmoved. He checked his phone, and the time hadn't progressed during the illusion.

"Save me..." The voice sounded again.

Feng Bujue took a deep breath and leaned closer to the well.

...

Meanwhile, in the main building.

In a staff office, Siyu found a newspaper clipping on a desk. The paper was marked with several keywords, one of which was the school's name—Yejie High School. The article was about a dry well in the school:

In 1994, a high school student named Tanaka Goshi was found dead in the dry well at Yejie High School. The police investigation concluded it was an accident, but a rumor in the school suggested that Tanaka might have committed suicide due to bullying.

A week later, the three students who often bullied Tanaka disappeared on the same night and were later found dead in the well. The police, despite their efforts, couldn't find any "murderer" and had to close the case.

The rumor that "Tanaka's spirit came back for revenge" quickly spread among the students.

In 1995, another student, Sakagami Yuichi, fell into the well and died. During the autopsy, besides the injuries from the fall, his body had many strange bite marks from at least four different people.

Sakagami was known as a bully. His friends told the police that they were smoking nearby when Sakagami heard a "save me" cry, but they didn't hear it and thought he was joking. He went home alone.

In the same winter, two local biker gang members were found dead in the well, their bodies with more bite marks, and their fingers were missing.

In 1996, the school sealed the well with cement, and there were no incidents for the next two years.

In 1998, the cement cover on the well cracked for unknown reasons.

That summer, three students went missing. Ten days after the first disappearance, a strong odor came from the well's crack. The school had to break the cement and found three more dead bodies, severely mutilated except for their heads.

Rumors spread again, "If you hear a cry for help from the well, don't look in, or you'll be dragged down."