You said you were going to make games, how did you become the richest man without doing anything?

Chapter 571 Police Office

Rain dripped down the eaves of the police station, forming a thin stream on the cement floor. Tang Yin sat on a bench in the corridor, staring at the drizzle in a daze. Although he wouldn't be arrested on the spot, the news of an outsider riding a motorcycle into the village in the middle of the night would probably be widely spread throughout the village tomorrow.

He smiled wryly and shook his head. Now that was bad. No matter who he talked to from now on, they would probably look at him like a criminal. The fluorescent lights in the corridor emitted a faint hum, appearing particularly glaring in the humid air.

The police officer was a typical country boy, with a square face, thick eyebrows, and large eyes, speaking with a thick local accent. Before leaving, he ordered Tang Yin to sit quietly and wait for his return. It was unclear what kind of interrogation he was preparing for.

Tang Yin leaned against the wall, closed his eyes, and pondered his plan. Baifengzhuang was the only way to Wuyin Village, just like Xia Hui and Zhou Zhengxiong had done before. The two reporters had taken the official route, so they were not regarded as unlucky by the people of Wuyin Village.

"But they still died." Tang Yin muttered to himself, "Not because they were outsiders, but because they violated the rules of the banquet."

The three strange rules of "shroud", "object taboo", and "dream pillow" swirled in his mind. Washing the body, shutting the door alone, and sleeping until dawn seemed simple, but it was full of murderous intentions. Thinking back to the experience of the two reporters, Tang Yin couldn't help but shudder.

They had been staying at Baifeng Manor and had made a special trip to Wuyin Village that day to conduct an interview. However, the weather was unfavorable, with a sudden heavy fog and landslides on the mountain roads forcing them to remain in the village. To make matters worse, the people of Wuyin Village immediately became wary of outsiders after the fog arrived.

"That bastard Zhao Gang." Tang Yin clenched his fists, his nails digging deep into his palms. That guy had abandoned the outsider traveling with him without a word. It was simply disgusting.

His thoughts drifted to Wang Lina, the brave girl who had risked her life to share his plan. While the information wasn't complete, her help was undoubtedly invaluable. Tang Yin took a deep breath and vowed to cherish her kindness.

As the sound of the rain subsided, Tang Yin's thoughts returned to the two reporters. The scene seemed to be right before his eyes: in the square, filled with thick fog, all the villagers suddenly disappeared without a trace, leaving only two bewildered outsiders. Their final choice was to spend the night in the car.

"This decision cost them their lives." Tang Yin looked out the window at the pitch-black night, a chill running through his heart. Footsteps could be heard at the end of the corridor; the police officer should be returning. Tang Yin gathered his thoughts and prepared for the upcoming interrogation. No matter what, he couldn't reveal any flaws at this critical moment.

The distant village still slept in the rainy night, its scattered lights flickering like will-o'-the-wisp flames in the darkness. Tang Yin knew this was only the first of many tests he would soon face. Those unknown truths, still buried deep within the strange rules of the Hidden Mist Village, awaited his discovery.

Tang Yin gazed out the window at the drizzling rain, the image of the van surfacing in his mind. Zhou Zhengxiong, a massive figure at least 1.85 meters tall and weighing probably over 90 kilograms, while Xia Hui was a slender female reporter. He couldn't help but frown, wondering how she had managed to fit into that cramped compartment.
"If they really sleep together..." Tang Yin's eyes narrowed, "That would be a violation of the rules of taboo."

Amidst the sound of rain, he continued to sort out clues. Even with the doors locked, the question of whether a van met the criteria for taboos was inherently fraught with uncertainty. Perhaps it was this fatal oversight that led to Zhou Zhengxiong's body being found inside the car.

As for Xia Hui, her fate seemed even more tragic. Tang Yin stroked his chin, recalling the details of the crime scene. She must have left the car late at night, violating the rules of Mengzhen. What exactly drove her to risk going out? To use the restroom? To find another place to stay?

"No," Tang Yin muttered to himself, "With her professional sensitivity as a reporter, she must have noticed something unusual and wanted to take the opportunity to find out what it was."

The damp air was filled with a musty smell that made people feel uneasy. Tang Yin continued to reason. In that emergency situation, the two of them obviously had no conditions to take a shower, which meant that they had also violated the rules of the 褉.

Afterwards, Xia Hui encountered the terrifying giant wolf. Tang Yin closed his eyes and shuddered as if he saw the broken corpse again.

