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

What I need to do now is to beat and subdue all the strange monsters present, and find a way to bring Sister Qingshan to Mr. Gao so that he can take action.

"I'm sorry, Nanami-nee, it might hurt a little afterward. But since you're my senior, I'm sure you'd be willing to understand the difficulties your junior might face, right?"

As Kita spoke, he stepped forward once again to meet the enemy. Immediately afterward, a terrifying howl resounded in the distorted space. One after another, buildings haunted by strange creatures were torn apart, crushed, and shattered. The edge space, which originally presented a dark and bizarre atmosphere, was gradually demolished into ruins of all sizes.

Miko Yotsuya, who was located beneath the massive wall of flesh and blood, heard the commotion clearly. However, due to the distance and her deliberate suppression of her senses, she was unaware of the scene unfolding there, only worried about whether the other players were in danger.

"Is this level of destruction at the Red Moon Core level? Or the Abyss Domain level? Hmm, has the enemy started deploying forces of this level? Is it because two nodes have been destroyed, causing them to become increasingly frenzied? If so... then I must speed things up as well."

Muttering to herself, the girl turned to look at the giant wall of twisted flesh and blood in front of her, and without hesitation, took a step forward and slowly walked towards it.

【■■■■■……】

I heard those disordered whispers.

【■■■……■■……】

Those lingering, painful sounds belonging to the dead.

Although the specific content was unclear, there was no way to identify any meaningful sounds.

But for Miko, simply feeling these sounds of pain was enough for her to glimpse into those deeper things.

I can feel it.

That's right, it's not just a wall made of the blood and flesh of the dead.

And then there are the gaps left in the spatial rules after those two nodes were liberated, and the flesh and blood that only I can see merging together, connected to those gaps, and the power that sustains the flesh and blood.

Jianzi closed his eyes.

She took a step forward, a step towards the place that should have been covered in twisted flesh.

Nothing was touched.

Those things that should have stopped the girl from moving forward, those things that should have polluted her consciousness and body, shrank and disappeared on their own as Miko took a step, making way for an empty space.

Jianzi simply continued walking forward, step by step, delving deeper into the darkness behind the wall as the flesh and blood receded on their own, until she disappeared into the chaotic city on the outskirts of the outer space.

Chapter 42: Three "Doctors" in the Depths of Darkness and the One Who Touched the Boundary

tread--

In the darkness, only the sound of my own footsteps was clear and distinct.

step-step-

Step by step, they moved forward in this world where there was no light at all.

Yotsuya Miko kept her eyes closed the whole time, without opening them to look around or observe the dense darkness around her.

She could hear cries and howls coming from all around her, and whispers that gradually became clearer, one after another overlapping, as if they were living things drilling into her mind.

pain.

The pain of being tormented by illness, the pain of being tormented by natural disasters and man-made calamities, the pain of being tormented by inner wounds.

There will always be unfortunate people in this world, won't there?

Whether one is born with an incurable serious illness, is diagnosed with a severe disease when life is at its peak, suffers a misfortune like a car accident or fire that leaves one disabled, crippled, or disfigured, or contracts a terrible, strange disease in old age, the world is full of strange and varied illnesses. To be afflicted with even one is a major misfortune, yet how many people can truly escape them? And who doesn't have a few sick family members?

Even without actual illness, being born into poverty and lacking the ability to change one's life means a life of mediocrity at the bottom, doing manual labor, marrying a partner perhaps introduced by an acquaintance, a partner one doesn't even know if they love, and then continuing to toil for their children's future. This life, devoid of any ups and downs, a path from youth to old age, isn't that also a kind of illness, a kind of suffering? People always feel resentful, always suffer for circumstances they cannot change. Who in this world doesn't want to be rich, who doesn't want true love, who doesn't want a life envied by others? Yet, in the end, the vast majority live in a daze, and that, too, is a kind of illness, isn't it?

Of course, even without any illness, even if life is passable, the human heart is always fragile. Whether it's the beatings and insults from incompetent parents, the bullying from teachers and classmates, or the pressures every adult faces upon entering society, very few people in this world have truly healthy hearts, right? Some people need to spend their entire lives healing from an unhappy past; some are always forced to face unbearable pressure, unable to escape even until they break down. This distorted and deformed heart, too, is a human disease, isn't it?

Yes, there are always all kinds of diseases in this world, and there are always many people suffering.

That's why hospitals exist, because people always hope to be treated and cured, and hospitals embody that very desire.

The question is, what methods should be used to cure all these different kinds of diseases?

tread--

Seeing that Zi had stopped walking.

How can we cure everyone's illnesses and eliminate all diseases from the world?

Why not just kill them all?

A voice echoed from the depths of darkness, replying with a hint of amusement.

Once everyone dies, naturally no one will get sick.

Ultimately, aren't these illnesses just unnecessary worries and self-inflicted suffering? If you're sick, just die already. Why struggle and continue to live in pain? That's what's truly sick.

[We should kill everyone. Once there's no one left alive in the world, the disease will naturally disappear.]

The distorted voice carried a hint of cynicism, yet the words it uttered sent chills down Miko's spine.

Regardless of what is speaking, one thing is certain: it is serious and truly intends to wipe out all of humanity.

Does this voice... these words represent the hospital's stance?

That's just running away from pain; such a choice only makes people laugh.

As Jianzi was deep in thought, a second voice rang out in the darkness. This voice was extremely serious, yet its tone carried an undisguised fervor.

Treating disease only addresses the symptoms; what we should truly do is seek the root cause and teach humanity to accept disease.

People get sick constantly and new diseases will never stop emerging, so no matter how many times you treat them, it's meaningless. Therefore, treating diseases is a mistake from the start. Accepting diseases and seeing them correctly as part of yourself is the true cure.

