Chapter 25: The Lovesick Ghost, Zhou Mengyue

Chapter 25: The Infatuated Ghost, Zhou Mengyue

Unlike the gloomy atmosphere of the Coffin Residential District, Green Mountain Hospital was bathed in bright sunshine. The entire facility appeared quite modern; if not for the bizarre figures wandering back and forth, it would have looked no different from the real world.

Duan Ming and the young girl, having just left the cafeteria, walked briskly along the shaded path of the hospital. Through a brief exchange, Duan Ming learned that the girl was named Shang Xiaoya, and this was her second time entering the Ghost Realm.

At this moment, Shang Xiaoya was uncharacteristically excited, completely devoid of the terror she had shown earlier. She held a tree branch, hacking away at the greenery lining the road with energetic "he-ha" sounds as she spoke.

"Duan Ming, you are just too amazing! I never imagined that ghosts could actually be chopped up. It’s so satisfying, hahaha!"

Watching her swing the branch with increasing vigor, Duan Ming recalled how this seemingly fragile girl had decapitated the Flat-Headed Ghost seven or eight times, reattaching it only to hack it off again. A trace of regret pricked his heart; it seemed his actions had awakened some extraordinary, latent attribute within Shang Xiaoya.

However, he was currently more concerned about Han Lingling.

"So, you can only see Han Lingling once a day?" he asked.

"Yes." Shang Xiaoya nodded, pointing toward a five-story building in the distance—the hospital’s inpatient department.

"There are twenty of us who entered this time, distributed across the bottom four floors of the inpatient building, five people per floor. Under normal circumstances, the caregivers from different floors are strictly forbidden from meeting or communicating with one another."

"But every morning, each floor sends one person to deliver the patients' meal menus to the first floor, which we then pass on to the cafeteria. This morning, the list for the fourth floor was given to me by Sister Lingling."

Duan Ming’s breathing hitched. "And how is she now? Is she okay? No missing limbs? What’s her condition?"

"She... she’s fine. Sister Lingling looks the same as before," Shang Xiaoya replied. "But strangely, the other three floors have lost quite a few people. All five on the fourth floor are still alive. I suspect there might be a veteran player leading them."

"A veteran?" Duan Ming was surprised. If there was a veteran, then Han Lingling’s safety might not be an issue after all. Thinking of this, his anxious heart settled significantly.

Shang Xiaoya continued, her expression turning worried. "Although there is less than twenty-four hours left in the mission, and we’ve grown accustomed to our jobs over the past two days, the current situation is nothing to take lightly."

"In two days, we’ve already lost eight teammates. Aside from the fourth floor, we’ve lost two on the first floor and two on the second. The third floor is the hardest hit; there’s only one person left. The head nurse hasn't made new assignments, just telling the first and second floors to help out, or even having the fourth floor take over the third entirely. I’m afraid the remaining time won’t be easy to endure."

Duan Ming’s heart tightened again. He quickened his pace, nearly breaking into a run. "Hurry, hurry!"

"By the way, are you sure I can get into your caregiver department?"

Shang Xiaoya scrambled to keep up, panting slightly. "It should be fine. You must have used a specific instance entry ticket to get here, which is why you were assigned to the kitchen as an extra. You might not know this, but in the Green Mountain Hospital instance, there is an extremely low probability of being assigned a role other than a caregiver. Since caregivers are the department with the highest mortality rate, they are always short-handed. The head nurse will likely approve it, provided we can actually see her."

She paused before adding, "However, I still want to confirm: do you really want to transfer from the kitchen to the caregiver department? I wasn't just trying to scare you—people die very easily here."

The only response she received was the sight of Duan Ming’s back as he sped ahead.

A few minutes later, the two reached the inpatient building. The moment Duan Ming stepped through the entrance, a chill enveloped his entire body—it felt even more heart-wrenching than entering the residential building in the Coffin District.

This inpatient building was teeming with an immense number of ghosts.

The interior design was no different from the real world: clean and tidy decor, bright incandescent lights, and even the service desk was staffed by two female ghosts who looked no different from ordinary people. They were stunningly beautiful, save for their pale complexions.

A rushed Shang Xiaoya carefully nodded at the two receptionists, intending to lead Duan Ming inside.

"Stop!"

Duan Ming had never imagined a voice could be so piercing. It was one of the receptionists. Her face was contorted, staring at Duan Ming with intense hatred. "Shang Xiaoya, what are you doing?! Who is this man? Is the inpatient department a place where a caregiver can just bring outsiders in at will?!"

Shang Xiaoya was startled. In their two days of contact, the receptionist had never lost her temper like this; she had always been quite amiable.

She hunched her shoulders and explained weakly, "Sister Fangfang, he wants to transfer from the kitchen to our caregiver department, so I wanted to see if the head nurse was in."

"Hmph, ridiculous. You believe a man’s words?" the receptionist sneered. "A kitchen worker wanting to join the caregivers? What a low-effort excuse. Is he tired of living?"

Duan Ming was bewildered. He hadn't done anything, yet this person seemed to be targeting him specifically, with wisps of ghostly aura even leaking from her body.

He cast an appraisal.

[Ghost Deceived by a Scumbag]
[Name: Yu Fangfang]
[Level: Malignant Ghost]
[Ghost Qi: 352]
[Friendliness: -30 (She hates you)]
[Target Info: Born with a constitution for attracting scumbags. With a delicate appearance and a weak personality, she was repeatedly hurt by men until, after being deceived and betrayed by a man she considered her soulmate, she took her own life at home. After becoming a ghost, she realized the truth and has since despised all male life forms. Death condition: Male, being promised something untruthful.]
[Hint: Perhaps it is an opportunity, or perhaps it requires long-term influence; sincerity can always melt ice. Note: This is not just a platitude.]

Good grief, being born a man already fulfilled half of her death condition? Although her strength wasn't high, whether in the Ghost Realm or the real world, Duan Ming’s first instinct when meeting someone so stubborn was to stay away.

However, the priority was to see the head nurse. He pinned his hopes on the other receptionist.

Unlike Yu Fangfang, this woman showed no displeasure. She was resting her chin in her hands, looking at Duan Ming with an expression of infatuation.

Duan Ming touched his face. Perhaps he wouldn't even need to do anything to get the information he needed from her.

[Infatuated Ghost]
[Name: Zhou Mengyue]
[Level: Malignant Ghost]
[Ghost Qi: 587]
[Friendliness: 80 (Secretly smitten)]
[Target Info: Has zero resistance to handsome boys and easily falls into infatuation. However, note that she also tires of the old for the new very quickly.]
[Hint: Flirt with her! Flirt with her! Flirt with her!]