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

This time, Gao Hai wasn't even glanced at by the mountain god. The other party seemed completely unaware of his presence, or rather... didn't care about him anymore.

At this point, Gao Hai was certain that the being bearing the name "Little Black Mountain God" was far more complex than he had initially imagined. It was definitely not merely a supernatural being with "autonomous consciousness"; its way of thinking and existing was beyond the comprehension of ordinary logic. A multitude of conjectures arose within him. For example, the mountain god might be a fragmented entity with multiple distinct personalities coexisting, or it might be a product that constantly changes according to the thoughts of its believers and those who perceive it. He even considered whether it might be something like AI, exhibiting traits that reflect the character of its controller.

But these are just conjectures; unless they can be truly verified, they're all castles in the air. Given the current power gap between himself and the Mountain God, Gao Hai couldn't imagine how to verify this thing while protecting his own life. After all, this thing could easily kill him, and if the two actually clashed, Gao Hai would be completely helpless against it.

Fortunately, he is not completely clueless. On one hand, the well entrance leading to another space inside the Li Family Compound can be used as a completely new direction for investigation. On the other hand, in this new loop, Gao Hai has already used up three rollback slots to activate the power of the black watch to find a new target direction. Now he can sense the location of that thing at any time.

【Water Ghost Lake】

This is the name of the lake located in the valley surrounded by mountains downstream of Lijia Village.

Following the main road down from Lijia Village, passing through terraced fields and fields in the valley, and following the river flowing through the village from the snow-capped mountains to its end, you will arrive at the location of this lake.

The direction indicated by the black watch was within this lake, or more accurately, at the bottom of this lake.

To be honest, Gao Hai was still somewhat hesitant about going in this direction. After all, based on the current clues, the water in the [Infant Cry Village] instance was cursed, with the Mountain God and the Fox Queen seemingly blessing the flowing water and the still water, respectively. Therefore, the [Water Ghost Lake], which Gao Hai discovered on his first playthrough was completely still and without any ripples, likely represented some kind of power from the Fox Queen. Or perhaps it was a third type of thing that Gao Hai hadn't encountered yet—in any case, it wasn't anything good either.

However, since the black watch can provide such guidance, it means that there really is something at the bottom of that lake, and we still need to find a way to go down. Hmm... going down directly would most likely be difficult. I might need to find a way to obtain some kind of [Fox Queen's Mark] before I can safely enter and leave that lake? But if I do that, won't it conflict with my current control over Li Family Village? After all, the Mountain God and the Fox Queen seem to be at odds quite a bit right now.

{The search of all buildings in the Li Family Compound except for the ancestral hall has been completed. Well, there wasn't anything particularly valuable, but we found many items that appear to come from different eras and regions, from various countries. It seems this village has been operating for a very, very long time.}

Chika Fujiwara's voice rang out from the mental link. She and Kaguya walked out of a small house together. Chika was holding a revolver from the Western cowboy era and looking at it again and again, while Kaguya dragged out a small internal combustion engine that looked like it had been taken from something.

Curious, Gao Hai approached the small house and found it filled with all sorts of things, from ancient times to the present. The most numerous items were various clothes and personal belongings, carelessly tossed around the room, filling almost half of it.

Although I already knew about the situation here, seeing it with my own eyes still made me quite emotional. I wish the [Sacrifice Game] instance could be a bit more normal.

{A player is coming this way}

Hayasaka suddenly spoke through the temporary mental link established by the object of his obsession.

{Aren't they the three from the "Slacking Off Gang"? Are they specifically here for us, or what? Can you recognize them?}

As Gao Hai asked questions in the mental link, he walked towards the door, and a pistol silently materialized. Kaguya, who was following beside him, also took out a bow and arrow.

