I set you up on a blind date, and you've managed to overcome all the weirdness?

Xu Ran not only offered to fetch hot water for Su Hong, but also accompanied her to the cafeteria for meals.

Taking advantage of the panic throughout the school these past two days, she used the excuse of being "scared to be alone" to move into room 404.

He also occasionally spouts nonsense like, "It's inconvenient for a grown man like you to enter the girls' dormitory."

The key point is that Su Hong, that silly girl, didn't even argue back.

Lin Yan was completely exasperated. Normally, he would have dumped this silly girl who gets carried away by her best friend's nagging long ago.

But here, he can't shake them off.

For a girl who has been subjected to emotional abuse for a long time and is extremely lacking in love, this sudden friendship is truly precious.

For Su Hong, this feeling was almost the same as the four great joys of life.

After all, Lin Yan's indifference needs someone else to keep her company.

Although Su Hong still didn't talk much, Lin Yan could tell that she was slowly letting down her guard against Xu Ran.

Lin Yan had been secretly following Su Hong and had seen everything clearly.

This Xu Ran...

They were too enthusiastic, almost to the point of being overly enthusiastic.

Yesterday at noon, when Xu Ran was getting hot water for Su Hong in the water room, Lin Yan happened to pass by.

He caught a detail, or rather, a flaw.

When Xu Ran handed the cup to Su Hong, her left index and middle fingers were habitually brought together, but her ring finger was sticking out as if it were cramping.

That posture was like trying to grasp something very sharp, but being afraid of cutting yourself.

Lin Yan immediately sensed something was wrong.

He had definitely seen that gesture before!

That night, when he was being chased by three spider women in the corridor, their limbs turned into blades.

Just as he kicked Xiaoya, shattering her spine and pinning her to the wall...

Xiaoya's right hand is in this state!

If all of this could still be considered a coincidence...

But this morning, when Xu Ran and Su Hong went downstairs together and passed the dormitory manager's window...

A gentle breeze blew by.

It doesn't have the fresh scent of teenage shampoo, nor the cloying sweetness of perfume.

He smelled rust in the wind.

The smell was exactly the same as the smell on Xiaoya after she was transformed that night.

Lin Yan suddenly remembered the list of missing persons.

Five people have gone missing.

Five old school uniforms stained with blood.

The legend of the skinning tragedy thirty years later.

A disgusting conclusion quickly took shape in Lin Yan's mind.

Peeling...

Could it be that the sadistic serial killer from thirty years ago wasn't just after simple torture and murder?!

What if he could put it on a corpse like a piece of clothing?!

Xiaoya's missing body, and this newly appeared best friend Xu Ran.

The faces of the two people slowly overlapped in Lin Yan's mind.

She wasn't a kind-hearted female classmate at all.

She was Xiaoya, disguised in a new guise, who had somehow managed to infiltrate Su Hong's side again... the Painted Skin Xiaoya!

Lin Yan stood up abruptly, grabbed the iron pipe on the table, and startled the old woman.

Outside the window, it was already dark, and the streetlights were flashing.

tonight.

It's time for them to close the net.

Lin Yan glanced at the alarm clock; it was 11 p.m.

At this time of day, the campus is no different from a mass grave. Ever since five people went missing, even the security guards don't dare to wander around outside at this hour.

Lin Yan carried the iron pipe directly up to the fourth floor.

"Tonight I'll tie her up and take her to the dorm manager's office. I wouldn't mind killing that Xiaoya again."

Lin Yan slowed her pace and walked to the door of dormitory 404.

The cracks in the windows on the door were pitch black, without a single ray of light.

Lin Yan frowned.

Normally at this time, Xu Ran would always be talking to Su Hong, and even if she deliberately lowered her voice, it shouldn't be this quiet.

Lin Yan's heart skipped a beat, and she had a very bad feeling.

He kicked open the dormitory's iron door!

"Bang!"

There was no one inside.

On the lower bunk by the window, the blankets were neatly folded, with only a school uniform lying on the bed board.

Su Hong and Xu Ran have both disappeared.

Lin Yan's mind went blank for a moment, as if something had exploded.

How is that possible?!

He had just reminded Su Hong this afternoon not to go out.

Given Su Hong's personality, once she has made up her mind about Lin Yan, she will never listen to anyone else.

Not to mention running out with someone else in the middle of the night!

unless……

Lin Yan rushed into the dormitory and quickly scanned Su Hong's desk.

There was a piece of letter paper tucked under the corner where she usually kept her books.

Lin Yan grabbed it. The handwriting wasn't Su Hong's; Lin Yan had seen her write her name on the roster before.

That must be Xu Ran.

"Honghong, something's happened! Dormitory supervisor Lin found clues about the missing girl in the basement. He's been beaten and is being held captive by Teacher Chen. Go and plead for him! I'm going to find the security office."

What a vicious scheme!

This Xiaoya, who's actually in human form, has really figured Su Hong out.

If she uses Teacher Chen's name or any other excuse, Su Hong will absolutely ignore her.

Lin Yan would know immediately if there was any commotion.

But she took advantage of Su Hong's dependence on Lin Yan!

In Su Hong's distorted worldview, Lin Yan is her only support in this hell, the only light in the mire of her life.

When she learned that Lin Yan, this "light," was in danger because of her...

Even if you know that there are mountains of knives and seas of fire outside.

That girl would rush out without hesitation, just like a moth drawn to a flame!

"This damn green tea, the inside is all black!"

Lin Yan was so angry he was practically fuming, wishing he could capture Xiao Ya and kill her a hundred times over.

He'd been tricked.

He thought he was in control of the entire script, but they skipped over him and even used him as bait.

Lin Yan glanced at the clock on the wall of the dormitory; it was 11:15.

There are 45 minutes left until midnight.

The senior student also asked him to come to school at midnight in the real world, and Chen Qing's note also said midnight.

Since so much effort was put into setting up this scheme, Su Hong is most likely still alive.

Chen Qing was definitely waiting for him to walk right into his trap. After all, he had embarrassed him in front of so many students in the corridor, and Chen Qing hadn't gotten his revenge yet.

Without a second's hesitation, Lin Yan turned and rushed out of room 404.

He pushed the Nine Revolutions Prison Bone Body to its limit.

He ran wildly in the stairwell, his footsteps sounding like drums.

"Old dog Chen, if you dare lay a finger on her, I'll make sure you pay with your life!"

Lin Yan seemed to have forgotten that this was not the real world; all he wanted now was to go faster, and even faster.

Time is life, and he could feel the growing chill and oppression in the air, a feeling of grotesque rules.

Crossing the playground, Lin Yan rushed straight to the small house behind the school cafeteria.

The underground boiler room is the only place with a basement.

Normally, this is the dirtiest and most chaotic corner of the school. Apart from the old man who tends the boiler, even the most idle students don't want to go near it.

But now, the iron door leading to the basement is unlocked.