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

I've already blown up your dungeon and moved on to the next one, and I still managed to discover the malice you set up. Burning it with fire was way too easy for you!

The thought that Jianzi and Xiao Ai might have been framed by this old man and suffered a bunch of additional debuffs, causing them to die instantly, made Gao Hai's fists harden.

However, now that this guy was in his hands, and with Bloodflower, a formidable opponent, waiting for him in the dungeon, Gao Hai had no intention of keeping him around to torment him further. What he wanted to know more about now was whether this malevolent blessing power could bring him any benefit.

Gao Hai closed his eyes, and an invisible spiritual force transformed into a large hand, grabbing Urian's eternally burning body and squeezing the power out of his body like toothpaste.

You can feel the powerful force of this blessing.

Even though Urian's will has turned this blessing into a distorted entity filled with malice, as a Red Moon-level blessing, its power level is still Red Moon-level, essentially the same as the several Red Moon-level blessings that Gao Hai currently possesses.

...It seems there is no way to change the form in which this blessing takes effect; Urian's malice has completely altered the essence of this blessing.

Gao Hai, who understood this from that power, was extremely heartbroken. What a powerful force it was, how could it have been turned into such a terrible state? It was a complete waste of its potential.

Is there really no way to remedy this?

Thinking this, Gao Hai suddenly frowned, turned around and looked behind him, towards the area where Zhen Fei and the others were in the distance.

It seems he could give this blessing to someone else.

After carefully sensing the power of the blessing, Gao Hai finally confirmed that, as the current holder of this power, but without truly receiving the blessing's gift, he could bestow this blessing's power upon others without being affected by it. Judging from the feedback of the blessing's power… well, he could bestow this blessing's power upon a maximum of three beings who were [alive], [had independent thought], and [had a soul]. After bestowing it, the blessing would take approximately one month to recover its power before it could be bestowed again. In other words, it recovers roughly every 10 days after being consumed.

However, the blessing given in this situation has only 60% effectiveness. To achieve 100% effectiveness, Gao Hai can only give this blessing to a maximum of two life forms, and the blessing power will permanently disappear after that.

Of course, given the ability to roll back, whether it's permanent or not is up to Gao Hai to decide.

"I see. Although it's a blessing that's been ruined by the addition of useless attributes, I can still use it as a spell to apply to other players. No, not just players. This thing has very few limitations. Those villagers, mountain gods, fox goddesses, and even the will within that blood flower—maybe they can all be given this [blessing]?"

Gao Hai's eyes lit up.

He realized that this thing might be capable of quite a few amazing tricks.

when! ! !

The third chime rang out, darkness enveloped everything in the next moment, and Gao Hai's consciousness began to rise.

When he opened his eyes again, he was back in the primeval forest where he had just entered the [Infant Cry Village] instance. The girls, including Chika Maki, were standing beside him, and everyone was in a perfectly normal state.

"..."

Gao Hai turned his head and looked around.

Maki Shijou, Kaguya Shinomiya, Chika Fujiwara, Ai Hayasaka, Ichiri Goto, and Kita Ikuyo, who was slowly appearing beside them and looked to be in very poor condition.

I did not see Yotsuya Miko.

Even though the game has been rewound, even though everything has returned to the beginning, the girl who should have been standing beside him is not here now.

This is the kind of possibility that Gao Hai is unwilling to consider.

Although he had always been reluctant to think about this situation, unfortunately, reality did not change because of it.

Chapter 43: The Violent Start in the Third Playthrough

{Ah Hai, why is Jianzi gone?}

Chika was the first to notice that a teammate was missing, and immediately turned to Gao Hai, asking him in the mental link.

{Oh no, where's Miko?! Kai-kun, what happened?}

Upon hearing the voice in the mental link, Zhenfei immediately realized something was wrong. After looking around twice, she quickly turned to Gao Hai.

Ichiri immediately pulled out his guitar, and his three clones were released to stand guard around him. Kaguya and Hayasaka, lacking the link to the black watch and not yet possessing any mental artifacts for mental linking, remained silent and on guard alongside Ichiri. Kaguya took out the Soul-Stealing Bow and stood back-to-back with Ichiri, taking the initiative to guard Ichiri's blind spots. Hayasaka quickly moved to the outer edge of the group, observing the surroundings and using his ability to sense abnormalities to avoid being the first target of monsters to defend the team.

