Chapter 3: The Collapsed Building

The abandoned building was pitch-dark, with only occasional light seeping in when passing by the windows.

The air was thick with the stench of decay and mold.

From deep within the silent corridor, a faint dripping sound—drip, drip—could barely be heard.

Upon entering, everyone inexplicably felt a chill, as if the temperature had dropped several degrees; the silence around them was terrifying, broken only by the faint echo of a few footsteps.

“Lao Ya’s intelligence says the item we’re looking for is on the building’s second basement level, which was originally the parking lot. But due to the building’s destruction, only two entrances to the underground parking are confirmed: one is the east safety staircase, the other is the elevator shaft in B1 Zone One.”

“For us, there’s effectively only one entrance: the east safety staircase. The elevator shaft isn’t feasible—we’re all ordinary people, climbing it is far too dangerous, and it’s slow. So remember the escape route clearly; if you get lost down in the second basement after an accident, you’re as good as dead.”

“Lao Ya’s new intel says danger will appear on the first basement level, but since we’re ordinary people, we can likely avoid it there. The real lethal threat is on the second level—and the closer you get to the source, the greater the danger.”

Wei Li, the doctor, walked while speaking to himself.

His tone was calm, his diction clear, his expression grave and serious.

“In my opinion, let’s just wander around the first basement for a bit and head back. Isn’t it sweet to pick up fifty thousand yuan for free?” Zhang Kaiwen’s eyes flickered as he thought of a half-hearted plan.

Li Yi immediately said: “They anticipated this. That mysterious woman who activated the medium probably already has us under surveillance. If we cut corners, we’ll be killed the moment we leave this building.”

“I heard someone who activates a medium can see things normal people can’t—I don’t know if it’s true, but if it is, we’ve been under constant watch. So your suggestion isn’t realistic,” Liu Yan whispered.

“A bunch of cowards—I’m ashamed to work with you. We made it to the second basement—that’s heaven giving us a chance to claim the artifact. Once we get it, two million is nothing. I’ll make that woman outside kneel and bang her head three times on the ground, then lick my shoe soles clean.”

Wang Hu spoke without hesitation, revealing his inner thoughts openly.

Yet no one contradicted him.

Who deep down doesn’t want to change their fate?

"Hey, you're right. My life is trash—since I'm risking it, I might as well go all the way. Even if I get fifty thousand, it won't change anything. But if I truly get an artifact, from now on, I'll be one of the world's prominent figures. One lifetime becomes ten thousand." Zhang Kaiwen, influenced by Wang Hu's words, instantly changed his mind.

“If I get the artifact, even if I turn it in directly, I’ll enter the Golden Academy and completely change my fate,” Liu Yan whispered.

Li Yi, hearing them, felt his heart stir.

Because they were right.

Getting this money only solves an immediate crisis. My parents, as the Silent, need better medical pods and nutrient solutions to survive—their future costs are astronomical. Fifty thousand is a drop in the ocean. Besides, I have no talent, no connections, and no cultivation potential.

If I truly get the artifact, everything could change.

But though his heart stirred, reason warned him: there might be no artifact here at all—only lurking dangers in the dark. Greed would only lead to his needless death.

After brief chatter, the group had already penetrated deep into the collapsed building and soon saw the staircase leading to the underground parking.

Descending the stairs, darkness thickened like a chasm, filling them with unease.

Everyone immediately turned on the flashlights Lao Ya had prepared for them in advance.

As the flashlights lit up, the surrounding darkness receded considerably.

After checking their surroundings and seeing nothing unusual, the five proceeded down the stairs toward the second basement parking.

Along the way, everyone remained alert, deliberately softening their footsteps, afraid of disturbing something in the dark.

Everything seemed to go smoothly—no danger.

The five reached the first basement.

But they didn’t stop, because Lao Ya had already scouted the first basement. Though dangerous, it held nothing valuable. They encountered peril and misfortune only on the second basement level, and both times returned empty-handed, suffering heavy losses.

