Global Collapse-Chapter 479 - 454: Oligo_1

Facts proved that children are creatures easily woken once they fall asleep.

Gu Mian had barely moved the saw to the Nine-headed baby’s neck when the green, ghostly little creature suddenly opened its eyes. It was awake.

Gu Mian wasn’t sure how a normal baby would react to seeing a saw above its head upon waking, but this child, upon seeing the chainsaw overhead, immediately jumped off the bed and ran.

Its speed was so fast it seemed as if it had anticipated its fate today; judging by its practiced maneuvers, it must have rehearsed this several times.

Gu Mian watched as the green creature sprang from his bed, darted towards the window, burst through the closed curtains, and then shattered the glass window.

Gu Mian first heard the sound of shattering glass, followed by the thud of a heavy object hitting the ground.

Then, there seemed to be a faint cry from downstairs.

By the time he reached the window, the green child was nowhere to be seen.

Gu Mian peered down from the window, his gaze fixed. "The debtor has run off."

Fatty had joined Gu Mian. "That’s the first time I’ve ever seen a creditor run faster than the debtor... Speaking of which, Doctor, did you hear any other sounds just now?"

Gu Mian nodded. "Yes, someone shouted from downstairs."

But now, there wasn’t a soul in sight below.

Throwing objects from a height wasn’t exactly legal, so scaring passersby was understandable.

However, their location was quite remote, and players didn’t usually linger in desolate places at night. Gu Mian figured the sound might have been directed at them.

Perhaps someone secretly spying on them had been scared half to death by the Nine-headed baby bursting out the window.

Although the Nine-headed baby was a child, it was still a ghost. The person downstairs probably hadn’t expected someone to throw a ghost out of a window.

Fatty also realized something was amiss. "Even if we’re not sure how we attracted their attention, shouldn’t we do something? It’ll be troublesome if they charge in here in the middle of the night to rob us."

Gu Mian glanced at Fatty. "Would you rob someone who throws ghosts out of a window in the middle of the night?"

Fatty seriously considered Gu Mian’s question, then silently shook his head.

Besides, they still had two ghosts in their room, helpful for guarding the house.

Why did these two ghosts ignore the Nine-headed baby? Gu Mian wondered. Could it be because it was green and therefore looked harmless and non-toxic?

Gu Mian stroked his chin. "We can’t stay here too long. At the latest, we can leave after the college entrance exam event finishes tomorrow. Let’s stay one more night."

However, the hole smashed by the Nine-headed baby was quite large, and a draft was whistling in.

Gu Mian considered for a moment, then moved Xiao Hong, who was fiddling with her phone, to sit on the windowsill, perfectly blocking the hole.

"Xiao Hong is so kind," Gu Mian praised, pulling the blanket over himself and drifting off to sleep.

He hadn’t slept long, however, before several loud car horns woke him. These days, few people could afford cars, so horn blasts were rare.

In his drowsy state, Gu Mian initially thought it was the horn of their Spirit Car, but he soon realized something was off.

This horn sounded different from their Spirit Car.

Gu Mian threw off the covers and got out of bed. Xiao Hong was still sitting on the windowsill nearby, looking at him expectantly.

He went to the window and looked down. Below, he saw a bright, orange-yellow... bus?

Gu Mian quickly recognized it.

Is that a school bus? He rubbed his eyes and stared down again. Indeed, it was a school bus.

Immediately, a loudspeaker on the school bus’s roof blared out an announcement: "Players with examination permits, please board immediately. The school bus will transport players to the examination site. Please note: this school bus is one-way only. Please make your preparations in advance..."

So, it’s a one-way trip, no return journey, Gu Mian thought. Surprisingly, we’re not being teleported directly into the event this time.

The group didn’t have much to prepare. Within minutes, they boarded the bright orange-yellow school bus. During this time, Fatty went to store their Spirit Car.

Residents in the surrounding area seemed unable to hear the school bus’s loudspeaker. The announcement had been blaring for a long time, yet not a single person peeked out to see what the commotion was about.

Notably, the bus was empty; it seemed they were the first passengers.

The driver looked like an ordinary NPC. He glanced at Gu Mian’s group as they boarded. Did he just stiffen when he saw me? Gu Mian had the distinct impression the driver flinched slightly upon seeing him.

Gu Mian and his companions quickly settled into seats in the rearmost corner. The driver eyed them silently for a few moments, then suddenly produced a sign—"NO FIGHTING"—and placed it at the front of the bus.

Gu Mian touched his face. "Do I look like I enjoy fighting?"

Fatty leaned over. "Doctor, I think he means to prohibit the unilateral assault of the driver."

Gu Mian: "..."

Xiao Hong had also slipped aboard with them. The driver hadn’t given the plain-looking female ghost any trouble.

As for Big Brother, who was originally a CD, Gu Mian had already flattened him and tucked him into his pocket.

The school bus moved swiftly, effortlessly phasing through various obstacles while maintaining a perfectly straight course.

Fatty sat by the window, but he couldn’t see even a shadow of the scenery outside. He could only feel the bus constantly speeding forward, with no idea how it was bypassing obstacles.

To avoid scaring other passengers, Gu Mian had disguised Xiao Hong before they boarded. He put the black eyeglass frames he’d worn during the Dragon Boat event on her and used a surgical mask to cover the lower half of her face.

With her face partially concealed, she looked passable, but Xiao Hong didn’t have a player interface.

If other players later tried to open the player interface of this somewhat plain-looking woman, they would be surprised to discover she didn’t have one.

"I guess the school bus is picking up people according to rank," Chu Changge, beside him, pushed up his glasses. "That’s why we’re the first to board. This bus looks like it can only hold about thirty-odd people. There should be quite a few other school buses."

So this bus is for the top thirty players, Gu Mian mused.

As they spoke, the bus stopped. Gu Mian looked out the window. The scenery had completely changed; they were now parked in front of an apartment building easily twenty stories high.

The bus’s rooftop loudspeaker began repeating the message Gu Mian had heard earlier, something about a "one-way trip" with "no return."

That idiom is definitely not a good omen, Gu Mian thought. It sounds so unlucky. But after a moment’s reflection, he relaxed. After all, my life has never been filled with good omens anyway.

This time, only one player boarded: a taciturn young man. As soon as he got on, he glanced towards Gu Mian’s group in the back corner, then immediately looked away and sat in the front row, as far from them as possible.

"That’s the second-ranked player," Fatty murmured. "Only one person?"

"Perhaps his teammates gave up on the college entrance exam event," Gu Mian stroked his chin. "Participating in two consecutive events with a real risk of death would naturally be daunting for anyone."