Rules of the Strange: Starting with the Weird Peppa Pig

"My toolbar can store IV sets. You can't hide them, so leave them with me for safekeeping."

Without hesitation, Li Fan handed over both IV sets.

"Big brother, I don't know when I should use it or when I shouldn't, so I'll just give it to you."

Lucas looked at the only two he had in his hand, feeling conflicted.

Just as he was gritting his teeth, preparing to hand everything over, Wuyin suddenly spoke.

"Lucas, I only have one empty slot left in my toolbar, so I can only save one for you. You can keep the other one yourself."

Lucas breathed a sigh of relief and quickly handed over an IV set.

"Okay, thank you."

Li Fan watched the two of them from the side, marveling at how his older brother could always be so perceptive of other people's emotions.

Although Lucas had established a basic level of trust with them, having something to protect himself in a life-or-death situation would give him a greater sense of security.

He knew that Wuyin had saved him many times, and logically he should give both of his IV sets to Wuyin. However, he instinctively wanted to keep one, but then he felt that he was being ungrateful.

Wu Yin's words not only saved Lucas's face but also allowed him to leave behind an IV set, giving him a sense of security.

After all, the eldest brother didn't want to take over someone else's life-saving weapon; he simply wanted to maximize his profits.

Just then, the elevator made a soft "ding".

We've reached the 18th floor.

The elevator doors slowly opened.

Because the elevator was relatively bright, when they saw the dark hallway again, their eyes couldn't adjust for a moment. They felt that everything in front of them was pitch black, and they couldn't even see the path under their feet.

Wuyin looked at the darkness in front of her and spoke to the two people behind her.

"It's very dark here. When we go out later, we must not separate."

After all, the 18th floor is like a multi-dimensional space structure; I had only been separated from Li Fan for a short while before he ended up in another space.

Lucas offered his suggestion.

"In that case, let's line up in a straight line, with the person in the back putting their hand on the shoulder of the person in front, so that no one falls behind."

Wuyin and Li Fan both agreed to the suggestion. Wuyin turned to look at the thick darkness in front of her, took a deep breath, and stepped out of the elevator.

The next second, a hand gently rested on his shoulder.

The three of them walked slowly in a line.

The stairwell was deathly silent, save for the rhythmic footsteps of a few people echoing in the air, so synchronized that it sounded as if only one person was walking.

Chapter 192 There's an extra person in the hallway

After walking for a while, Lucas, sounding somewhat impatient, spoke from the quiet stairwell.

"Li Fan, if you're going to put your hand on my shoulder, just do it properly. What's with all this pinching?"

Li Fan was startled by what he heard and paused for a moment, because he vaguely remembered that Lucas was walking behind him and his hand was on his older brother's shoulder.

If that's the case, then whose hand is on Lucas's shoulder?

He swallowed hard, his voice becoming somewhat hesitant.

"Um... are you sure I'm the one walking behind you?"

As soon as he heard this, a chill ran down Lucas's spine, and his mind went blank, because Li Fan's voice was clearly coming from right in front of him.

His legs felt weak, and he couldn't move forward even half a step.

"Then, whose hand was that on my shoulder?"

Their conversation was like a boulder thrown into a calm lake, causing the surface to ripple violently.

Wuyin, who was walking at the front, also stopped, her voice carrying a hint of seriousness.

"You absolutely must not take your hands off the shoulders of the people in front of you now. If you do, we won't be able to tell who's missing or who's been replaced."

"I've taken notes. If anyone's shoulder isn't being used properly, speak up immediately."

He paused, his gaze thoughtful.

"Since this thing wants to play games with us, let's keep going. A few more steps up the stairs and we'll see the moonlight outside. Then we'll know who's playing tricks."

As soon as he finished speaking, Lucas, at the end of the line, suddenly shouted, his voice trembling with despair.

"No... I can't walk anymore, maybe I can't escape."

Because the hand resting on my shoulder had started to become eerie.

Li Fan could also clearly feel that Lucas's hand, which was resting on his shoulder, was trembling violently, as if he was experiencing something extremely frightening.

Now that they knew the monster was starting to become strange, it meant it was about to make its move. The silent voice grew louder.

"Lucas, if you can't escape, fight back. Have you forgotten that you still have items that can counteract the strange?"

