MTL - Top Horror Novelist-Chapter 183

[The standby program has started successfully, re-reading data...removing failed data...data reconstruction starts, importing "Deceitful Tales from the Mountain". 】

[The scene is rebuilt, the progress is cleared successfully, and the character placement starts. Countdown, three...]

The system's cold notification sound echoed in the silent darkness.

On the train, all the compartments were tightly closed, and no one heard the sound of the system.

The Sea of ​​Clouds Train is no longer the dazzling luxury it was at first, and there are broken relics everywhere after the catastrophe. Dirty black liquid hangs viscously on the walls and furniture, and slowly drips under the action of gravity.

Blood was sprayed all around, **** handprints spread along the corridor, traces of panic and escape could be seen everywhere.

But in the end, they all turned into fallen corpses in the corridor.

Their eyes are wide open, and they still have the fear before death, but they have lost their breath. In the darkness of no one, they gradually become cold and lose their temperature.

Not just players.

There are also conductors and bartenders in uniform.

Those conductors whom Chi Yiyin could not find before, now slowly reappeared on the train after he left.

However, in the face of death.

The corpses of the conductors were arranged in a neat row in the corridor, straight and clear, and even the intervals in the middle were kept at the same width, like a masterpiece of obsessive-compulsive disorder patients.

And their same face, which was like copying and pasting, is also the same cold at this moment, and even the few vitality has been lost.

The armbands of different numbers on their uniforms, which represent each person, have disappeared, as if they were ripped off by people, and there are still traces on the uniforms, and even the coats are torn.

The conductors were like puppets abandoned by strings, even the souls that had been poured into them had disappeared, dying silently.

No one cares, no one cares.

In the box, those players who chose to return to the box before, no matter whether it was their own volition or not, are sleeping soundly at this time, without even noticing that there is a tall monster standing beside their bed.

The monster lowered its ferocious face, quietly looking at the player who was lying on the bed unconsciously, and then slowly stretched out its hand towards the player. Its fingers, which are far longer and softer than humans, and could even be tentacles, gently landed on the player. on their heads.

The moment those tentacles come into contact with the player, they merge into one place, like a sensor line inserted in the brain, like a large-scale scientific experiment.

Yet tightly connected to as inborn.

The moment the connection was completed, the players' bodies twitched subconsciously, as if their souls were instinctively resisting, protesting, and roaring to escape.

But all resistance was eventually suppressed.

Their tiny struggles couldn't shake the suppression of those monsters at all, and the soft and cold tentacles pressed down on their heads, making the players unable to move.

After a few seconds, the players all stopped struggling.

They were lying on the bed, as if they had fallen into a sweet dream, they slowly smiled, their faces were peaceful, they relaxed all their strength, and fell into a deep sleep.

Thus, in the darkness in the corner of the box, cold tentacles continued to spread.

Organs belonging to a certain part of the human body, like gems inlaid on the tentacles, merged with them and became a part of the monster. Like a creeper, it quickly filled the entire box and firmly grasped it in the tentacles.

But its growth has not stopped.

Spread, reborn, entangled.

The entire box is like a spider's cave woven by tentacles, with large webs criss-crossing until they occupy every inch of space.

And the players are also engulfed in it.

The entire sea of ​​clouds train was completely plunged into darkness and silence.

Not a single light came on.

Above the sky and clouds, the train roared past, heading for an unknown distance.

But the players who fell into the dreamland started their own situation.

Scholars once had the choice before them, whether to stay and fight the danger together, or to retreat to their boxes and fight on their own.

The seven players who chose to stay had disappeared on the train.

Just like Chi Yiyin and the others, their figures completely lost their traces.

And those who choose to go back to the box, they don't believe that other players will protect their so-called companions like they protect themselves, there is no such thing as trust.

The shattering of the alliance and the death of Skye are the best illustrations.

The only ones I can rely on are myself and the companions who entrusted my life.

Therefore, they chose to face the possible danger alone in the box.

But to their surprise, no monsters or dangers appeared.

The player slept soundly until dawn, and when he opened his eyes, he felt full of energy, his body was extremely light, and he felt no pain at all.

When he stepped out of the box, he saw the conductor.

Although the conductor still had an ice poker face, he congratulated him respectfully, saying that he had passed the test and successfully obtained the final qualification, and invited him to make rules for this world.

Players only feel that they are stepping on the clouds erratically, winning is too easy, so that there is a sense of unreality.

