Chapter 30: Chapter 30: Yu Sheng’s Testimony

The Monk, Yu Sheng, was the only resident in this generation of the Living Human Apartment to have passed six green text missions—one more than even the building manager, Xia Ta.

If not for his eccentric personality—quiet, reserved, and fond of speaking in riddles—the position of building manager would have been his for the taking.

As one might imagine, Yu Sheng held immense prestige in the eyes of the residents, easily rivaling that of Xia Ta. When he began to speak, everyone else fell silent. Zhao Zhenjia’s gaze locked onto him.

"And what evidence do you have, Mr. Yu Sheng?"

Yu Sheng replied calmly,

"One night, around two in the morning, my heart was heavy. I was tossing and turning, unable to sleep, and I couldn’t even bring myself to read the Buddhist scriptures. I felt as if my inner demons were assailing my senses.

"So, I opened my door, intending to take a walk down the hall. Just then, I heard strange peals of laughter and the distant sounds of children playing. A round object suddenly rolled to a stop at my feet.

"Fading in and out, a little boy’s voice called from a distance, ’Hey, bald uncle, can you kick the soccer ball back to me?’ I knew immediately that something was wrong. While it’s true that some families with children live in the apartment, those with minors are usually housed on the second floor. This is to keep the children from hearing the ghosts on the fourth floor, which could cause long-term harm to their mental and physical well-being.

"Besides, it was the middle of the night. Why would children from the second floor be playing in the third-floor hallway? I dared not be careless. I was already on guard as I reached down for the ball. When I looked up, I saw several short, child-like figures standing on the stairs between the third and fourth floors. Judging by their stances, they were watching me.

"My hand felt something like a soccer ball, but it came away covered in fresh blood. The surface, which should have been smooth, was rough and uneven, like the features of a human face. I looked down again. What had rolled to my feet was no soccer ball—it was a freshly severed head..."

Yu Sheng’s story was so vivid that a chill crept into the hearts of everyone present. The color drained from many of their faces. If what he said was true, it meant the third floor had been plagued by supernatural phenomena for some time; Gao Tian’s experience wasn’t an isolated incident.

Zhao Zhenjia couldn’t help but interrupt.

"Master. When did this happen? Why didn’t you say something so important sooner?"

Yu Sheng replied calmly,

"It was about three months ago.

"I didn’t speak up for two reasons.

"First, the very instant I touched the head on the floor, everything vanished. The blood on my hand, the head at my feet, the children on the stairs—it all disappeared without a trace.

"I was left alone in the empty hallway. If I had screamed my head off, all the third-floor residents would have rushed out only to find me standing alone in an empty corridor in the middle of the night, raving like a lunatic. At that point, you all would have thought ’I’ was the one with a few screws loose.

"The second reason has something to do with you, Mr. Zhao Zhenjia."

Yu Sheng’s gaze, as tranquil as a pool of still water, settled on Zhao Zhenjia’s face.

"That night was the eve of your fourth green text mission.

"If I had announced then that the ghosts from the fourth floor could reach the third-floor hallway, it would have undoubtedly caused panic among the third-floor residents, perhaps even throughout the entire apartment. That, in turn, would have had a massive impact on your morale. After all, regardless of whether you succeeded in your mission, the apartment you returned to would no longer feel like the completely safe haven it once was.

"So, I took it upon myself to keep the matter quiet. A week later, you returned safely. I could have shared my bizarre experience then, but I had no evidence. And with so much time having passed, it was even less likely that anyone would believe me.

"For the past three months, I have been trying to gather evidence, waiting for the right moment to tell everyone. Now that the newcomer, Gao Tian, has also encountered the mysterious supernatural forces from the fourth floor, I believe that this matter can no longer be delayed, whether people believe me or not."

Zhao Zhenjia, a third-floor resident, had passed his fourth green text mission about three months ago, leaving him just one mission behind Xia Ta and Jiang Yang. He was also a candidate for apartment administrator, which was why he had voluntarily chosen to live on the third floor—to train his courage and mental fortitude.

When a newcomer like Gao Tian claimed the ghosts on the fourth floor could reach the third, no one took him seriously. Their subconscious reaction was that another promising rookie had been scared out of his mind. But for the same words to come from Yu Sheng—that was corroboration. And it carried a completely different weight.

A newlywed couple on the third floor turned deathly pale and immediately faced Xia Ta.

"We want to change rooms! We want to move to the second floor, right now!

"When we first arrived at the Living Human Apartment, there were no vacancies on the second floor, and you swore to us that the third floor was just as safe. That’s the only reason we reluctantly agreed to move in here.

