Chapter 3: Sleep!Some people play games to pass the time, some play games to enjoy the sense of accomplishment from victory, but Han Fei played games more to relieve stress. Now, however, he felt even more stressed.Putting down the broom, Han Fei looked around. The dim yellow light overhead flickered, and the warm feeling had completely vanished.He quietly moved next to the refrigerator. The elder had only opened the top compartment of the fridge before; no one knew what was stored in the bottom compartment.A whole person couldn't possibly be crammed into a refrigerator. Could it be...? Han Fei took a deep breath and slowly opened the lower compartment of the fridge. He pulled out one refrigerated drawer after another, finding many bulging black plastic bags stuffed inside.Han Fei had seen similar scenes in horror movies, but watching them on TV and experiencing them firsthand were completely different things.Extending his fingers into the refrigerated drawer, Han Fei was very worried about seeing a human face or hair.His Adam's apple bobbed. He used his fingernail to scratch open a bag; the black plastic bag only contained some frozen fish and chicken.The R-rated scene he had imagined did not appear. Han Fei quickly closed the refrigerator before the elder returned."What are you doing?"The old, hoarse voice sounded from behind him. Han Fei felt a chill rush up his spine to the top of his head.How did the Old Woman walk without making any sound?Turning around, Han Fei grabbed the broom from the floor. Since he was a professional Actor, he quickly controlled his facial expression: "I wanted to help you clean the room. Just now, maybe because of the prolonged power outage, there was some leakage under the refrigerator. I suspect there's an issue with the fridge's cooling system."The elder's expression never changed from start to finish; she was always so kind and amiable. However, the more one looked at her face, the more one felt an inexplicable chill, as if this was the only expression she could make."Grandma, I've actually been living alone far away for a long time. Only today have I felt a trace of home's warmth here with you. Thank you very much." Han Fei naturally began cleaning: "From now on, we'll be Neighbors. If you ever need help with anything, please come find me."Regardless of whether the elder had hidden a corpse in her room, Han Fei at least acted like an innocent, straightforward, naive person.Since the elder had difficulty moving her legs and feet, Han Fei thoroughly cleaned the living room: "Please rest well, I won't disturb you anymore."After tidying the room, the mechanical synthetic voice in his mind appeared again: "Player No. 0000, please note! Your enthusiastic performance has left a good impression on Meng Shi. Meng Shi's Friendliness has increased by five points. Harmonious Neighborly relations are the first step toward a perfect life."Just as the mechanical synthetic voice appeared, the elder had somehow walked up behind Han Fei: "I originally wanted to tell you during dinner, but now you probably aren't in the mood to eat at my house. You are a good Child, and Grandma would like to be your Neighbor, but you should listen to my advice: don't be greedy for small advantages, and move out quickly. Something happened in the room you are staying in.""Something happened?""Don't ask so much. Just remember this: when you go back to sleep tonight, make sure to lock the bathroom door."The elder seemed very tired. She didn't continue talking to Han Fei and walked into the kitchen alone.Soon, strange noises came from the kitchen, followed immediately by a rich aroma of meat. Han Fei didn't dare stay any longer, and he quickly left the elder's house.His heart only settled down after he walked out the door."This game seems a little off."Han Fei certainly hadn't found a corpse in the elder's refrigerator just now, but he remembered one detail.When he first arrived at the elder's house, the elder's fuse had blown.If the fuse itself wasn't defective, a blown fuse usually indicates an excessive load.But when he cleaned earlier, he looked at every part of the kitchen and living room. The only electrical appliances in the elder's house were the lights, the television, and a refrigerator.These few appliances alone shouldn't have blown the fuse, so there was a high probability that the elder had other electrical devices."The Child's bedroom door was locked. Why would the elder lock the Child in the room? Did the Child see something? Could there be another refrigerator hidden inside the Child's room?"Thinking of this, the bad feeling in Han Fei's heart intensified. He shivered inexplicably as he gazed at the somewhat eerie stairwell.Behind those doors, someone seemed to be watching him."Why does this stairwell feel so heavy with Yin energy?"Han Fei quickly returned to his own doorway. He spent a long time trying different keys on the large bunch before finally opening the security door.Rushing back into his own house, Han Fei looked at the dilapidated and desolate living room, breathing heavily: "Am I too nervous? I'm playing a healing game, but it feels like Resident Evil."Pouring a glass of water, Han Fei paced around his room. The last words the Old Woman spoke echoed in his ears like a curse."Something happened in the room before. You must lock the bathroom door when sleeping at night..."Han Fei began scanning his surroundings again. The room was dilapidated and covered in dust. Besides that, one thing was strange: except for the bathroom, every window in the house was covered with thick, opaque curtains.He went to the window and lifted a corner of the curtain.Beneath the curtain was a window sealed shut with wooden boards. Looking out through the gaps in the boards, he saw a pitch-black city.This game world, shrouded in darkness, was enormous, stretching out beyond sight."Didn't they say there would be warm scenes and soothing music?"Han Fei pulled the curtain closed. He realized that the online reviews for this game were somewhat one-sided. Although this was supposed to be a Game of the Living World, it seemed to contain many Elements of the Underworld."Am I playing this incorrectly?"Judging solely by sound quality, visual effects, and natural interactivity, this game far surpassed any game Han Fei had played before. But how should he put it? Han Fei felt that this game was simply too realistic.Sitting on the sofa, Han Fei closed his eyes. A attribute panel and a Mission Panel appeared in his mind.After he helped the elder fix the fuse, the Mission System had activated. The voice in his mind said that completing the Newbie Mission would help him quickly understand everything about this world.Thinking of this, Han Fei opened the Mission Panel. Looking at the three Newbie Mission listed there, his expression turned slightly strange.Novice Mission One: Take a ShowerNovice Mission Two: Watch TVNovice Mission Three: SleepThe Newbie Mission in this game were "simple" to an absurd degree, without any extra explanation, just tasks common in daily life."How about I start with sleeping? I'm quite good at sleeping."Han Fei didn't choose randomly. He recalled the elder's earlier reminder to lock the bathroom door when sleeping at night. This hint was likely the key to completing the mission.Compared to choosing blindly, Han Fei felt that sleeping was the safer option."I choose Novice Mission Three—Sleep." The moment this thought arose in Han Fei's mind, the mission was selected, and the cold, mechanical synthetic voice reappeared."Player No. 0000 has accepted G-rank Novice Mission—Sleep!""Mission Description: After a busy day, you drag your weary body onto the bedroom bed.""Mission Requirement: Please turn off all lights in the room, lie down on the bedroom bed within five minutes, and regardless of what happens, you must not leave the bed for three hours.""Is it that simple?" Han Fei confirmed he hadn't missed any mission information. He got up and entered the bedroom.On the dusty double bed, a complete set of red bedding—including pillows, quilts, and sheets—was haphazardly tossed."Bright red. It looks so festive."Han Fei frowned as he made the bed, then walked to the bathroom door. Just as he was about to follow the elder's advice and lock the bathroom door, he discovered a problem.The bathroom door in this house could only be locked from the inside; it couldn't be locked from the outside at all.After thinking for a moment, Han Fei wedged the mop diagonally into the doorknob, jamming the bathroom door, and then moved the shoe cabinet to block the entrance."That should be enough, right?"To be safe, he went into the kitchen again and picked up the cleaver from the cutting board: "Is it a bit strange to sleep with a cleaver in a healing game? Forget it. While one should harbor no malice, one must always be wary of others."Seeing that the five-minute preparation time was about to expire, he finally turned off all the lights in the house and lay down on the bedroom bed, holding the cleaver.
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