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

To hell with Liu Family Village, to hell with stagnant water, to hell with bears!

[I've prepared enough firewood. I refuse to believe that even burning down the entire forest and village won't leave me with a way out. (Extremely distorted and illegible handwriting)]

Yes, that didn't work either; after the fire was extinguished, the trees grew back. (Followed by clear and neat text)

[Added by: A robber]

I killed other people for food supplies, and I also killed the old woman who swept the temple, but she reappeared the next day, as if she didn't know what had happened the day before.

[Perhaps she can be used in an emergency. Although she's a bit old, she still has plenty of meat on her bones. Let's start trying her out tomorrow.]

【Don't do this (This line of text appears to be written by the same person as the previous text, but the text color is inexplicably reddish, as if it were written in blood)】

[A Lost Man: Gabriel]

I don't know whether to call it luck or misfortune that I ended up in this place, and I happen to know some Chinese and English. I will translate the words of these predecessors into English and French. If there are any unfortunate people like me in the future, I hope this can help you.

[Additionally, I noticed that all the marked village houses are located in the relatively peripheral areas; it seems no one has ever entered the central area of ​​Liu Family Village. Considering the increasing number of paper dolls further in, this is understandable. However, I think that perhaps precisely because of this, some clues might be hidden there.]

I'll try to go further in, and there's that old woman too. She's acting very strangely, so don't mess with her. But if the situation becomes critical, maybe you can try asking her for help, if you're sure things won't get any worse...

[Added by: An unlucky guy]

There are so many names on this list, just like the names on a funeral home's list. I won't leave any names here, it doesn't matter whether they're dead or alive anyway.

There are many altars in this village, dedicated to a person called "Jiang Shi". I also found some papers buried under the beds in some houses, which seemed to have been left by "Jiang Shi". Unfortunately, the writing on them was too blurry to understand what was written.

[This practice of worshipping a particular person is quite normal in villages, but I always feel something is strange. Although I can't quite put my finger on why, I feel that those villagers who worship Jiang Shi don't seem to be truly worshipping him, but rather more like they are afraid of him.]

[I investigated all the other mansions identified as particularly dangerous as possible. I discovered that these mansions differed from others in that they had an altar for something else inside. It looked like a deity, with the head of a fox or wolf attached to a human body. It was very eerie. I just glanced inside, and the deity seemed to turn to face me on its own. Even after I ran quite a distance away, I still felt like something was watching me from behind.]

I need to think of another way. Maybe I can try digging a tunnel?

Further records are often the last words of people who unfortunately ended up here.

They survived by learning from the experiences summarized by their predecessors on the walls, yet they could never find a way to escape, which only deepened their despair. Some even deliberately erased the rules left by their predecessors or left contradictory statements to mislead other survivors. However, the records left by these people gradually faded away; it seemed that words written on the walls with malice would disappear. Therefore, only the records left by those who genuinely cared for those who would come after them could endure.

It was thanks to these records that Kaguya Shinomiya found a very safe house shortly after entering the village.

However, she didn't take the food and water from the house. The Gao Hai team had prepared a substantial amount of food before entering the dungeon, so Kaguya wouldn't need to force herself to eat the dungeon's food for at least a week. Her main reason for entering the village was to investigate, confirm the authenticity of the information on the wall, and find a way to rendezvous with her teammates. As for the incident where a mushroom cloud rose a few hundred meters away and she was almost buried by collapsing houses, Kaguya could only say that the unexpected event was quite thrilling and frightening.

{These are just more traces of innocent people being dragged in by the power of the instance...}

Maki felt a pang of sadness, recalling Sanchez, who had died in the Shirakawa apartment. That father had only wanted to be with his daughter, but he was manipulated and deceived by the KP, dragging the entire apartment into deeper darkness, and ultimately dying with regret.

However, she also found it strange that during the process of creating a ghost story instance, there was always a process of bringing ordinary people into the instance. For example, a Red Moon-level instance like [Campus Ghost Stories] would continue to bring in ordinary people even after the instance was fully created, which seemed rather inexplicable to Maki.

However, Gao Hai's focus was not on this.

