Why is my journey to the world of anime a strange tale of rules?

Then she noticed a new situation: her senses could no longer penetrate the fog in front of her, and she could no longer perceive what was happening inside the fog.

"Isolated from perception? This situation is becoming increasingly unusual."

With so many unusual circumstances, so different from those at the previous stations, it's safe to say that the core obsession lies here.

They had no idea what countermeasures the enemy would take after they'd alerted them like this. What if some strange creature was lurking in the fog, seemingly nothing at first glance, but actually already gathering in numbers of dozens or even hundreds? If that were the case, they'd be doomed. Even though the three of them had been significantly strengthened compared to before, encountering a large wave of Red Moon-level monsters would still lead to certain death.

Hmm, that's thinking a bit too far ahead.

A few scattered thoughts did not affect Xiong Mi's thinking ability. She quickly removed those unimportant things from her mind and began to analyze some more important things.

First and foremost, what's most noticeable right now is these wriggling mists.

Peristalsis?

The adjective that came to Xiong Mi's mind subconsciously made her realize the key point.

Just now, she seemed to instinctively feel that this thick fog was actually alive?

Is this how you understand it? It does seem quite strange, but since it's a ghost story, then the living fog doesn't seem so incomprehensible?

On another note, given how peculiar this fog is, could it be related to a core obsession? Ordinary strange creatures are unlikely to form such unique shapes, right?

While pondering, Xiong Mi couldn't help but want to test the waters again. However, considering the strong reaction to the initial test, attempting a second test in such a short time was clearly not the right choice. Also, considering her teammates were also in action, Xiong Mi ultimately decided to suppress her senses, simply standing still and vigilant for anything to emerge from the fog, waiting for Jianbing beside her to provide an answer.

Xiong Mi didn't have to wait too long.

"We've found something here."

Jianbing, who was staring at the computer screen, suddenly said in a low voice.

"what's the situation?"

When Xiong Mi turned to look at Jian Bing's expression, she was certain that the other party had discovered something, so she quickly asked.

"This station definitely represents the [Origin] part of the instance. We are looking in the right direction; this should be the original version of the story, the first version of the story written in this instance. As the source, there must be a core obsession-level monster here, and I have confirmed that. However, if we want to catch its traces, I'm afraid we can only choose to step into the fog. According to my calculations, this is the only way."

As Jianbing spoke, he reached out and wiped away the blood flowing from his nose.

By using the power of his obsession, he also saw many things that were ambiguous and difficult to judge as to their value, and suffered considerable backlash.

However, for the sake of the next objective, this level of pain was hardly worth worrying about. Therefore, Jianbing simply wiped his face a few times and then ignored his physical reactions, turning his attention to Xiong Mi and awaiting the squad leader's command.

"Then come on."

Xiong Mi nodded and was the first to step into the mist ahead.

Then, an even more pronounced, damp smell, as if mold was growing in his throat, quickly flooded into Xiong Mi's nasal cavity.

wow-

Several small pebbles scattered and flew around with Xiong Mi's footsteps, making a clattering sound.

Holding her laptop, Jianbing followed closely behind Xiong Mi, her eyes occasionally scanning the surroundings. Shao Ye, who hadn't uttered a word, stood at the rear this time. For some reason, she turned her back to Xiong Mi and Jianbing and walked backwards, keeping her eyes fixed on what was behind her. And yet, she managed to keep up with the two in front of her without ever stumbling or falling once.

"Kisaragi Station, it seems that the name was decided in the earliest version."

Looking up, Xiong Mi gazed at the nearly completely decayed station sign and said...

In Xiong Mi's opinion, it wouldn't be wrong to say that this station is now completely abandoned.

Benches shattered into pieces, now covered by shrubs; the collapsed station roof; rusted tracks clearly unusable for trains; and several trees of varying sizes growing directly from the tracks. Everything indicated that the station had been completely abandoned and hadn't been maintained for a long time. Along the way, Xiong Mi didn't see a single large, relatively flat area; most of the station platform's structure had cracked from the collapse, with some areas even sunken into potholes.

What happened to cause this place to become like this?

This actually happened in the real world; the copy is merely a distorted record of reality.

Or is it all just a fictional story, with no real elements, and the creator of this story simply felt that this place "should be abandoned"?

The core obsession has not been found.

