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

But that's still not the focus right now.

"call……"

Xiong Mi's breathing became much heavier involuntarily.

She began to feel her limbs were as heavy as lead, becoming somewhat unresponsive to her commands.

Even as a veteran Red Moon level player, Xiong Mi was still struggling to hold on at this moment, and even standing up was a bit difficult.

There was no other way; after all, she was currently enduring the oppression of two core obsession-level supernatural tales at the same time, and both her mental and physical will were suffering extremely severe damage.

So what the hell is going on here?!

Xiong Mi stared intently at the tall figure standing outside the window behind Kita Yuyo, which looked as if it were standing on a concrete corridor.

She had never seen that thing before.

Even though Xiong Mi had explored almost the entire "Campus Ghost Stories" instance, and even though Nightfall Mountain Middle School had undergone tremendous changes, she could still find some familiar places. But the thing that could only be seen through the reflection in the window glass felt completely unfamiliar to Xiong Mi.

Judging from the fit between the aura and the dungeon environment, it can be confirmed that the figure in the corridor is a persistent ghost from the [Campus Ghost Stories].

But this feeling... is so unfamiliar, so utterly unfamiliar. How could such an unfamiliar obsession exist in this instance, and what's more, it's the core obsession, the one that every player focuses on and searches for immediately upon entering the instance, the most crucial element that would never be overlooked or missed?

No, wait, there is indeed such a core obsession, isn't there?

Xiong Mi suddenly remembered.

The Baidos Academy, the second core obsession whose existence has been confirmed, yet no trace of it has ever been found.

Until the object of the first core obsession was taken away and the entire instance underwent drastic changes, not a single player successfully found, or even discovered, the second core obsession in the academy.

Only that thing could make me feel unfamiliar.

"call……"

Xiong Mi slowly backed away.

She couldn't get any closer. The intertwined and conflicting concepts of the two core obsessions were causing severe spatial disorder and mental pollution. Approaching rashly under these circumstances might have consequences even worse than staying in the main teaching building amidst the chaos. After all, once a Red Moon-level core obsession triggers a rule that kills, the killed player might be plunged into a state of unbearable agony. And now, this was doubled; what would happen to players who actively provoked both sides? Xiong Mi had absolutely no intention of testing it out.

Yes, they are fighting.

Although the monster possessing Kita Ikuyo appears to be just blankly knocking on the door, and the monster reflected in the window glass standing in the corridor is just standing still in a daze, they are actually engaged in a fierce battle, with their forces continuously clashing against each other.

This confrontation is at the level of rules and concepts; it doesn't produce dazzling special effects like super-powerful battles in movies, nor does it feature any extremely cool moves. In fact, the two sides don't even appear to be engaged in any combat-like actions. Instead, the surrounding space is undergoing increasingly severe distortion, with two completely different architectural styles constantly intertwining and fracturing, their forms flickering with illusory figures of students and adults in full-body protective suits.

"What...what should we do?"

Because she was standing behind Xiong Mi, further away from the two opposing core obsessions and therefore not feeling them very deeply, Goto Ichiri cautiously asked.

"Let's retreat. This is a battle between gods that we can't get involved in."

Xiong Mi took a deep breath with difficulty, pulling Goto Ichiri back more than ten steps before the surrounding space stabilized a little, and the eerie aura that permeated the surroundings became less suffocating than before.

It was only at this time that Xiong Mi was able to determine the current situation through observation.

Those two monsters are stuck.

The killing rules of the monster that possessed Kita Ikuyo seem to be related to knocking on doors, so it controlled the poor girl to block the door and refuse to leave. Judging from its behavior, it should need the person inside the door to open the door to kill the other party.

The thing that appeared here for some unknown reason, which is likely the second core obsession of Bydos, is also after the player inside the door. It also wants to kill the player, and this strange creature should not be restricted by opening or closing the door; theoretically, it can directly enter and kill.

Well, that's assuming there aren't any Red Moon-level core obsessions blocking the entrance.

"……how did you do that?"

Xiong Mi, having figured out the situation, was still completely baffled.

The two obsessions have clashed here, fighting each other to kill the same target. This kind of operation isn't entirely impossible for players, but if you replace "two obsessions" in the description with "two Red Moon-level core obsessions," this becomes very strange. What kind of peerless master would be able to pull off such an outrageous operation?

