TSA Chapter 35

[System Announcement] [Children’s Day Special Event] From 12:00 noon today to 12:00 noon tomorrow, the special instance [Treasure Cave] will be open. The cave hides numerous treasure chests prepared by mischievous spirits for brave adventurers. These may contain rare items, equipment, materials, or even playful traps—it’s all up to the adventurer’s luck. Players can obtain keys to open the treasure chests by participating in activities on the special map [Amusement Park]. Happy Children’s Day to all!

The Treasure Cave was a six-player instance with a one-hour time limit, and each player could only enter once. Make sure to collect enough keys in the amusement park before entering the instance. The amusement park was a special map available for just one day, but there were no other restrictions, and players could enter and exit freely.

This sounded pretty interesting. In his previous life, Ran Qi grew up in an orphanage and had only been to an amusement park a few times during college outings. He found them fascinating. He wondered if the amusement park constructed by the game officials would be anything like the ones he remembered.

He felt an odd sense of anticipation…

“Brother Ran! You’re online? Hurry to the amusement park! Let’s collect keys together!” Plume Ink noticed Ran Qi logging in and quickly called out to him on the team channel.

“Alright, I’ll wait for Coke, and we’ll join you.”

“Got it. We’re waiting by the haunted house entrance!” Soul Chaser shouted.

Ran Qi waited for a bit. Once Gu Le logged in, he pulled him along to the amusement park.

The amusement park was packed with people far livelier than anything Ran Qi had ever seen on TV. It was adorned with colorful flags and balloons, exuding a festive atmosphere.

As they entered, an NPC handed them gifts—an exquisite gift bag containing two fruit-flavored candies and a small map. The map marked all the attractions and the number of keys each activity would yield.

The more thrilling activities, like the classic roller coaster and the screaming haunted house, awarded 3 keys each. Moderately exciting ones, like the pirate ship and spinning UFO, gave 2 keys. Relaxing activities, like bumper cars and the carousel, only gave 1 key. Additionally, teams received a bonus key for every three activities completed together, making it a very generous event.

“Brother Ran! Where are you guys? Hurry up! It’s almost our turn!” Plume Ink urged.

“We’re coming, we just entered the park!” Ran Qi and Gu Le quickened their pace toward the haunted house.

The game developers had put some thought into the haunted house’s design. The entrance was shaped like a giant monster’s open mouth, as if everyone in line was marching straight into its jaws.

A long queue snaked in front of the haunted house, but it moved quickly. Thanks to the holographic game system, new instances were created and players were teleported inside without having to wait for the previous batch to finish.

Night Owl and the others were at the very front of the line. Since Ran Qi and Gu Le were part of the same team, the NPC managing the queue not only allowed them to cut in, but also escorted them to the front.

“You’re here! It’s almost our turn!” Plume Ink said with a grin.

“Mm,” Ran Qi replied, but something felt off.

Everyone waiting outside the haunted house had eerily calm expressions, as if they were queuing for a regular instance run. There wasn’t a hint of nervousness or anticipation. Some players were even munching on food, looking like they were preparing for a battle.

“Do you guys even know what the haunted house is about?” Ran Qi couldn’t help but ask.

“No idea!” Soul Chaser answered bluntly.

“It’s probably just an instance with lots of weird-looking monsters for us to fight,” Sword at Fleeting Time speculated, rubbing his chin. “But since it’s an event instance, it shouldn’t be too hard. Nothing to worry about.”

Ran Qi: “…”

Interstellar folks without childhoods were truly terrifying.

But no matter, they’d figure it out soon enough…

It was their turn before long. The six of them stepped into the pitch-black entrance and were greeted by a semi-transparent selection panel.

[System] You may choose any one of the following six scenes to experience. Successfully clearing any scene will reward you with 3 treasure chest keys. Each scene can only be experienced once.

“Wow, this is great! Three keys per scene—clearing all six means 18 keys!” Everyone looked eager to get started.

Night Owl glanced at the six options. “Which scene should we pick?”

“They all look pretty normal. Let’s just pick one randomly,” Soul Chaser said indifferently.

The six scenes were: [Hospital], [School], [Haunted House], [Town], [Castle], and [Wilderness]. Classic haunted house scenarios—anything but ‘normal.’

“We can’t just pick randomly—”

Unfortunately, Ran Qi spoke too late. As the team leader, Night Owl had already tapped [Hospital] on the light screen.

Ran Qi froze. The others stared at him, puzzled by his sudden reaction.

Gu Le tried to reassure him. “Don’t worry, all the scenes are probably the same. Just fight whatever comes at us. Don’t be scared—I’ll tank the monsters so they won’t chase you.”

Ran Qi: “…”

It’s you guys who’d better not get scared later.

[System] Loading scene, please wait…

In a flash, they were teleported to a dilapidated, abandoned hospital.

“What’s going on? Where’s my weapon and gear? And what am I wearing?” Soul Chaser looked at his clothes in confusion.

“My skills are locked too!” Plume Ink exclaimed. “Are we supposed to fight barehanded?”

“What’s with this creepy music? It’s so unsettling!” Gu Le shivered as he covered his ears.

They were all dressed in matching uniforms, resembling a team, with their gear and weapons completely gone, and even their skills disabled. To top it off, eerie sound effects created an unsettling atmosphere.

[System] This is an abandoned hospital where it’s said that doctors once conducted gruesome experiments on patients. The vengeful spirits of those who died unjustly have become soul-reaping wraiths, unleashing endless carnage. One night, everyone in the hospital perished. You are adventurers who have wandered in by mistake. Find a way to escape. Try to survive. Do not attack the ghosts. You may leave the instance at any time if you wish to quit. (Note: Three rule violations will result in forced removal from the instance.)

