As the saying goes—

The peace you take for granted exists because someone else is bearing the weight for you.

Ordinary players only know—

The Moon Phase Clock determines a day’s duration in the Doomsday Apartment.

It moves slowly.

So they think they have all the time in the world to waste.

But in truth, slowing down the Moon Phase Clock comes at a cost.

“Tick—”

“Gurgle—Gurgle—”

A low rumbling emerged from the blood-red abyss.

A pitch-black mechanical arm suddenly reached out from the abyss.

It had a unique metallic sheen, glossy black, unstained by a single drop of blood.

As if no matter how ominous or cursed the blood was, it couldn’t taint it.

The few figures floating in midair naturally shifted their gaze from the back of the Moon Phase Clock to the mechanical arm.

No one spoke.

The mechanical arm extended higher and from its top unfolded a metallic palm.

In the center of that palm—

was a pitch-black eyeball.

Though it appeared metallic, its gaze was indistinguishable from that of a living person.

Cold, weighty, and proudly superior.

And in those black eyes, there shimmered a discordant point of light.

Identical to the Light Scorch glow previously displayed in the conference room by the mech representing Duoe.

A moment later, the mechanical arm directed a question to one of the mech figures in the group:

“Zhou Qiming is dead?”

The voice was the standard used by Duoe’s Mecha Units.

And the responding mech used the exact same tone:

“Confirmed deceased. Cause of death under investigation.”

“Investigation?” The mechanical arm’s voice remained cold, its calm tone inherently oppressive. “Didn’t he just die from rolling a Skull on the Dice of Fate? Instant death.”

The mech extended an arm, and a screen projected from its palm.

It was playing the duel between Jiang Ye and Zhou Qiming.

As the footage played, the mech narrated its analysis:

“At first glance, it does resemble a Skull result from the Dice of Fate.”

“But in truth… this kind of inexplicable death is very similar to the strange cases that happened with Wu Ying before.”

He was referring to the defeats caused by Jiang Ye fusing with Wu Ying.

“But the difference is—Wu Ying didn’t die. Zhou Qiming did…”

“So we can’t rule out that Zhou Qiming actually died in reality, and Jiang Ye just faked the Dice of Fate effect.”

“Plus, before their official duel, Jiang Ye intentionally stalled for a while.”

“It’s possible he used that time to set something up outside the Duel Space, to target Zhou Qiming in the real world.”

Clearly, the way Jiang Ye killed Zhou Qiming felt too casual.

The whole thing was shrouded in mysticism, filled with suspicious details worth pondering.

That’s why the other Duoe Mecha Units unanimously agreed that it required further investigation.

However—

After silently watching the screen for a long while, the mechanical hand from the abyss suddenly muttered:

“I was just thinking…”

“Could a Holy Grail result from the Dice of Fate cure Light Scorch?”

The air went still.

Among the floating figures, the non-mech humanoids all frowned.

The mechanical arm rotated its palm toward one of them and asked directly: “Old A, what’s your take?”

Old A was the Apartment Boss of Area A.

From a Beginner Apartment perspective, he was usually called Apartment Boss.

Players in the Doomsday Apartment sometimes referred to him as the District Chief.

But among the high-level figures here, they just used codenames.

In that moment, several gazes fell upon Old A.

He wore a solemn expression, eyes deep in thought, as if contemplating something.

One of the more impatient types, Boss K, jumped in first:

“If you ask me, they’ve had long enough on this ‘first day.’”

“It’s time to begin Day Two and open up Apartment 0000.”

“My team’s been itching to get started!”

As he said that, a few others subtly echoed his sentiment.

However, Old A, who had stayed silent until now, suddenly spoke up:

“This first day—still can’t end.”

“My Apartment 4444 has been severely damaged. It’ll be destroyed at midnight.”

Those words made everyone’s expressions shift.

Boss K muttered with a frown, “What are the odds? It just had to be Apartment 4444, the one place we really couldn’t afford to lose… You sure there’s no personal motive here?”

He wasn’t targeting anyone—just voicing a stray thought.

But his words were blunt, and Old A shot him a cold glance and said darkly:

“How about I send the Light-type over to you? Let you feel this ‘coincidence’ for yourself?”

Boss K quickly waved it off with a laugh, “N-no thanks, I don’t think I’m blessed enough for that kind of luck, ahem…”

Old A’s face stayed tense for a moment before relaxing, and he said casually:

“But really, that disgusting thing—might actually be able to break through the district barrier and run from Area A to your K Area.”

