Why is my journey to the world of anime a strange tale of rules?

Chapter 41: He will always remember the feeling of that moment.

For Guo, who is known as "Old Devil Guo," he never imagined that he would one day stumble over such a young devil, and such a big one at that.

Bang!

Gao Hai, who was shouting that he would rescue him, threw another punch, breaking Lao Guo's nose on the spot, almost flattening the entire nose.

Are you alright? You're badly injured. Don't worry, I'll get you out of here.

Then Gao Hai comforted him with such concern, then clenched his fist and punched him again.

Don't worry, I'm here, you'll be alright.

Gao Hai's voice was full of sincerity, and his falling fist was also full of realism, so real that Lao Guo's eye socket was directly cracked and his entire eye became bloodshot.

Come with me, I'll protect you.

Once again, Gao Hai's voice was filled with genuine emotion as he slammed his fist into Lao Guo's head, nearly knocking Lao Guo unconscious on the spot, his whole body trembling uncontrollably.

There's no way to get rid of the other person.

Having almost completely transformed into something supernatural, Gao Hai's physical abilities have now far surpassed human limits. Even with Lao Guo's physical strength, which is far superior to that of ordinary people, he's as powerless as a child in his presence.

Boom!

Under Gao Hai's immense force, Lao Guo's face, like the woman's before, was beaten black and blue.

If this continues, I'll be beaten to death on the spot.

Old Guo tried to cry out in pain, but as soon as he opened his mouth, Gao Hai slapped him hard across the face, and broken teeth flew out of his already toothless mouth.

"You... bastard..."

In a daze, with his face covered in blood, Lao Guo finally seized an opportunity. He struggled to reach into his pocket, pulled out a small bottle, ripped off the cap, and threw the powder inside at Gao Hai.

The next moment, as if electrocuted, Gao Hai staggered back a step, his body momentarily stiffening. Old Guo rolled over on the ground, then scrambled to his feet, looking disheveled. After a moment's hesitation, he gritted his teeth and sprinkled even more powder towards Gao Hai.

That was cremated bone powder with eerie properties, a very precious object of obsession. It could temporarily suppress the process of the dead turning into monsters. Although it was useful for living people who were turning into monsters, the effect was very limited. In contrast, it was completely useless against real monsters.

For players of sacrificial games, this special kind of ashes is extremely important. In these bloody games, which weave together strange and bizarre rules, the dead often do not rest in peace but are transformed into strange and eerie appendages or some kind of medium for their effects. Therefore, items that can suppress the transformation of corpses into monsters are extremely valuable and important in sacrificial game instances, especially in extremely difficult and dangerous high-level instances, such as the currently [fixed] Dark Night and Red Moon level games. In these instances, where the death rate is extremely high and a total wipeout is very likely, and where all participants are veteran players carrying obsession items, this kind of ashes is indispensable.

This is not something that can be squandered. Precisely because of its rarity, top-tier veteran players have always had a high demand for ash powder. As for Lao Guo, an unpopular player with a terrible reputation who often attacks other players, many shops run by other players simply don't sell his stuff. The few supply channels that can be found are extremely expensive because they are not legitimate, and the quality of the goods cannot be guaranteed.

But now, in order to survive, he can't care about anything else.

As it turned out, Lao Guo's decision was quite correct. The ashes scattered earlier only slowed Gao Hai down for less than three seconds. Without the second wave of ashes attack, he would have been immediately caught by Gao Hai who rushed up.

We need to escape quickly, avoid this cunning bastard, and find a way back to the second floor to find the wall clock and rewind.

Being tripped up by a dying little devil and unable to retrieve the faceless head, losing this most effective object of obsession against the living, is an unbearable loss for Lao Guo. He must find a way to recover it!

Thinking this, Lao Guo stumbled away, throwing out a wooden puppet from his pocket. The puppet suddenly enlarged, turning into a corpse with its joints stripped off and replaced with a wooden structure. He then reached out and grabbed Gao Hai, who was chasing after him, preventing him from pursuing him.

chap——

The next moment, the sharp scalpel easily cut open the flesh and blood puppet's hands.

Gao Hai chased after Lao Guo again, but he still couldn't speed up his movements.

The ground beneath my feet seemed to be turning into a swamp little by little.

Looking down, Gao Hai saw one rotting, fleshy doll after another reaching out from the muddy ground, grabbing his feet and trying to drag him in.

There was no way to break free.

Gao Hai tried his best to move forward, but he still couldn't shake off the things dragging him.

I wonder if they managed to force Guo Wengui to reveal all his cards.

In order to successfully kill him in the next playthrough and eliminate this huge threat, I must force him to reveal all his trump cards and figure out all his tricks before I die in this playthrough.

But now, this guy...

I...rescue team...I am...Gao...I...

His will, already nearing its limit, was gradually crumbling. No matter how tenacious Gao Hai's spirit was, it couldn't change the fact that he was now at his last gasp.

Old Guo ahead had already stopped.

