Tong Zheng and Wan Zuo left the teachers' apartment after Jing Minghe departed.
The school was large, but at this hour, there were few people. Aside from the possible thirty-two students, there was likely only the old man who had brought them in.
Thinking of the old man, something suddenly flashed through Tong Zheng's mind.
Seeing Tong Zheng inexplicably stop while walking, Wan Zuo asked, "What's wrong? Aren't we supposed to check if there are any other people in the school?"
"Wan Zuo," Tong Zheng turned and looked at Wan Zuo seriously, "let me ask you, yesterday when that old man brought us into the school, did you feel anything was off about him?"
Wan Zuo thought for a moment and shook his head, "No, you think he's problematic?"
As soon as he finished asking, Wan Zuo gave a helpless laugh. This was a dungeon, after all. Everyone here was problematic. Wasn't their purpose to find these problems?
"Yes," Tong Zheng explained, "when he was talking to us yesterday, I felt something was off. Now that I recall it, I suddenly understand."
"Understand what?" Wan Zuo eagerly pressed.
"His demeanor and actions," Tong Zheng frowned, "were a bit too deliberate in their portrayal of age."
"Deliberate?" Wan Zuo didn't quite understand, so he lowered his head to recall carefully. Perhaps influenced by Tong Zheng, upon reflection, the old man's behavior did seem as Tong Zheng described.
If nothing else, his eyes didn't seem to belong to an old man. And his gait, though hunched, was remarkably steady.
Hesitating, Wan Zuo suggested, "Shall we go find him first?"
"Yes, that's what I intend to do."
So, the two changed direction, heading to find the old man who had brought them in.
As they neared the school entrance, Wan Zuo suddenly asked Tong Zheng, "Are you sure that old man was the school janitor? He only seemed to be receiving us yesterday; he didn't say what he did at the school."
Tong Zheng paused, "It doesn't matter, we'll go and see. If he's not there, we'll look elsewhere."
"Alright."
The two arrived at the guardhouse by the school entrance. The moment they pushed open the door and entered, they were both stunned.
The guardhouse was filled with dust, and cobwebs layered every surface. Compared to the room of the suicidal young teacher, this place looked even more like it had been abandoned for a long time.
"How can this be?" Tong Zheng questioned.
Wan Zuo attempted to explain, "Perhaps their school doesn't have a janitor?"
"...Perhaps, that's the case," Tong Zheng sighed in disappointment, "Let's look elsewhere."
Just as the two were about to turn and leave the guardhouse, Tong Zheng's peripheral vision caught sight of what appeared to be a two-person photograph on a table in the corner. As he moved to get a clearer look, a long staff swung at them ferociously. Caught off guard, Wan Zuo was directly flung out of the guardhouse by a powerful swing, falling a considerable distance away.
Seeing this, Tong Zheng had no time to examine the photo. He dodged immediately, but ultimately wasn't fast enough. He was still struck hard on the waist with the staff, though not as severely as Wan Zuo. He even managed to get a clear look at his attacker.
The person who attacked them was both the old man and not the old man.
His face was the same as the old man from yesterday, but his physique was noticeably much taller. His arm, wielding the staff, clearly showed muscle definition.
This was clearly a young, robust man with an old man's head.
What else could this be but a monster?
Tong Zheng quickly shouted to Wan Zuo, who had just managed to get up, "Run!"
How could ordinary people defeat a monster? They weren't Chi Hao and Jing Minghe.
Wan Zuo knew they couldn't match the dungeon monster. Without hesitation, he got up and fled.
After shouting to Wan Zuo, Tong Zheng chose a direction opposite to Wan Zuo's.
With Wan Zuo having already run far, the monster unhesitatingly pursued the closer Tong Zheng.
Tong Zheng's speed, after all, couldn't match the monster's, even if the latter had an old man's face.
Before long, Tong Zheng was caught. He could only dodge and weave to avoid the opponent's staff, but he was still hit several times, feeling as if his bones were about to break.
"You can't escape!" the opponent suddenly shouted, "No one can escape! Hahaha, no one can escape!"
The more he shouted, the more vigorously he swung his staff, making it increasingly difficult for Tong Zheng to dodge.
"Who are you?" Tong Zheng asked while dodging, "What's your relationship with the person who jumped to his death in the teachers' apartment?"
Tong Zheng figured that since he couldn't win, if he was going to die anyway, he might as well try to find out something useful for others before he did.
However, to Tong Zheng's surprise, after asking this question, the opponent suddenly stopped, clutching his head and weeping.
Just as Tong Zheng thought he might get a moment to relax, the opponent made another move.
He dropped the staff and charged at Tong Zheng with his bare hands.
"What's this supposed to mean?"
Tong Zheng was baffled. He was already close to falling apart from the staff blows. Even with the opponent unarmed, he might not be able to win. Moreover, even without a staff, the opponent might not be any less formidable.
This time, as expected, even unarmed, the opponent could send him flying several meters.
Tong Zheng painfully got up. He couldn't fight, so he had to find a way to escape. However, the opponent's attacks were too relentless, leaving him no opportunity to break free.
"Why did that teacher commit suicide? Does it have anything to do with you?" Tong Zheng tried to distract the opponent again with a question. But this time, upon hearing his question, the opponent became even more enraged, looking as if he wanted to tear Tong Zheng to shreds.
"Ah!"
Tong Zheng carelessly had his arm grabbed and was violently thrown, crashing into a flowerbed nearby. Stars immediately began to appear before his eyes.
It's over. This time, he was doomed.
I wonder what that brat's reaction will be after I die.
He'll probably be happy, right? Finally, no one to bully him.
Tong Zheng was too severely injured to even get up. He struggled a few times, wobbling, but without success. The sound of the opponent's footsteps, however, grew closer.
He would definitely be torn to shreds, right?
Just as Tong Zheng was about to give up struggling, he suddenly heard a voice.
"Brother Tong! If you're not dead yet, move! Get out of the way!"
It was Jing Minghe!
Hearing Jing Minghe's voice, Tong Zheng seemed to be injected with a shot of adrenaline. He stood up abruptly and dashed away in the opposite direction of Jing Minghe's voice.
"Dare to bully my friend? You're seeking death!"
Jing Minghe ran over and directly delivered a flying kick, sending the guy who had beaten Tong Zheng so badly flying.
As the opponent quickly got back up and prepared to charge at him, Jing Minghe sneered and shouted, "Come on, we both make a living by fighting. Let's see who's stronger."
Jing Minghe swung his arms as he spoke, with a look of utter disdain, as if to say: Come and die obediently, don't delay my speedrun to clear the dungeon. My Hao Ge is still waiting for me.
The opponent seemed to be intimidated by Jing Minghe's aura and stopped midway through his charge.