Rules-related weird stories: 4016.

Chapter 616 All Cleaned Up
Gradually, pure white powder particles began to rise from the fake human's body, and then one by one, petrification began to appear, followed by an inevitable trend.

In the blink of an eye, they turned into lifeless sculptures, just as if they had been burned to ashes by burning paper.

The physical education students or art students alone cannot completely kill them. Even if they come, they will only severely injure them and let the sun kill them during the day.

But Lin Yi's ashes could also completely burn them to death.

X023年5月11日，19:44。

Lin Yi slowly emerged from the whirlwind of blue-gold flames and plaster-like powder particles, looking down at the ground around the burned podium. Scattered plaster powder covered the scorch marks, and the unburnt corpse sculptures flickered in the swirling embers, like pieces of charcoal gradually losing their temperature.

The intense heat distorted the space around him, and wisps of smoke twisted and turned.

In his hands, the vibrant, juicy tomato cracked slightly, as if the devil were laughing.

Witnessing Lin Yi's actions firsthand, the trio of "Hell Rose" were speechless with shock.

The reason was that Lin Yi's actions after taking out the tomato—no, it should be said that every step, including taking a tomato out of his backpack, was beyond their expectations.

"Sister Zhou, he... he just killed so many fake people?" Girl Number Three exclaimed.

“A blue aura! Is he a second-tier sports student?” Girl number two pondered.

"No, he's definitely not." Sister Zhou's expression was grave. "A second-tier physical education student is far from capable of what he just did! Even if you combine the skills of a second-tier physical education student and a high-tier art student, you still couldn't instantly kill 32 fake people!"

"Only by basking in the sunlight can that be achieved! Only then can the fake man be killed!"

Girl number three couldn't help but swear: "Damn it, Sister Zhou, does this university in S City actually have classes? Do they really teach the technology?!"

"How about we take some further courses?"

Sister Zhou was speechless, but her expression remained grim: "It's really hard to say... Times are constantly changing, and we really don't know what progress has been made on campus..."

The second girl hesitated and said, "How about we stay and learn some skills after our mission is over before we leave?"

They knew perfectly well which was more important.

"Let's wait and see." Sister Zhou shook her head slightly. "This mission is no simple matter; even getting out unscathed might be wishful thinking..."

"Lu Zhao's team from 'The Realm of Gods' has extensive experience surviving in the Dark Zone... and with the legendary Yuan Lijian, who participated in the initial exploration of the campus, it will be extremely difficult for us to snatch the Ashes from between their fingers."

"Not to mention, the abnormalities of this campus itself are barely documented even by the Chinese government, let alone by our organization."

The second girl sighed: "According to the information, today is the peak of this gray fog invasion, and theoretically, the production of ash will also reach its peak... All parties should make their moves today."

"I wonder... among so many people, will a high-ranking 'Ash Apostle' emerge?"

"The 'Ashes Apostle'? It only exists in legends; let's not indulge in wishful thinking." Sister Zhou shook her head. "Let's focus on the present. Successfully completing the mission will yield enough rewards to purchase many resources."

"As for the 'ashes,' their primary purpose is to collect the carriers; just be careful not to get them attached and ignite."

Inanimate objects can bear ashes, but only "Ashes Apostles" are qualified to bear them among living things.

"Mm." Both girl number two and girl number three nodded.

These people were incredibly serious when discussing important matters, but completely different when talking about the opposite sex.

Perhaps, this is their true nature.

……

On the other side of the stage, after killing 32 fake students and turning them into lifeless sculptures, Lin Yi was somewhat confused.

The corpse sculptures were indeed corpse sculptures, but after the aftershocks of the flames completely dissipated, 32 corpse sculptures with different death expressions surrounded the podium, presenting a bizarre and morbid human lotus shape, as if concealing some kind of eerie rhythm.

What is this ghost?

Could it be that even death, in its purest form, contains some profound mystery?
He looked around the podium; these lifeless sculptures vaguely formed a symbol within a precept.

Lin Yi vaguely sensed the presence of this symbol, and a creepy feeling rose in his heart, both familiar and eerie.

“Could it be…?”

He guessed that these dead sculptures were killed by his aura containing ash; in other words, the ash burned them to death, not the aura.

