"What does this mean?" Shu Cat asked, puzzled. "Why have I been assigned to a class?"
"We're in the same class," Invincible Bro said, pointing to the name tag on his chest: "Second-Year Class Three, Ling Zhun."
"Some Otherworld Dimensional Rifts assign identities upon entry," Lü Heng explained. As the most experienced member of the Bureau of Anomalous Investigations, his word carried weight. "Until we understand this place better, we should stick to our assigned roles and avoid doing anything too conspicuous."
Firefly had experienced similar Dimensional Rifts before. During the Arctic incident, she'd been assigned the identity of a "player" in that sealed, square room—which she promptly punched her way out of.
Lü Heng continued, "Judging by the atmosphere, this seems like a horror-themed school setting, or perhaps a Rule-Breaking Anomaly. But there's not much practical difference between the two. In both cases, if you break a rule and trigger a monster's hunting mechanism, something will come after you. Conversely, as long as we follow the rules, we should be safe."
"A Rule-Breaking Anomaly?" Firefly suddenly exclaimed, as if triggered by a hidden keyword. "Are there people from other countries here? Is everything we're doing being live-streamed? If we clear this challenge, will our country receive any rewards?"
Lü Heng stared at her, utterly bewildered. "Huh? What strange nonsense are you spouting? This is inside a Dimensional Rift—there's no signal here. How could there possibly be a live stream? Besides, whether we live or die in this rift is entirely our own affair. What does it have to do with our country?"
"Otherworld Dimensional Rifts are different," Firefly explained. "Once we enter, we're cut off from reinforcements. We're on our own here."
"As for other countries, this rift appeared in Longcheng's bustling commercial district. There shouldn't be any foreigners here. But..." Lü Heng trailed off, his gaze sweeping the surroundings, a puzzled expression on his face. This rift materialized in Longcheng's commercial district—a bustling area. How could only five of us have entered?
Did the others appear in different locations, or...?
As Lü Heng pondered this, a discordant chime with a slight static distortion suddenly rang out, echoing throughout the corridor.
Ding-ding... Zzzzt—Ding~
"That's the warning bell. We need to get to our classes quickly," Invincible Bro said abruptly, his gaze fixed on the corridor floor. "Remember, no running in the hallway. If you exceed two meters per second, it'll trigger a speeding violation, and a swarm of Shadow Monsters hidden beneath the floorboards will surge out."
Shu Cat: "Huh?"
Lü Heng: "What the hell is that?"
Firefly: "?"
Soup Dumpling remained silent, but Firefly could feel her grip tightening.
To ordinary people, this appeared to be a dilapidated school steeped in horror. But Invincible Bro's Ability allowed him to perceive incredibly detailed information about everything around him.
He could see precisely when the corridor walls, classroom doors, and floorboards had been created, their composition, and any special properties they possessed—everything was crystal clear.
For instance, when Invincible Bro glanced at the floorboards beneath his feet:
Name: Ghost Qi-Infused Solid Wood Flooring
Material: Oak
Completion Time: 17:21 today
Current Status: Infested with Shadow Monsters
It's worth noting that 5:21 PM was precisely the moment the group was pulled into the Dimensional Rift. In other words, this "world" had been hastily generated the instant they arrived, existing only from that moment onward.
On this floor, the Shadow Monsters—normally dormant and invisible to ordinary people—were crystal clear to Invincible Bro. A dense mass of bizarre, half-bodied dark figures crawled across the floor, their hollow eyes fixed on the five intruders.
An ordinary person would likely jump in fright at such a sight. But Invincible Bro could clearly discern the monsters' characteristics, attack patterns, and even their weaknesses.
Fear stems from the unknown. When you fully understand an enemy, what is there left to fear?
In a way, Invincible Bro's ability was practically tailor-made to counter this type of "Instance"!
"We don't have time to explain now. Let's head to class and regroup here after the bell," Invincible Bro said, striding toward the stairs. Shu Cat followed closely, but soon realized the other three hadn't moved. He turned back to look at them, concern etched on his face.
"Wait, are we really just going to leave them behind like this?"
Being near Invincible Bro, who possessed the 'True Sight' ability, was undoubtedly the safest option, but the others weren't in the same class as him and Shu Cat.
And without a doubt, the class they were about to attend wouldn't be ordinary; there was a high probability it would be dangerous!
"Don't worry," Invincible Bro said. "Peace Dove and Soup Dumpling should be fine. If you're concerned about anyone, worry about Red Cape Hero, who's all alone." It was clear that when he used his ability to scan the surroundings earlier, he had spotted Firefly and learned of her Outsider identity (as revealed in the panel at the end of the previous chapter).
Shu Cat and Invincible Bro were assigned to Class 1, while Firefly and Soup Dumpling were in Class 2. Lü Heng, however, was out of luck—he wasn't even a student.
Janitor: Lü Heng
"Seriously... what am I supposed to do as a janitor? Where am I even supposed to go?" Lü Heng grumbled in frustration. "Damn it, why is everyone else a student and I'm stuck with this? Do I really look that old?"
"Well... good luck!" Firefly said, tugging Soup Dumpling toward the location of Class 2.
In truth, Firefly desperately wanted to transform on the spot and obliterate the entire school. The problem was, she couldn't possibly transform in front of these people.
Even if she found an empty space and successfully transformed, she couldn't just unleash a devastating attack. Not only were her companions still nearby, but the Dimensional Rift might have pulled in other unsuspecting civilians scattered throughout the area. What if a reckless blast ended up killing her teammates?
Suddenly, Firefly understood the appeal of solo play. No need to hold back—just blast everything to smithereens!
As she pondered this, she and Soup Dumpling passed by Class 1-1. Glancing through the small window in the classroom door, Firefly saw every seat occupied. However, the occupants weren't students in uniforms; instead, each desk was occupied by an eerily shaped human mannequin with bizarre poses.