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

In a way, these corpses, like the mountain god, also possess the ability to replicate the personalities and thoughts of others. However, compared to the mountain god, these corpses' abilities are simpler, more brutal, and more dangerous—like an out-of-control, degraded version. It's a mystery how the villagers came up with such abilities.

Crash—Boom—

Amidst the lightning and thunder, the rain continued to fall in this dark world, and the air gradually became damp and cold.

Gao Hai did consider whether he could find any clues in this strange space, but unfortunately all the rooms were empty, and he couldn't find a single valuable item or clue inside.

Could it be that Li Ziyong used the mountain god to create a temporary space specifically for a one-on-one duel with me? Just how far has the mountain god's power been utilized?

Jingle bell~

A few retro-style cell phone ringtones suddenly sounded, right next to Gao Hai's ear.

Before Gao Hai could react, the call suddenly changed. After a "beep beep" of electronic synthesized sound, voices began to come out.

"Hello, hello, hello, can you hear me? Can't you hear me? Mr. Gao, are you there?"

It was a woman's voice, sounding to be around twenty-six or twenty-seven, belonging to the category of "overdue mature women" who were far beyond the hunting targets of Gao Hai, the JK assassin.

"A remote mental link? Is this an obsession or the power of a blessing...? I am here, may I ask who you are?"

Gao Hai sensed that the person who contacted him was not simple, and that he didn't seem hostile. After thinking for a moment, he carefully replied, not knowing whether the other party could hear him if he answered so directly.

"My name is Tangyuan, and I'm from the [Historian]. Our team has just successfully escaped the pursuit of a group of paper doll-like monsters and reunited with Ms. Goto's clone. We've uncovered some interesting clues. Do you have any information you could exchange with us?"

The woman who called herself Tangyuan spoke casually, as if she were discussing something as serious as the latest episode of an American TV series that she had just finished watching yesterday, rather than clues or information about clearing a dungeon.

The ability to locate my communication artifact across different spaces, coupled with such a peculiar personality, befits a "historian," doesn't it? And these guys managed to survive being chased by a group of paper figures, especially in the dark of night; their skill level must be quite high.

“I do have some clues. I have information on both the Mountain God and the Fox Queen. I hope we can reach an intelligence-sharing cooperation. After all, this dungeon is very dangerous right now, and working together to overcome it is the best choice.”

Gao Hai's response was very serious and as formal as possible.

"Hmm, that sounds interesting. Well then, let's head towards the village now. Oh, and don't blame us if we attract any ghosts along the way. You should have a way to get back to Li Family Village, right?"

Tangyuan, who seemed slightly excited, chuckled twice, and you could hear the unintentional joy in her tone.

"Yes, I'll be back in the village soon. So, if you don't mind, could you tell me what kind of intelligence you've obtained? If you need it, I can share what I know."

In the response, Gao Hai vaguely heard a child's soft sobbing coming from the communication channel, and he vaguely felt a chill gradually spreading through him. It seemed that this ultra-long-range communication device had significant side effects.

"No need for that. After all, you were recommended by Miss Xiong Mi, so I think you can trust your character."

"However, clues are a tricky thing. If there are only ambiguous indirect arguments, we can't easily draw conclusions. At most, we can only speculate."

"In that case, let's use a metaphor. Anyway, as long as we hang up the phone within an hour, we won't be killed by the monster. Now, let me think, Mr. Gao, have you ever heard of the concept of a 'Great Harmony Society'?"

Tangyuan's voice drowned out the child's sobs, showing that she was already used to the noise in this communication device.

Before Gao Hai could answer, Tangyuan continued speaking.

"Generally speaking, the so-called 'Great Harmony Society' is actually a conceptual thing that has been passed down in China. However, it is said that the so-called Great Harmony era actually existed a long, long time ago, and it was born and lasted for a very long time on this land."

"No lies, no deception, no oppression, no harm. Everyone is happily united, treating each other as family, living together without any barriers. Perhaps such an era could be called paradise?"

"Do you believe that such an era ever truly existed, Mr. Gao?"

Chapter 67: The Agreement Between Players and the Single-Handed Suppression by Police Officers

A happy, harmonious world where there is no oppression, no inequality, and everyone loves one another.

Upon hearing what the female player named "Tangyuan" said, Gao Hai fell silent, his vigilance immediately reaching its peak.

Such a world did indeed exist.

Gao Hai was certain that the world described by this player had indeed existed.