Thus, Li Yi and the others’ mission was to begin their search from the second basement.

Yet as they continued down the stairs, Wang Hu, at the front, suddenly stopped.

The light shone ahead.

The darkness cleared—the steps ahead lay a corpse, its skin deathly pale, lifeless, neck stiff, head tilted at a grotesque angle, arms rigidly raised midair, as if struggling to escape the underground parking behind it, yet somehow marked by something, finally dying here.

Wang Hu said: “What bad luck—it’s a corpse.”

Saying this, he ignored it, calmly stepping over the body and continuing forward.

The others glanced briefly, carefully avoiding the corpse, then followed behind Wang Hu.

But then Wei Li suddenly whispered: “That corpse isn’t right.”

“It’s just a corpse. Scared?” Zhang Kaiwen replied.

“Don’t forget, I’m a doctor—I’ve handled more corpses than you. I noticed that one: no lividity, no signs of decay. That’s unnatural. Also, the position where it appeared isn’t normal. It doesn’t look like it died here on the stairs—it was moved here from somewhere else.” Wei Li spoke seriously.

“Wei Li, you should’ve said that sooner,” Zhang Kaiwen said, immediately shining his flashlight back at the corpse.

He wanted to see if it truly had the problems Wei Li described.

But his face froze instantly.

The corpse... was gone.

“The corpse—it’s gone,” Zhang Kaiwen widened his eyes: “What’s this joke? It was right there a second ago—did the thing just run off?”

Seeing the empty steps, everyone felt a surge of horror.

“Maybe it wasn’t a corpse at all—maybe it was a ghost. Don’t forget Lao Ya said this building is haunted. That’s why they dared not go deeper into the second basement.”

Li Yi’s face was grim as he voiced a terrifying reality.

They had almost certainly encountered a ghost.

“Did you know? Our world originally had no ghosts. Only after the Heaven’s Tilt Incident did ghost legends prove true. But ghosts can only exist in special areas—they need some kind of energy to sustain themselves, or they dissipate. If there’s a ghost here, it means something here is supplying it with power.”

After a brief moment of fear, Liu Yan’s eyes gleamed with excitement: “Then the source object is very likely the artifact.”

“Then what are we waiting for? Some dirty thing—how could it scare me off?” Wang Hu strode forward toward the second basement.

“Today’s the day to defy heaven and change fate. I, Zhang Kaiwen, need only this one chance to turn things around. What’s so scary about ghosts? Poverty is scarier.”

Zhang Kaiwen grinned, ignoring hidden dangers as he quickly caught up.

Li Yi took a deep breath and followed without hesitation.

Liu Yan and Wei Li also did not hesitate.

At this point, retreat was impossible.

Soon.

They entered the second basement.

But the scene here was completely unlike what they’d imagined.

The ground was covered in thick mud, upon which grew many unknown withered yellow weeds, glowing faintly in the dark like will-o’-the-wisps among graves, scattered in tiny points. Far off stood several half-collapsed wooden houses, ancient in style, nothing like modern structures—more like abandoned ancient villages.

Had it not been for the abandoned cars half-buried in the mud around them, they might have thought they’d entered another world.

“Split up. Whether we live or find the artifact depends on our own abilities.”

After saying this, Zhang Kaiwen walked off without looking back.

“Makes sense,” Wang Hu said, scanning the area before choosing a direction.

“This place is dangerous. Staying together might be safer,” Li Yi thought for a moment, then spoke up.

Wei Li smiled slightly: “Young man, you should understand: if we don’t find the artifact, staying together is fine. But if we do, staying together will lead to betrayal—no one wants a knife in their back. Splitting up benefits everyone—it at least preserves some dignity.”

With that, he left.

Liu Yan also said nothing; after a moment’s hesitation, she too set off alone.

Soon.

The five-person team immediately shattered, each going their own way.