Despite his growing intuition, Xiong Mi still couldn't sense anything related to his core obsession or find any clues after stepping into the fog and actually walking through the area.

However, something else soon appeared, and judging from the state of these things, Xiong Mi felt that the new clues might be confirmed.

[Giggle...giggle...]

Amidst the clanging of bones, mummies and skeletons emerged from the soil, swaying as they appeared before the three players, blocking their path.

To be honest, after getting used to the various flying and burrowing creatures and the endless stream of disgusting rule-based powers in the Red Moon-level dungeons, these slow-moving skeletons that look like zombies from a low-budget movie actually made Xiong Mi find them somewhat cute.

"Get ready to accelerate and charge straight through."

Of course, despite this perception, Xiong Mi wouldn't underestimate or ignore these things. Once the distance increased to a certain point, the information-concealing effect of the mist weakened considerably. Therefore, Xiong Mi could sense that those seemingly clumsy and slow-moving remains indeed emanated the aura of Red Moon-level monsters.

Since that's the case, there's nothing more to say. Given their current level of violence, there's no reason for them to back down now.

boom!

The first loud bang, the explosion of the collision between the player and the monster, was delivered by Xiong Mi and Shao Ye, who had changed their strategy.

The ground trembled violently, the flames spread through the mist, and the roar instantly traveled to great distances.

What the three people present couldn't perceive was that these movements couldn't actually travel beyond the fog. Whether it was burning flames or explosions, they all vanished without a trace once they approached the true boundary of the fog, leaving no trace whatsoever.

Rumble, rumble——

The shattered remains flew into the air before falling back down and crashing into the damp soil.

The players, charging forward at breakneck speed, easily tore through the lines of these temporary monsters within the dungeon space. Mist flowed across the ground, obscuring the current state of the ground. But for Xiong Mi, who continued her charge, she quickly realized that the remains of these corpses were ultimately absorbed directly by the ground, swallowed up by the damp-looking soil.

Is the soil changing?

No, it seems to be simply accumulating something? Or is it...?

As Xiong Mi moved forward, she tried her best to observe the various situations she might encounter along the way.

What she and her teammates couldn't see was that as the power of the [Hospital] applied some kind of force to this already distorted and riddled dungeon space, the things that had been lingering within the dungeon space gradually changed direction and began to look outside the dungeon, towards the defensive lines built by the players to resist the flesh-and-blood monsters.

Chapter 106 The Sunflower Squad's Premonition and the Sudden Attacker.

"I have a feeling that something is wrong, like something's not right. Hmm, this feeling is awful..."

On the bus traveling in the darkness, Yu Qingshan, who was in charge of driving, frowned and hesitated for a moment before speaking in a low voice.

"Something seems off. This aura... it feels like something is approaching, but it's all a bit vague and hard to pinpoint. It's strange. But since we have this strange feeling, let's assume it's something bad happening. Everyone, get ready, something big might be on its way."

Li Ling frowned at that moment, also feeling a strange, indescribable sensation. However, compared to Yu Qingshan, her perception was slightly inferior, so unlike Yu Qingshan who could sense that something bad was about to happen, Li Ling couldn't even determine whether this premonition was good or bad.

Of course, although she wasn't sure if it was good or bad, Li Ling knew exactly what kind of preparations she should make in this situation. Therefore, before Yu Qingshan could say anything, she immediately shouted loudly to everyone in the car, putting everyone on alert.

As soon as Li Ling shouted, everyone on the bus, whether they had anticipated it or not, reacted either actively or passively.

"It wasn't that easy after all. I knew there must be something seriously wrong with the car that had been stuck in this godforsaken place for so long."

"Get ready. Since both the captain and vice-captain have a feeling, the situation must be very bad."

"I wonder what I'll encounter. I hope it's not a Crimson Moon-level monster..."

“We’ll handle the fighting the enemy. Lao Wang, you continue to be in charge of cleaning up the bodies inside the vehicle. You don’t need to worry about anything else.”

"Okay, I get it now."

The members of the Sunflower Squad reacted very quickly, completing the action plan in a very short time, and everyone was ready for battle.

As a well-trained team that has been through countless battles, these individuals clearly have no reason to worry about any mishaps. Especially after the battle in the edge space, Gao Hai upgraded the entire team, making them even stronger than before, both mentally and physically.

"Hey? What's going on? What big thing is coming? I... I can join the battle too! Let me join in!"

