Deadly Game: Almighty Boss’s Guide to Making Money

Chapter 1236. The Book at Night (24)

Huang Jingjing, Guo Yuelang, and Chang Xiaohe quickly followed, while Bai also pulled Xiao Qin along, with Bai Yueming and Ouyang Xichen bringing up the rear.

After hearing Lin Xihe's words, Bai Yueming decided not to kill Shuling. Anyway, with the fire around, Shuling wouldn't dare to get too close to him.

Bai Yueming was the last to step onto the stairs, and the blue light wall blocked the Book Spirit outside.

"Come here if you dare!" Bai Yueming put away the firelight and shouted at the Book Spirit.

The Book Spirit was blocked outside and could not enter, so it could only circle around outside.

Hahahaha, I'm truly impressed!
—Vegetables are really something!

—Vegetables, are you kidding me?

—Wow, that's really something. I was on edge, and then he pulled this stunt.

Everyone sat on the platform in the middle of the stairs, panting. Sweat streamed down their faces, and their clothes were soaked with cold sweat.

Xiao Qin leaned against Huang Jingjing, looking towards the second floor.

"On the second floor... could there be monsters even more powerful than the Book Spirit?"

—Hey, everyone shut up!

—What's wrong with you guys?

—Is it because they think the plot isn't thrilling enough and they want to rewrite the script?

—Everyone wants to become a jinx.

Lin Xi glanced at the 72-hour countdown, then at the compass. The pointer was pointing directly at the entrance to the second floor, and the blue light at the edge was flashing steadily without any signs of interference.

"Did you bring your compass in yourself?" Chang Xiaohe asked curiously.

“Yes!” Lin Xi replied.

"How amazing! It can actually guide you in the dungeon," Chang Xiaohe said. "I thought it was an item."

"No," Lin Xi smiled.

As for why the compass is so magical, she'll study it carefully after she leaves the dungeon.

"The entrance to the second floor should have a black mist barrier. The first snow's diary says that it requires a 'fire starter' and a 'gear' to open it."

“The gear is here with me.” Chang Xiaohe took out a gear with engravings from his backpack.

After being embedded in the "Chronicles of Time and Space," the gears popped out automatically, and he has been carrying them with him ever since.

"I'll handle the tinder," Bai Yueming said, smiling at Ouyang Xichen. "You can save your lighter for now!"

After resting for a while, the group continued their ascent.

At the end of the stairs was a stone door, shrouded in a thick black mist. Black vines coiled within the mist, and black slime seeped from the vines, making it exactly like the back door of the convenience store.

There is a circular slot in the center of the stone gate, and symbols resembling gears are engraved around the slot.

“It’s a black mist barrier!” Huang Jingjing pointed at the stone gate. “In Chu Xue’s diary, it says that you have to insert the gears into the slots and then use fire to burn the vines.”

Bai Yueming stepped forward, slightly raising his hand, the pale blue flames appearing exceptionally bright in the black mist.

Chang Xiaohe carefully inserted the gear into the slot.

With a "click," the gears meshed perfectly, and the symbols around the slot suddenly lit up with blue light. The blue light climbed up the vines, which began to twist violently, as if resisting something.

"Quickly, set it on fire!" Lin Xi shouted.

Bai Yueming waved his hand, and a burst of fire flew over. The pale blue flame touched the vines and instantly ignited into a large blue fire. The vines made a "crackling" sound, and black sap dripped onto the ground, corroding small pits.

Huang Jingjing held the silver key above the stone door. The white light pushed down along the direction of the blue light. When the black mist encountered the white light and the flames, it gradually retreated to the sides, revealing the cracks in the stone door.

"Everyone, push the stone gate together!" Guo Yuelang said. The crowd immediately surrounded both sides of the stone gate and pushed forward with all their might.

The stone door made a rumbling sound and slowly opened, releasing a faint scent of ink mixed with the rustling sound of pages turning.

The scene on the second floor is even more eerie than that on the first floor.

The bookshelves here are twice as tall as the first floor, reaching all the way to the ceiling. All the books on the shelves have black covers and no words on their spines.

There was no slime on the ground, but a thin layer of black pages covered it, making a "rustling" sound when stepped on.

In the darkness in the distance, a huge mirror can be vaguely seen, covered with a thin layer of black mist, as if veiled.

"That mirror!" Lin Xi pointed in the direction of the mirror. "It should be the 'sunglasses' mentioned in First Snow's Diary, and the 'Key to the Void' is hidden behind the mirror!"

Just as everyone was about to walk towards the mirror, they suddenly heard a "bang" behind them.

The stone door slowly closed, and the light walls on both sides of the staircase disappeared. The black mist enveloped the stone door again, as if it had never been opened.

"Locked up again?" Bai Yueming's voice was filled with helplessness. He walked to the stone door and knocked on it.

Suddenly, a vine extended from the black mist on the stone gate and wrapped around his hand. Fortunately, Huang Jingjing handed him the key in time, and the vine retracted after a flash of white light.

"Don't touch the stone door, this black mist will attack people on its own," Huang Jingjing warned.

Her gaze swept over the bookshelves in the restricted section.

"All the books here have black covers; they might be traps. We need to be careful not to touch them carelessly."

—The stone gate is closed again!

—That's true, they really like to create mystery.

—For 123 and their team, this is just a charade. If you encounter a novice player, they'll be trapped here.

That mirror is so eerie!

—Could there be a monster hiding inside?
—The first snow's diary only mentioned sunglasses, but not what was in the mirror!

Is the first snow on the second floor now?
—Probably not, didn't she go back and leave a note for everyone? She's probably still on the first floor.

—It seems that Chuxue is a good person. 123 and Teacher Huang may have misunderstood her.

—Look at those books with black covers, they seem to be moving!
Indeed, the black-covered books were swaying slightly, and faint characters gradually appeared on their spines—all of them were the character "墨" (mo, meaning ink).

Moreover, the writing was slowly wriggling, like a living insect.

"Oh no! These books will turn into book spirits!" Lin Xi exclaimed. "Everyone, step back!"

As soon as Lin Xi finished speaking, a black-covered book on the front shelf suddenly flipped open with a "whoosh".

The pages spun in the air, gradually coalescing into a book spirit.

The book spirit had grown to twice its original size, with more mucus on its body, and black blood seeping from the red ink spots. Several ink-stained pages floated above its head, resembling hair.

Jingjing's key suddenly became extremely hot, and the white light instantly surged to a meter in size, protecting everyone inside.

"Its ink is even more corrosive, so everyone be careful not to get it on them!" Huang Jingjing quickly said.

The Book Spirit spat out a cloud of black ink at everyone. The ink split into several drops in the air and flew in different directions.

Lin Xi immediately threw out the torch, knocking away the ink droplet that was flying towards Xiao Qin.

A huge ball of fire rose from Bai Yueming's hand and flew towards the Book Spirit.

The bright white light blocked the remaining ink droplets, which fell onto the light and instantly turned into black smoke.

"Burn its eyes with torches!" Lin Xi shouted.