{They weren't from the "Slacking Off" gang. There were four of them, and they were heading straight for us. They seemed to have confirmed something through some means. According to the memory fragments you shared, the leader was the only one standing alone among the ten players who didn't fall during the plaza riot in the first playthrough.}

Hayasaka's answer was very quick. Although he did not retain the memories of the first and second timelines, with the blessing of Chiyo Hachiya and his greatly enhanced mental strength, Takami could accurately transmit his memories to others. Therefore, Hayasaka was able to directly recognize the person approaching from the outside.

"Friends inside, we mean no harm. We're just a group of victims who were forced to come here because we received invitations. Would you mind if we talked? We mean no harm. I'm Chen Qiucai, a player from the China region."

The man in the lead stopped about thirty meters away from the gate and spoke in a calm voice.

{I'll go make contact. Chika, Kaguya, you two watch from the sidelines.}

After thinking for a moment, Gao Hai decided to push the door open, stand at the entrance and look outside, meeting the gazes of the four people.

"Good morning."

Then, the man who called himself Chen Qiucai smiled and fixed his gaze on Gao Hai.

Chapter 47: Players Test Each Other and Gamblers

Gao Hai was actually somewhat hesitant about whether to interact with unfamiliar players.

Up to this point, Gao Hai's impression of other players hasn't been very good. After all, the players he encountered in Shirakawa Apartment and Red Nut Gray Hole weren't particularly good in terms of ability or trustworthiness. Although he later met a reliable Red Moon-level player in the Campus Ghost Stories instance, he also encountered Toyama Akira, who was possessed by a strange power and almost killed him, and that group of fanatics.

In the world of gamers, building trust isn't easy unless they spend a considerable amount of time interacting and cooperating to overcome challenges. After all, the experience of facing life-or-death crises repeatedly has made this group, in general, somewhat selfish and twisted. Everyone has their flaws to varying degrees, and you never know when a mistake could trigger an explosion. Even the strong-willed Gao Hai isn't immune to this; the thought of venturing into the [Ghost Cry Cave] fills him with a restless unease.

But did this player actually come to us on their own initiative?

Seeing the man named Chen Qiucai looking at him with a smile, Gao Hai frowned slightly.

Because the players participating in this instance are a mixed bag, with significant differences in strength and difficulty in assessing their specific situations, Gao Hai, after discussing with Zhen Fei and others for a while, decided to temporarily refrain from direct contact with these players. Instead, they would indirectly contact other players through three players from the Moyu Gang, whom they trusted. This cautious approach aimed to coordinate the players' actions and allow those willing to participate and offer assistance to work together to solve the instance.

Therefore, Gao Hai actually used the authority of [Li Family Village] to conceptually block the [Li Family Compound] area. Under normal circumstances, players moving within the village should not have entered this road outside the Li Family Compound. Even if someone accidentally wandered in, they wouldn't be aware of the existence of the [Li Family Compound] entrance and would subconsciously leave due to this cognitive obscuration.

But this man and his team managed to get in, which means he must be carrying some kind of Red Moon-level artifact capable of resisting or even breaking through cognitive contamination, or he possesses some kind of spiritual blessing that allows him to ignore barriers. Either way, it shows this man is not simple and requires careful attention.

Gao Hai's brows furrowed even more.

He couldn't sense the emotional fluctuations of the man not far away.

Neither Li Zhaodi's nor Hedar's perceptive blessings returned any feedback. This wasn't because the man named Chen Qiucai harbored no ill will towards Gao Hai, nor because he possessed a twisted or antisocial personality; rather, it was because neither blessing detected Chen Qiucai's presence. According to the perceptions of the two blessings, while there was indeed something standing where Chen Qiucai was, it was nothing more than stone or soil—an inanimate object devoid of emotional fluctuation—not a living person.

Did he use the power of a blessing or a fixation to completely lock his spiritual power within his body? If it's just sensory obscuration or an illusion, Li Zhaodi's blessing should be able to break through it. Hmm, if I actively activate this sensory blessing, and combine it with my increased ability to project my spiritual power outward after growing stronger, I should be able to break through his mental defenses and thus conduct a detection. However, doing that would be tantamount to directly turning against him. I'd rather see what this guy is really up to.

