Why is my anime art style so weird?

Finally, when the bear plush toy was less than a meter away from him, he forced the door open, creating a gap just big enough for him to pass through.

Xu Ming immediately and without hesitation squeezed through the gap.

After entering, Xu Ming turned around and pushed the door, intending to close it.

Unexpectedly, the door seemed to have a spring-like mechanism inside, making it very easy to close. In the blink of an eye, Xu Ming had closed the door to only a crack.

Swish!

A cold glint flashed through the crack in the door, followed by a sharp claw reaching in and grabbing at Xu Ming.

Xu Ming was startled and quickly dodged backward.

The claws missed their target and instead grabbed the door, leaving four scratches on it.

I don't know what this door is made of, but the marks left by the metal claws on it are so shallow that they are almost invisible.

However, the danger is not over yet.

The bear plush toy actually wedged its paws into the door crack, trying to stop Xu Ming from closing the door while simultaneously trying to push it open.

Xu Ming immediately panicked. He took a small step back and then slammed the door shut with all his might!

Clang! Snap!

The door slammed shut, and three broken fingernails, shaped like daggers, clattered to the ground.

The bear plush toy's paw was broken off!

blah blah!

A few muffled knocks came from outside the door, then silence fell.

The bear doll seemed to know it couldn't break through the door, and gave up so easily.

Xu Ming looked at the broken fingernail on the ground, then curiously knocked on the door.

clang!

A crisp, metallic sound came from the door.

What material is this door made of? It's so hard!

Xu Ming studied it for a long time but still couldn't figure out what this thing, which looked like wood but was harder than metal, was.

He quickly abandoned his research on the materials for the gate.

However, when he shone his phone light on the opera house behind him, his expression turned somber.

The opera house is decorated in an extremely luxurious and elegant style, with numerous reliefs carved on the walls and semi-circular partitions dividing it into small private rooms.

The private room seats are spacious and comfortable, with dark blue velvet cushions. Even the armrests are specially carved and coated with gold paint.

In front of each chair is a carved low table, on which are placed silver platters, wine bottles, wine glasses, and other items.

The private rooms on the second floor seem to be even more exclusive, as they are completely enclosed by a ring of one-way reflective glass, transforming them into extremely private spaces.

Every detail highlights the opera house's high standards and class.

If that were all, Xu Ming would at most be amazed that the lives of the rich were so simple, unpretentious, and boring.

However, what Xu Ming saw was...

Sitting in those seats were none other than desiccated corpses.

Despite their dilapidated state, it is still possible to discern that the clothes worn by these mummies were all expensive, handmade formal wear, and many of them were adorned with various precious jewels.

Strangely, none of the corpses showed any unusual behavior; they were all sitting elegantly in their seats.

They seemed completely captivated by something, sitting quietly in their seats until their deaths…

What did these people see before they died?

Faced with such a bizarre unknown, Xu Ming suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

He took a deep breath, forced himself to calm down, then opened his backpack and took out his ballet shoes.

The moment Xu Ming put down the dance shoes, they started running on their own, leaping onto the stage in a few steps.

Just then, a beautiful piano melody drifted over.

There was no pianist, yet the piano began to play on its own, and the familiar melody was Tchaikovsky's "Swan Lake".

As the music began, the ballet shoes started spinning on the stage, as if an invisible dancer was performing ballet in them.

The piano music never stopped, and the dance shoes continued to spin gracefully.

Xu Ming's eyes widened involuntarily. As the music continued, a blurry figure appeared on the stage.

She danced on stage like a graceful sprite, a blooming black rose.

Xu Ming became completely engrossed in watching it without even realizing it...

However, the dance eventually comes to an end.

At some point, the music stopped, and the dancers stopped too.

She stood on the stage and bowed deeply to Xu Ming.

Suddenly, a large amount of black mist dissipated from her body, and she transformed back into the 'white swan' in a pure white ballet dress, disappearing in a flash of white light.