??!!

That line hit hard.

Aside from Old A, the other Apartment Bosses immediately looked panicked.

What kind of joke was that?!

That kind of dangerous monster—let it stay in Area A where it belonged!

No way should it be allowed to move across districts!!

Suddenly, all the bosses who had just been agreeing with Boss K switched gears.

Now they stood united with Old A:

“If you ask me, Old A is absolutely right! The first day really can’t end just yet!”

“Say what you will, but Apartment 4444 really can’t be casually destroyed!”

Even though Boss K was afraid of the Light-type running into his turf,

he still felt bitter watching everyone flip sides so quickly. He frowned and offered his analysis:

“Look, if we could truly eliminate the Light-type once and for all…”

“Then sacrificing your Apartment 4444 might actually be worth it, right?”

“As for using the Apartment’s destruction to let him cross districts…”

“I still think that’s far too unrealistic!”

“Sure, there were cross-district cases before, but what day was that? And what day are we on now?”

“If you ask me, we should act decisively!”

“Before he gets too absurdly powerful, move straight into the next day. Use the Apartment’s destruction to wipe him out with it!”

To be fair, he did make some sense.

Using the Apartment’s destruction to cross districts…

That was an extremely low-probability scenario.

For a newbie player at this stage, completing it was basically, probably… downright impossible.

But the things that had happened lately had really shaken their confidence.

So this “impossible” wasn’t so absolute anymore.

This time, the fence-sitters didn’t immediately sway.

They just became vague and noncommittal again.

Old A swept the room with an eye-roll.

He didn’t bother retorting again. He simply turned back to the mechanical arm rising from the blood-red abyss and asked in a low voice:

“What do you think? Can the destruction of a single Apartment really wipe out that disgusting thing?”

Mentioning that disgusting thing, the light in the eyeball embedded in the mechanical hand seemed to twitch slightly.

Emotionally, as a dark-type being, who wouldn’t want that abomination to die early and reincarnate faster?

But rationally…

The mechanical hand didn’t even need to answer. One of the fence-sitters suddenly asked,

“By the way, why is Apartment 4444 in Area A set to be destroyed at midnight ahead of schedule?”

Old A replied with a calm look, “Nothing special. The Graveyard Barrier was cut.”

???

That line brought another wave of awkward tension to the scene.

Old A added, “Yeah, cut by that disgusting thing.”

“…” The mood grew even heavier.

At this point, even Old K dialed back his tone, suddenly speaking with some fake good-hearted consolation:

“I think, y’know…”

“If even the Graveyard Barrier has been compromised, then maybe your Apartment 4444… should be destroyed after all. Nothing worth getting attached to.”

This time, the mechanical hand also finally voiced an opinion:

“Indeed. 4444… must be given up.”

“But before it’s completely destroyed, bring Zhou Qiming back.”

“Whether that disgusting thing dies with the Apartment or manages to cross to another district in the destruction…”

“I want Zhou Qiming revived by the next midnight.”

Whether Zhou Qiming came back or not, most of them didn’t really care.

But—

Old A frowned. “Then what about those originally in the Graveyard—”

“What about them?” the mechanical hand coldly interrupted. “Do any of those things dare to face the Light?”

“…”

Old A fell silent again, turning once more to look at the back of the Moon Phase Clock, covered in countless chains.

At this moment, he thought of a metaphor Lu Shen once had—

The ease of the rich comes from wealth; the ease of the poor comes from already having nothing to lose.

The anxiety of the poor comes from having no money; the anxiety of the rich comes from the fear of death.

That logic applied perfectly to the Doomsday Apartment.

Ordinary players at the bottom just wanted to get stronger, to live with Soul and Dignity.

But people at their level? Their goal was to survive—eternally.

Just like how Emperor Qin and Han Wudi eventually pursued immortality.

But now…

Their deaths were pressing in.

The Moon Phase Clock, or rather, the Doomsday Apartment, was already on Day 8.

Very soon—

Probably after this generation of Beginner Apartments finishes—Day 9 will arrive.

And they didn’t have much time left…

Meanwhile, over on Jiang Ye’s side, he was also thinking about time.

More precisely, he was thinking about the duration of the Entropy Scythe and the S-tier skill Soul Link.

The former lasted one hour, the latter two.

The Entropy Scythe wasn’t a big deal.

With the Threaded Blood Puppet, the cost of rolling a Skull with the Dice of Fate had dropped.

