I’m a Max-Level Taoist Master, and You’re Throwing Me Into a Rules-Based Horror Game?! - Chapter 199

Chapter 199: You Don’t Like Turns or Detours? Perfect, Neither Do I! 

The chosen ones glanced at their watches. It was already midnight.

The climbing team had trekked all day and were genuinely drowsy and utterly exhausted.

This place looked dangerous to begin with, and venturing out to explore at this hour was naturally met with reluctance from the other team members.

But the chosen ones deeply understood the dangers of this bizarre world and the importance of its rules. Choosing to rest now could very likely mean never waking up again.

Cautiously pushing open the main door, the sight before them sent a chill through their hearts.

A stench-filled behemoth blocked the entrance not far away.

This monster looked like three burly men walking side-by-side, but their bodies were fused together.

Most terrifyingly, this colossal creature’s body was covered with various ‘faces’, each wearing a different expression, appearing utterly grotesque.

It was as if many individuals had been merged, with many pairs of eyes fixed on you.

It directly blocked this path. If they didn’t deal with it, everyone would be trapped here.

The moment this eerie monster caught the scent of ‘flesh’, green drool began to drip from its maw, looking exceptionally disgusting.

Its mere presence imposed a powerful sense of oppression and shock, instilling a degree of fear.

Compared to the segmented, faceless monster they’d just encountered, this thing looked far more ferocious.

The segmented monster just looked weird; this thing, just by walking, caused slight tremors.

“What do we do? Should we close the door and hide?” the man with gold-rimmed glasses urged anxiously. He was incredibly strong, but he felt that compared to this eerie creature before him, he was insignificant, completely outmatched.

Even if the man with the slicked-back hair had formidable knife skills, he didn’t have a blade long enough to take down this bizarre creature.

The others also wore grave expressions, unable to find a way out for the moment.

So, the bearded team leader quickly closed the door and began discussing a plan with everyone.

If they didn’t resolve this quickly, more might appear, and then escaping would be impossible.

As the footsteps grew louder, the other climbers began to panic.

Even the bearded team leader seemed at a loss for what to do at the moment.

Seeing this, if the chosen ones still relied on their teammates now, they would most likely die here.

After all, these four guys had some skills; if a real fight broke out and they couldn’t win, they could run, and the chosen one might be the one left behind.

Don’t be fooled into thinking these teammates always helped in other dangerous situations; when true disaster struck, everyone would likely fend for themselves.

While other chosen ones were in chaos, Rahmaan, the chosen one from Pyramid Country, remained exceptionally calm this time.

He judged that the bearded team leader was someone who relied on experience; when faced with a situation outside his experience, he failed to make the correct decision.

So, at this moment, they had to rely on the chosen one to give orders.

The reasoning was simple: most chosen ones played the ‘brain’ role in the team. In such a fatal moment, they definitely needed to use their intelligence to solve the problem.

If they couldn’t recognize this, if they didn’t have a clear understanding of their own role, this stage would be a nightmare for the chosen ones.

“You all block the door with something first. I have an idea.”

At a time when everyone was clueless, Rahmaan’s words gave them a target for action.

The teammates moved beds and cabinets to barricade the main door.

The man with gold-rimmed glasses and the bearded team leader personally pressed against the door from behind, hoping Rahmaan could come up with a solution soon.

Not long after, banging sounds came from outside the door. Each impact threatened to shatter the door.

The tremendous noise also filled the operating room.

At this point, Rahmaan directed the other two to follow him into the inner room.

They weren’t abandoning their teammates; they needed to open some cabinets, pull out the medical records inside, and find information on this bizarre creature.

Since these were likely modified creatures, and this was a modification room, there should be relevant data on them.

As long as they found this information, the climbing team should survive.

Initially, because there were so many documents, no one paid much attention.

Now, facing this terrifying creature, Rahmaan felt they had to try this desperate measure.

As the banging grew louder, the man with the gold-rimmed glasses and the bearded team leader were struggling to hold on.

“Are you done yet? That thing is too strong!” came the voice of the gold-rimmed glasses man from beside the door.

