Rules-related weird stories: 4016.

Chapter 579 The Name of the Great Serpent "Zero"

Lin Yi was startled upon hearing this; what Tian Bufan said seemed to make sense...

Human nature is the foundation of negotiation.

Have you ever seen anyone try to negotiate with cold, hard rules?
Even the Night's Watch 02, because he possessed some humanity, was able to make a deal with him.

As they were talking, Tian Bufan suddenly slowed down.

"This is pretty much it."

He gradually stopped walking.

Strangely enough, even slowing down and coming to a stop is extremely difficult in this distorted layer.

The entire layer felt like liquid, and moving it felt like crawling through a pool of snot—not at all uncomfortable.

It got much better after I stopped, and the entire layer gradually became eerily calm, like the surface of a lake.

Once the layers were completely stable, Tian Bufan said, "Old Lin and I will go and get the materials for the puppet."

Kuai Hongji spoke first, saying, "Then I'll take care of the extraordinary matter."

“They’re everywhere here. Don’t stray too far from us. Come find us as soon as you’re done,” Tian Bufan reminded him.

"Understood." Kuai Hongji nodded.

The two were slightly inseparable, so Tian Bufan used the same method to have Lin Yi use his senses to sift through the Corpse Forest.

Soon, after they had selected a batch of materials, Kuai Hongji arrived with some extraordinary substances.

Lin Yi immediately took control of Tian Bufan's body and began constructing a puppet.

Whether it was due to the layer issue or because Lin Yi had become "familiar" with it, he found that building puppets here seemed much simpler than building puppets in normal layers.

A faceless puppet was quickly constructed. Kuai Hongji handed over a tomato, and after Lin Yi stuffed it into the puppet's chest cavity, the "booting up" was complete.

Tian Bufan directly infiltrated his will into it, and Lin Yi, upon sensing this, followed suit without hesitation.

"Are you there, Old Lin?" Puppet Number Three spoke, using Tian Bufan's voice. Then it spoke again, this time in Lin Yi's voice, "Yes."

"Let's go." Tian Bufan said, then rode the third puppet toward a distorted direction.

As soon as Puppet No. 3 moved, the surrounding layer lines rippled again. Tian Bufan and Kuai Hongji behind him became blurred as if blocked by a water curtain. It seemed that only the small area around Puppet No. 3 was relatively stable. The area a few steps away would become distorted again.

Lin Yi found it hard to imagine what the deeper layers would look like, and at what layer depth that swirling mystery filled with stars and moonlight must be located.

Moving around in such an environment, it's really hard not to get lost.

Before long, Puppet Number Three broke free from the distorted layers and descended into the realm where the giant serpent resided.

"I'm here to negotiate!" Tian Bufan shouted as soon as he landed.

However, what awaited him was the collapse of the puppet and the retreat of his will.

……

Layer fissures, side of the forest of corpses.

Tian Bufan did a sit-up and propped his chin up again.

"Are you still there, Lao Lin?"

"Yes, yes..." Lin Yi responded, "But we've already destroyed three puppets. If this continues, will I not have time to go to the cafeteria for lunch?"

Tian Bufan was taken aback, then continued, "Speaking of eating, your true form can move freely!"

"Huh?" Lin Yi was taken aback. "But don't I still have to stay here and accompany you into the Layer Rift?"

“But that doesn’t affect your physical body’s movement!” Tian Bufan said. “If that’s the case, what are you going to do tonight? When the will penetrates, are you just going to stay in one place and wait to die?”

"Wait, wait, wait, so you mean..." Lin Yi confirmed repeatedly, "Tonight, my main body will play a great escape game on campus, while my will will infiltrate and come to your aid?"

"But won't my ability to act be greatly reduced?"

“It will definitely happen, but after I fall asleep in the dormitory, I will infiltrate your body and control your body together with the remaining part of your will,” Tian Bufan said. “In addition, to be more precise, you only need to go to the aid of the Russians and Kuai Kuai.”

"Okay..." Lin Yi muttered, "Why do I have this feeling of repeatedly using different accounts and having someone else play for me...? Could we be a bot farm?"

"Just don't overthink things," Tian Bufan said, rubbing his temples.

