The moment Du Sheng and Qi Qing spoke up, they immediately drew the attention of the other players.
The first to react were Lu Zhizhen and Huang Wenli. Hearing the voices, they turned around, surprised to run into familiar faces here, and greeted them.
“Mr. Du, we meet again.”
Then came the remaining unfamiliar players. Their gazes swept back and forth over the five of them, filled with assessment and probing. Apartment Legends was a B-rank world, mid-to-high difficulty. Everyone who entered was a veteran—there wasn’t a single newcomer. The moment they saw people recognizing one another, they knew that in the upcoming game, Ji Xiu and his group would naturally form an alliance.
By the same logic, the right to speak in this mission would likely fall into the hands of these five people.
Naturally, some resentment and unease stirred in their hearts.
“So unlucky… running into another team…”
Ji Xiu acted as if he hadn’t heard anything. He nodded to Du Sheng and Qi Qing, subtly signaling that there were outsiders present and it wasn’t convenient to talk in detail—things could be discussed later.
Du Sheng nodded, suppressing his confusion, and didn’t ask further questions, waiting instead for Ji Xiu’s instructions.
This was a habit he had developed back in Ji Family Village. No matter what problem arose, as long as he asked the boss, he would get an effective answer. Over time, he grew used to it—whenever the boss was around, everything was decided by the boss.
Ji Xiu smoothly took control of the group and swept his gaze across everyone.
There were nine players in total. Excluding himself and the familiar faces, there were four others: a skinny elderly man, a middle-aged man in a suit, a fat man, and a timid-looking man with a hunched posture.
Ji Xiu smiled and spoke. “Why don’t we introduce ourselves first and then discuss any clues we’re carrying?”
At his suggestion, everyone took turns stating their names, then began checking themselves for clues.
When players entered a game, relevant identity information and settings would appear in their pockets—just like the flashlight Lu Zhizhen had found last time.
The skinny old man pulled a key and a piece of paper from his pocket, glanced at them, and said, “Our room is 1309. Looks like we’re a family who just moved here from out of town.”
Judging by that, the skinny old man was playing the role of the family’s father.
The man in the suit said, “I’m the eldest brother.”
The fat man said, “I’m the second brother.”
Du Sheng said, “I’m the fourth brother.”
Qi Qing paused. “…I’m the fourth sister-in-law.”
Heh. This damn game was even encouraging romance.
Ji Xiu also found something on himself—he was the third brother, unmarried.
As for the rest: the timid man was the fifth brother; Lu Zhizhen and Huang Wenli were the sixth and seventh sisters respectively. It really was a big family.
Ji Xiu noted all this mentally, then casually glanced around the apartment building’s surroundings.
The exterior of the building was imposing, located at the center of the residential complex. Greenery and parking lots surrounded it, and the nearest other apartment building was at least two hundred meters away.
It was morning. Many people were exercising around the complex, yet not a single person passed near this apartment building—as if some invisible barrier kept them away.
Ji Xiu more or less understood the situation. He withdrew his gaze, turned around, and led everyone into the building.
The exterior of the apartment was new and grand, and the interior lived up to it. Upon entering the lobby, they found bright lighting and spotless cleanliness. Even the floors in the elevator corridor were immaculate—clearly, the cleaning staff was very diligent.
There were six elevators. Just as they reached them and were about to press a button, another elevator arrived. Ding. The doors opened, and a weary-looking cleaning woman pushed a trash cart out.
When she saw Ji Xiu and the others, her eyes flickered. “You’re new residents?”
Ji Xiu subtly stepped back half a step, letting Lu Zhizhen and Huang Wenli step forward to handle the conversation.
Huang Wenli smiled brightly, her voice sweet and lively. “Yes! Big sister, we live in 1309.”
The cleaner’s face changed drastically. She looked like she wanted to say something but didn’t dare say much, struggling before finally warning them in a low voice.
“Haven’t you heard about the strange things in this apartment building?”
“We just moved here from out of town, so we’re not familiar with it. Could you tell us about it?” Lu Zhizhen asked politely.
The cleaner looked extremely conflicted. She lowered her voice further. “Anyway, just remember—no matter what, don’t take the stairs. And don’t go out at night.”
After saying this, she glanced left and right nervously, then hurriedly pushed her trash cart away. The players couldn’t stop her even if they tried.
