Global Collapse-Chapter 489 - 460: Gu Mian and his beloved doll_2

[A walkie-talkie (master) that can only be used once a day]

[Introduction: A pair of tattered-looking black walkie-talkies, which seem to be running out of battery]

[Function: The master walkie-talkie can call the subordinate walkie-talkie for a conversation once a day, each conversation lasting up to thirty minutes]

There were two walkie-talkies in total; the other, subordinate one, was in Xue Ning's hands.

Previously, when Luo Tianqing had failed to rendezvous with Xue Ning and Shiba, she had considered using the walkie-talkie. However, on careful thought, she deemed it a waste.

Acting together wouldn't yield as many clues as splitting up. Luo Tianqing wanted to explore the school for a while first before regrouping.

This wasn't their first time entering an instance; they weren't at the point where they wouldn't dare act alone.

"It's already half past eight," Luo Tianqing checked the time. "The examination has been underway for an hour. Xue Ning should have found some useful clues by now. It's time to call her."

As Luo Tianqing was thinking this, she pressed the call button on the walkie-talkie. "Xue Ning, are you there?"

A disadvantage of walkie-talkies is that when you call someone, they might be hiding from pursuers. Your voice could potentially reveal their hiding place, especially in a horror instance.

She was also a bit worried this might happen. Fortunately, not long after she pressed the call button, a reply came through.

"I'm here. I'm with Shiba, near the Performance Hall by the north gate."

The Performance Hall, as its name suggested, was a place for singing and dancing, where events like freshman welcoming parties were usually held.

"The Performance Hall?" Luo Tianqing instinctively looked at her fill-in-the-blank question.

[A human-sized doll is seated in seat number 4, in the 6th row of section F in the Performance Hall]

She hesitated, then asked, "Can you do me a favor?"

A voice crackling with static came from the other end, "What?"

"Could you check if there's a human-sized doll near you or in the Performance Hall, and then place it in seat number 4, in the 6th row of section F..."

Luo Tianqing felt a little guilty as she spoke. She knew it was very inconsiderate to ask someone else to do such a dangerous thing during the activity. It was a thankless task; to put it bluntly, only an idiot would help her with her question.

But she had looked at the school map. Her current location, Building No. 1, was diagonally opposite the Performance Hall. It would take about twenty minutes to run there, not to mention she might encounter terrifying invigilators along the way.

Besides, she didn't know if it would count as her answering the question if someone else 'filled in' the doll for her. But what if it did? It was worth a try.

The other side fell silent, as expected.

Just as Luo Tianqing, embarrassed, was about to retract her words, Xue Ning's voice came through the walkie-talkie, "No problem. But if I do it, it might not count as your answer."

Luo Tianqing hurriedly responded, "That's alright. Give it a try, and if it doesn't work, I'll go myself."

The voice continued from the walkie-talkie, "By the way, where are you right now?"

"Building No. 1..."

Before Luo Tianqing could finish, Xue Ning's voice came again from the walkie-talkie, "Building No. 1? What a coincidence!"

Coincidence? Luo Tianqing paused.

Xue Ning continued, "My fill-in-the-blank question is in Building No. 1."

"What is it? Let me see if I can do it for you. That could save some time."

"The question is 'The curtains in Room 1433 are closed.' I think it means I have to draw the curtains in that dorm room..."

Luo Tianqing was currently on the fourth floor of Building No. 1. Even though each floor of the dormitory building was huge, she quickly found Room 1433.

The doors to the dorm rooms were all open. Luo Tianqing stood at the entrance for a moment, then mustered her courage and stepped into the dark room before her.

It went quite smoothly. No ghosts jumped out, nor did any invigilators suddenly appear behind her.

Luo Tianqing successfully drew the curtains in Room 1433. Then, she saw that the fill-in-the-blank question on her exam paper now had an answer.

You really can answer fill-in-the-blanks for others!

Xue Ning's voice came from the walkie-talkie, "I see my fill-in-the-blank question has an answer now. We also just placed your doll. Do you have an answer on your side?"

"Yes," Luo Tianqing replied excitedly. "Let's meet up soon. I'm heading downstairs. Keep in touch."

"Okay."

Luo Tianqing quickly left the dorm room, flashlight in hand, and headed towards the stairs.