"Is something wrong?" Kuai Hongji asked upon seeing this.

"Hmm." Tian Bufan nodded. "It took us three seconds."

"If it were me, I probably would have done it more than three times, maybe even thirty times," Kuai Hongji said calmly.

Tian Bufan glanced at Kuai Hongji, then at his bundle: "How many tomatoes do you have left?"

"About twenty or so, I didn't pay attention," Kuai Hongji said. "Some of the fanatics' tomatoes weren't good enough, so I just threw them away."

"Then let's play with it twenty more times," Tian Bufan said.

The fourth puppet was quickly constructed, and Tian Bufan continued his journey.

"Should we turn back if we run out of tomatoes?" Lin Yi asked.

"No, that's not it. What Tomato provides, many things here can also provide," Tian Bufan said. "We keep Tomato just to familiarize ourselves with the method of constructing puppets. As for the number of times, even if the Corpse Forest has accumulated almost unlimited puppet resources over the years, we can't keep playing with it here indefinitely."

"A layer is just a layer after all. If you stay here too long, you'll forget the way back and be left here forever."

When Puppet No. 4 arrived at the "designated location," Tian Bufan began to summon the giant snake.

Soon, a strong wind swept in, making the entire forest seem to come alive.

Tian Bufan shouted loudly, "Stop messing around! I'm here to negotiate... 'Zero'!!!"

The invisible wind suddenly solidified in front of Puppet Number Four in a visible form!

This was the first time Lin Yi had observed what "wind" looked like. It was composed of countless strands of what appeared to be transparent glass fibers, constantly changing before his eyes.

The great serpent was still extremely far away, but its voice slowly carried on the wind:

"……"one"?"

Tian Bufan remained silent.

The next moment, the wind suddenly began to beat in an even more terrifying way.

"Show me your real body! What's the point of sending a puppet?"

A strong gust of wind swept by, and the puppet was instantly reduced to dust.

As consciousness returned, Tian Bufan rested his chin on his hand and let out a soft sigh.

Lin Yi hurriedly said, "No matter what, you absolutely cannot let the main body go there!"

“Of course I know,” Tian Bufan said. “Come on, let’s continue. Four puppets in exchange for a single sentence, so overall we still make a profit.”

Reminded by Tian Bufan, Lin Yi quickly asked, "What did you mean by 'zero' earlier? Why did it call you 'one' again?"

"Are 'zero' and 'one' numbers? Or symbols, or some kind of designation...?!"

"Wait!!" A glint flashed in Lin Yi's eyes, and the song sung by the broken sculpture suddenly rang in his mind.

[Lin Yi, oh Lin Yi...where are you going...?] [Lin Yi, oh Lin Yi...where can you go...?]

Come back, come back...

I'll wait for you in this desolate place...

You know my identity and name...

You know my power and influence...

[Lin Yi... Lin Yi...]

Fate is like the loop of an ouroboros... going round and round until it returns to its starting point...

[Lin Yi... Lin Yi...]

When the black moon fades...

Let's loudly proclaim my name...

Could it be that the song doesn't refer to his name "Lin Yi," but rather to the name of the giant snake, "Ling Yi"?

Could the desolate land refer to the barren land where the matrix is ​​located?

Hiss... that matrix?!

Could it be... used to summon the giant serpent?
Lin Yi's mind was filled with endless thoughts.

“Of course it is… one of its code names.” Tian Bufan lowered his eyelids slightly, a hidden glint flashing in his eyes. “Didn’t I say that we are ‘old friends’? Old friends must know some secrets.”

““Zero”... This is information that even the Night Watchmen and Old Mo don’t know, right?” Lin Yi pondered.

Tian Bufan smiled and said, "Don't tell me they don't know. Even if they did, would they really dare to call him that?"

Lin Yi was slightly taken aback. Yes, even Tian Bufan, after calling out, was still mercilessly crushed into a puppet by the giant snake. For such a being that still possessed some humanity but was capricious, it was truly an unwise choice to gamble with one's life.

He said in a low voice, "Lately, I keep hearing the sounds of those broken sculptures without warning, and in that ballad, I heard my own name..."

Tian Bufan's expression shifted slightly.

Lin Yi paused, then continued, "But now I feel that perhaps that's not my name... but 'Zero One'."

