Chapter 96: Death Class 7 (Part 20)

“*Ahem,* it’s nothing.” Su Jin dropped the subject. But inwardly, she couldn’t help but complain. Did they really not know why?

“As for the giant mummy, I still have no leads,” Xiao Muyu admitted. “But I can tell it plays a significant role in this instance. We can only keep observing for now.”

The system notification sounded once she finished speaking.

“Instance No. 004: ‘Death Class 7’—Main Storyline Progress: 75%. Please continue to piece all the details and evidence together.”

“We’re already at 75%?” Su Jin perked up. “So everything we just saw was real, and our deductions should be correct. The only thing left now is to figure out the exact process of what went down.”

Shen Qingqiu’s face didn’t carry the same excitement. The sky would soon darken, and this night was bound to be dangerous. She had no preparations whatsoever for what might happen.

But then she thought of that drawing. “I think there’s another interpretation regarding the painting of Sisyphus. He was punished for deceiving Death. Could Liu Ya’s drawing of Sisyphus be a reflection of that? No matter how much pain she’s in, Lin Xue is undeniably dead. But to Liu Ya, isn’t Lin Xue still in this world? Isn’t that the same as never having died at all?”

Xiao Muyu’s head snapped up, her eyes glinting.

“Cycle and punishment,” she murmured. “A cycle alone isn’t enough. It has to be an endless loop of suffering and toil. Those fire alerts that constantly appear at intervals… Maybe they aren’t the work of ghosts but the victim reliving her death—a never-ending agony!”

A bulb lit up in Zuo Tiantian’s mind, and she hurried to interject. “Yes, yes! I remember. Whether it’s completing quests or storylines, the vengeful or evil spirits in every instance either let go of their hatred and disappear, or they are sent to rest. So, this time, we must find a reason to convince them to let go of their hatred. Our instance has two tasks: survive and uncover the story. Simply understanding the story won’t be enough to survive. We must end the curse. Am I right, Leader Xiao?”

Zuo Tiantian was usually soft-spoken, but at certain moments, her courage and sharp thinking would come out in full force.

“Yes,” agreed Su Jin. “But with how malicious those people are, the girls won’t forgive them. And honestly, they don’t deserve forgiveness. So, if we want them to let go of their hatred, we can only start with them. What you just said makes perfect sense. If it’s like that, we know how to clear the instance. Tiantian, your ‘Shining Moments’ title is well-earned.”

She couldn’t resist ending it with a tease.

Zuo Tiantian felt a bit embarrassed. She had almost forgotten about her title and wasn’t even sure what it could be good for.

After that thought, she asked, “Leader Xiao, do I need to activate my title?”

Xiao Muyu considered it and shook her head. “Qingqiu and I activated our titles for this instance because they were so closely tied to our assigned roles. Besides, we’ve already used two titles, and yours might have an unexpected effect. We can save it for when it might come in handy.”

While speaking, she noticed Shen Qingqiu’s gaze brightening slightly, fixed on her without blinking. After Zuo Tiantian indicated she understood, Shen Qingqiu’s lips inexplicably curved. Finally, as if unable to resist, she raised a hand to cover her mouth, then casually turned away, smiling.

Xiao Muyu’s gaze, as usual, caught her expression. She wasn’t about to miss that little gleam of surprise and joy. After a brief reflection, Xiao Muyu realized what she had done and pursed her lips, exasperated. She just didn’t call her by her full name. Was that reaction necessary?

Two accidents occurred at Yuanning High School today. The police had obtained preliminary results on Zhang Zhu’s case. Other than traces from the victim himself, all they found at the scene were bloodstains. However, the forensic test results revealed a match between the blood found at the scene and that of Luo Zihao, who had committed suicide. The discovery scared the forensic investigator out of his wits.

Zhang Zhu’s bizarre posture and inexplicable movements had already unsettled him earlier that day. And with the blood comparison results, his hair stood on end. Luo Zihao’s body was in a funeral parlor. How could his blood be in Zhang Zhu’s room?

The surveillance footage in the funeral parlor showed nothing unusual and no one removing Luo Zihao’s body. However, the police were aware of Class 7’s curse, and almost the entire town had accepted the matter, so no one delved deeper into it. The police had officially ruled Zhang Zhu’s death as suicide.

Chen Kaijie got a clear picture of the situation upon receiving the news. The department had already hinted that they would classify the case as a suicide as long as the family didn’t object. Zhang Zhu’s parents came to the school to collect their son’s belongings in a daze. They didn’t say anything and just left, as if they had already accepted their fate.

Using the frequent accidents at Yuanning High School as an excuse, Chen Kaijie applied to be on a stakeout in the area. However, colleagues at the station who were in the know urged him to drop it.

After sending them off, Chen Kaijie let out a slow breath.

“You’re not going back? Where will you stay tonight?” Su Jin asked with concern after hearing the news. The school dorms weren’t safe, and staying outside was even more iffy.

“The boys’ dorm has a vacancy. I spoke to the principal. He agreed to let me stay there tonight.” There was a hint of guilt in Chen Kaijie’s voice. “My role often prevents me from working alongside you girls. When something happens, all I can do is wait. I’m sorry.”

Shen Qingqiu glanced at him. “Don’t let that get you down at a time like this. You didn’t choose the role, so just do your job. There’s no need to apologize. Besides, you might not even need to apologize tonight. Eat up, conserve your strength, and prepare to give it your all.”

She made the hunting game that might occur tonight sound like just another casual gig.

“I’m ashamed to call myself a man compared to you, Ms. Shen.” Chen Kaijie sat up straight, his tone serious. “I understand what you mean. I will give my best performance.”