Dazed, he confirmed to the people around him and the conductor that all he got was congratulations and excited celebrations, and his companion excitedly hugged him and jumped around, saying that it was the end of all hardships.

Surrounded by the crowd, the player walked into the control room of the Sea of ​​Clouds train.

The train conductor bowed to congratulate him, respectfully welcomed him to the main control screen, and said that now the entire game field is his, and he can freely formulate his own rules.

"Anything is fine?"

Players don't even feel like their voices are very real.

It's like... in a dream, hearing what I said in my sleep, there is a strange sense of absurdity, as if my soul is not here, but just watching with cold eyes.

But the train conductor smiled, patiently congratulated him over and over again and explained, confirming his current victory.

Moreover, he was also shown the picture on the main control screen.

Unlike the clear sky around the player, which is full of joy, the picture on the screen is extremely dark and cold, with heavy rain and black clouds hanging down.

In the remote and dilapidated village, several people ran in a panic, their faces full of horror, as if they were fleeing, and there were monsters chasing after them.

"This is?" The player looked at the train conductor in doubt.

The train conductor explained with a smile that the players he saw were still in the test and hadn't had time to pass the test.

But now, because he has passed the test and won, the rules of other people's tests have also been handed over to him to formulate.

Life and death win, thunder and rain.

All the power is in his hands, and it is only a matter of thought to let these people die.

The player couldn't help being pleasantly surprised, and quickly looked at the screen a few more times.

He recognized that among the few people who fled, there were players who chose to stay and did not return to the box.

Scholars with the title of "temperance" are among them.

After confirming that the situation is true, the player nodded in satisfaction, and the original tension and doubts were also relaxed, and finally gradually felt the truth.

It seems that he made the right choice yesterday, and when he returned to the box, he actually won by lying down, and he won when he woke up.

On the contrary, those who stayed outside, as well as the scholars who persuaded him yesterday, have not yet successfully left the test.

"Little ants, life and death are too simple."

The player smiled, and had a good idea in his heart: "If you give them hope, tell them the truth when they think they are victorious, and then kill them, then their expressions will be very funny, right?"

But in an instant, his position has been reversed.

From a beast in the Colosseum to a spectator in the stands, and triumphantly using his own rights, this beast fight is more interesting and full of highlights.

Regardless of the life or pain of those "beasts".

But the train conductor didn't say anything, just bowed and said that he could watch the real-time live broadcast in front of the main control screen and witness the struggle and despair of those people.

Players are happy.

He raised his head, happily feeling that power is really a good thing, having him made him feel so powerful, even his body became lighter, as if he was twenty years younger.

"But power, it only exists when it is used."

The player smacked his lips and decided to try more power in his hands: "Let's make a few more rules."

He looked at the people fleeing in embarrassment on the screen, and said with a smile, "Anyway, I won't be the one who died."

The nib still fell off after all.

A series of strict and cold rules are vividly written on the paper.

Even the most tyrannical kings and harsh officials would not issue such decrees.

First, the monster is always in the blind spot of vision and cannot be found.

Second, no one can leave Dayin Village unless they die.

Third, all those who died here will return as souls, and only by killing the players can they leave.

Fourth...

Eloquent rules flow from the tip of the pen.

But there is more than one piece of paper to be written on.

Different nibs fall on different papers, but the same rules are strictly guarded against.

A few, dozens, hundreds... On different papers written at the same time, more and more rules are accumulated, like ropes strangling a person's neck, layer upon layer, making people breathless.

The players on the screen are like cattle, sheep, and animals being driven away, gradually losing the space for free movement and safety, and the rules are tightened step by step, and the survival left for them may be rapidly reduced.

But the players who make the rules in front of the screen don't know...

He is not alone in writing the rules.

Rather—all the players sleeping in the boxes.

Each of them was told that they had won and was given the right to decide the rules.

Overjoyed, almost everyone chose to exercise their power.

When they control the life and death of the players on the screen, they feel like gods on high. This sense of power over life and death... is intoxicating.

Death is too far away from them, and it has become an image on the screen, a moving cartoon, which is taken away by a few frozen words.

As a result, the tragic death and splattered flesh and blood all turned into a glimpse of lack of interest, no longer related to oneself, cold indifference, and even the decision was full of jokes and bad taste.

Help others win?

nonexistent.

"My power, why should I let others share it equally with me?"

One of the players sneered, his eyes slowly becoming malicious, his subordinates kept following the rules, and death became a trifling matter.