At the moment when crimson flowers bloomed across the planet, humanity truly lived like that. While it sounds extreme, it could indeed be considered a world without oppression or conflict, a world where everyone could genuinely find happiness. Yes, if you consider losing yourself, becoming a completely unconscious vegetable, both physically and mentally, with only the happiness instilled by the crimson flowers remaining, to be a beautiful state, then this statement is correct.

Gao Hai didn't know how humanity had escaped the shackles of the crimson flowers, but he was certain that some external force must have helped them. Otherwise, given the difference in their levels, humanity should theoretically have been forever crushed and unable to rise again. However, that wasn't the focus now. What needed to be considered was the reason why this player, the [Historian], had brought up this matter.

Did she get access to information related to the Crimson Flower?

Having experienced the power of the Blood Flower firsthand, Gao Hai had no choice but to be on high alert in this situation. He truly didn't want to confront that thing again.

Of the three overpowered elements currently discovered in the [Infant Cry Village] instance, the nature of the Black Mountain God is basically clear, and the area where the Fox Queen resides is unlikely to be encountered unless one actively seeks death, and even if one does, they can survive through communication. However, there's this blood-red flower; Gao Hai is completely helpless against it. He has experienced firsthand how terrifying its contamination is and how difficult it is to deal with once one is infected. Furthermore, he is absolutely certain that if one were to come into contact with it, even a top-tier Red Moon level player would be instantly annihilated, with no chance of survival.

Therefore, if these so-called "historians" really find some relevant clues and try to contact the Crimson Flower, Gao Hai will have to seriously consider whether he can persuade them to give up investigating this thing.

Well, if persuasion fails, then killing is the only option. While these fearless explorers are admirable, the consequences of them coming into contact with that thing would be far too severe. Gao Hai cannot afford the cost of that "what if," so if negotiation truly fails, he will have no choice but to take action.

"Mr. Gao, why are you silent? Are you thinking about how to answer?"

Although Gao Hai only thought about it for a short time, the other party quickly reacted and his tone became somewhat mysterious.

"...Do you want to explore the utopian society of ancient times?"

Knowing that now was not the time to hesitate, Gao Hai quickly asked the question, trying his best to sound calm.

"To say something like that, it seems Mr. Gao has gone further down this path than we [historians]. It's unbelievable. We investigated more than a dozen Red Moon-level dungeons, suffering heavy casualties, only to find a very few clues pointing to an ancient era, while Mr. Gao's answer clearly indicates that he has already come into contact with genuine artifacts from the old era. And with this attitude, it seems to be something extremely dangerous, isn't it? Are you very afraid of that thing?"

Tangyuan smiled again, her words carrying a hint of nonchalance. Clearly, even though she understood the underlying warning in Gao Hai's words, she still had no intention of stopping.

“I have already come into contact with what you are looking for. The price was heavy, and I have not yet paid it back, so I will not let anyone else come into contact with it easily.”

As Gao Hai continued his conversation with the other party, he looked down at the vine-like structure spreading under his skin in his palm.

“I don’t know where you are now, but since you’re still alive, you’re definitely not at the final stage. And what I’m saying is, if you actually come into contact with… no, you don’t even need to make direct contact, even if you just know information related to it that directly points to that thing, you will kill everyone in this instance, including yourselves and me.”

"If you are willing to communicate and cooperate properly, and not act recklessly, I can accept a certain degree of cooperation. But if you intend to insist on forcibly contacting those things, I'm afraid we will become enemies, and I cannot accept that risk."

"Everyone here has experienced the Red Moon-level dungeon, so I think this level of hint should be enough for you to understand the danger of that thing. Therefore, I cannot accept an ambiguous attitude on this issue. What are your plans? Tell me."

Without any intention of hiding anything, Gao Hai directly expressed his true thoughts.

Upon hearing this, the player on the other end of the communication channel let out a soft "hmm" chuckle, and after a brief silence, slowly spoke again.

"It seems that the contamination from that thing is even greater than we anticipated, although we could have guessed that based on our preliminary investigation. So, if Mr. Gao could cooperate with us to exchange clues and explore these ancient secrets together, we could indeed slow down our pace of exploration a bit. At least Mr. Chatchai and I can guarantee that. As for that newcomer, well, she should be able to understand the bigger picture in this kind of situation, right?"

In the end, Tangyuan's voice carried a hint of helplessness, indicating that the newly joined [Historian] player was not the type to obey orders.

"I hope you can do it. How about we meet up in the village later?"