With this in mind, Gao Hai did not make any rash moves, but continued to observe the man in front of him.

Beside him, Chika and Kaguya were also silently observing the team. Among the current members of the team led by Takami, Chika had the strongest social skills, while Kaguya had systematically studied how to judge people and social skills. Although the latter's teachings were somewhat distorted due to being tutored by Shinomiya, they were still very appropriate for identifying villains and mentally twisted individuals, making it a professionally relevant skill.

The three people behind Chen Qiucai seem a bit off. Their expressions appear normal and ordinary, but they're overly casual, almost like they're deliberately acting. Furthermore, their strength probably isn't at the Red Moon level; it seems unrealistic for them to have teamed up with Chen Qiucai.

At the moment Gao Hai and Chen Qiucai locked eyes, Qianhua had already observed the three nameless extras behind them and quickly noticed some discordant elements among them.

{This man was able to break through the blockade you set, Gao Jun, so he must be a Red Moon level player in terms of ability. However, such a player is not on the list Miss Xiong Mi provided us. We had never met him before this meeting, which means either he is very good at disguising himself, remaining unknown and unnoticed even as a top-tier Red Moon level player, or he actually has a certain reputation, but there is some flaw in his nature that makes a truly capable person like Miss Xiong Mi not accept him as a companion. Hmm, neither of these is a good outcome. Gao Jun, I think this person can be used to go to dangerous places, but he cannot be truly treated as a companion.}

Kaguya carefully observed Chen Qiucai. Like Gao Hai, her sensory blessing didn't detect anything wrong. However, Kaguya was always rather ruthless in social situations. Therefore, unsure of this player's character, she immediately thought of tricking him into venturing into a dangerous area, and conveyed this to Gao Hai through the temporary mental link of her obsession object. It must be said that although this girl is more cheerful now, she is still deeply influenced by the abstract villains of the Shinomiya family.

However, given the current situation, Gao Hai found Kaguya's idea quite agreeable, though he wasn't about to actually do it. After all, the opponent was a genuine Red Moon-level player, not the group of high school girls from Fujika Middle School. If he didn't manage to kill them in one go, it would be a problem if they came back for revenge. Now that he finally had a relatively stable start and safe zone in the third playthrough, Gao Hai wasn't planning on doing anything risky for the time being; he preferred to play it safe.

While thinking, Gao Hai used his mental power to protect Kaguya, preventing her from using any means to spy on the conversation within the temporary link established by the power of their obsession objects.

{…}

Kita Ikuyo floated silently behind Takami. Her attention wasn't on the four players over there, but rather she was observing her surroundings from a certain height.

On the roof of a three-story wooden building behind them, Hayasaka was hiding and conducting reconnaissance. This was why she was able to spot Chen Qiucai and his group of four first. Hayasaka had already quietly taken out a sniper rifle, put a bloodstained bullet into the magazine, and was prepared to fire a shot if the two sides ever disagreed.

"What's the matter?"

After Chen Qiucai said "Good morning," Gao Hai asked in a cold tone, his demeanor hardly suggesting a proper conversation.

The telepathic communication and thought process between Chen Qiucai and Kaguya Chika lasted only a few seconds. During this time, the man's gaze remained fixed on Gao Hai the entire time. His serious expression was even somewhat unsettling, and it was unclear what he was observing.

"Don't be nervous, sir. I have no ill intentions. I just want to ensure the survival of myself and my team members."

Chen Qiucai spoke again with a smile.

"I possess some detection methods. This village wasn't originally supposed to be like this, right? Your team managed to alter the village, didn't they? And those methods of sending warnings across vast distances not to venture into the forest, and the ability to conjure rule tables out of thin air within the village—truly impressive. To accomplish such feats so soon after entering the instance is quite unbelievable, even among Red Moon-level players. I consider myself a player who has cleared Red Moon-level instances a few times, and if possible, I hope we can collaborate."

