When Bai Jiang opened her eyes again, she found herself standing inside a small, cramped elevator.
This time, she wasn't alone. Including herself, there were twenty people packed tightly into the narrow space. Men and women, young and old, all looked disoriented, just like the first time she had woken up in that burning hotel.
Unlike before, everyone was dressed in their own clothes this time.
Bai Jiang lowered her head to look at herself. As expected, she was still wearing the sportswear and sneakers she had bought earlier.
Her supermarket system followed her.
Bai Jiang silently checked her personal interface.
[Player: Bai Jiang]
Points: 0.5
Supermarket Inventory: Open
Personal Store: Locked
Her inventory still worked.
Good.
Just as everyone was looking around in confusion, a cold mechanical voice rang out in everyone's minds:
[Instance: Broken Elevator]
[Instance Type: Basic Survival]
[Task Objective: Survive for 60 minutes inside the elevator until rescue arrives.]
[Special Note: Do not attempt to escape the elevator before the timer ends.]
[Each surviving player will receive 4 points.]
[Instance countdown begins: 60 minutes.]
"…What?!"
The players looked at each other in shock.
"Survive inside the elevator for an hour? We're trapped in here?!"
Someone immediately rushed to press the emergency button, but there was no response. The elevator didn't move, nor did any floor buttons light up.
Someone began pounding on the elevator doors.
"Let us out! Open the door! There's something wrong with this elevator! Open up!"
"No use…" someone said bitterly.
Bai Jiang listened to the noise around her calmly.
She knew the moment they entered the instance, they had left the Mission Hall's "safe zone" and were now trapped in a closed survival task.
What kind of threat would appear this time?
Would the elevator fall? Would something attack them? Or would they be poisoned?
Bai Jiang remained silent, adjusting her breathing. She slowly moved to stand in a corner where she could observe everyone while minimizing attention drawn to herself.
She didn't trust anyone.
Someone shouted, "Why are we just standing here?! What if this elevator crashes? Do you want to die trapped in here?!"
A middle-aged man looked angry. "We can't just wait and die! Let's force open the doors!"
The players seemed divided.
"Didn't the voice say not to leave the elevator early?"
"What if that's a lie?"
"Maybe it's testing us."
"We should try opening the door. I don't want to suffocate in here."
The argument grew louder.
Bai Jiang narrowed her eyes.
The real danger… might not come from the elevator itself.
It might come from within.
Sure enough, a young man at the front began prying at the elevator doors. Seeing this, others rushed to help.
"Let's get out! Staying here is waiting for death!"
Bai Jiang didn't move. She simply whispered to herself, "It's started."
The true survival task wasn't avoiding external danger.
It was surviving the madness and fear of human beings themselves.