Chapter 204: That’s Treasure to You, But It’s Just Trash to Me!
The speed at which Zhang Yangqing reviewed the materials made people suspect he was just talking nonsense.
Unless he was someone living in the strange-tale world, who else could possibly understand the algorithms within it?
But when the audience heard the affirming words and tones of admiration from the three doctors, they were shocked.
Could it be that Zhang Tianshi truly understood decades of research just by glancing at it like that?
This made the audience increasingly amazed. Some even wondered if Zhang Tianshi had been a medical research expert before becoming a Taoist priest.
The last time the audience had this suspicion was when Zhang Yangqing was acting as a ship’s captain.
Not to mention the outside audience, even Zhang Yangqing’s few teammates on-site were beginning to feel lost in a fog.
Just when they thought they somewhat understood this ‘security guard’ teammate, they would realize they understood him less and less.
Beyond the mist in front of them was still more mist.
With your skills and abilities, who would believe you’re just a security guard?
However, Zhang Yangqing wasn’t someone who liked to explain, and they didn’t ask either.
After all, everyone was hiding a secret, a shared taboo, and no one was willing to bring it up.
Because at this point, the mountaineering team still didn’t want to tear the facade.
Perhaps the only one who could understand why Zhang Yangqing knew these things was Su Muyu from Dragon Tiger Mountain.
Actually, Zhang Yangqing hadn’t studied these things before. Su Muyu believed Zhang Yangqing simply had an innate, heaven-defying comprehension.
He remembered back when their master asked Zhang Yangqing to study and comprehend an ancient book. The master had set a limit of three days to thoroughly grasp it.
Su Muyu was present at that time. He knew the master was trying to challenge Zhang Yangqing.
Such an extremely profound ancient book would take an ordinary person years, even decades, to possibly comprehend.
Even Su Muyu had only grasped the surface after two months. The master was essentially giving Zhang Yangqing a difficult problem.
Who would have thought that after giving it to him in the morning, Zhang Yangqing returned the book to the master in the afternoon.
The master was just about to scold him for not giving up so quickly when faced with a setback, but Zhang Yangqing said he had already comprehended it.
Naturally, the master didn’t believe him. Fuming, he started quizzing him on the spot.
It turned out, Zhang Yangqing answered fluently. Some of his insights were even more impressive than those of old monks who had studied for decades.
Su Muyu clearly remembered that day when the master looked at Zhang Yangqing as if he were a freak.
His expression seemed to question life itself.
After a long while, the master finally managed to say, “Good, you learned it in just one morning. You are teachable indeed. Back in my day, I also took a full day to comprehend it.”
Su Muyu had no comment on the first part, but regarding the latter part, Su Muyu felt the master was completely bragging.
So, ever since that time, Su Muyu didn’t find it strange whenever Zhang Yangqing learned something at a glance.
Su Muyu always believed there was nothing Zhang Yangqing couldn’t learn; it was just a matter of whether he wanted to learn it or not.
The reason Zhang Yangqing could earlier point out the correct doctor among the three was precisely because he had already mastered this technique.
Within the strange-tale world, the Chosen Ones selected the correct doctor using their own methods and then followed him to a double-door preservation room.
The journey there was safe, as this was a doctor from the sanatorium. The bizarre creatures were all afraid of him.
When they arrived here, other Chosen Ones were still wary.
They roughly calculated the distance, making sure it was around one kilometer before following him inside.
Without precise measuring tools, they basically relied on the number of doors along the way or the time the trip took to judge.
Having come this far, it was essentially the concluding stage of this level. No one wanted to fail here now.
After confirming it was roughly correct, the mountaineering team followed the doctor into the preservation room.
Calling it a preservation room, it was actually just a room with many large glass containers.
Many of these glass containers held various oddly shaped creatures.
If placed elsewhere, they would certainly seem strange.
But placed here, the Chosen Ones found it normal, having seen plenty along the way.
In the center lay a nearly perfect body, dormant.
Just looking at this body gave off a powerful, oppressive feeling.
Even through the glass, everyone felt that if this thing awakened, it would be transcendent.
