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

Because behind that open door, all the three players could see was a wall. It was a brick wall that blocked all the gaps behind the door, leaving no space at all. The light that should have shone through the cracks in the door was naturally impossible to find, and thus it all disappeared.

Is it a dead end?

The scene that appeared after opening the door was not unexpected for Xiong Mi. The exploration had just begun, and it was understandable that he encountered a dead end. He could just move to another place to continue his investigation.

However, there are no more clues here at the moment. If we want to find another way out, we will probably have to go back to the subway car we visited before.

As he was thinking this, Shao Ye in front of him did not leave. Instead, he reached out and pressed his hand against the brick wall, slowly running his fingers, which were covered with burn scars, across the wall and stopping at a not-so-obvious uneven spot.

Then, Shao Ye grabbed the uneven spot, grasped the air that seemed to be empty, and gently twisted it, and the sound of a key opening a door rang out.

Click—click—

The lawyer looked down and saw a shadow on the floor collapse, revealing a bottomless hole.

He felt a chill, as it slowly crawled out of the cave.

Chapter Ten: The Uninhabited Shelter and the Black Pit Leading to the Unknown, and the Marks of Erosion.

Where did this hole come from?

Cat Brother squatted down, staring at the dark pit that had appeared on the ground with great confusion.

Splash—splash—

The torrential rain showed no signs of abating, yet there was absolutely no indication that the area around the black pit had been flooded. The streams of water flowing through the streets seemed to completely bypass the pit, flowing right around it.

So, what exactly is this thing?

Cat Brother wanted to reach out and touch it, but considering the eerie aura emanating from it, he ultimately didn't actually do it. Instead, he took out a ghost money bill, folded it into a paper airplane, and threw it into the dark hole.

"..."

I can no longer feel the paper airplane I threw.

With his eyes closed, Cat Brother carefully sensed the situation for a while. Only after confirming that there was truly no response did he open his eyes with a solemn expression and cautiously back a distance.

Unlike ordinary obsession objects, blood-stained paper money can bind to the user's soul, similar to Xiong Mi's bronze eyes, possessing unique characteristics. For such an item to completely lose its connection, the situation on the other side of the large hole is likely quite dire. To put it bluntly, there might be multiple Red Moon-level core obsessions or Abyss-level monsters waiting on the other side.

So what exactly is going on? Everything was fine before, so how did this thing suddenly appear?

"Jianbing, how's it going on your end?"

Sensing something was wrong, Cat didn't dare to act rashly. He remained vigilant while contacting his teammates.

"The situation is bad. There is no trace of survivors. Everyone has disappeared. However, my obsession object did not detect any signs of death, so on the bright side, at least those people were still alive when they disappeared."

Jianbing's voice came through mental communication, while he himself was standing on the second basement level of a building not far away, in an area that should have been used as a shelter.

A few minutes earlier, Cat and Jianbing received a call from command center during their operation, informing them that a nearby shelter had suddenly gone missing. They rushed over to investigate. Cat was responsible for scouting the outside, while Jianbing ventured deep into the camp. They discovered that the shelter was completely deserted; the entire camp was empty, and the thousands of people previously recorded were nowhere to be found. Furthermore, strange craters were discovered both inside and outside the shelter.

"I found three holes here, one on the wall of the second basement level and two on the floor of the third basement level. These holes look like they've been opened in the walls and the floor, but after trying to disrupt the surrounding structure, I discovered that they actually appeared directly on the spatial layer. They are cracks fixed in space itself and do not interact with the surrounding entities. I tried to analyze them using my [Reality Interference Program], but so far it hasn't worked. This means that this thing is at least a Red Moon Core level existence."

As Jianbing spoke over the phone, he casually kicked a piece of rubble on the ground. In front of him, a wall had been completely smashed, and the black hole that had stood on the wall remained suspended in mid-air, floating silently even after the surrounding walls were destroyed.

In Jianbing's hands, his Red Moon-level obsession, known as the "Reality Interference Program," was a slightly old-looking laptop. At this moment, red error signals were constantly refreshing on the screen, and long passages of various programming languages ​​that were completely incomprehensible were being generated on rows of small interfaces.

Similar to Cat Brother's blood-stained paper money, Jianbing's [Reality Interference Program] is also a powerful object of obsession capable of altering the surrounding reality according to the user's thoughts. However, unlike Cat Brother's, this object of obsession requires analysis of the surrounding situation before use, and its operation relies on a unique, independent programming language completely incompatible with other computer programs. Therefore, among the entire Slacking Off Gang, only Jianbing has learned to use this object of obsession after a long period of research, to the point that it has become his personal possession.

