The weapon by the pillow

There's a sound in the bathroom in Chapter 10...

They actually went... to that unsolved case in Anpingli that was discussed on the forum during the day! That forbidden haunted house!

One stone caused a thousand waves!

[Anping Lane? The haunted house from thirteen years ago? Really?!]

[I saw the forum post! Wasn't it supposed to be a lottery for the adventure? Is this for real?!]

[Look at the ground! Wires! Wrench! Pliers! Exactly the same as described in the post!]

[Is that the person sitting against the wall the original poster? Their face looks scary!]

[I heard... the windows seem to be sealed off? And the doors can't be opened? Are they trapped?]

Is this acting or real? The script is amazing!

The more novel it was, the more viewers it attracted, with many coming from the forum after hearing about it. The number of viewers in the live stream began to soar, and the barrage of comments increased exponentially, instantly becoming densely packed and almost completely obscuring the screen.

"Holy crap! Is the streamer serious?"

"These props are so realistic! Which film crew is willing to spend so much money?"

"It's not a prop, is it...? The rust and stains on those pliers don't look like they're being distressed..."

"Listen to their conversation! What thirteen years... sister... nightmare... murder weapon... this doesn't sound like a script!"

"That was a fantastic show, Lao Cheng!"

"Exciting! More thrilling than horror movies! Is this an immersive horror reality show?"

"Call the police! I don't think they're acting! The guy with glasses is so scared he's about to wet himself!"

"Why call the police? What if it's just a publicity stunt?"

"Is the person upstairs stupid? Who would create such a big fuss, and choose a place like that?"

"Outside the window! Look closely at the crack outside! It looks like something's moving! Could it be someone else?"

"It's chilling to think about... what if this wasn't a performance..."

The live stream completely exploded. The number of viewers exceeded 5,000, then 10,000, and is still rising rapidly.

The barrage of comments was filled with astonishment, doubt, excitement, fear, reasoning, and commotion... The hustle and bustle of the online world contrasted sharply with the cold, desperate, and suspicious reality inside the haunted house, all through that small camera.

The audience became an extension of the "eyes," except that they were not outside the window, but behind countless distant screens, "peeping" at this life-or-death predicament in another way.

Meanwhile, the seven people trapped in room 403 were completely unaware of this.

At this moment, Cheng Tan's headache eased slightly. He lowered his hands from his head and breathed heavily. Li Kai remained standing by the window, as if listening to the movements of the real voyeurs outside. The shadow no longer spoke, but its eyes were even more vigilant. Lynx finally gave up its pointless pacing and plopped down on the ground, its eyes fixed blankly. The research enthusiast seemed to have regained some of his "research" instincts. Although afraid, his eyes couldn't help but glance at the stains on the wall and the murder weapon on the ground, muttering something silently to himself. A Zhe and Xiao Fei remained close together. Lin Qian quietly moved closer to Cheng Tan, seemingly finding this person who had confessed his nightmares relatively less threatening.

"We can't stay trapped here forever." This time, Lin Qian broke the silence. "Mr. Li Kai, whatever your purpose in gathering us here, the situation is out of control. The door is jammed from the outside, the windows are sealed, and there are unidentified people outside. We need to cooperate, find a way out, or at least, contact the outside world."

Her words were practical, temporarily drawing everyone's attention back to the real survival crisis.

"How can I contact you? There's no cell phone signal here!" Lynx said irritably.

Indeed, once inside the abandoned building, everyone's cell phone signal was so weak it was almost nonexistent, and attempts to make calls or send messages all failed.

"Maybe... we can try making a bigger commotion to attract the attention of those 'spectators' outside? What if one of them calls the police..." the meticulous researcher suggested weakly.

"Call the police?" Li Kai suddenly sneered, turning around. "And then what? The police come, rescue us, and then what? The story ends? My sister's case just stays buried in the file?"

His gaze sharpened again, becoming obsessive: "What I want isn't a safe departure. What I want is an answer! An answer that I can close my eyes in peace before I die!"

He looked at Cheng Tan, then slowly at the others: "The answer lies among you. In your memories, in your subconscious that you may not even be aware of, or... in your current guilt and fear!"

"You're being completely unreasonable!" Lynx stood up angrily.

Just as the argument was about to erupt again—

"Tick-tock".

A soft yet unusually clear dripping sound suddenly rang out in the silent room.

Everyone fell silent and pricked up their ears.

The sound seems to be coming from... the bathroom?

This old-fashioned rental house has a small, windowless bathroom next to the bedroom. The door is ajar, and it's pitch black inside.

Previously, everyone's attention was focused on the weapon in the living room and the tension between them, and no one paid attention to the bathroom.

At this moment, in this deathly silence, a "tick-tock" sounded particularly abrupt, particularly... jarring.

It was as if a timer had been triggered, or as if... something that had been dormant was beginning to awaken.

Shadow immediately shone the flashlight beam through the crack in the bathroom door. Li Kai also turned his head sharply. Everyone held their breath, staring at the small door deep in the darkness.

"Tick-tock".

Another sound.

Clear, slow, yet clearly dripping down.

Unlike a regular water pipe leak.

Cheng Tan's heart was once again gripped by an invisible hand of fear. He suddenly remembered a similar sound in one of his nightmares... the sound of blood dripping onto the ground.

The live stream chat exploded instantly:

What was that sound?!

[It seems to be coming from that small door!]

Is it leaking?

[It doesn't sound like it... This voice sounds really creepy...]

[Can you please turn the camera around?! I'm so anxious!]

[Hey streamer, don't just stand there! Go check it out!]

Inside the room, Shadow and Li Kai exchanged a glance, seemingly reaching a temporary understanding. Shadow gripped the powerful flashlight he'd taken from Lynx, while Li Kai pulled a small tactical flashlight from his pocket. The two, one on each side, slowly approached the bathroom door.

The others followed a few steps behind them, both afraid and unable to suppress their damned curiosity.

Cheng Tan was also pulled up by Lin Qian and staggered to catch up. His eyes were fixed on the half-open door, and an uneasy premonition, like a cold venomous snake, coiled around his spine.

Shadow took a deep breath, suddenly raised his foot, and kicked open the bathroom door!

"Bang!"

The door slammed against the wall inside with a loud bang.

Two powerful beams of light shot into the small room in an instant.

Then, everyone froze.

In the live stream, the rapidly scrolling chat went blank for a moment, then flooded the screen at an even more explosive speed:

【！！！！！！！】

What is that?!

[This is so real! Oh my god!!!]

This is not acting! Absolutely not!