Various tubes were inserted into his body, connected to different instruments, apparently for recording and adjusting bodily data.
Many Chosen Ones even thought about exploiting a loophole: If they could somehow control this so-called ‘human,’ wouldn’t they be able to bulldoze through this level?
The rules didn’t say they couldn’t kill the doctor.
But this idea was just a fleeting thought. Actually implementing it would be too difficult.
The doctor’s combat strength was still unknown up to this point. If he could suppress the bizarre creatures here, he probably wasn’t weak, right?
Moreover, the diary from the first level seemed to indicate that after the angel awoke, it had developed self-awareness, leading to uncontrollable consequences.
It was possible that this ‘human’ might be the same after awakening.
Then, instead of gaining an advantage, they might suffer a loss, even getting killed by this human. That would be disastrous.
Therefore, most Chosen Ones dismissed this idea. Others decided to ask the magic book later to see if it had any solutions.
Zhang Yangqing alone had no interest in this thing. Given enough time and sufficient materials, he could create a better ‘human’ than this one.
But with his lazy disposition, he wouldn’t go through such troublesome efforts unless absolutely necessary.
According to the doctor’s explanation, assembling the organs was very complicated and would likely take until around eight or nine tomorrow morning to complete.
He told the mountaineering team to find a place to rest first, informing them that turning right outside the door led to several unused restrooms, which were safe, and they could rest there.
The Chosen Ones looked at their watches. The current time was 1:20 AM. The mountaineering team hadn’t rested since entering this place, encountering various life-and-death dangers along the way, their nerves constantly on edge.
Coupled with traveling during the day, they were already quite exhausted. Once they relaxed, drowsiness washed over them, and their minds began to go blank.
If not for the strange things in the preservation room and the noisy sounds of machinery operating, they might have fallen asleep right then and there.
When Rahman, the Chosen One from Pyramid Country, prepared to bid farewell to the doctor and go back to rest, he suddenly felt something wasn’t quite right. Had he forgotten something?
He closed his eyes, quickly recalling the experiences along the way.
Suddenly, a connection seemed to click into place.
Just as the other mountaineering team members were opening the door to leave, Rahman suddenly asked, “Doctor, apart from the three of you, have you seen any other people?”
Rahman’s question seemed to remind his teammates of something.
On their way here, they passed through a kitchen where signs indicated someone had been there.
Moreover, there were maggots on the previous level, proving someone had died there not long ago.
Besides that, there were also the strange footsteps, making it impossible not to be suspicious.
The doctor turned around and said seriously, “I haven’t seen anyone else. It was just the three of us when we arrived, and then you all. Could there be others who entered from somewhere else?”
Rahman continued, “Doctor, you must be very focused when conducting research. What if you get ambushed? Do you need us to guard here?”
He was already hinting that someone might ambush this doctor.
After all, even Rahman had thought about controlling the ‘human.’ Others might have the same idea.
Not to mention those hidden in the shadows, even the other two doctors might ambush him to seize control of the ‘human.’
If that were really the case, everyone would rather not rest tonight and instead protect the doctor.
If the doctor couldn’t repair the human, they wouldn’t be able to leave either.
“It’s fine. I have a way.”
Saying this, the doctor continuously input codes into the instrument. The liquid in two large glass containers was drained, and then the humanoid creatures inside opened their eyes.
As the glass containers rose, the two humanoid creatures inside stepped out.
According to the doctor’s explanation, these two were his assistants, with strength surpassing the mutated species in the sanatorium. With them guarding, the mountaineering team could rest assured.
Hearing the doctor say this, Rahman felt much more at ease. Perhaps this was a critical detail.
If other Chosen Ones hadn’t thought of this here, after returning, they could refer to a certain rule.
[Rule 2: Between the hours of 2 AM and 5 AM, you can only trust yourself.]
This rule already hinted that something bizarre might occur between 2 AM and 5 AM.
According to Rahman’s understanding, aside from the doctor in the mountaineering team, other bizarre entities might ‘impersonate’ them, then try to lure them out and kill them.