From the start of the game to discovering the problem, to everyone going on alert, and forming a basic defensive network, it took less than 3 seconds. For a player team, this is already a very skilled and coordinated level. Unfortunately, the enemy they faced this time was simply too overpowered, so this kind of advance preparation was of little use.

{…}

Gao Hai did not immediately answer Qianhua and Zhenfei's questions.

At this moment, his consciousness was focused on the mental link, on the connection between him and Miko Yotsuya, built by the power of the black watch.

The connection is still there!

He could clearly feel that the spiritual connection between himself and Miko had not been broken.

Miko Yotsuya's consciousness still exists; she has not dissipated or died.

It seems that while the power of the blood flower did manage to take Miko out of the Blood City, and even make her disappear at the start of the new loop, this was because bringing her into the Blood City was essentially exploiting a bug. If the connection was established directly through the black watch, the power of the blood flower couldn't sever it. This is why Gao Hai can still sense her presence, even though she can no longer respond to him.

It seems... she has entered a state of unconsciousness.

It took Gao Hai quite a while to confirm this fact.

Unfortunately, there's no way to assess her physical condition. Considering the blood flower's almost insurmountable corrosive power on flesh and blood, Gao Hai doesn't think there's any chance of saving Miko's body. However, since she's still conscious, it's not the worst-case scenario yet; at the very least, she could potentially end up like Kita, so there's still hope.

I seem to have relaxed a little.

After confirming that Miko was not in a life-or-death situation, Gao Hai couldn't help but relax a little.

The fear that had built up since discovering Jianzi's disappearance in Blood City was now eased; the feeling that he would lose something forever was completely suppressed. Clearly sensing this, Gao Hai felt a pang of emotion. He realized that he might not be as strong as he had initially thought. Although the black watch had given him one painful trial after another, this cheat code had ultimately provided Gao Hai with a safety net, allowing him to always believe that no matter how reckless he acted, he could hardly truly lose anything.

But now, as the dungeons he's experienced become increasingly difficult, drawing ever closer to the deeper secrets of the [Sacrifice Game], some things are no longer as he initially thought. He must realize that the opponents he faces will only grow stronger and more terrifying. And this mysterious black watch can't always guarantee his safety.

Sigh, can't I just be like the protagonists in those wish-fulfillment novels, with an unreasonable, invincible sign-in cheat? Like, achieving the Golden Core stage in just three days of sign-in—wouldn't it be great if there were such a deus ex machina cheat that didn't require any explanation...

Gao Hai sighed inwardly, but his expression remained as firm as ever, revealing no flaw whatsoever.

In any case, it can now be confirmed that the situation has not yet reached its worst point.

However, without Miko Yotsuya, his most perceptive teammate, it's certain that many more troubles will arise, and investigating clues will become much more difficult. While Miko's exceptional perception has always caused trouble, the clues she provided to Takami and the breakthroughs she achieved through her abilities are undeniable. Now, without her help, who knows what will happen next…

{Last playthrough went wrong. The opponents in this instance are even more terrifying than I anticipated, perhaps even delving deeper into hidden truths about gods and deities than the Bydos Research Institute. But don't panic, things aren't at their worst yet. Miko isn't dead; she's imprisoned by some strange power. All we need to do is find her and rescue her.}

As Gao Hai spoke, a pistol appeared in his hand.

Even though the gun wasn't aimed at any target, Gao Hai already knew where he needed to destroy it.

Bang bang bang bang bang——

The continuous roar of gunfire spread in all directions.

Thanks to the prior reconnaissance conducted by the police officers in the second playthrough, Gao Hai destroyed all the notice boards in the instance right from the start.

Something has changed.

In the depths of his being, Gao Hai sensed a subtle, indescribable change. It seemed that something in this space, something that had always been stable and unchanging, was now beginning to change.

"call……"

His consciousness suddenly focused and projected itself towards the direction of the village.

Originally, Eriko Asamoto's blessing only granted Takami auditory perception within a five-kilometer radius. However, with the mutation of Takami's willpower, the power and spirit of this blessing combined to project a distance of tens of kilometers, bringing feedback in all aspects, including sight, hearing, smell, and even touch.

Then, Gao Hai saw Li Ziyong and Li Duosun, whose expressions suddenly changed, realizing that something unexpected had happened, and the uneasy villagers around them.

Ordinary villagers could vaguely sense that something was wrong but didn't realize the crux of the problem. But could Li Ziyong and Li Duosun figure out where the problem lay? Perhaps we could consider conducting a thorough investigation of the houses of the clan chief's branch in this Li family village to see if we could find any useful clues.