"Never mind, we have to find a way in—"

Ding Dong!

Before Xiong Mi decided to take the risk and try to bypass the two core obsessions to find a way into the door, she heard the elevator door open not far away.

Turning around, Xiong Mi first smelled the pungent odor of blood, and then saw a figure slowly walking out of the elevator.

It was a man whose figure was indistinct.

He was of healthy build, but not particularly muscular. He wore a somewhat tattered and blood-stained police uniform, his face was blurry and his features were indistinct, and he wore a small police cap.

This thing isn't human, it's a strange creature, and its aura... what's going on? This thing's aura seems to be the core obsession of a Red Moon level being, but it also seems a little different from a normal core obsession!

tread--

Before Xiongmi could figure out what the officer was, it had already stepped out.

With one hand holding a pistol and the other holding a man dressed in black, half-dead and covered in blood, with a cross tattooed on his forehead, he dragged the man by the back of his collar into the corridor.

The one being grabbed by the back of his collar is a person, a player!

Xiong Mi quickly recognized this.

Not only that, the clothes this player is wearing are undoubtedly an artifact of obsession, and he probably has more than one. This aura… a Red Moon level player? What's going on? Did another player team join this mission?! Why didn't we detect any trace of them before? And why is this strange creature grabbing a player but not killing them? What on earth is going on? Where am I?!

"Back, back, back! Damn it, there's a dead end behind us, we can't retreat..."

Grabbing Goto Ichiri's arm, the anxious Kumami didn't care about anything else and quickly retreated. However, she had to stop because she got closer to Kita Ikuyo and the strange creature reflected in the glass.

Am I being attacked by three core obsessions? When will I ever get to enjoy this kind of treatment?!

At this moment, Xiong Mi didn't know how to describe her feelings.

As for Goto Ichiri, she closed her eyes in despair, no longer even wanting to resist. After all, in the current situation, there seemed to be no way out. How could there be a one-sided confrontation where the core convictions outnumbered the players?

[This is a police officer. The area ahead has been confirmed as dangerous. Please evacuate immediately and do not approach this area.]

However, instead of being attacked by the strange police officer, the two heard his very polite words of advice.

The officer turned to the side, bypassing Xiong Mi and Goto Ichiri in the corridor, and continued forward, dragging the half-dead man.

The tattooed player, who was already unconscious, left a long trail of blood on the ground as he was dragged, which reminded Xiong Mi of the famous scene in Stephen Chow's movies where the Shaolin Eighteen Bronze Men dragged Stephen Chow.

The two officers, driven by their core convictions, had already raised their pistols and pulled the triggers without hesitation.

boom!

The red-haired girl's forehead was pierced on the spot, and blood spurted out. She swayed from the blow, then turned her head with a very confused and bewildered expression.

boom!

The windowpane reflecting the tall shadow shattered instantly. Through the reflection of the broken glass, one could vaguely see that the figure seemed to stagger, as if he had actually been hit through the glass.

"What the heck is all this? Am I here to watch a show?"

As for Xiong Mi, who was watching from the sidelines, she no longer knew how to describe her current feelings.

Chapter Sixty: Those Who Have Not Yet Fallen and the New Path They Have Embarked On

bang bang-

Two loud gunshots rang out, the window glass shattered, and Kita Ikuyo was shot through the head, her body swaying a few times from the impact.

The strange creature dressed in a police uniform attacked with absurd speed and without any warning. Xiong Mi, who was watching from a distance, only had time to dodge, while Goto Ichiri didn't even have time to react.

"Hey, hey, hey?!"

Unexpectedly, Kita Ikuyo was shot in the head. Goto Ichiri's expression changed drastically, and he instinctively screamed, wanting to step forward to protect her.

"What's the panic? It's just a blow to the head, it's not like you're going to die."

Xiong Mi held Yili firmly in place, preventing the somewhat clueless girl from rushing forward and risking her life.

The current situation is far too abnormal. Two core obsessions in the same instance are fighting each other, and a strange creature that is suspected to be a core obsession suddenly interrupts the battle. Such a scene of strange creatures spontaneously fighting each other, especially at the top level, is extremely rare. Even an experienced player like Xiong Mi does not know how to deal with it, so he can only choose to retreat cautiously.

