Chapter 56: Survival Rules of the Hospital, a Sudden Voice!

When Mitarai Saburo saw the remaining rules, he did not panic like the other Chosen.

Following a detective's habitual way of thinking, if a piece of information cannot be verified for the time being, one simply needs to memorize it and then find a way to verify it later.

For instance, Rule 14 was difficult to comprehend; even Mitarai Saburo did not know what this rule was trying to convey.

However, since it appeared, it must have a purpose. He simply had to remember it.

"I guessed correctly after all. The comprehensive building is a relatively safe place, and the safe house must be the Dean's office. But to enter it, or to seek the Dean's protection, one must find the fruit he likes to eat," Mitarai Saburo analyzed seriously.

The Dean's office was undoubtedly the safe house because the Dean was the highest authority in the Smiling Hospital. Neither doctors, nurses, patients, nor security guards would dare challenge his authority.

How to know what fruit the Dean liked—this was certainly a key point in this Ghost Story World.

Therefore, he needed to find someone who had come into contact with the Dean. This was the [Target].

Ever since arriving near the hospital, Mitarai Saburo knew that this place was filled with what was called [Toxic Gas].

It seemed thicker outside than inside, and the wards were even capable of transmitting the virus.

Combining information from Rule 9, Rule 11, and parts of Rule 12, Mitarai Saburo could deduce a conclusion. One could also call it a code of conduct for operating within the hospital.

If the toxic gas were compared to a negative status effect, it could be understood like this

Every time a Chosen breathes, they stack one layer of the status. Once a certain number of layers are accumulated, the [Injured] status mentioned in Rule 11 will occur. At that point, physical problems will arise.

If not treated promptly, as the injured status continues to accumulate to a certain level, it might trigger the [Instant Death] buff.

Mitarai Saburo had two interpretations of this [Instant Death] buff.

The first was literal death. The second was becoming a [Patient].

Literal death was easy to understand, while becoming a patient might offer a chance at recovery. But that was only a possibility; who would willingly volunteer to be a test subject?

Masks could reduce the speed at which negative statuses were stacked; if a mask became contaminated, it needed to be replaced promptly.

If one entered a ward, the speed of status accumulation would increase, reaching the limit within three minutes. When entering a ward, remember: do not disturb the patients' rest, especially when they are asleep. Otherwise, it might trigger the appearance of something eerie.

Once an abnormality appears on one's body, one needs to find a doctor for treatment. Doctors could clearly help the Chosen remove negative statuses.

But one crucial point remained: determining whether this doctor was a real doctor. One also had to show the doctor sufficient respect.

Mitarai Saburo interpreted this sentence as: do not violate the doctor's taboos. A doctor might help you, or they might kill you. Therefore, in his view, doctors were an unstable variable; it was best to be cautious.

This was the conclusion Mitarai Saburo had analyzed through the existing intelligence. Even the expert groups from various countries were marvelling at his astonishing judgment.

One must realize that upon seeing these rules, many Chosen were still in a state of "What do I do?", "Maybe it means this?", or "There are so many rules, how can I memorize them all?" They were lost regarding the long road ahead.

The Ghost Story World provided the Chosen with mobile phones to facilitate recording rules and filming things they might otherwise forget. Of course, if an exceptionally foolish Chosen failed to realize this, they could only pray for their own luck.

Seeing that Mitarai Saburo had analyzed the implications of the rules in a short time, the audience from Sakura Country boiled over once again.

*What's going on? I haven't even finished memorizing the rules, and he's already understood them?*

*I feel like he's announcing the answers. If the other Chosen manage to clear this, they'll have to thank us for showing them the answers.*

*Hahaha, I'm dying. The Chosen from Dragon Country are just here for sightseeing. It seems he really has no way of passing this brain-teasing Ghost Story dungeon.*

*Is that guy just waiting for dinner? Does he really think a 2.5-star Ghost Story dungeon is that simple?*

The people of Sakura Country seemed to have placed Mitarai Saburo on a pedestal. This caused dissatisfaction among many in the International Chatroom. *Your Chosen is strong, but don't think the other Chosen are fools.*

Many people had reacted quickly; they just might not have been as fast as Mitarai Saburo.

