"Floor Six is even stronger than Floor Five," Rojo muttered grimly. "This dungeon’s death rate is insane. The final clear condition can’t be brute force. We need to understand the whole story first."
The others nodded.
At this point, everyone had already realized something terrifying.
Shen Yu had died too many times.
Far too many.
Even Rookie Juan, who had spent most of the dungeon trying to figure Shen Yu out, was beginning to doubt his own sanity.
How many times has this guy died now?
The number had become absurd.
Explosions.
Decapitations.
Crushed by elevators.
Ripped apart by ghosts.
Stabbed.
Blown to pieces.
Every time Shen Yu came back.
Every.
Single.
Time.
Whatever special items he was using were bound to be used up completely. They need to finish this dungeon fast.
Hidden somewhere within the Ghost Realm, Lily, the Ghost Bride, stared through a blood-red mirror.
Her pale face twitched.
The usual satisfaction she felt after killing players had long disappeared.
Now there was only exhaustion.
And growing disbelief.
"Fifty times..."
She clenched her fists.
"I’ve killed him at least fifty times in this dungeon alone."
The mirror replayed Shen Yu’s deaths one after another.
Head crushed.
Body torn apart.
Heart pierced.
Neck snapped.
Revival.
Revival.
Revival.
Revival.
Her eye twitched again.
"Adding the previous two dungeons..."
She counted silently.
"...around eighty deaths."
The number made even her feel ridiculous.
Beside her, several ghostly maidens exchanged uneasy glances.
One finally whispered,
"Sister... maybe he’s really immortal?"
"No."
Lily immediately rejected the idea.
Her voice was firm.
"My sister told me his revival ability isn’t infinite."
Her crimson eyes narrowed.
"There must be a limit."
The other ghost hesitated.
"How many?"
"One hundred."
Lily answered confidently.
"No revival skill can be truly endless."
A cruel smile finally appeared on her face.
"If he’s already near eighty..."
She slowly licked her lips.
"Then I’m close."
Very close.
Meanwhile.
Back in the dungeon.
The players were discussing their next move.
"Going back is pointless," Rojo said.
"Even if we change the past, we’re outsiders. We won’t get any rewards."
"I’m not doing it for rewards."
Everyone turned.
The speaker was Shiao.
His expression was unusually serious.
"I want to go back."
He lowered his head.
"Back to the night my father beat my mother."
Silence fell.
"I was too young."
His voice trembled slightly.
"I hid behind a door and cried."
"I watched."
"I did nothing."
His fists tightened.
"This time..."
His eyes became firm.
"I want to stop him."
For a moment, nobody spoke.
Even Shen Yu looked at him differently.
Another player stepped forward.
"I’ll go to the second floor."
Everyone looked at him.
"If Akai and Xiaoya never get together..."
He exhaled slowly.
"Then she won’t get pregnant."
"Akai won’t borrow money from loan sharks."
"The tragedy never begins."
"I’ll go with Brother Shen."
The timid Shiau suddenly raised his hand.
Everyone stared.
"With me?"
Shen Yu raised an eyebrow.
"Following me is probably the most dangerous option."
"Maybe."
Shiau scratched his head nervously.
"But you’ve saved us too many times."
His voice became serious.
"I trust you."
Nearby, the mute diviner silently nodded.
Then he pointed at Shen Yu.
"I trust my hexagram."
The group split up.
Everyone chose their own path.
Soon only three people remained.
Shen Yu.
Shiau.
The mute diviner.
The diviner stared at Shen Yu for a long moment.
Then he finally spoke.
"I performed a divination before we separated."
"Oh?"
Shen Yu looked interested.
"What did you see?"
The diviner’s eyes were complicated.
"The original hexagram was Danger."
"The transformed hexagram was Thunder."
"Movement."
"Change."
"A turning point."
He pointed directly at Shen Yu.
"The only turning point in this dungeon is you."
Shiau blinked.
The diviner continued.
"I saw you torn apart by monsters."
"Over and over."
"Yet somehow..."
His gaze sharpened.
"You always survived."
Shen Yu smiled.
"Luck."
The diviner snorted.
Neither of them believed that.
Soon they arrived at the first floor.
The ruined hallway stretched before them.
Dust filled the air.
The atmosphere felt wrong.
Very wrong.
Shen Yu narrowed his eyes.
"Something’s here."
The diviner nodded immediately.
"The aura is dangerous."
Meanwhile Shen Yu’s thoughts wandered elsewhere.
fifty deaths.
Only fifty more to reach a hundred.
The challenge reward was too tempting.
Five hundred Nether Tickets.
And who knew what hidden rewards would appear afterward?
He rubbed his chin.
