Chapter 249: You Think You Understand? Actually, You’re Still Too Green!
Upon reading this far, the Chosen Ones let out a sigh of relief, but then immediately grew tense again.
“I knew entering the city wouldn’t be that simple.”
Hilde, a superhuman from the nation of Hans, stared at the rules, lost in thought.
He had roughly grasped the implications hinted at by the rules.
As a top-tier superhuman entering for the first time, he was beginning to accumulate some experience.
Based on his analysis of the rules, there were roughly two paths outlined.
The first path: the Clearance Route.
This one was straightforward and direct—find a way into the city, and then locate the doctors mentioned in Rule 1.
Hilde didn’t yet understand the full meaning of Rule 1 and could only interpret it literally.
Only doctors wearing purple armbands would not despise patients, but only doctors wearing black armbands had the means to treat the virus.
Did this mean he needed to find a doctor wearing both black and purple armbands simultaneously to save himself?
Otherwise, the purple ones wouldn’t harm him, but the rules hinted that the black ones likely would.
This was something he could only figure out after actually making contact with a doctor.
The rules were too direct; without supporting intelligence, they were difficult to decipher.
Hilde continued his analysis. Rule 3 was a survival rule, which was precisely why he had judged from the very beginning that entering the city wouldn’t be simple.
If one could simply walk right in, why would the rules bother telling the Chosen Ones how to survive if they couldn’t get in?
The other rules were essentially points of caution.
This was the standard approach for an ordinary clearer, and it was Hilde’s approach too.
After all, he hadn’t obtained any items related to the End Bird.
Even if he managed to cure his virus, forcibly kill the Broodmother, or take a detour to acquire the item later, it would be pointless.
If he wanted to achieve an SSSS rating, timing was crucial.
This had been tested in the previous round: the later one exited the instance, even if they unlocked more content and explored new areas compared to most Chosen Ones, their rating would still be low, often failing to even reach S rank.
Elements not explicitly pointed out by the rules or main storyline clues not only yielded no bonus points but also resulted in point deductions for wasted time.
According to the expert panel’s deductions:
Within the S-rank evaluation criteria, one ‘S’ stood for Speed. Only the Chosen One who cleared the instance the fastest could earn this ‘S’.
Simply put, the more time wasted, the more points were deducted—not just potentially losing that specific ‘S’, but losing points indefinitely.
If a Chosen One merely wanted to survive, they could take their time without issue, as long as they didn’t get themselves killed.
That’s because as time passed, various unexpected dangers would inevitably arise.
But to farm for resources and skills, a swift instance clear was mandatory.
According to Greco, being the first to clear the instance apparently granted extra bonus points.
Other ‘S’ ratings came from items obtained during the clear, areas unlocked, hidden quests completed, hidden rewards acquired, and so forth.
It sounds simple, doesn’t it? Yet only one person had ever managed a perfect score.
Those who entered the Strange Tale World for the first time, thinking it was a piece of cake and strutting in with overconfidence, were already dead.
At this stage, Hilde, the superhuman from Hans, could no longer realistically achieve an SSSS rating. To him, the difference between an S and an SSS was merely the cooldown reduction on the skills granted; either way, it was just +1 to all attributes, not a huge distinction.
Nevertheless, he still performed an SSSS-level analysis to some extent.
The second path: the Perfect Clearance Route that yields resources.
Of course, ‘perfect’ here was theoretical perfection. In reality, everyone had some minor flaws. Only by getting infinitely close to perfection could one farm substantial resources.
Needless to say, the hidden quest in this level involved killing the Broodmother.
The Broodmother was the source of the calamity plaguing this world.
The black liquid was the substance used to summon the End Bird.
Chosen Ones could potentially utilize the End Bird—an entity whose name suggested it was at the absolute pinnacle of power—to eliminate the Broodmother.
This could be analyzed step by step.
First, locating the Brood Nest was essential.
Here, one needed to scrutinize the rules carefully.
Rule 5: To enter the Brood Nest, one must find a guide.
This implied that ordinary people didn’t know the nest’s location; finding an insect disguised as a human was necessary.
And finding this disguised insect could also be deduced through the rules.
Rule 2: Regardless of who they are, if a person carries three different viruses simultaneously, they will die instantly.
Rule 8: Insect-type creatures cannot be infected by viruses, even if they disguise themselves as humans.
If there was a suspect, the strategy was to find a way to infect them.
If they contracted three different viruses and didn’t trigger the instant death condition, then they were an insect impersonating a human.
Rule 2 wasn’t merely a simple guideline to avoid other types of patients; it also served as an explanation for Rule 8.
If one considered Rule 2 as just a simple rule, then even if they acquired the black slime, they were destined to fail the hidden quest.
