Rules of the Unusual: I am the Final Boss

Shi Mo sat on the throne, holding a cup of wine in his hand.

The liquor was strong, with a pungent smell. He didn't drink it; he just held the glass, watching the liquid swirl inside.

Casper and Augustus were still kneeling below, heads bowed, not daring to breathe.

The live stream was on, and the chat was already going crazy.

Just now, Shi Mo said a few words.

He told Casper and Augustus, "From today onward, all copies in all industries shall be made according to the rules. Do it the way it should be, without any leniency."

He spoke calmly, as if he were recounting something utterly ordinary.

But Casper and Augustus's expressions changed.

They knew what this meant.

This means that from now on, those who enter dungeons will no longer be given preferential treatment. It also means that the mortality rate will rise sharply.

Sure enough, news came from various industries within ten minutes of the order being issued.

Yongheng Hospital, which used to have a 60% clearance rate, has now dropped to 20%.

Everlasting Debt Market, which originally had a clearance rate of 50%, has now dropped to 15%.

Eternal Amusement Park, which used to have a 70% pass rate, has now dropped to 25%.

The mortality rate increased by a full fifty percent.

The participants suddenly discovered that the dungeon was much more difficult. The monsters were more ferocious, the loopholes in the rules were harder to find, and the punishments came faster and were more severe.

In the live stream, footage of the first batch of contestants dying in the dungeon was shown.

Screams, blood, despair.

The chat exploded:

Shi Mo has gone mad!

This is revenge! Revenge on everyone!

What did those candidates do wrong?!

Just because he was kicked out of the Seventh Sequence, does that mean everyone else has to be dragged down with him?!

[A demon! He's a demon!]

Some people also disagreed:

[It's Shi Mo's business to begin with, he can do whatever he wants with it!]

[It was a favor to release water before, it's our right not to now!]

[Those candidates who lack the necessary skills, whose fault is it?]

The two groups were arguing fiercely.

Shi Mo looked at the comments, his face expressionless.

He picked up his glass and finally took a sip.

The liquor was very spicy, burning from my throat all the way down to my stomach.

He put down his wine glass, about to say something, when the hall door was pushed open.

A person walked in.

Wearing the uniform of the seventh order, his hair was a bit messy, his eyes were red, and his face was pale.

It is a white sequence.

He stood at the doorway, looking at Shi Mo sitting on the throne, and stopped in his tracks.

The hall was silent for a few seconds.

Casper and Augustus both glanced up furtively, then quickly looked down again.

Shi Mo leaned back on the throne, looked at Bai Xu for a long time, and then smiled.

"A rare guest," he said, his voice languid but his eyes cold. "What brings our Captain Bai Xu to see a murderer like me?"

Bai Xu's body trembled.

He walked forward, his steps a little unsteady, until he reached the foot of the platform and looked up at Shi Mo.

"Shi Mo..." he began, his voice trembling slightly, "Don't say that."

"Don't say what?" Shi Mo raised an eyebrow. "Say I'm a murderer? Didn't you say that?"

Bai Xu's lips moved, but no sound came out.

Shi Mo picked up his wine glass, took another sip, then put it down, his fingers tapping lightly on the armrest.

"Speak, what do you want?" he said. "I'm very busy."

Bai Xu took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.

"I've come to take you back," he said.

Shi Mo didn't speak.

The hall was quiet, with only the sound of torches burning.

"Back to the Seventh Sequence Base," Bai Xu continued, his voice growing increasingly steady. "Come back with me."

Shi Mo smiled.

It wasn't a sarcastic laugh; I genuinely found it funny.

"Go back?" he repeated. "Go back to where?"

"Back to base." Bai Xu took a step forward. "Back to where we're staying."

"Us?" Shi Mo raised an eyebrow. "Didn't you say that my joining the Seventh Sequence was a mistake? Didn't you say I was a monster?"

"I……"

"Now you're telling me to go back," Shi Mo interrupted him. "Captain Bai, your attitude changes a bit too quickly."

Bai Xu clenched his hands at his sides, his nails digging into his palms.

"Those words... weren't what I really meant to say." He stared at Shi Mo. "I said those words on purpose, hoping you would leave on your own."

Shi Mo looked at him without saying anything.

"I was afraid that the pressure of staying in the Seventh Sequence would be too much for you, that you would be overwhelmed by public opinion, that you would be investigated..." Bai Xu's voice began to tremble again, "That's why I said those things, hoping that you would leave on your own. That way... that way at least you would leave voluntarily, instead of being kicked out."

After he finished speaking, he looked at Shi Mo, waiting for his reaction.

Shi Mo still didn't show any expression.

He picked up his glass, drank the last drop of wine, and then put the glass down.

"So?" he asked.

Bai Xu was stunned: "So...so I want you to come back."

"Why did you come back?" Shi Mo asked, "To continue being your team member? To continue listening to you call me a monster?"

He stood up, stepped down from the throne, and walked step by step down the platform to Bai Xu.

The two were very close.

Bai Xu could smell the alcohol on Shi Mo, as well as that familiar, crisp scent.

"Bai Xu," Shi Mo looked at him, his eyes calm, frighteningly calm, "you said those things for my own good. I believe you."

He paused, then continued, "But you said it. Every single word, you said it yourself."

Bai Xu's lips began to tremble.

"You called me a monster, said I couldn't control my bloodlust, said I killed only for my own pleasure." Shi Mo's voice was calm, as if stating a fact. "You're right, that's who I am."

He took a step back, creating some distance.

"Therefore, I will not go back."

Bai Xu's eyes reddened.

He took a step forward, trying to grab Shi Mo's hand, but Shi Mo dodged away.

"Shi Mo, listen to me..."

"I've heard everything," Shi Mo interrupted him. "You say you're doing this for my own good, and I believe you. But I won't go back."

He turned around, walked back up the platform, and sat back on the throne.

"You can leave now."

Three words, spoken softly, but with great determination.

Bai Xu stood below, looking at Shi Mo.

Shi Mo leaned back on the throne, his eyes closed, as if he were tired.

Casper and Augustus knelt beside him, heads bowed, not daring to move.

In the live stream, the chat was still flooded with comments, but Bai Xu couldn't see them.

He looked at Shi Mo for a long time.

Then he took a step forward, bent his knees, and knelt down.

His knee slammed onto the floor with a dull thud.

Casper and Augustus both looked up abruptly, their eyes wide.

Shi Mo opened his eyes as well.

He looked at Bai Xu kneeling below, and his expression finally changed slightly.

Bai Xu knelt upright, head bowed, his voice squeezed out from his throat:

"I was wrong."