I’m a Max-Level Taoist Master, and You’re Throwing Me Into a Rules-Based Horror Game?! - Chapter 164

Chapter 164: The Change of Rules, The Beginning of Domination!

“By the way, besides repairs, can you also perform upgrades here?”

Zhang Yangqing used his goggles to scan the mechanical maintenance worker in front of him.

This particular worker had four arms: a standard mechanical arm, a mechanical hammer, a circular saw, and a molten welding tool.

In addition to repairing mechanical guards damaged in combat, he seemed capable of welding and modification work.

This gave Zhang Yangqing an idea. Since he currently had a mechanical body, could he add some functions?

For example, installing a propulsion system would allow him to move beyond just ground-based locomotion.

“Upgrades are possible, but they require merit points,” the mechanical maintenance worker explained according to his programming.

When he heard Zhang Yangqing’s modification request, he shook his head.

He believed that adding a propulsion system could theoretically enable low-altitude flight, but the energy consumption would be too high. The internal power unit would be depleted in a short time.

Without a means to replenish it, not only would he be unable to defeat enemies, but he might even collapse before reaching them.

In this world, unless one was in a structure like Skyline City with its massive operational systems, achieving flight was extremely difficult.

“Alright, then upgrade me as is.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to save your merit points for a promotion chip?”

“No need.”

Zhang Yangqing could simply take what he needed—why bother exchanging for it?

Others had to accumulate merit points because they couldn’t seize things by force.

Zhang Yangqing currently had 1,008 merit points. Every 100 points could be exchanged for 1 point in all attributes.

So, he could exchange for 10 points in all attributes through enhancement.

After the mechanical maintenance worker performed the upgrade, he felt his strength increase once again.

By now, other chosen ones had at most gained 10 points in all attributes.

Including the attributes he brought with him, Zhang Yangqing had gained a total of 58 points in all attributes.

Even the audience could see that Zhang Yangqing’s mechanical body was unique.

The mechanical pressure he exuded with every move was extraordinary.

Viewers even felt that if Zhang Yangqing wished, he could destroy Skyline City at any moment.

Normally, other chosen ones would be considered formidable if they gained around 60 points in all attributes by the end of the instance. As long as nothing went wrong, this stage would be cleared.

But Zhang Yangqing had already gained so many points in the first stage, which was astonishing.

After leaving the maintenance department, Zhang Yangqing proceeded to the entrance of the sixth floor as planned.

The guarding mechanical soldiers stopped him according to standard procedure.

The sixth floor wasn’t accessible to just anyone; it required a certain status or a special authority chip.

Zhang Yangqing relayed his prepared story, informing the mechanical soldiers about a commander plotting a rebellion and asking them to report it.

The mechanical soldiers showed no reaction. Who rebelled or didn’t had nothing to do with them. They simply reported as Zhang Yangqing instructed.

Before long, a special mechanical being descended.

He looked similar to Zhang Yangqing’s current mechanical body, exuding a unique pressure.

However, he had a mechanical guard chip. As he passed, many mechanical beings saluted him, showing their respect.

After exchanging a few words with Zhang Yangqing, he followed him to investigate evidence of the commander’s rebellion.

On the big screen, many experts and viewers understood Zhang Yangqing’s plan.

“I see! Zhang Tianshi plans to attack the mechanical guard and steal his chip.”

“Isn’t that too bold? Can he really win?”

“Others definitely can’t, but didn’t the Cardinal say Zhang Tianshi’s attributes are very high? He seems on par with the mechanical guard—this should be an easy win.”

“Strange, didn’t other chosen ones think of this? Why are they still doing tasks?”

“Is it possible that they did, but this method is impossible for them?”

This was why many people watched Zhang Yangqing’s actions and felt they could do the same.

But once inside, they couldn’t replicate his success.

Even if you were given the answers, you couldn’t copy them.

Gregorio sighed as he watched. He decided he must participate in the next round, as he still had some advantages.

He couldn’t let the Dragon Nation’s chosen one lead so far ahead.

But thinking was one thing; who knew what kind of torment the next instance would bring?

He had suffered enough in the previous round.

This time, the chosen ones weren’t even human. What if they had to play as animals or plants next time?

Gregorio began to prepare for the worst.

Inside the instance, Zhang Yangqing led the mechanical guard to a dirty, messy room on the second floor.

The place was filled with scrap metal and dismembered parts of mechanical beings.

It seemed like a storage area.

For Zhang Yangqing, this was the perfect place to hide a body.

There were no other mechanical beings around. Before the mechanical guard could speak, a flash of white light passed before his eyes.

In an instant, the sound of special alloy being severed echoed.

The mechanical guard’s goggles filled with static, and he lost consciousness.

Zhang Yangqing had his own method for eliminating mechanical beings.

From head to toe, he destroyed the mechanical brain and power core in one smooth motion, leaving no chance for reaction.

“You all really trust me,” Zhang Yangqing said as he extracted the chip from the mechanical guard.

This plan was straightforward, relying entirely on exploiting trust.

If he weren’t a mechanical being, or if the mechanical guard weren’t either, this plan would have been impossible.

Mechanical beings didn’t question or doubt.

This was about understanding and leveraging one’s identity advantages.

Anyone else would have known that being brought to such a place meant trouble.

Zhang Yangqing dismembered the mechanical guard’s body and hid it among the scrap metal.

It would remain undiscovered for a while. By the time it was found, he might already be in control of Skyline City.

Next, he needed acting points.

He had obtained the mechanical guard’s identity but not his rules.

Only when acting points reached 100% could he change the rules.

So far, only Zhang Yangqing knew how to gain acting points and change the rules.

By the time other chosen ones advanced to mechanical guards, the instance would be nearly over.

Just like when Gregorio was the captain, he didn’t realize this and exited the instance after clearing it.

Only someone like Zhang Yangqing, who had nothing better to do and lingered inside, could discover this.

After replacing the chip with the mechanical guard’s, Zhang Yangqing walked out with ease.

Now, all mechanical beings scanned his data and, combined with his unparalleled mechanical pressure, saluted him.

His innate superior demeanor was dazzling, even on a mechanical body.

Then, Zhang Yangqing performed an operation that viewers worldwide couldn’t understand.

He went to the first floor and walked around, critiquing the operations of some mechanical beings as if he were a supervisor conducting an inspection.

Next, Zhang Yangqing did something even more perplexing.

Like a genuine mechanical guard, after instructing on the first floor, he proceeded to the second.

The first floor was typically occupied by mechanical beings handling repairs and transportation.

The second floor housed combat-type mechanical guards.

Zhang Yangqing was in the training area on the second floor, teaching mechanical guards how to fight.

One could say he now resembled a mechanical being more than the actual mechanical beings.

At this moment, mechanical guard No. 255, the novice guide, stared at Zhang Yangqing’s number in confusion.

If he remembered correctly, this mechanical guard No. 1333, who was now instructing others, had been a recruit at noon today.

And he seemed to be the recruit he had trained.

This mechanical No. 1333 had completed a combat mission and returned in the afternoon, apparently promoted to deputy squad leader. That was understandable, as he had earned merit points.

But how had he gone from deputy squad leader to guard in just one afternoon? That was absurd.

However, mechanical beings had this advantage: they might find it strange, but they would accept and recognize it. As long as he had the guard chip, he was a guard.

He only needed to update the data in his mind. In his eyes, Zhang Yangqing was a mechanical guard.

Without higher authority, the mechanical guard’s commands were absolute.

As for why Zhang Yangqing was doing this, wasn’t it for recognition?

Others might not understand, but he did.

Now, the mechanical beings on the first and second floors largely recognized his identity.

This was to gain so-called acting points.

Next was the third floor, where prisoners were held.

The green-skinned beings were still playing their sadistic games of forcing others to kill each other, seemingly very excited.

But the sub-humans were still too fearful to erupt. Zhang Yangqing wasn’t in a hurry yet.

The hatred wasn’t sufficient. He wanted the sub-humans to feel utter loathing and despair toward the green-skinned beings.

Zhang Yangqing walked around the third floor, greeting the mechanical guards there.

“Greeting” meant accepting their salutes to gain recognition.

Then came the fourth floor, where the green-skinned city guards and mechanical soldiers were stationed.

If chosen ones advanced to the next stage, they could unlock special equipment in the fourth-floor armory.

This equipment included super electromagnetic cannons and heavy drive units.

The super electromagnetic cannon’s destructive power was similar to the heavy cannon’s, but it could sustain continuous fire for fifteen seconds, compared to the heavy cannon’s three seconds.

The heavy drive unit was designed for long-distance combat operations by mechanical beings—essentially a power bank.

It had tracks, was very cumbersome, and could ideally provide continuous power while firing.

It was a powerful output system.

With a mechanical soldier chip, one could enter the fourth-floor armory.

Zhang Yangqing, now with a mechanical guard chip, could enter effortlessly.

He also inspected the areas where the green-skinned city guards and mechanical soldiers were stationed.

Even off-duty green-skinned city guards who disliked him had to stand and salute.

After all, no one dared to offend the ruler’s personal guard.

The ruler trusted these mechanical beings more than his own kind.

The mechanical guard’s authority was even higher than a commander’s.

This was because the ruler feared commanders might use mechanical guards to rebel.

Zhang Yangqing’s goal was to make everyone recognize him as a mechanical guard. He only needed to act according to this identity.

After repeating the process on the fifth floor, his acting points reached 80%.

Next, the most crucial step was gaining the ruler’s recognition.

Once he had it, he could switch identities and rules.

In the previous instance, Zhang Yangqing could have also switched rules, but he had overestimated the difficulty and couldn’t be bothered.

If the surviving chosen ones from the previous round heard this, they’d be furious.

They had barely survived, and he thought it was easy?!

At the passage to the sixth floor, the mechanical soldiers also recognized chips over individuals.

Under the mechanical soldiers’ salutes, Zhang Yangqing swaggered onto the sixth floor.

The sixth floor was the ruler’s domain, the navigation control room—the heart of Skyline City.

Passing through some corridors, Zhang Yangqing arrived at the massive navigation control room.

Most instruments here were operated by mechanical beings. The ruler sat on a lofty throne.

This green-skinned being wasn’t as tall as others; he was somewhat short and lean.

He had a long, pointed nose, large ears, and a grotesquely ugly face.

He perfectly fit the image of a goblin—there was no doubt he was a purebred goblin.

According to this world’s standards, this ruler was of the purest human bloodline.

The others were mixed-race.

In the green-skinned world, this short, lean, ugly creature was the perfect form.

“What did you find out?” he asked, seeing Zhang Yangqing enter.

He seemed to be the type who recognized chips over people. His eyepiece scanned Zhang Yangqing’s guard identity, and he looked away.

Zhang Yangqing delivered his prepared lines, saying it was a misunderstanding and advising the ruler not to worry.

As for who was rebelling, Zhang Yangqing had only met one commander, so he reported that commander’s number but assured the ruler he showed no signs of rebellion.

His goal was to alleviate the ruler’s suspicions.

If the ruler summoned that person for confrontation now, it would be troublesome.

The goblin ruler was still somewhat paranoid. He told Zhang Yangqing he wouldn’t be eating dinner tonight and instructed him not to allow anyone onto the sixth floor.

This was exactly what Zhang Yangqing wanted. With the ruler’s recognition, the final acting points were obtained.

After Zhang Yangqing left, a prompt for identity conversion appeared before him.

[Mechanical Guard acting points have reached 100%. Click to switch to Mechanical Guard.]

[Note: After switching to Mechanical Guard, death rules and clearance rules will change.]

This prompt was only visible to the chosen one.

Zhang Yangqing did not hesitate to click [Switch].

[Rule 1: As a mechanical guard, if you use your weapons or control other weapons to attack humans, the self-destruct system will forcibly activate resulting in failure.]

[Changed to]

[Rule 1: As a mechanical guard, if you use your weapons or control other weapons to attack the human ruler, the self-destruct system will forcibly activate resulting in failure.]

Seeing this, if Zhang Yangqing’s mechanical body had a mouth, he would be smiling.

Although it only added two words, the meaning was completely different— worlds apart.

The mechanical guard’s rules could indeed be interpreted as allowing attacks on anyone except the ruler.

This was about combining intelligence and reasonably choosing the desired identity—and knowing one’s limits.

Some intelligence was useless to other chosen ones but presented huge opportunities for exceptionally defying the heavens chosen ones.

Zhang Yangqing’s plan required the right timing, advantages, and harmony. Missing any element would render it impossible.

Even if other chosen ones were told this method now, they couldn’t accomplish it.

Without this identity, it wouldn’t work. Not capturing enough sub-humans wouldn’t work. The sub-humans’ hatred toward the green-skinned beings not being high enough wouldn’t work.