"It's better if they're all dead."

—When it is up to you to decide the fate of other people, and the weight of their lives is placed in your hands, no matter what decision you make, no one will criticize you, and there will be no moral or legal constraints on you...

The winner shares power with you, the loser feels your power, is in awe of you, and entertains you with comic death.

What will you do?

【Human beings are writing their own destiny. 】

[Whether it is destruction or rebirth, or rebuilding a new world, it is the choice of human beings themselves, and any other gods or systems have nothing to do with it. 】

【Human beings say that the choice of destruction is a misunderstanding. So now, as a third party, I will govern the system to provide another choice for all human beings and this world created by God. 】

【—Destruction, or a new world. 】

The shimmering green light is difficult to illuminate the entire dark space.

Numerous codes were quickly scrolled behind, and the new system stared at the whole world indifferently with cold mechanical eyes, and the choices of the players were faithfully recorded.

And the rules they made will be faithfully implemented.

— on the player himself.

A knife swung at others is also a knife swung at oneself.

The rope you want to put around someone else's neck will eventually become your own hanging rope.

The next moment, the entire game field was shaking, and the changes were earth-shaking.

Outside the running new world, the temporary residence area was violently overturned. All the players who had been hiding in the temporary residence area for a long time and did not dare to enter the dungeon were shaken out in panic and forced to randomly stuff them into different dungeons , had to face the danger of duplication.

They panicked, like a flat boat in the stormy sea. They didn't know what to do. They might be swallowed by the waves at any time and sink into the sea.

Go with the flow and die.

Try to fight and die.

Monsters and ghosts appeared silently behind all the players, turning into darkness and sneaking silently in corners they couldn't see.

Then... devour the players in one gulp.

Blood flowed from the bitten off neck, the head disappeared, and the body stopped struggling.

But after they died, they reappeared in the same place, looking at their hands blankly, and then looked around, not knowing what was going on.

Players who have not yet realized that they are dead are quickly informed of this fact by the system, and it is explained that only if they kill other players who are still alive can they leave the game field.

After a short period of daze and astonishment, most of the ghosts chose to pounce on the players who were still alive, even more actively wanting to kill them than the monsters.

Death seems to be contagious, and it spreads quickly in the game field.

No sleep tonight.

In the killing night, all players, whether high or low level, actively or passively joined in this mutual killing.

Blood flew.

According to the statistics in the background of the system, the number of surviving players has dropped sharply, and even low-level players are dying at a rate of hundreds per second. In the blink of an eye, the number will jump by one.

In just a few hours, the number of players, which was originally nearly 100 million, has dropped to a mere 20 million, and this number has not stopped at all, and is still declining.

Not just temporary housing.

All running dungeons have broken the fixed number of people, and the balance has been broken by the players who suddenly came in halfway, making the combat power uneven. Let the dungeons be automatically calibrated under the rules, and the difficulty has also been re-adjusted .

— Difficulty increases.

All the information and experience collected by the players before have become a page of waste paper.

They had to face the drastic change, bite the bullet and block it, trying to break out from the dead end and leave the instance.

But the danger of death besieged from all sides.

Hundreds of new rules that have been newly formulated, and even continue to be written, will take effect the moment they fall on the paper, and each one has become a reminder of the game field.

Not only New World, Sea of ​​Clouds Train.

It's not just the few players on the screen.

Rather—all players representing humanity.

[World Consciousness believes that dead humans can make the most fair judgment for the human group, choose the future that is most suitable for humans, and avoid death. Therefore, at the last moment before the death of all life, it pulls them into the game field, and starts the journey of striving for the human group. 】

[As a third party, I need to maintain absolute fairness. For this purpose, the third-party system will continue the decision of world-consciousness, and it will be evolved. 】

【—The dead players will determine the future of the player group. The group of players determines the future of mankind. This is, balance and justice. 】

The new system hangs high above the playground, watching and recording deaths.

The game field in complete chaos has become a carnival feast of death, a feast of despair, ribbons decorated with crying and struggling, and goblets pouring blood.

However, the howling and cursing in the game field cannot be transmitted to the new world.

In the chaos, only the dilapidated villages in the remote mountains remained quiet.

As quiet as death.

Like the tomb of the living dead, there are clearly signs of life, but there is no sound at all.

The torrential rain is still falling, with no sign of stopping, and all noise from the outside world is isolated.

The car was parked on the narrow village road, the headlights were on, illuminating the front and rear roads, and the dilapidated ancestral houses around were still standing silently.

