"What's going on!" Pan Yue also realized the seriousness of the situation. He was right beside her just a moment ago but had disappeared in the blink of an eye. The light flickered, alternating between dark and bright for only a few seconds. It was impossible for someone standing in the middle of the staircase to have run out of their line of sight in that time.

Keke looked in the direction where Chu Changge had disappeared, a flashlight in one hand, while her other hand gripped Pan Yue's arm. "I'm scared too..."

"Right, did he just go downstairs?" Pan Yue suddenly seemed to remember something.

Yes, Chu Changge had indeed gone downstairs. Keke was somewhat dazed. Although he had only descended a few steps, it was still a move downward. He knew the dangers of going down, yet he still chose to do so.

Keke didn't think this was a momentary oversight. An inexperienced ordinary person might make such a mistake, but Chu Changge, who had experienced many instances, how could he make such a basic error? So...did he do it on purpose? Did he know what would happen after he disappeared? Did he discover something, thinking that disappearing was better than staying here?

At this thought, Keke suddenly looked at Pan Yue. Pan Yue still looked terrified, and in the darkness, her face was inexplicably chilling.

Death was even more terrifying than disappearing.

"What's wrong? Why that look?" Pan Yue turned her face, which was stark white in the flashlight's beam.

"Nothing," Keke shook her head quickly. After a few seconds, she spoke again. "It was like this the last few times too. There were five of us who came here. They all disappeared one after another, and now I'm the only one left."

Pan Yue's eyes widened slightly, her pupils reflecting the flashlight beam, looking somewhat eerie in the darkness. "So... these strange things are really happening because of that game we played a few days ago?"

It was because of the three ghosts in that game.

Keke watched Pan Yue's expression, nodded slightly, her own face filled with fear. "I guess the game didn't stop due to an accident. Instead... it turned into a more terrifying game. We've become real players. You remember the rules of the game, right?"

Pan Yue opened her mouth. "Three ghosts, nine civilians. The ghosts kill at night; the civilians vote during the day."

Keke, holding the flashlight, gently stepped down another stair. "Yes, everything will follow the rules of the game."

"I guess the three players who impersonated the ghosts really want to kill us. Between 8 p.m. and 3 a.m. is the ghosts' killing time. At 3 o'clock, we start voting. It's now precisely the ghosts' killing time, which is why we're encountering these bizarre incidents..."

As she spoke, she quickened her pace, rapidly descending several more stairs.

But just as Keke was lightly stepping down the stairs, an icy hand suddenly grabbed her wrist. She stopped abruptly.

Immediately after, Pan Yue's voice came from behind her, "Didn't you say that going downstairs might cause unexplained disappearances?"

The surroundings suddenly fell into an eerie silence.

Several seconds later, Keke's fearful voice echoed in the dim staircase, "Ah...yes. I was just so scared that I forgot..." As she spoke, she turned to look at Pan Yue. Pan Yue still looked nervous, appearing to be an ordinary civilian.

"So, should we go upstairs?" Pan Yue asked, seeming a bit hesitant. She apparently hadn't noticed Keke's strange attitude.

The best choice right now would be to leave this building by heading downward. But as they had just witnessed, someone could disappear just by stepping down a few stairs.

Keke nodded. "Right now, the only option is to go up, but... I'm too scared to lead."

Pan Yue paused for a moment. "Then I'll go first. You hold onto me from behind." Pan Yue's expression wasn't confident either; she was clearly somewhat afraid of leading the way.

Keke nodded silently and tightly grabbed the hem of Pan Yue's clothes. The two of them started moving, talking as they went.

Meanwhile, Keke kept an eye on Pan Yue in front. But just as she surreptitiously glanced at her, Pan Yue suddenly turned around, her eyes filled with an eerie light.

"What...what are you doing?" Keke asked, seemingly startled, looking at Pan Yue who had suddenly turned.

"Oh right, I just remembered something," Pan Yue said from the front, now looking down at Keke. "You said we're encountering all these peculiar incidents because of the players impersonating ghosts, so what is your role?"

In the oppressive darkness of the stairwell, the atmosphere turned exceedingly strange.

Keke looked scared. She raised her head and looked at Pan Yue. "Of course, I'm a civilian. What about you?"

Pan Yue gave Keke a suspicious look. "Of course, I'm a civilian too."

Both of them seemed to distrust each other, but they had no choice but to proceed upwards together.

Meanwhile, Gu Mian was idly swinging his flashlight around. He had proposed splitting up just before, and it had to be said, dividing the group in a Mysterious Dungeon was always a big mistake. He had lost complete contact with the main group just minutes after their separation, although the so-called "main group" consisted of only Chu Changge and Keke.

Earlier, when Gu Mian was descending the fourth flight of stairs, he suddenly noticed a change in his surroundings. When he tried to call out to those above, he received no response. Looking up, he couldn't see the beam from their flashlight either. Gu Mian was certain that he had been transferred.

Even though he was transferred, the current environment was still very much like the previous one.