Horror Movie Set: This extra is too good at playing the tricks.

Chapter 31 The Prophet Without Skin

Three "statues" stood quietly in one corner of the room, while on the other side, three living people from the real world sat together, with a crayon drawing they had taken from the boys' dormitory spread out in the middle.

"This kid is really weird." Bao Ping wiped the blood off his face with his sleeve, then pointed at Lu Dan, "I found something similar under the bed in room 501. It had a drawing of you being done to like this by the head teacher. Now it seems like this was a spoiler."

The blood-soaked figure in the image is using countless tentacles to pry open its enormous mouth; this scene had just become a reality a few minutes earlier.

"A prophet, or an observer of some kind of time loop," Lin Xiaoxiao continued, her gaze falling on the silhouettes of two security guards wrestling in the corner of the drawing. "If what he drew is true, then Lu Dan, your troubles are yet to come."

Lu Dan leaned against the wall, his eyes dark and unreadable: "Compared to this, I care more about that girl."

He raised his chin slightly and pointed at Su Ke, who was still unconscious. "I saw a skin in room 304 over there, and it looked exactly like her. The wall next to it was covered with crazy things like 'Who am I?' and 'The skin is too tight.'"

Lin Xiaoxiao quickly pulled out the collected sticky notes from her pocket: "Coincidentally, I found something similar here, all of them self-suggestive notes, like desperately trying to fill an empty shell with personality."

"The physical body is drying out there, while the personality is splitting apart here." Lu Dan sneered. "This girl was labeled as the perfect vessel. She's sleeping so peacefully now, who knows if it'll be Su Ke or just that skin that wakes up."

Bao Ping subconsciously shifted his position away from the exit. He'd initially thought she was a delicate school beauty, but now she looked like a ticking time bomb.

"What about Li Mu?" Lin Xiaoxiao looked at the blood-soaked man who, even as a statue, still maintained a protective posture.

"He is the bridge," Lu Dan said firmly. "He can see me in that world, and he can also help you escape in this world. He is the only character in the story who can freely travel between two dimensions. If we want to break the deadlock, or even find the true connection between these two worlds, we can only rely on him."

"Then the division of labor is clear." Lin Xiaoxiao was very decisive and immediately began to plan. "The two of us will be responsible for keeping an eye on the three main characters here, and also figuring out what Su Ke is."

Lu Dan pointed to the watch on his wrist: "The security guard's work is not finished. I haven't found the checkpoint in the dormitory building yet. I still need to verify the 'spoiler' part about me in the painting."

Bao Ping said with a bitter face, "We're like headless flies right now. If this safe house fails and that big-mouthed monster outside comes to block the door again, we can start our feast right away."

"Let's wait for Li Mu." Lin Xiaoxiao looked at the snowman. "Since he brought us in, he must have some guidance for the next step. He is the protagonist of this play, and the protagonist always has a way to move the plot forward."

"Alright, that's settled then." Lu Dan waved the patrol log in his hand. "Same as always, write anything down. I'll let you know I'm safe with my bloodied fingerprint."

"Keep in touch and be careful," Lin Xiaoxiao said, her eyes filled with complex emotions.

The tactical discussion ended, and a deathly silence fell over the cramped dormitory room. The side effects of the adrenaline, coupled with the previous grueling sprint, had completely drained Lu Dan's energy. Exhaustion seeped into his bones; even moving a finger felt like a struggle.

Lu Dan didn't speak, but simply rested his head on the bed and closed his eyes. Almost the instant his eyelids closed, heavy breathing began; he had fallen asleep.

In the shadow of his left ankle, a strand of black hair silently crept up and settled on his chest. This "roommate" clearly didn't trust his host's life to be entrusted to these so-called teammates.

Time passed in silence.

"Click!"

The countdown has reached zero.

The previously solidified gray-white space, like a shattered piece of glass, instantly disintegrated, allowing colors to surge in again, and sounds to return like a tide.

Zhang Kai, who was standing next to him, was the first to recover. He saw Lu Dan, and his mouth had just opened when the figure leaning against the corner of the bed suddenly flickered and vanished into thin air. A pool of blood that hadn't dried was left where he had been sitting, proving that a badly injured person had once been there.

