Rules of the Strange: I Became a God in a Bizarre World Through Taoist Arts

"I can help you find this method, as long as..."

Gregor's words caught in his throat before he could finish.

Shen Xingzhuo looked at him with amusement, and spoke extremely cold words from her 37° mouth.

I don't trust you.

He was completely stunned. What were they talking about?

Shen Xingzhuo noticed his vulnerability but didn't care.

She just wanted to use the sixth rule of customer rules to get some information and then obtain the transformation potion.

After all, Guest Rules Part Two is already quite clear—

Don't try to find close friends here.

Isn't this blatantly telling her that no one here, except herself, is trustworthy?

As for the rest...

Shen Xingzhu thought for a moment and then asked one last question.

"As a hotel guest, could you tell me the full contents of the guest rules?"

She had barely uttered the words when the ghostly voices began to appear.

[Congratulations, Chosen One, for triggering the hidden quest: The Rules of Disappearance.]

In the ghost story "The Thorn Hotel: Sleepless Nights," countless vanished rules exist. Some are hidden within the hotel, others in unknown locations. The chosen one is now tasked with exploring the map and completing the missing rules within two days.

[Upon success, the chosen one will gain the means to permanently transform into human form.]

But what if we fail...?

The strange tale paused for a moment, and Shen Xingzhuo sensed a deep-seated malice.

The Chosen Ones will be eliminated!

Shen Xingzhuo was amused by the strange tale once again.

Even after ten days apart, it still desperately wanted to kill her.

[Friendly reminder: Please remember that you are a pig!]

You are a pig! You are a pig! You are a pig!

This will greatly help you avoid danger!

Shen Xingzhuo: ...I suspect it's cursing at me, and I have evidence!

She rolled her eyes speechlessly, but still wrote the sentence down.

It seems that the shortcut of "asking directly" is not an option.

Before dawn, Shen Xingzhu quickly brainstormed a few ideas.

The difficulty of the hidden missions has been significantly increased. The missions are not as simple and straightforward as those in B-rank ghost stories. Even the mission descriptions are full of traps for her.

It says that there are countless disappearing rules in the ghost stories, so how many rules are there exactly?

Without a clear number, it's like there's a bottomless pit in front of you.

If she has even the slightest wavering in her mind, she will miss important information due to anxiety.

Secondly, the different locations where the rules are hidden suggest that this strange tale exists in places other than the hotel.

It didn't mention how many such locations there were, only saying that the map needed to be explored.

This leads to a hidden quest within a hidden quest—where is the map?

Once these points are clarified, we can understand how many steps are involved in the entire "Disappearing Rules" task.

The first step is to find a map;

The second step is to find all the explicit rules (i.e., the second and third rules of the Thorn Inn).

The third step is to identify the possible locations and number of disappearing rules;

The fourth step is to complete the rules after verification.

Shen Xingzhuo pressed her throbbing temples and took a deep breath.

Unexpectedly, he was choked by Gregor's breath next to him and almost coughed up his lungs.

Shen Xingzhuo couldn't help but let out a few pig-like squeals.

The next second, I felt everyone's eyes were on me.

Perhaps these gazes were too intense, making her acutely aware of different emotions such as jealousy, resentment, and pain.

Are these emotions appropriate to be directed at a pig?

Shen Xingzhu shook his head firmly.

But... the ghost story had previously reminded her to always remember that she was a pig...

What's the point of this anyway?

"Creak..."

The grating sound of footsteps crushing the wooden planks echoed once more from the stairwell.

It sounded like two people's footsteps, one in front of the other, moving slowly and sluggishly downhill.

Immediately afterwards, a hoarse voice drifted from the direction of the stairs...

"It's...almost dawn..."

"A sleepless night, a night of murder..."

"Whenever the crows sing, the thorns come in a frenzy to kill."

"Tonight, there are only 11 distinguished guests left."

The cawing of crows rang out from outside the window, crystal clear in the deathly darkness.

The light suddenly turned on with a "pop".

"ah--!!!"

Jenny burst into a scream.

At her feet was a pool of bright red, glaring blood.

Following the trail of blood, one could see that the bard had died.

He lay there on his back, his hands tied behind his back to the chair, his expression terrified, and a short knife stuffed in his mouth.

His mouth was a bloody mess, and his tongue had probably been cut off.

