To Learn Without Thinking Is to Die

"What does this ‘Non-lethal Type' mean?"

Wu Wang remembered that the description on their school uniforms was different from his. Since this Uncle Baili Dao was in the mood to teach, it was best to ask and get a clear answer.

In any case, his persona was that of a complete newbie. He wasn't afraid of arousing suspicion.

"Non-lethal Type means that in this Instance, even if your mission fails or you die, you won't die for real. At most, you'll face penalties like losing your equipment or dropping a level."

Baili Dao patted Wu Wang's shoulder comfortingly.

"An Instance like this is as rare as winning the lottery. You're a lucky kid."

He was telling the truth. He had never seen such heaven-defying luck as a newbie encountering a targeted, no-death Instance.

Even Tuxing Sun, who was standing to the side, chimed in with a grin.

"Don't be scared. This is a cooperative team Instance. We're not some kind of three-headed, six-armed monsters. We won't eat you."

"Mm, I can see that. You're one head, two arms," Wu Wang replied thoughtfully.

"?"

Tuxing Sun froze.

Why did it feel like he had just been insulted? But he couldn't find anything wrong with what the other guy had said.

Seeing the impatient expressions on the others' faces, Baili Dao didn't want to waste any more time explaining things to a newbie.

He waved his hand.

"Let's split up for now and find out why students are skipping school here. Maybe we can boost the reward value by tackling the source."

This was the default course of action in a normal multiplayer Instance. Gather clues, then exchange information. No one would be so kind as to carry a useless person through.

"Um, I think before we split up, how about we go to class first?"

Just as the others were about to go their separate ways, Wu Wang's abrupt voice cut in.

He then pointed to the dormitory door, or more accurately, to an inconspicuous slip of paper stuck to its edge.

"It says here that being late for class will get you sent to the Little Black Room."

Baili Dao whipped his head around and saw the words written on the slip.

【Those late for class will be confined to the Little Black Room for one hour.】

【Those who disrespect teachers will be confined to the Little Black Room for one day.】

【Those who violate school rules will be dealt with severely.】

【……】

The slip of paper was tiny and half-torn, so only three lines of information were visible.

The 【Little Black Room】 mentioned in the mission had appeared.

Since there was a side quest to uncover the truth behind its strange tales, it was obviously not a fun place. It was basically confirmed to be haunted.

As for the school rules that would result in being "dealt with severely," they were most likely some kind of instant-death rules.

Baili Dao glanced at Wu Wang with a hint of surprise.

The door was already covered with a messy assortment of study plans, vocabulary lists, and even physics formulas. That warning slip was no bigger than half a palm, and it would have been difficult to spot even if one were actively looking.

He had been watching him the entire time. The kid had noticed the slip's abnormality the instant he turned around.

Such sharp observation skills!

"It's class time now? How do you know?" the masked woman, Qinghe Yikan, asked with a frown.

She hadn't seen any clocks or class schedules in the dormitory room.

Wu Wang answered as he opened the door.

"A minute ago, there were a lot of running sounds in the hallway. Now, there are only a few people moving around. I guess they were rushing to class before they were late."

"…"

Everyone looked at each other. After about three seconds, Tuxing Sun couldn't help but curse.

"Fuck! Why didn't you say so earlier?!"

The moment he finished speaking, the four of them shot out the door like arrows loosed from a bow. They scrambled downstairs and, sure enough, saw only a few remaining students running frantically toward the Teaching Building.

"I'm in Third Year, Class One. What about you guys?" Baili Dao asked quickly.

"Class Seven."

"Class Three."

"Class Five."

The three answered at the same time. After they entered Gao Shan High School, a student ID card had appeared on their uniforms where the school emblem was, showing their name and class number.

"Got it! Everyone, be careful!"

With that, the four of them sprinted off.

Fortunately, the Teaching Building wasn't far, and a clear directory downstairs marked the floor and location of each classroom. Although this saved them the time of searching, it was still a close call.

When Baili Dao rushed into the classroom of Third Year, Class One, it was already full of people.

At the lectern stood a middle-aged man wearing glasses with lenses as thick as bulletproof glass. He wore a simple gray suit, his hair was slicked back meticulously, and his expression was slightly stern.

"What are you doing standing at the door? Hurry up and get in! You were one minute away from being late!"

The man, presumably a teacher, had a hint of anger in his voice, seemingly displeased with him cutting it so close.

Fortunately, he wasn't late.

Baili Dao breathed a sigh of relief. After apologizing to the teacher, he successfully entered the classroom.

There was only one empty seat left, which he assumed was his. But as he was about to walk to his seat, his expression suddenly turned strange.

"You… what are you doing here?" Baili Dao asked, lowering his voice.

"I'm here for class. Baili, has studying made you stupid?"

The person who answered his question was, shockingly, the newbie with the bizarre ID, 【Pending Death】!

