I’m a Max-Level Taoist Master, and You’re Throwing Me Into a Rules-Based Horror Game?! - Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Even Us Semi-Experts Are Completely Baffled!

At Zhang Yangqing’s actions, even Hu Liuqi, an expert from the Dragon Country’s research team, abruptly stood up.

His eyes were glued to the screen as he muttered under his breath, “Oh no, oh no… He shouldn’t have done that!”

Hu Liuqi knew Zhang Yangqing was capable, but even the most skilled shouldn’t defy the ironclad rules.

In the Strange Tales dungeon, there were many rules. Breaking some might only trigger eerie events, leaving room for remedy or resolution.

To avoid trouble, most Chosen Ones avoided violating the rules altogether.

Finding advantageous conditions within the rules to clear the dungeon—that was the strategy Chosen Ones had honed over time.

It was how many had succeeded.

But destroying wax figures meant instant elimination—no second chances.

Hu Liuqi couldn’t believe someone as sharp as Zhang Yangqing would overlook this.

“Did he not even check for traps before yanking that door open?”

On screen, as the wax figures teetered on the brink of collapse, the hearts of every Dragon Country viewer plummeted with them.

Then—

With nothing more than a light tap of his foot, a sudden black gust swept through the air.

The two falling wax figures hovered mid-collapse… and smoothly returned to their original positions.

The scene was so surreal it eclipsed the dungeon’s own eeriness.

Viewers stared wide-eyed at their screens, as if witnessing actual ghosts.

“Did… did a pair of shadowy hands just push them back?”
“Was there some hidden mechanism where he stepped?”
“Or did other Chosen Ones overthink it? Maybe pulling the door gently wouldn’t trigger anything at all…”

Countless theories raced through the audience’s minds.

But with no way to verify them—only a handful could enter the dungeon, while the rest watched from afar—they were left in suspense.

Comments flooded in:

• “Bro, did this guy read the script or something? He’s way too casual!”
• “Even the boldest pros shouldn’t play with fire like this. What if they’d fallen? We’d all be doomed!”
• “Does he have time-reversal powers? How else do you explain this?!”
• “Man, I’m begging you—play it safe. Watching you gives me heart palpitations!”
• “I’ve gone through a whole box of heart meds just watching him. At this rate, I’ll die of shock before he clears the dungeon!”

As Zhang Yangqing strode confidently deeper inside, Dragon Country’s viewers slowly exhaled—despite their mixed reactions, their tension eased.

As long as he’s unharmed, that’s all that matters.

…

Dragon Country Research Team HQ

Even when pressed for answers, Hu Liuqi had none.

Then a memory surfaced—back when he’d studied ancient martial arts manuals during tomb expeditions.

Some techniques, when mastered, claimed to “move mountains and part seas.”

At the time, he’d dismissed it as exaggeration. After trying a few moves himself with no success, he’d given up.

But watching Zhang Yangqing now… Could it be true?

Was this Chosen One one of those legendary masters?

“Hell if I know,” Hu Liuqi admitted helplessly. “You outsiders don’t get it? Well, even us semi-experts are completely baffled!”

…

The Truth Behind the “Black Gust”

While the scene seemed supernatural, Zhang Yangqing’s method was straightforward.

As the inheritor of the Heavenly Master mantle, he’d mastered all Taoist disciplines.

This particular move was from Taiqi’s Capturing Hands—a fundamental technique using leverage, centrifugal force, and spiral dynamics to redirect momentum.

By applying precise locks, pivots, and throws, he’d softened the fall, lifted the figures, and guided them back—all without a hint of excess force.

For most martial artists, this demanded years of training.

For Zhang Yangqing? Effortless.

His execution was so fluid and swift that, on the dimly lit screen, it merely appeared as a “black gust.”

Even his own master had been stunned decades ago when Zhang Yangqing replicated advanced techniques on his first try—surpassing veterans with decades of practice.

…

Entering the Exhibition Hall

Yet brute strength alone couldn’t clear the dungeon.

It merely simplified the path.

Now, the remaining 37 Chosen Ones stepped into the Wax Figure Exhibition Hall—a nightmare of densely packed, grotesque figures.

Some walkways were so narrow that even slightly broader individuals risked collisions, potentially triggering chain reactions.

Unlike the lobby’s humanlike waxworks, these resembled horrors straight from films:

• Masked slashers with gleaming knives.
• A scythe-wielding Reaper in tattered robes.
• The drowned ghoul Jason, skin bloated.
• A grinning clown with blood-caked teeth.
• A stench-emitting zombie in rotting robes.
• Twisted, two-headed mutants frozen in agony.

The sheer terror of the setting alone made many freeze.

Some squeezed their eyes shut, peeking through fingers. Others inched forward, breath shallow.

Even viewers watching from safety gulped, some too unnerved to keep watching.

The difficulty spike was undeniable.

Many switched screens, seeking solace in other nations’ Chosen Ones—better to see strangers fail than their own.

…

Current Objectives

Most followed a clear plan:

1. Locate the map to explore new zones.
2. Find repairable wax figures for rewards.
3. Move cautiously—even if confronted by disguised entities, panic could topple nearby figures, ending the run.

But Zhang Yangqing?

No one had a clue what he was doing.

As the group fanned out, a figure abruptly emerged before them—

Instead of attacking, it dropped to its knees and kowtowed, as if… pleading for help?