The moment the elevator door opened, he immediately stepped out and stood on a long corridor.
The corridor was also well lit.
But the farther he walked, the more of a deep feeling it gave him.
There were doors on both sides of the corridor.
Each door had a number on it: "411", "410", "412", etc.
When Li reached the door of room 404, his shadow suddenly floated out from the gap in the door and returned to his feet.
However, the shadow was still doing something Li hadn’t done.
His shadow’s right hand seemed to be holding something, but he couldn’t see clearly.
Then, his shadow put it in his shadow’s trouser pocket.
After doing that, his shadow’s hands dropped, and it stood motionless.
Li tried to wave his right arm.
To his surprise, his shadow also waved its right arm!
The shadow…returned?
At that time, he reached into the trouser pocket where his shadow had put the thing, and he felt a hard object.
It was a key.
The key looked ordinary, except it had the number “404” engraved on it.
Li looked at the door of room 404 next to him, trembling, inserted the key into the keyhole, turned it gently, and the door opened.
He walked into room 404.
What he saw was a rather large living room, with a coffee table, sofa, wardrobe, TV, and even a karaoke system and stereo speakers next to the TV.
It seemed to be a very expensive model.
And next to the TV was a row of floor-to-ceiling windows, leading to a balcony.
He took a closer look and saw that there were two bedrooms, a study, a bathroom, and a kitchen.
The room was well decorated, the furniture was new, and most of it was branded.
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The room was about eighty square meters.
According to current house prices, this house, even if it was a second-hand apartment, wouldn't be cheap.
At least…he couldn’t afford a house like this with his current income.
What…was going on?
"You…you're the new resident?"
Li turned around at the sound of the voice.
What he saw was a pretty girl in a green dress.
“Who…who are you?” Li asked cautiously.
“Don’t…don’t be afraid,” the girl quickly waved her hand, “I…I’m like you…my shadow also automatically ran into this apartment, and then…I became a resident of this apartment. You…also got the key, right?"
Li was startled.
He immediately walked towards the girl, holding the key, and asked, "What's going on? This…what is this apartment…"
“Since you’re the new resident, according to custom, I’ll take you to meet our building manager. He’s the one we all elected. When you meet him, he’ll tell you what’s going on. Then, he’ll register your arrival.”
"Bu…building manager?"
"There are currently thirty-nine people living in this apartment, including you, that makes forty. All of us…are all forced to be bound to this apartment and have to live here forever."
Li was instantly furious, "You…are you kidding me? I can't possibly live in this hellhole!"
The girl smiled bitterly, "There’s nothing we can do…I…I was also very scared when I first entered this apartment, but…there’s really nothing I can do. Once our shadows enter this apartment and are given the key, it means we've become residents of the apartment, and then…we can’t escape this apartment."
As she said that, the girl had a pained expression on her face.
"No…can't escape?" Li felt the situation becoming more and more bizarre, "Why can’t we leave?"
"In the past, there were those who were chosen as residents but didn't live in the apartment. Those people…would be killed by their shadows."
"Wh…what?"
Li was dumbfounded.
"You…you're joking, right?"
"Didn’t you see? This apartment has complete control over the shadows. Normally, you can control and manipulate your shadow at will.
But…if you do something against the rules, your shadow will control your body to commit suicide.
I've lived in this apartment for two years…I've seen many people commit suicide and die because they violated the rules of the apartment, controlled by their shadows."
People, actually being controlled by their shadows?
Such absurd words, but Li couldn't refute them.
Because he had just witnessed the abnormal changes in his shadow!
Li began to feel that this apartment was completely beyond his comprehension.
"Wh…who built this apartment? Why…why did they choose us to be residents?"
The girl shook her head and said, "I don't know…I’ve thought about it many times over the past two years, but I can't understand it. I really can't understand!
This apartment itself is beyond comprehension! But one thing is certain. We can’t see the person who built this apartment. For those who aren’t residents, this apartment doesn’t exist in the world.”
“Wh…what do you mean?”
“Did you pass through an alley to get here?”
"Ye…yeah…"
"Actually, it’s a dead end. Only those chosen as residents can enter this apartment through that alley. This piece of land occupied by the apartment doesn't exist either. It's non-existent land!"
"No…non-existent?"
Li looked out the floor-to-ceiling windows at the balcony.
Outside, rows of high-rise buildings were clearly visible.
"We can see the outside world, but the outside world can't see us." The girl saw Li’s confusion and explained to him, "Once you leave the apartment and walk out of the alley, you won't be able to see the apartment. Those who aren't residents don't know that this apartment exists in the world."
But the apartment was real.
And once you entered, it was like stepping onto an extremely dangerous and terrifying path of no return!