Otherwise, why would the rule say, “you can only trust yourself”?
This was his premonition of danger.
It might not be entirely correct, but he felt it was about eighty to ninety percent accurate.
As long as he thought of this and reminded the doctor not to trust anyone during these nighttime hours, then this level should be mostly fine.
Actually, for Chosen Ones to connect this point was already quite good.
But Rahman seemed divinely inspired in this match. His thinking began to expand infinitely, not limited to just this sanatorium.
A map of the entire area he had passed through even appeared in his mind.
“Could the bizarre entity hinted by this rule be the one within the team itself?”
Thinking of this, Rahman broke out in a cold sweat. Could this be the goal of that hidden bizarre entity within the team?
Upon careful consideration, it indeed seemed possible.
The characteristic of this bizarre entity was devouring and transformation, possibly even stealing abilities.
This was easy to understand, especially considering accurate information from the previous level—the Nameless Mountain Village!
Because the Nameless Mountain Village worshipped the Harvest God, the cloaked statue.
The power the Harvest God could bestow upon followers was essentially theft.
Rahman had heard the conversation between the Square-Faced Uncle and the village chief. After the ritual was complete, they needed to wait for 1 hour. Then, by eating any creature, they could seize that creature’s abilities.
In the Nameless Mountain Village, the villagers attacked the Chosen Ones at 2 AM. Here, the bizarre entities appeared also after 2 AM.
Rahman felt all this information was connecting.
Therefore, the bizarre entity within the team had blended in until now without anyone noticing anything amiss because it had already stolen all the abilities of the original mountaineering team member.
And tonight, the ‘human’ capable of opposing the angel would be born. How could he possibly let it go?
Whether one could think of this point depended on the Chosen Ones’ understanding of the complex rules and hidden information.
Because information from many levels could actually be connected; it just depended on whether everyone realized it.
If a Chosen One was even smarter, they might have a way to find out tonight which teammate was the bizarre entity.
Rahman was one of the few among all Chosen Ones who could think of this.
Rahman put himself in the other’s shoes. Since the bizarre teammate had already shown their face to the doctor, the doctor wouldn’t be too wary of him.
If he didn’t remind the doctor to beware of ‘acquaintances,’ the bizarre teammate might enter at night under the pretense of visiting, create chaos, distract the doctor’s assistants, and then attack the doctor.
At that point, all he needed to do was wait for the other teammates to leave or enter the restrooms, then circle back and inform the doctor of the impending danger, ensuring he wouldn’t be killed in an ambush.
This created an information gap. The bizarre entity in the team wouldn’t know the doctor had been warned.
Tomorrow morning, he could ask the doctor who visited last night?
Rahman dismissed this idea, as other bizarre entities might also transform into team members to confuse judgment.
Maybe these guys were all the same kind—followers of the Harvest God.
If he wanted to know who the bizarre teammate was, there actually was a way.
Tonight between 2 AM and 5 AM, whoever came out of their room would be the bizarre entity!
But if a superhuman thought of this method, they would have the ability to verify it.
But if Rahman thought of it, he had no means to do so.
Leave a crack in the door?
Worried that if the door wasn’t properly closed, it might be opened by a bizarre entity, and then he’d have nothing but regrets.
Moreover, in the pitch dark, without a peephole on the door, it would be hard to tell who passed by his door, and whether it was the bizarre entity from the team or another transformed bizarre entity.
If he wanted to know who the bizarre entity in the team was, he could only judge by whose door opened between 2 AM and 5 AM.
Therefore, he decided not to tell the doctor for now. After returning, he would discuss it with the magic book to see if it had any magic that could clearly see outside through walls.
If not, he didn’t need to take the risk to verify it, especially since it would consume a lot of time.
This was the only person among non-superhumans who could think of this.
Did Zhang Yangqing not think of this point?
Of course he did, but his situation was different.
Given the strength he had displayed so far, would the bizarre entity dare to act recklessly?
Even if the bizarre entity seized control of the ‘human,’ could it be sure it could deal with this outrageous teammate?
