Chapter 67 - The Institute (8)

Chao Bin now just to wanted to get as far away from the fence as he could, 

While shivering with lingering fear, he quickly recounted to them what he recalled about the inexplicable state he was in just now, 

"I couldn't control my thoughts, my entire being was just focused on getting to the source and seeing the face behind the voice. I was completely bewitched."

"I also had zero opportunity to resist, one moment I was sober , the next, the voice had completely over ridden my mind. If it wasn't for Chu Yi, I would have probably tried to climb over and end up being dragged to confinement to be slaughtered."

While Chao Bin spoke , he was suddenly reminded of something- when he first teamed up with Tang Shun and Chu Yi, he distinctly remembered saying something along the lines of 'Don't be a pig teammate'

Now that they've reached this stage, doesnt it seem that he, himself was the pig teammate?

"...."

He blushed.

Tang Shun didn't know what kind of flying thoughts Chao Bin was having now, instead he pondered with long fingers tapping faintly against his folded arms- analyzing the situation in front of him,

"There are only two reasons that I can think of that maybe would cause this. One, your hatred value is too high. You've been targeting the Head Nurse from the very beginning, therefore it is likely that any danger that approaches us, would choose you first as the initial target. Two, it's caused by last night. We've all essentially been forced into a coma and from the varying states of minor injuries on our bodies, we can conclude that something extreme definitely took place during that time."

"However although both of these have a high probabilities, there are also many doubtful areas. If your initial resentment was so high, you should have been the one killed on the first night-"

"....."

Did he really have to be so blunt about it.

"- but you weren't. That tells us that although you've been consistently courting death since we've entered this copy, you haven't been judged by the system as being enough of a competent tank."

Chao Bin wasn't sure if he should be happy for escaping death or upset at being called incompetent.

Regardless of the mixed feeling of Chao Bin, Tang Shun continued to make his own analysis of the situation,

"If we go by the second conjecture and conclude that whatever just happened had something to do with last night it still wouldn't be enough to answer all the questions."

"We've all undergone some sort of transformation last night, what exactly, we don't know. But then why were you the only one to be chosen and lured? What's so special about you or your transformation? It's hard to believe that the system only wanted to scare you. There's either an underlying message behind this seemingly random act or it was just a prelude to more terrifying things to come."

Once again....mixed feelings. 

At this point, Chu Yi finally chimed in,

However he seemed to be more interested in another topic,

"I've been thinking about something as a result of the situation this morning. What purpose do the NPC's hold? What role do they play in all of this?"

Chao Bin was confused by the question, no one has ever thought about or wondered why the NPC's were here in the Institute with them nor have they done so in the copies before this,

Well at the very least he hasn't,

It was almost like a default for them to ignore their presence until something drastic happened.

These NPC's, unless they were Key characters or Final Bosses, in the end could neither participate in their discussion nor impact their final ratings in the end.

They were backboards essentially.

In fact, sometimes they were even pushed out as cannon fodders to block deadly blows if it really came down to it, regardless of whether it does affect their evaluation at the end.

Multi-player instances like this, made it even more impossible for them to focus on the situation of the NPC's. Even the brief accident in the morning, only terrified them but didn't leave much of a mark in their minds. Therefore Chao Bin was thoroughly confused by the situation.

However the thoughtful look that appeared on Tang Shun instantly made him feel that his brain was just not very good, he wanted to speak up but he was too embarrassed to ask.

As if sensing his tangled thoughts, Tang Shun shot him an amused glance before deciding to have pity on him,

"It couldn't be said that they are completely useless but usually in most cases they don't have any direct impact on the player Instance or much of presence really."

"However that is in most cases, you will always have exceptions at some point."

Chu Yi also glanced at the tangled expression of a certain person and also added to Tang Shun's previous statement,

"If we take that template and put it into our current situation, you can feel that something is especially wrong."

"In this world, the human mind will always be the most uncontrollable thing. When a God, you've worshipped and reveled in from birth, suddenly fell off his high alter and showed you the hidden ugliness behind the holy mask, directly breaking the pure fantasy that you believe in. Shattering every belief and blaspheming your unbounded love. Unwillingness and fear becomes the fuel for the soul- corroding anger of a disgraced believer."

"Such anger is one if the most destructive and kingdom-felling things."

Tang Shun nodded in agreement, the glasses hiding ths cold light behind his eyes,

"The Side Task isn't just breaking the news of corruption and having just a slight uproar amongst the people. It's destroying the very foundation of thousands of people in this Emprire. It's completely restructuring the planet!"

"And when humans are faced with things they can't accept or don't dare to accept, it's met with fear and resistance."

