I’m a Max-Level Taoist Master, and You’re Throwing Me Into a Rules-Based Horror Game?! - Chapter 198

Chapter 198: The Eerie Room, The Anxious Chosen Ones!

Imagine, in this basement permeated with the strange smell of chemicals and hiding weirdness everywhere.

In this dark, twisted corridor, where the only light comes from flashlight beams.

Suddenly, a door opens, and a head appears—a head completely devoid of facial features.

In this oppressive atmosphere, this featureless, pale head delivers a massive visual impact.

It wasn’t smooth and oval like an egg; instead, where the features should be were deep indentations that appeared even darker under the flashlight’s glare.

Its body was slender like a stick insect, with many legs and arms.

With the appearance of this head, the mountaineering team’s courage had faltered before any fight even began.

As for the Chosen Ones, needless to say, most felt their hearts start to race wildly, terrified beyond measure.

But they knew they couldn’t panic now. They had to follow the team’s lead. The more chaotic things got, the more likely something would go wrong.

For Chosen Ones like Rahmaan from Pyramid Country, they had to rely entirely on the Goateed Captain’s judgment.

Because in many situations, the Goateed Captain had been precisely accurate. The team had grown accustomed to following his decisions.

After more than a day together, everyone also realized this guy had hidden depths; he was a formidable figure, the core of the team, and his teammates had immense trust in him.

“Run! This place is strange. Don’t engage in combat until we’ve explored it properly. The night is still long!”

With that, the Goateed Captain ordered the Man with Gold-Rimmed Glasses to lead the way, while he took the rear, with the others in the middle ready to provide support.

It fully demonstrated the importance of teamwork.

As captain, his judgment was extremely accurate, even considering the dangers they might face next.

If their opponents were humanoid or animals, the Goateed Captain felt they could try fighting to gauge the enemy’s strength.

But facing this indescribable monster, you didn’t know how it would attack, couldn’t find its weakness, and didn’t even know how strong it was. Acting rashly could lead to a severe misjudgment and a devastating counterattack.

Remember, this was the rumored terrifying biological experiment base. The monsters created here were incredibly powerful in combat.

If they fought these monsters right at the start of their exploration, any casualties would become dead weight for the rest of the journey.

Moreover, combat could trigger a chain reaction, potentially drawing other monsters into the fight.

So, running was the best choice at this moment.

As soon as the Goateed Captain finished speaking, his teammates sprang into action, turning and sprinting away.

Just then, the Faceless Stick Insect monster lunged at them. Its many feet scuttled rapidly across the floor, the cacophony of footsteps echoing down the corridor, sounding eerily unsettling—like dozens of people chasing you.

Other Chosen Ones, similar to Rahmaan, followed their teams, quickly withdrawing from the area.

They positioned themselves near the center of the group, constantly alert to their surroundings.

Because there were many doors along the corridor, and it was unclear if new monsters might suddenly emerge.

The corridor wasn’t very narrow; four or five people could walk side-by-side without issue.

But besides unknown liquids, there were also piles of abandoned debris littering the corridor.

Everyone had to constantly leap over or even crawl under these piles to evade the Faceless Monster’s attacks.

Even a superhuman like Gregorio, in this unfamiliar, bizarre world, followed the judgment of the native experts, running with them to escape the area.

With his skills, he could not only take care of himself but also assist teammates who made mistakes.

Over at the screen for the Dragon Nation’s Celestial Master, the Faceless Stick Insect monster emerged from the door, intending to give the newcomers a ‘surprise,’ but it paused slightly.

The feeling was as if it hadn’t surprised its targets but had instead encountered a surprise itself.

It had no eyes, but it had a special method to sense a target’s strength: perceiving the energy emanating from them.

As the Faceless Stick Insect monster scanned the other mountaineering team members, it felt a flicker of excitement.

These should be excellent supplements to replenish its energy.

Surviving here required preying on each other.

But when it scanned Zhang Yangqing, it turned and fled!

It seemed to have perceived some terrifying energy entity. The density of energy around Zhang Yangqing was simply beyond its comprehension. It truly had no brain, but it possessed a hunter’s instincts.

