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

Kaguya now knows why she lost consciousness.

Not long ago, she had already fainted once due to excessive mental pollution. However, that time, she was protected by Gao Hai's crimson domain and had mental fragments planted by him in her mind to resist the damage. Therefore, Kaguya was able to wake up after fainting and regain consciousness.

But now, facing this force once again, she has to admit that she can hardly hold on anymore and is about to succumb to the impact.

It really does feel... familiar...

Kaguya gritted her teeth and struggled to take a step.

She had experienced a similar death once when she was at Yelu Mountain Middle School. She remembered that experience: when the underground base collapsed, her crimson domain was shattered, and she suffered brain damage and experienced brain death. Originally, because Gao Hai hadn't used memory preservation on her, Kaguya shouldn't have remembered such a terrible thing. But later, Gao Hai fused and absorbed her flesh and spirit, and as a result, Kaguya was forced to remember this death experience.

This time, the feeling was similar to that time. However, compared to the final collapse of Yoruyama Middle School, the corrupting force attacking Kaguya this time was slightly weaker, and Kaguya, whose mental strength had been enhanced, was more resilient than before.

Chika, standing beside her, was still unable to stand up. Her condition was clearly much worse than Kaguya's; she was barely holding on by instinct and was probably struggling to maintain her conscious mind.

But why did it turn out this way?

Kaguya did her best to maintain her composure, observing her surroundings while recalling what had happened earlier.

She remembered... that she and her classmate Fujiwara followed Li Xiaoxiao into the ruins of Yingti Village, and through perception and thought, they confirmed that the Zhang family might have some special feelings for Yingti Village, this former united village.

After entering Yingti Village, Li Xiaoxiao disappeared without a trace.

The villagers' bodies walked into different houses, as if they had lived there for a long time, and remained quietly inside.

What happened next?

What happened to the village after that?

hum-

A sharp pain shot through her head, as if someone was calling her name; it sounded very much like Gao Jun's voice. But Kaguya was in such a bad state that she was already struggling to maintain her consciousness, and she couldn't possibly pay attention to the voice coming from the mental link.

Stay alert... You must stay alert...

Take out the [Emerging Blood] that can restore physical and mental damage, and drink a small sip.

Kaguya immediately felt her mental state recover somewhat, and the voices echoing in her mind subsided a little, at least not as distorted and terrifying as before.

Only then did Kaguya fully see her surroundings. She discovered that the dilapidated houses destroyed by the mudslide were now completely intact under the dark sky. It was as if time had reversed; everything was neat, orderly, and aesthetically pleasing.

If you didn't see the twisted, motionless corpses of the villagers, probably no one would think there was anything wrong with such a beautiful village.

No trace of Li Xiaoxiao was found.

Goto Ichiri's clone and the "teacher" are nowhere to be found.

She vaguely remembered something. It seemed that at the same time the ruins of Yingti Village changed, space itself also distorted, causing the group to be separated. Only Kaguya and Chika, who remained within the Crimson Domain, were not separated and awoke in the same place. However, being sent to a place with extremely strong mental pollution had driven them almost insane before they could conduct any effective investigation.

She could feel the malice permeating this dark, distorted space; it was so intense that even she, with her limited perception, felt like she was about to vomit. Regardless of the initial intentions of the people from Zhangjia Village, it was certain that they had ultimately developed negative tendencies, perhaps not quite as wicked as the Li family, but not far off. Given this situation, Kaguya couldn't imagine what would become of the veteran player, already a target of these strange creatures and whose mental state was deteriorating, now scattered and acting alone in other locations.

Perhaps she's already been torn apart by something hidden in this village, or assimilated and transformed. Never mind, let's not think about it anymore. Although the hope is slim, I still wish her nothing bad happens.

The stinging sensation in my head has started to intensify again.

The mental restoration brought about by the object of her obsession did not last long, and Kaguya soon began to feel the mental pressure again.

"Huh...huh..."

With heavy breathing, she walked to Chika and gave her a sip of the gushing blood. This object of obsession, containing blood, was quite peculiar. No matter who drank it, the amount of blood inside wouldn't decrease, and no trace would be left on the bottle's opening. Even spitting on the bottle's opening would cause it to disappear without a trace when reopened. According to the Market's investigation, this object of obsession seemed to possess a certain degree of reset capability. It could be assumed that once someone drank from it and closed the bottle, the object of obsession would reset to a state of "never been opened." Furthermore, this reset was a temporal reset, so no matter who drank from it, closing the bottle would start everything over again, even disappearing any traces left on the bottle, such as fingerprints.

"Ugh..."

Chika regained some consciousness after being given a mouthful of blood from the object of obsession, but her condition was still not as good as Kaguya's.

This should ensure that her consciousness is not destroyed for a period of time, but that alone is not enough; we need to find a way to do something.

Kaguya took another deep breath, trying hard to think.

I cannot give up here; I must find the core object of my obsession.

My strength is insufficient. I must find useful clues before my mind is broken and I lose consciousness again, and ensure I have enough energy to persevere until I reach my goal. In that case, perhaps I can only try to borrow the strength of others.

Well then, let's give it a try.

The power of blessing was mobilized, but this time it was not Kaguya's own blessing that was mobilized, but the blessing held by Takami.

Through the "Deep Link" function granted by the black watch, the power of the blessing is no longer limited to the person who receives it, but can be activated on those who are connected to each other. Therefore, Kaguya directly borrowed Takahashi's blessing, activating the information perception blessing from Dean Jonathan within him, and discerning the voices echoing in her head.

Let us out... let us leave this place...