—Congratulations, host, you have unlocked the hidden event 'Swan Lake'. The event completion rate has increased, and you will receive a hidden reward upon completion of the mission.

The result wasn't bad.

Xu Ming couldn't help but stroke his chin. It was worth risking his life to get the key, and it was worth Arita Haruyuki risking her life for him.

Xu Ming decided to upgrade the dinner he was treating Haruyuki Arita from a small street-side restaurant to McDonald's.

At that moment, the sound of machinery turning came from the back of the opera house.

Then a staircase descended silently.

Chapter 102 Treachery

Xu Ming gripped his phone tightly and carefully walked past the mummified corpses.

The way these corpses died was too bizarre; their bodies had withered away, leaving only skin and bones.

Yet every corpse had an expression of perfect peace, as if they were asleep with their eyes closed.

Xu Ming had no doubt that these guys would suddenly open their eyes and pounce on him.

Fortunately, Xu Ming's prediction did not come true.

Xu Ming walked along the aisle of the stands to the stairs at the back. The mummies showed no abnormalities and remained quietly seated in their seats.

Xu Ming couldn't help but breathe a slight sigh of relief.

Haruyuki Arita is recovering from his injury, and for now, he can only rely on himself.

Xu Ming held up his phone and shone it up the stairs; the dim light from the phone pierced the darkness.

The space above appears to be a very spacious hall.

Xu Ming had a premonition that this staircase was very likely the entrance to the third floor.

A normal castle would never be designed like this. But this fairytale castle, after nightfall, has an extremely strange internal structure that seems to have no discernible pattern.

Whether it's true or not, we'll find out by going up there.

With this in mind, Xu Ming stepped onto the stairs.

Throughout the ascent of the stairs, Xu Ming remained highly vigilant, and fortunately, no accidents occurred.

Xu Ming went upstairs and immediately began to carefully observe the surrounding environment with his phone.

Coming up the stairs, you enter a spacious hall with doors on either side leading to balconies. Through the glass windows, you can clearly see the view outside the castle.

Decorative items such as vases were placed in the corner of the hall, and several enlarged oil paintings hung on the wall.

In the very center of the hall, facing the stairs, is a double door made of solid wood, adorned with exquisite relief carvings.

Xu Ming couldn't help but stroke his chin.

The scene before him involuntarily gave him the feeling of being in the final boss battle of a game dungeon.

Next, once the door is opened, will we be able to face the BOSS directly?

Xu Ming checked his backpack, gripped his phone and dagger in his hand, took a deep breath, and then forcefully pushed open the door.

To Xu Ming's surprise, the person in the room was not the imaginary, high-class boss sitting on a throne waiting for him to challenge him.

Instead, she was an old woman dressed in tattered clothes, with a scarf tied around her head, a wrinkled face, and a kind smile.

The old lady sat in a wheelchair with a table in front of her. On the table was a dark blue velvet pillow, and a huge crystal ball was placed in the indentation of the pillow.

Xu Ming raised an eyebrow. Why does this look like... a fortune-telling witch?

"Young man, come and take a look!"

The old lady waved to Xu Ming and called out to him.

"I think you should take a look first!"

Xu Ming had no intention of arguing with her; he simply raised his phone and pressed the shutter button.

Click!

A bolt of purple-gold lightning, mixed with runes that shimmered with purple light, struck the old woman behind the table in an instant.

"Do not!!"

The old woman let out a scream, and soon her voice went from sharp to hoarse, and her face began to melt rapidly, like a candle.

pat!

A small wooden box and a match slipped from the old woman's hands and fell to the ground.

The match had been lit, and the match head was emitting a ghostly green light.

The moment Xu Ming's gaze fell upon the green glow, the surrounding scenery suddenly changed drastically.

In an instant, it transformed from a luxurious castle bedroom into a sea cave filled with coral and seaweed.

A terrifying monster slowly crawled out from the depths of the cave.

This monster looks like an enlarged version of an octopus, but its entire body is covered with eyes, making it incredibly eerie.