Perhaps in the eyes of the other Chosen Ones and mountaineering teams, the Faceless Stick Insect monster was an [unknown] and [frightening] creature.

But was it possible that the Faceless Stick Insect monster had the same thought upon seeing Zhang Yangqing?

Its judgment aligned with the other mountaineering teams: when facing such an unknown, powerful biological entity, the best course of action was to run.

So, the battle scene the audience anticipated never materialized. Zhang Yangqing merely glanced back, and the monster fled in terror.

“What was that thing?”

Zhang Yangqing watched the Faceless Stick Insect monster disappear into the darkness and asked the Goateed Captain.

After all, to Zhang Yangqing, that thing was just a mute, ugly monster. He didn’t even have the desire to capture it.

The Goateed Captain shook his head and said, “I’ve never seen it before either. It’s probably some modified creature from this place.”

And so, compared to the other Chosen Ones frantically fleeing, leaping over obstacles, and crawling under debris to escape the Faceless Stick Insect monster’s attacks, Zhang Yangqing’s situation seemed far less perilous.

However, Zhang Yangqing felt the air here was problematic. They couldn’t stay in the corridor for long; they needed to find a place to rest. Otherwise, they might succumb to poisoning before freezing to death.

The disappearance of the entrance indicated they had entered a special area. Only by finding a solution could they leave.

The night was still long. Even Zhang Yangqing had to continue forward.

The mountaineering team members following him also lacked the tension evident in the teams of other Chosen Ones.

As long as they weren’t blind, they knew the ‘security guard’ striding confidently ahead was the true powerhouse in their group.

Although the relationships among Zhang Yangqing’s four teammates weren’t great, there seemed to be a subtle understanding between them.

They didn’t communicate often, but they all shared a tacit agreement: if they encountered danger next time, they would handle it first.

Only if they couldn’t resolve it would they ask this ‘big brother’ to step in.

The reasoning was simple. It wasn’t that they distrusted Zhang Yangqing; they were afraid his power was too immense and might simply obliterate the entire place.

At that point, Zhang Yangqing might be fine, but his teammates would certainly be doomed.

Remember, above this basement lay countless ruins.

Compared to the relaxed and comfortable atmosphere around Zhang Yangqing, the other Chosen Ones were on high alert.

Pyramid Country’s Chosen One, Rahmaan, performed quite well this time, garnering significant attention.

He repeatedly used his wits to help his teammates escape danger, earning himself a certain standing within the team.

Rahmaan constantly swept his flashlight beam down the corridor, hoping to find a safe haven.

Seeing the dangers around them, it was no wonder this Strange Tale World had provided the Chosen Ones with such strong teammates. If Rahmaan had come alone, it would have been a near-certain death sentence.

There was no room for the slightest mistake. A single error meant no chance of survival.

As the mountaineering teams ventured deeper, the corridor began to change. In the earlier sections, the walls on both sides were relatively intact.

The further they went, the more footprints appeared on the walls, as if creatures could walk on them.

Additionally, there were claw marks that clearly didn’t seem human.

There were even signs of struggle and splatters of blood from fights.

The walls were corroded and dented in places, the dark-toned liquids making people wary.

The most unbearable aspect was the mixed gases inside, even more discomforting than the cold air.

Rahmaan felt that if they didn’t find a place to spend the night soon, they might die in the corridor before even encountering the monster boss.

After the mountaineering team had walked roughly two kilometers, a peculiar area appeared alongside the corridor.

Along the path they had traveled, doors with painted symbols often appeared, but no one could fully decipher their meanings yet.

Now, something resembling an ‘operating room’ door appeared.

This operating room was located at the end of a short passageway connecting to the main corridor.

Rahmaan shone his flashlight down the passage, revealing a double-door room.

Walking down the passage led to the operating room’s entrance.

Unlike other rooms with conspicuous symbols, this door bore no markings.

Since all teams were randomly checking doors along the corridor, any door with a marking likely held some degree of danger.