He didn't run too far, stopping even before Gao Hai was out of sight. He then took out a small, dark red key and inserted it into one of the doors in the chaotic area, opening it.

Behind the open door, Gao Hai saw the corridor on the second floor.

He was going to the second floor, to the floor where Zhenfei and the others were!

Ah... Oh...

It is no longer able to produce normal sounds.

Gao Hai moved forward with all his might, dragging one flesh puppet after another closer to the front.

No, we can't catch up. At this rate, we won't be fast enough.

I can't catch up with that guy on my own.

I am... from the rescue team...

I... am part of the rescue team... I am...

Rescue team... team...

A large hand reached out from the side, grabbed Gao Hai's shoulder, and dragged him out from among the flesh puppets.

Several figures, soaking wet and also wearing life jackets, stood silently beside Gao Hai, moving along with him.

Yes, I am a member of the rescue team.

We join hands and move forward together to save everyone who needs our help.

Therefore, we will not face danger alone; we will act together and move forward together.

At this moment, Gao Hai's sense of self was about to completely disappear.

In his dazed state, he didn't even know where he was. He just kept repeating the goal of Lao Guo to himself, telling himself repeatedly that he had to "save" this guy, trying to make sure he wouldn't forget his goal in this way.

I think I heard a sound.

From the second-floor corridor came a girl's startled cry, Lao Guo's menacing threat, and the sound of his own footsteps.

Suddenly, the vision became clear.

On one side of the dimly lit second-floor corridor, Old Guo opened the door to room 208 and rushed inside.

The door to room 206 was damaged and there were messy bloodstains, indicating that the people inside had retreated in a hurry.

In the dim light, one could vaguely see Grimm's fragmented face appearing in mid-air before quickly disappearing. It seemed that this man had transformed into a monster after his death, and Kaguya and the others had to flee from 206 to avoid it.

Where are they now?

Gao Hai looked at room 208, where Lao Guo had rushed in.

Are those noisy and chaotic sounds the sounds of fighting and killing?

I'm from the rescue team... I need to go to the first floor...

I am... no... I am Gao Hai, that's right, I am Gao Hai...

I have to go find them. I can't let that bastard hurt anyone else. At least this time, I can't let her die before me...

The steps forward came to a difficult halt.

Gao Hai slowly turned around and walked out from the rescue team.

With his mind nearly split, his consciousness fluctuating between clarity and confusion, he stepped into the corridor of 208 and walked all the way to the living room.

Kaguya and Maki, with one hand wrapped in gauze, were confronting Lao Guo who had barged in, while the cold, frozen corpse in the kitchen had emerged, its blank face fixed on Takami, who had stepped into the house.

I can't hear what anyone is saying, and I can't identify the sounds around me.

I just seemed to see a series of flashing sparks and the sound of a man howling in despair.

The surrounding sounds became even more chaotic.

All sorts of furniture were torn to shreds, and more and more cracks appeared on the walls and floors.

Someone followed me in, wearing the same team uniform as me. That's right, they came with me. We have to save Lao Guo, yes, we have to save him.

It felt like someone was constantly interfering with me, something very cold and powerful that even a group of people combined couldn't subdue.

tear-

The rescue team badges worn on their shoulders were torn off.

His chaotic consciousness returned to clarity once again.

Gao Hai saw Lao Guo, who was surrounded by several rescue team members, struggling desperately but unable to escape. He was completely submerged in the water along with the rescue team members, leaving only a small dark red key in the puddle.

The frozen corpse stood in the living room, staring at him for a while before slowly turning around and walking back into the kitchen.

"Sea King! Sea King!"

Princess Zhenfei's shout rang out beside her.

The surrounding scenery became clearer.

Gao Hai opened his eyes and looked at the messy living room, which looked as if a category 10 typhoon had hit. He saw Kaguya, who was sitting against the wall in the corner, and Maki, who was kneeling on the ground in front of him. He slowly regained some consciousness.

"Is Lao Guo... dead?"

Gao Hai asked in a hoarse voice.

"He was dragged away by the rescue team and disappeared into the water."

Covered in wounds and with a splinter stuck in her shoulder, Maki nodded gently, looking utterly exhausted.

"This is... a lap pillow? Isn't this a bit too high-end for me?"

As if he had recovered and his spirits had improved considerably, Gao Hai then realized that he was actually lying on Zhen Fei's lap, and couldn't help but smile and say something.

"After all, without your arrival, my great-aunt and I wouldn't have been able to deal with that man. He has some very strange abilities, and we couldn't defeat him. As a reward for your great contribution, giving you a lap pillow isn't out of the question, but don't misunderstand, this is just a reward."

Zhenfei sighed softly, wiped the blood from her forehead, then raised her head, revealing her usual arrogant demeanor.

"Is that so? I think I misunderstood."

Gao Hai chuckled softly. As he felt the life jacket gradually becoming heavier and more enveloping, he looked up at Zhen Fei and stared at her intently until the girl blushed with embarrassment.

"Hey, what are you doing? It's very impolite to stare at people like that."