Finally, Kaguya heard a voice that she could recognize and that truly meant something.

The cries of despair and pain, seemingly coming from the villagers of Zhangjia Village, became increasingly clear in her ears.

I want to leave this place... Let me go... Let me go...

Why can't I get out...? Why can't I get out...?

I don't want to stay here... I don't want to stay here... Let me leave...

Trapped.

They were trapped here until their deaths, with no way to escape.

Who has imprisoned these people in this place, in this dark village of Nightingale's Cry, where they are not allowed to rest in peace even in death, but are kept in captivity?

Why does this happen?

Who did this? The Li family? No, while the Li family is cruel and twisted, their malice doesn't take this form. The Liu family, based on Gao Jun's intelligence, is preoccupied with their own problems and unlikely to have done such a thing. So, did the Zhang family do it themselves? Or...?

hum-

After a series of tremors, candlelight flickered in the houses, bringing light to this pitch-black world.

All the distorted and painful sounds vanished in that instant.

Even the sunlight shone down from the darkness, illuminating this peaceful village filled with birdsong and fragrant flowers.

The villagers are smiling.

They spend their lives happily, whether doing farm work or chatting and joking around, everyone is in a state of contentment.

Kaguya could even hear their voices and the things they were muttering to themselves.

【Yingti Village is so wonderful; it's great to be able to settle down here】

Outsiders have no idea how good our place is; Yingti Village is the best place in the world.

[It's because the Fox Queen is kind to us, it's because the Mountain God is kind to us, it's because of [unclear] that we're kind to us. Without divine protection, how could we have found such a wonderful place?]

All the voices were sincere, without a trace of hypocrisy.

Kaguya was certain that when these people said those words, they genuinely agreed with them from the bottom of their hearts.

But what happened after that was different.

After all, those who are saying these things now are just corpses.

The corpse, its face bluish-purple, its bones shattered, and its body like soft clay that could be kneaded and manipulated at will, kept repeating words of happiness and bliss.

The things inside those corpses were screaming and wailing, suffering in endless darkness and torment, unable to find peace.

But the Zhangjia Village portrayed by these corpses, and the Yingti Village they depicted, still retain a peaceful and serene beauty.

No... wait, that's not how it works...

Kaguya suddenly understood.

A corpse with its bones smashed, a body that can be manipulated at will, and something within it that cannot find peace.

This should be a puppet.

It should be a puppet that is manipulated and controlled.

She suddenly raised her head and looked up at the bright, sunny sky.

Looking at that pale, outstretched hand, manipulating the lines on the corpses, the silent, invisible hand gently swaying above.

I found it...

Even though her mental state was once again on the verge of collapse due to the continuous impact of pollution and intense thinking, Kaguya still managed to speak through the link.

{I've found the core belief of Zhangjia Village...}

She would never mistake that aura.

This level of aura is something that only a core obsession at the Red Moon level could possess.

Regardless of what this thing that is manipulating the villagers of Zhangjia Village and trying to simulate [Yingti Village] is, the only thing Kaguya can be sure of at this moment is that this thing is the core obsession that she and Chika came to find.

{Thanks for your hard work}

Gao Hai's voice rang out from the mental link.

The girl was slightly taken aback, and then she felt a touch coming from behind her.

Andres's teleportation blessing had been activated, and Takahashi himself appeared directly behind Kaguya, supporting the swaying girl.

{Miss Tangyuan, please protect and take care of Kaguya Chika and the others. Mr. Chachai, it's up to the two of us to deal with this thing from now on, is that alright?}

Having just returned to the village, Gao Hai brought the two players, the "Historian," here again. As he spoke, he also looked up at the hand manipulating the lines, and behind that hand, at the rotting limbs extending into who-knows-where. In Gao Hai's eyes, he could clearly see blurry human faces emerging and disappearing within the festering flesh of those limbs, emitting silent screams.

Although the hand controlling the corpse still looked high and mighty, Gao Hai was certain after seeing its appearance that this thing was probably another idiot who tried to control and sacrifice others, but ended up killing itself.

It's probably because he's tasted so many similar things that he's gained experience in tasting them, although Gao Hai himself doesn't really want that kind of experience.

{Such intense mental pollution... well, my blessings and obsessions probably won't last long. These two girls have actually withstood it for so long, and even managed to pinpoint the location of the core obsession—truly impressive. Speaking of which, Mr. Gao, don't you feel anything?}

Chachai, who had come with Gao Hai, frowned, his condition not being too good. However, he quickly noticed that Gao Hai was standing in this distorted space without any protection, and couldn't help but show a surprised expression.

{How do I feel? Nothing much, it's just so-so. The important thing now is to finish this quickly and call it a day.}

Actually, he didn't feel anything, but he felt that it was a bit noisy here. As he spoke, Gao Hai raised his pistol and aimed at the thing in the sky.

The next second, he pulled the trigger.

Chapter 131: The Past from the Zhang Family's Perspective and the Initial Confirmation of Mr. Du

The Li family and the Liu family, two families with the same surname, numbering in the hundreds or thousands, initially got along well during the early stages of reclamation in Xiaoheishan, but soon turned into a stage of mutual hostility and constant conflict.

Whether it's the fierce and cruel Li family, who retain many horrifying customs, or the aloof Liu family, who have always sought absolute dominance in village management and sacrificial activities, their thoughts and perceptions will naturally differ depending on which side they're on. The problem is, regardless of the situation, as a villager in [Yingti Village], you have to choose a side. Refusing to stand on either side, refusing to join either side, might seem like trying to avoid offending either, but in reality, it could also mean offending both.

In this story, the Zhang family is the one who offends both sides.