Chapter 376: The Silent Du Yu

The heavy iron door rattled and banged, the impacts from outside growing stronger by the second. The doorframe shook, terrifying everyone watching.

"Hurry up! Get over here and help!" Number Nine shouted at the people around the round table. In the end, only Number One Wang Shi hesitated for a moment before standing up to help block the door.

"You people are insane! Number Nine, get to the Electric Chair immediately! Stop challenging the rules of the game!" Number Seven Jin Zhouzhe looked anxious. His usual calm had finally shattered, a shift that only I noticed.

'If Number Eight really is Xia Chi, his foresight for danger and his understanding of the game should far exceed mine. He promised to give me a hand earlier, and now he specifically asked Number Nine, Number Eleven, and Du Yu to help him. There has to be a reason!' I watched coldly, unconcerned by the unknown outside the door. 'In Xia Chi's eyes, Number Nine, Number Eleven, and Du Yu are the biggest threats to me. I need to pay close attention to those three.'

"Don't open the door! Whatever you do, don't open it! Damn it!" Number Nine already regretted pushing the cabinet aside. Hearing Jin Zhouzhe's warning only fueled his urge to back out.

An accident no one saw coming occurred in that very instant. Number Nine had barely turned halfway when the door lock clicked. Number Eight had forcefully jammed the Alloy Key into it.

The lock cylinder turned, and the heavy iron door took a hit like a massive wave, instantly crashing open half a foot.

"Close it!"

Darkness and freezing cold flooded the room. The chill pierced right to the bone; even sitting far away at the table, I couldn't help but shiver.

The shaking iron door terrified the men holding it. Number Six had originally intended to go over and help, but he inadvertently glanced through the gap. His legs gave out and he collapsed straight to the floor, his face twisted in horror. "Impossible! You're already dead! I cut you into pieces! I remember every single step vividly—how could you still be outside?!"

Startled by his screams, the men at the door froze for a second, allowing the iron door to push inward a few more centimeters.

Before they could react, Number Eight grabbed Number Nine with one hand and reached for Du Yu with the other. However, Du Yu was prepared and dodged to the side.

"Number Eight, what are you doing?" Number Nine instinctively sensed something was wrong as an indescribable terror swallowed him. "Let go! Get your fucking hands off me!"

Despite the screaming, Number Eight stubbornly refused to let go. He wedged himself against the doorframe as an irresistible force from the outside sucked at his body, forcefully dragging him out the door.

"Fuck! Let go!"

Number Nine desperately thrashed his arm, but Number Eight's fingers dug into his flesh like iron claws. Number Eight's voice faintly echoed from outside the door: "A pity Number Ten got away. As for you, come to hell with me!"

Soon, half of Number Nine's arm was pulled outside, followed by a shocking scene. Over a dozen slender, scar-covered female arms snaked in through the gap. They tore at Number Nine's skin and ripped at his flesh, sending large splatters of dark blood spilling across the floor.

"Pull me back! Save me!" With half his body dragged outside, Number Nine waved his one free hand desperately, trying in vain to grab onto anything.

"If we save you, we all die! Get the hell out!" While Number Nine struggled for his life, Number One Wang Shi hardened his heart and kicked him out the door. He then threw his body against the iron door. "Are you just going to stand there and watch?! Come help!"

Number Six and Number Five Tian Teng both ran over to press against the door, while Number Ten Du Yu bolted for the Electric Chair and immediately sat down.

The alarm stopped, and the force bashing against the iron door slowly weakened.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Number One Wang Shi slid down the iron door and planted his ass on the floor. "That was close. Did any of you get a good look at what those things outside were?"

His casual question caused the atmosphere in the room to turn heavy again.

"Don't all go silent on me. The gap was huge, and from your angles, you should have been able to see outside. I practically saved your lives; asking you to share a little information isn't too much, is it?" Wang Shi climbed up from the floor and pulled the Alloy Key out of the lock.

"It was too dark. I didn't see anything."

Number Seven Jin Zhouzhe was the first to speak. I then shook my head. "You should ask Number Six. His expression completely changed; he definitely saw something terrifying."

Everyone's eyes converged on Number Six, making his already gloomy face look even worse. "Just now, through the crack in the door, I vaguely saw Zhang Yanxia. She's the female factory worker I dismantled into pieces."