Doors marked with an exclamation point contained bizarre creatures similar to the Faceless Stick Insect monster, possessing formidable combat strength. The best approach was to close the door or run.

Doors marked with an ‘X’ were filled with poisonous gases. Shining a flashlight inside revealed many canisters.

Doors marked with a circle, when opened, released viscous fluid. The flashlight beam showed broken glass containers within.

Doors marked with a question mark were like blind boxes—who knew what was inside?

The task of opening these doors generally fell to the Purple-Eyed Woman. She had substitution magic props that allowed her to evade danger.

If others tried, they might be killed by the monster inside immediately upon opening the door or poisoned by toxic substances.

By now, the Chosen Ones had a preliminary understanding: marked doors meant danger.

Now, here was an unmarked operating room. Did that mean it was safe to explore?

Therefore, the Goateed Captain made the decision to enter.

If they didn’t act, they would be eroded by the poisonous gases.

As per the usual procedure, the Purple-Eyed Woman went to open the door, with the Goateed Captain providing backup. Rahmaan observed from the middle, while the Man with Gold-Rimmed Glasses and the Man with the Slicked-Back Hair remained on standby in the corridor.

Learning from the previous lesson of the vanishing entrance, the Goateed Captain felt it necessary to have someone keep watch outside.

Even if the entrance didn’t vanish again, they could monitor for approaching dangers.

After these preparations, the Purple-Eyed Woman quietly approached the door, pushed it open a crack, and first threw a card inside to scout.

Upon confirming no major issues, she exchanged a glance with the Goateed Captain and pushed the door open.

The flashlight beams pierced the darkness of the room.

Before them was a relatively large operating room, more accurately, a surgical modification room.

Under the flashlight beams, they could see rusty operating tables with chains for restraining patients, seemingly made of the same material as the chains in the Nameless Mountain Village’s attic.

Blood-stained cloth fragments lay around, likely having been there so long they had become stiff.

On cabinets beside the beds were dusty medical charts with faint dark-red stains on the edges, recording the final batch of patients treated here.

There were no toxic gases here, but several smaller rooms needed exploration. If all was clear, they could temporarily rest here.

After Rahmaan and the others checked the area and confirmed no danger, they called for the other mountaineering team members outside.

The team members filed in and closed the door behind them.

Everyone carefully used their flashlights to inspect every corner of the room. In this dark, unknown area, any overlooked detail could be fatal.

Compared to the extreme caution of other mountaineering teams, Zhang Yangqing’s team operated much more straightforwardly.

It was already considerate of him not to kick the door in directly.

After entering, Zhang Yangqing snapped his fingers. A golden light appeared at the room’s ceiling, illuminating the entire space.

His teammates followed him in, and the last person closed the door.

“I’ll check those smaller rooms. You all tidy up here. There’s no danger,” Zhang Yangqing said, as if he were the one issuing orders in the team.

Although the relationships within their team weren’t great, they respected strength above all.

If Zhang Yangqing said there was no danger, then there was no need for further concern.

Besides, would any of them dare say ‘no’ to him?

The teammates began rummaging through the medical cabinets for useful items: oxygen tanks, scalpels, bandages, hemostatic medicine, etc. Anything useful was stowed in their backpacks.

While other mountaineering teams were still exploring every corner and setting up defensive measures at the door, Zhang Yangqing’s team had already started a fire. The Man with Gold-Rimmed Glasses had been carrying a bundle of firewood, which now proved useful.

Not only Zhang Yangqing but also the other team members felt much warmer.

Then, the Man with the Slicked-Back Hair took out his tools, cleared a clean area, and began showcasing his culinary skills.

They weren’t afraid of dangerous, supernatural creatures breaking in.

Because they believed that with Zhang Yangqing present, any supernatural monster daring to enter would be seeking death.
This wasn’t even a matter of trust anymore. In their perception, there seemed to be no existence more powerful than Zhang Yangqing.

Even in this bizarre place, they felt relatively safe. Having a powerhouse carry the team was fantastic!
As the mountaineering teams on various screens began to eat, the team members’ physical conditions started to recover.

But by this time, everyone was also quite tired and began discussing night watches and resting.

