Where's the cute girl we were promised? She's completely wiped out S-rank dungeons!

Qiao Ran suddenly had a bad feeling: "Song Yuan, I'm really fine, please untie me! Stop joking, this is no joke at all!"

Song Yuan was speechless: "Who's joking with you?"

However, Qiao Ran also possessed the skill "Song of the Siren." Since Song Yuan lacked any items to defend against mental attacks, she removed the scales from Qiao Ran's neck as a precaution.

Just as she was considering whether to check under Qiao Ran's clothes to see if he had any hidden wounds, An Xiaoyou's voice came through the communicator:

"Hey! I really found the power distribution room, it's on the fifth floor, in the corner near the flower bed. But you guessed right, the door's locked, you need a key to open it. How's your progress going?"

Song Yuan tapped the intercom and said calmly, "Not good. Qiao Ran seems to be controlled by something, and the situation isn't good. After you've memorized the route, come downstairs and meet us. We're in the corridor; I've tied him up."

An Xiaoyou: [Huh? Okay, that weakling shouldn't be able to do anything to you once he's been controlled. Just be careful not to get hit by his skills. I'm coming right now.]

Song Yuan then confirmed the situation with Xu Tai'an: "Xu Tai'an, are the puppeteer and Liu Gaosheng still on the first and second floors?"

Xu Tai'an confirmed: "Yes, they don't seem to be planning to go upstairs yet. Also... has Qiao Ran been controlled? What are the specific signs? Can you confirm if it's a player skill or a monster skill?"

Song Yuan shook her head. "It's uncertain for now. As for his specific behavior, he's suddenly forgotten many things, including his subconscious habits and past experiences. It's hard to guarantee he won't suddenly do something unusual at some point."

Xu Tai'an: [Is that so...? I have some items here that can weaken mental attacks. Would you like me to bring them over?]

Song Yuan: [Not for now. I'll call you when I need you. Stay there for now and don't move.]

The conversation was over, and now she needed to consider how to deal with "Qiao Ran".

When using the communicator, Song Yuan herself didn't need to speak, because the device would automatically read what she wanted to say and relay it to her teammates. So, in Qiao Ran's eyes, Song Yuan just touched her right ear and spaced out for a while, and then her gaze towards him turned murderous.

His ominous premonition grew stronger, and he lowered his voice to probe:

"W-what's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that..."

Song Yuan squatted down in front of him and said calmly, "I'm considering whether to check if you have any wounds hidden under your clothes. Although it won't cure you, I still want to try my best to figure out what exactly is controlling you."

Qiao Ran's pupils contracted sharply at these words. If his hands weren't tied behind his back, he would definitely be trembling with fear, arms crossed.

"No, no, no, no—! No, Song Yuan, calm down! Nobody's controlling me! My memory just suddenly got a little bad, yes... it's always like this, my memory gets worse whenever it happens! You don't need to do this, I'm really fine!"

"You have a heart condition, what does that have to do with your brain?"

Song Yuan reached out and unbuttoned his first button, resting her chin on her hand and muttering to herself:

"Or can I not use my eyes to look, but just reach in and feel around to see if there are any scars?"

Qiao Ran looked like she was about to cry: "No! Isn't this method even worse?!"

Where is your sense of shame? Where is the most basic sense of shame between people?! How can someone say and do such a thing with such a calm expression?!

Song Yuan calmly comforted him, "It's okay, it'll be fine soon. I was just checking if you had any unexplained wounds, I didn't mean anything by it."

Qiao Ran: "This isn't about motives at all, okay? I really wasn't controlled, Song Yuan, you have to believe me—!"

Just as Song Yuan was about to continue, An Xiaoyou arrived.

She must have rushed over after hearing Song Yuan's news. Her side braid was slightly disheveled by the wind. As soon as she entered the corridor, she saw this ambiguous scene: Qiao Ran's face immediately showed a "rescued" expression. But the next moment, An Xiaoyou turned around and went upstairs:

"I've disturbed you, I'll be going now."