Hilde then looked at another rule.
Rule 9: The Broodmother is extremely hungry after laying eggs; it will not refuse a Wugan Fruit.
Here, he deduced that to kill the Broodmother, one must find a Wugan Fruit and then coat it with the black slime or inject the slime inside it.
Once the Broodmother consumed it, the terrifying apex entity, the End Bird, would appear.
It was impossible to just walk up and splash the black slime directly onto the Broodmother.
The Broodmother itself possessed formidable strength, and it was likely surrounded by tight security from insect guards.
If one actually had the ability to get close enough to ‘stamp’ the Broodmother with the slime, they might as well just stab it directly.
Of course, this was just a broad conjecture based on the rules. The specifics would depend on how the Chosen Ones chose to operate.
Completing the hidden quest was bound to be fraught with immense danger.
For instance, the insect disguised as a human—its strength was undeniable, especially since it was immune to viruses.
One couldn’t just walk up and try to skin it, could they?
Furthermore, the ‘guide’ mentioned in the rules likely meant the Chosen Ones would need to follow it secretly.
The insect-human wouldn’t directly lead the Chosen Ones to harm the Broodmother.
Still, Hilde wondered: Why would an insect need to disguise itself as a human?
He stroked his chin, and suddenly his eyes lit up.
“I get it! Insects fear disinfectant! But an insect-human might not!”
According to the hidden information gleaned from the underground parking garage, humanoid aberrations were not afraid of disinfectant.
To get close to humans protected by disinfectant, they might use methods like ‘possession’ or ‘parasitism’ to take control of a human body.
After all, during the Bridge level, Hilde had seen plenty of insects whose movements were eerily similar to humans.
Perhaps these insects consumed human brains and even acquired some of their skills and knowledge.
This was Hilde’s moment of sudden inspiration.
Many superhumans, even after clearing the instance, might never think of these details.
The sun hadn’t set yet. Hilde observed the giant trees reaching for the sky not far away. Although the woods in these areas weren’t dense, the spaces between the trees were choked with various lush plants of different colors, resembling the primeval forests people saw in pictures.
Near these plants, abundant fruit could also be seen.
Therefore, the Wugan Fruit mentioned in the rules should be among them; they just needed to find information to identify it.
The Chosen Ones weren’t from this world; they had no idea what a Wugan Fruit looked like.
They would probably need to find an important NPC for that information.
The Brood Nest, too, must lie somewhere within this boundless jungle.
The strict defenses around the city perimeter and the wreckage visible on the city walls made it clear—this place had been attacked before!
Hilde felt his analysis was spot on. What a pity he hadn’t obtained the black slime; otherwise, an SSSS rating would have been almost guaranteed this run.
If Zhang Yangqing knew his thoughts, he would certainly say: You’re still wet behind the ears. Who told you the Broodmother’s location was in that forest outside? Couldn’t it be inside the city?
Think about it. Why is the city shrouded in a dark red haze even during broad daylight?
Isn’t that deliberately concealing something problematic?
If it weren’t for that dark red haze, one could directly see whatever was going on inside.
This was a detail that the vast majority of Chosen Ones temporarily failed to notice.
This was what experience amounted to—an issue only Zhang Yangqing had anticipated.
Actually, it was observable. Everywhere else was fine during the day, with problems only arising at night.
But this place had issues during the day itself. When something defies the norm, there’s always something fishy going on!
Here, Zhang Yangqing had another piece of specialized insight: the previously mentioned technique of keyword capture for items.
[Blue Potion] [Green Potion] [Well] [Temple] [Wugan Fruit]
Regarding these items, one shouldn’t arrogantly assume that because they were ‘just a clearer’ and didn’t need to complete the hidden quest, only finding a doctor mattered, and the rest were irrelevant.
Thinking that way would be a grave mistake, practically a death sentence.
Any item mentioned by the rules must be sought out. Even if it ultimately proved useless, it still needed to be found.
Suppose Zhang Yangqing’s analysis was correct, and the Brood Nest and Broodmother were actually inside the city.
You play the lone hero, prepare nothing, and somehow manage to sneak in.
If you encounter an insurmountable danger and have no items to use, then death is the only thing waiting for you.
The rules only hinted that certain things could kill the Broodmother; they didn’t say the other mentioned items were useless.
Just like when Zhang Yangqing was in the ‘Bizarre Rental House,’ he didn’t strictly need to go to the basement to find the poison for the cat, but he did it anyway. That’s called being prepared for any eventuality.
Don’t be fooled by Zhang Yangqing’s seemingly brute-force approach to clearing instances; he only resorts to force after meticulously attending to every detail.
