Chi Mu froze stiff—the hand resting on his shoulder nearly made his soul fly out of his body.He turned around and saw a middle-aged woman wearing a white short-sleeved shirt, pushing a cleaning cart.
"Sir, do you need your room cleaned?" she asked politely.
Chi Mu studied her carefully and realized she was the female cleaner on the ninth floor—the key figure mentioned in the rules.
"No, thank you… By the way, did you see a little girl run out of my room just now?" Chi Mu asked.
The cleaner's expression flickered for a moment before she replied, "Sorry, sir, I didn't see anyone leave your room."
Chi Mu nodded and turned back inside his room.
Closing the door behind him, he confirmed his suspicion: the female cleaner was also contaminated. Now he was ninety percent sure—the source of contamination was inside the storage room!
Everyone appearing so far was connected to that storage room, and all were contaminated. It made perfect sense that the contamination source was there.
Only two chosen players remained in this twisted tale—one from Longguo and one from Myanmar. The Myanmar player, originally a scam syndicate boss, was brilliant at logic and deduction, never making a mistake from start to finish. Aside from Chi Mu, he was the fan-favorite contender.
Even the Longguo think tank researchers were watching his every move, hoping to find a breakthrough and gain one last clue to help Chi Mu.
In the Longguo livestream chat, a user named "Not a Hater" commented:"I'm a private detective. Based on all the info so far, I think I can piece together the truth behind the hotel. I don't get why Chi Mu is still hesitating."
"That year, I walked with my hands in my pockets—no one was a match for me! Now, watch me analyze… The middle-aged man Chi Mu met at the storage room was wearing the same white short-sleeved shirt as the cleaner he saw earlier."
"The rules say we can fully trust A-Jiu. She said her mom was hit in the head with a shovel by a man in a white short-sleeved shirt, and her mom has been missing for days—obviously killed. So, the culprit has to be that man in the storage room. He must be the male cleaner who supposedly took leave but sneaked back!"
"Besides, that man was definitely in the storage room, and Chi Mu's analysis pointed to the storage room as the contamination source. My reasoning is solid. If Chi Mu escapes now, he'll complete the SS-level mission!"
"Not a Hater"'s analysis caused a stir in the livestream chat—some agreed, others called it nonsense:
—"You walked with your hands in your pockets? Sounds like you put your hands in my pockets instead! Your analysis is pure crap!"—"I think 'Not a Hater' makes sense—well reasoned..."—"If it were that easy, the think tank researchers would've figured it out. Stop talking nonsense, watch how I, Mu Shen, dominate!"
Thunder roared outside as Chi Mu pieced together the clues. He noted the white short-sleeved shirt was the cleaners' official uniform—just like the man in the storage room wore.
A-Jiu said the man who hit her mom wore a white short-sleeved shirt—exactly matching the storage room man's outfit.
Still, Chi Mu didn't jump to conclusions. It seemed almost too convenient.
He felt the information chain was incomplete—he needed more clues.
Taking a towel, Chi Mu rode the elevator downstairs, guessing Yang Qu should be back soon.
Holding the towel, he stood at the hotel entrance waiting. Suddenly, he remembered the hallway had surveillance cameras.
He asked a male receptionist, "Hi, can I check the surveillance footage of the ninth-floor hallway? I lost something."
The receptionist nodded and let him use the monitor.
Chi Mu pulled up footage from about ten minutes ago—the moment he left his room and walked toward the storage room.
At first, he saw himself talking to the man inside the storage room, then returning to his door. He wanted to see where A-Jiu came from.
But the next moment, a chilling scene unfolded.
On the footage, Chi Mu squatted down, pulled out a handful of candies, and offered them to thin air. He was talking and even smiling—yet no one was there.
Wasn't this exactly how he spoke to A-Jiu?
So why wasn't she on the footage?!
Cold sweat broke out on Chi Mu's back. Recalling A-Jiu's bloody tears earlier and the surveillance footage, it was obvious: A-Jiu wasn't alive. She was a ghost—and only Chi Mu could see her!
—"Holy crap, that's a ghost! That little girl wasn't alive at all!"—"No way, Mu Shen's been hanging out with a ghost all along?!"
The livestream viewers were shocked too.
Chi Mu closed the footage and returned to the hotel entrance, his mind a chaotic mess.
How could A-Jiu not be alive?
He strained to recall what A-Jiu said:"Big brother… don't be afraid, A-Jiu won't hurt you… The shadow on the wall is that fat uncle…""Mom was hit on the head with a shovel by an uncle wearing a white short-sleeved shirt… A-Jiu was knocked out too…""A-Jiu hurts… A-Jiu hurts so much!"
Suddenly it clicked—he hadn't fully grasped the meaning earlier, caught up in the tension.
A shovel blow to the back of the head can cause fatal brain hemorrhage if untreated.
A-Jiu was only a five- or six-year-old child. Adults can't survive a blow like that—how could a child?
Chi Mu concluded that both A-Jiu and her mother had been murdered!
The A-Jiu he saw was most likely her ghost.
And the killer—the male cleaner!
Just as Chi Mu resolved this truth, Yang Qu rushed in through the rain outside.
"Ah, Chi Mu, the rain's pouring hard—it just started out of nowhere…"
Yang Qu was soaked through, complaining softly.
Chi Mu looked at her drenched figure; her curves were striking in the wet clothes. He swallowed nervously and murmured, "Siblings separated by a rainstorm… and here it comes now…"
—"Hey, Mu Shen, what are you thinking?!"—"Dude, this is a horror world, can you not think about weird stuff?!"
Chi Mu handed Yang Qu the towel he prepared earlier. "Here, dry your hair before you catch a cold. We'll take a hot shower soon."
Yang Qu took the towel, smiling gently. "Chi Mu, while I was gone… did you find out the truth?"
Those words stopped Chi Mu cold in his tracks...