Free Web NovelChapter 16: Hair Apartment Dungeon
Black Wolf’s fist smashed into the apartment wall hard enough to crack concrete.
Dust exploded through the room.
But Shen Yu was already gone.
The space where he had stood twisted unnaturally.
Then the familiar system voice echoed coldly through reality.
[MANDATORY WEEKLY HORROR INSTANCE ACTIVATING]
Player: Shen Yu
Difficulty: Silver
Dungeon Type: Survival / Investigation
Instance Name: Hair Apartment
Countdown Complete
Darkness swallowed him whole.
Yu Shuang’s face turned pale instantly.
"No—"
Black Wolf cursed violently.
"Damn it! Where’d he go?!"
The apartment lights flickered repeatedly.
The dungeon transfer had already completed.
Only traces of distorted black mist remained where Shen Yu disappeared.
Yu Shuang grabbed Black Wolf’s arm anxiously.
"He escaped?"
Black Wolf’s face darkened.
"No."
He slowly cracked his knuckles.
"This is mandatory horror entry."
Yu Shuang hesitated.
"...so he’ll come back?"
"At most an hour."
Black Wolf smirked coldly.
"If he dies inside, system erases him permanently."
His eyes gleamed greedily.
"And then the inheritance auto-transfers."
Yu Shuang relaxed slightly.
"...then we wait."
Black Wolf nodded.
Then his smile widened.
"When he returns alive..."
He reached into his inventory and pulled out a strange black metal tool covered in spikes.
"...I’ll show him what real pain looks like."
Yu Shuang shivered slightly.
Even she looked uncomfortable seeing it.
Black Wolf laughed.
"He thinks I’m just a berserker."
His voice lowered dangerously.
"So naive."
Meanwhile—
Far away from reality—
Shen Yu landed hard against cold tile flooring.
The smell hit first.
Mold.
Rot.
Wet hair.
Then the system notification appeared.
[INSTANCE LOADED]
Dungeon: HAIR APARTMENT
Difficulty: Silver
Role Assigned: Property Manager
Objective: Resolve complaints from Unit 101
Warning: DO NOT IGNORE THE DRAIN
Shen Yu slowly stood.
"...Property Manager?"
The hallway around him was dimly lit.
An old apartment building.
Peeling wallpaper.
Broken lights buzzing overhead.
Water stains spread across the ceiling like diseased veins.
Then came the sound.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
Something wet moved somewhere nearby.
Shen Yu calmly adjusted his sleeve.
"At least I’m not security guard this time."
A soft crackling noise suddenly echoed around him.
Then translucent screens began appearing in the darkness.
Ghost spectators.
Observation Mode had returned.
Comments instantly flooded the air.
"NEW HUMAN STREAM."
"WAIT WAIT WAIT."
"ISN’T THIS THE COFFIN GUY?!"
"THE BUGGED HUMAN!"
"REPORT HIM!"
Shen Yu sighed.
"...they’re back."
One spectator ghost floated closer.
Its face looked half melted.
"He survived Coffin Calamity?"
"No way."
"Scripted clear."
"Definitely scripted."
Another ghost laughed.
"Infinite revives? Why not claim he can punch through planets too?"
A third ghost added:
"Ghost influencer behavior."
"Cheap special effects."
"Report stream."
Shen Yu ignored them completely.
Instead, he observed the apartment carefully.
Three mirrors hung near the stairwell.
Peachwood talismans nailed above doors.
A cracked Taiyi stone sat near the elevator.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"...someone really tried sealing this place."
The spectators continued mocking him.
"Look at him pretending to understand."
"Newbie actor."
"Bet he dies in thirty seconds."
"One snack pack says he screams first."
Another voice laughed loudly.
"Hair Apartment is easy. Even Silver ghosts get bored here."
Then—
A familiar female voice echoed across the observation layer.
"Scripted?"
The ghost audience quieted slightly.
Lily appeared.
Long black hair.
Pale skin.
Still wearing the damaged wedding dress Shen Yu had partially stolen in Coffin Calamity.
And judging from her furious expression—
She had not forgiven him.
Shen Yu looked genuinely pleased.
"Oh."
"You’re here too."
Lily immediately pointed at him angrily.
"Do not sound happy about that!"
The spectators exploded instantly.
"IT’S LILY GODDESS!"
"She’s streaming tonight?!"
"Wait—isn’t that the human who bullied her?!"
"The one who made her cry?"
"Kill him!"
Lily crossed her arms furiously.
"I already warned everyone this human is dangerous."
Shen Yu tilted his head.
"Dangerous?"
"You enjoy dying!"
"That’s not illegal."
"It should be!"
The ghost audience immediately agreed.
"Yes!"
"Ban death enjoyers!"
"Report his existence!"
Shen Yu ignored all of them.
Instead, he examined the dungeon quietly.
"...Unit 101."
A faint wet sound echoed from below.
Then—
Hair.
Black strands slowly began emerging from a nearby sink drain.
The spectators laughed.
"Oh here we go."
"Bathroom hair demon."
"He lasts twenty seconds."
"No way."
"Ten seconds."