Jenny collapsed to the ground, utterly distraught, muttering, "How could someone die... how could someone die again..."

again?

Shen Xingzhuo keenly caught the key words in her words.

Has someone died in this hotel before?

Who was that person who died? Did Jenny know him too?

Why is it such a coincidence that Jenny was always by someone's side when someone died?

Shen Xingzhuo suppressed his doubts and began to observe everyone's reactions.

Among them, Gregor, who was standing next to her, was the most excited.

However, judging from his previous behavior, Gregor should be someone who is very enthusiastic about death and the aesthetics of violence.

Plus, he'd been right beside me the whole time, and he's someone I can trust right now...

The suspect can be ruled out for the time being.

Then Shen Xingzhuo's gaze shifted to the king.

He remained arrogantly seated to the side; killing in the dark was not in his nature.

If it were him, he would probably yell, "Karl, cut his head off!"

As for Knight Karl...

He is the kind of person who only acts when he is ordered to.

There is currently no evidence of any conflict between him and Gregor, so the possibility of him committing murder is unlikely.

The princess is still lying in the crystal coffin; the dead cannot kill.

The voice just now said there are 11 distinguished guests left.

Shen Xingzhuo suddenly frowned and quickly counted the number of guests in his mind.

She is a pig, and even if she were to take human form now, she would still be a pig, so she can only be counted as one.

Then came Jenny, Gregor, the shopkeeper, little Lia, the King, the Princess, Karl, Charlotte, Piaopiao...

There are already 10 people.

Where is the 11th person?

Shen Xingzhuo suddenly felt goosebumps all over her body.

People are dead here, so why haven't Piaopiao and that mysterious person appeared yet?

Then, the hoarse voice reappeared.

"I apologize, I misspoke. There are only 10 distinguished guests left."

Shen Xingzhu frowned.

If you're going to make excuses for ghost stories, can't you at least make them more believable?

She turned her head to look at the stairwell, where there was no one.

Where did the footsteps come from?

An eerie silence fell over the entire hall.

The comments section was also buzzing with discussion.

[This is terrifying, everyone! I just counted, and there are already 10 people in the hall!!! How can someone eat and vomit in public like this? Does that mean the 11th person still exists?]

[Isn't Sister Shen skilled in Taoist magic? I've been cramming on Taoist knowledge these past few days; isn't it supposed to be able to exorcise ghosts?]

But is the eeriness considered ghostly or human-related?

[No, doesn't anyone remember that Sister Shen pulled a soul out of her own body before?]

【hiss……】

Shen Xingzhuo had also thought of what the comments on the screen had.

But she was the 11th person mentioned in the intuition tale, not that spirit.

I wonder if autopsies are even useful in the world of supernatural tales?

Shen Xingzhuo broke the silence first, writing down a suggestion: "How about we find out the cause of Byron's death first? I'll examine the body bit by bit, or would you like me to take a look?"

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone's eyes turned to him.

Shen Xingzhuo maintained a calm smile.

Then, contrary to his usual behavior, the king said, "Then why aren't you investigating? I order you to find out the cause of this poet's death."

Shen Xingzhuo raised an eyebrow.

When did this king become so protective of his people?

Or perhaps he was still thinking about the poems the bard had written and hoped to find clues to cure his daughter through them.

But none of that matters for now. What matters is that she has obtained permission from the person with the highest status in this hall.

Shen Xingzhuo quickly stepped forward.

There were no signs of external force on Byron's body...

The direction of the dagger he mentioned is wrong too! The hilt is facing outwards, and the blade is facing inwards—this is the orientation only seen in suicide!

She suddenly remembered the rules of ghost stories.

[A sleepless night is safe; once someone falls asleep... death will be permitted!]

Did Byron commit suicide?

Shen Xingzhuo found this extremely bizarre.

The shop owner, who had been huddled in the corner without making a sound, suddenly spoke.

His voice was hoarse from not speaking for so long. "Didn't you ever consider that this poet might have died of his own accord?"

Seeing everyone looking at him, he shrank further into the shadows, looking as timid as a mouse.

But Shen Xingzhuo doesn't think so.

He's incredibly daring.

How dare they pretend to be the owner of the Thorn Inn in full view of everyone!

He just rushed out from the inner room.

Shen Xingzhu was busy dealing with the king at the time and did not pay much attention to the man's strangeness.