Need a plan.
Need Lily to kill me willingly.
As if hearing his thoughts, a cold voice echoed from behind.
"Human."
A familiar figure emerged from the darkness.
The Ghost Bride.
Lily.
Her wedding dress dragged across the floor.
Blood dripped from her fingertips.
Her expression was ice cold.
Shen Yu grinned.
"There you are."
Lily’s eye twitched.
That smile again.
She hated that smile.
"You know," Shen Yu said casually, "your reputation is overrated."
Silence.
Shiau slowly backed away.
The diviner covered his face.
Here we go again.
Lily’s smile disappeared.
"What?"
Shen Yu continued.
"Average looks."
Vein.
"Average skills."
Another vein.
"Average kills."
Crack.
The floor beneath Lily shattered.
Shen Yu folded his arms.
"Oh, and your temper is terrible."
Lily’s hair began floating.
"Like a firecracker."
The air temperature plummeted.
"And honestly?"
He leaned closer.
"You cry too much."
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Then—
BOOM!!
Ghost energy exploded.
The entire corridor shook violently.
Shiau almost screamed.
The diviner turned away.
He couldn’t bear to watch.
Lily pointed at Shen Yu.
Her finger trembled with rage.
"YOU."
Shen Yu smiled.
"See? Crybaby."
The next few minutes became a one-sided massacre.
A ghost wall trapped Shen Yu.
His limbs exploded.
His body was torn apart.
His head flew across the corridor.
Again.
And again.
And again.
Death Count: 60
Death Count: 61
Death Count: 62
Lily laughed coldly.
"Still smiling?"
Death Count: 67
Death Count: 78
Death Count: 79
Shen Yu reappeared.
Covered in blood.
Grinning.
"One more."
Lily suddenly felt uneasy.
Very uneasy.
Death Count:80
Shen Yu nearly laughed out loud.
Lily, however, stared in disbelief.
"No."
She killed him again.
Death Count: 81
Again.
Death Count: 85
Again.
Death Count: 86
Again.
Death Count: 90
Lily’s expression gradually changed.
From anger.
To confusion.
From confusion.
To horror.
"Why..."
She whispered.
"Why are you still not affected even if you are drawing near your death?"
The other ghosts watching through the mirror had gone silent.
One finally muttered,
"Sister..."
"Is his limit really a hundred?"
Lily’s confidence was gone.
For the first time, uncertainty entered her eyes.
Meanwhile Shen Yu stretched lazily after another resurrection.
His system quietly displayed:
Revives Remaining: 999+
Shen Yu smiled.
A very bright smile.
"Keep going."
"You’re doing great."
Lily’s eyes widened in disbelief.
"You can only revive a hundred times," she said through gritted teeth. "That has to be your limit."
Another death.
Another resurrection.
Another grin.
Shen Yu casually dusted off his shoulders as if he had merely tripped over a stone.
A system notification flashed before his eyes.
Death Count: 107
His smile widened.
"Still going?"
Lily froze.
The surrounding ghosts froze as well.
For the first time since entering the dungeon, genuine fear appeared on their faces.
One of the ghost maidens trembled.
"Oh no..."
Her voice shook.
"This human can’t die."
Another ghost stared at Shen Yu as though he were some ancient monster.
"If this keeps going, he’ll destroy the entire Hundred Ghost Realm."
"Lady Martha!"
The frightened ghost turned toward the elegant woman standing behind them.
"Think of something!"
"Shut up."
Lily’s cold voice instantly silenced everyone.
The ghost general’s wife crossed her arms and stared at Shen Yu thoughtfully.
Unlike Lily, she wasn’t angry.
She was curious.
Very curious.
"What are you doing?" Lily demanded.
Martha smirked.
"Just preparing a corpse."
Everyone blinked.
"A corpse?"
Martha nodded.
"A hidden Easter egg."
Her eyes drifted toward the deepest part of the dungeon.
"A homecoming gift."
Meanwhile...
Shen Yu stretched lazily.
His bones cracked.
His expression looked utterly relaxed despite having died more than a hundred times.
"One lesson from life is enough," he muttered.
"Words don’t change people."
His gaze moved toward the final floor.
"She has to see it herself."
The others exchanged confused looks.
"What are you talking about?"
"Nothing."
Shen Yu waved them off.
"Let’s move."
The ghost maze had wasted enough time already.
"Floor Four."
His eyes sharpened.
"Time to finish this dungeon."
A few minutes later...
The group stood outside a familiar apartment.
The atmosphere was suffocating.
Dark.
Heavy.
The kind of place where tragedy had long ago taken root.
Shiau swallowed nervously.
"We’re really doing this?"
"Just walking in?"