Of course, besides this, there is also an ancient Tang sword that is Jianbing's personal obsession, but he rarely takes it out under normal circumstances.

"Let's seal off this area for now. There are only two of us, and if the situation here isn't handled properly, I suspect things could get much worse. Our main force isn't here right now, so let's stall for time. Report the situation here first."

During the communication, after a brief moment of thought, Cat decided to temporarily leave it as it was and not attempt to take any action.

"What if the enemy really develops methods to attack the shelter?"

Jianbing was still somewhat hesitant. He had a general idea of ​​what it meant when a closed shelter was attacked without any warning, and he couldn't hide his unease for a moment.

"We'll meet force with force and water with earth. No matter what kind of tricks they use, there will always be a way to counter them. The problem now is that there are only two of us on our side, which makes it difficult to deal with this thing. If another person is lost, it will be a big problem."

Cat Brother sighed. By this time, he had used the infinite self-replication ability of the blood paper money to set up a cordon around the big pit in the street, which could be regarded as a warning to the survivors and players who might pass by.

"Perhaps the other side is connected to some other instance? The enemy's power cannot escape its own nature."

Knowing that the two of them couldn't do anything about the pit for the time being, Jianbing inside had no choice but to turn around and leave. However, he still seemed unwilling to give up and was trying to analyze the situation.

"Yes, but it's also possible that we've fallen right into the meat grinder's inlet. Don't forget that our opponent this time is a thinking and rational being, and we're only relying on two people... Oh, this is just a godsend. We can try investigating this thing."

Cat Brother's voice changed from helpless to excited in a very short time.

"What happened outside?"

Sensing the drastic change in Cat Brother's emotions, Jianbing, who was momentarily confused about what had happened, thought there was danger. He quickly pressed a few keys on his computer and instantly returned to Cat Brother's side from inside the building. He then saw two figures emerging from the rain.

It turned out to be them.

The initial wariness quickly subsided after his identity was confirmed, and a somewhat unnatural smile appeared on Jianbing's face.

"We've been assigned to the same place, huh? That's rare. Does that mean we can slack off for a while?"

A short, stout young man emerged from the rain and remarked with emotion.

"Don't always think about slacking off. There's no such thing as a free lunch. Ah, good evening, both of you, especially this biscuit guy. We meet again."

The young woman beside the fat man sighed to her companion, then quickly turned her gaze to Cat Brother and Jianbing, who were waiting not far away, and waved to them with a sincere smile.

The Crimson Moon-level player group, Crimson Guild, consists of members Kenta Hayashibe and Ren Nanakawa.

Jianbing still remembers the preparations everyone made together to conquer Yelu Mountain Middle School. To ensure cooperation between them, the players had already conducted a certain degree of cooperation training before the dungeon started. Jianbing and the two from the Red Society had established a fairly good friendship.

Of course, upon entering the instance afterward, Mr. Gao Hai immediately declared that everything was up to him, and everyone, without understanding anything, soon discovered that the instance had been successfully solved and they could return home. It's fair to say that the bewilderment felt by both Jianbing and the Red Society members was exactly the same; no one could remain calm under such circumstances. Of course, Sister Xiong Mi clearly knew something, but she didn't say anything, and Jianbing didn't ask, even actively restraining himself from thinking about the situation. Only now, with Gao Hai becoming a near-godlike figure, has he belatedly realized some of the issues.

"Looks like it's just the two of you left?"

Upon seeing the situation of the two, Cat Brother guessed that the main force of the Red Guild must have already entered the instance, leaving only these two to act outside.

"Yeah, yeah, they said that we two survived when the group was almost wiped out, so this time we two are also responsible for guarding the Red Knot Society's banner outside, and if the group is wiped out again, we two will be the ones to reorganize it. It's a joke that's not funny at all. I don't understand what those people are thinking. It's exhausting to have such a big responsibility on my shoulders."

Kenta Hayashi sighed heavily. He was noticeably fatter than a month ago, and he patted his head a few times, his face filled with dejection.

"I thought at least the vice-captain would stay with us, but it turns out only the two of us stayed. So it's the same here? Um, aren't you going to introduce him to us, Jianbing? The guy next to you looks like he's no ordinary person."

Nanakawa Ren glanced at Hayashibe Kenta, who was radiating negative energy again, then smiled amicably at the two players from the "Slacking Off Gang" and showed a hint of curiosity about Cat Brother.

"Just call me Cat Bro."