But now, it just doesn't look right.

First of all, his apron was ill-fitting, looking loose and baggy, as if he had just pulled it over his head.

But if he were to carry it on his body like that, not only would he be exposed to kitchen grease, but if he wasn't wearing any other clothes underneath, he might be practically naked.

Secondly, his hands were too clean.

Given the current context she is in, there shouldn't be any cleaning product that can completely remove the grease and grime from the hands of someone who spends a lot of time in the kitchen.

His fingers were also slender, with no calluses on his joints, unlike someone who works all year round.

Finally, his eyes kept darting around.

Triangular eyes and slanted eyebrows are not good facial features.

Especially his two front teeth, they look just like a mouse!

Shen Xingzhuo quickly glanced at his Qi using the Qi Observation Technique; it was a mixture of black and red, shrouded in resentment…

So what happened just now wasn't a slip of the tongue by that strange voice from the ghost story at all.

But right now, there are really only 10 people left here!

The original shop owner is dead, so it should be confirmed that the person we see now was the one who did it.

What did he mean when he said Byron committed suicide?

Shen Xingzhuo didn't want to alert the enemy and silently suppressed his doubts.

But she knew she was determined to invade the shop owner's private space.

The king had by this point exhausted his patience.

His gaze then fell upon Byron.

"Karl, bury him." His tone carried a natural arrogance.

Knight Karl accepted the order once again.

Just as he was about to make a move, Jenny lunged forward and threw herself into Byron's arms.

She cried and pleaded, "Please don't take him away! He's very important!"

"He is very important to us!"

But Carl ignored her pleas and expressionlessly brushed aside her hand that was trying to stop him.

Charlotte walked over to Jenny and gently pulled her into her arms.

"Jenny, what's done is done. You need to learn to accept reality."

Jenny suddenly broke down, crying and blaming Charlotte.

"I'm not like you!"

"Unlike you, I can't always accept reality so quickly!"

Everyone present was stunned by these words.

Charlotte looked at her with a wry smile. "So, you think that way about me too?"

"No……"

Jenny wanted to explain, but Charlotte only showed her her back.

Shen Xingzhuo knew that there was still a story waiting for her to uncover in Jenny's unfinished sentence, "She used to be my best friend."

Carl took the opportunity to drag Byron away.

Bright red blood left a long trail on the ground.

Shen Xingzhuo looked over and saw a line of small words on Byron's collar, which had been pulled open.

"Hmph—"

She was about to speak up to stop them when she realized she couldn't make a normal human voice.

It must have been about 50 minutes since she entered the long hall.

Why can't he speak in less than an hour?

She had no time to think, because everyone's eyes were already on her.

She now has only two choices.

First, take advantage of the chaos to escape, hide back in the pigsty, and transform back into pig form;

Second, drink the second bottle of transformation potion.

But Gregor said that after drinking it, when he turned back into a pig, his animalistic nature would intensify.

She suddenly remembered how she had been affected by mental pollution before, and hesitated for a moment, which was quite unusual.

Shen Xingzhuo reluctantly admitted that she might not be able to avoid mental pollution and remain rational. Because of insufficient spiritual energy, she really couldn't maintain the Mind-Cleansing Mantra indefinitely.

However, there are still many things that need to be investigated.

She should at least seize the opportunity to stay overnight at the hotel.

Thinking of this, Shen Xinzhuo immediately turned his back and drank the second bottle of transformation potion without hesitation.

Try to be happy!

A joyful smile spread across her face as she exclaimed, "Finally, I've finished the last bottle of throat lozenges!"

After she finished speaking, she cleared her throat.

But at that moment, something strange happened.

The thorns that were originally outdoors suddenly burst through the doors and windows, winding their way in. Wherever the thorns passed, they left deep cuts on all the furniture and floorboards.

To avoid the thorns' attack, Karl swung his sword to defend himself.

Before he knew it, Byron was swept away by thorns.

Beneath him were only traces of blood that had not yet dried, and a small amount of powder that was unknown.

The king's face darkened, and he turned and left.

Jenny also looked pale and sickly, seemingly powerless to cope with the sudden situation, and could only manage a weak smile.

Everyone left.

Shen Xingzhuo didn't know whether to breathe a sigh of relief or remain nervous.

and many more!

From the very beginning, the child, Liya, has never been here!