[Safe Time Activated! Time remaining until the end of Safe Time: 04:59]
After a short while, the system notification rang out once more.
The arrival of Safe Time made Lin Yu let out a long breath of relief.
At last, he could search for items openly and without restraint.
At the same time—
A new post appeared on the Horror Game forum.
[How Terrifying Can a Horror Game Newbie Be?!]
...
[I've figured it out—Lin Yu's luck isn't just bad, it's straight-up deadly.]
[Yeah. From the start of the instance until Safe Time, he was the only one found by the Blood Clan Queen.]
[I still can't understand why the Blood Clan Queen prioritized Lin Yu. Was it really just a coincidence?]
[Wang Gang already told Li Hai about the bloodstains in the corridor. Lin Yu's about to be in serious trouble.]
[A non-cheater newbie player, having to face both the Blood Clan Queen and other players—this is basically hell-mode from the start.]
...
During Safe Time, both Lin Yu and Wang Gang's group were boldly searching for items.
Their livestreams, meanwhile, were exploding with discussion—barrage comments scrolling nonstop.
After all—
On Blue Star, horror games had long become household entertainment.
Almost everyone would watch horror-game livestreams in their spare time, preparing themselves mentally in advance.
Because when horror games selected players—
It was completely random.
No favoritism. No mercy.
At this very moment—
Lin Yu's livestream viewer count had surpassed the other three players, becoming the highest among them.
The reason a newbie player's stream had overtaken veteran players' streams was simple—
That forum post.
[How Terrifying Can a Horror Game Newbie Be?!]
The poster was naturally one of Lin Yu's viewers.
The post detailed how Lin Yu had seen through the coordinated act of three veteran players—
And then turned the tables, setting a trap that nearly got all three of them killed.
Naturally, this sparked massive curiosity.
Viewers flooded into Lin Yu's livestream—
Eager to see whether he truly lived up to the post.
...
[Current livestream viewers have exceeded 100. Achievement unlocked: "Thousand Viewers"! Reward distributed successfully!]
[Ding! You have obtained an item!]
[Exquisite Running Shoes (Equipment)]
[Quality: White]
[Effect: When equipped, slightly increases movement speed]
[Note: Reward for the achievement "Thousand Viewers"][
...
"This works too?!"
Lin Yu blinked in surprise as he heard the system notification.
Looking at the item that had appeared in his inventory, he felt genuinely caught off guard.
Without hesitation, he equipped it.
After all, even a slight boost to movement speed was better than nothing.
At a critical moment, that tiny difference might be the gap between life and death.
More than half of Safe Time had already passed.
Lin Yu didn't know whether it was just his bad luck—or an issue with item distribution on this floor—
But he hadn't found a single item so far.
That left him feeling a bit speechless.
Just then—
Lin Yu casually opened the door to a nearby room.
And immediately—
He saw, right in the center of the room, a Western-style coffin.
The sight made him pause.
At the same time, something clicked in his mind.
In countless novels and films he'd seen, vampires rested inside coffins.
So—
Could the Blood Clan Queen be lying inside this coffin?
Lin Yu instantly recalled the horrifying "door-opening kill" he'd experienced earlier.
That memory alone made his scalp tingle.
However—
Up until now, he was certain of one thing.
Wang Gang, Li Hai, and Wang Shan had not fallen for his trap.
Otherwise, the player count in the instance would have changed.
As for the trap failing—
Lin Yu didn't dwell on it.
After all, those three were veteran players who had already cleared instances before.
It wasn't surprising that they avoided it.
[Lin Yu's luck is insane—he actually found a coffin!]
[Do you think the Blood Clan Queen is lying inside that coffin right now?]
[Hard to say. From my experience watching streams, there's more than one coffin in the vampire castle.]
[I suddenly had a bold thought—there's an old saying: the most dangerous place is often the safest.]
[If Lin Yu opens the coffin and locks eyes with the Blood Clan Queen again, won't that be peak horror?]
[??? What is Lin Yu doing?! Am I seeing this right?! Is he cheating?!]
[Holy crap—could the vampire castle side quest finally be completable?!]
...
In the livestream, viewers watched with bated breath as Lin Yu walked up to the coffin.
Then—
He pushed it open.
The Blood Clan Queen did not appear.
Instead—
Inside the coffin lay only a doll.
The livestream exploded in shock.
It wasn't that Lin Yu was the only one who had triggered the "Find the Dolls" side quest.
Nor was he the only one who had found two dolls before.
But—
Since the vampire castle instance had existed—
Only Lin Yu had managed to find the second doll during the first Safe Time.
That left viewers utterly stunned.
They genuinely couldn't tell—
Was Lin Yu possessed by god-tier luck?
Or was this just the madness of a non-cheater breaking the game?
...
[Gray Teddy Bear Doll (Quest Item)]
[Quality: White]
[Can be taken out of the instance: No]
[Note: One of the Blood Clan Queen's beloved dolls. Handle with care. If damaged, you will incur the Blood Clan Queen's wrath.]
Lin Yu stood beside the coffin, staring at the doll in his hand.
His eyes twitched slightly.
Before opening the coffin, he had already prepared himself mentally—ready to use the Invisibility Potion at any moment.
He hadn't expected—
That the coffin would contain nothing but a teddy bear.
Still—
Despite finding the second side-quest item, Lin Yu didn't feel particularly happy.
After all, side-quest items couldn't be stored in the inventory.
They had to be carried by hand at all times.
Which was incredibly inconvenient.
Of course—
Abandoning the side quest wasn't an option either.
The side quest required three items in total.
Now that he'd already found two—
He might as well go all the way and search for the last one.
Complete the side quest.
Claim the reward.
...
However—
Just as Lin Yu finished searching the room and stepped out—
Two figures emerged from a nearby room in the corridor at the same time.
Those two figures were—
Wang Gang and Li Hai.
By the time Lin Yu reacted—
It was already too late.
Wang Gang and Li Hai both turned their heads toward him.
And then—
Expressions of surprise slowly appeared on their faces.
...