Seeing that Jianbing was really going to give a proper introduction, Cat Brother quickly waved his hand and said.

"Oh, could it be that you are the Northern and Southern Cat King, known in the martial arts world as the Blood Paper Butcher, who can pluck heads off with a flick of his ghost money?"

Lin Bu Kenta, who was initially a little distracted, suddenly perked up. As a Japanese person, he spoke a string of Chinese with a strong regional accent, which immediately made Cat Brother, who was trying to change the subject, stiffen up and his toes slightly dug into the floor.

"Last time it was Cat Master, and this time it's the Cat King of the North and South? Who's just randomly coming up with these nicknames? Why don't other Red Moon level players get these nicknames out of nowhere?"

Cat sighed deeply, rubbed his forehead, and spoke with obvious weariness.

"It's probably because other people's obsession items aren't as cool as blood-stained paper money, making it difficult to perform actions like plucking flowers or leaves. But that's not something we need to worry about right now. Anyway, Cat Bro, with these two joining us, I think we can try to investigate this black void properly, right?"

While fiddling with his obsessive computer, Jianbing couldn't resist teasing his companion.

It was at this moment, perhaps due to the increased number of companions bringing about some change, that Jianbing noticed a few readable items had appeared in the previously completely unreadable information sections. Although this didn't mean that the obsessive object had actually produced any crucial clues, it at least indicated that their current actions might not necessarily fail and had begun to have the possibility of success.

"Neither of us are in command, so we can follow the orders of the 'Slacker Gang'."

Nanakawa Ren, who was very aware of his own strength, immediately spoke up, and Hayashibe Kenta nodded repeatedly.

"In that case, please come along."

Having said that, Cat Brother naturally couldn't stick to his previous decision.

After discussing the matter on the dark, rain-soaked streets, the four formed a temporary team and returned to the underground shelter, once again finding the area now deserted.

However, it seems that in just a few short minutes, before the group had even truly left the neighborhood, some unknown change occurred, and an unexpected situation quietly unfolded.

Was there a fourth basement level here before?

Standing at the entrance to the third basement level, Cat Brother frowned, looking down at the brightly lit and noisy area below. He gently twirled several blood-stained, purplish-black ghost money notes in his hand.

"Not within the calculation range. This just appeared, probably within 10 seconds. A strong eerie signal has been detected. I suggest we probe cautiously first..."

Jianbing, who was standing next to him, also had a serious expression. After fiddling with the computer for a while, he finally spoke up in a low voice to offer his suggestion.

"No need to test it anymore. What follows is an invasion of the real world by the dungeon world, and it's at least a Red Moon level dungeon."

But before Jianbing could finish speaking, Cat Bro interrupted him and said five words to Jianbing in their private mental link.

[Check the shared backpacks]

This seemingly random sentence clearly wasn't enough for Jianbing to immediately understand the situation.

He certainly knew what the [Shared Backpack] was. It was a special spatial item that the Slacker Gang had brought out during this operation, allowing a team to use the same spatial items stored in the same spatial prop when they were not far apart.

Previously, the five-person team worked together, coordinating well when retrieving items, demonstrating considerable teamwork. Now, with the team split into three-person and two-person teams, the shared backpack has been divided into two parts, making them temporarily incompatible—which is understandable. After all, one group has already entered the dungeon world, and the two groups are no longer in the same space, so backpack incompatibility is perfectly normal. If that's all there is to it, then… um…?

Jianbing's eyes widened suddenly.

They sensed the aura of the obsession belonging to Xiongmi's team, and the part of the backpack that was previously unusable was now unlocked.

Has the spatial barrier been broken? Are they in the same space again?

No, that's not right, this situation...

"The instance world is directly connected to the real world."

Finally understanding what had happened, Jianbing revealed the current reality in a low voice.

Chapter Eleven: The Monsters Drawn In and the Intricate Investigators.

Gao Hai closed his eyes.

His body leaned back slightly, as if he were sleeping peacefully on the throne of thought.

He was silent, motionless, even his breathing stopped at that moment, as if he had become a cold corpse.

Tick-tick-tick-

Turbid, foul blood flowed down from the machine that pierced Gao Hai's body, running down the steps and through the black space.

At some point, the ground of this underground space was completely covered in blood red. Anyone who came here would be shocked and would shrink back in awe at the terrifying aura emanating from the scarlet color that permeated the entire space.

However, this kind of thing is meaningless to Gao Hai himself.

He simply kept his eyes closed, sitting silently on the throne, maintaining this posture as if he were asleep.