Chapter Thirty-One: The Convergence of Three Parties

Ji Li was momentarily stunned. A second ago, he had heard the muffled cries coming from the elevator, but the moment the doors opened, he was met with three corpses.

"You really are a god of death, aren't you? Everywhere you go, people die," his second personality remarked with biting sarcasm, calculating that more than half of the current death toll was occurring in Ji Li's immediate vicinity.

"How exactly does the ghost kill without a sound?" his third personality questioned. In truth, he had been pondering this ever since the first employee died. The ghost possessed the ability to manifest clones, but that did not mean it could slaughter employees without any warning. If that were the case, this mission would be impossible to resolve.

Ji Li’s expression was equally grim. His second personality was right; death seemed to follow him wherever he went. Two problems had now emerged: Where exactly was the ghost, and how was it infiltrating living bodies to commit murder? He glanced at the attire of the three corpses; their blue uniforms confirmed that the three repairmen who had failed to rendezvous at the basement level had been trapped in the elevator and had just perished.

There was no need to keep searching for them.

Ji Li pulled his phone from his pocket. The cold light cast on his face made his eyes ache, and he dialed Fang Shenyan’s number. The call was answered quickly, and Ji Li spoke first: "Are you certain you can restore the power on your end?"

On the other side, Fang Shenyan looked at the three busy repairmen and then at the knife in his own hand, offering only an ambiguous reply: "I am not certain."

Ji Li was not surprised. Human repair efforts were not necessarily enough to overcome the power of a ghost. It was a pity, he thought; if the power could be restored, he could take control of the situation via the monitoring room, and perhaps even find room to investigate those two lingering questions about the ghost. But with the power's restoration uncertain, his plans had hit a roadblock.

Ji Li asked no further questions, simply telling him to act with caution before hanging up. As soon as the call ended, Tong Guan called him. Ji Li let out a long sigh, silently hoping for good news, and answered.

"This is Ji Li."

"Ji Li, the groups led by Fang and myself have gathered most of the employees in the lobby on the first floor. However, the headcount is still significantly short. I propose we combine our three parties."

Tong Guan’s voice was deep and steady, unaffected by the string of recent deaths. Ji Li said nothing, looked back at the three bodies that had already turned cold, hung up the phone, and headed downstairs.

***

The lobby was now crowded. The employees, clad in black uniforms, wore panicked expressions and remained deathly silent. Beams of light from the building across the street shone inside, slightly dispelling the darkness, but everyone huddled together without a sound. Only the southwest corner remained vacant; no one wanted to go near the spot where the first female employee, who had been shot twice, lay dead.

Tong Guan stood with his back to the glass doors, half of his body merged with the darkness. He stood tall, a cigarette tucked between his fingers, while his other hand used his phone to record the number of people and information gathered in the lobby.

Chang Nian watched the scene, tied up her loose long hair with a rubber band, and walked toward Tong Guan.

"This ghost is unusual."

Tong Guan did not look at her, continuing his work as he spoke softly, "The cloning ability is almost beyond the scope of a one-star hotel mission. I am very surprised that it is this powerful."

Chang Nian sneered and rolled her eyes at him. "Before the mission, you were spouting off, saying this task wouldn't be difficult. Look at us now. With a cloning ability and forty-three employees, it could kill everyone in three hours if it wanted to!" She spoke of the brutal reality, yet her face showed no trace of fear, as if she remained indifferent to the current situation—or perhaps she possessed absolute confidence in the man beside her, even as she mocked his arrogance.

"No matter how strong it is, this is still a one-star hotel mission. Even with cloning, it cannot be unsolvable. I believe that as long as we find its killing rules, or its loophole, we can overcome this mission!" Tong Guan had compiled a long list and glanced at the sequence, stopping at number thirty-three.

"Ji Li should be here soon." He rubbed his stiff neck and looked toward the darkness of the stairs, scanning the crowd.

Chang Nian’s body stiffened at the mention. Thoughtfully, she pulled a notebook from her pocket. After flipping through it casually, she said, "Ji Li entered the hotel at the beginning of October this year. Looking at these mission records, he has cleared three missions on his own. Solo executions, three times, dragging himself up to the one-star level. This person is not simple."

As she spoke, she turned her gaze toward the theoretical first victim—the one killed by Ji Li’s gun. "When we first arrived at the eleventh branch, the store was already at the one-star level, and there was an acting manager above us. After he died, you took his place. In reality, we have only experienced three missions, and none of them were solo."

Chang Nian’s words carried a sense of melancholy. She thought of the companions who had fought alongside them, now scattered to unknown branches.

Tong Guan nodded. "Ji Li is a man who is ruthless, selfish, and extreme; he will stop at nothing to achieve his goals." He turned his head to look at Yu Guo, who was talking to Li Xing nearby. "That man Fang Shenyan is also quite extraordinary. I can see that his style of doing things is extremely similar to Ji Li’s. I just don’t understand why someone who seems as gentle and kind as Yu Guo would choose to associate with them."

Chang Nian chuckled behind her hand. "Perhaps, only people like that can survive in this world."

Tong Guan scoffed. "If a person lives like that, can they still be called human? I only believe that there is justice in the world. I don't need schemes and tricks; I can keep you alive just the same."

Chang Nian retorted with a huff and gave him a playful punch. "Maybe I’ll be the one keeping you alive."

"What a lively scene. Everyone is almost here." At that moment, Ji Li finally arrived. His appearance caused a stir among the employees. The few who had arrived earlier had already spread news of Ji Li’s previous brutality, and it had circulated rapidly. Almost everyone present now regarded Ji Li and his group as nothing more than desperate outlaws.

Ji Li looked at the sea of heads before him, silently counted them in his mind, and then frowned. He walked over to Tong Guan and gestured for Yu Guo and Li Xing to join them.

"The three parties have converged. It is time to compare the intelligence gathered from our first operations."