“Found it! There’s a medical record here that looks exactly like that thing. I’m reading it now,” Rahmaan said urgently, though he actually hadn’t found it. He just wanted to encourage the gold-rimmed glasses man and the bearded leader to hold on a little longer.

It was like giving them a pep talk, hoping they wouldn’t give up.

If they gave up resisting and tried to escape, the three in the small room would be in great danger.

Finally, perseverance paid off. Rahmaan found information about the monster at the door among the huge pile of documents.

He then loudly and quickly explained to everyone.

[Blunt Corpse] A senseless-type monster. Does not fear pain. Extremely fast regeneration. Even if its head is cut off, it will continue to grow.
If it sees other living beings at close range, it will attack.
At a distance, it will charge recklessly until the other being is dead or disappears from its sight.
The Blunt Corpse dislikes detours and cannot turn while moving at high speed.
Its skin is thick and tough; ordinary weapons can hardly harm it.
According to the intel, never engage a Blunt Corpse head-on. The best method is to take a detour.

Anyone would be afraid when facing an unknown eerie creature. But once they had the information, a concrete image would form in their minds, even simulating possible tactics.

Since this thing had no senses and didn’t fear death—accurately speaking, it was just a fusion of corpses—engaging it head-on was obviously the least wise approach.

After hearing the information, the bearded team leader suggested they all attack it together. After all, it only had two arms and two legs. Once it became flustered, its body would become chaotic, and they could seize the chance to leave.

Once out of its line of sight, it would stop attacking.

The segmented, faceless monster they encountered earlier had no facial features and observed people by sensing energy.

The Blunt Corpse was covered in ‘human faces’ which likely provided some night vision in the dark. In the bearded team leader’s view, these faces might also have some consciousness and could wrestle for control of the body.

This was the basis for his proposed tactic.

Hearing the bearded leader’s suggestion, Rahmaan shook his head. He said, “If the faces on its body don’t have control, and are only responsible for observation, then once it gathers information on all of us, it will attack the easiest target first. We’d be picked off one by one. So, we need the teammate best at tricking the enemy to step up.”

According to Rahmaan, numbers were useless against this thing.

After all, it was unclear whether the faces on the Blunt Corpse had control; that was just the bearded leader’s speculation and couldn’t be verified yet.

Following the bearded leader’s earlier logic, this was only the beginning. If everyone exhausted themselves fighting now, they’d have no strength left for future dangers.

At this point, preserving strength and avoiding combat was the best strategy.

They just needed the purple-eyed woman to attract its attention so the others could escape first.

The purple-eyed woman would then find her own way out.

This was the best tactic against the Blunt Corpse.

Because if any other team member got entangled, it would be very dangerous.

This suggestion had a hint of ‘sacrificing a teammate.’ Everyone looked at the purple-eyed woman, the magician.

The purple-eyed woman smiled slightly, her exquisite face utterly captivating.

“Performing an escape magic trick up close under so many watchful eyes is the true test of a magician’s skill. Leave it to me.”

This time, the purple-eyed woman was exceptionally confident. It was just a living disappearance trick; she was very good at those.

She could have refused, but she knew only she could handle this thing.

They didn’t know what troubles lay ahead. If they lost a teammate, they might not make it through the night.

To preserve the team, she chose to take on the task. This was also the duty of a combat magician.

If it came to fighting, she certainly couldn’t win. But if it was about escaping? It was just a Blunt Corpse; she had plenty of methods.

In a magician’s eyes, many things could be utilized, especially an enemy’s vision.

When the Blunt Corpse prepared to charge the door again, this time its impact met little resistance, and it burst into the operating room.

The operating room was relatively spacious. Except for the purple-eyed woman, the others had already hidden behind various obstructions.

Once she attracted the Blunt Corpse’s attention, they would quietly slip out the main door to wait for her outside.

At this moment, the others in the room had turned off their flashlights.

Since this thing observed people with its eyes, the purple-eyed woman’s flashlight could attract its attention.

Eerie creatures living in such a place might have their own unique judgment, but when an opponent stood directly before them, shining a flashlight on its body, it was a sign of disrespect.

It was like encountering an oncoming vehicle with blinding high beams at night.