But how did he get into the classroom before him?! Weren't the four of them ahead of him when they ran out? Wasn't he still in the dorm room?

That dormitory was a full six stories high.

Most importantly, he was still wearing that strange military gear. How on earth did the teacher let him in?

Glancing at the teacher on the podium, who wasn't paying attention to them, Baili Dao sat down and continued to question Wu Wang.

"I'm asking how you ran so fast."

"Instead of thinking about that, I think you should be more worried about what's going to happen next."

Wu Wang calmly pulled a notebook out of his desk drawer. Baili Dao looked confused.

Wu Wang explained, "This records the entire class's scores for all the weekly exams this semester."

With that, he pointed a finger at the last name on the list, Li Yang. Baili Dao immediately noticed something was off.

On the entire list, only this person's name was marked in red.

"He's failed three exams in a row. See, it's that guy over there." Wu Wang jutted his chin to the left.

Following his gaze, Baili Dao saw a boy at his desk, trembling all over.

The boy's head was down, and he was digging his nails into his fingers. From the side, Baili Dao could see how pale his face was. He had even bitten his lip until it bled, paying no mind as trickles of blood flowed into his mouth.

Before Baili Dao could ask anything else, the middle-aged teacher on the podium spoke.

"Li Yang! Come up here!" he said angrily.

The moment his name was called, the boy shuddered as if he had been electrocuted. Then, he walked up to the podium in despair.

Wu Wang's and Baili Dao's gazes were drawn to him.

But unexpectedly, the teacher didn't scold or physically punish him. He just spoke with a tone of disappointment.

"You know what you have to do, right? Go on."

"Yes, Teacher Yao…" Li Yang's voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz.

Under the teacher's watch, he walked to the window.

Then, he leaped out.

"!?"

Baili Dao almost cried out in alarm. He never expected him to just jump out of the building! This was the sixth floor!

The other students in the classroom didn't even lift their heads. Everyone just continued to study.

Before Baili Dao could recover, Wu Wang suddenly kicked his foot.

"What are you doing?" Baili Dao kept his voice down.

But Wu Wang's expression was grave.

"Look at Li Yang's seat."

Hearing this, Baili Dao looked over and discovered a horrifying scene.

Another Li Yang was still sitting in that seat.

Except this Li Yang's head was split open like a smashed watermelon, the red and white matter of his brain clearly visible. Head down, he clutched a pen and frantically worked on practice problems.

"I'll definitely pass next time… pass…" he muttered.

The bizarre scene made Baili Dao's scalp tingle. To think he'd run into a ghost so soon after entering the Instance.

"Class! Focus on preparing for tomorrow's test!" Teacher Yao's voice echoed through the classroom. "To learn without thinking is to be lost! When you learn new knowledge, think about how to make it your own. Don't be like Li Yang, whose grades are still so terrible even after going to the Little Black Room twice!"

His gaze shifted to Li Yang's direction, a flicker of disgust in his eyes.

The students, who had been indifferent to a boy jumping out the window, all trembled at his words. A panicked expression appeared on everyone's face.

In their view, going to that place was worse than jumping to your death.

Little Black Room.

Baili Dao immediately latched onto the key information. The eerie atmosphere of this school was definitely related to this place. It seemed he still had to find a way to locate it and investigate.

Wu Wang, at his side, seemed to have read his mind. He patted his shoulder and gave him a brilliant smile.

He whispered, "Don't worry, I'm going to the Little Black Room after class. I'll go see what it's all about!"

"You can find where it is?" Baili Dao said in disbelief.

But Wu Wang just shook his head and smiled.

"Nope. But when I entered the classroom, Teacher Yao told me to go to the Little Black Room with him after class to reflect for an hour on my appearance."

After saying that, he even proudly patted his bulletproof vest.

"That old geezer is just jealous of my handsome outfit!"

"…"

Baili Dao was at a loss for words.

This guy had probably only arrived a few minutes before him. In that time, he had found the grade report, discovered the problem with Li Yang, and offended Teacher Yao.

Was this a coincidence, or was this guy really just that unlucky?

"You're being too reckless!" Baili Dao tried to advise him.

Going to the Little Black Room without knowing anything would most likely result in dying there.

But unexpectedly, the other party just smiled.

"Then I'll go investigate outside ahead of time."

Baili Dao was confused. "?"

"Permission to speak! I need to use the restroom!" Wu Wang suddenly shot to his feet.

Teacher Yao glanced at him and said coldly, "Go after class."

"But I'm on my period! I need to change my pants," Wu Wang said, unyielding.

At this, Teacher Yao couldn't hold it together anymore.

"You're a boy! You don't get periods!"

"Are you defining my gender?" Wu Wang retorted with a frown.

Seeing this, Baili Dao felt a sense of resignation. He scooted over a little, putting some distance between himself and Wu Wang.

He suddenly felt that this newbie had some serious problems, whether with his brain or his luck.

Getting too close might bring him great misfortune.