Watching her retreating figure, Lu Zhizhen rubbed her arms, goosebumps rising. “Supernatural worlds are always like this—NPCs who speak vaguely. You can’t even tell whether they’re warning you or misleading you.”
“Let’s not worry about it for now. Find the apartment first,” Ji Xiu said.
He stepped into the elevator first and pressed the button for the thirteenth floor. The others followed suit.
The elevator doors closed and ascended smoothly. For a moment, it was quiet and awkward, until someone spoke just to fill the silence.
Skinny old man: “This building’s pretty tall—nineteen floors.”
Fat man: “No, I don’t think so. There are only seventeen buttons.”
Skinny old man: “Let me see… Huh? Why is there no fourth floor?”
Fat man: “There’s no fourteenth floor either.”
Huang Wenli thought for a moment and explained, “Maybe the designer was superstitious. Lots of buildings skip the fourth floor and floors related to four.”
The skinny old man suddenly understood. “So that’s why.”
With that, the topic ended, and the elevator fell silent again. Everyone exchanged awkward glances.
Fortunately, the elevator soon arrived at the thirteenth floor.
Everyone poured out in a rush, afraid of being a step behind—after all, in horror movies, elevators and bathrooms were notoriously dangerous places.
Only Ji Xiu remained unhurried. He looked around the elevator first, then exited last.
The four unfamiliar players couldn’t help casting admiring looks at him.
Huang Wenli grinned. “Boss is just that handsome!”
“Enough joking. Let’s find the room,” Ji Xiu said with a smile, mildly scolding her.
He looked up at the room number closest to the elevator—and was somewhat surprised to find it was exactly 1309.
The others noticed too and urged the skinny old man to open the door.
The old man, clearly a seasoned player, sighed. “A bunch of unfilial kids, bullying their old man.”
The fat man laughed loudly. “If you know we’re unfilial kids, hurry up already. Move any slower and we’ll make you stand watch tonight.”
In fast-paced three-day survival games like this, someone was usually assigned night watch duty. As long as they survived three nights, the game would end.
The skinny old man nodded. “Fine. But I’ll only take the first night. I’m old—I can’t compete with you youngsters. The first night should be safe…”
As he spoke, the door opened.
A chill seeped out from the entryway.
The skinny old man shuddered. The rest of his words died in his throat as he stared into the dark, cavernous entrance, unable to step inside. Click. Ji Xiu stepped forward, turned on the light, and walked in, sweeping his gaze around.
“No one’s here. Come in.”
Everyone froze.
When they snapped back to their senses, they glanced at Ji Xiu with complicated expressions and followed him inside.
Apartment 1309 was a duplex—two living rooms and five bedrooms. Four bedrooms upstairs, one downstairs.
The living room was the largest, near the entrance. From the sofa, one could clearly see the front door.
Ji Xiu sat down in the living room and discussed with everyone, “As for room allocation, I suggest Sixth Sister and Seventh Sister share a room, Fourth Brother and Fourth Sister-in-law share one, I take one, and the rest can choose freely.”
Of course, it was called a discussion, but in reality, he made all the decisions.
The four isolated unfamiliar players didn’t dare object. After muttering a bit internally, they nodded in agreement.
Ji Xiu smiled, seemingly satisfied. “In that case, let’s assign night watch duties.”
There were nine players—perfect for three per night.
He pointed at the skinny old man, the suited man, and the timid man. “You three take the first night.”
Then he pointed at Lu Zhizhen, Huang Wenli, and the fat man. “You take the second night.”
Huang Wenli froze, immediately grabbed Lu Zhizhen, and raised her hand. “No! Boss, we request to be with you!”
Ji Xiu raised an eyebrow. “I’m planning to take the third night. The last day is usually the most dangerous.”
“It’s fine, it’s fine! I just want to be with you, Boss.”
Ji Xiu pondered briefly, then said, “Alright. Then Du Sheng and Qi Qing can take the second night—”
“I want to be with the boss on the third night too,” Qi Qing muttered softly.
The four unfamiliar players watched this bizarre competition for favor and were completely dumbfounded.
Just what kind of big shot was this guy?
Setting aside how Ji Xiu had taken command and always led from the front—why was everyone now scrambling to be with him on the third night?
