Demon Apartment - Chapter 25 - Into the Tiger's Den

In truth, Dong Xie had another significant reason for opposing staying on the first floor.

At this moment, the four of them decided to head upstairs, drawing ever closer to Apartment 104!

This was precisely why Dong Xie didn’t want to remain on this floor!

Just as they were about to reach Apartment 104, suddenly… they heard the sound of a doorknob being turned from inside!

All four of them turned pale in unison, and then, the door opened!

They didn’t even have time to react!

The door swung open, but there was no one visible inside!

Dong Xie instinctively shielded Dong Ning, while Ge Qi was about to make a run for it, only to realize the other three hadn’t moved.

“Let’s go in… shall we?”

Dong Ning declared loudly, and surprisingly, neither Dong Xie nor Zhao Long objected.

“Let’s keep playing rock-paper-scissors,” Zhao Long said, staring intently at the door. “The situation is clear now; you can’t catch a tiger cub without entering the tiger’s den!”

Indeed, you can’t catch a tiger cub without entering the tiger’s den! Everyone understood the logic, but no one wanted to risk their life.

Someone had to guard the door. If one person stayed behind, they’d surely be scared.

Deciding who would guard the door and who would go in was left to rock-paper-scissors. It was fair.

If someone died, they could only blame their bad luck. At this point, everyone clearly understood one thing: they still hadn’t truly captured the “tiger cub”!

Ge Qi, seeing the determined looks in the others’ eyes, immediately said, “Can’t we take turns? I went in earlier, so now…”

But Dong Xie wouldn’t accept Ge Qi’s suggestion, as that would mean Ah Ning would have to go in! He immediately rejected it, “Is the danger in Apartment 104 the same as the third floor?”

Ge Qi was truly speechless. Was Dong Xie really not afraid of death? Who knew if he’d come out of Apartment 104 alive?

“How about this,” Dong Xie added, “If Ah Ning loses in rock-paper-scissors, I’ll go in with her! You can’t argue with that, right?”

Hearing this, Zhao Long and Ge Qi were dumbfounded.

Zhao Long couldn’t help but scrutinize Dong Xie. He had always known Dong Xie was protective of his sister, but he hadn’t expected it to this extent. In the real world, siblings often turn against each other over property, let alone matters of life and death! Yet Dong Xie spoke with unwavering determination.

“No, I…”

But Dong Xie quickly raised his fist, not giving Dong Ning time to think. If she didn’t play, she’d automatically lose, and regardless of the outcome, Dong Xie would accompany her inside!

Reluctantly, Dong Ning played along.

In the first round, Dong Xie chose scissors, Zhao Long and Ge Qi chose paper, and Dong Ning chose rock. It was a draw.

“Again!”

This time, he quickly played again, not giving Dong Ning any time!

“Rock, paper, scissors!”

This time, Dong Xie chose rock, while Zhao Long, Ge Qi, and Dong Ning all chose scissors!

So, the winner would be decided among the remaining three!

At this point, Zhao Long and Ge Qi both understood that as long as Dong Ning wasn’t the winner, they wouldn’t have to go in! They both knew that the terrifying old lady might still be inside! If she was, it could mean the difference between life and death!

This was undoubtedly the most crucial game of rock-paper-scissors in their lives!

Dong Ning had played rock and scissors in succession; would she choose paper this time? Or rock again? Zhao Long and Ge Qi were torn, but there was little time to think!

“Rock, paper, scissors!”

This time… everyone held their breath.

Dong Ning chose… scissors!

“I!”

“What?”

Zhao Long and Ge Qi both chose paper!

They both thought Dong Ning might not choose scissors again, and whether she chose paper or rock, choosing paper would at least tie!

“Alright. It’s over.” Dong Ning had gambled from a psychological perspective, without full confidence, but she won the bet.

“No, no, no, this isn’t right!” Ge Qi almost lost his composure, wanting to cheat, but with everyone watching, he couldn’t find an excuse.

“Fine! It’s just my bad luck!”

Zhao Long sighed, deciding not to argue, and pulled Ge Qi straight into the room!

Dong Xie and Dong Ning stayed at the door, both standing across the threshold, ready to prevent the door from being shut.

The candle was nearly burnt out, so Ge Qi took out two more spares and relit them with a lighter.

Actually, the room wasn’t completely dark, as moonlight from outside allowed them to see some outlines even without the candle.

Ge Qi regretted not choosing rock, almost sticking to Zhao Long as they used the candlelight to explore the room.

The living room was quite spacious, and the candlelight revealed a wall-mounted LCD TV. As the light moved to one side…

Zhao Long and Ge Qi suddenly saw a black-and-white portrait! The portrait was of the old lady!

Ge Qi gasped, nearly dropping the candle. Although he knew the old lady was dead, seeing this was still terrifying.

Now Ge Qi really wanted to ignore the rock-paper-scissors rules and run, but Zhao Long held him firmly, making escape impossible. Besides, Dong Xie was blocking the door, and Ge Qi didn’t know that Dong Xie had never won a fight. Given Dong Xie’s height, which seemed comparable to Mo Yuan’s 1.89-meter frame, Ge Qi doubted he could escape!

“Why did you choose paper, Zhao Long? If one of us had chosen rock and the other paper, we could’ve won!”

Zhao Long was fed up with Ge Qi’s incessant complaints. No wonder this guy could only deliver takeout. What could they do at this point? Regretting wouldn’t help; it was better to focus on the task! If they could find a path to survival, wouldn’t it be a blessing in disguise?

“Shut up! Look closely at that black-and-white portrait; maybe there’s a clue?”

Zhao Long grabbed Ge Qi’s hand and led him toward the portrait. He was determined; if an Unnameable Thing appeared, he’d push Ge Qi forward!

As they approached the portrait, the photo, framed and mounted on the cabinet, suddenly fell to the ground, shattering with a crisp sound!

This scared Ge Qi out of his wits, making his heart skip a beat! At the same time, he felt a warm liquid trickle down his pant leg into his sneakers.

“She’s… she’s definitely here! Let’s go, Zhao Long, let’s go, please! I don’t want to die! Zhao Long!”

He was almost in tears. Delivering takeout had landed him in hell! Why hadn’t he stayed in his hometown instead of coming to K City for work?

“Meow…”

Zhao Long heard the sound and immediately looked down!

He saw the black cat he had seen when entering the community, standing right at his feet!

And now, the black cat was almost entirely covered in blood!