Gao Hai wasn't surprised by this answer. Due to the special nature of the player organization "Historians," newcomers who actively join often have a considerable degree of self-destructive and reckless tendencies. Sometimes, even veteran players from the same faction have to be wary of them. This may sound funny, but when it actually happens, no one can laugh.

"Then let's leave it at that, Mr. Gao. Oh, by the way, please be careful when we come back later. Because of the use of some special artifacts, we're being followed by quite a few things that might try to attack the village. I think you should have a way to stop them, right?"

The player named Tangyuan chuckled twice over the communication, and then Gao Hai heard a ringing sound, like a phone being hung up. The ringing lasted for a full minute before disappearing, during which Gao Hai could faintly hear a child crying.

If the communication had lasted any longer, the thing that was crying might have been able to find itself.

Gao Hai could sense a vague, elusive malice, the source of which was unknown. According to the power of his blessing, it seemed to be right beside him, yet also incredibly far away, separated by a vast distance. And as long as the communication continued, that thing could gradually close the distance, crossing the spatial barrier to reach him and kill him.

It should be a Crimson Moon-level artifact. This mechanism of ignoring space to find a target and establish communication is truly impressive. However, for me, the communication from the black watch is more important. Hmm, Kaguya and Hayasaka haven't established a link yet. Perhaps we should find a way to increase their intimacy?

【senior……】

While he was thinking, Gao Hai suddenly heard Jianzi's voice behind him.

He turned around abruptly, but saw no one. The dark village was deserted; only Gao Hai remained. The voice he had just heard seemed to be a hallucination.

Hallucination?

How could it be a hallucination? Is Miko trying to send me information again? Or is the power of the Blood Flower using her consciousness to cause trouble?

Gao Hai took a deep breath, his expression somewhat heavy.

【Senior...Senior...】

The voice, like a murmur, reappeared once more.

Gao Hai seemed to feel someone grabbing his wrist, shaking his hand forcefully, trying to lead him somewhere.

Of course, this didn't actually happen.

He simply stood in the darkness, in this space that seemed to have been created by Li Ziyong through the power of the mountain god and was now constantly dissipating, silently sensing the ethereal will projected onto this place, and the dreamlike thing hidden within that will.

That was Miko's voice, that was Miko's breath.

Did she sense something?

Even though she was completely covered by the power of the blood flower, did she still discover something?

Taking a deep breath, Gao Hai's mind was completely focused at that moment.

He waited to experience the power of the crimson flower once more.

But as the surrounding darkness gradually dissipated, Gao Hai didn't encounter anything strange, as if everything just now was really just an illusion.

However, one could vaguely sense that the power of the mountain god had been activated once.

It seems that because of his attempt to seek help from the mountain god, Gao Hai has now established some connection with the mountain god of Xiao Heishan Mountain, and thus can sense some things that he could not perceive before.

The power of the Blood Flower could not break through the Mountain God's cage. Given that only Gao Hai had an incomplete understanding of it, that thing could not truly break through the Mountain God's seal, which did not actually possess any "thought," and come into the real world.

If that's the case, then the current situation is not too bad.

As he was pondering, another connection suddenly alerted Gao Hai, indicating that something had happened elsewhere.

This time, the rescue team badge, which had been upgraded to a blessing item, is malfunctioning.

Gao Hai stood still, waiting for the temporary space to completely collapse so he could return to the village, while using the rescue team badge to see where the problem had occurred.

It's Hirano Sousuke.

Gao Hai saw the other person through the power of the badge.

After being released by Gao Hai to act independently, the police officers began searching based on the enemy's location provided by Gao Hai, and successfully tracked down the enemy's trail.

It's time to hunt.

In the woods, the officers' footsteps grew heavier and more forceful.

The two "treasure hunters" were heading deep into the forest, having left the mountain path and entered an area frequented by animals. Gao Hai didn't know how they had survived under such circumstances, but the police officer wouldn't consider such a question. Since the target of evil needed to be found deep in the forest, it would not hesitate to step into the dangerous woodland.

tread!

After a clear footstep, Gao Hai felt a chilling sense of crisis through his badge.

There is something in the forest.

The thing was being provoked by the police officer and was about to react.

Unable to clearly sense what it was, Gao Hai couldn't truly perceive its presence through the rescue team's badge. However, even through this vague connection, he could confirm that the thing lurking in the woods was some kind of non-physical entity, strongly connected to the mountain god. Perhaps another god? Or something weaker than a god, but still far beyond the capabilities of ordinary monsters. Whatever it was, it certainly wasn't something that could be communicated with. Whether the police officers who encountered it would survive was uncertain.