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

There were no Dark Night or Red Moon level players who stepped into this place with trepidation.

The villagers of Li Family Village had no insidious plans to kill all the players.

Even the calls of birds, the dripping of dew, and the chirping of insects vanished without a trace, leaving only utter silence, which spread silently through the sunlit woodland, which seemed no different from any other day.

Gao Hai originally thought it was like this, and in fact it was, although there was something a little off about it.

[Hehehe, the teacher looks so pitiful now. Why is there no one left to be by her side?]

Did the teacher secretly cry? Having the person you like taken away so unfairly, leaving you all alone to start over, must feel incredibly painful.

Although Alice can't completely understand this feeling, if the teacher wants, Alice can very, very generously comfort the teacher. How about that? Just say to Alice, "Please, comfort my wounded heart," and Alice will comfort the teacher in a very, very gentle manner!

So, why are you still here?

Gao Hai, who could no longer maintain a composed demeanor, twitched at the corner of his mouth, wanting to ask that question.

However, even without asking, he could immediately realize why Alice was able to continue appearing around him.

In reality, this "Alice" is actually a facet of the Black Mountain God, a virtual personality born from the interaction between the remnants of this fallen deity and Gao Hai's own consciousness. Therefore, as long as the Black Mountain God exists, and as long as Gao Hai, who interacts with him, exists, Alice will not be truly destroyed. Although the power of the crimson flower is incredibly strong and could easily defeat Gao Hai, its absorption and transformation of power has no effect on Gao Hai, who has already begun to reach the realm of gods, or on the mountain god, who, even in his incomplete state, still possesses divine status.

Well, it certainly won't be effective in the short term. Judging from Bloodflower's reaction to him last time, it seems the other party intends to bind him to the main body's position, allowing the higher-ranking main body to transform him. If that really happens, Gao Hai has to admit that even after his upgrade, he definitely wouldn't be able to withstand that level of transformation.

Of course, that happened in the previous playthrough and has nothing to do with Takami in this playthrough.

After all, he is still a human being and hasn't turned into anything else.

After all, after the rollback, Gao Hai would be reset to the very beginning of the dungeon. Although he was certain, through his perception of the black watch, that he could retain the "essence" he had already absorbed, just like he would retain a memento, doing so would mean starting a new cycle with that power already absorbed, which was not what Gao Hai wanted. Therefore, he chose to give it up without hesitation, even though it was true divine power.

However, such things were irrelevant to Gao Hai now. In his view, compared to what truly mattered, forcing himself to become a so-called "god" through external means was utterly uninteresting. He believed that with continued effort and the help (persecution) of the black watch, he could steadily reach the level of a god, without needing to achieve that level of power immediately. Instead of grasping this overwhelmingly powerful force that he currently couldn't control, using it in the right direction was what he should be doing.

"call……"

After taking a deep breath, Gao Hai took a step and quickly accelerated his pace.

Oh dear, is the teacher so delirious that she can't even hear what Alice is saying? Waaah, if you deliberately ignore Alice, she'll really stop talking to you!

In my mind, that pretentious little devil was still babbling incomprehensible words.

If it were before, she would probably have loathed this guy, right? After all, her personality template came from a very vicious and terrifying opponent. Even though Gao Hai eventually managed to defeat him, the psychological trauma that guy left on Gao Hai was still quite significant, so much so that even now, recalling it still makes her grit her teeth.

However, that feeling is basically gone now.

While admitting it's somewhat shameful, Gao Hai has to say that in this situation where he has nothing left and can only gamble everything on one last time, having something chirping in his ear is actually quite nice. At least... compared to the absolute loneliness of having absolutely nothing, Gao Hai prefers having something chirping in his head.

"Okay, then I'll leave it to you, Alice. Please soothe my wounded heart. For a cute idol like you, doing this should be a piece of cake, right? There's no way you couldn't do it, right? Right, right, right?"

So Gao Hai grinned and said to Alice in a very cheerful manner.

[Huh?! Why would the teacher say something like that, and even imitate Alice's tone?! Are you really a teacher? Have you been possessed by something? Or has your brain finally gone mad because of your previous fusion with Alice?!]

For the first time, Gao Hai heard Alice's somewhat flustered voice. She clearly hadn't expected Gao Hai to respond to her in this way, and for a moment she even lost her original composed demeanor.

"Don't try to change the subject, my lovely Miss Alice. Are you really unable to do it? If Alice can't do it, then I can only sigh and give up. But it's okay, I forgive you, Alice. After all, you're just a child with no real ability. Isn't it normal for children to have things they can't do? Alright, alright, Alice, you don't need to try anymore. Now, leave it to your teacher, who is an adult."

However, Gao Hai, already quite composed, didn't give Alice a chance to adjust her thoughts. He immediately launched into a barrage of sarcastic remarks, deliberately mimicking Alice's tone. As a result, Alice fell into a brief silence after he finished speaking, unable to respond to Gao Hai's words for several seconds.

