Chapter 28: Escaping the Game

At that moment, Su Qianqian walked over with a frown and said, “Xiaofan, my next task is to catch a ghost at the Xitian Hotel. That’s the place from the video Ma Ying showed us last time—there really are ghosts there. What should I do?”

“How much did you get in red envelopes?” Zhang Xiaofan asked.

“Over ten thousand…”

Zhang Xiaofan was stunned. He grabbed Su Qianqian’s phone and saw the amount for himself. “Damn, you snatched that much?”

Her luck needed no further comment.

“I suggest you buy some enhancements for your constitution to deal with the ghosts there,” Zhang Xiaofan recommended. “It’s best to go with the other classmates who also have to go. Take a few days to prepare, and if possible, I’ll go with you and take a look inside.”

Just then, Lin Rou approached, casting a wary and resentful glance at Su Qianqian, clearly displeased with how close she was to Zhang Xiaofan. Deliberately, she took Zhang Xiaofan’s hand and said, “I’ve got just over three thousand in red envelopes. What do you think I should do?”

Zhang Xiaofan hadn’t expected Lin Rou to be so bold. The surrounding classmates were all shocked, glancing from Lin Rou to Su Qianqian, then at Zhang Xiaofan. The boys’ eyes brimmed with envy; the girls were full of disbelief.

After all, for Zhang Xiaofan to win the favor of the two most popular girls in the class was astonishing. They never would have considered someone as unremarkable as him.

Su Qianqian stared blankly at the two of them and murmured, “Are you really together?”

Zhang Xiaofan didn’t know how to explain. In his heart, he wanted to have both of them; the idea thrilled him. But he knew that if he ever voiced this, he’d lose everything.

Lin Rou nodded proudly, her face radiant with happiness.

“Congratulations,” Su Qianqian said, a flicker of disappointment passing through her eyes—no one noticed. She returned to her seat and began studying the mall on her phone alone.

“Lin Rou, what’s your task?” Zhang Xiaofan asked.

“My task is to catch a zombie,” Lin Rou replied, clutching Zhang Xiaofan’s arm tightly. “I’m really scared. I couldn’t even watch horror movies before, and now I have to catch a zombie. What should I do?”

“Don’t worry, I’ll help you figure something out.”

“Mm, Xiaofan, I’m counting on you now.”

Just as Zhang Xiaofan was wondering what to do next, Murong Feng suddenly stood up and said, “Everyone, there’s no need to rush into the tasks just yet.”

“Why not?”

“Yeah, we have to hurry, or we’ll run out of time.”

“Shut up, all of you, and listen to Murong Feng,” Wang Hu shouted.

Murong Feng’s voice was always calm. “My family hired two experts—level-three Taoist priests. They’re going to break into Sun Yang’s house, find his phone, and dissolve the group chat. That should solve everything.”

The classmates erupted with excitement—no one wanted to play this ridiculous game if they could avoid it.

“For now, all we need to do is wait. My family will contact me soon,” Murong Feng said quietly.

The tension in the room mounted. Lin Rou, instead of returning to her seat, sat close to Zhang Xiaofan, browsing the mall on her phone, lost in thought.

Half an hour later, Murong Feng received a text: The group chat has been dissolved. The ghost at Sun Yang’s house has been dealt with.

After he announced the news, the students burst into cheers.

“Murong Feng, you’re amazing!”

“Yeah, we’re finally free from that disgusting game. We can relax now.”

Everyone gathered around Murong Feng in celebration, even Song Feng and Wang Hu expressing their gratitude.

Zhang Xiaofan glanced at the now-vanished class group on his phone and said to Lin Rou, “This is great. We’re finally done with that game.”

Lin Rou looked at her phone, then cast a complicated glance at Zhang Xiaofan—one he couldn’t quite decipher. There was a faint, almost imperceptible sense of distance in her eyes.

Zhang Xiaofan’s heart sank. Now that he had lost the powerful aura of the game, would Lin Rou, Su Qianqian, even Hu Xiaotian and Jiang Jiewei still rely on him?

He felt lost, but forced a smile with Hu Xiaotian and the others.

Then he put his arm around Lin Rou. “How about dinner to celebrate tonight?”

At that moment, Song Feng approached with a cold sneer. “Give it up, kid. You think you can win over Lin Rou?”

His cronies followed, glaring coldly at Zhang Xiaofan.

“My relationship with Lin Rou is none of your business, Song Feng,” Zhang Xiaofan replied, meeting his gaze.

“Hmph. I ignored you before because of the game, but now that it’s over, I’m warning you—some things and some people are beyond your reach,” Song Feng threatened.

“What are you going to do about it?”

“Nothing. But I bet Lin Rou won’t leave with you. Just wait and see.” Song Feng laughed, slung his arm around Chen Jing, and left. With the game’s constraints gone, everything was back to the way it was before.

Zhang Xiaofan frowned and looked at Lin Rou. “Lin Rou… tonight…”

She lowered her head. “My family is coming tonight. I can’t.”

“You…” Zhang Xiaofan’s heart ached. Had she really only gotten close to him before for protection?

“I’m sorry,” Lin Rou said softly, and walked away.

Zhang Xiaofan felt hollow inside. The people around him were all looking on with mocking eyes. Only Zhou Jian, Xu Xiaolong, Hu Xiaotian, and Jiang Jiewei came over, their attitudes unchanged, suggesting they get together for a drink and a meal to celebrate.

“Alright, tonight we’ll drink—drink until we forget everything!” Zhang Xiaofan’s eyes blazed. He wanted nothing more than to numb himself with alcohol.

That night, Zhang Xiaofan drank heavily. He didn’t even remember how he got home. The next morning, Jiang Jiewei had to shake him awake.

“Xiaofan, something’s wrong. Bao Lei… Bao Lei is back.”

Jiang Jiewei’s face was pale with terror.

Zhang Xiaofan jumped up and checked his phone. At some point, they’d been added to a new group chat—but this time, everything about the group was black-themed.

Bao Lei: Did you really think getting Sun Yang’s phone and dissolving the group would let you escape our control? Naive. As punishment, today we’ll play the killing game.

Task rules: Each person must kill someone—anyone, whether someone you know or a stranger. You have twenty-four hours. Completing the task earns you a reward.

At that moment, everyone in the group was stunned.

“How is this possible? @Murong Feng, didn’t you say it was over?”

“Yeah…”

The classmates bombarded Murong Feng with messages, demanding an answer.

Three minutes later, Murong Feng finally replied, his tone even: Stop asking. The two level-three priests my family hired both died this morning. The truth is, the ghost tormenting us is too powerful for us to handle. Instead of questioning me, you should think about how to survive the next challenge. I’m turning off my phone for the next twenty-four hours—I’m going to kill someone!