In his view, the truly crucial part of the information Kaguya provided should be that mountain god temple.

[The Mountain God of Xiaoheishan]

For Gao Hai, who had just moved from Lijia Village, it was impossible for him to have misheard the name.

There is an abandoned temple in the forest near Liujia Village. There are no statues inside, and the name of the deity can be confirmed as the Mountain God of Xiaoheishan.

Why are there no statues of gods?

Was it because the people of Lijia Village carried away the statue of the deity?

At this moment, Gao Hai frowned and thought seriously for a while, feeling that he probably had to go to that mountain god temple in person to find out the specific situation.

Chapter Seventeen: Strange Villages in Conflict and Dilapidated Investigation Records

So far, after several hours of initial encounters and extensive investigations, although the dungeon called "Infant Cry Village" remains shrouded in mystery, some clues have begun to emerge, connecting with each other and allowing us to deduce some things.

Firstly, regarding the relationship between the Mountain God of Little Black Mountain and the Fox Queen, it's clear that they are on opposing sides in some sense. In [Li Family Village], although Gao Hai hasn't seen anything related to the Fox Queen so far, the village's rules indicate that the Fox Queen's worship is very unpopular. The contrast is even more pronounced in [Liu Family Village], where there's even a mountain god temple that can be used as a safe zone; the animosity between the two sides is practically out in the open.

Then, problems can also be seen in some details of the characteristics and patterns of the two villages.

In the five-plus hours since the start of the instance, Gao Hai's exploration of [Li Family Village] has been conducted during the day, while Jianzi and her group's investigation of [Liu Family Village] has been carried out at night. Furthermore, based on the rule tables found so far and their different experiences, it's clear that both nights in [Li Family Village] and days in [Liu Family Village] are extremely dangerous. Additionally, it seems that both villages are simultaneously in danger at the time of "twilight," the transition between day and night.

Next, the notice in [Li Family Village] advises players to avoid stagnant water and accept food and drink from the villagers, while the rules on the temple wall in [Liu Family Village] state that players should not easily touch flowing water. Additionally, the "rice" and "wine" offered to the villagers, and the prohibition against eating the seemingly prepared food in the village, are also points worth considering.

Aside from these obvious contradictions, there are some details worth considering, such as the role of the "Black Immortal" within the dungeon, and the presence of both the red and white teams in both villages, which seem to pose considerable danger. Furthermore, the whereabouts of Goto Ichiri, this powerful player who never received an invitation, is also a troublesome issue that needs to be addressed.

Perhaps there are more than one village in this instance, and they only visited the two easiest to find. For example, to enter [Li Family Village], one only needs to obtain an invitation and follow the guidance of the living villagers, while to enter [Liu Family Village], the person with the invitation needs to avoid the guidance of the living villagers.

Aside from those two conditions, players might be able to enter villages in different states if they meet other conditions. For example, Xiao Yi might be in a village with a more special state. As for how to find her and meet up with her... well, that can't be solved by imagination alone; we'll have to wait and see in practice.

As Gao Hai was thinking this, he opened his eyes and looked at the girls beside him.

Zhenfei was sitting next to Gao Hai, silently on guard. When she saw him suddenly open his eyes and look at her, she tilted her head in confusion and asked in the mental link, "Lord Hai, what's wrong?"

Chika sat on the ground, seemingly unbothered by the dust, intently observing a small stove in the center of the main house.

Jianzi sat against the wall, feeling slightly sleepy, but she forced herself to stay awake. Considering that they were currently in a dungeon world, unless Gao Hai was watching over her, Jianzi wouldn't fall asleep easily. She still remembered her experience at Yelu Mountain Middle School.

Kaguya was standing at the doorway, observing and keeping watch outside, while Hayasaka, who had recently relieved Kaguya on guard duty, was sitting on one side of the house, organizing some canned food and drinking water that he had taken from a spatial artifact.