There were no evening classes, so most students returned to their dorms early after dinner. No one dared to stay in Zhang Zhu’s dorm room. Li Yuehang and his roommates initially thought about bunking with others. But because they’d witnessed Zhang Zhu’s death, none dared to take them in.

In the end, the three stayed in an unoccupied room—the 409 in the boys’ dorm, which was similarly left vacant.

Xiao Muyu’s expression slightly tightened after Chen Kaijie finished his report. “409. Why is it 409 again?”

“This doesn’t feel like a coincidence,” Zuo Tiantian said nervously. Whenever she thought of Room 409, she couldn’t help but remember the one in the girls’ dorm. It gave her chills.

“It can’t be helped.” Chen Kaijie also felt uneasy about it. “If they don’t stay in 409, they’ll have to stay in that other dorm room. Either way, they’ll inevitably end up in 409.”

“If there’s a problem with that 409, it’s probably something we can’t avoid.” Xiao Muyu spoke calmly. She roughly understood Chen Kaijie’s feelings—those people looked no different than them.

Chen Kaijie fell silent. Then, Shen Qingqiu’s voice came from the side. “We can’t even control our own survival here. The lives of those NPCs are all up to fate. Also, the quickest and true way to save them is to clear the instance.”

“I understand.” Chen Kaijie sighed. “I’m not that muddled. Besides, if things are as we suspect, and Liu Ya and the others try to kill them, it’ll be their own fault.”

His greater concern was what would happen to their team tonight. He didn’t have the luxury to save anyone else in this situation.

Meanwhile, Su Jin and Zuo Tiantian spotted their chance and whispered, “They’ve left.”

Xiao Muyu and Shen Qingqiu exchanged glances and quietly veered off the main path, heading towards the school buildings.

It was already 19:50 when they reached the first classroom on the second floor, and some students still lingered inside.

Zuo Tiantian looked worried. “What do we do? It wouldn’t be good to search right in front of them, would it?”

She glanced at Shen Qingqiu, then at Xiao Muyu, but neither of them responded to her look. Instead, their attention shifted to Su Jin.

Zuo Tiantian followed their gaze. As if a lightbulb switched on in her head, she smiled knowingly.

Su Jin gave them a resigned expression. “Looks like I, the wolf in sheep’s clothing Ms. Su, have to do something deceptive again.”

She straightened up, adjusted her clothes, and composed herself before slowly walking into Class 7.

Standing at the podium, Su Jin waved her hand, addressing the few students, “I doubt you’re all in the mood for studying right now. For a change of pace, why don’t you come to the office and help me tidy up?”

Su Jin was quite convincing as a teacher. The students looked blankly at her but eventually followed her out of the classroom.

Once the students left, Shen Qingqiu didn’t bother with the door. She opened the hallway window and lightly leaped over, landing directly in Liu Ya’s seat.

Shen Qingqiu quickly rifled through the desk drawer. Textbooks, a backpack, exercise books… Before long, she found the doodled notebook.

Upon flipping it open, the first page she and the others saw had the drawing of Sisyphus.

Shen Qingqiu flipped through several pages and realized this was a sketchbook. Nearly every page from the end of the book page featured a drawing of Sisyphus.

She started flipping from the last page. The drawings were shocking to behold. Each one was an almost identical depiction of Sisyphus, spanning several pages. It wasn’t until she got closer to the front that the drawing style changed.

An exceptionally gloomy illustration leaped off one of the pages. The earlier sketches had been outlined with black pens and were uncolored. But this one was different. It was scribbled rather than drawn. Twisted, messy black lines densely covered the page, yet the intended image was still recognizable.

She had drawn a room with a fire burning inside. The fire was the only part colored in. Dark red flames danced menacingly like the tentacles of an evil spirit, reaching out to ensnare a girl curled up within.

The girl’s body was contorted and deformed, her face unrecognizable. All that remained in her eyes were sheer terror and agony.

Surrounding the fire were six people. Some had short hair, others long. But without exception, each had grotesquely twisted features, mouth stretched in an ear-to-ear grin, with thick, slimy drool dripping down their overextended jaw.

They looked as if they were celebrating, so immersed in their twisted joy that none of them noticed the towering figure behind them.

Only half of this figure was visible because the paper had run out of space to contain its whole form. Its unnaturally long arm was outstretched, fingers like dead branches stretching forward, reaching for the six.

Zuo Tiantian glanced at the drawing but then turned her head away. The discomfort and fear she felt was almost suffocating. “This drawing gives me the creeps.”

Shen Qingqiu handed the drawing to Xiao Muyu so she could look at it carefully.

“This is probably the scene of Lin Xue’s death,” said Xiao Muyu.

The girl in the center was as abstract and chaotic as the rest of the drawing, but her eyes were uncannily vivid. One could almost see the glistening tears, and they stood in stark contrast to the overall style of the drawing. Only those eyes exuded a trace of beauty and humanity in this distorted art piece.

“This tall figure must be the mummy that accompanied Lin Xue.” Chen Kaijie tilted his head as he examined the drawing. “So, what’s the connection between Lin Xue and it? From the looks of it, the mummy should be desperate to save and avenge her.”

Xiao Muyu’s gaze swept across the room. “Have you finished looking?”

Once Shen Qingqiu nodded, Xiao Muyu took the notebook from her and flipped through it.

Words, dark red like dried blood, spread across the paper.

Not a single one is innocent. They all deserve to die!

The writing didn’t just resemble blood—it was written in blood, with a chilling bite of rancor.

---

TL: Made that line dark red as described for impact and immersion cuz I felt like it. No drippy font style tho. If the color hurts your eyes, tell me in the comments and I’ll change it to black.