Chapter 5: The Dean

[November 12th, sunny]

 Mom's condition has worsened again, and I'm still writing to earn money. I fell asleep while writing at night because I was taking care of my mom, and I lost my perfect attendance this month. I begged the editor for some leniency, but he said he couldn't help. This weekend, I'm going out to take on some extra work, skipping a meal every day, hoping to raise enough money for my mom's surgery sooner!

 ...

 [December 12th, cloudy]

 I got a job delivering takeout. It's a bit harder, but there's hope of raising enough money for my mom's surgery!

 ...

 [December 27th, light rain]

 It's been raining for over ten days, and the town is flooded everywhere. I slipped while delivering takeout today, and I lost the money I earned. Sob...

 ...

 [February 9th, heavy rain]

 It's been raining heavily for nearly three months, and I can't do takeout anymore. My mother's condition has worsened again. What should I do?

 ...

 [March 18th, thunderstorm]

 The small town... what's happening?

 How did it suddenly become like this?

 The streets... so empty...

 Where did everyone go?

 ...

 The diary ends here.

 Apart from lamenting, there's no useful information.

 Zhao Yi threw the diary aside and was about to leave when he suddenly stopped.

 He picked up the crybaby's diary again and carefully reviewed it, his eyes deep in thought.

 "Mother... surgery..."

 It seemed like Zhao Yi understood something.

 He took the diary with him, left the room, and entered the fog once again.

 In his mind, the entire map of the hospital appeared.

 Admittedly, the map was very complicated, but for Zhao Yi, a freak who could easily remember the symptoms of hundreds of patients without confusion, it wasn't difficult at all.

 The hospital building was not safe, with various ghostly creatures of different strengths wandering the halls.

 Zhao Yi didn't actively engage with them, carefully avoiding them, and made his way to the more densely populated wards.

 These wards were in extremely poor condition, almost dirty and disorderly, clearly not prepared for wealthy people.

 This matched the description of himself and his mother in the crybaby's diary.

 —Poor.

 Zhao Yi didn't intend to complete this side quest.

 He was looking for the female ghost because he had another idea.

 His gaze swept past.

 The corridors were lined with low-level danger and neutral entities.

 Stepping on the damp, raised floorboards, his footsteps were light as he stood in front of each room, peering inside through the glass one by one.

 ...

 : What is he doing?

 : I don't know... maybe exploring the map?

 Yang Tao: He's eliminating options.

 : Eliminating options? Please explain, Yang Tao!

 Yang Tao: Haven't you noticed? In that diary, the crybaby expressed concern for his mother multiple times. His obsession is likely with his mother in a hospital bed, so the side quest is probably related to this. As long as Zhao Yi finds the crybaby's mother, it's possible to continue the side quest.

 Yang Tao: The current Zhao Yi is actually eliminating which rooms have women and which don't. Once he narrows down the scope, he can explore more efficiently and safely!

Wow, it makes sense!

Not surprising, Yang Tao is so insightful, he saw through Zhao Yi's intentions at a glance!

A group of people flattered Yang Tao, while other silent players focused all their attention on Zhao Yi!

This newbie...is incredibly strong!

Although his current power is still weak compared to others, his judgment, decisiveness, and adaptability are qualities that many experienced players don't possess!

Yang Tao: Look, now he has found his target. Next, he will interact with the target, extract useful information, and continue the side mission.

...

After a brief process of elimination, things unexpectedly went smoothly.

Among all the wards on this floor, only Room 3004 had a female ghost lying on the bed.

So, Zhao Yi could almost confirm that the mother of the crying ghost was the female ghost lying on the bed.

Don't be fooled by her frail and pale appearance.

Just like the crying ghost, she is classified as a "medium danger" entity.

On the contrary, the aggressive-looking old ghosts in the previous rooms are classified as "neutral" entities.

Zhao Yi arrived at the door of Room 3004, placed a hand on the doorknob, and slowly pushed the door open with a polite smile.

"Hello, are you Ah Xiao's mother?"

Ah Xiao is the signature in the diary of the crying ghost.