Thinking back to his own experience, Tang Yin couldn't help but smile bitterly. After leaving the toilet that night, he had indeed experienced death. The phrase "going outside will lead to death" echoed repeatedly in his mind, but could that simple toilet really be considered "inside"?

"After all, that kind of place should be considered outside," he said with a self-deprecating laugh. Furthermore, he hadn't showered or slept, so he'd broken every rule.

Yet he survived. This unusual result made Tang Yin ponder deeply. What exactly determines life or death? Suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind: "Could it be that the key lies in whether or not the monster discovers me?"

Recalling that encounter, when he was discovered, the monster thought he had broken the rules and immediately started hunting him. But when he was not discovered, even though he had also broken all the rules, he was safe and sound.

"So..." Tang Yin's pupils suddenly contracted, "The essence of Wu Ji is actually a way to avoid that werewolf-like monster?"

The rain outside the window gradually subsided, but an unseen threat still seemed to lurk in the darkness. Tang Yin's fingers tapped unconsciously on the seat of his chair. This deduction seemed to have solved part of the mystery, but it also brought with it more questions: What exactly was that monster? Why did such a rule exist? How many unknown secrets were buried in this eerie village?
The lights in the corridor flickered, casting swaying shadows on the walls. Tang Yin knew that to uncover the truth about the Hidden Mist Village, he needed more clues. But now, he had to deal with the upcoming interrogation and carefully maintain his identity as a "suspicious outsider."

Recalling that terrifying night, Tang Yin could still clearly hear the dull thud of the monster pounding against the wooden door. Its force was so great that the entire toilet trembled, and the worn door frame groaned under the weight.

"If the lock hadn't been working back then..." Tang Yin wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, "I'd be a corpse now."

As he was sorting out his thoughts, a key point suddenly emerged in his mind: as long as he could find a safe, enclosed space, he could avoid being killed by the monster. This inference reminded him of Xiaome, the mysterious little girl.

I remember the first time I saw her, she was wearing a slightly oversized white dress, standing barefoot by the stream in the Shenge Valley. Her large, innocent eyes seemed completely out of place in this eerie village. Even stranger, even though she was found in a forbidden area, she remained untainted by the strange aura and lived until her last day.

"In other words..." Tang Yin's eyes became sharp, "The most important thing in Kirigakure is to find a room that can be locked and has a bathroom."

However, to achieve this goal, choosing the right method was crucial. If he chose to enter the village through the Divine River Valley, it would undoubtedly arouse the villagers' vigilance and suspicion. They would do everything they could to drive out this suspicious outsider.

Tang Yin tapped the table lightly, a gleam in his eyes. "But if I could find a legitimate reason to enter the village through Baifeng Manor, the situation would be completely different." At this thought, he recalled Xiao Mei's special treatment. The little girl was so young, and it was probably for this reason that Hua Lu felt pity and specially prepared a small room for her.

"But..." Tang Yin suddenly stopped what he was doing, frowning, "Wait, Hua Lu already prepared a place for Xiao Mei to live? For such a young child?"

This reminded him of the strange arrangement of the village banquet during the fog, as if everything was pre-planned. But this idea was too outrageous. Tang Yin shook his head and decided to put this doubt aside for the time being.

"Maybe it was because of the fog that Hualu hurriedly gave the key to Xiaome." He said to himself, trying to find a reasonable explanation.

The air in the room swayed slightly, bringing a slight chill. Tang Yin stood up and walked to the window. If he could obtain the same accommodations as Xiao Mei, he would be eligible to attend the Huangquan Ji Banquet. Then, he would no longer need to rely on Wang Lina and could listen to those mysterious speeches in person, even directly express his own opinions.

More importantly, this would allow him to gain more inside information about the banquet. Tang Yin cast his gaze toward the village shrouded in mist in the distance. Those stubborn old people were unwilling to reveal the village's secrets to outsiders who had not attended the banquet. With this in mind, his plan seemed to be the only key to unlocking the door to the truth.

……

As the night deepened, Tang Yin sat alone on a worn wooden chair. The dim oil lamp swayed in the wind, casting a swaying shadow on the wall. His slightly tired face looked particularly pale in the dim light, but his deep eyes flickered with a restless light.

"What is the truth?" He whispered to himself, his slender fingers unconsciously stroking the tabletop. Although his reason told him to avoid repeating the same mistake as last time, the desire for the truth in his heart grew like a weed.

That creepy monster and the fact that he had survived by chance - these two mysteries were like two unsolved puzzle pieces, firmly embedded in the puzzle of the death regression phenomenon.