It quickly provoked the Blunt Corpse’s anger, and it began to attack the purple-eyed woman.

Under the faint light, the others slipped out of the surgical modification room.

It was only a matter of time before the purple-eyed woman escaped.

At this stage, the chosen one from Nordic Snow Country relied on the bearded team leader’s plan and launched an attack on the Blunt Corpse inside the surgical modification room.

Unfortunately, he was chosen as the target. Despite his teammates’ attempts to rescue him, he was slammed into a wall by the Blunt Corpse.

The Blunt Corpse’s immense physical power crushed him into a pulp. The manner of his death was utterly gruesome.

There were actually quite a few methods to escape the Blunt Corpse. Some chosen ones used the condition that it couldn’t turn while charging to trip it. Once it fell, the others could seize the chance to run out.

There were various tactics like this. As long as they didn’t overly rely on the bearded team leader, they could basically pass.

In fact, it could be said that the bearded team leader first eliminated a wrong choice.

As for the Dragon Nation’s Celestial Master, Zhang Yangqing, he didn’t act personally this time, but his teammates were exceptionally arrogant.

While other chosen ones’ teammates were focused on escaping, Zhang Yangqing’s teammates directly fought the Blunt Corpse.

The result was predictable: the four were utterly beaten, unable to fight back.

But they weren’t afraid; after all, they had their big brother as a safety net.

As soon as they couldn’t win, they hid behind Zhang Yangqing.

Because Zhang Yangqing had never turned on his flashlight, the Blunt Corpse hadn’t noticed him.

Now, seeing him, it charged fiercely.

Despite its massive size, the Blunt Corpse’s instant burst capability was top-notch.

Combined with its rapid sprint, it simply couldn’t stop.

Now, it was as if a modified mud-truck, immensely powerful, was barreling toward Zhang Yangqing.

“You don’t like turns or detours? Perfect, neither do I.”

Looking at the steel-tank-like behemoth before him, Zhang Yangqing said with a hint of mockery.

Others might not dare to face you head-on, but you should know that those who dare to confront you directly are not ones you can deal with.

Zhang Yangqing wouldn’t indulge these eerie creatures. With a single finger pointed, a sliver of golden light, thin as paper, appeared before him.

Seeing this, the Blunt Corpse almost wanted to laugh. Did this flimsy thing think it could stop him?

But when it crashed into it, it learned what ‘immovable’ meant, what ‘hitting a steel plate’ felt like.

The faces on its front contorted in pain from the violent impact, wearing masks of agony.

Then Zhang Yangqing pointed upward. Another sheet of golden light, thin as paper, appeared on the ceiling.

This golden light descended like a weight. With a slight tremor, the Blunt Corpse was flattened into a pulp, its blood instantly covering the entire room.

Where the golden ‘paper’ had pressed down, the floor was visibly dented—and this was Zhang Yangqing holding back.

Though the golden light was thin, its density was immense, far beyond the comprehension of the eerie beings here.

Even his teammates behind him couldn’t understand how this thin sheet could instantly flatten a creature of such formidable physique.

And just what other surprises did their so-called ‘security guard’ teammate have in store for them?

The bearded team leader even complained inwardly: If we’d known you were holding back, why did we go to all that trouble? We could have just let you handle it from the start.

But the bearded leader also wondered: since Zhang Yangqing was holding back, why did he unleash such terrifying power against a small statue back in the Nameless Mountain Village?

If Zhang Yangqing knew what he was thinking, he’d say: Wasn’t it just to scare you guys?

Thus, most climbing teams made it out of the surgical modification room.

Then they chose a wide corridor and continued forward.

The toxic gas ahead grew denser, and the ‘footsteps’ following around them seemed to increase, echoing through the hallway.

It was similar to when they first arrived: when the climbing team stopped, the footsteps also ceased.

It was as if passing through a certain ‘door’ added another set of footsteps.

According to Rahmaan’s judgment, perhaps once a certain number was reached, the eerie beings making these footsteps would attack the climbing team.

After encountering another segmented, faceless monster, the climbing team finally found a special corridor.

It was still a double-door setup, but this time they were wooden doors.