However, the police officer who bypassed her and Goto Ichiri without launching an attack, and instead targeted another core obsession, seemed to have a subtle sense of familiarity, as if I had seen him somewhere before.

That attack was incredibly fast, almost too fast to react to. Hmm, it's certain that in this bizarre rule, the intent to attack is completed at the very beginning of the action, therefore any attempt to stop it is futile. Tsk, is there really such a strange rule of behavior? And, wait, why do I feel like I've faced a similar monster before? A terrifying thing wearing a police uniform, almost unstoppable once it launched an attack.

Hmm, there's a strange feeling... Is there something wrong with my memory? Could it be a cognitive blocking mechanism similar to that at Zaoli Elementary School?

The series of unusual phenomena made Xiong Mi realize something was wrong, and she decided to do a self-check as soon as the surroundings became a little safer, in order to confirm whether she had been affected or had her cognition affected.

But for now, she felt it was better to stay away from the three strange creatures in front of her.

squeak-

As Xiong Mi was thinking this, she saw a classroom door not far away suddenly open.

Holding a pistol, Yotsuya Miko ran out of the door and turned around to see Kumami and Goto Ichiri, so she quickly ran towards them.

After she left, the door behind her closed automatically, as if an unseen person were holding the doorknob.

{Gao Hai: Has the situation in the corridor been confirmed?}

At the same time, Gao Hai, standing in an empty corridor, was using the blood key to open the door of the multimedia conference room, but behind this opened door was the door to the archives room.

Not long ago, after confirming with Miko that Kita Ikuyo had blocked the door to the archives room and that there seemed to be something else particularly ominous following Kita Ikuyo, Takami immediately took action.

He first broke through one wall of the archives room and entered the multimedia conference room next door. This act of vandalism, perhaps because it significantly altered the surrounding environment, didn't affect the archives room where Miko was located; it remained intact. However, the situation changed when Gao Hai came out of the multimedia conference room, closed the door, and used the blood key to connect that door to the archives room.

Although spaces at different depths are independent of each other, they are not unconnected. Just as Goto Ichiri and the others in the surface space were able to escape pursuit by driving away the students, Takami and Miko in the inner space were able to do the same by non-destructively manipulating the doors in the deeper space, thus providing feedback to the depth where Miko was located.

Then Yotsuya Miko clearly saw the door to the archives room slowly open, and there was no sign of Kita Ikuyo or the strange creature that Kita Ikuyo had blocked.

While the possessing entity did indeed require the "door to open" according to the rules, Takami's manipulation of two spaces at different depths clearly violated the rules. After all, from Kita Ikuyo's perspective, the archive door wasn't actually open; Yotsuya Miko appeared out of thin air from another door.

However, the thing that Miko had led over, which seemed to exist only in the reflection of the glass, was not subject to such restrictions and moved directly toward Miko.

boom!

Then he was shot again by the police officer, and his movements became unsteady once more.

If a human were to attack this thing with a firearm, it's uncertain whether it would be effective. After all, the creature itself isn't actually here; it merely appears in this place as a phantom, making it impossible for a conventional physical attack to truly hit it. However, the one appearing here and attacking it at this moment is Hirano Sousuke, who is also a creature and is not suppressed by the core obsession's status. Furthermore, while his attack appears to be simply firing a gun, it is actually a non-physical, forced-hit attack, thus striking the creature's true form directly across the distance between Yoruyama Middle School and Baidos.

Although this attack was unlikely to actually harm the monster, it was quite effective in disrupting the operation. The thing that should have caught up long ago was unable to reach Miko, who had escaped to the corridor, due to the continuous firing of the police officers. Its staggering figure could be seen from time to time in the reflection of the glass.

Please don't open the door for me!

Despite having a hole punched in her head, Kita Ikuyo's expression remained largely unchanged. At this moment, she finally turned around, swaying slightly.

Her figure vanished without a trace the next moment, and even Xiong Mi could not pinpoint her location after she moved.

Then, Kita Ikuyo reappeared, but instead of attacking any players, she lay down in front of a window.