9: Chapter 9 Abandoned Service Area

The pickup truck had been driving on the highway for three hours.

The sun had fully risen, and the gloom brought by the Ghost Night was dispersed by the sunlight.

This was the first time Chen Mo had seen the Ghost Realm clearly in the daytime, and it looked no different from the ordinary world.

The same asphalt road, the same road signs, the same wild fields, and the faintly visible mountains in the distance.

But some things were different.

The abandoned vehicles by the side of the road looked more real in the sunlight—the rust on the car bodies, the shattered glass, and those dried black stains on the seats.

There were no people, no corpses, only those stains, like some kind of proof: people had once been here, but they were no longer around.

Chen Mo slowed down, letting the pickup truck coast.

A road sign appeared ahead.

【Highway 7 · 25 km ahead】

【Service Area · 2 km ahead】

Service Area.

He remembered Old Zhou's fake Trading Post, which also had a Highway 7 sign hanging on it.

The Pupil of the Sequence swept over the road sign.

Ordinary sheet metal, ordinary paint, no golden lines.

It was real.

Chen Mo pressed the accelerator and sped toward the service area.

Two kilometers passed quickly.

When the service area appeared in his field of vision, Chen Mo's first reaction was: "It's too big."

It wasn't like Old Zhou's small station, which only had a gas station and a small sheet-metal shack; this was a real, large-scale service area common on highways.

There were at least twenty buildings, including a gas station, a supermarket, a restaurant, a hotel, and even a repair shop.

All the buildings were intact, with undamaged windows and walls, as if they had been operating normally just yesterday.

But there was no one.

At least fifty cars were parked in the parking lot, neatly arranged in their spots, as if the owners had only gone inside to use the restroom and would be back soon.

Chen Mo parked the car at the entrance of the service area without turning off the engine.

The Pupil of the Sequence was operating at full capacity.

In his golden vision, the buildings were wrapped in dense lines.

Not the active lines of a Ghost Shadow, but something paler and more stable, like "traces" covering the surface of the buildings.

But one place was different.

The gas station.

The golden lines there were thick and active, as if something was squirming inside.

【E-Class Ghost Shadow reaction detected】

【Quantity: 1 (possibly more)】

【Location: Gas station convenience store】

【Threat Assessment: Medium】

【Recommendation: Approach with caution】

Chen Mo turned off the engine, got out of the car, and tucked the cleaver into his waistband.

He didn't walk directly toward the gas station but first walked a circle around the service area.

The door to the repair shop was locked, but one of the windows was broken.

He looked inside through the hole—there were several car frames, some tools, and a workbench.

A toolbox sat on the workbench, containing wrenches, screwdrivers, and a hammer.

Useful supplies.

But he needed to get inside to take them.

The restaurant door was open, and it was pitch black inside.

The Pupil of the Sequence swept over it—no Ghost Shadow, but there was something on the floor.

It was a few corpses, already shriveled, wearing the service area uniforms.

Their state of death was strange; they were all curled up in the corners, as if hiding from something.

The supermarket door was also open; the shelves were still there, but most of them were empty.

Only the few shelves at the very back still had some things on them.

Compressed biscuits, mineral water, and a few boxes of canned goods of unknown content.

Useful supplies, and a lot of them.

But Chen Mo didn't go in.

He returned to the entrance of the gas station.

The convenience store lights were still on.

It was that kind of pale fluorescent light; it wasn't visible in the sunlight, but it was definitely on.

The door was closed.

Behind the transparent glass door, he could see shelves, a checkout counter, and some hanging merchandise.

A person was standing behind the checkout counter.

Wearing a gas station uniform and a hat, head bowed, as if looking at something.

Chen Mo stared at that person.

The Pupil of the Sequence swept over.

Golden lines.

Thick, active, and slowly flowing.

【Target: E-Class Ghost Shadow "Gas Station Attendant"】

【Core Rule: Must answer the refueling amount; say it wrong and die】

【Current Status: Standby】

【Weakness: The rule itself has loopholes and can be broken using logic】

【Recommendation: Do not enter voluntarily; do not answer any questions】

Chen Mo withdrew his gaze.

He didn't go in, nor did he leave.

He stood where he was, thinking.

Must answer the refueling amount, say it wrong and die.

This was a rule-based Ghost Shadow, not a combat type.

As long as the rule wasn't triggered, it was harmless.

But the problem was, he needed the supplies inside.

There must be things in the convenience store.

Food, water, and possibly medicine.

And, if this Ghost Shadow was guarding here, it meant no one else had been able to get in either.

Then the supplies inside should all still be there.

Chen Mo's gaze shifted to the shelf next to the checkout counter, where several cases of mineral water and some bagged bread were placed.

The date printed on the bread packaging was three months ago from today.

This world had existed for at least three months.

He withdrew his gaze and continued to think.

The rule was "Must answer the refueling amount."

But what were the conditions to trigger the rule?

He recalled the rule-based Ghost Shadows he had seen before.

That "Crying Face Driver" required getting into the car to trigger the rule;

That "Knocker" only attacked after hearing knocking.

This "Gas Station Attendant" should require the action of "refueling."

In other words, as long as he didn't go to the gas pump, the rule wouldn't be triggered.

But the convenience store was right next to the gas pump; entering the convenience store required passing the gas pump.

Chen Mo went around the gas station and observed from the side.

The convenience store had two doors; one faced the gas pump and was a glass door;

There was also a back door leading to the interior area of the service area.

The back door was closed but unlocked.

Chen Mo walked over and gently pushed the door open.