Jones from Kangaroo Country was a Chosen who grew relatively quickly in the Ghost Story World. After all, to survive, one had to adapt to the environment. He was constantly recording various details.

While he was walking toward the next building, someone approached him from the opposite direction. This person was wearing a white lab coat without a mask, wearing the same smile as the reception director. He was likely a doctor.

"Hello, Doctor, may I ask—"

Before he could finish, the doctor walked straight past him, appearing very aloof. He was exceptionally cold, almost as if he didn't even view Jones as a human being. This caused Jones to swallow his remaining words.

"Honestly, if you don't want to talk, just don't," Jones muttered under his breath.

His experience was different from Zhang Yangqing's, and what he saw was different. However, many Chosen noticed a problem: the toxic gas did not have a significant impact on the citizens. Perhaps they were frequently exposed to this gas; after all, the citizens had walked through the mist, and it was unknown what kind of world they came from.

Jones had now arrived at the comprehensive building to search for the fruit the Dean liked. He had many people with him, but he did not intend to split up; moving together was the safest.

After inquiring in the comprehensive building for a while, his assistant suddenly spoke up: "Guide, your mask has changed color."

He had previously reminded the assistant to speak up immediately if they noticed his mask changing color. Anyone else would have panicked and rushed to the nurse's station to change it.

But Jones unhurriedly took out his phone and paused the stopwatch. The stopwatch showed 16 minutes and 30 seconds. The current time was 3:18 PM.

"In other words, the mask needs to be changed approximately every twelve minutes."

Hearing Jones's analysis, the audience from Kangaroo Country showed expressions of surprise.

*Holy crap, I thought we were doomed if we chose him, but it turns out this guy has some skills.*

*Keep going, man! Work hard to guess what the Dragon Country transcendent is thinking; following his logic will definitely be correct.*

*Didn't everyone in the International Chatroom say that the Dragon Country transcendent was just clearing it through pure brute force? How can you learn from that?*

*You wouldn't know if you haven't been in there, but if you could pass, you would understand. When clearing a dungeon, you have to consider what to do based on your own strength. That Dragon Country transcendent is simply constantly simplifying the clearing process because he has the ability to do so.*

Ordinary people could not understand the Dragon Country Chosen's playstyle and thought he was acting recklessly. However, no one from any other country had criticized him. Because in these two rounds, while everyone felt the transcendent's methods were outrageous, no one noticed one thing: none of his choices were wrong. He even found solutions in the previous round when it seemed like a gamble. Was there even a need to question his judgment?

Inside the Ghost Story World, just as Jones and the other Chosen were approaching the nurse's station to change their masks, a sound made their backs go cold.

"Woof! Woof! Woof!"

The sound came from outside. Looking through the window, several shadows seemed to be continuously approaching the hospital. Under the gloomy weather, the shapes of the dark shadows could not be seen clearly; one could only see abstract things with staring eyes. Making eye contact with those eyes caused a sense of dread deep within one's soul, as if being targeted by a powerful predator.

A gust of wind blew outside, causing the long-neglected windows to rattle incessantly. Even from a distance, the terrifying pressure made the hair on many Chosen stand on end.

Jones did not dare to move an inch. Rule 8 clearly stated: *The hospital does not keep dogs. If you hear a dog barking, please do not make any noise, otherwise you will be in great danger.*

To avoid violating the rule, the vast majority of the Chosen chose to remain motionless, as if playing a game of "Red Light, Green Light." Even Mitarai Saburo held his breath.

The entire area was silent except for the creaking of the windows; the atmosphere was incredibly heavy. It seemed as though these barks were a precursor to something about to descend. Because there was a rumor in every place: when a dog suddenly barks, it is because it has seen something that humans cannot see.

Even the breathing of the audience in front of the large screens became heavy, fearing that something might emerge from the screen.

Only Zhang Yangqing opened the window and shouted at the "dark shadows" below: "What the hell are you barking for?"