Normally, the later a game went, the more dangerous it became. The game would force ghosts to evolve, and in severe cases, it could lead to a total team wipe.
Weren’t they afraid at all?!
The four exchanged skeptical looks. They couldn’t understand these people at all. Since everyone was fighting to take the third night, they’d just let them fight.
That said, Ji Xiu’s willingness to shoulder the responsibility of the third night as leader won unanimous approval. Everyone accepted him as the unspoken team leader without further doubt.
In the end, considering Huang Wenli’s young age, the male and female leads stepped back and took the second night instead.
Huang Wenli was delighted. “Boss, you have to make sure the boss’s wife looks out for me on the third night!”
She glanced at the backpack behind Ji Xiu, still uneasy. “You brought the fire axe too, right?”
Ji Xiu nodded.
“Then I’m totally at ease!” Huang Wenli beamed. “Sister Lu and I will go upstairs to find our room first.”
At that, everyone dispersed, heading upstairs to claim rooms—after all, no one wanted to stay alone on the first floor.
Only Ji Xiu didn’t care. He sat on the sofa, watching their retreating figures. After a long moment, he glanced at the living room, which inexplicably radiated a chill, then turned and walked toward the only bedroom on the first floor.
Behind him, the living room curtains fluttered without wind.
Entering the room, Ji Xiu set down his backpack and summoned Wang Qiuyue and Ji Chunsheng.
Ji Chunsheng looked a little sulky and complained softly. “Dad, why didn’t you let me come out earlier? Am I really that embarrassing?”
Ji Xiu didn’t indulge him at all. He glanced at him and said flatly, “Whether you’re embarrassing or not—you don’t know?”
Ji Chunsheng: “……”
Seeing her son get shut down, Wang Qiuyue didn’t sympathize at all. She covered her mouth and chuckled softly.
After laughing, she still showed some compassion and explained gently, “Our identities are special. It’s fine to reveal ourselves in front of acquaintances, but there are outsiders here now. Chunsheng, endure it for a bit. Tonight, I’ll take you out for a walk.”
Ji Xiu paused, saying nothing.
By then, the apartment would probably gain yet another legend.
…
The morning passed quickly. Everyone finished choosing rooms and came back downstairs to talk.
Du Sheng suggested, “Since we’re finally in modern society, let’s go out for lunch. We can also ask nearby NPCs about the apartment’s legends and gather clues.”
Everyone agreed. The entire group went out, found a restaurant nearby, and while eating, chatted with the server to ask about the apartment.
“You’re talking about Building 13?”
The server’s face changed instantly. He looked the players up and down as if they were warriors heading to their deaths, swallowed, and said, “I’ve worked here less than two years, and that building has already had more than a dozen murder cases. I’d advise you to move out as soon as possible.”
The players were prepared. They already knew something was wrong, so they stayed relatively calm.
The fat man even grinned. “Don’t scare us. We just moved in—we don’t know anything yet.”
Seeing they didn’t believe him, the server grew anxious. “Why would I lie to you? Building 13 really has problems. It’s been strange ever since it was built. Accidents kept happening—rumor has it they even hired eminent monks to perform rituals. Later, once it was finally completed, residents who went out at night would always see ghostly figures. After that, deaths became frequent—some suicides, some murders. Over the years, more than a hundred people have died.”
The players froze, exchanging looks.
This mission didn’t seem easy at all. Ghosts born from over a hundred deaths had long since lost their sanity—true vicious spirits.
Seeing they finally believed him a little, the server let out a breath and urged again, “Really, move out quickly. Don’t stay there.”
“Wait—if it’s so scary inside, why would anyone still dare live there?” someone asked.
The server looked at them with sympathy.
“All the residents moved out. The apartments are rented specifically to outsiders—people like you, who don’t know the situation. The buildings look new, so you move in. Later, once you find out the truth, you don’t want to waste the rent and refuse to leave. Only after someone dies do you get scared off—but then the next tenant moves in soon after.”
“This apartment building survives on constantly replacing people.”
He also mentioned the strange cleaner.
“The only ones who can stay in the building for more than two years are the cleaners. But I heard their fate charts are strong—property management specifically hires them.”
“As for ordinary folks like us—the farther we stay away, the better.”
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