I’m a Max-Level Taoist Master, and You’re Throwing Me Into a Rules-Based Horror Game?! - Chapter 161

Chapter 161: If I Don’t Chop You Up, You’re Not Happy, Right?! 

Under Zhang Yangqing’s intimidation, the mechanical guards seemed to lift some restriction, directly activating a slaughter mode that disregarded energy consumption.

The rebelling sub-human troops were quickly suppressed, not a single survivor left behind.

Over a thousand corpses littered the entire road, the smell of blood filling the air.

Fortunately, mechanical beings didn’t experience nausea or vomiting. Aside from the visual impact, they felt absolutely nothing.

After the killing, it was time to execute the mission.

However, Zhang Yangqing’s method of slaughter deeply shocked many viewers on Blue Star, especially those in the Dragon Nation. The visual impact was anything but low.

: I never imagined there really was a move like ‘slaying while holding a beauty in one’s arms.’ It’s simply terrifying.
: Originally, I wanted an affectionate hug from Zhang Tian Shi (Celestial Master Zhang). Now, I don’t dare.
: Afraid of what? Even if I die, I want to die in Zhang Tian Shi’s embrace.
: Keep dreaming. I went to pay respects at Longhu Mountain, queued for three days, and still couldn’t get in. I heard hundreds of superhumans came to see Zhang Tian Shi, and they didn’t even qualify for a handshake. And you want a hug?
: Bragging good news: I passed the interview out of hundreds of thousands applying to cultivate at Longhu Mountain and made it to the qualification review!
: So envious! I applied too, but the Taoist priest said my comprehension wasn’t enough. Got eliminated during the interview.
: What was your interview question?
: The Taoist priest took out a half-filled teacup and asked me what I saw.
: How did you answer?
This viewer, who passed the interview, quickly guessed the answer. It was a question about comprehension.

The Taoist priest wanted to tell him that everything has two sides; one must think from different angles. An optimist would say the cup is half full, a pessimist would say it’s half empty.

: Oh, I said the color looks like a cup of pee, and got thrown out.
: …
: …
: Brother, forgive my bluntness, the Taoist priest not beating you up already shows great temper. If you met me, I’d give you a couple of slashes, believe it!

It felt like carefully preparing a question, only for this guy to scribble nonsense. It wasn’t just unrelated; it missed the point entirely.

This also illustrated how explosively popular Longhu Mountain had become due to Zhang Yangqing’s influence.

Never mind what outsiders said about Zhang Yangqing’s ferocity; just ask them if they wanted to get stronger. Many scions of wealthy families fought tooth and nail to get in but couldn’t. Those who failed and resorted to sour grapes on the big screen was normal.

Take those superhumans who went to Longhu Mountain; many badmouthed Zhang Yangqing locally, saying he wasn’t all that, some even slandering him. But when they actually met Zhang Yangqing, didn’t they still bow and scrape, calling him Zhang Tian Shi? And Zhang Yangqing couldn’t even be bothered to acknowledge them, yet they didn’t dare say a word.

Zhang Yangqing didn’t even need to know how they slandered him behind his back. He just needed them to be humble and submissive in his presence. That was enough.

In the face of absolute strength, all doubts vanish. That was reality.

While everyone was discussing, huge changes had already occurred inside the Strange Tale world.

With just one command from Zhang Yangqing, a hundred mechanical guards began bombarding the city wall.

The majestic, towering wall crumbled with a roar.

Dust flew, rubble scattered everywhere. A huge gap was blown open.

Zhang Yangqing judged that entering through the main gate likely had traps, so going through the side probably wasn’t a big issue.

The mechanical guards were utterly obedient to Zhang Yangqing’s orders. Any command issued was strictly executed.

For the current vice-captain, their only response was obedience, no questions needed.

These mechanical guards were very obedient, but to Zhang Yangqing, they still weren’t flexible enough, not very bright.

First day missing the little snake-eyed follower.

That little guy could guess his intentions from just a raised hand or a gesture. Then he’d act in a way that satisfied Zhang Yangqing, even trying to please him and striving to perform. He was practically a subordinate you couldn’t find even with a lantern.

Now, there was no choice. The mechanical guards were just unfeeling killing tools. They had some autonomy, but were too restricted by rules and programs, so this was the best they could do.