Wooden doors seemed even more eerie in this bizarre place.

But the climbing team was somewhat pleased, because the previous two times they saw wooden doors, weren’t those at shrine locations?

The slicked-back-haired man had even dismantled those doors for firewood.

To avoid potential danger inside, most teams with chosen ones still carefully opened the door and then entered one by one in their usual formation.

As flashlight beams swept inside, the dim room gradually revealed its appearance.

“Observe the surroundings first. Don’t get distracted by the statue,” Rahmaan said, more eager than anyone to find the statue.

But he knew there might still be hidden dangers here, so he urged everyone to be careful.

After the inspection was complete, Rahmaan finally approached the statue.

But this statue was different from the one in the Nameless Mountain Village. It was clearly damaged, and there was no so-called ‘village elder’ appearing.

It was similar to the first shrine the climbing team encountered: the upper half was destroyed, making it impossible to tell which deity was enshrined.

And the chosen ones finally saw the rules for this stage.

Sanatorium Rules:

[Rule 1: Every three kilometers, a room marked with a blue question mark will appear. Inside is the method to proceed to the next level.]

[Rule 2: Between 2 AM and 5 AM, the only one you can trust is yourself.]

[Rule 3: They fear doctors, but only the doctors of this sanatorium.]

[Rule 4: If you encounter an unsolvable danger, seek refuge in a room marked with a purple exclamation point. It is relatively safe inside, but you can only hide for ten minutes. Each room can only be used once.]

[Rule 5: When a complete person appears here, the exit will manifest.]

[Rule 6: Remember, you can only go downwards here. If you find yourself going upwards, immediately leave that area.]

[Rule 7: Prolonged inhalation of the gas here will cause hallucinations. Before you become completely confused, enter an unmarked room to rest. These rooms have been specially treated to neutralize the toxic gas.]

[Rule 8: You can try inserting coins into a vending machine. This is beneficial to you. But be careful: never let anyone see you do it, no matter who it is.]

Only the chosen ones could see these rules; the other teammates were unaware.

However, seeing the rules, most chosen ones breathed a sigh of relief.

Because the rules already stated methods to avoid danger.

Rule 8 was very likely the reward rule for this stage.

Because along the way, the chosen ones really hadn’t seen any vending machines.

Only by finding one and inserting coins could they probably receive some reward, which would undoubtedly increase their chances of survival.

But the problem was, the chosen ones didn’t have any coins on them.

It seemed they would need to find coins in the upcoming sections.

Moreover, many of these rules were telling the chosen ones how to survive in this place and how to avoid danger.

But Rule 5, the so-called clearance rule, was perplexing.

What did it mean, ‘When a complete person appears here, the exit will manifest’? Weren’t they and the other climbers considered people?

This rule left the chosen ones pondering.

Was the rule hinting that their teammates and the climbers they were portraying weren’t human? Or was it simply about finding the so-called ‘person’ here?

If the teammates weren’t human, that was actually easy to understand.

After all, this was a bizarre world. Weren’t those villagers also not human?

Perhaps these teammates were monsters transformed to appear human.

Otherwise, how could they possess such powerful abilities?

And the bearded team leader seemed to have some knowledge of this area, but could a normal person live in this region?

But if they thought this way, then the rule saying they weren’t human likely meant the chosen ones themselves weren’t human either.

Then what were they?

The chosen ones began checking their own bodies to see if there was anything wrong.

Some pinched their arms, others bit their own flesh.

They all confirmed this should be their own bodies.

Could it be that the definition of ‘person’ in this world was a special category?

Like in the previous bizarre tale, where green-skinned people were ‘people’ and others were not.

While the chosen ones were deep in thought, the purple-eyed woman, who was inspecting the shrine’s inner room, called out.

“Everyone, come take a look at this!”

But the climbing team didn’t panic. The bearded team leader had the gold-rimmed glasses man guard the door and led the others to check the inner room where the purple-eyed woman was.

Entering the room, everyone looked where the purple-eyed woman’s flashlight shone.

They found a glass container on a cabinet, filled with an unknown liquid.

But that wasn’t important. What mattered was that inside this glass container was a complete heart—and it was still beating!