Chen Bei sized up the other party and genuinely felt inclined to cooperate.
It wasn't because he was captivated by her beauty.
Rather, after Chen Bei left, he needed someone to help look after his dormitory to prevent it from being raided!
The room where Cao Qingqing was located was perfectly suited for this purpose.
"Cooperation, that can be considered," Chen Bei conceded.
Cao Qingqing was overjoyed, her face radiant, and she quickly said, "If you're willing to cooperate, why don't you just let me live with you? Your dormitory is much better than mine."
"No, not that kind of cooperation. We'll add each other as friends. When I go out to explore, you'll help me monitor my door here. If anyone attacks my door, you'll immediately notify me via private message. If you accomplish this, I'll share some benefits with you when I return from my exploration."
"This... that works too."
Cao Qingqing thought about it and felt there was profit to be made.
With initial cooperation, mutual trust would deepen, allowing for further cooperation.
Sooner or later, she would be able to move into his dormitory!
Just like that, both parties hit it off and added each other as friends on the spot.
Chen Bei confirmed that friends could private message each other, allowing his cooperation plan to be realized.
To put it bluntly, he was having Cao Qingqing act as his camera, keeping an eye on his doorstep.
"I'll leave this to you. Stay in the room and don't wander around; it's dangerous outside," Chen Bei said.
"Okay, I'll listen to you. You must be careful when you go out," Cao Qingqing urged.
"By the way, you should know that I've killed someone. Why do you still want to cooperate with me?"
"Precisely because you dare to kill, that's why I'm cooperating with you!"
"Understood."
Chen Bei nodded; it made sense.
He left this place to Cao Qingqing and set off alone, quickly heading to the next floor via the stairs.
Previously, someone in the Management Group chat had mentioned floor information.
Upstairs, it was capped at the 12th floor, where a door couldn't be opened, perhaps indicating the existence of even higher floors.
Downstairs, it was smooth sailing all the way to the first floor, but the main door couldn't be exited.
Additionally, there was an Underground Room, and its door was also locked.
Actually, Chen Bei also had a lot of information he could share.
It's just that he was being treated as a murderer, equivalent to a bad guy, so pretending to be a good guy and sharing information seemed unnecessary.
Upon reaching the seventh floor, he saw that the fire axe was still there.
Chen Bei was delighted and immediately put it into his bag.
He continued to explore downwards.
The fire axe on the sixth floor was gone.
The fifth floor still had one.
Upon reaching the fourth floor, a special situation arose.
Several people were standing in front of the fire box, taking out the fire axe.
It seemed that others already knew about the fire axes! And like Chen Bei, they were collecting them floor by floor!
The leader among them was a stern-faced man with squinted small eyes, and part of a tattoo was visible on one side of his face, with more tattoos extending down his neck.
Fei Ge, holding the newly acquired fire axe, sensed Chen Bei's presence.
The two were twenty meters apart, looking at each other from a distance.
Chen Bei's current appearance was quite intimidating.
All that blood seemed like a warning!
"Fei Ge, this guy also has a fire axe! Should we take him on?"
A guy with a pointy chin and monkey-like cheeks asked Fei Ge.
Fei Ge's face was grim, his gaze still fixed on Chen Bei, remaining silent.
Chen Bei didn't want to fight this group of people, so he voluntarily went downstairs.
Fei Ge looked at the direction Chen Bei left, his eyes flashing like the cold glint on a dagger.
"It was mentioned in the group that a kid killed someone; it's most likely him. We'll stick to our business; there's no need to confront him head-on for now."
Fei Ge paused, a slight smile playing on his lips.
"Or rather... a sheep is only delicious when it's fattened up!"
—
The fire axes on the lower floors were all gone.
Chen Bei got two fire axes on this trip downstairs, which was a decent haul.
Having reached the first floor, he naturally had to check out the main entrance.
Chen Bei went to inspect the main entrance.
The main door serving as an exit was made of metal and protected by a layer of iron mesh, appearing incredibly sturdy, certainly not something a single fire axe could destroy.
There was a card reader device by the door, indicating that a door key was needed to open it.
Those in the Management Group noticed Chen Bei staring at the card reader.
【Wanting to get out now is purely wishful thinking. The door card is on the plot boss of the Thriller Night. You can only get it by killing the boss.】
【Surviving four days in this building is the simplest way to clear it. Killing the boss to get the door card and clear it, very few newcomers can do that.】
【Unless he can get the hidden weapon in the building, then it might be possible.】
【That weapon is hidden too deeply; what kind of luck would it take to get it?】
The Management Group chatted freely.
Chen Bei, peeking at these messages, felt his heart pound.
There was a plot boss in the game, and the door card was on the boss.
Additionally, there was a hidden weapon in the building!
Getting the hidden weapon would give him hope of taking down the boss!
Clearly, this method of clearing was more advanced, and the final rewards would definitely be better.
"Why don't you continue talking about the hidden weapon topic!"
"Damn it, just talk!"
Chen Bei was itching with curiosity.
But the Management Group changed the subject and didn't continue discussing it.
This made Chen Bei furious.
Lacking crucial information, searching all 12 floors for it was too slim a chance.
【How much longer until it gets dark?】
【Soon, less than ten minutes left.】
【Great, I can't wait to see the zombies go on a rampage!】
【It's only the first night; the zombies are still very weak. A Level 1 door can block them. Not many people should die.】
The Management Group mentioned the day-night cycle.
It was about to get dark!
Ten minutes was a very tight timeframe.
Chen Bei couldn't waste time. He left the main entrance and turned back to scavenge for supplies along the way.
The system did not come with a clock function.
Perhaps it deliberately pursued this vague sense of time, keeping players in the dark.
Chen Bei estimated the time in his head, exploring along the way, and returned to the eighth floor.
Along the way, he had seen a few corpses, but they weren't players'; they were already there.
The presence of these corpses had already sparked Chen Bei's conjectures...
At this moment, the building's alarm suddenly blared, a piercing sound accompanied by flashing red lights.
From the loudspeaker, a man's voice, tinged with excitement and fanaticism, rang out.
"It's finally dark! Third batch of test subjects, begin your performance; let me see your physical vitality!"
【Warning! Night is about to fall, countdown 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1!】
The countdown was like a death knell, only ten seconds in total.
Fortunately, Chen Bei had returned early; otherwise, he wouldn't have made it in time.
Cao Qingqing was hiding in her room, watching Chen Bei sprint like crazy, and quickly opened her door, shouting, "It's nighttime! Let me hide in your place!"
"No time! Hide back in your own dormitory, survive this night, and I'll give you a share tomorrow."
Chen Bei unlocked his door with the key, opened it, went inside, and slammed the door shut.
Cao Qingqing stomped her foot in anger and also closed her door.
After Chen Bei entered the room, he looked out the window.
Originally, it was foggy and somewhat bright outside the window.
Now, it had turned into deep darkness.
Night had fallen!