Of course, there was also Kita Ikuyo, floating in the air, patrolling and keeping watch throughout the bedrooms, kitchen, and other rooms. Although the girl was very worried about Goto Ichiri's disappearance, she didn't express any dissatisfaction to Takami; instead, she quietly did her best in her own way. This mature reaction made Takami feel a little embarrassed, so he secretly decided that even if he would most likely die in this mission, he had to find Goto Ichiri as much as possible before he died.

The sun was shining brightly outside, just like it had been in Lijia Village before.

And if you listen carefully, you can clearly hear the voices of passersby on the road, the footsteps of villagers leading their oxen to the fields, the sounds of women carrying clothes to the river, and the noise and laughter of children.

It creates an atmosphere that is both noisy and peaceful, just like a typical rural village outside.

But that's not the case.

No observation is needed; simply sensing the atmosphere outside the door is enough to feel the chilling terror.

At least hundreds of eerie creatures, exuding a strong sense of malice, lingered outside the door.

Every now and then, you could see pale fingers peeking in through the crack in the door, only to disappear just as quickly.

As fingernails lightly traced the wall, and with each breath, something would occasionally rise slowly from the earthen walls surrounding the courtyard, only to quickly descend again, as if someone were spying on the small courtyard from behind the walls.

The room was equally unsettled. In the bedroom, where no one was present, the door would inexplicably open or close if one wasn't careful. The once tidy bed became messy and even had obvious dents.

The same goes for the kitchen. Even though Kita Ikuyo had inspected the kitchen several times and confirmed that there was no movement inside, steaming hot food appeared on the table at some point, with six bowls of rice placed on the table and chopsticks stuck straight up in the middle of each bowl.

These changes made everyone tense, but Gao Hai and Jian Zi could vaguely sense that as long as they didn't overreact, these changes wouldn't actually cause any harm. As long as they didn't make too much of a commotion, the source of these abnormal reactions wouldn't be able to be found. Even though these strange creatures had become active because they sensed the presence of living people, constantly creating various disturbances around them.

The reason is quite simple.

Gao Hai turned his head to look at one side of the room, at an inconspicuous altar in the corner of the living room, and at the incense and candles burning silently.

This is an altar dedicated to the Jiang family, a local eccentric who left no name.

As long as this altar remains, these players hiding in the house will not be truly found.

Perhaps all the houses marked as safe houses are places of worship for this Jiang family member?

Gao Hai pondered silently, but didn't draw any conclusions. He was new to the place and hadn't yet formally investigated it. He decided to wait and observe the situation for a while before trying to discern any patterns.

So, who exactly is this Jiang woman?

Reflecting on the instances I've encountered along the way, the victims of the Shirakawa Apartment were all ordinary people completely unaware of the situation. Although Lin Xusheng, as a key figure, guessed the existence of KP to some extent, that was only after he came into contact with the strange entity. The Red Nut Gray Hole and the Campus Ghost Stories did involve official personnel contacting the strange entities, with the former even revealing that the source of the strange entity's power could be traced back ten thousand years and was related to the so-called "gods." However, this was actually just a later instance where someone inadvertently came into contact with the strange entity and began research.

But this Jiang family member, the mysterious figure who investigated deep within these mountain villages, doesn't seem to be a modern person. Could he be an ancient being from hundreds of years ago? If so, does it mean that in ancient times, strange creatures were already active in some places, and that people aware of their existence were trying to control them?

If such people did exist long ago, where did they go? Why can't we find any trace of them in modern society? Why can't any players find any trace of them, or at least not so far?

Or is it that, because of the creation of the instance, the relevant information of these people was also collected into the instance world?

Gao Hai frowned and pondered for a while, but couldn't come up with any reliable answer. So he quickly lowered his head and looked at the record in his hand again.

[Initial Investigation Records of the Strange Village]

This is another record that Hayasaka Ai found buried under a house. Unlike the other two records, the paper of this record is badly damaged, so even using the power of blessing to restore it, it is impossible to recover all the information. Furthermore, this paper does not contain analysis, thoughts, or contact records of a particular type of strange creature, but rather a comprehensive investigation record of this place.

