Chapter 163: Map of Death

After Sister Ping was dragged away, the oppressive atmosphere in the garbage dump actually dissipated slightly.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, as if they had just seen off a plague god.

Only Chen Yu knew that that woman was no plague god; she was the only spark of resistance left in this hell.

Now, that spark had been snuffed out.

Old Ghost's turbid eyes drifted over to him from time to time, but for some reason, Chen Yu felt a new emotion mixed within them.

Anxiety!

Chen Yu continued to play the role of "A-Zhe," the frightened coward who had been scared out of his wits, burying his head in his work, moving even slower and more clumsily than before.

He needed to find an opportunity.

An absolute safe opportunity where no one would pay him any attention.

In the afternoon, everyone was somewhat lethargic from the sultry, foul stench, and even the overseers were dozing off in the shade.

The opportunity had arrived.

"My stomach... my stomach hurts..."

Chen Yu clutched his stomach, his face as pale as paper, beads of cold sweat covering his forehead, looking for all the world like he was about to shit his pants.

Given this miserable state, coupled with the "reputation" he had earned from his previous beating, no one wanted to get anywhere near him.

Old Ghost impatiently waved a hand, gesturing for him to crawl off to the latrine.

The latrine was the foulest corner of the entire estate—an open-air earthen pit stinking to high heaven with flies buzzing everywhere.

It was also a complete blind spot for surveillance.

Chen Yu plunged straight into the compartment that was strong enough to knock a person unconscious, and slammed the dilapidated wooden door shut behind him.

Leaning against the stain-covered wall, he breathed heavily—not from pain, but from tension.

With trembling hands, he fished an object out of his trouser pocket.

It was a crumpled piece of oiled paper, greasy to the touch and reeking of a bizarre odor.

Chen Yu carefully unfolded it.

Scrawled across the oiled paper were disorderly lines drawn in some kind of dark brown liquid, as crude as a child's graffiti.

Many parts were blurred and indistinct, as if they had been soaked in water, making it impossible to tell what was depicted.

What the hell is this? Modern abstract art?

Sister Ping traded her life for this piece of crap?

Chen Yu cursed inwardly, yet forced himself to calm down.

His fingertips lightly brushed against those dark brown lines.

Right now.

[Causal Retrospection]!

The latrine before him vanished.

It was replaced by a much darker, much narrower space.

Like a locker, or a corner of a ventilation duct.

He saw it.

It was a woman's hand, so emaciated it was nothing more than skin and bones, with black dirt packed beneath her fingernails.

The owner of that hand was lying flat on the ground, using a sharp wooden splinter to pierce her own finger.

Fresh blood dripped down.

Dipping her fingers in her own blood, mixed with the filth on the ground, she hastily sketched upon the oiled paper.

Chen Yu could not see her face, but [Causal Resonance] allowed him to feel the emotion as solid as substance.

It was not fear, nor was it despair.

It was hatred.

A mad, consuming hatred that wished to burn the entire world to ashes.

There was also... a commission.

The sheer determination to hand over this blade, knowing full well she would die in the process.

The vision shattered.

Chen Yu's consciousness was violently yanked back to reality. He was still standing in the reeking latrine, but in his mind, that crude map had become vividly clear.

It was a complete, meticulously detailed architectural schematic!

From the bottom-tier labor district where they were stationed, to the layout of the upper levels, the guard shift changes, the scanning blind spots of the surveillance cameras, and even the paths of the ventilation ducts—everything was crystal clear.

Marked on the map was a route traced in bright red, winding and twisting to avoid all known hazards, ultimately pointing to a single destination: the underground dock.

A flawless escape route!

Damn it!

Chen Yu's heart beat wildly.

Heaven leaves no dead end!

He figured it out in an instant: the previous survivor, Lin Li, must have escaped using this exact map!

This map was the "jailbreak guide" for this place!

As long as he followed this path, he could leave this ghost place, and take Li Qing with him!

A surge of wild joy rushed to his head, making him almost laugh out loud.

Yet, at that exact moment.

Another vision, like a bucket of ice water dumped over his head, slammed fiercely into his mind.

It was inside the special ward of the provincial detective bureau: Lin Li lying on the bed, bizarre butterfly-shaped blood patterns spreading across her skin, screaming in agony as her body... melted like a candle.

Melting into an indistinguishable puddle of flesh and blood.

Escaping... and then what?

The wild joy on Chen Yu's face froze.

Damn it all.

Escape, and then what?

Find a scenic spot within seven days and turn into a puddle of rotting meat?

In his mind, the bright red countdown of the S-rank mission ticked away coldly like the Grim Reaper's sickle.

[Time remaining: 5 days, 14 hours, 32 minutes, and 05 seconds...]

The so-called "escape route" instantly transformed into a "death march."

This was by no means a path to survival.

It was a dead end guiding you toward another form of death.

To escape was equivalent to suicide.

Chen Yu leaned against the wall and slowly slid down to the ground.

An unprecedented chill rose from the soles of his feet.

Shit.

He had been played.

Everyone had been played.

This place was fundamentally a cage from which escape was utterly impossible.

A perfect, closed loop.

Once you enter, don't even think about leaving alive.

Even if you miraculously manage to run, the "Butterfly Dream" inside your body will settle accounts with you right on schedule.

Despair.

It was the kind of despair born from seeing all the truth laid bare, only to realize you could change nothing at all.

Chen Yu hugged his head, his body trembling violently.

He thought of Li Qing.

Where was that foolish woman right now? Was she also enduring torture beyond his imagination?

He thought of Sister Ping.

When that woman handed him the map, her expression had been so numb, so calm.

She had known all along that this map was not meant for escape.

After a brief flash of despair, Chen Yu's eyes slowly filled with a terrifying, bloodshot hue.

Fury surged wildly in his chest like volcanic magma.

He slowly raised his head, the last trace of confusion vanishing from his gaze.

He was wrong.

He had been wrong from the very beginning.

Who the hell said this map was for escaping?

This was by no means an "escape map."

This was a "hunting map"!

Sister Ping and those hiding in the shadows drew this map with their lives and blood—not so someone could luck out and run away.

They wanted the person who held this map to tear this earthly hell apart from the inside out!

Chen Yu's breathing grew heavy as he stared at the ultra-clear map in his mind.

Every guard's position, every surveillance blind spot, every room's purpose...

This wasn't the blueprint of a prison.

This was the blueprint of a hunting ground!

If he wanted to survive and save people, the only way out wasn't running.

It was slaughter!

It was destroying everything here!

At this moment, Chen Yu's mind was clearer than ever before.

His objective had also become unequivocally clear.

First, find Li Qing. Dead or alive, he had to see her with his own eyes.

Second, find the core incriminating evidence of the Butterfly Dream Estate. Not only must he destroy this place, but he also had to ensure Dong Zhan, the forces behind him, and every single scoundrel involved were brought down, rotting in prison for the rest of their lives!

Third, and most crucial.

Find the formula for "Butterfly Dream."

He needed the antidote!

Not just for himself, but for everyone controlled by this poison!

Chen Yu slowly stood up from the ground, brushed the dust off his clothes, and straightened his attire.

When he pushed open the dilapidated door of the latrine, the expression on his face transformed back into that of the cowering, cowardly gambler "A-Zhe."

Yet, deep within his eyes, a thoroughly enraged beast had awakened.

He was no longer consumable prey to be hunted.

He was going to become the hunter.

Chen Yu looked at the overseers' backs in the distance, looking over the estate that imprisoned countless souls, and a cold smile formed on his lips.

A game?

Now, it begins.