Zhang Yangqing was so powerful that even the bizarre entities knew they couldn’t confront him head-on; they could only use trickery.
Therefore, he judged it was highly unlikely the bizarre entity would make a move. He might as well sleep.
Before that, he only needed to set up a seal at the entrance of the preservation room.
As for who would dare knock on his door while he rested, wouldn’t that be seeking death?
After most Chosen Ones warned the doctor, they left the preservation room with the mountaineering team.
Then they checked whether the rooms mentioned by the doctor were safe.
Here, each team member also demonstrated teamwork and importance, carefully checking five rooms. Only after confirming they were safe did they begin allocating them.
As the captain, the Goatee Middle-Aged Man started assigning rooms.
Since the rooms were all singles, and no one had reached absolute trust in each other yet, it was better for each person to have their own room. No one objected to this.
The Goatee Captain, the Chosen One, and the Slicked-Back Hair Man were on one side.
The Violet-Eyed Woman and the Gold-Rimmed Glasses Man were across the hallway.
The Goatee Captain arranged it this way also to ensure the safety of the Chosen One.
The Chosen Ones had no other objections. After bidding farewell to their teammates, they entered their rooms.
The first thing Rahman did upon entering his room was lock the door, then check the lock again. After quietly calling out to his teammates to make sure they couldn’t hear, he took out the magic book.
Rahman understood the nobility of the magic book well. He placed it on a higher spot on the bed and sat on the floor beside it.
After all, when asking for help, one should be humble. Whether he could get through this strange-tale world smoothly still required the magic book’s assistance.
When the magic book was taken out, it didn’t stand on ceremony either and said directly, “Human, what do you require of me?”
The magic book’s neutral voice rang out. It enjoyed the feeling of being sought after.
And this one was relatively devout, so the magic book could offer a little help, displaying its grace.
“Great Magic Book, may I ask, is that woman in our team a mage or a magician?”
Rahman had many questions to ask; he would take them one by one.
He had long requested the magic book to observe the Violet-Eyed Woman.
The magic book would also move to a corner of the backpack to secretly observe the outside situation.
Hearing Rahman’s question, the magic book replied, “She is somewhere between a mage and a magician. In our professional terms, she is called a Magic User…”
One had to admit the magic book was quite professional. According to it, the Violet-Eyed Woman’s magical sensitivity was insufficient; she couldn’t harness magical power, meaning she lacked talent.
In that case, she couldn’t become a mage. To be able to use magic, she could form a contract with a magical item possessing power, thereby using the power granted by that magical item.
Such magical items were also very rare in this world. At least, this magic book couldn’t do that currently.
“If you want to deal with her, you just need to find the magical item on her person and destroy it. Then she won’t be able to use magic.”
The magic book was quite loyal, even telling Rahman how to counter her.
Seeing Rahman’s grateful expression, the magic book was satisfied.
It liked humans needing it, treating it like a god.
Next, Rahman more devoutly inquired about some magic, both for defense and observation.
Other Chosen Ones who had magic books were also consulting theirs about some issues.
Did Zhang Yangqing need the magic book?
Of course he did, because he chose a bed in a small room that had one corner that wasn’t very even, so he used the magic book to prop up the bed leg.
This left the audience utterly bewildered.
Other Chosen Ones kneel and beg the magic book for help, while you use it as a prop?
Is that how the magic book is supposed to be used?
If Zhang Yangqing knew the audience’s thoughts, he wouldn’t care. After all, the magic book itself didn’t dare complain, so why were they getting worked up?
What was a treasure to other Chosen Ones was just finding a use for trash in Zhang Yangqing’s hands.
Using the magic book to prop up a bed leg was already a reasonable use. Actually, Zhang Yangqing’s ideas were even more ‘wicked.’ He thought this thing could be torn out to start a fire when necessary.
Paper was flammable material.
Otherwise, why would a conservationist like Zhang Yangqing bring the magic book? It must be useful.
As for what use it was, who knew what he was thinking?
It was still twenty minutes until 2 AM. The Chosen Ones all left their rooms around the same time.