She found this activity easier than she had imagined. Although answering the questions was a bit scary, it had been frightening but not truly dangerous. Plus, you could even help others with their fill-in-the-blanks!

Lost in thought, she walked forward, her flashlight beam cutting through the corridor flanked by dormitories.

As she passed an open dormitory door, she casually glanced inside.

"What's that?" Luo Tianqing stopped abruptly. She had glimpsed an uncurtained window, and through it, she saw the building opposite.

Opposite was Dormitory No. 4.

In Dormitory No. 4, she saw a window directly facing hers. It seemed like someone was behind it, their face turned towards her.

It was too dark outside for Luo Tianqing to see clearly, only a vague human silhouette. Though blurry, it was definitely a human shape... seemingly watching her through the window.

Seeing this figure, she shivered and quickened her pace.

Better get out of here quickly...

Luo Tianqing hurried away from that dormitory door and ran towards the stairs. She ran for a good half-minute before glancing into an adjacent dormitory. One look scared her out of her wits. Through that dorm's window, the thing in the opposite building was *still* directly facing her!

It was following her!

Luo Tianqing desperately ran forward again. After covering a considerable distance, she couldn't resist looking out a window once more.

That thing was gone... The human figure had vanished, as if it had just been her imagination. Luo Tianqing stared at the opposite window for a long while before finally sighing in relief. But the sigh hadn't fully escaped her lips before it was choked back.

She saw someone in a white lab coat suddenly appear out of nowhere behind the opposite window. They were holding a flashlight and rummaging around the windowsill, as if looking for something.

Although their sudden appearance startled her, their actions clearly indicated they were a player. Luo Tianqing patted her chest, relieved. "As long as it's not that thing from before... But why did it suddenly disappear?"

At that moment, Gu Mian, who was on the fourth floor searching room by room for a dead fish, suddenly felt like someone was watching him. He looked up.

Across, in the opposite dormitory building, a cute girl holding a flashlight was looking at him. Perhaps because he'd seen Xiao Hong so much, Gu Mian now found every girl quite cute. He waved at her, "Hello there."

The cute girl was clearly surprised by his ability to find amusement in adversity, but she eventually waved back out of respect.

Gu Mian had searched almost the entire floor but hadn't found any dead fish, though he'd found plenty of little dresses. This was no help at all for his fill-in-the-blank question.

He turned around with his flashlight. "I sincerely hope the fifth floor isn't just full of little dresses..."

Luo Tianqing watched the person in the opposite building leave with their flashlight, thoughtfully closing the dormitory door behind them.

And then she suddenly realized a horrifying fact—it hadn't left.

Just as that person turned to leave, Luo Tianqing saw the terrifying human figure that had been obscured by them.

It was still following her!

Run!

That seemed to be the only thought left in Luo Tianqing's mind. She ran with all her might, but no matter how fast she ran, she couldn't reach the end of the corridor.

No stairs! No exit! Only open dormitory doors.

Whenever she glanced out a window, she could see that figure standing behind a window in the opposite building...staring fixedly at her.

After running for who knows how long, she glanced at a nearby room number and saw a familiar one—'1433'.

The curtains she had closed were still drawn tight. Luo Tianqing suddenly remembered that all the strange occurrences had started after she closed the curtains in this very room.

Trembling, she moved through the darkness into the dormitory, step by step, towards the closed curtains.

"If... if this is the cause... then I'll open it again..."

Muttering to herself, her hands trembling, she pulled the curtain before her open a crack. Through the gap, she saw a pair of eyes staring intently back at her.

"Past the statue, turn left... Mmm, see Dormitory No. 3? Go along Dormitory No. 3, past the pavilion..."

Xue Ning clutched the walkie-talkie in one hand while pulling Shiba along with the other. "We were supposed to meet at the statue. Tianqing seems to have run into some trouble, so now we have to go to Dormitory No. 1 to meet her."

Shiba followed closely behind Xue Ning. "It's okay."

"After passing the pavilion, look to your left..."

"We're here!" Xue Ning said, looking to her left.

One glance was enough to make her scalp prickle. Standing to the left of the pavilion was the doll, holding a walkie-talkie and grinning eerily at them.