[Let everyone in this world be afflicted with an incurable disease, let everyone be trapped in an unchangeable predicament, and twist their hearts, leaving them forever in suffering from which there is no escape.]

In this way, humanity will be forever united with suffering, disease, and pain, becoming one with them, and thus we will cure humanity's disease.

Accompanied by a strong smell of blood, the speaker's tone became increasingly fanatical and insane.

Jianzi even had a strange feeling that the person speaking was actually harming himself while speaking, and even the sound of him tearing and cutting off his own skin and flesh was mixed in with his voice.

If everyone in the world is plunged into suffering, it is as if there is no more suffering.

What kind of insanity is this? How can such terrifying people exist?!

[You've either given up on yourself or ended it all; you've simply rejected the option of "completely curing your pain," giving up on it first.]

A third voice, gentle as a breeze, rose from the darkness.

If the first voice felt like something twisted and terrifying like a clown to Miko, and the second voice was like a fanatical believer, then this third voice gave Miko the feeling of encountering a kind person in a suit and tie, sunny and gentle.

Of course, she wouldn't be foolish enough to believe this feeling. Even before the other party had stated their opinion, Jianzi had already concluded that this thing, like the owners of the previous two voices, must also be a very heavyweight madman.

People always want to avoid pain, so why not give them happiness?

Those who yearn for a smooth life, let them dream of a life of uninterrupted success; those who yearn to be free from illness, let them dream of good health; those who yearn to achieve their goals, let them dream of great success. As long as they do not feel pain, that is enough.

Is there anything wrong with a dream world? Is something fake necessarily worse than something real? I don't think so. As long as everyone lives in a fake world, the fake can become real, and suffering can naturally be completely healed.

It's as if you can really see such a sunny figure, with a bright and gentle smile, softly uttering firm words.

The three voices intertwined, clashed, merged, and separated, continuing their incessant chatter.

Seeing that Zi understood.

After passing through this wall of flesh and blood, penetrating deep into the realm of the "hospital," and perceiving those distorted sounds, she was able to understand everything within it.

They are [doctors].

They are [hospitals].

Intertwined at the root of the "hospital" are these three different tendencies, three different choices, and three different doctors.

A doctor believed that suffering had no end, and that only death could end everything, so his treatment plan was to kill all living people.

One doctor believed that suffering should not be feared and that all misfortune should be accepted, so his treatment plan was to bring endless pain and torment to everyone.

One doctor believed that suffering didn't need to be faced; a deceptive approach was sufficient. Therefore, his treatment involved immersing people in illusory dreams.

Above these three distinct wills lies the true core of the hospital. Or rather, the outward manifestation of that core is these three incompletely divided wills, which represent the distortion at the true root of the hospital itself.

The three doctors are a surgeon, an internist, and a psychologist, but Miko isn't quite sure which doctrine each doctor represents. The only thing she's certain of is that the hospital's external practices seem to blend these three approaches.

Because all three different "treatment plans" are approved by the hospital itself, the hospital will ultimately kill the innocent victim and inflict endless torment and pain on the victim before the victim dies completely, while at the same time possibly giving the victim a kind of illusion that gives them a false sense of happiness.

Judging from this wall of flesh and blood, Jianzi felt that the "treatment plan" of inflicting pain had taken the lead. After all, she had heard too many restless souls' screams and wails along the way, and forgetting those scenes was not easy.

"..."

Yotsuya Miko stood motionless in place, remaining silent as she continued to listen to the distorted sounds intertwining in her ears.

She only started to move forward again after she vaguely sensed the presence of the voice fading and confirmed that those who had been using the sound to spy on the area were diverting their attention to her, the intruder.

This time, she opened her eyes.

The next moment, what appeared before her was a mass of flesh and blood piled up from all directions, with limbs writhing within the flesh and blood, wailing mouths, and tearful eyes.

All the cries and despair assaulted the girl's senses in an even more intense and frantic way.

However, Yotsuya Miko remained calm and did not have her mind shattered as she had in the past. She firmly maintained the stability of her own will.

This level of spiritual erosion was no longer enough to sway Jianzi.

After experiencing growth through several dungeons, receiving multiple blessings, and finally obtaining divine blessings, her power far surpasses that of her predecessors. Now, even when traversing such a distorted place, she can pass through safely without a single leaf touching her.

It's just ahead.

Although the exact distance is not yet certain, Jianzi can already sense that the end of this path of flesh and blood is not far away.

The reason I saw those things earlier was probably due to the sheer number of victims contained within that massive wall of flesh and blood. After all, those three "doctors" must have acted in front of each victim more than once, and the fragmented impressions left behind, accumulated with the corpses, naturally reflected information related to those three "doctors." As for what level of perception would be needed to forcefully find clues from this pile of corpses, that's not a question I need to explain.

Tap tap—tap—

The girl's steps continued forward.

The surrounding flesh and blood shrank and shifted as she moved, making way for her.

Even as they struggled, tore, and wriggled, the filthy blood still couldn't fall on Miko's body, and the deformed flesh still couldn't touch her; they could only retreat helplessly.

It seems that because the cries could not elicit a corresponding emotional response from Miko, the power of the blood wall itself could not truly stop Miko after the influence was isolated. It could only be forced to split open a path for her as she moved forward.

Keep going.

They continued to advance deeper into the darkness.

Seeing that he can be certain that he will arrive at the location of the [node], he can be sure that he will arrive at the location of the [node].

She wasn't acting recklessly; she entered this wall of flesh and blood knowing her destination. She even had a guide, though perhaps not entirely accurate: a tattered notebook she had possessed since entering this edge of space.