It was nearing dawn.
In the dim corridor, a sliver of light suddenly appeared from a door.
Sophia stealthily poked her head out of the door crack, looking left and right, and after confirming there was no one else in the corridor, she retracted back inside.
Her secretive manner was very much like students sneaking around for a tryst.
"Ugh... this is so awkward..."
Sophia sighed, leaning against the doorframe and complaining, "If only we had money to move out and live on our own, then we could do whatever we wanted."
"Indeed." Li Andy nodded, in full agreement.
The matter of making money should be planned in advance.
This was, after all, a monastery, with many conservative rules.
Only in one's own nest could one do whatever one wanted.
Thinking of this, Li Andy couldn't help but size up Sophia again.
A long dress enveloped her graceful figure, looking very homely.
She was suited to lazily doze on the sofa, waiting to be quietly carried to bed by her family.
Li Andy's undisguised gaze naturally earned him a glare from Sophia.
The latter glared back at him, then slipped out of the room.
"Then, big brother, we're leaving."
Yuquan Youxi followed closely behind, preparing to depart.
"Wait a moment."
Li Andy suddenly pressed on Youxi's shoulder, his tone carrying a hint of seriousness.
"If, under uncertain circumstances, you see something you shouldn't, then pretend you didn't see it."
Youxi paused slightly, then obediently nodded.
"Alright, you two can go."
Li Andy released Youxi.
But the girl stood rooted to the spot, staring intently at him, seemingly waiting for something.
Li Andy was momentarily stunned, then realized, and smiled as he pinched the girl's cheek:
"Goodnight, my dear sister. Is that better?"
Youxi's lips curved into a sweet smile:
"Mm, goodnight, dear big brother."
Bidding farewell to her family, Youxi retreated into the corridor.
As the door closed, the empty corridor returned to its gloom.
The moment Youxi turned her head, her body suddenly stiffened.
Not far in front of her, a nun over two meters tall, whose face was a bottomless black hole, stood in the center of the corridor, turning her head to look over.
"What's wrong? Is there something else you haven't finished saying?"
Sophia raised an eyebrow and asked, she seemed unable to see the nun.
"Nothing."
Youxi stepped forward and proactively took Sophia's hand, her heart quickening involuntarily.
Sophia was a little puzzled but said nothing.
Pulling Youxi, she slowly walked forward.
The faceless nun's head also moved slowly, following their steps.
She watched as the two of them passed through her body.
Sophia suddenly shivered, frowned, and said, "Youxi, do you feel like this corridor is especially cold?"
"No."
Youxi shook her head, her heartbeat gradually calming, and changed the subject as if nothing had happened, "Sophia, do you like my big brother?"
"Ah?"
Sophia was a little flustered, but a second later, she quickly calmed down.
"He..."
Sophia's answer was somewhat beside the point,
"I think he... has become less annoying. Although he still tells lies like before, he's... not as hypocritical. Hmph, he can barely be considered a qualified family member."
"Mm."
Youxi nodded gently.
...
Late night, still a short while before dawn.
"Dong... dong... dong..."
The faint sound of the church bell came from the top of the building.
Li Andy slowly opened his eyes, only to find that the distance between himself and the ceiling was only the width of a fist.
He instinctively rolled over, only to see another version of himself below, sound asleep on the bed.
And he, as if weightless, floated in mid-air.
"Am I... out of body?"
"Oh! It's a side effect of 'Spirit Out of Body' from the 'Inverted Cross Pendant'!".
Upon realizing this, Li Andy regained his clarity, and his body gradually became translucent in his eyes.
"Judging by the bell, I've slept for almost two hours..."
"The advice for dealing with the 'Spirit Out of Body' side effect is not to sleep for more than three consecutive hours..."
"If it exceeds three hours, the soul will gradually get lost."
"Unconsciously floating to the ceiling just now was probably also due to this reason."
Li Andy slowly descended to the ground, his expression not good.
This meant that it would be very difficult for him to get enough sleep.
But the cross pendant's ability had already been swallowed by his shadow, so the problem couldn't be solved by wearing it.
If this continued.
Let alone achieving some perfect ending, he estimated that his spirit would give out in a few days.
"I need to find a relic that can stabilize the soul or restore mental energy..."
"But with my current strength, even with strategy information, obtaining those relics would be a near-death experience."
Li Andy sat in a half-floating, ethereal state, pinching his chin and frowning in thought.
"Perhaps... I can try cultivation?"
In the game's background description, cultivation in this world emphasized "borrowing" and "compensation."
Any power came with a price.
Humans, from beginning to end, were utilizing 'objects and non-objects'.
Utilizing rules, utilizing ghosts and gods, utilizing the unnameable...
However, while you are utilizing 'objects and non-objects', 'objects and non-objects' are also affecting you.
Therefore, in many cases, using relics was the method with the fewest side effects.
Moreover, even if one cultivated, one had to find a suitable cultivation method.
"So what suits me?"
"In the game, Youxi never cultivated either."
"If she cultivated, what would happen?"
His thoughts raced, but yielded no results.
Li Andy decided to temporarily stop his internal struggle and, while there was still some time before his soul returned, use his spirit body to wander around.
This feeling of unrestrained freedom was very novel to him.
For a short time, his spirit was no longer fatigued.
He effortlessly passed through the wall and arrived in the corridor outside.
Unlike the chilling reality, the corridor in the soul's vision was particularly "lively."
A row of nuns of varying heights and blurred faces, each carrying a dim, yellow soul lamp, walked one after another, ten steps apart, neatly moving slowly along the corridor.
They were like a group of self-unaware phantoms, following some command, constantly and mechanically wandering through this monastery.
Li Andy stood in the shadows where the soul lamps couldn't reach, quietly waiting for them to move away.
He knew that these nun phantoms were all nuns who had once taken vows here.
After their deaths, their souls did not ascend to heaven and serve God as described in the Bible.
Instead, they were forever trapped here, constantly wandering.
What humans used to combat the eerie was, in fact, eeriness itself.
Li Andy did not disturb the ghost nuns, skillfully avoiding the lamp's patrol.
He began his night stroll.
The biggest advantage of reality compared to a game was that details were infinite.
Some places that couldn't be explored, he could reach.
Some things that were limited by the game type, things he wanted to do but couldn't, he could also do.
Thinking of this, Li Andy couldn't help but curl his lips, deciding to first take a peek into his two sisters' rooms.