"Are you sure you weren't mistaken? Could it be someone in disguise, intentionally wearing makeup?" Number Seven Jin Zhouzhe quickly raised his doubts. Psychology incorporated philosophy, but its foundation was reality. To him, talk of ghosts and monsters was undoubtedly pure fantasy. If reincarnation and karmic retribution existed in this world, he wouldn't have become a death row doctor to punish evil and promote good.

"I'd love to tell you I was mistaken, but Zhang Yanxia's face is etched deep into my memory. The night I dismembered her, I engraved every part of her body into my mind. Whenever I think about it, it brings me a unique sort of thrill. There is absolutely no way I misidentified her!"

The souls of the dead stood outside the door, knocking on it, devouring every living person who walked out.

"Repentance? Atonement? I think I'm starting to understand." Wang Shi took a few steps back, steering far clear of the iron door. "Do you guys think ghosts actually exist in this world?"

"That's a false premise, and it's not worth discussing." Number Seven Jin Zhouzhe stood up and walked over to the iron door, inspecting the severely deformed doorframe. "The iron door won't hold much longer. Next time, we can't wait for the alarm to urge us; we have to consciously follow the rules of the game. Otherwise, when this door is smashed open, we're all doomed."

He and Tian Teng pushed the cabinet back up to block the iron door. The blood on the floor hadn't even coagulated before fresh blood seeped in through the gap beneath the door, the faint smell of gore stinging everyone's noses.

"Number Eight's behavior was really bizarre. He knew he was going to die, yet he insisted on dragging others down with him." Number One Wang Shi returned to his seat, frowning deeply. "Earlier, if Number Ten hadn't dodged so quickly, he probably would've been dragged out by Number Eight too. There's a problem here. There was definitely something wrong with Number Eight."

After speaking, he looked up at me. Everyone around the round table knew that the relationship between Number Eight and me was unusual, and now they stared at me with unkind eyes. "Number Twelve, what did Number Eight whisper to you after he got out of the Electric Chair? How do you two know each other?"

"Are you the organizer? Is Number Eight your subordinate? Are you two teaming up to trick everyone?"

"Yeah, Number Eight is dead, so you need to take responsibility for Number Nine's death, Number Twelve!"

Faced with their accusations, I found it hard to answer. Even if Number Eight really was Xia Chi, I had already lost my memories of him. Everything about him was a mystery to me.

"You all heard my conversation with Number Eight. I suffered from amnesia for a while. Number Eight knows me, but I don't know him. As for what he whispered to me at the end that you're all so curious about, there's no harm in telling you." I shifted my tone. "He told me to be careful of Number Nine, Number Ten, and Number Eleven. He said those three are extremely dangerous!"

"Number Nine is already dead, so Number Ten and Number Eleven..." Jin Zhouzhe's gaze darted between the two men, but he didn't press the matter any further.

"If they're dead, they're dead. We suddenly have two fewer competitors; we should be celebrating." Wang Shi stepped in to smooth things over. "Let's all pipe down and listen to Number Ten's confession."

Everyone sat back down at the round table and turned their eyes toward Du Yu. The hall suddenly fell silent.

After putting on the helmet, the calm smile on Du Yu's face disappeared. He tapped the edge of the Electric Chair with one hand and propped his chin up with the other, not speaking immediately like the other murderers had.

Everyone exchanged glances, having no idea what Du Yu was plotting. I stared at him curiously as well.

According to my initial guess, the call to the Underworld Live Show was made by Xia Qingzhi, and the commission was to find her older brother. The organizer of this Real Death Game was very likely Xia Chi, and the extra person was naturally Du Yu. He was not originally among the invitees; he only got dragged into this because he followed my hint.

If Du Yu hadn't killed anyone, it would prove that he was the extra person. However, if he truly had killed someone, then the worst-case scenario would come true: Du Yu was already a participant in the Death Game, and my invitation was merely a coincidence.

After a few minutes of waiting, Number Ten Du Yu finally spoke. "I've kept this hidden in my heart for so many years—how could the organizers possibly know? I didn't leave a single flaw. It was a perfect crime; there's absolutely no way anyone could have discovered it!"