The sub-human city’s capable fighters were mostly at the front gate. Once the mechanical guards charged in, it was like sheep entering a tiger’s mouth. Even if some inside resisted, charging with weapons, they were still gunned down by these ruthless mechanical guards.

Whoever it was, they were indiscriminately destroyed.

The sounds of collapsing houses and wailing rose and fell.

The mechanical guards’ biological hand cannons could kill or injure a group with one shot. The heavy cannons on their backs and waist-mounted guns could destroy any living thing in sight.

“Stop, stop, stop! I didn’t tell you to kill everyone. Hurry up and capture people!” Zhang Yangqing was somewhat speechless with these mechanical guards.

Earlier, telling them to kill was only for those resisting. Why were they now shooting indiscriminately? Even if you want to please me, isn’t this going too far?

Despite his words, the mechanical guards were extremely obedient, stopping immediately upon command.

Following Zhang Yangqing’s direction, they began capturing strong laborers.

Then Zhang Yangqing stamped them, proving these were people he captured.

This stamp was like an anti-counterfeit trademark. Once applied first, it would imprint into these people’s bodies. The green-skinned people had a unique scanning technology to determine who captured whom.

Besides armored vehicles, the convoy had transport trucks.

Two hundred mechanical guards escorted a thousand sub-humans onto the vehicles.

With the basic reward obtained, Zhang Yangqing needed to go for the special reward.

The two hundred mechanical guards were tasked with guarding, waiting for Zhang Yangqing’s return before setting off. That was Zhang Yangqing’s order.

The remaining 64 mechanical guards followed Zhang Yangqing deeper to investigate the core area.

After all, the sub-human combat zone rules hinted that the final area might have pollution that could turn mechanical guards into enemies, so bringing fewer was better.

Why 64? Because there were losses in this battle. However, sacrificing only 35 mechanical guards to destroy a city of a hundred thousand showed the green-skinned people’s heavy industry mechanical technology was decent.

The sacrificed and remaining guards didn’t make a round number because one was chopped to death by Zhang Yangqing. He asked for it; it didn’t count as a sacrifice.

Following Zhang Yangqing’s request, these mechanical guards searched for red-roofed buildings.

Other Chosen Ones had to find them themselves, which was troublesome. Zhang Yangqing could just give orders, making it much more convenient.

Compared to other Chosen Ones listening to natives’ orders to work, Zhang Yangqing was definitely the best at ordering natives to work.

Those familiar with Zhang Yangqing knew that unless absolutely necessary, he was too lazy to lift a finger.

Besides, the clearance rules for this level hadn’t appeared yet. Zhang Yangqing was actually being very restrained.

It’s just that compared to other superhumans’ poor performances, he was indeed overly frightening.

During this period, not only had Zhang Yangqing found the reward area, but other Chosen Ones had too.

Now it depended on how clever the Chosen Ones were.

Some Chosen Ones also realized that if they didn’t strengthen themselves this level, surviving later might be harder.

So some braved the danger zone alone, not sure if they were highly skilled and daring or truly clueless about passing this level.

Bullfighter Nation’s Chosen One, Brandon, had a huge advantage this level; this was his daily mission. Professional expertise was no joke.

He lied about finding rare resources in the sub-human area, was led by someone into the red-roofed building zone, and reported this to the green-skinned captain, the highest commander of the unit he joined.

He judged that since his promotion required merit, the green-skinned captain surely wanted promotion too.

From the commander and other mechanical guards’ words, he could tell both resources and labor counted as merit.

So Brandon figured saying the red-roofed area had labor might not attract the green-skinned captain, so he claimed there were rare resources.

Indeed, the green-skinned captain was very greedy. Sitting in a fully armed combat mech, he ordered Brandon to lead the way.

Then a contingent of two hundred mechanical guards marched grandly towards the red-roofed area.

Brandon knew there must be danger here, but weren’t these mechanical guards and the green-skinned captain his test costs? Even if they all died, he didn’t care; he’d already captured enough people.

Best case, he could also seize the vice-captain’s chip. Since only green-skinned people could be captains, and he hadn’t seen higher mechanical guards, his target was only the vice-captain.

But as soon as they entered, something unexpected happened.

First, the information on their goggles was wrong; they couldn’t receive messages from high-level commanders or scan other mechanical guards’ info.

However, at this time, they still had the captain and vice-captain’s command, so it was manageable.

The green-skinned captain seemed to sense danger, but he was clever. The more dangerous the place, the more it likely hid treasures.

