Level 361

__NOTOC__
Level 361 is the 362nd level of the Backrooms.
==Description==
Level 361, otherwise known as “Creaking Stairway”, is an exceptionally dangerous level of the Backrooms.
Level 361 resembles a wooden staircase that at first glance, is seemingly endless. The staircase seems to be oddly narrow, and there's a lack of light, meaning that the entirety of the level is nearly pitch dark. Everything in this level seems to be abandoned. The wallpaper of Level 361 is completely ripped apart as if someone had torn it apart. The roof, as well as the stairs, is wooden, and there appear to be strange vines growing out of the corners of the walls. The texture of these vines does not match actual vines, and there seems to be a disgusting aroma coming out of these vines. The vines are sharp and appear to have purple leaves.
Once you walk down the stairs, you will hear a creaking sound every step you take, and as you continue to go down, increasingly getting closer and closer to The Bottom, the sound will gradually become louder, almost as if someone was screaming. As you go down, your surroundings noticeably become increasingly dark, dark enough that you will barely be able to see anything. Throughout your journey, you may be unlucky enough to encounter a few entities. There are only two discovered entities in the level, called "Masked" and "Reflection". If you're lucky enough to survive these entities, and not succumb to insanity, you may be able to reach the bottom and the horrors that lie in it.
There are a total of four places in Level 361:
===The Top===
The Top is the place you will appear in when you first enter the level. It is a small area with a seemingly endless stairway that leads downward, walls that are seemingly ripped apart, and a wooden roof with strange vines growing out of it. The Top is presumably one of the safest areas in Level 361, as although it is small and compacted, no entities or hazards reside here. Once you noclip into the level, you may find a phone in your hands. Upon turning on the phone, you will be greeted with one app: Email. If you click on this app, you will instantly receive a notification from a "distant family member". The email varies for each person, but it is highly advised not to read the contents of the email.
===The Secret Room===
The Secret Room is considered to be by far the safest place in the entirety of the level. It can be found if you noclip into the wall when you reach the 361st step. The Secret Room is partially filled with crates that can have supplies inside, ranging from food to weapons. An arcade game lies in the room, titled "The Backrooms". The arcade game is an 8-bit, mini version of Level 361, and next to it is a cheat chip that can be inserted into a hole on the right side of the arcade machine. If you beat the game legitimately, you will be sent to a random safe level, but if you cheat, then you will be greeted with something that worsens your situation.
===The Bottom===
The Bottom of the level can be reached as fast as a day if you walk down the stairs without stopping. It resembles an abandoned, rotten supply room with shelves of rusty equipment such as wrenches, hammers, screws, etc, and there are working lights as well. If you manage to find a mysterious red door and open it, you'll see your worst fear. The things or people behind the red door depend on your phobia. For example, if you have a fear of clowns, killer clowns will continuously chase you with bloody knives while laughing. If you have a fear of spiders, large, hairy spiders will come out and attempt to consume your flesh.
===The Beyond===
The Beyond is, as the name suggests, something beyond The Bottom. The Beyond can only be reached if you find and enter a secret hatch in The Bottom. The Beyond resembles an empty, white void that is as bright as if a thousand lights were shining on you. Only one person have ever been documented to have entered The Beyond. Upon closer inspection, you may hear slight whispers in The Beyond, and you may also see drifting shadows wandering around. Aside from these details, barely anything is known about The Beyond.
==Logs==
===A Cry For Help===
Level 361 is not what it seems. I thought it would be another boring level filled with entities, but no. It was something else.
I arrived at Level 361 with my brother, Richard, shortly after breaking free of a Smiler's grip. When we arrived at the Backrooms, we were both beyond perplexed, but soon, we got used to it. It was like our second home.
The level was fairly small in size, the wallpaper had been completely ripped apart as if a major disaster had happened on the level, and something was growing out of the roof. It was some strange vines, and I wanted to touch it, but my brother told me not to. Even though he was a bit controlling, I listened, as I knew I would be safe under my brother's guidance.
We decided to go down the flight of stairs, and as we continued to go down, we realized that there was a possibility that it was endless. Although I wanted to go back, my brother forced me to go down the stairs which I could no longer see since it was pitch dark. As we went down, we told ourselves funny stories to lighten up the mood, when suddenly I heard a buzzing noise that was coming from my right pocket. It was a phone, specifically an iPhone 11, and I had received an urgent email that was sent by a supposedly "distant family member". My brother had also received the email. 
We decided to open the email and it showed the following message:
Inbox
{| class="fandom-table"	From: A Distant Family Member
To: You	Subject: An Urgent Issue
We ignored the email, thinking it was a trap, and continued to go down. After a while, we finally reached the bottom. The bottom looked like a rotten supply room, but we picked up what we could find. We encountered a mysterious red door, and we decided to open it, and that was our biggest mistake. Chaos was unleashed, and we were being chased by creatures we couldn't describe, Richard told me to keep running as he was being stabbed and eaten alive, blood splattered all over my clothes. I continued to run and I raced to find an exit. I saw a hatch on the floor and quickly entered it. 
I dropped down onto an invisible floor, as I quickly observed my surroundings. It appears that I was in a white void. Suddenly, I saw shadows, floating in the air and whispering in an unknown language. I started hallucinating, and I knew I wouldn't make it if I kept wasting time and watching the shadows go by, so I ran. I ran freely like I cared about nothing, like I wasn't even in the Backrooms, like I didn't even exist. Soon, I felt the cold breeze and I saw the Sun shining on me. But where was I?
==Entities==
A few entities can be found in level 361:
===Reflection===
Reflection is one of the first entities you may encounter throughout your journey in Level 361. It resembles your own shadow, but there are slight differences in appearance. For one thing, your hair cannot be seen, and sharp spikes will appear to stick out of your shadow's skin. If you notice the slight changes to your shadow, your shadow will revert to normal, and Reflection shall not strike. However, if you don't notice it in under 15 seconds, Reflection shall strike.
Reflection resembles a distorted black figure, its outline resembling its next victim. However, its head is on fire (the flames are black instead of orange). It also has sharp claws that are approximately 3 cm (centimeters) long. Its attacking method is by slicing your skin with its claws until you die.
===Masked===
Masked is a rare entity that can be found on the 361st step. Once you arrive at the 361st step, you have a small chance of encountering Masked. Masked is completely harmless, but it will make a loud screech that lasts for 1 minute, possibly breaking your eardrums.
It resembles a floating white mask with a slight black aura. Aside from this information, nothing is known about Masked.
==Colonies and Outposts==
Due to the nature of this level, no colonies or outposts have been established yet. Although there used to be a few now disbanded colonies.
==Entrances and Exits==
===Entrances===
*Live in a level with stairs for 20 days.
*Encounter a black shadow floating in Level 10.
===Exits===
*Beating the arcade game without using the cheat chip will send you to a random Class 0 level.
*Running in The Beyond will lead you to an unknown level.
Category:Levels
Category:Cluster I
Category:Unconfirmed Levels