99: Chapter 99 I'll Be the Villain

The air became heavy again.

Everyone kept their heads down; no one spoke.

Everyone knew that verifying the rule meant someone had to go to their death.

No one wanted to be that sacrificial lamb.

Zhou Che looked at the crowd, his lips moving, but he couldn't bring himself to speak.

He was the leader of The Convoy; he couldn't ask anyone to go to their death.

That would chill everyone's hearts.

The other Transcendents also remained silent.

No one was willing to play the villain.

Just then.

Luo Xi took a step forward.

"I'll do it."

Her voice was not loud, but it was exceptionally firm.

Everyone looked up, staring at her in surprise.

"Miss Luo, you..." Zhou Che frowned.

"Mr. Zhou, you cannot be the one to ask."

Luo Xi looked at Zhou Che, her eyes calm.

"You are the backbone of The Convoy; you cannot be that villain. You must lead everyone to survive.

You shouldn't be the one to do something that offends people."

"I am well-suited for this role. As for this kind of dirty work, I am the most appropriate person to do it."

After saying this, she turned and walked toward the group of ordinary survivors.

Her gaze swept across the crowd and finally landed on a disheveled man.

The man had messy hair, his clothes were covered in oil stains, and his face was smeared with mud.

It was the camp's notorious slob, Wang Er.

Seeing Luo Xi staring at him, Wang Er shuddered in fear.

"M-Miss Luo..."

He stammered, not knowing what he had done wrong.

"You, come out."

Luo Xi pointed at him, her tone cold and devoid of emotion.

Wang Er dared not disobey and walked out of the crowd, trembling.

Standing before Luo Xi, his whole body shook, and he didn't dare to lift his head.

"Spit on the ground."

Luo Xi's voice was as cold as ice.

When these words were spoken, everyone was confused.

Wang Er was even more bewildered; he didn't know why Miss Luo would make such an absurd request.

But he dared not disobey the order.

He gritted his teeth and cleared his throat tremblingly.

A "heh-heh" sound came from his throat.

A glob of thick phlegm landed on the clean floor.

Everyone held their breath, staring at him intently.

Time seemed to stand still.

One second.

Two seconds.

Three seconds.

With a "whoosh."

Wang Er vanished.

Along with the glob of phlegm on the ground, he disappeared without a trace.

Just like the second person in the recording.

The entire plaza was deathly silent.

Everyone widened their eyes and opened their mouths, unable to speak.

Wang Zhiming's guess was correct.

This place was truly the domain of a Rule-based Supernatural Entity.

The rule really was: no spitting on the ground, no dirtying this place.

Luo Xi looked at the empty ground, her eyes darkening.

She clenched her fists, her nails digging deep into her palms.

Although she knew it was for everyone's sake, pushing someone to their death with her own hands still made her feel terrible.

She turned to look at Zhou Che.

Zhou Che nodded slightly at her.

His eyes held a trace of heartache and gratitude.

Luo Xi took a deep breath, turned around, and said loudly to everyone.

"Everyone, listen up! We are trapped in the domain of a Rule-based Supernatural Entity!"

"The confirmed rules are: you must maintain cleanliness, do not spit on the ground, do not litter, and do not dirty the floor!"

"As long as you follow the rules, you won't be erased!"

She didn't mention that even if they followed the rules, they would still be trapped here.

She was afraid of causing even greater panic.

People were already panicked enough; she couldn't agitate them further.

Hearing Luo Xi's words, the ordinary survivors breathed a sigh of relief.

Although they were still very afraid, at least they knew how to survive.

They patted their chests, relieved that they were usually quite clean.

Some hurriedly wiped the soles of their shoes, fearing they might have mud on them.

Some carefully stuffed the trash in their hands into their pockets.

Zhou Che watched the crowd, but he didn't feel any relief.

This was just the first step.

They had only found the rule.

But they still had no clue where the source of the anomaly was.

What worried him even more was that, since a moment ago, the feeling of being watched had become increasingly intense.

The anomaly was right beside them.

Watching them coldly, playing with them like a cat playing with a mouse.

He looked up at the ceiling of the plaza.

It was pitch black, with nothing there.

But he always felt that a pair of eyes was staring intently at them from up there.

And what they didn't know was...

Outside the plaza, Zhuang Zeqiang and his men had been waiting impatiently.

"Boss, why hasn't anyone come out yet?" Old San scratched his head.

"They've been inside for almost an hour; why is there no movement at all?"

Zhuang Zeqiang lowered his binoculars, his expression grim.

"Something's wrong."

He gritted his teeth. "The thing inside never lets its prey live this long."

"Old San, take two men and go see what's going on."

"You got it, Boss!"

Old San acknowledged, took two men, crouched low, and crept toward the entrance of the plaza.

Having confirmed the "do not dirty the floor" rule, the crowd's anxiety had barely eased when Zhou Che immediately gave an order:

"Everyone, spread out and search floor by floor! The anomaly can't hide anymore; it must be in this building!"

Once the core rule of a Rule-based Supernatural Entity is figured out, it can no longer erase living people silently.

To protect its domain, it would inevitably reveal itself.

Everyone gripped their weapons and, in groups of three, searched up the stairs.

Just as they stepped onto the second-floor stairs, a cold, viscous aura rushed toward them.

It wasn't the dry cold of winter, but a damp, clammy cold, as if they were submerged in mud.

It crept into their bones through their collars and stuck to their skin, impossible to shake off.

Not only the Transcendents felt it, but even the ordinary survivors shivered and subconsciously wrapped their clothes tighter around themselves.

"Something's not right; this smell is too strong."

Wang Laowu sniffed and gripped his machete tighter. "It's even more disgusting than the smell of a graveyard."

"The anomaly is on the second floor," Zhou Che said in a deep voice, the tip of the blood moon scepter lighting up with a faint red glow.

"Everyone, stay close. Do not stray alone."

The second-floor corridor was empty, with the doors of shops on both sides wide open, looking like gaping mouths.

The wind blew in through broken windows, making a "woo-woo" sound, as if someone were crying.

The group hugged the wall and searched room by room.

Convenience stores, milk tea shops, mobile phone stores... they were all empty, not even a ghost in sight.

Just as they reached the corner of the corridor, Wang Zhiming suddenly stopped.

His face turned pale, and he reached out to grab Zhou Che, who was in front of him.

"Mr. Zhou, wait a moment."

His voice was trembling as he pointed to a shop not far ahead.

"This clothing store... when we searched the second floor just now, it wasn't there at all."

When these words were spoken, everyone froze.

Zhou Che looked up abruptly.

Before them was an ordinary women's clothing store, its glass door wiped spotlessly clean.

In the glass display case at the entrance stood two plastic mannequins wearing white dresses.