The female ghost turned her head, her eyes emitting a deathly aura, fixed on Zhao Yi at the door.

"I...am...Ah Xiao's...mother...What...do you...want..."

A smile appeared on Zhao Yi's face.

"That's great! I finally found you! Um...if I may ask, is your husband or any relative here in the hospital?"

The female ghost fell silent for a moment, without answering.

"No..."

"Why did you...come to me...what do you...want?"

As she spoke, her hair began to grow strangely, like a ghost, extending towards the doorway!

Clearly, she didn't intend to let Zhao Yi off easily.

Of course, Zhao Yi didn't plan to let her go either.

"That's good."

"I won't have to run around...it's quite troublesome to find people..."

Zhao Yi muttered to himself.

Then he threw something dark and inconspicuous into the room.

The female ghost caught it precisely with her ghostly hands.

In the next moment, Zhao Yi forcefully closed the door!

Boom!

A huge explosion erupted, accompanied by the female ghost's screams!

The entire building seemed to shake for a moment!

After the lingering sound faded away, Zhao Yi pushed the door open and looked inside the room. The female ghost was already dead, beyond death.

The room was in a mess.

With the significant reduction in ghost resistance, the immediate consequence was that conventional weapons became effective.

...

The audience in the livestream room grew larger, but there was no communication at this moment.

This newbie in front of them gave them a spine-chilling feeling!

Even Yang Tao remained silent.

This newcomer's thought process is definitely not normal.

Shouldn't a normal person continue the unfinished side mission by finding the female ghost?

But Zhao Yi, on the other hand, meets and greets with a hand grenade right away!

And from their conversation earlier, it is not difficult to see...Zhao Yi is going to kill Ah Xiao's whole family!

Clearly, after killing Ah Xiao, Zhao Yi is worried about retaliation from Ah Xiao's family...after all, the hospital is not that big, and it's easy for the ghosts to find him...

So, he made a decision.

- To kill Ah Xiao's family first!

This person... isn't he really mentally ill?

In that moment, Yang Tao's eyelids twitched slightly.

Zhao Yi finished his own business and turned around, continuing to walk towards the rooftop.

All the nearby ghosts hid, trembling in fear, afraid that Zhao Yi would kick open the door of their ward and send them a burst of aurora.

After some twists and turns, Zhao Yi arrived at the door of the hospital director's office.

Data appeared before his eyes.

[Huge Hospital Director: Extremely dangerous!]

[Note: Do not attempt to confront him head-on]

Even before entering the room, Zhao Yi could already sense a deadly aura!

He rubbed his chin and pondered for half a second.

Then he took out the printed paper from his pocket.

He found a pen in the nearby room and circled a part of it with a thick red frame.

He examined it carefully and was very satisfied.

Then he directly taped it to his face with transparent tape.

Holding a bloodstained surgical knife, he kicked open the door to the hospital director's office!

Bang!

A loud noise!

"A crisis of death and the gaze of the dean arrived simultaneously!

A pair of pale hands, without warning, grabbed Zhao Yi's neck from an unknown angle!

Zhao Yi didn't have any chance to fight back at all!

The other party moved too fast!

And these cold hands directly drained all the strength from Zhao Yi!

The dean's mouth split to the roots of the ears, a gaping bloodthirsty maw, about to swallow Zhao Yi whole!

At the critical moment.

Its eyes fell on the newspaper covering Zhao Yi's face.

There was a cluster of text and images specially outlined in a red frame.

[March 6]

[Unknown ominous invasion at Giant Hospital]

[All personnel deceased]

[No one survived]

[Attached: Image]

In that picture,

The dean's body happened to be hanging on the rooftop, swaying like a tattered newspaper.

A long tongue, face cyanotic.

Hollow eyes gazing into the distance, mouth torn open, faint traces of blood dripping.

Seeing this picture, the dean seemed to recall something.

The hand choking Zhao Yi's neck weakened rapidly.

The cold retreated, and strength returned to Zhao Yi's body.

It was at this moment!

He grasped the surgical knife, and with all his might, made the fastest stab, straight into the dean's forehead!

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