"Now that the third floor isn’t safe... and my wife just found out she’s pregnant! If anything were to happen, it would mean two deaths for the price of one! Please, we’re begging you, let us move to the second floor."

It wasn’t just him. Several other third-floor residents also turned pale and broke into worried murmurs, all of them considering a move to the second floor, even if it meant sharing a room.

Even though the malevolent spirits on the fourth floor hadn’t killed anyone yet—only made their presence known—who could guarantee that things wouldn’t escalate?

Xia Ta’s expression remained calm. She had long since accepted that most residents were timid and spineless. They didn’t care about the truth or the future of the Living Human Apartment; their only concern was their own safety. There were only a handful of people in the entire building she could truly rely on.

"I understand," she said. "Jiang Yang, take down the names of everyone requesting a room change. Start making arrangements.

"There are only two empty rooms on the second floor right now, so it’s obviously impossible for every resident from the third floor to move. The only solution is for two households to share a room for the time being. After all, if you want safety, you’ll have to sacrifice some comfort. Is that acceptable?"

Xia Ta’s tone was calm and even as she explained.

"Those of you who’ve decided to move to the second floor are free to leave this room. What we’re about to discuss doesn’t really concern you for now."

When dealing with supernatural events, there wasn’t safety in numbers.

The residents asking to move were all exceedingly timid; there was no point in having them stay for the discussion.

After a brief commotion, the once-packed room emptied out, leaving only the three administrators, Gao Tian, Zhao Zhenjia, and a few others. Having registered their names, the rest of the residents had all hurried out of Xia Ta’s room to pack their belongings, eager to move downstairs that very night.

Of course, Zhao Zhenjia had no intention of leaving the third floor. One more green text mission and he would be on equal footing with Xia Ta. He had ambitions of his own for the administrator position.

The only real surprise was that Gao Tian, a newcomer with only two green text missions under his belt, also chose to stay and hadn’t left.

Jiang Yang’s eyes narrowed to slits, his gaze falling upon Gao Tian.

"Oh? How interesting.

"You’re a rookie with only two missions, and you were directly affected by the incident on the fourth floor, yet you’ve chosen not to leave?"

Gao Tian replied,

"The first time I came to this apartment, I had a brush with death on the fourth floor. I was lucky enough to make it back alive, and I even got a Black Card for it.

"As for those ’residents’ on the fourth floor... I’m scared of them, of course, but I’m also intensely curious. If I wasn’t, I wouldn’t have chosen to live on this floor in the first place."

He turned to Xia Ta.

"I remember you mentioned the journal you found from the previous administrator. Didn’t she speculate that the entire Living Human Apartment was once safe? That as more residents died, the upper floors were gradually corrupted by supernatural forces and became the domain of ghosts?"

Xia Ta nodded.

"That’s what the journal said."

Zhao Zhenjia stroked his chin, intrigued.

"Kid, follow that train of thought. Are you suggesting that if the previous administrator’s theory is right, then just as the fourth floor was corrupted by supernatural forces, the same thing can now happen to the third floor?

"That the strange things happening in your room are a sign that the ghosts from the fourth floor are starting to corrupt the third?"

Yu Sheng rolled the Buddhist Beads in his hand.

"From the outside, this building only appears to have five floors.

"But in reality, the space inside defies the laws of physics; there are far more than five floors.

"It’s just that the entire fourth floor has been taken over by ghosts, and very few of the living who have entered it have ever returned. Even fewer have ever reached the fifth floor, to say nothing of a sixth."

For a rookie who had been in the Living Human Apartment for less than a month, Gao Tian’s next words were so radical they made even the administrators raise their eyebrows.

"If the previous administrator’s hypothesis is true,

"then allowing the supernatural influence from upstairs to continue creeping downward means that sooner or later, the second floor, and even the first, will be forcibly absorbed into the ghosts’ domain.

"At that point, there won’t be a single safe place left in this entire apartment. We won’t have to worry about our next green text mission, because returning to the apartment will be a death sentence. And failing to return in time is also a death sentence, according to the rules."

He laid out his proposal.

"Before things spin completely out of control, we should form an elite team to proactively go up to the fourth floor and investigate what’s happening up there.

"And if conditions permit, even explore the fifth and sixth floors."

He then asked for a point of clarification.

"Using a Black Card lets you return to the apartment. But if I were to use one on the fourth floor, would I just stay where I am?"

Xia Ta replied,

"You’d be sent back to the first-floor lobby."

’That was a surprisingly humane design,’ he thought.

This meant the Black Card would also work while exploring inside the apartment building.

With that concern addressed, Gao Tian said,

"I’ll be the first to sign up for that team.

"If we’re just going to sit around and wait to die, then there’s no point in us risking life and limb to complete these green text missions."