[Recorder: Jiang ■■]

In [Year], border patrol personnel discovered an anomaly: a villager from a small border village returned after disappearing for two years, only to die mysteriously a few days later. According to the patrol personnel, the person suffered extensive burns and extremely severe bite marks, spoke incoherently, and exhibited confused thinking, yet repeatedly and firmly expressed his belief in a certain deity. My superiors suspected this was a harbinger of some strange event, therefore I was ordered to investigate further and try to find the source of the anomaly.]

After a careful investigation of the area around the village, I confirmed that the villager came out from the direction of the nearby "Dead Man Mountain". It is hard to imagine how an ordinary villager could survive in such a place. This matter is indeed quite unusual.

The so-called "Dead Man's Mountain" is not a mountain of any particular nature, but rather a local term for the undeveloped primeval forest and continuous mountain range. The terrain is treacherous, the climate humid, and poisonous insects and wild animals are everywhere. The towering forests block out the sun, making it highly unlikely that even locals would return alive if they ventured deep into the area. I led three subordinates on a fifteen-day investigation in this region and discovered what appeared to be traces of [illegal activity] deep within the mountains, far from human habitation.

Following these clues, I searched for three days and finally arrived at a mountain village. The village was enormous, with at least several thousand inhabitants. They relied on snowmelt from the mountains to irrigate their fields, living off the land. I wondered how many years they had lived there. I thought I understood the local dialect, but in conversation with them, I still found it difficult to understand them. Could they be from some kind of Shangri-La?

Regardless, despite the initial novelty of our encounter, I can conclude that this place is far from the idyllic paradise described by Tao Yuanming; rather, it is a breeding ground for monstrous creatures. In just a few days of investigation, I have confirmed the existence of at least two different types of these creatures. These things have coexisted with the villagers for a considerable time, to the point that the villagers have become accustomed to their presence. But monstrous creatures are still monstrous creatures; they are malevolent entities that evolve with each death. Their scale must be controlled in their infancy, otherwise, even greater sacrifices will ensue.

The problem now is how long these strange creatures have been living with the villagers, and how many kinds of strange creatures are hidden here. Furthermore, the villagers here are extremely hostile towards me. To subdue them, I had to personally kill several villagers who attacked me at night, but even after they stopped attacking, they still can't cooperate smoothly with the person suppressing the strange creatures. Even though I forged an official identity, it seems I can't gain their trust. This mission may be very difficult.

The following search results are for... (a large section of content has been torn out)

This incomplete investigation record alone is enough to illustrate a lot for Gao Hai.

The so-called "ghost suppressers" are clearly a tightly organized secret entity. They seem to have monitoring and investigation teams in various locations, constantly searching for traces of ghosts. When necessary, they will even forge government identities, and they appear to be quite familiar with this forgery process.

Their understanding of the strange creatures must have been quite comprehensive. They knew that these things would change as more and more people died, and they knew to control the situation as much as possible in its early stages. Unfortunately, judging from the fact that this place became the Red Moon-level dungeon [Infant Cry Village], the organization's operation here ultimately failed completely, and it's possible that it even cost everyone's lives.

Gao Hai then looked at the last part of the record, at the incomplete sentence at the end of the investigation record.

[...■Ranshan■is a monster■, for■■■mother■not■? For■two■■■■...]

This is the last text of this severely damaged record; it is so badly damaged that even after restoration, only a few words can be barely discerned. After all, the old principal's blessing was to restore the blurred text, not to repair the gaps in the torn paper.

Sitting in the living room, Gao Hai stared at the line of text for a long time, trying to guess what the original meaning of the words might be.

But suddenly, he tensed up slightly and his attention quickly shifted away.

This feeling……

He didn't turn around, but quickly alerted his teammates in the mental link.

If you only observe the surface, Gao Hai doesn't seem to have changed much at this moment.

However, he was well aware that just a moment ago, someone had gently tugged at the hem of his clothes from behind.

Chapter 18: The Presence Sensed from Behind and the Things That Arrive Silently

There was something behind me.

It wasn't very big; it seemed to be only the height of a small child.

The hand tugging at its own clothes was small and not very strong, but the movements were frequent and steady. A normal person wouldn't maintain that same rhythm for an extended period. Therefore, the question of what was behind it is no longer worth considering.