The apocalypse begins with a dungeon game.

Chapter 140 Hiding Behind Me

……

After 29 hours.

The spacious hall, adorned with carved beams and painted rafters, was quiet.

The entire interior was tightly closed, and the floor had been hastily swept, but traces of blood could still be seen in various corners upon closer inspection.

The air, thick with the smell of decay, was mixed with a hint of blood.

Suddenly, a dazzling golden light burst forth from the empty space half a person's height.

Before the light had completely dissipated, four disheveled young men suddenly materialized one after another on the ground.

They were wearing the clothes they wore before they disappeared, and everything had returned to normal, but they could not hide the weariness in their eyes and in their spirits.

These are Li Can, Shen Yuan, Li Lan, and Yang Mo, who were captured and imprisoned in the [Mirror of Past Lives].

Shen Yuan: "Phew... We've finally made it out. It seems what Xiao Guai said was true."

"He really didn't make things difficult for us in the final question-and-answer session; he let us pass so easily."

"I've calculated that we've been trapped for almost a month now. I just don't know what the situation is like in reality after all this time."

She complained as she rubbed her aching joints; they had just been thrown out of the mirror and almost landed face-first.

"I still feel a bit scared when I think back to the moment we were killed. This is the second time I've experienced something like this..."

"Although it was the death of an avatar in the illusion, the feeling was so realistic. Before I died, I saw the little monster crying its heart out, and I was also very sad."

"It's a pity that I don't know what happened to him over there. We've been living and eating together for so long, and it feels a bit unreal to see him suddenly back now."

Shen Yuan muttered to herself, looking quite melancholy.

The other three remained silent and no one spoke.

She looked utterly exhausted.

Li Can could hear her incessant voice, and all that she had experienced flashed through her mind.

I truly followed the instructions in the old city lord's photograph without changing the original plot, and successfully led the group to the end of the third act.

Then came the final death question and answer segment, which was a fixed part of the [Mirror of Past Lives].

If the owner of the mirror wants to harm someone, they can often use this to deliberately make things difficult for players who enter the space, trapping them completely by posing questions that no one can answer.

The problem the old city lord left them was as simple as it gets.

Just as he himself said, he only wanted to make the lives of the former "little monsters" complete, and he wanted them to remember him forever.

Thinking of the question she had been given, Li Can smiled weakly.

At that moment, in the secluded space where he was alone, surrounded by golden light, only a few large characters appeared in the air before his eyes:

The "怪" in "小怪" doesn't refer to the monster, but rather to what?

The answer lies hidden within the three flashbacks. He picked up his pen and wrote down the answer without hesitation:

【A strangely charming kind of strangeness.】

"Congratulations, you answered incorrectly!" The mischievous old city lord's image popped up again.

"Hahahaha, how about it? Are you scared? I was just kidding. Actually, whatever you write down is the correct answer."

"Alright, we've held you captive for too long. Now you're free to go back. A bright future awaits you."

"The above is a group photo."

Goodbye, everyone.

Those were the last words spoken by the old city lord, spoken closest to the point of his death, when he was at his most vibrant.

Li Can didn't know what his mindset was when he preserved these photos and designed the entire "Mirror of Past Lives".

This is probably my last thought...

Bringing his thoughts back from their wanderings, he helped the group sort out the time issue.

"It's 29 days inside the mirror, and 29 hours outside. Now, roughly one day and five and a half hours have passed since we came in and out. The flow of time is different."

Shen Yuan was greatly shocked. "So that's how it is. Brother Xing, how did you know? Why didn't you tell us sooner? I've been worried for so long."

"If that's the case, then it's alright."

Li Can raised an eyebrow. Although he had discovered this a long time ago, he had deduced it by working backward from the countdown of Blue Star in his mind. Telling them too early would not be beneficial; he couldn't explain it himself.

But now that we're out, things are much easier to handle. He pulled a watch out of his pocket. "Because I checked the time before we went in, it's still easy to calculate."

"However, when we are in the mirror world, we cannot use the things on our bodies, just like Yang Mo cannot use his mecha. The limitations are too great."

With the explanation, they all suddenly understood and were quite surprised by this point; the issue of the flow of time was something none of them had considered.

Seeing that everyone understood, Li Can continued, "According to calculations, it should be daytime in the lower city now."

This was an explanation directed at Li Lan.

He wanted his sister to understand the concept of time.

Their dungeon quests are still ongoing; we can't afford to neglect one for the other.

Yang Mo nodded, clenched his fists, and after a short rest, stood up. "Now that everyone is back and we know the time, I'll take my leave."

As he spoke, he strode towards the door and pushed it open.

Li Can looked out at the outside world as he moved.

Although it is daytime in the lower city, in the upper city, according to the natural rhythm of time, it is now dawn and the sky is completely dark.

Logically speaking, given the development of the upper city, this place should be brightly lit, after all, it is the territory of the city lord's mansion.

There should be quite a few people involved, as it has only been less than two full days since the upheaval and rebellion, which is the busiest time for everyone.

The vast city lord's mansion outside was completely empty, without a single person, let alone any lights. The entire city was shrouded in a thick, pure darkness, and looking into the distance, there was not a single ray of light.

"Something's not right." Yang Mo had just stepped out when he immediately pulled his foot back, leaving the door half-closed, and cautiously scanned the outside.

Li Can wasn't in a hurry at first.

He has a portal to the [coordinates].

He planned to wait for Yang Mo to leave with Shen Yuan first, and then he and his sister Li Lan would teleport back to the lower city from their original coordinates.

Let's take a break for now and not mix with the rebels in the upper city.

Even though they lived with Yang Mo for a period of time, on the surface, they were still two irreconcilable races.

Upon witnessing this unusual phenomenon, his expression turned serious. It seemed he couldn't leave for the time being...

"There's nothing wrong around here, let's go out and take a look." After checking, Yang Mo naturally called out to the three people behind him.

Back on his home turf, Yang Mo activated the mecha device on his body. Instantly, dozens of sharp hidden weapons were activated and protruded outwards. His overall energy and spirit were much better than when he appeared in the mirror.

"You have no weapons, stay behind me and be on guard!" he said, while turning on the communication display on his arm, trying to contact the organization.

However, he was met with a long period of silence.

"Beep beep beep..." The busy tone sounded particularly crisp in the pitch-black environment.