Tian Bufan remained silent, which was uncharacteristic of him.

After a long silence, he gave a wry smile and said, "Make the puppet."

"Why aren't you answering?" Lin Yi couldn't help but ask.

"Does it matter whose name it is?" Tian Bufan shook his head slightly. "We'll leave once we've settled the terms."

"No, isn't it important?" Lin Yi was stunned. These words, which had been echoing in his ears for several days, seemed to involve some kind of secret matter. Was it unimportant?

He observed Tian Bufan's expression and saw that Tian Bufan's brows were slightly furrowed, clearly indicating that the truth was not as he had said.

With the fifth puppet completed, Tian Bufan easily traversed the layers and once again arrived in the realm where the giant serpent resided.

"If you feel you haven't caused enough trouble, then keep killing me!"

"If you feel it's about time, let's sit down and talk!"

This time, Tian Bufan shouted loudly as he walked.

"No matter what you do, you can't stop our plan!"

"I'll say it one last time!"

"I'm here to negotiate terms!"

"I'm not here to play around with you!"

You know what I'm doing!

"I just want to know your attitude this time!"

"Time here isn't unlimited. I can play house with you a few times, tearing things apart, but I won't play with you forever!"

"Come out and see me! Or continue killing me!"

[Hehehe...hehehe...]

From the eerie depths of the forest came the laughter of a giant snake.

Its laughter was deep and resonant, like the beating of drums. The entire mountain range trembled with the sound of laughter, and countless withered leaves fluttered down, yet no fierce wind was seen.

"Clang clang clang... clang clang clang... clang clang clang..."

From the depths of the forest came the sound of countless blades slicing through a metal jungle, and the earth trembled and teetered on the brink of collapse.

The thick, pale fog rolled endlessly, and the dark space, into which even light could not penetrate, seemed to be an abyss within an abyss, a hell within a hell.

Finally, the almost infinite outline began to float faintly in the mist, a golden radiance shining brightly, like two suns rising from the darkness.

"Whoosh—whoosh—whoosh—"

One time, the wind rushed towards me, but it was no longer that devastating smell; instead, it was the pressure created by the pure wind being compressed.

In the end, the serpent did not appear, but merely projected its illusory and indescribable outline onto the edge of the abyss, leaving only its sun-like radiance, like an eye, watching over them.

“State your terms this time.”

Instead of discussing the important terms first, Tian Bufan slowly began, "The 'Principal' has set sail, but I know he has arrived at the 'Wasteland' in the Black Sea."

"That idiot... what is he doing over there?" The serpent's voice wasn't scary, but it was unusually deep, and every time it spoke, the whole world trembled.

"He must know your secret and is trying to find a way to save you."

"Impossible." The giant serpent spoke, its tone chilling yet tinged with a faint disbelief. "Human hearts can change, but his won't. He has never acknowledged me, much less my existence... His infiltration of the 'Wasteland' must have a secret."

"You have no choice but to believe it; his will has permeated the very essence of the 'Ashes Apostles,' projecting information from beyond the dimension of reality."

“Once upon a time, a group of fanatics deceived a child and used him to initiate a ritual to summon an 'angel'…”

Lin Yi's heart skipped a beat. It seemed that what Tian Bufan was talking about was the Yuan Shikai silver dollar incident.
The serpent said, "I know about this. They succeeded, but the 'angel' did not descend because I intercepted its infiltration."

"There's nothing we can do about the outpost..."

“But with the backup plan she left behind, and the fact that you’ll be going there, those Night Watchmen will be more than enough to deal with the reflections of the ‘angels’…”

"By making it this far, you've obtained the 'ring' once again."

“Everything is going according to plan.” Tian Bufan nodded slightly, then continued, “You are indeed very strong, after all, you are…”

"Hmph!" The giant serpent snorted coldly, its strength nearly tearing the puppet apart. "It's useless. The fact that you can still see me proves that everything was in vain."

“It won’t be in vain,” Tian Bufan shook his head and said, “This is the closest we’ve ever come to success.”

"You say that every time, but you always fail."

Tian Bufan said, "But it cannot be denied that we only take action when we have calculated the highest success rate each time."

(End of this chapter)