When they die, the burning process reveals traces of ash in the form they left at the time of their death.

Just as a frozen lake brings to life the originally invisible ripples at the moment it freezes, these dead sculptures depict the traces of power that ash presents at that moment.
"No wonder I felt something was off!"

Lin Yi understood. The dead sculptures were killed by the ashes, and they themselves did not contain the ashes, but they reflected the state in which the ashes killed them!
These lifeless sculptures thus present a bizarre state similar to the enlightenment steles in fantasy novels, which are incomprehensible to those with poor comprehension.

However, if someone who carries ashes and has been set ablaze by them comes here, they might be able to glean some insights from it, thereby gaining the secret to carrying "ashes" and embarking on the path to becoming an "Apostle of Ashes".

"These lifeless sculptures must not be kept!"

Lin Yi made a decision immediately. It wasn't that he was reluctant to destroy these things, but rather that keeping such a thing would pose an unknown level of disaster. If it were to breed some strange creatures that would harm others, he would truly be held responsible.

He reached out and gently pressed his hand on the corpse sculpture. The sky-blue aura seeped into it like shockwaves, quickly turning it into pieces.

After dealing with these dead sculptures, Lin Yi slowly turned his gaze to the remaining 10 sub-elements of the Forest of the Dead in the classroom.

He picked up the tomato from the podium and, under the almost shocked gazes of the "Hell Rose" trio, took a big bite.

"He actually ate tomatoes?" The third girl's expression changed drastically, and she felt a wave of nausea. Clearly, they all knew what tomatoes were.

Lin Yi finished the tomato in a few bites, then walked towards the nearest memorial stone.

Since these ten sub-sub ...

He stopped in front of the No. 1 Memorial Stele Forest.

The other party had actually been watching him the whole time, its eyes filled with extreme malice, greed, and desire, but its body remained unmoved.

Eyes facing each other.

Without saying a word, Lin Yi immediately attacked, punching through the No. 1 Dead Monument Forest Body.

"Oh? It doesn't have a heart?"

Lin Yi narrowed his eyes and unleashed his old trick, using his sky-blue aura to cover the power of the ashes and burn the No. 1 Dead Monument Forest Sub-body from the inside out.

However, the unique style of the "Monument to the Deceased" also reveals its extraordinary qualities at this moment.

【Ash……】

It slowly opened its mouth, and a dry, murmuring sound came from its tightly closed lips.

"Hmm? It has intelligence?!" Lin Yi's eyes narrowed, his gaze turning cold and vicious. With lightning speed, he used his other hand to tear its head apart.

However, there seems to be some mysterious connection between the sub-sub ...

Lin Yi felt the surrounding light suddenly dim for a moment, and the next moment, the remaining 9 sub-bodies of the Dead Monument Forest had completely surrounded him, and their hands were all neatly placed on his shoulders!
What a great speed!

They've actually surpassed the Green Bib Chef!
He sensed a powerful suction force emanating from the nine sub-bodies of the Forest of the Dead. This suction force had no effect on the primordial pollution, but it caused the ashes within his body to begin to stir! The Forest of the Dead was also collecting ashes? Lin Yi's gaze turned cold as he suddenly thought of many things.

Unfortunately, these few offspring of the Forest of the Dead made a mistake. He was not an ordinary person who was set ablaze by the ashes, but an Ash Apostle who carried the ashes.

"I should have told you earlier that this was how you would be attracted..." Lin Yi's lips curled into an evil smile, and ashes surged out, directly igniting the nine sub-bodies of the Forest of Dead Monuments.

In just a few breaths, all 10 of the Dead Monument Forest's sub-bodies were handed over to Lin Yi.

After skillfully shattering the sub-structures of the Forest of the Dead, which had been transformed into lifeless sculptures, he found a spot and sat down.

He glanced at the time.

19: 49.

There were still about twenty minutes before Young Master Tian returned to the dormitory building, and he leaned back in his seat, waiting for the return of the fake Lu Zhao and the little genius.

The two guys emerged from the gray fog. Since he could sense and observe them, they couldn't be far from the teaching building. Judging by the time, they should be arriving soon.

Out of sheer boredom, he tried calling out to his teammates.