Lily frowned slightly.
For some reason—
She looked nervous.
Shen Yu noticed immediately.
"You know this dungeon?"
Lily avoided eye contact.
"...maybe."
The spectators exploded again.
"OHHHH?"
"Lily Goddess knows the instance?"
"Insider cheating!"
"Report collusion!"
Lily snapped instantly.
"There’s no collusion!"
Then muttered quietly:
"...my sister died here."
Shen Yu blinked.
"Your sister died too?"
The audience suddenly became awkwardly silent.
Lily’s face immediately turned red.
"THAT IS NOT IMPORTANT!"
Shen Yu nodded thoughtfully.
"Interesting."
"STOP LOOKING INTERESTED!"
The sink suddenly gurgled violently.
Hair flooded outward like living snakes.
Thick black strands spread rapidly across the floor.
The apartment lights flickered.
The spectators leaned closer excitedly.
"Here it comes."
"Drain curse activated."
"Watch him panic."
Shen Yu calmly crouched beside the moving hair.
The audience froze.
"...what’s he doing?"
"No way."
"He’s not actually—"
Shen Yu reached out.
And touched the hair directly.
The entire observation layer exploded.
"HE TOUCHED IT?!"
"THIS HUMAN IS INSANE!"
"DRAIN HAIR STEALS LIFE FORCE!"
"MOVE YOU IDIOT!"
Lily’s expression changed instantly.
"WAIT—DON’T TOUCH THAT!"
Too late.
The hair wrapped around Shen Yu’s arm immediately.
Cold energy surged into his body.
His health plummeted rapidly.
The spectators screamed excitedly.
"YES!"
"FINALLY!"
"HE’S DYING!"
But Shen Yu only blinked calmly.
"...that’s it?"
The hair tightened harder.
Trying to drain him dry.
Yet instead of resisting—
He gently rubbed the strands between his fingers.
"Hm."
"Texture’s surprisingly soft."
The entire ghost audience went silent.
Lily stared at him in disbelief.
"...are you massaging it?"
Shen Yu tilted his head.
"It seemed tense."
The hair paused.
Even the curse itself looked confused.
One spectator whispered:
"...what is wrong with this human?"
Another answered softly:
"...everything."
The hair suddenly surged upward violently.
It wrapped around Shen Yu’s throat.
His chest.
His waist.
More and more strands flooded from the drain.
The room temperature dropped sharply.
Finally—
The curse reacted properly.
The strands pierced into his skin.
Life force drained rapidly.
His body weakened instantly.
The spectators laughed wildly.
"There it is!"
"He’s done!"
"Bet he becomes a mummy in seconds!"
Lily frowned uneasily.
Something felt wrong.
Because Shen Yu—
Was smiling again.
Not a crazy smile.
Not excitement.
Just curiosity.
Like he was studying the curse instead of fearing it.
"...interesting," he whispered.
The hair tightened harder.
Bones creaked.
His breathing slowed.
Then—
Shen Yu deliberately pulled the strands closer around his neck.
Lily’s eyes widened.
"...what are you doing?"
Shen Yu answered honestly.
"Testing pain levels."
The audience exploded again.
"HE’S DOING IT ON PURPOSE!"
"WHAT KIND OF HUMAN TESTS CURSES WITH HIS BODY?!"
"THIS ISN’T NORMAL!"
Then Shen Yu suddenly activated Blink.
His body phased halfway through the apartment wall while the cursed hair remained wrapped around him.
The interaction instantly destabilized.
The curse screeched.
Hair tangled violently between solid concrete and phasing space.
Shen Yu’s body twisted unnaturally.
Blood splattered across the hallway.
Lily froze.
"...what."
Then—
CRACK.
The curse ripped him apart.
The hallway became silent.
A beat later—
[PLAYER DEATH REGISTERED]
Pain Level: HIGH
Curse Interaction Complexity: ACCEPTED
DEATH CRIT ACTIVATED
Reward Multiplier: ×5.2
The spectators screamed.
"HE DID IT AGAIN!"
"WHY WOULD HE KILL HIMSELF THERE?!"
"REPORT HIM!"
"REPORT THE SYSTEM!"
Lily stared blankly at the blood-covered hallway.
"...he’s actually insane."
A few seconds later—
Shen Yu revived nearby.
Completely calm.
He stretched slightly.
Then looked toward the cursed drain.
"Okay."
"I understand the basic rule now."
The spectators fell silent.
Lily slowly stepped backward.
"...you learned something from dying?"
Shen Yu nodded.
"The hair doesn’t attack randomly."
He looked toward Unit 101 thoughtfully.
"It’s protecting something."
The hallway lights flickered again.
And somewhere deeper inside the apartment—
Something moved.
Something large.
Wet.
Breathing softly behind the walls.
Then a new system message appeared.
Hidden Investigation Route Triggered
Clue Acquired:
"The dead woman in Room 101 is still waiting upstairs."
The spectators became quiet.
Even Lily’s expression changed slightly.
And Shen Yu—
Smiled again. freёwebnovel.com
Because detective-type horror dungeons...
Were his favorite kind.