At this moment, the Chosen Ones were almost all frowning, their hearts filled with anxiety and unease.

What was making the Chosen Ones so restless?
It wasn’t the terrifying environment but the absence of discovered rules.

How could such a dangerous place have no rules?

Without rules, how could the Chosen Ones survive?
Based on experience, rules should appear near this resting point.

But they had searched everywhere, even scrutinized every piece of paper, and found no rules.

Many Chosen Ones panicked. If there truly were no rules, they would have no way to judge how dangers manifested here.

What terrifying creatures existed here, what horrifying supernatural phenomena occurred, what emerged at night, even how to get out tomorrow—everything was unknown.

The challenge had presented its first major hurdle even before properly beginning.

Just as other Chosen Ones were still wondering if they had missed a spot, Zhang Yangqing already knew how to handle this stage.

Since there were no rules, then the primary goal of this stage must be to find the rules.

Because in the previous stage, he had found the rules beneath a statue.

So, in this abandoned sanatorium, if there were no rules at this resting point, perhaps the only place to find them would be near a statue.

If rules were likely to appear near statues, then maybe it hinted that finding a statue would lead to the rules for survival.

Undoubtedly, the difficulty of the Strange Tale World was increasing. Now, it didn’t directly give rules; failing to find them meant death.

Zhang Yangqing wasn’t in a hurry. He had arrived relatively early and planned to rest a bit first.

Ordinary Chosen Ones like Rahmaan also began to realize this and tried to persuade their teammates to join him in searching for a statue.

Going out alone would be suicidal.

But the teammates were exhausted. Some felt it was safe here, with no poisonous gases, so why go looking for a statue?
According to their reasoning, resting here overnight and returning to the entrance at dawn might cause it to reappear, allowing them to leave.

Some even began to suspect Rahmaan was trying to find a way to get them killed.

After all, in such a horrible place, everyone knew that venturing deeper certainly meant greater danger.

This forced Rahmaan to expend considerable effort explaining. He recounted the anomalies he discovered near the statue in the Nameless Mountain Village last time, but didn’t mention rules.

He simply stated that he had noticed something amiss, secretly observed near the statue at night, overheard the villagers’ conspiracy—that they had the statue create the fog—which led to finding the way out.

This time, the vanishing entrance was likely similar.

If there were ‘people’ here, they might also have formed some pact with a statue.

Only by discovering the statue could they find clues to survive.

Rahmaan pleaded and reasoned for a long time, but the others seemed unwilling to leave this ‘safe nest.’

Finally, he pinned his hopes on the Goateed Captain. Only if the captain believed him would the others reluctantly follow out of respect.

Because the team’s core was the captain, not Rahmaan.

The Goateed Captain pondered for a moment, then looked at his watch and said, “I think he’s right. The statues here seem to possess special powers. Last night, we were attacked precisely on the hour. It’s possible the same happens here, with incidents occurring at specific times. We should find the statue first.”

Hearing the Goateed Captain say this, the others reluctantly stood up and followed the team out.

Even if questioned by teammates, Rahmaan had to do this. Because, with his Strange Tale experience, he understood that failing to find the rules here meant certain death.

As long as they survived, they would believe he was right.

In this basement filled with faint crimson glow and green glowing liquid, reeking of foul odors, the mountaineering teams embarked on their search for the statue.

Perhaps behind every opened door lay terrifying danger, but Rahmaan felt taking the risk offered a sliver of hope—better than waiting for death.

Other Chosen Ones who had realized the situation also tried their best to persuade their teammates to leave with them. Without the team’s protection, encountering dangerous creatures alone meant they wouldn’t survive.

Zhang Yangqing was more direct. After resting, he stood up and simply said, “Let’s go.” He was miserly with words, not even bothering to explain.

Although his teammates didn’t know where Zhang Yangqing intended to go, they deeply acknowledged this big shot’s capabilities.

Packing their things, the mountaineering team set off.

Because in their eyes, Zhang Yangqing’s words weren’t asking if they wanted to go; they were a command: if you don’t want to die, follow me!