As he spoke, Chen Qiu lowered his head slightly, his demeanor and actions becoming much more respectful.

The three players standing at the back didn't move or show any expression; they just stood there motionless. Gao Hai hadn't noticed them at first, but now that he shifted his perception, he realized that his two perception blessings also had no effect on these three players.

I can't sense anything from the overflowing spiritual energy. Could it be like that neon person in the Red Nut Gray Hole, where the power of the obsession distorts the mind?

"We are still investigating this area. Once we have some results, we will gather the players to discuss our next move. You should go back now. If you really want to find someone to cooperate with, you can go to the Fishing Gang. They have a few members here as well."

After thinking for a moment, Gao Hai relaxed his furrowed brows and spoke to Chen Qiucai in a calm tone.

"...Is that so? Hmm, the Slacking Off Gang...I understand. Well then, I'll look forward to our official collaboration."

Upon hearing Gao Hai's words, the man showed no unusual expression, simply nodded slightly, and turned to leave.

As Chen Qiucai left, the three players who had been with him also started walking and silently followed behind him. Although their movements didn't appear stiff, they were all expressionless and silent. However, through repeated mental sensing, Gao Hai was certain that these three players had probably lost their normal thinking abilities, essentially becoming mindless puppets turned by this man named Chen Qiucai.

During my first playthrough, Chen Qiu wasn't with these players. Although I didn't specifically memorize the facial features of Dark Night level players, the difference was obvious from their clothing styles. So, did he brainwash some players after entering the dungeon? He seems like a troublesome guy, but Red Moon level players are generally quite intelligent. Hopefully, this guy won't cause me any trouble.

Thinking this, Gao Hai gestured for Chika and Kaguya to follow him back and closed the gate of the Li Family Compound. Meanwhile, Hayasaka on the rooftop kept his eyes fixed on Chen Qiucai's head for a long time, only releasing his grip on the trigger after the man had completely walked out of the road leading to the main gate of the Li Family Compound.

Click——

The girl swiftly removed the blood-red bullet and then put it into her spatial artifact backpack.

This bullet is clearly an object of obsession, and it is one of the three Dark Night-level obsession objects given by the Market after the breach of Nightfall Mountain Middle School. Its name is Instant Kill Bullet.

This obsession item is a large-caliber sniper rifle bullet, so a compatible firearm must be found to use it. Its extraordinary properties become apparent after aiming at an enemy and pulling the trigger. First, it travels at a speed more than ten times faster than a normal bullet, ignoring spatial distance and any dodging techniques to track and force a hit. While maintaining physical power, the bullet forcibly tears the target's soul from their body and merges it into the bullet. Then, the bullet automatically returns to the user's hand.

Combined with certain spiritual objects or blessings, this bullet can provide a complete service for assassination and torture. Furthermore, it only has one way of going out of control: if it's not pulled within half an hour of being inserted into the magazine, it will explode, splattering a large amount of shrapnel and blood mist within a ten-meter radius. Therefore, if you decide to stop using it, you must remove it from the magazine or chamber immediately.

As a purely civilian-war-oriented artifact, Gao Hai wasn't particularly optimistic about it. However, considering the possibility of opposing players, he ultimately accepted the little thing. It's just that because he had the Blessed Pistol, Gao Hai rarely thought about this artifact.

In short, nothing went wrong this time, right?

After seeing that Takami had sent the man away, Hayasaka stopped caring and continued discussing their next move in the mental link, so he stopped paying attention to the matter altogether.

Meanwhile, Chen Qiucai, who had already walked quite a distance, suddenly took a deep breath and stopped. He then took out a blood-red six-sided die from his pocket, threw it into the air, and then reached out to catch it.

