Death Draw System: Infinite Revives in the Horror Dungeon

Chapter 57: Shen Yu Disappears

Shen Yu was pulled along by the plump woman toward the exit of the corridor.

Step. Step. Step.

It was worth noting that this time, almost none of the patients resisted.

Yuji wore a cold expression as he surveyed his surroundings. In the eyes of someone with rising pollution, whether it was the snake-headed, scorpion-tailed doctor or the twisted, eyeless, mouth-covered monster, he had gradually become accustomed to their horrifying appearances after seeing them before.

But this time, when he looked at the psychiatric patients, they were no longer human.

They had all become vase people.

Each stood taller than an ordinary person, their bodies shaped like giant porcelain vases. Where the lid of the vase should have been sat a distorted porcelain face with a numb expression. Their spherical heads looked as though they had been welded onto the tops of the vases, making the sight even more eerie.

Clang. Clang.

They could not speak. They only swayed their bodies mechanically, laughing with vacant expressions.

Yuji watched the scene, his eyelids twitching violently.

It’s only the fourth day, and the pollution is already this severe. What about the fifth day? The sixth day?

The longer he remained in this dungeon, the worse the pollution would become.

I have to find a way... I have to escape.

Just then, Shen Yu, who was being led away by the plump woman, walked past him.

From Yuji’s perspective, Shen Yu had become a monster with no eyes on his face, a huge mouth where one ear should have been, and a giant eyeball spinning wildly inside that mouth.

He’s... leaving too? Did that ghost nurse give him another hint? Damn it... just what is going on?

Before Yuji could think further, Shen Yu mocked him.

"What’s wrong? Even with the Soul Possession ability, you’re still afraid of being discharged? They told me the bus can take us to another world. If you don’t leave today, do you really think you’ll survive tomorrow’s pollution?"

Yuji stared at Shen Yu, his heart hardening.

That’s right. With Soul Possession, Shen Yu is still just my puppet. No matter what happens, he’ll always go first. There’s nothing to fear.

A cold smile spread across his face.

"Scum. I don’t know why you’re provoking me, but this time... you’re definitely going to die."

As soon as his smile faded, a thin old man slowly approached Yuji.

The old man had a mouth where one ear should have been. He opened a mouthful of yellow teeth and asked sharply,

"Why aren’t you smiling? Why won’t you smile?"

"Hehe... I want to be discharged too."

"Oh? You want to be discharged too?"

Hearing Yuji’s answer, the yellow-toothed old man’s mouth twisted into an excited grin.

He grabbed Yuji’s arm and hurried toward the corridor exit.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Thunder roared overhead.

Outside Qing Shan Mental Hospital, a bus had quietly arrived at the entrance.

Lightning twisted across the dark sky as heavy rain poured down. One after another, the patients quickly boarded the bus.

Moments later, the bus pulled away from Qing Shan Mental Hospital and disappeared into the mist-covered mountain road.

Inside the first-floor lobby, the doctors and nurses watched the departing bus with cold, expressionless faces.

"Fools."

"No one has ever truly left Qing Shan Mental Hospital."

"The more desperately they want to leave..."

"...the worse their condition becomes."

"These patients need to be treated personally by the professors."

Sss...

The bus traveled through the misty mountain roads. Inside, the passengers remained silent.

Shen Yu sat by the window, squeezed against a plump woman. He quietly stared into the thick fog outside while tightening his grip on the Metal of Freedom in his hand.

Behind him, Yuji’s icy gaze remained fixed on Shen Yu.

If anything happens... if anything happens, I’ll summon your soul first. You’re my test puppet, Shen Yu. This time, no one can protect you. There’s no escape.

Sss...

As the bus emerged from the end of the fog, a familiar massive building appeared at the foot of the mountain.

Qing Shan Mental Hospital.

Boom!

A bolt of white lightning twisted across the sky, bathing the earth in a ghostly white glow.

The hospital sign hanging above the iron gate flickered with an eerie crimson light.

Standing at the entrance was a hunched figure, allowing the rain to drench his body. One hand held a custom headband, while the other gripped an electric baton.

His thinning, shoulder-length hair clung to his face in the rain. Beneath his fogged glasses, his eyes were cold and venomous.

"So... there are still patients with severe symptoms."

Professor Yang muttered to himself before raising a hand to signal the bus to stop.

Screech!

The bus slowly came to a halt.

Yuji’s eyes widened in disbelief.

What?

How...?

Why did we end up back at the hospital?

Who is that man?

"Shen Yu... Shen Yu..."

I’ll summon his soul!

A powerful sense of dread surged through Yuji. He instinctively activated his Soul Possession ability.

But in the brief instant he looked away...

When he turned back toward the front seat...

The plump-faced strange woman was still sitting there.

Yet Shen Yu, who had been leaning against the window only moments earlier...

...had completely disappeared.

How?

How is that possible?

Yuji froze.

Meanwhile, in his first-person livestream, the bullet comments exploded.

"This dungeon is insane!"

"It’s over! Yuji’s going to possess Shen Yu again!"

"Wait... no!"

"Where’s Shen Yu?"

"When did he disappear?"

"I think Shen Yu outplayed Yuji this time!"

"Come watch Shen Yu’s livestream! He’s completely fine!"

"He’s still sitting on the bus, but nobody else is around him. It’s like he entered another world by himself!"

"Damn! Is this the effect of the item Shen Yu obtained?"

"Yes! That item locks his pollution level!"

"Shen Yu’s pollution has been fixed at zero. Even if the bus enters a high-pollution world, he can’t perceive those horrors anymore!"

"No wonder he suddenly dared to confront Yuji!"

"What a counterattack! "

"Without Shen Yu, what can Yuji even do now?"

The livestream chat descended into complete chaos.

Click.

At the same time, the bus doors slowly opened.

Sss...

Professor Yang, soaked by the rain, stepped onto the bus with his crackling electric baton.

"Ladies and gentlemen..."

"I’ve told you before."

"Spoiling children is the fuse that leads to their downfall."

"The more desperately they want to leave..."

"...the more rebellious they become."

"That is unacceptable."

"They still require treatment."

"More thorough..."

"...more brutal treatment."

Boom!

As his words fell, a deafening clap of thunder exploded above the bus.

The strange passengers immediately pinned the porcelain vase people to the floor.

Crack! Crack!

Visible fractures rapidly spread across the bodies of the vase people as though they were about to shatter.