Chi Yiyin shook his head, and his vision gradually became clear.

He was sitting in the co-pilot's seat, but he still felt cold even though he was wearing a coat, which made his mood drop.

Saw it.

It's as if...he's forgotten something important, lost someone important.

"Brother Chi, what should we do? Do you want to continue driving?"

In the driver's seat, the assistant turned his head anxiously and asked: "Look at it, there may not be anyone in this village. It will be troublesome if it ends up in a dead end."

There were only the two of them in the car, and there were no extra figures.

The assistant who couldn't make up his mind was about to cry, and looked at Chi Yiyin anxiously.

Chi Yiyin subconsciously tightened the coat on his body, the residual temperature on it made him a little dazed, feeling like a hug in a trance.

"Brother Chi!"

Amidst the repeated calls, Chi Yiyin suddenly came back to his senses, and looked forward intently.

"Keep going."

He pointed to a pickle jar by the roadside, and said calmly, "There are vegetables on it, there must be people living around here."

"Don't panic, we will definitely find a place to stay."

Even though the poor vegetable leaf has been destroyed by the rainstorm, but now in the eyes of the assistant, it is so cute, which makes him rekindle hope.

He started the car, and under Chi Yiyin's command, he drove deeper into the village following the traces of the villagers' lives on the side of the road.

This is a small and dilapidated village. Not only are most of the houses no longer repaired, they are crumbling there, even the roads in the village are pitifully narrow. It is strenuous.

The assistant's hands were sweaty, and he couldn't even hold the steering wheel.

Fortunately, Chi Yiyin beside him was calm and stable enough to calmly direct his movements, making him feel at ease slowly.

When a bright light appeared in the assistant's field of vision, he even thought it was his own illusion, and was so surprised that it didn't feel real.

"Chi, Brother Chi, is there a light in front? Is it because I want to find someone so much that I have hallucinations?"

The assistant confirmed with Chi Yiyin in a trance: "Does the presence of a light mean that there is someone! We can find a place to live!"

Chi Yiyin looked forward.

The window of the house illuminated by the headlights still had red paper with the word "Fu" written on it. Although it had been sunburned and faded, it was wet in the heavy rain and became crumpled. It is a mess, but it also means that the house is lived in and maintained by someone.

Pepper and garlic braids are hung under the eaves, and a few bundles of green leafy vegetables are piled up on the porch, which is full of life atmosphere.

Chi Yiyin raised his chin, said "Yes", and signaled the assistant to continue to turn left.

They are now at the back of this family, and they want to stay overnight, so naturally they have to go around to the front, formal and polite.

The assistant was so excited that he couldn't close his mouth, and stepped on the gas pedal even harder.

But just as he turned a corner and was about to turn in front of the house in joy, Chi Yiyin sharpened his eyebrows and shouted violently.

"Someone! Watch out!"

The assistant shuddered and stepped on the brakes.

Under the sudden brake, the two leaned forward, and the assistant slammed his head on the steering wheel, and there was a muffled "Boom!"

When they raised their heads, they saw that there was indeed a figure standing in front of the car.

The man turned sideways to them, staring straight ahead, without looking at them at all, just like an unconscious mannequin.

The headlights of the car hit him, giving off an icy blue-white color.

not like a living person...

But like, the dead rise from the dead.

The assistant made a loud noise as he swallowed.

The person outside the car seemed to sense something, and slowly turned his head, looking straight at the two people inside the car through the rain curtain and the car window.

The eyes were dull and dull, like two dim glass beads.

Chi Yiyin frowned, subconsciously feeling that this face looked familiar, as if he had seen it somewhere.

But now, a man dressed like a local suddenly appeared and stood there, motionless, blocking their way.

Just when Chi Yiyin straightened up and was about to take action, she saw the door of the house where they wanted to stay was suddenly pushed open, and a chubby middle-aged woman ran out anxiously.

After seeing the man who stopped the car, the middle-aged woman cried loudly, chased after her and hit her twice: "Why did you run out alone? You almost scared me to death!"

But the man just didn't look at the woman in a daze, and didn't respond at all.

The assistant smacked his lips: "Dementia?"

The woman had cried enough and scolded enough, and when she turned her head she was startled by the headlights, and then embarrassedly dragged the man over to apologize.

Chi Yiyin waved his hand, saying it's okay.

Then he asked: "It's just this delay that keeps us from being on our way. Could you please let us stay for the night?"