We can already see Ghost Lake ahead.

On the deserted country road, where no villagers or players passed by, the still lake seemed to be waiting for Gao Hai to arrive, without the slightest ripple.

I did not sense the presence of blood flowers.

After the rollback, the Mountain God's state was also reverted. Although it couldn't be completely reverted because it was a deity, at least the seal on the Blood Flower was temporarily restored, so it would still need some time to break free.

Gao Hai knew that his time was running out. If the seal were broken even slightly, the Blood Flower would unleash its full power, relentlessly capturing him once more. This time, that being would give Gao Hai no chance to resist, just as Gao Hai would fight with all his might to prevent the other from capturing him again.

Jump up.

It fell into the water.

Having activated the Blessing of Nothingness and the Blessing of Berserk, Gao Hai crashed down like a torpedo, reaching the bottom of the lake at incredible speed, arriving at the location of the flesh and stone statue.

The four key items that were the core of their obsession had already been marked by the black watch, so after the rollback, they were directly put into Gao Hai's possession.

So Gao Hai, who had sunk to the bottom of the lake, didn't even bother to surface. He rushed straight to the statue, placed the four core objects of his obsession on it, and reopened the passage to the divine relics.

hum-

The power that surged up in an instant briefly caused the lake, which had become incomplete due to the curse, to start flowing again, temporarily restoring the still water to its complete and normal properties.

Gao Hai reached out and slipped his hand into the open door, touching that [essence] once again.

Such a captivating, such a powerful force.

There is no pollution or curse in it, only the sincere blessing of the gods to mankind, a power that can be used without any scruples.

Gao Hai knew that if he wanted to, he could first absorb a portion of the power of the [Essence], then, after his rank increased, directly break through the spatial barrier between the instance and the real world, and then fly away from Earth, find a place to settle down and absorb the remaining [Essence]. After that, he could fly around the entire universe, and even try to break the boundaries between universes to play in other universes.

After all, this is true divine power. Once I obtain this power, I can do whatever I want. What does the decline of a civilization on a mere planet have to do with me? To put it bluntly, I'm not even a native of this world. Why should I sacrifice myself for them or give up what belongs to me?

Ha, if I hadn't met Maki and the others, maybe I really would have thought that way? No, not necessarily. Even if I hadn't met the girl I loved, I probably wouldn't have been able to leave after witnessing the sacrifices of Lin Xusheng, Howard, and Hirano Sosuke, right? So, does that mean I'm actually a kind-hearted person? Tsk, that sounds really disgusting.

A few scattered thoughts did not interfere with Gao Hai's actions.

He did not absorb this "essence," but merely took it out, holding this power in his hand, preparing to leave.

[The teacher seems to have different plans. It seems the previous failure has given her a different perspective. Could you talk to Alice about it?]

Alice's voice suddenly rang out again in my mind.

It seems that this brat is planning to skip the previous topic after being choked up, which is somewhat similar to her original source.

You haven't comforted me yet. I won't say anything until I've comforted my wounded heart.

So Gao Hai solemnly replied to Alice and focused his energy on feeling this power, starting to think about how to complete the plan in his heart.

[Oh no! So the teacher is the type who forces students to do things they don't like, and then gloats after seeing the students' pained expressions? That's awful! Is the teacher really that bad? Alice's heart is severely damaged!]

Unexpectedly, Gao Hai persisted with the previous topic, and Alice's voice carried a slight hint of panic. Gao Hai felt a certain pleasure at this, but before he could press his advantage, Alice's voice suddenly changed.

"Then, teacher, please focus on what you are doing and listen to what Alice wants to tell you."

Alice undoubtedly loved her teacher because she knew that it was through the teacher's countless battles, fought with her wounds and scars, that everyone had a future. Even though most people in the world will never know the teacher's contributions, there is no doubt that it is the teacher's sacrifice that allows the world to bask in the sunshine of tomorrow.

Alice likes this kind of teacher, a teacher who says she doesn't want to be a good person, but still takes on the responsibility and continues to move forward after accepting the gifts of the deceased predecessors, striving to ensure that everyone can live well.

Alice knows everything about her teacher because she was created from his memories. Even though Alice's origins contain many painful memories of her teacher, it is precisely because of this that Alice can more deeply understand his pain and sacrifice, and what he has truly gone through. Therefore, Alice will always watch over her teacher and always bless him. Alice believes that in this world where true supernatural powers exist, her teacher possesses the most powerful power imaginable. And that power is the power to bring happiness, because her teacher has already saved Eriko, has already saved many unfortunate people, and will save even more people in the future, right?

