"Hurry, it's dangerous inside the building — this is the safest route."
Stepping onto an air conditioning unit, Chen Ge crouched outside the experimental building, waiting for
"The secret is about to be fully revealed. The key to unlocking it is on its way. The moment Zhou Tu enters the art studio, everything will have an answer."
Zhou Tu had probably been a very obedient child growing up — the kind who lived by the rules set by teachers and parents, never stepping outside those boundaries once. He'd been well protected from harm, and of course, that meant he never got to see the kind of "scenery" only bad kids could see.
By the time Zhou Tu reached the third floor, his arms had already started trembling. He didn't dare look down, his face drained of all color. "Teacher, are we there?"
"On the fourth floor." Gripping the edge of the window frame with both hands, Chen Ge climbed up to the outside of the fourth-floor oil painting studio and peered through the gap between the partitions.
The studio that had previously shown signs of anomaly had returned to normal — except the blood-red hues on those oil paintings had become more vivid, as if they had all just been painted and the pigment hadn't dried yet.
The windowsill was far too narrow; standing on it alone was already extremely dangerous. Chen Ge was also worried that Zhou Tu might suddenly lose his mind when he saw those paintings, so after confirming it was safe, he gestured for Zhou Tu to climb into the room next to the studio instead.
"You go in first. Don't be afraid — I'm right behind you."
The fourth floor was already quite high. The night wind blew against their bodies, and Zhou Tu managed a faint nod before crawling in the direction Chen Ge had indicated.
Once Zhou Tu was inside, Chen Ge waved the other club members in as well.
"One, two, three, four?"
Aside from Zhou Tu, four silhouettes had just slipped into the fourth floor.
"One too many?" Chen Ge was the last to vault into the room. He frowned and looked around. The room wasn't large — only a few club members were inside. "Did any of you notice anything unusual when you came in?"
"Nothing obviously wrong, but I felt very uncomfortable the moment I got close to this building. Now that we're inside, that feeling has gotten even worse." The moment Zhang Ju opened his mouth, the scar on his face began writhing like a snake. He looked deeply unsettled.
Zhang Ju's outer coat was almost entirely soaked in blood — he was only a single step away from becoming a Red-clothed. The fact that even he felt uneasy just approaching the building meant that the experimental building likely harbored more than one Red-clothed spirit.
This place was even more dangerous than Chen Ge had imagined, and with the extra silhouette that had just appeared, he grew even more cautious.
"After visiting the art studio, whether Zhou Tu recovers his memories or not, we're leaving." Chen Ge gave them a few advance instructions, and only after everyone agreed did he step out into the hallway.
The fourth-floor corridor hadn't changed much from his last visit — grim, oppressive, as though it hadn't been used in years.
"Zhou Tu, the art club you're looking for is on this floor. The scene from your dream is in the room right next door." The moment Chen Ge stepped into the hallway, he caught a faint stench. He knew perfectly well that at this very moment, those inverted monsters were drifting up and down the corridor.
He hadn't drawn their attention yet, but the longer they lingered, the higher the chance of being discovered.
This time, Chang Gu might not show up again. He had to end this quickly.
"Stop looking around and get moving — aren't you here for the art club? Push open that door, and the memories in your dream will be awakened!" Chen Ge had already spent far too much time in this school. The longer they stayed, the less safe he felt. Chang Gu's appearance had shown him a different glimmer of hope for breaking through.
"Right here?" Zhou Tu stepped out of the room and stopped in front of the art studio door. He gripped the doorknob but couldn't bring himself to push it open.