Tang Yin closed his eyes, recalling the scene of that night. The moonlight was like water, and he curled up in that simple toilet, his heartbeat so loud that it seemed to penetrate the wooden boards. "That monster probably didn't notice me at the time..."

He frowned, his expression serious. "It just thought that locked toilet was suspicious. But if it really was the legendary werewolf, it should have been able to detect me with its keen sense of smell. Why did it give up halfway?"

The oil lamp suddenly shook violently, and Tang Yin subconsciously reached out to protect the flame. This unexpected survival not only saved him from disaster, but also gave him an extremely special place in this strange village.

"The rules of the banquet..." He stood up and paced back and forth in the small room. A cool night breeze seeped in through the cracks in the shabby window, bringing with it a faint, fishy smell. "The rules don't specify any specific measures for outsiders. Logically, all outsiders should be excluded."

Tang Yin paused, his gaze fixed on the mottled water stains on the wall. "[Anyone who doesn't have a room that meets the requirements is an outsider], [such outsiders must be excluded]—under normal circumstances, this system should be perfect." He smiled wryly and shook his head, "But I, like a bug, appeared at the perfect moment."

Moonlight filtered through the clouds, casting mottled shadows on the ground. Tang Yin's voice was tinged with confusion. "Since that monster is the executor of the pollution, it should belong to Qian Ming Shen's camp. Why didn't they use their divine power to deal with my loophole? Moreover, with their abilities, unlocking such a thing should be easy."

Tang Yin's brow furrowed as he recalled the previous incident with Qin Ming and Granny Rong. According to the village legend, the resurrected wolf had undergone some kind of exchange with them, but the stories they told were vastly different. "They were just ordinary people who had received the wolf's blessing..."

The flame of the oil lamp flickered, and Tang Yin's shadow twisted and distorted on the wall. "In other words, that monster is completely different from Qin Ming and Granny Rong. It's more like a being that can grant them divine power."

The night wind rustled through the treetops. Tang Yin clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white. "I don't know why that monster granted the villagers a blessing, but the so-called blessing should be some kind of restricted divine power."

Outside, an unknown bird's cry shattered the stillness of the night. Tang Yin looked out the window at the inky black sky. The moon had been obscured by dark clouds. How many secrets did this enigmatic village hold? And what role would he play in this strange game?
Tang Yin leaned against the wall of the police station, beads of sweat oozing from his forehead. The morning light hadn't yet completely dispelled the night's haze, and it filtered through the gaps in the blinds, casting mottled shadows on the floor.

"The faction that granted the Divine Protection couldn't even do something as trivial as unlocking it?" he muttered to himself, his slender fingers tapping the table unconsciously. This doubt was like a thorn, deeply piercing his heart. How could a being with supernatural powers make such a basic mistake?
He shook his head, forcing himself to stop thinking in that direction. "There's too little information. Continuing with this line of reasoning will only backfire." The most urgent task at hand was finding that so-called "matching room."

The old-fashioned clock in the police station ticked, and the hour hand pointed to six in the morning. Tang Yin rubbed his temples. The past half hour of reasoning had consumed too much of his energy. Through the window, he could see that the sky in the east was already turning pale.

"Only a dozen hours left." He took a deep breath, the air lingering with the scent of old papers and wooden furniture. He had to find a room he could lock before the fog settled in the Hidden Mist Village. This mission was already difficult, and now time was running out.

"Should I just flee to the Hidden Mist Village?" The thought flashed through his mind. "Just say I'm from Baifeng Manor and need a place to stay for the night?" But he quickly dismissed the idea. Given the villagers' suspicion, such a clumsy lie would only arouse more suspicion.

"I still have to find a way to get a recommendation from Baifengzhuang." He stood up and began to pace around the small police station. The morning sun gradually became brighter, illuminating the entire room.

An old-fashioned black telephone sat quietly on the desk, its retro sheen adding a touch of 1990s police station charm to the room. Tang Yin's eyes swept over the wanted posters on the wall. The yellowed papers bore photos of various wanted criminals.

"This one has been caught, right?" He leaned closer to one of the wanted posters, his lips curled up slightly. His gaze shifted to the next one, which showed a typical "bad guy" face, with thick eyebrows, big eyes, and a ferocious expression.

Suddenly, his expression froze. The last wanted poster bore the words "Serial Killer" in bold. Tang Yin swallowed unconsciously. "Could this guy be hiding nearby?" The thought sent a chill down his spine. In the morning light, the ferocious face on the wanted poster seemed to stare back at him.

(End of this chapter)