Chapter 124: The Death Elevator

In the supermarket on the first floor of the apartment building, Fang Tang and Liu Yiran gathered together.

After Fang Tang shared his findings, Liu Yiran nodded with a faint smile. "The information you found is crucial. Just as Fang Tang speculated, the seventeenth and eighteenth floors are linked to the missing children. Whether we can actually find them there remains to be seen, but this has certainly given us a lead."

"Did you find anything in the supermarket?" Fang Tang asked curiously.

"The disarray here suggests that a violent disturbance broke out before the building fell into this state, causing widespread panic among the residents. The exact cause is unknown, but there might be clues on the upper floors."

"Perhaps the residents upstairs also had the habit of keeping diaries," Fang Tang said, shaking his head speechlessly at the thought of diaries. While he struggled to understand why everyone kept them, they were undeniably convenient for the team.

"Since the disappearance case points to the seventeenth and eighteenth floors, let’s go there first. We might find something."

The group walked to the elevator, surprised to find it still functional. As they pressed the button for the eighteenth floor, the elevator lights began to flicker.

"Looks like a scene from a horror movie," Fang Tang remarked, looking up at the lights with a wry grin.

Su Mang examined the elevator. "I haven't detected any Fallen yet, and the elevator itself isn't a spirit-bound object. It should be safe to use."

Watching the numbers climb until they stopped at eighteen, Fang Tang raised an eyebrow. "Do you guys feel like something is wrong?"

Liu Yiran nodded. "The elevator didn't actually move, yet the numbers were climbing."

"That’s terrifying. Could there be ghosts here?" Xie Ling asked, clinging tightly to Su Mang and eyeing the cramped space warily.

Fang Tang comforted her, "It’s likely not a ghost. If there were ghosts, they would probably have turned into Fallen by now. In our eyes, ghosts are just bundles of resentment filled with desire; it would be rare for them not to be twisted into Fallen by the rules."

Xu Lin added, "Don't worry. This is a zone of severe distortion; seeing anything abnormal is perfectly normal here."

"We've been chatting for a while now, why hasn't the door opened?" Ta Meng scratched his head and touched the elevator door suspiciously. His finger jerked back instantly, as if he had been electrocuted.

"There is definitely something wrong with this elevator," Ta Meng stated firmly.

"Let me try," Fang Tang said, patting Ta Meng’s shoulder. He activated his Magma Armor, and his Reverse Blade grew, its tip sinking into the door.

*Screech!*

The blade sliced through the elevator door with ease. Through the hole, all he could see was pitch darkness. Suddenly, a blood-red eye appeared in the gap, its pupil unfocused, like that of a corpse.

"Trying to scare me?" Fang Tang sneered. He transformed his blade into a long sword and thrust it through the hole.

"Ah!"

A piercing shriek echoed from outside, making everyone in the elevator frown in unison.

"Mental corruption. This Fallen is interesting," Liu Yiran said, maintaining a faint smile as he looked at Su Mang. "It was able to shield your perception, so it must have concealment techniques. At the very least, it possesses a rare mutation ability."

Fang Tang stared at the hole where he had struck the eye.

[After the Distortion descended, the world changed, and everyone lived in a state of constant anxiety; the residents of this apartment building were no exception. As the rules of the Distortion intensified, those with inner desires gradually turned into Fallen, feeding on the desires of ordinary people, and the number of murders in the building grew. Gradually, a legend began to spread: whenever the elevator stopped on a floor at night while empty, a murder would occur there. At first, people didn't believe it, but as the rumors spread, they became reality! Congratulations on finding the second rule: The Death-Dealing Elevator. A Seventh-Order Fallen with the rare mutation ability: Blood-Red Gaze, and perfect mutation abilities: Terror Illusion and Death Patrol.]

"Tsk," Fang Tang clicked his tongue and looked at Liu Yiran. "This elevator itself might be a Fallen."

"How so?" Liu Yiran asked, surprised.

Fang Tang pointed to the digital display and the ceiling. "The Distortion has been here for a long time; the security monitors and other electronic equipment in the guard room are all paralyzed. Yet, this elevator remains in its previous state, which is strange in itself. Furthermore, the elevator didn't move, yet we were supposed to be at the eighteenth floor. Under normal circumstances, we should be able to see the hallway through this hole, but we can't. It's as if we've entered an illusion, seeing only what we expect to see."

Liu Yiran smiled. "Indeed!" As he spoke, he reached out to touch the door, and Fang Tang caught a glimpse of the two super-sequences the captain usually kept hidden.

As soon as his fingers touched the elevator, Liu Yiran’s smile vanished, and his brow furrowed. "Illusions, all sorts of illusions. Was this what Ta Meng saw earlier?"

"Yes," Ta Meng replied, scratching his head awkwardly.

Liu Yiran continued, "Hah, 3D surround sound, and electronic music, though the audio quality is a bit poor. The horror atmosphere is well-crafted, but I have to give it a bad review for not showing the gore I wanted to see. Why are there so many scene transitions? It lacks immersion, which really hurts the user experience. This needs improvement..."

Fang Tang’s jaw dropped, and he felt a sudden sense of respect. *Is he a true professional?*

"Is the captain always like this?" Fang Tang whispered to Su Mang.

Su Mang nodded. "Once, we encountered a haunted house filled with all kinds of ghosts. The captain, quite dramatically, went up and shook hands with every single one of them, successfully scaring them all away."

Fang Tang: "..." *That intense? My eyes did not deceive me!*

Just as Liu Yiran was delivering his critique, the elevator began to change. Thick, colorful slime began to ooze from the walls, ceiling, and floor, emitting a pungent odor. As the scent entered Fang Tang’s nose, his head began to spin.

"Cover your noses, the fumes are poisonous." Fang Tang knew this was the effect of Sequence 063: Poison Source, but he couldn't explain it directly, so he could only offer a warning.

Just as the elevator filled with colorful mist, the doors opened with a loud *clatter*.

"Let's head out!" Liu Yiran said with a smile, waving his hand at the mist, which was promptly drawn into his body.

Stepping out, Fang Tang and the others realized they were indeed still on the first floor. Looking back at the elevator, it appeared completely decayed, its walls corroded by time until they were crumbling away, revealing the elevator shaft behind them.

"Let's take the stairs; the elevator is no longer usable," Liu Yiran said, tucking his hands into his sleeves and leading the way toward the emergency exit.

Fang Tang watched Liu Yiran’s inscrutable back in silence. *This captain is quite powerful.*

It wasn't the first time he'd had this feeling. While his strength was one thing, the main thing was his ability to remain calm and chat away—even offering a critique—while facing a terrifying illusion created by a Fallen. That was something beyond the reach of ordinary people.

Fang Tang felt, inexplicably, that he had found someone reliable to lean on. And honestly, this feeling of riding to victory was quite satisfying.