The rules were exactly like the haunted houses he had experienced in his previous life—no attacking NPCs, focus on running, and the option to quit anytime.

This was exactly the kind of thrill he loved! Ran Qi couldn’t help but feel a surge of excitement as he prepared to explore the hospital.

However, Soul Chaser and the others were still struggling to adapt. This dungeon was completely different from what they had imagined—shifting from being monster hunters to being chased by monsters was not something they could easily get used to.

“We need to escape, and that probably means heading downstairs,” said Night Owl calmly, the first to regain his composure.

The area they were in was pitch-black. Through the narrow gaps of a window boarded up with planks, they could faintly make out the outside. It was raining, with occasional flashes of lightning and rolling thunder. They seemed to be on the top floor of the hospital, about ten meters above the ground. From their vantage point, they could clearly see the hospital’s main entrance, where a bright red sign read ‘Exit.’

“Ugh, isn’t it easy to get down? Just tear off these planks and jump out the window,” Soul Chaser suggested as he walked over to the window, intending to brute force his way through and leap down. A ten-meter drop was nothing for them; during mecha training, they’d jumped from much greater heights.

But the system wouldn’t allow shortcuts like that.

[System] Player [Soul Chaser] has violated the rules once.

Soul Chaser: “…”

Night Owl: “Enough. Let’s split into two groups and search for a way down. There’s got to be a staircase or something.”

Ran Qi wanted to say that splitting up was a classic horror movie mistake, but considering this was just a game, he figured everyone would understand the essence of a haunted house after a few scares. So, he stayed quiet.

Soul Chaser, Plume Ink, and Sword at Fleeting Time went to the right, while Night Owl, Ran Qi, and Gu Le headed left.

The hallway was long and dark, their footsteps echoing ominously. Gu Le instinctively clung tightly to Ran Qi, pressing his body close.

Ran Qi’s group walked to the end of the left hallway but found no staircase or elevator—only a room labeled ‘Records Room.’

“Should we go in now, or wait for them to join us?” Ran Qi asked.

“I’ll check where they are…,” said Night Owl, then paused. “Team chat is disabled.”

Gu Le suggested, “Why don’t we just shout? It’s so quiet here; they’re bound to hear us.”

“Good idea.”

They began shouting the names of Soul Chaser’s group, but there was no response.

“Maybe we should go look for them?”

Just as they were about to leave, a system notification popped up.

[System] Players [Soul Chaser], [Plume Ink], and [Sword at Fleeting Time] have violated the rules once.

Ran Qi sighed. What antics were they up to now? Soul Chaser already had two violations—one more, and he’d be booted from the dungeon…

“Let’s go check on them,” Night Owl suggested with a resigned sigh, clearly exasperated by their antics.

The three of them headed down the right hallway, calling out for Soul Chaser’s group as they went, but there was still no response.

Strangely enough, they found themselves back at the Records Room.

“Looks like there’s no other path. Let’s go in,” Night Owl concluded. It seemed the game was deliberately splitting them up to force separate actions.

“Alright.”

The three carefully pushed the door open. Inside, the room was a mess, with thick layers of dust coating everything and yellowed papers scattered across the floor. A flickering lightbulb in the corner added to the eerie atmosphere, making the room even more unnerving than total darkness.

“Let’s look around—there might be a mechanism,” Ran Qi suggested, clearly experienced with such setups.

As Night Owl opened a cabinet, a shadowy figure suddenly leaped down from the ceiling, lunging at them. Accompanied by a crash of thunder and a flash of lightning, the skeletal face of the shadow was illuminated, its sunken features grotesque and terrifying.

“AAAHHHHH!” Gu Le screamed, jumping onto Ran Qi and clinging to him like a koala, wrapping all four limbs around him.

Ran Qi sighed. “…Let go. You’re strangling me.”

With Night Owl’s help, Gu Le was finally peeled off Ran Qi, though he continued to cling to one of Ran Qi’s arms like a lifeline.

Shrugging off his personal ‘accessory,’ Ran Qi resumed searching the room. Knowing the usual patterns for such setups, he soon found a hidden passage behind a cabinet.

The narrow, dimly lit passage led them to a series of terrifying rooms—a morgue, an operating room, and patient wards—each filled with jump scares, sudden attacks, and relentless ghostly chases. After numerous harrowing encounters, both groups finally reunited on the first floor. Unfortunately, Soul Chaser had been kicked out of the dungeon after a third violation due to his instinctual habit of fighting back against the ghosts. In the end, only five of them successfully cleared the dungeon.

As they exited the hospital, Ran Qi felt a twinge of regret—it had been an exhilarating experience! Meanwhile, Gu Le looked utterly drained, Plume Ink and Sword at Fleeting Time were pale, and only Night Owl remained as calm and composed as ever.

Gu Le groaned, “What kind of dungeon is this…”

The others nodded in agreement, clearly still shaken. Ran Qi, however, was fighting back laughter.

[System] Congratulations! You have successfully cleared the hospital scene and earned 3 treasure keys. Would you like to proceed to the next scene?

“How about another scene?” Night Owl asked.

“No way!” the others replied in unison.

Plume Ink added, “Let’s do something else. The roller coaster gives three keys too!”

Ran Qi sighed. “Alright…”

He couldn’t help but feel a bit disappointed about skipping the remaining five scenes.

Noticing his expression, Night Owl said, “We can come back later—just the two of us.”

“Okay!!” Ran Qi lit up.

He knew it! There was no way he was the only one who enjoyed this kind of thrill.