"Unless they're forced to face their fears and they're left with only one choice, then , and only then does the seed of rebellion sprout in the hearts."

Chu Yi laughed.

As expected of Tang Shun.

Chao Bin had still been following along relatively well at the beginning but the more Tang Shun and Chu Yi spoke the weirder his face became.

Why were these people thinking about side tasks?

Is this the type of thing that can be so easily decided on?

"I- .....I don't think we should be focusing on that right now."

They laughed but didn't continue to push the topic.

Tang Shun directed towards Chao Bin, a short reassuring sentence,

"Don't worry about the mysterious call for now, unless we figure out what exactly was done to us last night, we won't be able to make any conclusive statement."

"I'd suggest you be careful though and not be seduced in a moment of distraction"

Chao Bin, nodded, he wasn't dissatisfied with this answer, because he knew there was nothing else they could do. In any case, he wasn't dead yet and he had no plans of being so.

Before they could discuss anything else however, a system notif sounded in the minds of all the players on the field.

It wasn't a system task however and to the players suprise, the message read,

[Ding!]

[Official Player Mu Fang I.D 450 has sent out an invitation to Player Batch No# 1015 to enter into the enclosed copy isolated space for a time limit of ten minutes.]

[Please Confirm Player Acceptance]

The yard went dead silent for a few second as the players digested the message, then with the sound of the system confirmation, all the players found that they had been surrounded by a large symposium style, transparent barrier at some point in time. 

Wow!

They spent a few seconds marvelling at the scene, envy ridden gazes staring the wide barrier, it was only then did they finally turned their eyes to the host himself.

Mu Fang didn't seem to care for the scrutinizing eyes of the people around him and didn't want to waste much time.

Without waiting for the players to ask questions, he immediately stated his purpose,

"We need to break the current stalemate we're in. "

"Regardless if it's only been two days.Too much has happened since then."

"I think you all have the common knowledge after so many instances to know that, by following the rules in the copy it's just like walking to your own death voluntarily. Right now, we are unable to explore at night since the rooms are isolated at sundown. Nevertheless, I'm a Hundred percent sure that the most crucial clues are to be found at night. If we continue the way we are now for too long, more than likely we'll end up being caught up in a terrifying cycle of continous deaths but with a crippling lack of clues to even find out how they died-"

One of the players piped up, interrupting his long speech and spoke in a cynical tone,

"How do we know you're not lying, all of this is just your own biased speculation. Maybe if we do go out at night, we'll end up dieing even faster."

Before Mu Fang could respond to the critism, one if his lackeys jumped out immediately to defend him with a loud sneer he completely left no face for the man by yelling,

"Who the fuck gives a damn about you? If you want to stay and be turned into compost by the nurses, then no one's stopping you! Our Brother Fang was just being kind enough to provide a solution for the lot of you! It's one thing to not appreciate his kindness, it's another to start talking shit out of your mouth!"

"Don't really think you're special!"

The man's face changed colors, from white to green in anger and he opened his mouth to argue back but one of his roomates pulled him back and shook his head, 

This wasn't the time.

Mu Fang seemed to tacitly acquiesce to the scolding of the little lackey and after seeing that no one else was coming to jump out and refute, he continued where he left off-

"I propose that we all decide on a date to break out from the rooms at night and start looking for clues. You all felt what happened last night, something is definitely off about this place and we need to find a way to break this copy as quickly as possible."

"But not everyone has the means to get out of the rooms. How are you going to solve that problem since you're such a Messiah."

Chao Bin from beside Chu Yi decided to speak up, the rebellious streak in his bones once again making its presence known.

Mu Fang recognized this player, he was a little taken aback after seeing the familiar people who he was with, but nevertheless still addressed his doubts,

"I have something called a Universal Key. Regardless of whether it is enclosed or hidden, any door in a 400 mile radius will be opened. Does this answer your question." 

The last sentence was addressed pointedly to Chao Bin, who nodded his head but still held a somewhat mocking smile. He had learned from an early age, that nothing comes free in this world

And in fact although none of the players voiced it out, many of them had already raised their vigilance, preparing for when the sudden kindness would backfire.

Eventually under the leadership of Mu Fang they all agreed to breaking out two days later, just in time for the barrier to disperse.

The sounds of nature were once again restored back into space and Chu Yi could feel the warmth of the sunlight on hitting his body.

"What do you think."

Chu Yi rolled his eyes in an unexpected show of annoyance,

"Just remember you're purpose."

Tang Shun paused, a calculating light disappearing across the face of the gentle intellectual before he shook his head and motioned Chao Bin to catch up.

He still had a long way to go it seems.