Behind the door was a corridor leading to the convenience store's back storage room.

The corridor was dark, but the Pupil of the Sequence could see clearly that there was no Ghost Shadow, only some stacked cardboard boxes.

He walked in.

At the end of the corridor was a door with "Staff Only" written on it.

Pushing the door open, he was inside the convenience store.

The shelves were right in front of him.

Chen Mo didn't rush to take things.

He first glanced in the direction of the checkout counter.

That "Gas Station Attendant" was still standing there, head bowed, motionless.

From his angle, he could see its side profile, pale, stiff, like a wax figure.

He withdrew his gaze and began to scavenge quickly.

Compressed biscuits, take.

Mineral water, take.

Canned goods, take.

Emergency medicine on the shelves, take.

He moved the things box by box to the back door, piling them up in the corridor.

After moving for about ten minutes, all the useful items on the shelves had been cleared out.

Chen Mo counted.

Twenty boxes of compressed biscuits, fifteen boxes of mineral water, thirty boxes of canned goods, and three boxes of medicine.

Enough for one person to eat for three months.

But how to transport it was a problem.

His pickup truck couldn't fit this much.

Chen Mo glanced at the cars in the service area parking lot—more than fifty of them, most of which were intact.

He could switch to a different car.

Or, drive two cars.

While he was thinking, a voice suddenly came from behind him.

"How much to refuel?"

Chen Mo's movements froze.

He turned his head slowly.

Behind the checkout counter, that "Gas Station Attendant" was lifting its head, looking at him.

Its face was pale, and its eyes were pure black, with no whites.

Its mouth was moving, opening and closing, repeating that sentence:

"How much to refuel?"

Chen Mo did not answer.

The Pupil of the Sequence was running wildly.

【Rule trigger condition: Being stared at by the Ghost Shadow for more than 3 seconds】

【Current staring time: Completed】

【Must answer, otherwise die】

【Answer incorrectly, die】

【Answer correctly, can leave safely】

【Correct answer: Unknown】

Chen Mo's brain was turning rapidly.

"How much to refuel?"

He wasn't next to the gas pump, and he had no action of refueling; why ask this question?

What was the core of the rule?

It was "Gas Station Attendant."

What was the duty of a Gas Station Attendant?

It was to refuel cars.

So it only asked questions to "people who needed to refuel."

Chen Mo looked at himself; he was empty-handed, had no gas cans, no car keys, and nothing related to refueling.

He wasn't here to refuel.

He was here to steal things.

"Not refueling," Chen Mo said.

The "Gas Station Attendant" froze.

Its mouth was open, but it made no sound.

Inside those pure black eyes, something was squirming.

"Not refueling," Chen Mo repeated.

"I'm not here to refuel."

The "Gas Station Attendant"'s mouth continued to open and close, but it couldn't make a sound.

The rules were in conflict.

Its rule was "Must answer the refueling amount."

But Chen Mo's answer was "Not refueling," which was not within the rule's preset scope.

The question "How much to refuel" had a preset answer of a number—10 liters, 20 liters, fill it up.

"Not refueling" was not a number.

The rule couldn't process this answer.

The "Gas Station Attendant"'s body began to tremble, as if something inside was tearing apart.

Cracks appeared on its skin, and golden light shone through the cracks.

Then—

It shattered.

Like a wax figure struck hard, it shattered into pieces on the ground.

Golden threads surged from the fragments and poured into Chen Mo's body.

【Killed E-Class Ghost Shadow "Gas Station Attendant"】

【Method: Rule conflict】

【Obtained: sequence fragment × 8】

【Current fragments: 74】

【Obtained special reward: Rule Perception (Elementary)】

【Rule Perception: Can perceive hidden rules within 50 meters】

Chen Mo stood where he was, looking at the pieces on the ground.

Rule conflict.

So the rules of the Ghost Shadows weren't invincible; they could be exploited.

As long as you found the loophole in the rule or input an instruction the rule couldn't process, you could make the Ghost Shadow collapse on its own.

He remembered this lesson.

Then he turned around and continued moving the supplies.

An hour later, Chen Mo left the service area driving a new pickup truck.

It wasn't his modified one, but an off-road pickup truck he had picked from the parking lot, with more space, a higher chassis, and suitable for off-roading.

His original one was driven by him to the repair shop, where he did some simple modifications using the tools inside.

He installed a bull bar, changed to thicker tires, and stuffed a few spare gas cans into the truck bed.

Now he had two cars.

One main car, one secondary car, connected by a chain, which could be towed.

The supplies were all divided between the two cars, enough for him to use for three months.

Chen Mo drove on, continuing forward.

In the rearview mirror, that service area grew further and further away.

But one thing kept on his mind—

Before leaving, he had found a diary on the workbench in the repair shop.

The owner of the diary was a person named "Old Li," who claimed to be a "previous generation Chosen One."

The diary recorded many things—types of Ghost Shadows, the usage of rules, and that legendary "Old Driver."

The last page read:

"If one day I am no longer around, remember: Don't trust anyone, don't stay in one place for too long, don't look back."

"Also, at the end of Highway 13, there is a warehouse that no one has ever discovered. The coordinates are—"

The coordinates had been torn off.

But Chen Mo found another note in the inner layer of the diary.

It only had one line of text on it:

"The warehouse is under the church."

The church.

That abandoned church he had seen last night.

Chen Mo gripped the steering wheel and pressed the accelerator.

Under the church, there was a warehouse that no one had ever discovered.

What was there?

He didn't know.

But it was worth a look.