Chapter 27
Chapter 27
The opening statement on this notice was highly misleading.
It applied to visitors who had not seen the notice outside the Aquarium?
That was utter nonsense.
In Su Chen’s view, even the place where this notice had been posted was strange.
If a visitor saw the outside notice, their first reaction upon entering would be to change into a black uniform.
They would therefore overlook this notice.
Moreover, only a pane of glass separated the two notices. Looking against the light, people would instinctively assume this one was merely the back of the notice outside.
Naturally, they would ignore it.
Only one kind of person would notice it:
someone who had not seen the notice outside.
Upon entering an unfamiliar environment, such visitors would instinctively search for clues or relevant rules.
They would soon discover this notice.
But that raised another problem. Which notice a visitor saw first seemed entirely random!
Wasn’t that the same as drawing lots to decide who died?
See the outside notice and die; miss it and live?
That was far too arbitrary!
Suddenly, inspiration flashed through Su Chen’s mind.
Perhaps the Aquarium truly did stand between the surface world and the Otherworld, just as Longguo’s hint had said.
In that case, only those who had been contaminated but had not completely fallen, and still wavered between the two worlds,
or those who had been bitten by lions and whose bitten-away body parts had fallen into the Otherworld,
could see the Aquarium.
Could the notices operate on the same principle?
Perhaps only the severely contaminated could see the outside notice, while everyone could see the inside one.
If so, the two notices formed a fully automatic screening mechanism.
The more Su Chen considered it, the more plausible it seemed.
He sighed inwardly. By that reasoning, he belonged to the high-risk group too.
Trying to escape the zoo in his current condition was sheer fantasy.
Fortunately, he had a save point, so he was not particularly discouraged.
Instead, he began studying the rules carefully.
They might become the tools he needed to truly escape in the future.
Before long, Su Chen had finished examining them thoroughly.
There were still some he could not understand.
First was Rule One: do not enter when someone was inside.
Could that person be “It”?
Su Chen could not reach a firm conclusion.
Then there was Rule Six.
The jellyfish night-light had to be turned off before sleeping.
What was that about? Wasn’t a night-light meant to remain on while someone slept?
Could the light attract “It”?
He did not understand that either.
As for the remaining rules, they meant exactly what they said, and Su Chen had no particular doubts about them.
Just then, Su Chen froze as he remembered something important.
He had not checked the time when he entered the Aquarium.
He hurriedly took out his phone.
One look made every hair on his body stand on end.
It was now 15:59.
The rule immediately set him on guard.
Why could anyone who entered before 16:00 remain in the Aquarium for no more than half an hour?
Was “It” more likely to appear inside the Aquarium during that period?
And was half an hour the time “It” needed to contaminate someone completely?
Su Chen did not dare dwell on those guesses.
The most important thing now was to leave at once.
The Aquarium was far too dangerous.
Su Chen shoved hard past the people around him and squeezed toward the exit.
At that moment, a somewhat shrill voice rang through the hall.
“Visitors, do you need a guide? I’ll take you to see the whales!”
Su Chen’s scalp went numb at the sound.
The very thing he feared had happened.
Who else could appear inside the Aquarium at this time?
The purpose of its appearance was equally obvious.
“It” could no longer resist hunting them personally.
Panic rose in Su Chen’s heart.
Yet despite his terror, he did not slow down at all.
Without looking back, he continued charging toward the doors.
“As long as I get through those doors, I’ll be safe!”
Su Chen repeated the words silently to himself.
But when he reached the entrance,
he discovered in despair that, despite having his back to the hall, he could somehow see everything inside it.
An eye had appeared on the back of his head.
He had been noticed, and his eyes had become distorted once more.
Su Chen knew he had failed.
By ignoring the guide and desperately trying to flee, he had drawn its attention.
He also knew that his body in its current state could not withstand any further torment from it.
His best option was to conform to its cognition.
Otherwise, he might be executed on the spot.
Su Chen sighed again, turned around helplessly, and adopted a cooperative posture as he looked at it.
A staff member in black came into view. Their eyes were askew, almost crossed.
Su Chen knew this was the human form “It” had assumed.
Once Su Chen turned around and stopped resisting,
the feeling of being watched gradually receded like the tide.
His vision also returned to normal.
Su Chen quietly studied the other Chosen Ones.
Most were trembling. Only a small number appeared calm.
Those few were the people who had put on black uniforms earlier.
Their calmness was strange, however. They were completely expressionless.
They had already taken their places behind “It,” like a group of underlings.
It appeared that at close range, “It” could use some method to control the staff in black.
Meanwhile, the people in Longguo’s livestream had gone mad.
They had thought that after overcoming the crisis in the Elephant Enclosure, Su Chen would surely clear the scenario with his intelligence.
But “It” had personally entered the fray.
“This fucking Horror World is such a scam! What kind of hellish difficulty is this? Does it have any sense of fairness at all? The indescribable ‘It’ can actually turn into a human and intervene personally? What the fuck!”
“I’m speechless. A scenario this difficult is a certain-death trap. No one could ever clear it. What a shame for Su Chen. If he’d entered any other scenario, he definitely would have succeeded.”
“Damn… Su Chen has worked so hard and performed so well, yet he’s going to die here. It makes me sick!”
“Brothers, does anyone know Su Chen? Can someone tell me where his hometown is? I’d like to pay my respects in person someday.”
“+1. May Su Chen’s memory live forever!”
“Pah, pah, pah! Can’t you say something more auspicious? Su Chen isn’t dead yet. He might still turn this around!”
…
The staff of the Longguo Department of Supernatural Affairs shared the viewers’ feelings.
They too had fallen into despair.
They were at least as familiar with the rules as anyone,
so they understood the danger even more keenly than ordinary viewers did.
With “It” appearing in person, what could Su Chen possibly do against it with a mortal body?
This was a certain-death situation.
“Elder Qin, perhaps you shouldn’t watch what comes next. You haven’t eaten or drunk anything all day. Why don’t you go downstairs and rest? Longguo will still need you afterward.”
Xiao Li, the young man with glasses, offered the tactful advice.
He did not want Elder Qin to watch Su Chen die with his own eyes.
Elder Qin was already advanced in years and cared deeply for others.
After the impact of two consecutive failures, Xiao Li feared his body would not be able to bear it.
Elder Qin merely waved a hand without even turning around.
His clouded eyes remained fixed on Su Chen’s face.
“Su Chen hasn’t given up. I can see his resolve. We still have hope.”
Elder Qin’s voice was hoarse.
Xiao Li shook his head, stepped forward, and took Elder Qin’s hand.
“Elder Qin, not even an immortal could save him from this! What matters most now is preserving our strength and preparing for the next Horror World scenario. The lives and safety of Longguo’s people rest on our shoulders!”
Xiao Li’s voice caught slightly.
But his words did not change Elder Qin’s mind.
He continued staring intently at the screen.
Several words squeezed from his lips.
“Until the final moment, we people of Longguo will never give up. All of you, keep your eyes open and watch!”
His hoarse voice carried an authority that brooked no argument.
No one else dared speak. They simply stood behind Elder Qin and watched a hero approach the end of his road.