Remember, when you retaliate, never remove your hand from Li Fan's shoulder.

Lucas was jolted awake by these words. He was stunned at first, then couldn't help but burst into laughter through his tears, a glimmer of hope igniting in his panicked heart.

Yes, he also has that special IV drip device to counteract the bizarre.

He forced his limp body to stand, and with trembling hands, he pulled the IV set from his pocket, gripped the needle tightly, and plunged it into the cold hand on his shoulder.

The needle easily pierced the back of the strange hand, and Lucas breathed a slight sigh of relief, quietly waiting for the person behind him to fall to the ground.

One second, two seconds, five seconds, ten seconds...

A full minute passed, and there was no sound from behind. The hand remained firmly on his shoulder, the needle still inserted, but it had no effect whatsoever.

Wuyin waited for a long time but still didn't hear any sound behind him. A sense of unease gradually rose in his heart, and he frowned and asked.

"Lucas, how did it go? Did you deal with the monster?"

There was complete silence behind me; there was no response.

Wuyin frowned even more deeply and continued to ask.

"Li Fan, is there still a hand on your shoulder?"

Li Fan nodded quickly.

"Yes, Lucas's hand is still on my shoulder, but... it's not shaking as much anymore."

As he spoke, he turned his head slightly and tentatively called out to those behind him.

"Lucas, is the monster behind you still there? If not, let's get out of here quickly."

His response was still a deathly silence.

A chill ran from the soles of Li Fan's feet throughout his body, and goosebumps rose on his skin.

"Big brother... Lucas's not talking, has something happened to him...?"

Li Fan's voice abruptly stopped, and the air fell into a suffocating darkness and silence once again.

The hand resting on Wuyin's shoulder had become icy cold, sending chills down one's spine.

Wuyin's expression changed from wary to indifferent.

He slowly raised his hand, gently brushing the cold hand off his shoulder, then turned around, staring coldly into the darkness ahead where he could see nothing, and spoke slowly, word by word.

“Jack, I think you should know that your daughter is no longer the same person she used to be.”

"If that's the case, why are you still helping her?"

The air fell silent once more.

After a few agonizing seconds, a low, hoarse voice finally came from the depths of darkness.

"I'm not harming you, I'm helping you."

I know how to get through to this hospital; I just hope you can get through smoothly and not harm my daughter.

Wuyin raised an eyebrow and couldn't help but let out a cold laugh.

"Then why should I trust you?"

The voice in the darkness suddenly became urgent, even carrying a hint of pleading.

"Because my daughter has changed... She's not as lovely and kind as she used to be, and I don't want to see her with my hands stained with blood. But no matter what she becomes, she's still my daughter!"

Jack sighed deeply.

"I can't just ignore her. I just hope you won't hurt her."

All I want is to stay quietly in this hospital with my daughter, until our souls fade away.

Silently listened to Jack's words, feeling little emotion, and simply asked a question.

"And what about my friends? Where did you take them?"

Jack sensed that Wuyin's tone had softened somewhat, and he quickly offered an explanation.

“I didn’t hurt them. I teleported them to another space. There’s an elevator there that leads directly to the hospital’s main gate. You can escape this weird hospital from there.”

Wuyin let out another cold sneer.

“Jack, I think you must have heard of me when you were alive, how dare you try to deceive me with such a clumsy lie.”

Leaving the hospital?

You've cleared the Ghost Stories dungeon countless times, but how many of those times did you actually clear it by escaping the dungeon's boundaries? And now you're trying to fool me with this kind of lie? Do you think I'm an idiot?

As soon as the words were spoken, a violent commotion arose in the air, and an invisible sense of oppression swept over them. They could clearly feel that the strange emotions in front of them were extremely unstable.

A low, hoarse voice came from the darkness, as if someone was trying to suppress some emotion.

"No...she...tastes the same...my daughter, Palli...my daughter wouldn't lie to me!"

Wuyin took two steps back, a hint of surprise in her eyes.

It seems that the strange creature in front of us wasn't lying; it was just badly deceived by the little girl.

His voice softened slightly, guiding the conversation gently.

“I suspect that your daughter’s body has long been possessed by an unknown entity. If you don’t believe me, I can prove it to you.”