The backdrop can also be propped up.

Chapter 239 The Prequel

Gu Huayang was patrolling at night according to the rules, thinking that after patrolling for a while, he could finish his patrol and return to his residence to spend the day.

Unexpectedly, when Gu Huayang walked into the lobby, he heard some sounds coming from there.

Remembering the rule that "any anomalies found must be personally verified and reported to the young lady the next morning," Gu Huayang immediately entered the hall.

After confirming that the sound was coming from upstairs, Gu Huayang went upstairs without hesitation.

After going up to the second floor, Gu Huayang looked around and found nothing unusual.

So the sound must have come from the third floor. Gu Huayang thought to himself, looking at the sign on the third floor that forbade going upstairs, and frowned—he needed to go upstairs to check on the unusual activity, but going upstairs would violate the rule of "not going against what is written on the sign."

Gu Huayang gripped the stair railing, wondering if he could find a loophole in the rules to get upstairs, when he saw the paper prohibiting going upstairs spontaneously combust, burning completely and disappearing into the air.

Without thinking too much, Gu Huayang went upstairs to see what the situation was like on the third floor.

As soon as Gu Huayang stepped onto the third floor, he felt as if he had entered another world.

There is no corridor on the third floor, only one huge room—meaning the entire third floor is just one room.

Even on the second floor, you can see a little moonlight shining on the corridor, but the third floor is pitch black and only illuminated by candlelight.

From that meager candlelight, Gu Huayang could barely make out a person standing in the very center of the third floor, holding a whisk in his hand, muttering something under his breath, accompanied by a series of thumping sounds.

Extending outwards from that person, there were several coffins. Gu Huayang held his breath and counted, finding a total of ten coffins. Adding the players, plus Master Li, the eldest young lady, and the second young lady he'd seen in the diary, ten coffins meant one person could fit in each.

Is this a recreation of the sacrificial ceremony from back then? Gu Huayang felt a cold sweat break out on his forehead. He wiped his forehead and then scanned the third floor with his eyes—the sounds he had just heard from outside and that thumping sound were definitely not part of this sacrificial ceremony; there must be something else.

Seeing the way by candlelight was too dark, so Gu Huayang picked up the kerosene lamp and went up to the third floor to find the source of the thumping sound. He carefully walked around the coffin and the various things placed on the ground.

If it were just a bunch of different things, it wouldn't be too hard to navigate. But there are many red lines strung on the ground, one on the left and one on the right. If you're not careful, you'll bump into a red line. When the bell on the red line rings, the person chanting in the middle will stop and look at the place where the bell is making the sound.

Gu Huayang had no choice but to get as close to the coffins as possible so that he would have a perfect hiding place if he accidentally touched the red rope and caused the bell to ring.

Gu Huayang, who had been hiding behind the coffin for the eighth time, waiting for the person in the center to turn his gaze away, sighed inwardly—he never imagined that someone with a disability in both legs would be forced to experience jump rope.

"This is a bit difficult." Gu Huayang sighed again, looking down at the red thread that became increasingly dense as he approached the room. He wondered who was making this noise. Could it be Bai Xingyi? He also wondered if she had finished her work. If not, he would have to think about how to explain things to that young lady tomorrow.

After mentally counting to 10, Gu Huayang peeked out and saw the person standing in the middle turn their head back. He then got up and continued with the difficult jump rope exercise.

As Gu Huayang was jumping around, he suddenly noticed that a coffin lid was vibrating, and at the same time, a thumping sound was coming from inside the coffin. It seemed that the thumping sound was coming from what was inside the coffin lid.

Gu Huayang turned his head, and the person standing in the center of the circle began to dance a strange dance, seemingly no longer turning his head around.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Gu Huayang reattached the kerosene lamp to his waist, inserted a few fingers into the cracks of the coffin lid, gritted his teeth, and lifted the moving coffin lid.

Fortunately, the coffin lid was only a little heavy and not too tightly closed. Gu Huayang carefully moved the coffin lid aside to prevent it from falling to the ground due to imbalance, which would cause the bell to ring and ruin all his efforts.

Then Gu Huayang looked into the coffin and the first thing he saw was a yellow light. By the light, he saw a white-clad figure with red threads tied around his hands and a crumpled talisman stuffed in his mouth.

When Bai Xingyi saw the coffin lid being lifted, revealing Gu Huayang's face, he became even more excited, waving his bound hands frantically toward Gu Huayang's face.

Gu Huayang waved to Bai Xingyi, telling him not to rush. He thought for a moment and remembered seeing the method of burning red threads with charcoal. So he looked around and saw two small pieces of charcoal next to the coffin—probably left outside by Bai Xingyi before he was locked in the coffin.

Gu Huayang bent down and picked up the small piece of charcoal. He tentatively touched the charcoal to the red line, and sparks immediately appeared on the line. Although they disappeared quickly, the sparks still managed to burn through the red line.

With her hands free, Bai Xingyi immediately spat out the talisman ball from her mouth and carefully used her hands to support herself, allowing herself to sit up from the coffin without touching the coffin lid.

Then Bai Xingyi took the small piece of charcoal from Gu Huayang's hand and slashed it across his legs, which were also bound by red thread. This time, Bai Xingyi truly broke free from the red thread's restraints.

"How did you end up trapped here?" Gu Huayang asked curiously.

"I was thinking of removing those red lines, going up to the third floor to take a look, and then going back to work. But as soon as I went in, several more red lines suddenly appeared, dragging my feet and pulling me inside."

"I was dragged down without even noticing, but before I was dragged in, I grabbed someone, you see, the one doing the shamanistic ritual in the middle right now. I grabbed his foot, and he fell down."

"So, in order to avoid being dragged into the coffin by the red thread along with me, he paused the movement of the red thread, and I took the opportunity to fight with him. Then I discovered that he could control the movement of the red thread throughout the entire house."

"I was fighting him while I was burning charcoal to make a red thread. I don't even know how long I fought, but he still managed to sneak up on me, tie my hands and feet, and throw me into the coffin." Bai Xingyi explained to Gu Huayang why he was there while leading Gu Huayang in jump rope.

"Ah, I see." Gu Huayang understood.

“Let’s hurry back now,” Bai Xingyi said, jumping over three more red ropes and pulling Gu Huayang over with him. “If we stay here any longer, I think that crazy old man will sacrifice us all.”

The two of them dodged and jumped around for a while, and finally got close to the door on the third floor.

Unexpectedly, something suddenly flew in from somewhere on the third floor and landed on the ground. It sounded like a book falling to the ground.

The person who was performing the shamanic dance suddenly stopped and fixed his eyes on Gu Huayang and Bai Xingyi, who were jumping rope.

Seeing that things were not going well, Bai Xingyi immediately grabbed Gu Huayang's arm and said, "Stop jumping rope, run! This guy has seen us."

But it was too late; the path out of the third floor was blocked by red tape.

Gu Huayang reached out and grabbed the white-clad man who hadn't braked in time. Both of them staggered for a moment before regaining their balance.

Gu Huayang felt a chill run down his spine. Having already conquered several high-difficulty dungeon worlds, Gu Huayang knew that something was probably about to happen.

"Get out of the way!" Gu Huayang, dressed in white, dodged to the side, and sure enough, a bell slammed down hard on the red lines.

"Ding-a-ling... ding-a-ling... ding-a-ling... ding-a-ling..." Even after the bell fell to the ground, it continued to spin loudly, sending chills down one's spine.