Chapter 97

In the not-so-large living room, the floor was covered with dried blood scabs, each tile soaked in fresh blood. No one knew what terrifying things had happened here.

Thick threads of blood crisscrossed the room, binding two figures.

One of them was wearing a red coat, her lips eerily stained with blood, and scattered around her were several blood-stained dinner knives.

The other figure was a large humanoid puppet, its face covered with a mask painted with strange patterns, its body made of wood, and a pile of rotten hearts in its chest.

"Level 5 and you dare to come to the 9th floor? If it hadn't taken so much power to trap them, you would have died a thousand times and still couldn't escape."

The bedroom door slowly opened, and the boy who had been unconscious on the bed walked to the doorway.

With each step, his body rapidly aged, wrinkles crept up his cheeks, and his black hair gradually turned white.

By the time he reached the man's side, his face was full of the signs of impending death: "Do you still remember your name?"

"Han Fei."

A strong stench and the smell of blood filled his nostrils. The man looked at the name on his arm, his expressionless face, and his calm eyes.

"Do you remember how many times you've died?"

"45 times."

"You remember that?" The old man nodded: "I knew we would meet again, but I didn't expect it to be so soon."

His body was turning into blood threads, slowly merging with the room: "What you just experienced is a memory from my childhood. Only the most unfortunate people have the black box. It chose me, and I chose you. Now it's your turn to make a choice."

"Are you sure I should make a choice now? I've forgotten a lot of things..."

"I've been waiting for this opportunity. Only a choice made under these circumstances is the most genuine." The old man opened his chest and took out a black box: "You now have the minimum qualifications to become a manager. You can choose your path."

"How do I choose?"

"If you want to completely destroy this world filled with calamity, misfortune, and absurdity, open the back lid. If you want to find a way out and redeem this world occupied by ghosts and monsters, open the front lid." The old man's body continued to melt; he didn't have much time left.

"Which path did you choose before?" The man didn't make a hasty decision; he felt this choice was very important.

"I chose the back, but I failed. My memory was torn into pieces by something, and the black box is hidden in a fragment of my childhood memory."

"It seems choosing the back is very dangerous." The man thought for a moment and finally said, "Can I open both lids? I want to redeem this world, but I also think some things in this world should be destroyed."

"Choosing both paths, the forces of the front and back might both want to kill you!" The old man had never seen anyone make such a choice. If you want both, what is the point of the choice?

After a pause, he added, "Think carefully. In the future, you might find that even death is a luxury. You will encounter even more terrifying things, like the manager's mission. This time you died 45 times to complete it, but in some managers' memories, dying once means eternal damnation. Do you have the confidence to pass with one life?"

"I don't have the confidence, but what does that have to do with my choice?" The man grabbed the top and bottom lids of the black box and opened them simultaneously.

Nothing unusual happened in the room; inside the black box was another black box.

"What's inside this box?"

"You are now an F-level manager. Each time you advance a manager level, you can open one layer of the box. If you can reach the end, you will see what is hidden inside." The old man held the black box with both hands, his body turning into blood threads, and he slowly opened Han Fei's chest, placing the black box in his heart: "Remember, the black box is hidden in the deepest part of your consciousness. You must always remain clear-headed."

When the black box was placed in Han Fei's chest, his lost memories surged back like a flood. For a moment, Han Fei felt his head was about to explode. He fell to the ground in pain and passed out.

After stitching up Han Fei's chest and restoring everything, the old man's body reached its limit.

In his last moments, his eyes held a complex emotion: "Speed up your exploration. Try to go to more places before they find you. You might be lucky and find hope in some building. You chose the hardest path, but you should be able to do it. You are much stronger than I was. You dared to come to the 9th floor at Level 5, while I waited until Level 19 to come up. You're a crazy guy. Don't you know that dying in the game means brain death in reality?"

The old man's figure completely turned into blood threads, and the blood vessels crisscrossing the room began to wither. The terrifying oppressive aura disappeared.

"Attention, Player 0000! You have completed the F-level manager mission, Building Manager! You have earned triple mission experience! You have received a base reward of two free skill points! You have received a base reward of the F-level manager title, Building Manager!"

"Building Manager (F-level manager title): All permanent residents in the building have a +10 friendliness boost! You will randomly receive an F-level manager talent! You can choose one resident with a friendly relationship to accompany you when you go out!"

"Attention, Player 0000! The recommended level for F-level missions is 10 to 20. Since you successfully completed the F-level manager mission, you will receive the rarest growing F-level manager talent!"

"Attention, Player 0000! Congratulations on obtaining the growing F-level manager talent, Soul Summon!"

"Soul Summon (an extremely rare F-level manager talent with a one in ten thousand chance of obtaining, which can be strengthened as the player's level increases): There is a certain probability to summon a player with a spirit body in a special form, usable once per night."

"Attention, Player 0000! You have successfully leveled up to Level 6! You have received one free attribute point!"

The headache gradually subsided, and a faint voice echoed in his mind. Han Fei slowly remembered everything.

"It's that old man who sold me the game helmet!" Han Fei suddenly woke up, excitedly waving his arm, but accidentally touched the person next to him, and a pungent smell of blood filled his nostrils.

Turning his head, Han Fei saw Xu Qin sitting next to him, constantly wiping the dinner knife, but the blood on the knife only increased.

"Awake?" Her bright red lips curved upward, and Xu Qin looked at Han Fei: "Did you come to the 9th floor to find me?"

Seeing Xu Qin's blood-stained lips and her constant wiping of the knife, Han Fei decided to tell the truth.

He struggled to stand up and stared into Xu Qin's eyes: "I died 45 times in that dream. I thought I would never wake up again."

Hearing that Han Fei had died 45 times, Xu Qin, contrary to her usual behavior, said nothing, but her hand wiping the knife became more forceful.

"Attention, Player 0000! Xu Qin's friendliness has increased by 20! Your relationship with Xu Qin has been upgraded to friendly."