"Holy crap, where did that guy go?" Zhang Kai stood up in astonishment. "That magic trick was so fast!"

"He went back."

He was answered by a hoarse voice, and the red statue in the corner came to life.

Li Mu slowly turned his neck, his muscles, which were not covered by skin, stretching and contracting with the movement. Blood dripped from his chin and splattered on the floor. Su Ke, in his arms, was still fast asleep, unharmed. Her fair skin contrasted horribly and eerily with Li Mu's blood-soaked chest.

Zhang Kai stood frozen in place, staring at his childhood friend who looked like a vengeful ghost.

Three years of searching, countless fantasies—he imagined the scene of their reunion, perhaps on a sunny playground, or perhaps in a dilapidated classroom, but he never imagined it would be in this hellish place, facing such a "monster."

But he didn't back down. Ignoring the nauseating stench of blood on Li Mu and the horrifying muscle definition, he strode forward and grabbed the crimson figure. Blood instantly stained Zhang Kai's filthy clothes.

"How...how could this happen?" Zhang Kai's voice trembled, tears and snot streaming down his face. His hand hovered over Li Mu's back, wanting to pat his brother, but he dared not touch him, afraid of hurting those exposed nerves. "Does it hurt? Li Mu, does it hurt? Huh?"

He was incoherent, like a child who had suffered a great injustice, who went to his parents only to find that they had suffered even more injustice than he had.

Li Mu's body stiffened slightly as he was being held. His eyes, starkly exposed without the protection of his eyelids, first flashed with surprise, then softened into a gentle expression. The terrifying muscles on his face twitched slowly, as if he wanted to laugh, but without the restraint of his skin, they appeared even more grotesque.

He raised his bloodied hand and gently patted Zhang Kai's back, his touch light, as if afraid of soiling him, even though Zhang Kai was already filthy.

"I'm used to it."

Li Mu's voice was so calm it was heartbreaking: "The pain tells me I'm still alive. I've finally waited for you, Kai. You haven't changed. You're still such a crybaby."

Li Mu gently pushed Zhang Kai away, wiped his face with his bloodied hands, leaving red marks: "Don't worry, now that I'm back, I will definitely save you. This time, no one will be able to separate the three of us."

Bao Ping, standing nearby, gasped in shock. The scene was too intense, both heartwarming and bloody, enough to drive anyone insane.

Although Lin Xiaoxiao was also moved, she quickly regained her senses. Now that "Bridge" had woken up, it was time to get down to business.

"Li Mu," Lin Xiaoxiao interrupted their heartfelt conversation, her tone urgent, "I'm sorry to interrupt your reminiscing, but do you know where the counseling room in the dormitory building is?"

The previous clues led to the dormitory, but she didn't find anything similar in the dormitory building.

Li Mu turned his head, his bloodshot eyes fixed on Lin Xiaoxiao. After a moment, he pointed to the ceiling: "That big balcony on the far right of the second floor, it used to be a drying area, but it was later converted into an open-air psychological counseling station." As he said this, a hint of sarcasm appeared in his tone: "The head of student affairs said that mental illness needs to be sunbathed; once it's dried, the illness will be cured."

Open-air drying? Sun-drying?

Lin Xiaoxiao felt a chill.

The clues must be followed up.

She quickly took out the yellowed paper and began to write rapidly with her pen:

[Visiting student: Li Mu.]

[Extended symptoms: Reuniting with old friends reduces feelings of being spied on, and emotions stabilize.]

[Follow-up interview location: Open-air psychological counseling station on the right-hand balcony on the second floor of the dormitory building.]

After writing the last stroke, the ink on the paper shimmered slightly before disappearing.

"Let's go." Li Mu hugged the sleeping Su Ke tightly again and walked towards the door first. "The dormitory supervisor should be having a meeting in the teaching building right now. The corridor is safe."

On the other side, Lu Dan, who had just woken up, was staring at his still-hot diary. "Open-air Psychological Counseling Station, that name sounds shady."

He struggled to his feet, and although his left arm was still crippled, his eyes had regained their sharpness.

"Now that the teammates have already set off, the security guards here should go and check in at that so-called balcony."