"call……"

Open your hand; the number on the blood die facing up is now 6.

That's terrifying, absolutely terrifying.

Chen Qiucai moved forward slowly, but the expression on his face twitched uncontrollably.

Was that some kind of spiritual blessing? Even though there seemed to be nothing around him, he could clearly sense that something invisible was surrounding him, and that thing could even move from his side to his side and then to behind him.

Neither the man nor the two women beside him could detect any emotional fluctuations or guide their thoughts. That mental power was simply too strong, so strong that without going all out, it was impossible to break through their defenses.

This is amazing! When did such a powerful character appear among players?

Furthermore, he mentioned the "Slacking Off Gang." That's not good news; if it's the "Slacking Off Gang," they might recognize him.

But that's great too! This way, I'm gambling with my life again. If I win, I can live; if I lose, I die. Is there anything more exciting or fun than that?

Chen Qiucai's expression remained unchanged, but his finger, which had been cut off a third of its length and was tucked into his pocket, trembled with excitement.

Then, his attention turned to his mental link, contacting one of his true companions who hadn't shown up earlier.

{Clement, this time it's two big fish. They've got members of the "Slacker Gang" again, and a team led by a terrifyingly powerful player whose strength is impossible to gauge. How about it, interested in a bet? Who will win between the Li family, who just suffered a huge loss, and these guys? I think the odds of winning this time are pretty hard to say~}

Chapter 48: The Situation of the "Slackers" and the Historian, and the Problem of Day and Night Alternation

The forty-three players who arrived at [Li Family Village] have all settled in, temporarily residing in the homes of various villagers in small teams or groups. Of course, considering that the animals in this village are not exactly normal, these players chose to stay in houses where there are no chickens, ducks, dogs, or similar animals.

According to the bizarre rules established by the villagers during the first playthrough, the players who moved into the houses would become those who had received a "favor," making them easily controllable. But now, Gao Hai has taken over the village, turning Li Family Village into Gao Village… oops, Gao Family Village. Therefore, all the players' "favors" are now directed at Gao Hai. It can be said that now, if Gao Hai so desires, he can command these players to do anything at will, even if the commands contradict their own will; their bodies will forcefully comply with Gao Hai's intentions.

From the perspective of the book itself, this seems like an interesting idea that could be expanded into dozens of pages of various gameplay variations. However, Gao Hai is a gentleman, and he wouldn't use the convenience brought by this strange rule to torment other players. Therefore, he simply suppressed the matter and pretended not to know, so that it might come in handy when the time really comes.

"I see. You're Gao Hai, the one Xiong Mi mentioned? My name is Mao Busi, and I'm probably a bit older than you. If you don't mind, just call me Brother Mao. The Moyu Gang was able to weather this dangerous period, regain its fighting strength, and welcome back several veteran players. Without your help, it would have been impossible. So, we'll do our best to assist you with this dungeon investigation. If you need anything, just let me know."

Inside an earthen house, with the help of the teacher as a communicator, Gao Hai and Cat Brother once again exchanged ideas and reached a pleasant agreement on cooperation.

Unlike Chen Qiucai, who seemed completely off, these three players from the "Slacking Off Gang" were the typical reliable teammates from start to finish, trustworthy and dependable. They were the kind of characters who, in movies and animations, would only appear in the first three episodes, taking good care of the protagonist before quickly dying to protect them or demonstrate some kind of belief, only to have their will and equipment inherited by the protagonist.

Hmm... Come to think of it, Sister Xiong Mi actually has that kind of spirit too; she's even died for the team several times. If it weren't for the rollback that brought her back, even if she were rescued in the Teng Hua Middle School dungeon, I feel like she wouldn't have survived many more dungeons.

Thinking that the first doll he unsealed at Teng Hua Middle School was Xiong Mi, a reliable older sister, Gao Hai couldn't help but marvel at his luck of getting three gold items out of ten draws.