His thinking was similar to Brandon’s: with so many mechanical guards around, he definitely wouldn’t be the one to die. Everyone else could handle the danger; he’d take the benefits.

But just then, a mechanical guard’s body began convulsing strangely, movements that shouldn’t be normal, like awkward dancing, completely uncoordinated.

When this mechanical guard stopped, the goggles in front had turned blue, and it suddenly started attacking nearby mechanical guards.

This caught the nearby mechanical guards off guard.

Quicker-reacting Chosen Ones directly shot it dead. This was clearly a sign of being polluted.

Smarter Chosen Ones waited for it to attack the captain before shooting, earning some goodwill.

But no one knew yet what the pollution source this level was. There were many possible pollution sources: food, rainwater, etc. It might not be singular.

As Chosen Ones searched for the pollution source, more and more mechanical guards began convulsing, indicating they were polluted.

The mechanical guard vice-captain said to the green-skinned captain, “Captain, it’s dangerous here. Should we retreat?”

The green-skinned captain felt the good stuff was probably inside. Maybe if he obtained top-grade resources, he could get promoted. Besides, only mechanical guards were dying; why should he fear? Weren’t mechanical guards meant for exploration and sacrifice? Now was the time for them to sacrifice.

The mechanical guards’ programming didn’t include retreat.

So the green-skinned captain issued an order: “Shoot those convulsing and those with blue goggles! Advance!”

Brandon also obeyed the captain’s order without hesitation.

And this captain was really clever; he kept observing the terrain and noticed something. He ordered all mechanical guards to march in place even while shooting.

Because as long as they kept moving, the chance of abnormalities seemed much lower.

Indeed, after his order, mechanical guard abnormalities decreased significantly. The team’s advance speed also increased.

This surprised Brandon. Could the natives here also detect pollution? He recalled a rule.

[Rule 3: Follow the captain’s arrangements; it will benefit you.]

Perhaps this rule reminded Chosen Ones that this captain had some skills?

Brandon was glad he didn’t come alone; otherwise, he might not know how he died. Without others to test mistakes, Chosen Ones would struggle to discover the dangers.

So far, only a few Chosen Ones had discovered the so-called ‘pollutants.’

Zhang Yangqing was one of them.

After personally dealing with a mechanical guard, he ordered the others to use artillery to destroy all buildings near the red-roofed one, indiscriminately leveling them to the ground.

Then he made the mechanical guards march quickly in place, heating their mechanical bodies.

The only good thing about mechanical guards was they didn’t ask why; they just executed.

Because Zhang Yangqing had discovered the so-called pollutants: tiny white spiders.

These white spiders could crawl into the joints of mechanical guards, corrode a hole, and enter to control them.

By marching in place or making their bodies hot, these white spiders couldn’t enter.

Chosen Ones who didn’t discover this could rely on the captain’s commands to pass this area.

The next area tested the Chosen Ones’ abilities.

Because the good stuff was under the red-roofed house.

If the green-skinned captain found it, given his greedy nature, Chosen Ones would get nothing. At best, they’d gain some goodwill, making the green-skinned captain think highly of them, hoping for a position after his promotion.

But doing this meant everything depended on others’ whims.

The best method was to search themselves; they had to get the good stuff personally to take initiative.

Here, Chosen Ones employed many strategies.

The first, most common, was deception, a Chosen favorite.

Despite the green-skinned captain’s greed, he also feared death.

Bullfighter Nation’s Chosen Brandon chose deception. He told the captain he detected an unknown large creature ahead.

Hearing this, the green-skinned captain chickened out. If that thing was a guardian beast, his forces might not be enough. Guardian beasts had super healing, quickly recovering even from severe wounds, and formidable biting power. He had to be cautious.

But he remembered the bait team was supposed to lure it away. Was there another one here? Or had the bait team been wiped out?

Regardless, the green-skinned captain wouldn’t risk himself.

At this point, Brandon volunteered, and the green-skinned captain let him lead a team to investigate, even thinking him clever.

In his view, Brandon was a loyal mechanical guard following procedures, so he trusted him.

This was a reasonable use of information asymmetry to create advantage, recognizing the convenience of one’s identity.

This method was relatively safe, with other mechanical guards as escorts to handle trouble.

The second method was causing chaos and going alone.

This was dangerous but had benefits.

Argentinian Chosen Ramirez chose this method.

