In the stairwell, the face spider did not chase after them. It seemed its territory was limited to one floor, or perhaps it was still wary of something.
The gaunt man also did not come up. Lin Mo guessed that the puppet doll must have held him back.
This was a rare opportunity.
Lin Mo did not waste time. This safe window might only last a few minutes, and he had to make use of every second.
Immediately, he began searching the seventh floor carefully.
As he had expected, the seventh floor was relatively safe, and he indeed found the source of the fire.
It was in the room next to where he first appeared. Inside lay several charred corpses, one of which was tightly clutching a lighter in its hand.
This room had been burned the most severely. Everything in sight was blackened from the fire. Among the charred bodies, there were both large and small ones. The one holding the lighter was the strangest.
It was kneeling on the ground, as if in a posture of repentance.
The scene was extremely bizarre. The entire room had been burned to this state, yet oddly the lighter was unharmed.
However, Lin Mo had no time to investigate further at this point.
He needed this lighter.
"Brother, I apologize, but I need to borrow your lighter," Lin Mo said, then reached out to take it.
At this distance, the acrid smell of burned flesh was clearly detectable.
Just as Lin Mo grasped the lighter, the kneeling charred corpse suddenly made a cracking sound. Its other hand shot out like lightning and grabbed Lin Mo's wrist.
An intense burning sensation spread from where it gripped.
Lin Mo's reaction was extremely quick.
Without hesitation, he stabbed with the knife in his hand.
This knife, which he had pulled from the puppet doll's body, carried an astonishing chill and was extremely sharp. It pierced through the charred corpse's arm in one strike, forcing it to release its grip.
Lin Mo tried to pull the knife out.
It wouldn't budge, seeming to be stuck in the bone.
He didn't hesitate, immediately abandoning the knife and backing away with the lighter in hand.
The charred corpse, which had been hanging its head, suddenly raised it and opened its mouth wide, letting out a howl. Though its face was completely disfigured, Lin Mo could see hatred and resentment in its expression.
At this moment, flames began pouring out of the corpse's eyes, ears, nose and mouth.
Quickly, the flames grew more intense.
The charred corpse seemed about to stand up. The other charred bodies in the room also showed signs of movement, with tufts of flames emerging from cracks in their bodies.
Lin Mo glanced at the knife still stuck in the corpse's arm, then quickly retreated from the room.
It was a pity to lose that knife, but there was no choice.
After experiencing so many strange and terrifying events, Lin Mo had some psychological preparation for the possibility of the charred corpses reanimating.
Lin Mo had been on guard, which is why his knife strike was so swift.
The only thing he hadn't anticipated was that once inserted, the knife couldn't be pulled out.
However, Lin Mo could sense something ominous about that knife. Keeping it might not have been a good thing anyway. Losing it was fine. Using it to restrain the charred corpse might even provoke a conflict between the corpse and the gaunt man.
This trade wasn't a loss.
In fact, one of his arms was still numb and looked extremely pale, as if corrupted by the malice, killing intent and resentment from the knife.
If he had continued to hold that knife, Lin Mo didn't know what might have happened next.
In comparison, this lighter seemed much safer. At least Lin Mo didn't sense any particularly horrifying malice or curse from it.
Because Lin Mo had taken the lighter, the evil spirits on the seventh floor were fully activated.
Flames and thick smoke poured out of the room continuously. Several charred corpses engulfed in flames crawled out of the room, letting out terrifying shrieks. Wherever they passed, flames rolled. By this time, Lin Mo was already racing down the stairwell without looking back.
Fortunately, the gaunt man had not yet emerged from the fourth floor, indicating he was still trapped by the puppet doll.
This might be the only chance to escape.
Lin Mo quickened his pace, taking off his military coat as he descended.
He had left in such a hurry earlier that he didn't have time to grab other flammable materials. Now he could only rely on this coat.
When he reached the fourth floor, howls from the charred corpses could be heard from above, accompanied by billowing smoke and flames.
Lin Mo did not hesitate, continuing downward while using the lighter to set his military coat on fire.
By the time he reached the second floor, the coat was blazing. Lin Mo threw the burning coat towards the first floor exit.
With a whoosh, large patches of spider webs ignited, emitting a dazzling light accompanied by thick smoke and an acrid stench that could make one dizzy.
Lin Mo covered his nose and crouched as low as possible.
The face spider was now extremely agitated, but creatures of its kind feared fire the most. Combined with the continuously billowing smoke and its wariness of the pale ghost shadow, the face spider did not attack Lin Mo.
At this moment, Lin Mo crouched at the stairway between the second and first floors, waiting for an opportunity.
The sealed first floor exit was quickly burned open.
After all, no amount of spider webs could withstand the burning flames.
Lin Mo, who was nearly suffocated by the smoke, gritted his teeth and suddenly charged down to the first floor.
He couldn't wait any longer.
The charred corpses from the seventh floor had already reached the third floor, and the smoke had almost filled the entire stairwell. If he didn't leave now, he would either suffocate or be caught by the charred corpses.
So Lin Mo had to take the risk.
Ahead was a wall of fire, but Lin Mo had no other choice. He accelerated, protecting his head with both arms, and charged through with his eyes closed.
The burning pain was heart-piercing. Lin Mo knew he was burned.
But he had successfully broken through.
Hearing the resentful howls of the charred corpses behind him, Lin Mo ignored the pain all over his body and did one thing.
He closed the stairwell door and locked it with an iron chain nearby.
"Done!"
After doing all this, Lin Mo backed away while looking at the building in front of him.
Thick smoke continuously poured out of the building.
It had to be said that the destructive power of the charred corpse spirits on the seventh floor far exceeded Lin Mo's expectations. Thinking about it now, it seemed almost unbelievable that he had forcibly snatched away the lighter that they treasured so much.
If he had to do it again, Lin Mo wasn't sure he could succeed.
Bang!
The security door on the first floor made a huge noise, clearly something was ramming it.
Fortunately, Lin Mo had locked it with the iron chain. Otherwise, whatever was inside would have certainly broken through. Now Lin Mo was injured all over and completely exhausted. He really couldn't take any more risks.
However, to be on the safe side, Lin Mo continued to back away, then hid behind a wall about ten meters away to watch.
The security door at the stairwell entrance was very sturdy. Although it was rammed more than a dozen times, it ultimately did not break open.
Faintly, the howls of the face spider and charred corpses could be heard.
At this moment, Lin Mo sensed something strange. He looked up towards the fourth floor of the building.
The flames had not yet completely spread to the fourth floor.
And now, in a window on the fourth floor, Lin Mo saw a person.
The gaunt man.
He was staring at Lin Mo.
His expressionless face and hollow eyes were extremely unsettling.
He just stared at Lin Mo like this, as if trying to memorize Lin Mo's appearance. Lin Mo was certainly not afraid of this and stared back fearlessly. As their gazes met, all Lin Mo could see was malice.
A moment later, the gaunt man slowly backed away, disappearing into the darkness of the fourth floor.
The look in his eyes before he vanished seemed like a warning and a message, as if saying, we'll meet again.
Lin Mo frowned at this point, seemingly troubled by something.
"Why do I feel like I've seen him somewhere before!"
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