From one full Replica, down to ten strands of hair.

So even if he couldn’t influence the dice roll with a White Decree just yet, summoning a powerful weapon wasn’t hard.

What he cared more about was his Personal Instance that his main body was currently undergoing.

Ideally, he’d clear the Personal Instance within the time limit of this trial version of Soul Link.

Even better, he’d convert the trial skill into a real, permanently mastered one.

This trial skill, after all, came from a deal he made with Lin Jing and Ouyang.

And right now, his two good bros were right here—so Jiang Ye didn’t bother being polite.

He could feel it—

Right now, the two of them were scared of him.

But the more afraid they were, the more relaxed Jiang Ye felt:

“Hey, let’s just say Zhou Qiming used some method to cross Apartments and disappeared.”

“But he promised me, once the duel was over, he’d explain the secrets of Apartment 4444 and the bad omen of the Dice of Fate…”

“And now he just ghosts on me? Doesn’t keep his word?”

Lin Jing and Ouyang felt complicated hearing the phrase “doesn’t keep his word.”

Especially Lin Jing.

When Jiang Ye had first arrived at Apartment 9999, he’d been a total Level 1 newbie, and even questioned whether Jiang Ye could be trusted.

But now? How long had it even been? Lin Jing felt like he’d been through ages of turmoil.

The main reason was that Jiang Ye had grown too fast—

So fast it was terrifying!

Jiang Ye looked straight at the two of them:

“I believe Zhou Qiming isn’t the kind of guy to go back on his word. He must’ve had something urgent come up.”

“You both heard his promise to me before.”

“So I think he wouldn’t mind if you two fulfill it in his place.”

That’s what he said…

And his tone was pretty friendly.

But Lin Jing and Ouyang both knew—

Zhou Qiming? Whether he was dead or alive was still a mystery!

If he really was dead, then why would it matter what promises he made?

In truth, neither of them had any real bond with Zhou Qiming—their relationship was mostly transactional or coerced.

So now, they weren’t about to risk themselves by defying Jiang Ye over a maybe-dead guy.

Especially Ouyang, who was quicker to adapt than Lin Jing.

Lin Jing still had a bit of backbone, but Ouyang was the type to change sides on the spot.

He was just about to answer when—

The five who had followed Zhou Qiming, especially that hot-headed guy who kept trash-talking Jiang Ye, instantly objected.

That guy probably watched too many gangster movies—he had that feral, rude swagger, and was fiercely loyal to his boss.

Put him in a Hong Kong crime flick, he’d probably make a great guard dog.

Too bad he wasn’t Jiang Ye’s dog.

Jiang Ye glanced at him—calm and imposing:

“If you’ve got a problem with it, how about we duel too?”

Just one simple sentence, matched with eyes as still as a mirror.

The hot-headed youth instantly got the illusion—

that if he so much as said “yes”, he’d disappear like Zhou Qiming, without a sound.

His whole body stiffened, throat tightening, eyes flickering as he sat back down.

What Jiang Ye didn’t even realize—

was that since merging with the Observer, his entire aura had changed.

To a degree that old classmates, the White-Clad Woman, and fellow Light-type Player He Xingyue would be shocked to see.

Especially his eyes—when they held no emotion, they radiated a kind of divinity that transcended all things…

Lin Jing and Ouyang obviously noticed the change too.

After a long silence, it was Lin Jing, with some actual backbone, who finally spoke:

“You must’ve noticed too—”

“The member list of Apartment 4444 shows way more players than a normal Apartment.”

“But in truth, very few actually stayed in this Apartment.”

“That’s why so many names are dimmed.”

“They’re not all dead. A lot of them left across Apartments.”

Lin Jing was describing the situation.

But Jiang Ye knew he was hinting at something deeper.

So he picked up:

“Those players revived from the Graveyard all appear on the member list.”

“But they didn’t stick around to develop 4444—they left again, across Apartments.”

That line made Lin Jing and Ouyang both raise their brows in surprise.

Because up until now, Jiang Ye didn’t seem like a gamer. He even called himself a newbie.

But now, he was saying things that hinted at insider knowledge about the Graveyard!

Things even Wan Xin probably didn’t know!

Jiang Ye didn’t care what assumptions they were making. He just got straight to the point:

“As far as I know—”

“Opening a coffin in the Graveyard to revive someone isn’t easy, right?”

“So when you two were revived… who opened your coffins? Was it Zhou Qiming?”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep