I’m a Max-Level Taoist Master, and You’re Throwing Me Into a Rules-Based Horror Game?! - Chapter 189

Chapter 189: As a Security Guard, Isn’t Knowing a Little Magic Normal?

Within the strange tale world, Zhang Yangqing had indeed slept soundly through this snowy, windy night.

Experiencing the different exotic ambiance brought him a unique sense of inner comfort.

Now awake, he climbed out of his sleeping bag.

The first thing he felt was a wave of cold—the outside was nowhere near as warm as inside the bag.

He checked the time: 6:00 AM, two hours left before departure.

At that moment, Zhang Yangqing sensed two pairs of eyes on him. He turned to look.

Illuminated by the firelight, the figures of the Purple-Eyed Woman and the Man with the Slicked-Back Hair came into view.

Overall, this arrangement was quite reasonable. It could be considered a balance between the two factions, serving as a check on each other.

It was already the latter half of the night. If Zhang Yangqing wasn’t mistaken, the Goatee Captain and the Man with the Gold-Rimmed Glasses should have taken the first watch.

It seemed no one fully trusted each other, hence this arrangement.

When they had discussed the night watch schedule, it was already past midnight. Zhang Yangqing had been fast asleep at the time and didn’t participate in the conversation.

Although the Purple-Eyed Woman and the Man with the Gold-Rimmed Glasses harbored some resentment, the Goatee Captain, acting as the peacemaker, didn’t want to escalate things, so the arrangement stood.

In this stage, other chosen ones still needed to help gather firewood, and some even took the initiative to stand watch to curry favor with the others.

During the watch shifts, they could chat with their fellow watchmates, glean some information, increase goodwill, and so on.

Out of the 200 chosen ones, Zhang Yangqing was the only one who dared to sleep so soundly.

Having slept for nearly seven and a half hours, Zhang Yangqing was undoubtedly the most energetic person present.

The other chosen ones and their teammates could only sleep for four hours and had to stand watch for another four.

Zhang Yangqing stood up and stretched. “Which of you wants to rest? I’ll take over the watch.”

Hearing this, the Slicked-Back Hair Man looked at the Purple-Eyed Woman, as if asking, Do you want to rest?

This was a chance to show some gentlemanly manners.

But the Slicked-Back Hair Man was just going through the motions; he knew the Purple-Eyed Woman wouldn’t agree.

After the Goatee Captain’s mediation, their relationship seemed to have improved somewhat, but not to the point of trusting each other.

Sure enough, the Purple-Eyed Woman shook her head. In her eyes, Zhang Yangqing and the Slicked-Back Hair Man were in cahoots. She’d rather not rest than turn her back on these two.

The Slicked-Back Hair Man shrugged, greeted Zhang Yangqing, and went to his sleeping bag to get more rest.

Getting a bit more sleep meant preserving more energy. Why not?

At the very least, compared to the others, the Slicked-Back Hair Man seemed to have some goodwill towards the person who had stood up for him.

When Zhang Yangqing approached the fire, he noticed the Purple-Eyed Woman observing him.

Her face was turned towards the door, but her peripheral vision seemed fixed on Zhang Yangqing.

It was warm by the fire. Under its glow, her fair cheeks held a faint blush, giving her a somewhat alluring appearance.

This woman seemed eager to extract some information from Zhang Yangqing.

But aside from his strikingly handsome face, Zhang Yangqing gave off an unfathomable aura.

The Purple-Eyed Woman hoped Zhang Yangqing would initiate conversation. Whoever spoke first would likely end up in a passive position.

This mountaineering team was clearly a group where each had their own agenda.

But Zhang Yangqing could endure the silence. He didn’t utter a word, which made the Purple-Eyed Woman somewhat restless.

She was the first to speak, subtly probing Zhang Yangqing about his relationship with the Slicked-Back Hair Man.

Zhang Yangqing saw no need to lie at this point, so he recounted what he had seen when he arrived at the temple.

He didn’t mention discovering the body, as he wasn’t sure if this woman could be trusted yet.

“So, the two of you aren’t together?” The Purple-Eyed Woman’s beautiful eyes flashed as she stared intently into Zhang Yangqing’s eyes, trying to see if he was lying.

She had asked the Slicked-Back Hair Man some questions earlier and wanted to verify the answers with Zhang Yangqing.

“No, we’re not. I just met him for the first time too.”

Hearing this, the Purple-Eyed Woman seemed to let out a sigh of relief.

Then, as she expected, Zhang Yangqing began his own line of questioning.

Zhang Yangqing asked her similar things: where she had met the Man with the Gold-Rimmed Glasses, and whether they were together.

The answer seemed similar to his own situation: they weren’t acquainted but had met on the mountain.

Finding out they were both part of the mountaineering team, they decided to travel together.

When the Purple-Eyed Woman encountered the Man with the Gold-Rimmed Glasses, he was already limping.

It wasn’t unusual to step on something strange in the snow, so she hadn’t been overly suspicious.

From her words, Zhang Yangqing could deduce that she belonged to the third category.

Based on Zhang Yangqing’s understanding, the people here could be roughly divided into three categories.

The first category included himself and the Goatee Captain. Both seemed to have discovered something on the way up and were somewhat eager to identify their true teammates.

The second category included the Slicked-Back Hair Man and the Man with the Gold-Rimmed Glasses. Both had undoubtedly encountered something but hadn’t spoken about it.

As for the sprained ankle and cuts, Zhang Yangqing felt these were just excuses and unlikely to be true.

Regarding the Purple-Eyed Woman, Zhang Yangqing wasn’t sure if she had received any hints, but her behavior differed from the others, so he classified her as the third category.

After that, neither seemed inclined to speak, and they remained silent until 8:00 AM.

When the Man with the Gold-Rimmed Glasses and the Goatee Captain saw Zhang Yangqing on watch, they were slightly surprised.

The Man with the Gold-Rimmed Glasses seemed somewhat wary of Zhang Yangqing, especially seeing him sitting by the fire with the Purple-Eyed Woman. He feared the two might have hit it off.

So, upon waking, he complained about Zhang Yangqing a couple of times—the complaints were within reasonable bounds.

This was probably his way of warning the Purple-Eyed Woman to stay away from this good-looking man.

Then came the Slicked-Back Hair Man’s voice. He was already displeased with the Man with the Gold-Rimmed Glasses, likely due to an argument the previous night.

Finally, before things could escalate, the Goatee Captain naturally stepped in as the peacemaker to mediate.

Zhang Yangqing didn’t say a word from start to finish. It was too early in the morning to bother with their mind games.

The first night in the strange tale world passed peacefully, with no chosen ones perishing.

After everyone ate the breakfast they had brought and packed their belongings, they began the formal ascent.

According to the map and the Captain’s explanation, they needed to trek a long distance, find the highest peak, and that would be the destination of this mountaineering journey.

After the night’s interactions, everyone had gained a certain understanding of their teammates.

They had also mentally ranked the danger levels, mostly placing the Goatee Captain at the top due to the considerable strength and ability he had displayed.

This seemed like a team on the surface, but in reality, everyone was probably using each other.

Even though it was daytime, the sky remained pitch black, but the heavy snow seemed to have stopped, allowing them to proceed.

The Man with the Gold-Rimmed Glasses, being a fitness trainer, not only carried his own luggage but also bundled up the unused firewood and carried it on his shoulder.

The firewood might seem like a lot, but as the rules stated, none of them were ordinary people. Who didn’t have some special ability?

And as he had claimed yesterday, his foot seemed to have recovered, allowing him to walk freely.

The group followed the Goatee Captain’s lead, trudging through the thick snow.

Along the way, the Captain pointed out the dangers they might encounter on the snowy mountain.

Here, everyone needed to listen carefully to his words, as they contained much valuable information.

[In this area, heavy snow falls every night. It’s best to travel during the day.]

[Never enter caves on the snowy mountain. There are terrifying things inside.]

[Those talking animals are dangerous, cursed creatures.]

[If you hear a voice calling you, no matter how familiar, don’t answer immediately. Turn around and make sure it’s a person first.]

Listening to this, Zhang Yangqing felt the Captain’s words didn’t significantly contradict the rules, so he committed them to memory.

But the other chosen ones weren’t as relaxed as he was. They were tense, carefully noting every word the Goatee Captain said, looking for opportunities to verify their truth, and observing the expressions of the others.

They seemed frantically gathering information, trying to determine who the real eerie was.

Even the audience outside the tale was doing the same.

Only Zhang Yangqing was enjoying the scenery along the way. His leisurely demeanor struck his teammates as odd.

Today’s goal was to find the small village marked on the map.

This was an unnamed village, a necessary stop on the way to the highest snowy peak.

If they didn’t reach it in time, they would encounter a blizzard at night, making progress impossible.

Moreover, without a fire source to ward off the cold, the mountaineering team would suffer increasing erosion from the寒气 with every moment spent outside.

The blizzard would only accelerate this invasion.

By noon, they still hadn’t reached their destination. They could only eat something, take a short break, and continue on their way.

As time passed, everyone’s steps grew heavier, seemingly affected by the creeping cold.

“Wait.” The Goatee Captain at the front suddenly spoke.

He crouched down, examining footprints that had appeared on the ground.

Then he lay prone, sniffing the residual scent of the footprints, searching for nearby fur.

He even went so far as to dig up and smell things like droppings.

He looked utterly professional.

Zhang Yangqing and the others approached.

“These appear to be traces of a wolf pack. Their territory is likely ahead. But the shortest route to the village on the map is straight through the path up front. If we detour, we’d have to go around another mountain…”

The Goatee Captain began analyzing the situation based on his professional expertise.

If his judgment was correct, a wolf pack had passed through this area half an hour ago.

Based on the density of the footprints, he estimated about sixty Polar Snow Wolves, with four particularly large ones discernible from their prints.

Since night was approaching, the Polar Snow Wolves would also be looking for a place to rest, likely in the forest ahead.

That meant significant danger lay ahead.

Sixty Polar Snow Wolves—creatures in this dimension were no ordinary beings.

Those four larger Polar Snow Wolves were likely as powerful as the demi-human guardian beasts from the previous strange tale.

Remember, in the last strange tale, even chosen ones with mechanical bodies could only run when facing a demi-human guardian beast.

Here, there were four. Charging in would mean not even having a chance to escape.

Even ordinary superhumans wouldn’t dare face such terrifying existences.

This was the first minor challenge and choice in the strange tale world.

Ahead was a flat forest area, but taking a detour would mean traveling along the mountain base.

If the mountaineering team went straight, they would definitely reach the unnamed mountain village before nightfall.

They could also reach it by detouring, but they might not make it into the unnamed mountain village within the stipulated time and would encounter the blizzard.

Additionally, they would face other dangers like avalanches.

Having said that, the Goatee Captain began passing the buck, or perhaps testing the waters.

He let everyone decide which way to go—face the wolf pack head-on or play it safe.

After all, there were five people; they could vote.

Everyone looked at each other.

No one seemed to want to be the first to speak.

The other chosen ones knew there must be a trap ahead; the strange tale world wouldn’t let them reach the unnamed mountain village without a hitch.

Here, they just needed to follow the majority’s choice. Someone would inevitably break the silence first. The Purple-Eyed Woman suggested taking the detour.

The danger of the wolf pack was too great. They were accustomed to fighting in the snow, and she felt suppressed here. It really wasn’t a good fight.

The others began to agree. Even if they could win, it would come at a cost. This was only the beginning of the mountaineering journey. Getting injured now would definitely prevent them from going far.

From these words, one could infer that each possessed unique skills. They felt they could fight, but it wasn’t necessary.

Other chosen ones felt that judging the presence of a wolf pack based solely on footprints was too rash. They could first confirm whether the wolf pack was really there. Maybe the wolves had moved on.

But the Goatee Captain explained that in this region of polar night, everywhere was dimly lit, with very low visibility. The visual range of wild beasts was stronger than humans.

In other words, by the time you spot the beast, it has already seen you.

Wolf packs living in such places were highly formidable in combat, and they were led by an intelligent Wolf King.

After hearing the Goatee Captain’s words, everyone seemed to lean towards the detour.

If anyone still suggested a head-on fight at this point, they would likely be suspected by the others of being the traitor.

Only a traitor would wish for the team’s members to die.

Even if someone like Ge Lieke wanted to show off, he didn’t have the opportunity.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t fight or that he feared the eerie; he feared being set up.

If he were isolated, and his teammates were killed, he would also be doomed.

So he had to choose the detour as well, because there was no other choice.

On the big screens, the chosen ones followed their teams, heading elsewhere.

Only on the screen from the Dragon Country did the chosen one seem prepared to charge straight through.

“Do as you please. I’m going straight. I’ll see you at the village ahead tonight.” Zhang Yangqing chose to go alone. Could they really accuse him of trying to get them killed?

Even if they suspected him, so what? He just wasn’t taking the detour.

No one could dissuade him, and no one was willing to go with him.

Even the Slicked-Back Hair Man felt Zhang Yangqing’s choice was truly unwise.

Just as they were taking the detour, the sky suddenly lit up!

A golden giant sword hovered in the nine heavens, illuminating the entire area.

Then came a world-shaking roar that made one’s ears tremble.

Fortunately, the surroundings were flat and not yet near the mountainous areas, or else an avalanche would have been unavoidable.

Immediately after, everyone felt a powerful shockwave hit them, making them stagger.

Then they looked at each other, wanting to see what had happened ahead.

When they reached the vicinity of the forest, they found the snow stained red with blood.

The heads of four giant Polar Snow Wolves had been severed.

As for the smaller wolves, each one was impaled by a golden long sword.

They lay motionless in the snow, deader than dead.

And the perpetrator of all this was undoubtedly the mysterious teammate standing before them.

The faint golden energy surrounding him made it clear: No need to guess, it was me.

The Goatee Captain swallowed hard, slowly walked up to Zhang Yangqing, and asked, confirming repeatedly, “You… you did all this?”

“Of course.”

“But aren’t you a security guard?”

“As a security guard, isn’t knowing a little magic normal?”

Everyone: “…”

That was too far-fetched! But they had no retort!

Who said a security guard couldn’t have special skills?

Zhang Yangqing didn’t care how they understood it, nor did he feel the need to over-explain. That was his story, and they could believe it or not.

At that moment, without exception, everyone placed Zhang Yangqing at the top of their mental list of dangerous individuals!

With combat power like that, even in the strange tale world, he was an immensely powerful existence.

They just didn’t know that this was merely the tip of the iceberg for Zhang Yangqing.

The strange tale world presented the obstacle of the wolf pack to make the chosen ones suffer more, depleting their various resources.

Facing this seemingly insurmountable obstacle, Zhang Yangqing effortlessly crushed through it.

This truly made his teammates view him in a new light.

But the audience was already accustomed to his exaggerated methods.

[Chat Logs:]
: Daily fright mission accomplished by Zhang Tian Shi.
: Not showing any signs before, the other teammates were suspicious of his identity, but Zhang Tian Shi’s move just now left them utterly confused.
: I even sensed from their eyes that they felt their brains were being ground into the dirt by Zhang Tian Shi.
: Of course. They were definitely trying to find ways to verify Zhang Tian Shi’s true strength and identity, but they never expected Zhang Tian Shi to suddenly reveal his hand, catching them completely off guard. He really doesn’t play by the rules.
: Actually, is it possible that you’re overcomplicating it? Maybe Zhang Tian Shi was simply too lazy to take the detour.

Regardless of Zhang Yangqing’s actual thoughts, his move had indeed greatly shocked his teammates.

Watching the stunned group, Zhang Yangqing ignored them and strode away.

If they still wanted to take the detour, he wouldn’t stop them.

But the path ahead was clear and unobstructed. Only a masochist would choose the detour now.

Who would willingly seek suffering? So they all followed him.

And all of this was actually part of Zhang Yangqing’s plan.

If he had passed the wolf pack silently, the others would never have known.

The reason for making such a big scene was precisely to let the others discover him and gradually fall in step behind him.

Taming people is far more difficult than taming beasts. Zhang Yangqing had planted a seed in their minds.

Once he trained their thought processes into obedience, the challenges ahead would be much easier to handle.

Zhang Yangqing, walking ahead, wasn’t the least bit worried about them ambushing him.

Because at this stage, no matter who made a move against a teammate, they would definitely be discovered.

The eerie’s goal was to eliminate everyone, not trade one for one.

So the eerie would only strike where it could avoid blame.

In Zhang Yangqing’s view, the first few stages were merely for everyone to get to know each other.

The conditions for the eerie to act were also quite stringent.

And the mountain village was the place where it could act quietly.

Only upon entering the unnamed mountain village would the first round of slaughter truly begin.

Or perhaps, that was where the real killing would start, but it might not necessarily be the eerie teammate who made the first move.

After crossing a few small slopes and traversing a flat area,

Amidst the vast, snowy wilderness, wisps of cooking smoke appeared.

A small mountain village came into view before the group.