In contrast, Yurikawa Hana, who had been on the train for so long and was almost asleep, was completely bewildered. The girl, rubbing her eyes and staring blankly around, couldn't process what was happening for a long time; her brain was constantly updating and reporting errors.

However, after regaining her senses, the girl stepped forward without hesitation, her body radiating a golden-red light that belonged to Gao Hai. In terms of sheer presence, she far surpassed the players of the Sunflower Squad.

“Miss Yurikawa, your power is very important, and we do need your help. However, it is difficult for us to obtain Mr. Gao's assistance right now. Therefore, you must use your power cautiously. So I hope you can restrain yourself a little for now. No matter what happens next, we should take action first. If we are unable to handle it, then you can step in. Is that alright?”

However, before Xiaohua could actually take any action, she was persuaded to sit back down by Li Ling, who came up to her.

"Oh, is that so? But I want to join the battle too..."

Unexpectedly, Xiao Hua patted her head hesitantly, her expression showing some reluctance.

"We can't bring out our trump card right away. What if a weak enemy appears first, and a strong enemy is hiding behind? If you make the first move, Ms. Yurikawa, won't you lose power? So, as our trump card, I hope you can restrain yourself and conserve your power until we really need your help."

However, as the vice-captain, Li Ling was good at persuasion. After a few serious words, Xiao Hua sat down again while hesitating, and the flames on his body subsided.

"Well... okay then, I'll wait a bit."

The girl nodded slightly, accepting Li Ling's words, but not being able to participate in the battle still made her somewhat frustrated, so the girl's mood clearly dropped.

Aside from the members of the Sunflower Squad and Xiao Hua, who was also in the car, there were clearly other people present. But that person had remained completely silent and unnoticed from the beginning.

Li Ling slowly turned her head and looked at the person.

"..."

The atmosphere was somewhat quiet, and no one spoke.

However, some people remain silent hoping the other person will take the initiative, while others remain silent because they are somewhat unaware of their own limitations.

"..."

There was no immediate response, which showed that the other party was trying to play dumb.

Li Ling was not angry about this, nor did she do anything emotional; she simply continued to silently and expressionlessly watch the other person.

She believed everything was understood without words; she understood, and she was sure the other person understood too.

"...Uh, I'll lend a hand too, don't worry."

So, Fumiya Otoha, who had been sitting silently in her seat pretending to be in the background, reluctantly spoke up. Her face was full of helplessness, and her voice sounded weak and listless. But Li Ling, having received a reply, just smiled slightly, too lazy to care about the other party's pretentious act. She gave her teammate beside her a look, indicating that she should keep an eye on the other party, and then returned to the front of the car, without engaging in any further communication with Fumiya Otoha.

Are you kidding me? Baihechuan Hua is now openly a member of Gao Hai's group, and she's been incredibly helpful ever since she got on board. You're just an ordinary player with no reputation or apparent talent, getting carried along and benefiting is one thing, but now that you might be in danger, you actually want to avoid getting involved? Do you think it's that easy? Do you think we're all fools who only know how to give alms?

If Otoha Fumiya dared to remain completely unresponsive and continue sitting in the car like a lord, Li Ling would dare to throw her out. Ultimately, that's how relationships between players work. The restraint and gentleness often seen in modern society are completely meaningless to players who genuinely need to experience danger and risk their lives. It's understandable that Yurikawa, as a newbie, doesn't understand this, but both Li Ling and Otoha Fumiya are fully aware of it. Therefore, after this silent exchange, they reached a consensus and could continue to coexist peacefully.

Tsk, as expected, I'm being forced to put in the effort. Couldn't they just let me get away with it? These Chinese players are so mean.

Fumiya Otoha, who cherished her life, sighed inwardly. Knowing that she could no longer slack off and enjoy protection, she stood up, stretched her body a few times, and then stood by the car window, pretending to observe the outside environment.

"Ah, why can Sister Wen Gu move around while I have to wait?"

"After all, you're an ace. Being an ace is different from everyone else. Although I know it's definitely a pity that I can't fight, please wait a little longer for now."

Xiao Hua protested somewhat, but was immediately calmed down by Kazama Ren.

However, Otoha Fumiya turned to look at Yurikawa Hana, whose face still hadn't completely lost its innocent look. Some thoughts flashed through her mind, but in the end, she didn't put them into action.