While advancing, other mechanical guards were killing nearby sub-human guards. He seized an opportunity to fire his hand cannon at the base of a tall building.

The tall building collapsed onto the green-skinned captain’s combat mech.

The area shook violently.

Not knowing if the green-skinned captain survived, Ramirez took advantage of the chaos to run alone towards the red-roofed building.

While running, Ramirez, accustomed to observing his surroundings, avoided several sub-human attacks. After a nerve-wracking entry into the red-roofed building, he found a group of white-robed sub-humans.

Glancing around, it seemed like some kind of laboratory. These white-robed sub-humans were probably this world’s researchers.

Perhaps numb, Ramirez directly killed everyone there. On a special metal plate, he saw the Strange Tale world’s prompt.

[Energy Core: Place it into the power furnace for fusion. Within this Strange Tale world, all attributes +10, and body energy +50%.]

“This is good stuff!” Ramirez’s eyes widened. Every Chosen feared insufficient energy, which could directly cause death. With this, the risk of death from energy depletion greatly decreased. It also increased the number of shots for the biological hand cannon and back-mounted heavy cannon, significantly boosting combat power. Not to mention the +10 to all attributes.

Chosen Ones who didn’t get the energy core would be at a huge loss.

After absorbing the energy core per instructions, Ramirez felt his body strengthen, energy more abundant.

These were the two main methods most Chosen Ones could choose.

Those who didn’t choose either didn’t come or just plowed through.

Zhang Yangqing didn’t need to rely on any captain; he led his team here himself.

But upon reaching the red-roofed house, the laboratory’s entrance, a special unexpected situation occurred.

Besides them, another team had arrived.

This team had about a hundred mechanical guards, a green-skinned captain on a mech, and a mechanical guard vice-captain.

The green-skinned captain was surprised to see Zhang Yangqing, a ‘mechanical guard vice-captain,’ appear.

But once he appeared, he was the highest commander here.

The green-skinned captain asked Zhang Yangqing why he was here. Zhang Yangqing directly said his captain sent him to find something here. Since this was a special area with no outside communication, he could say whatever he wanted.

Then Zhang Yangqing added that the laboratory was very dangerous; he would scout ahead for the green-skinned captain. After dealing with the danger, he’d let the green-skinned captain enter.

The green-skinned captain didn’t suspect much; after all, who would doubt a ‘rigid’ mechanical guard that only followed procedures? This was the green-skinned people’s stereotype of mechanical guards.

Besides, this guy was a vice-captain from another team. If he died, no loss. As long as it wasn’t his own subordinates, he didn’t care who died.

After Zhang Yangqing went in for a while, he asked the green-skinned captain to enter, saying the danger was cleared.

The combat mech was too big, so the green-skinned captain had to dismount and follow Zhang Yangqing in. Whether overconfident in his mech or wanting to monopolize the benefits, he didn’t bring anyone.

But after entering, Zhang Yangqing quietly closed the door.

The next second, the green-skinned captain was pinned on an iron table, helpless.

Despite his strong muscles and powerful limbs, he desperately punched Zhang Yangqing behind him.

But Zhang Yangqing, now in a enhanced mechanical body, felt nothing.

“What are you doing? If you kill me, you’ll die too!” the green-skinned captain threatened, seemingly aware of this rule.

He panicked, not understanding why this mechanical guard attacked him.

Now, his head was firmly pressed on the cold table, immobile. In this special area, he couldn’t call for outside guards.

At this moment, Zhang Yangqing handed a pistol to a white-robed researcher nearby.

Pointing at the green-skinned captain’s head, he said, “Shoot here. If you aim well, I won’t kill you.”

Under the green-skinned captain’s desperate gaze, the white-robed researcher tremblingly pulled the trigger.

Bang!

The green-skinned captain’s brains splattered, his head pierced through. Green blood splashed everywhere.

The white-robed researcher respectfully returned the pistol to Zhang Yangqing.

He had considered shooting Zhang Yangqing too, but seeing Zhang Yangqing’s terrifying mechanical build and thick bloody smell, he chose to give up, hoping this mechanical guard would spare him, as agreed.

In Zhang Yangqing’s eyes, these were all ants; he couldn’t be bothered to kill them. If the rules didn’t say Chosen Ones couldn’t kill ‘humans,’ would he need them?

Retrieving the gun, he swaggered out.

Zhang Yangqing kept his word when in a good mood