Come to think of it, this feeling is actually quite nice.

Experiencing the feeling of controlling this extraordinary power after breaking through the limits of his will, Gao Hai's lips curled into a smile. Then, he focused his consciousness even more and looked at Li Ziyong, who was opening his mouth as if to issue some command, with a solemn expression on his face.

The distance is quite far, but that's not a problem. As long as my mental energy can reach that location, the conditions will be met.

The next moment, Gao Hai bestowed upon Li Ziyong the [Blessing] of Urian.

hum-

One-third of the power existing within Gao Hai's body disappeared just like that.

In an instant, a strong sensation emanated from the rescue team badge worn by Gao Hai. All four rescue team members who had not yet been summoned turned their attention to Li Ziyong at the entrance of the village, and were affected by the blessing even though they were more than 20 kilometers away.

Li Ziyong, who was about to say something, suddenly underwent a dramatic change in expression. He had become aware of the changes occurring within his body and clearly felt the power of the "blessing" bestowed upon his body and soul by the person about to rest in peace.

Even more exaggerated than Li Ziyong's reaction were those of the surrounding villagers who were unaware of the truth.

Just moments before, they had been filled with confusion, but almost immediately they turned to look at their clan leader. Then, the expressions on everyone's faces turned to hatred, and in that instant, they were filled with intense resentment. It was as if the person standing there was not their clan leader, but their father's killer, and they all gritted their teeth.

it has started.

Chieftain... last year you ate two and a half of my chickens, it broke my heart... why did you specifically choose to eat my chickens?

[All these years, it's always you and your brother who do the good things, why can't we? ...Is it just because you're of higher status than us?!]

[The last mutiny was clearly brought in by you, Chieftain, so why do we all have to pay the price? My son died because of it... I don't understand, Chieftain, are you really doing this for our own good? Do you have some other motive?!]

The voices of the villagers rose and fell.

The expressions on their faces as they looked at Li Ziyong were incredibly ferocious. Many began to dredge up old grievances, recounting events from countless years ago, and starting to accuse Li Ziyong. Some even became increasingly agitated, seemingly inclined to attack Li Ziyong.

[What's going on? How dare you disrespect the clan leader... Ugh, no, this isn't right, Li Ziyong, you... you piece of shit... I'm going to kill you! This position of clan leader should have been mine, I should have been the heir, you bastard, you must have pulled some tricks to deceive my father back then, you... you...]

Even Li Duosun, the clan chief's younger brother, underwent an unusual change at this moment, unable to suppress a strong sense of hatred towards his own brother. His eyes were filled with anger, and his body trembled uncontrollably, as if he could only vent his anger by devouring Li Ziyong alive.

What is this force all about?

Li Ziyong's expression changed further; completely bewildered by the situation, he retreated.

It's only the beginning of the festival to welcome the gods. Everyone was just happily discussing how to kill the outsiders and how to make offerings to the mountain god. How did everyone suddenly change and become like this?

There must be some evil person trying to harm me!

[Is this some kind of sorcery? Why am I suddenly... Wait, everyone calm down! Calm down! This is some kind of sorcerer causing trouble. Don't let your minds be clouded! We are all followers of the Mountain God, we absolutely cannot fight amongst ourselves! Mountain God, please save us! Mountain God, please save me!!!]

Upon noticing the changes in those around him, Li Ziyong's first reaction was to try to escape.

But at this moment, he was surrounded by villagers on all sides, and when he made his move, the villagers who had just been cursing started to move as well, and began to surround Li Ziyong, including his younger brother Li Duosun.

[Mountain God, please save me!!!]

Without hesitation, Li Ziyong turned and knelt down, immediately kowtowing several times towards the village square, producing a series of loud, booming sounds.

The villagers had already surrounded him.

These villagers, driven mad by the blessing's power, appeared to possess some kind of special inhuman strength, but their mental fortitude and willpower were far inferior to the player's—they were essentially ordinary people. Therefore, they had no way to resist the blessing bestowed upon Li Ziyong.

If no force intervenes in the villagers' actions, the scene that follows could become quite bloody.

Considering this was the first time he had used this strange ability, and based on his impression of Li Ziyong, Gao Hai was quite interested to see what would happen to that guy.

As Gao Hai had expected, after Li Ziyong kowtowed and shouted, some kind of power rapidly spread out. A gaze silently descended, landing on the village, and through Gao Hai's spiritual power that had spread to the edge of the village, it looked directly at him.

A strong chill enveloped Gao Hai once again.