"Young Master Tian?"

"what's the matter?"

"Um...it's nothing...I just wanted to chat."

"Idiot, don't waste your energy on trivial matters. This isn't a QQ chat group!"

Tian Bufan almost unleashed a torrent of abuse before disconnecting the connection.

Lin Yi shrank his neck.

"Kuai Kuai...?"

He asked, unwilling to give up.

"I'm not here." Kuai Hongji "connected" the call, but his tone was one of "do not disturb."

Even through the fluctuations of will, he could see Kuai Hongji's villainous face, just like that of Eunuch Shen.

"..."

"Okay, just say what you want to say. I'm preparing for the dormitory management route."

"Sorry to bother you..."

Lin Yi quickly and proactively broke off the contact.

He secretly wiped away a bead of sweat.

Good heavens, why does it feel like all his teammates are busy while he's the only one AFK?

Am I really just a sucker who wins without effort?!

hiss……

No, wait, no, come to think of it, there's still one person in this empty space!

"Weisang...are you there, Weisang?"

He called out to Wei Shan with great resentment.

"Yes, Lao Lin, I'm here." Wei Shan's voice rang out as expected, without the slightest hint of impatience.

Lin Yi quickly said, "Wei Sang, do you remember Lu Zhao? I just saw him and the little genius walking out of the bandit camp together."

"Wait, Lao Lin, what did you say?" Wei Shan's tone was somewhat surprised.

"I said I saw Lu Zhao and the little genius." Lin Yi vaguely sensed something was wrong. "Could it be that there's something wrong with the little genius?"

The possibility of Lu Zhao having a problem is very small, so it must be the little genius who has a problem.

Wei Shan said, "I encountered that little genius yesterday morning, and I can confirm that I caught it in the bathroom and killed it."

"Are you... sure you didn't see wrong?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Yi felt a sense of foreboding: "I'm sure I didn't see wrong, but how can there be two little geniuses?"

"I don't know either... You said he wanted to go back to the classroom, should we meet in the hallway and see what's going on? If we let him into the classroom, it wouldn't be appropriate for me to come in..."

When Lin Yi heard Wei Shan say "not quite suitable" instead of "cannot," he knew that Wei Shan was now able to break through the shackles of the gate attribute, just like him.

"Okay, I'll come out then," Lin Yi replied decisively, and the two then hung up the phone.

After that, Lin Yi got up from his seat, walked to the classroom door, opened it, and went out.

"boom!"

The door closes.

Only 15 participants and the "Hell Rose" trio remained in the classroom.

It wasn't until Lin Yi left the classroom that the three girls' attention slowly shifted back from the door.

The three looked each other up and down, exchanging bewildered glances, their eyes filled with nothing but shock.

"Sister Zhou, did we misjudge him?" Girl number three asked tentatively.

Sister Zhou took a deep breath, a rare look of fatigue appearing in her eyes: "I misjudged, and by so much."

The second girl said in a low voice, "This person seems to be acting alone; they don't seem to be from the campus..."

Sister Zhou's eyes lit up: "You mean...we might be able to win him over?"

The second girl nodded. She seemed to be extremely familiar with the plans of various forces, including the government, to send people: "If it is the Chinese government, then it is common for a group of five people to act alone. Even if they are dispersed to different classrooms, there will be no situation where one person acts alone. At the very least, there will be one supervisor for each person."

"But this person acted alone."

"In today's world order, only one faction would allow its members to act alone..."

Sister Zhou narrowed her eyes and slowly uttered four words: "'Ultimate Weapon'...the mercenary force Yuan Lijian belonged to before entering the 'Domain of Gods'? But he doesn't seem like it."

The second girl said, "I don't think so either, so I feel he's more like some maverick loner, a lone wolf who walks between the authorities and many other forces."

“A gentle appearance, harmless when not in action, but swift and devastating when it strikes… that certainly sounds like the style of a lone wolf.” Sister Zhou pondered. “And lone wolves are the easiest to cooperate with, requiring substantial compensation.”

Girl number two nodded and said, "That's exactly what I meant."

Sister Zhou narrowed her eyes, her gaze flickering between the slits: "Let me observe and consider carefully, and make a decision before taking action tonight."

(End of this chapter)