Qiao Ran: "Hey?! Don't go! It's not what you think!!!"

Song Yuan said expressionlessly, "Come back. Don't joke around at a time like this. I'm checking him for wounds to try and figure out what's controlling him."

An Xiaoyou, swinging her braid, turned back, one hand on her hip: "What's the use of checking this kind of thing? Even if we find out, he won't get better anytime soon. Let's find the key first."

Qiao Ran nodded vigorously, moved: "Yes, yes! Let's get down to business first!"

"It's just a precaution. More importantly," Song Yuan stood up and looked An Xiaoyou up and down, "Do you remember your ward number, what you ate on your first day in the hospital, what clothes I was wearing when we first met, and why you were sent to the mental hospital?"

An Xiaoyou: "...What, you doubt me? Forget about other questions, who remembers what you wore when we first met?!"

This is just to be on the safe side. Whether it's a player's or a monster's skill that controls Qiao Ran, if it can control Qiao Ran, it's possible it can also control An Xiaoyou.

An Xiaoyou reluctantly answered all the questions. Although she said she didn't remember, her answers were perfect, and her gestures were no different from usual. Only then did Song Yuan realize that the An Xiaoyou in front of her was really An Xiaoyou.

"So what do we do with this guy now?"

An Xiaoyou gestured with her chin towards Qiao Ran on the ground: "Do you two want to continue? I'll go find the keys first, give you some space?"

Song Yuan: "...No, after thinking about it carefully, I think I'll pass."

If she really did that, Qiao Ran probably wouldn't know how to face her in the future—although Song Yuan herself didn't think there was anything wrong with it at all, only Qiao Ran would probably feel so ashamed that she wanted to crawl into a hole afterward.

And frankly, doing that is a bit impolite. As a good citizen who abides by public order and good morals, she shouldn't do that.

Finally, the two escorted Qiao Ran like a prisoner, beginning the search of the remaining offices. The office layout was far too complex, making the search much more difficult than "finding the power distribution room." As they searched, Xu Tai'an's voice rang out:

The guards and patrolling teachers have arrived!

They are now ready to enter the administration building.

While rummaging through the drawers, Song Yuan replied, "What about the corpses on the floor? The system notification said that the murdered guards and teachers would turn into vengeful ghosts. How are those corpses now? Have they mutated?"

Xu Tai'an: [No. Strange... I've been paying attention to them, but they don't seem to have changed much, except...]

Xu Tai'an squatted on the rooftop of the opposite building, watching the scene at the entrance of the administration building.

The sky was dark, but her eyesight was exceptional. Through the round scope, the mangled corpses didn't stand up like zombies; they didn't swell or mutate, but simply lay there quietly. Above the corpses, something like mist was slowly rising.

What was that? It was the first time she had ever seen anything like it.

Just then, a group of uniformed guards arrived. The leader discovered the body on the ground. He covered his mouth in shock and hid, cursing under his breath. He then gestured for his comrades to "Go!" Just as he was about to lead his team into the administration building, the black smoke from the body suddenly began to billow.

Xu Tai'an clearly saw that the wisp of black smoke quickly gathered and condensed, eventually turning into a ghost-like thing—this thing was different from a soul. A soul usually retains some characteristics of the person in life, but this thing did not.

It emitted black smoke, its tail billowing in the wind like the edge of a tattered cloak, its claws thin and long. The surviving guards clearly saw the monster, their mouths agape as they screamed in terror. The demon roared and charged at them. The guards raised their batons and pistols, but the demon's body passed through their bullets and weapons like air, then slit their throats with a single claw.

Conventional weapons can't even touch them?!

But they can scratch NPCs, right?

And so, black smoke began to rise from the dead again, and the smoke transformed into evil spirits, which then went on to kill the living. These ghosts continued to be born, slaughter, and gather, forming a huge black cloud.

Song Yuan stopped rummaging through the things and frowned as she asked, "What? Why are you suddenly not saying anything?"