So Alice wants her teacher to know that she is truly strong and amazing. These words are not meant to be mischievous; they are simply Alice's sincere words, born from her teacher's pain and will. So listen carefully, teacher, you are truly wonderful; teacher, thank you so much; and lastly, teacher, you have truly, truly worked so hard all this time.

Without needing any special method of judgment, Gao Hai could tell whether "Alice's" words were true or false.

As she herself said, this personality template, born from the combination of Gao Hai's spirit and the power of the mountain god, was essentially born through Gao Hai's power. Therefore, Gao Hai didn't need any special power to know whether she had lied to him or whether what she said to him was true.

What are you doing...

The Alice I imagined wasn't like this at all.

Moreover, these words, spoken while addressing me as "teacher," are essentially just comforting me as if I were a child.

I'm not a fragile person, so don't underestimate me!

Thank you, Alice, thank you for saying these things to me; these are my true feelings.

After speaking those words to Alice through mental connection, Gao Hai regained his focus.

hum-

Concentrating his mind, Gao Hai successfully grasped a portion of this power without absorbing the [Essence]. With the boost to his status brought by the Root Form he had already absorbed, Gao Hai gained a deeper understanding of the fundamental rules of divine power, achieving an increase in his ascension without absorbing any other power.

However, that's not enough.

Gao Hai could vaguely sense that this was not enough to achieve his goal.

Tsk, in that case, what should I do? Do I still need to absorb a portion of the "essence"? But with my current power level, controlling the absorption rate isn't easy. What if there's not enough left in the end...?

[Hehehe, the teacher actually thanked Alice so solemnly, Alice is going to get proud!]

As he pondered, Alice's voice continued to echo, but Gao Hai was too preoccupied to pay attention to what she was saying. The Blood Flower could break free of its seal at any moment and force itself upon him; in this race against time, he simply couldn't spare any attention.

Now that the Li family is gone, and there's no rule to counteract it, let Alice tell the teacher some very, very important information.

Teacher, have you searched for the Root Form within this instance?

[Up until now, the origin of the entity within this instance remains unexplained. Who is it? Now that the cause, process, and outcome of everything are basically clear, teacher, have you noticed that there is still something unknown that you haven't paid attention to?]

But the next moment, as Alice deliberately manipulated her tone, Gao Hai felt something pressing in and had no choice but to look away.

Something has appeared.

After Gao Hai became the de facto only "believer of the mountain god," Alice's authority was elevated to the highest level. Therefore, she was able to mobilize a portion of the mountain god's residual power and bring something that Gao Hai would not normally see here to him.

when!

Even though he was underwater, Gao Hai still heard a loud clapper sound.

Even though he had already taken the other party's clapper, Gao Hai still heard the sound of the clapper when it reappeared.

Go to bed early and wake up early, take care of your health!

Then, the other party's aged voice, like a sigh, rang out in a melodious tone, as if an old man were reminiscing about the past.

Human nature is unpredictable; alas, greed is hard to change!

Those who still want to enter the village at the crack of dawn, all your enthusiasm is probably just going to be wasted in that cesspool!

[They shout prayers for divine protection, but in their hearts they only care about their own pleasure. The rooster with its head held high can't see the road ahead, and if it falls, it will be slaughtered. The rabbit that runs into the hole refuses to choose sides, so it will only be killed by its ears and eaten as a snack.]

But this wolf, who thought he had won in the end, ultimately outsmarted himself and ended up as a watchdog with its neck tightly leashed. So you passersby, don't wade into this muddy water; choose another path.

With each recitation, the figure slowly walked towards Gao Hai and stood before him.

Gao Hai turned around, his gaze fixed on the other's body, which was entwined with blood-red vines.

Night watchman.

Bringing them here by the power of Alice and the power of the mountain god was none other than the night watchman. This strange creature, whose origins have never been found and whose presence in the dungeon is not very prominent, is directly and strongly connected to the Blood Flower, the deepest sealed object.

Unlike Liu Family Village, which eventually disappeared from the real world and was devoured by the blood flower, the night watchman, even though he had been devoured by the power of the blood flower, was still able to walk through the village as a strange creature and still possessed his own unique strange creature aura.

This was unusual, but Gao Hai, having not seen the night watchman again, hadn't considered the strangeness of the creature. After all, compared to the Li family's anthropomorphic beings and the blood flower that constantly threatened everyone's lives, the night watchman's presence was incredibly insignificant. In a time when time was of the essence and action was urgent, Gao Hai simply couldn't include this strange and dangerous creature in his investigation.

Sometimes, danger and safety are mutually transformable, even mutually inclusive. Although the teacher is very intelligent, it's normal for them to be unaware of certain things when they're in the thick of it. But Alice likes the teacher very much, so let Alice help the teacher this time! Hehe, remember to praise Alice well!

Gao Hai didn't pay attention to the laughter in the thought connection.

He simply stepped forward and walked up to the night watchman.