As twelve o'clock struck, the game of hide-and-seek officially began.

　　According to the rules, Si, the "ghost," closed his eyes, turned his back to them, and started counting.

　　He could only go find them after he finished counting.

　　Yang and the others repeatedly warned Si not to peek.

　　After all, this was a basic rule of the hide-and-seek game.

　　If he broke the rule, it would be the same as breaking the apartment's blood inscription instruction.

　　The moment Si turned his back, the other four immediately took off running down the mountain!

　　Everyone was running at a hundred-meter dash speed, as no one knew what terrifying consequences awaited them if they were caught.

　　Yang ran the fastest.

　　He often participated in track and field events in school during his student days, and he had excellent results.

　　He had even challenged a marathon.

　　Plus, after moving into the apartment, he often exercised to improve his running speed.

　　So, before Si even reached five, the other three couldn't see him anymore.

　　Yang ran for almost seven hundred meters before slowing down, but he wasn’t out of breath.

　　He didn't dare to relax at all, and he kept looking left and right.

　　Even though they were supposed to hide, were there any places to hide on Huayan Mountain?

　　There were almost no trees, the bushes weren't tall, and they would be very conspicuous wherever they went.

　　Unless, they could find a cave.

　　However, Yang thought that hiding in a cave was a last resort.

　　After all, once the cave was found, there would be no escape.

　　The mountain was big, but Si had twelve hours to find them.

　　So he thought it would be better to wander around the mountain, as it would be harder for Si to bump into him.

　　At the same time, he still didn't understand what kind of trap was hidden in this blood inscription instruction.

　　But he was sure that it couldn’t be just a simple hide-and-seek.

　　The mountain path of Huayan Mountain was extremely bumpy, uneven, and very difficult to walk on.

　　The ground was extremely dry, and the air seemed to have no humidity at all.

　　Yang even felt like sand was getting into his nostrils when he breathed.

　　Yang had often played hide-and-seek as a kid, and back then, he was also the one hiding, just like now.

　　Every time he chose a place to hide, he would be very cautious, and he would even run very far.

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　　In the end, others couldn’t find him, but he would also get lost and couldn’t find his way home.

　　Because of his experience getting lost, he developed a strong fear of hide-and-seek, so he never wanted to play it again.

　　And now… he had to carry out a blood inscription by playing this annoying game.

　　On the other hand, Zhang wasn't running slowly either.

　　He was already five or six hundred meters away from the top of the mountain.

　　But his physique was not as good as Yang's, and he was already out of breath.

　　He had been running, but then he started walking.

　　However, the thought of being found by the "ghost" and not knowing what the consequences would be made him dare not stop, and he continued to pick up the pace.

　　The rules of the blood inscription instruction were that as long as they didn't leave Huayan Mountain, they could hide anywhere.

　　So… should he run down the mountain?

　　That way, they could leave as soon as the time was up.

　　However, he immediately rejected this idea.

　　If Si found them, then without being able to leave Huayan Mountain, there would be nowhere to escape.

　　He should find a safe place to hide on the mountain.

　　Twelve hours, it didn't seem like a long time, just half a day.

　　But for them, the apartment residents, every minute, every second was agony and torture!

　　Zhang would check his watch almost every two or three minutes, and then he would constantly look back to see if Si was chasing after him.

　　"I wonder how fast that kid runs. Will he turn around and sneak a peek at our running route?"

　　Zhang, who was solitary and aloof, didn't have a particularly good relationship with the other residents, and Si lived on a higher floor, so he wasn't very close to him.

　　The only resident he had a relatively good relationship with in the apartment was Qin , who was already dead.

　　When he found out that he had died, Zhang sighed in sorrow.

　　But there was no way.

　　In this apartment, everyone was living on borrowed time, and every time they went out to carry out a blood inscription instruction, they might not be able to return.

　　Living in this apartment was indeed terrifying, but after a long time, the fear gradually became numb.

　　The residents were all trying their best to survive the tenth blood inscription instruction, so they could finally be free and leave this damn apartment.

　　"I won’t die! I will definitely leave this apartment alive!"

　　As Zhang was thinking this, a gust of wind suddenly blew up.

　　The wind was a bit strange, it whipped up the dust on the ground, and even blinded him for a moment.

　　Zhang didn't manage to stand firm, and he suddenly fell to the ground, twisting his ankle!

　　"Ah—"

　　Zhang was terrified.

　　Twisting his ankle in this hide-and-seek game wasn't a joke!

　　He quickly tried to massage his ankle with his hand, but no matter how hard he rubbed it, it still felt painful!

　　At this rate, he wouldn't be able to run, he would even be slow even when walking!

　　Instantly, sweat dripped down his forehead, he kept looking left and right, and he prayed to all the gods and goddesses he could think of, hoping that Si wouldn’t find him at this time!

　　It wouldn't be that unlucky…

　　The mountain is so big, there's no reason for him to find me so quickly…

　　He stood up, gritted his teeth, and continued to move forward.

　　After all, he was still relatively close to the top of the mountain.

　　Even though his ankle ached with every step, Zhang still endured the pain.

　　Chen initially wanted to drive the car up the mountain, but the mountain path was bumpier than he imagined, especially a section of the road made up of loose gravel.

　　If he drove over it, the car's tires would be punctured, so he could only park the car at the foot of the mountain.

　　They could only escape on foot.

　　Actually, even though Li said it was better to run separately, he still hoped to escape with someone else.

　　He was usually talkative and humorous, and he was very popular in the apartment.

　　He had the best relationship with Yuan.

　　When he found out that he had died from Ziye, he was heartbroken for several days.

　　He couldn’t believe that Yuan, who always wore glasses and was full of confidence, would die so easily.

　　But it was true, none of the residents had any guarantee of survival.

　　Li became the new building manager, and although he could accept it, there was always a subconscious resistance in his heart.

　　He always felt that only Yuan was qualified for the position of building manager, after all, Li had only been living in the apartment for a year.

　　Of course, Li's intelligence was unquestionable, but he always felt that he was still a step behind Yuan.

　　Yuan's always confident and unshakable expression in the face of pressure had encouraged many residents to actively face the blood inscription instructions, and Li couldn't give people that feeling.

　　Moreover… even Yuan had died, what about the other residents?

　　It couldn't help but make people feel extremely desperate.

　　However, to survive, they had to keep carrying out the blood inscription instructions.

　　Chen hoped that Li could give the residents new hope.

　　After all, Yuan couldn’t be resurrected.