If one simply tries to copy his forceful methods while ignoring the underlying details, Greco already provided a demonstration of how that ends.
Notice how this time, that guy has been so low-key that he seems to have forgotten he’s a superhuman?
That’s because he’s learned the essence from Zhang Yangqing.
Yet he tells everyone else that clearing instances is ‘a piece of cake,’ using such claims to mislead other superhumans. His real goal is to keep this secret close to his chest.
Since the Dragon Country’s Celestial Master couldn’t be bothered to explain, and Greco wouldn’t either, the number of people who understood remained small.
This allowed their respective factions to stay far ahead of the competition.
After all the Chosen Ones finished their analyses, they started their vehicles and moved forward.
Each person’s analysis varied slightly, but they generally understood the gist of how to tackle this level.
Inside the Strange Tale World, Zhang Yangqing sat in the passenger seat, observing the surroundings.
The area was quite open, with not just a single road but many smaller paths branching off to unknown destinations.
By the time they arrived, there was already a long queue of vehicles waiting to enter the city.
Towering walls surrounded the area, impossible to scale.
The main gate of the city was guarded with a force that made even a maximum-security prison look lax.
Near the checkpoint at the gate, there were no fewer than twenty figures in black robes wearing crow masks.
Nearby stood two tall watchtowers, each manned by guards wielding heavy firepower.
Anyone foolish enough to try and force their way through would undoubtedly be riddled with bullets.
Zhang Yangqing didn’t hold much hope for entering the city conventionally, but he decided to observe first.
Soon, gunfire erupted from the checkpoint not far ahead.
Zhang Yangqing rolled down the window and caught snippets of conversation.
“I’m not sick! Please, just let me in!”
“You have marks on your neck, and you claim you’re not sick?”
A burst of gunfire followed.
“I’ve caught the plague! I came here seeking treatment! I beg you, let me in!”
“This place does not welcome the sick! Die!”
Another burst of gunfire rang out.
Afterward, guards dragged the bloody corpses away and tossed them onto a nearby transport truck. Once the truck was full, it would drive off to dispose of the bodies somewhere.
That was the routine.
Any Chosen One harboring thoughts of ramming the checkpoint had best abandon the idea immediately.
Because just moments ago, an off-road vehicle, relying on its speed and sturdy frame, tried to plow straight through.
However, beneath the checkpoint’s barrier arm was a retractable bollard specifically designed to prevent such breaches.
The off-road vehicle smashed through the arm but was stopped dead by the bollard. The occupants were dragged out and shot dead on the spot.
“Turn around. We can’t get in using normal means,” Zhang Yangqing instructed the one-eyed youth.
He had already suspected this outcome, but since Zhang Yangqing hadn’t spoken, the youth didn’t dare act on his own.
Hearing Zhang Yangqing’s order now, the youth executed a swift reverse drift, spinning the vehicle around, then slammed the accelerator, speeding away from the area before the checkpoint guards could take notice.
At this point, unless they planned to return later, the vehicle was no longer essential.
Much of the surrounding terrain was impassable by car anyway.
So, Zhang Yangqing hopped out and prepared to travel on foot in search of the abandoned temple mentioned in Rule 3.
Since the rules specifically pointed it out, it signified that the temple was more than just a simple resting place. There would be people there—perhaps even insect-humans!
Figuring out how to complete the hidden quest and how to enter the city—these individuals were absolutely critical!
There was no need to scrap the car entirely; they could just hide it somewhere.
The most crucial thing was the food.
After hiding the car, Zhang Yangqing had the one-eyed youth send his crows to scout the vicinity. Once they confirmed no one was watching, he initiated his unorthodox operation.
At this stage, carrying a large amount of food was highly risky.
There were bound to be many other virus carriers who couldn’t enter the city lurking nearby.
If those people ran out of food and saw someone carrying a heavy load of supplies, that person would immediately become a target.
Therefore, finding a secluded spot to bury the bulk of the provisions, carrying only a few packs of dry rations to last a day or two, was the smart move.
This way, even if they entered a crowded area, they wouldn’t attract unwanted attention.
Numerous paths lay ahead. While other Chosen Ones hesitated, unsure which way to go, Zhang Yangqing’s objective was clear.
Weren’t temples and shrines traditionally located on higher ground, like hills or mountains?
So, his plan was simply to find the path that led upward.
And at this moment, to avoid revealing their true capabilities, Zhang Yangqing instructed the one-eyed youth to station his two aberration crows in the distant treetops, only calling them back when needed.
Viewers observing the broadcast could clearly see that Zhang Yangqing was already exploiting a major loophole.
None of the other Chosen Ones had aberration crows following them at this point in the scenario!