“So, where should I begin?” Zhang Yangqing’s goggles flickered with a bloodthirsty red light.

From the moment he stepped out of the navigation control center, the lives of all green-skinned beings here were no longer in their own hands.

Third floor, arena.

After witnessing the cruel scenes before them, many chosen ones had become numb.

They had just seen two sisters forced to fight each other. The older sister, tears in her eyes, blew her younger sister’s head off.

The sound of shattering bones still echoed in the arena.

Then the older sister held her sister’s body, wailing, her spirit completely broken.

As the victor, mechanical guards seized her and threw her back into a cell.

Now, two brothers entered the arena.

They looked very similar, both robust and muscular—at least, they were among the stronger sub-humans.

They appeared to be sub-human warriors captured after defeat.

This piqued the interest of the pot-bellied commander.

Besides the commander, five other green-skinned beings were present, egging them on, wanting the match to be bloodier.

“I think we should add a rule: the winner must eat the loser!”

“Haha, I like that! Or give them weapons like chainsaws—that would be thrilling. I love the sight of blood spraying everywhere.”

“How about adding some spike traps? Let them feel bone-chilling pain. I adore their agonized expressions.”

Hearing these words, even chosen ones who had started to adapt felt uncomfortable again.

They were tormenting the sub-humans to death. This twisted spectacle inflicted immense mental torture on the chosen ones.

But to gain access to the upper floors, they had to please the commander. This was the survival rule for ordinary chosen ones.

“These sub-humans are so fragile,” the pot-bellied commander said, swirling his wine glass.

But in the next second, the two robust sub-humans exchanged a glance and reached a consensus.

Since survival was unlikely anyway, they might as well fight desperately.

Roaring, they charged at the pot-bellied commander with chainsaws.

Yet, the pot-bellied commander leaned back leisurely in his seat, utterly unconcerned about the charging sub-human warriors.

Even though the chosen ones wished for the commander’s death, they now had to stand in front of him and resolve this trouble—this was the opportunity they had been waiting for.

Gunfire erupted from their bodies. Even as the two sub-human warriors desperately dodged, it was too late.

Cold bullets pierced their flesh, splattering blood everywhere.

Even as they gritted their teeth and struggled forward, the bullets’ powerful force pushed them back.

They finally collapsed in pools of blood, their eyes filled with hatred for the mocking green-skinned beings around them. If they could, they would skin these green-skinned beings alive.

The sub-humans’ wrath wasn’t directed at the mechanical guards—from beginning to end, it was solely at the green-skinned beings.

It was like someone attacking you with a knife; you wouldn’t hate the knife itself.

Other chosen ones extremely frustrated received praise from the pot-bellied commander and had to explicitly ask for permission to access the upper floors.

After obtaining permission, they didn’t want to stay a moment longer and hurried to the upper floors to seek more information.

Because the green-skinned beings had begun a new round of torment.

But on Dragon Nation’s live stream, when the two sub-human warriors charged, the pot-bellied commander turned pale with shock, his wine glass shattering on the ground.

The mechanical guard in front of him not only refrained from shooting the sub-human warriors but also moved aside.

This made the pot-bellied commander’s scalp crawl.

Why had their most trusted mechanical beings “malfunctioned”?

No matter how he commanded, the mechanical guards kept retreating.

Before the pot-bellied commander could figure it out, the buzz of chainsaws was already in his ears.

His obese body couldn’t outrun the two sub-human warriors.

Bzzzzzt!

The moment the chainsaw pierced the pot-bellied commander’s body, minced meat flew, and blood sprayed.

Pale bones cracked and snapped. Heart-wrenching screams filled the entire arena.

The most torturous part was that the pot-bellied commander’s thick skin and fat meant he didn’t die immediately from the chainsaw cuts. He had to witness his own impending death.

On the ground, his nails had scratched out bloody marks.

The two sub-human warriors seemed still unsatisfied. They used the chainsaws to dismember the pot-bellied commander’s head and body.

They truly hacked him into pieces. The ground was covered in mutilated remains, yet it still couldn’t satiate their hatred.

Too many of their kin had died at the hands of the green-skinned beings. This hatred could never be washed clean.

This was the tool the green-skinned beings had given the sub-human warriors to kill each other who would have thought it would become the tool for his own slaughter.

At that moment, a sigh echoed nearby.

“These green-skinned beings are so fragile.”