AnalogHorror: Rule Kaidan 4016
Chapter 330 - 154: The Sweaty 10 Minutes

Chapter 330: Chapter 154: The Sweaty 10 Minutes

The only way to break the deadlock now was to do one thing—rush back to the Teaching Building before the mist engulfed them or, simply, maintain the cognition that they were "on the way."

And that Teaching Building, faintly visible through the mist in the distance, had been Lin Yi’s unwavering target from the beginning—he had established the Teaching Building as his Anchor from the start, ensuring that he was always "heading towards the Teaching Building," so even though the Cobblestone path had twisted into a pretzel, he never lost his way in the mist.

It proved to be an effective way to prevent getting lost, but relying solely on that, they couldn’t make it back to the Teaching Building.

But not being able to return to the Teaching Building was okay, because all Lin Yi needed to ensure was that they were "on the road."

Rule number seven of the Student Code: "If you can’t find a numbered streetlight immediately, look down at the ground beneath your feet and find any reference that assures you are still on the road. If you notice that the ground is twisting, stretching, or undergoing any other illogical changes, quickly clutch your Student ID and map tightly in your hand, and repeatedly remind yourself of your name and student number in your mind. Remember, ’You are a student’ [this sentence is bold and underlined]."

Looking closely at the ground beneath your feet is to anchor yourself within the campus to "ensure you are still on the road," so you don’t get lost with the falling layers.

Now there was something wrong with the ground, but it didn’t matter. I couldn’t anchor myself to the ground anymore, but I could damn well anchor directly to the Teaching Building.

Lin Yi, with Li Huiyuan in tow, moved unhurriedly along the distorted Cobblestone path. When he was certain that the path was compromised, he completely abandoned the idea of returning to the Teaching Building because it was simply not possible.

The only thing he could do now was to hang on this path until 18:00, then find the nearest lit streetlight and follow the direction where the numbers of the streetlights increased to get back to the Teaching Building.

What worried him the most now was that Huiyuan’s unstable condition might worsen with each layer’s fall, eventually triggering a chain reaction.

He glanced down at his watch.

17:52.

"Only 8 minutes left... Please, no complications. Please, no complications..."

Lin Yi muttered something to himself, then suddenly realized that Li Huiyuan’s hand felt somewhat cold.

"Damn it, when it rains it pours!"

"Li Huiyuan, are you okay?"

"I... I’m okay, just a little cold."

"It’s mountainous here at the school, and the fog has rolled in. It’s normal to feel a bit cold, don’t think too much of it." He tried to keep his voice as calm as possible.

"Okay." Li Huiyuan nodded.

"Wait..." Lin Yi paused, the way he tried to rationalize the abnormal weather with the mountainous terrain and climate suddenly felt eerily familiar...

"The weather in the mountains is like this; rain and mist are common. You won’t be in danger if you just stay inside during abnormal weather."

He suddenly recalled this phrase, but wasn’t it something Wei Liang had said to him on the blue bus before even entering the campus?

"Damn, did Liangzi realize the abnormal weather back then and start to prep me? It’s just that I didn’t catch on at the beginning?"

He thought of how Wei Liang was full of fear when he entered the school, but later did not exhibit the same level of fear as he did upon entry...

Could such a stark disjunction be... an act put on by Wei Liang?

"Liangzi pretended to be scared, in order to divert my attention to him and the streetlights, to keep me from falling into the layers right at the start?"

Lin Yi was stunned once more, but now he had no doubt about his supposition.

Wei Liang certainly had his Crafty Tricks, like repeatedly defeating the Pocket Chef in the Cafeteria.

Only now did Lin Yi realize the truth that Wei Liang’s Crafty Tricks weren’t an "Active Skill," but a "Passive Skill."

"I need to find some topic to fish Huiyuan’s attention out of the surroundings..." Lin Yi pondered.

"Speaking of which, Li Huiyuan."

"Hmm?"

"Were you a student? I mean, were you a student before you came here?"

"Hmm... yes."

"I am also a college student. What was your major?" Lin Yi tried to divert Huiyuan’s current focus with idle chat.

"Are you a science or arts student?"

"Ah?" Huiyuan looked puzzled, as if she didn’t understand Lin Yi’s question.

Lin Yi was also taken aback: "Ah? What’s wrong?"

"I... I feel like it’s been a long time since I’ve heard terms like ’science’ and ’arts’..." Huiyuan’s eyes showed a hint of confusion.

"So what was your major?" asked Lin Yi, thinking it didn’t matter if she couldn’t remember, he just wanted to hold onto her attention.

Besides, once someone entered S City University, it was rare for them to keep a clear head.

Huiyuan thought for a moment, then said, "My major was ’Origins of Ancient Life’..."

Lin Yi was taken aback: "You studied archaeology?"

Archaeology was a niche within a niche; he never imagined Huiyuan would have such an unconventional major.

"Not archaeology..." Huiyuan shook her head, "I also took ’Mystical Genealogy’ as a minor. It’s just that after the year X999, a lot of things changed, and some things you can only study at specific schools..."

Lin Yi: "???"

Watching Huiyuan speak seriously about nonsensical things, Lin Yi was completely baffled, wondering whether Huiyuan had lost her mind, or if the world had gone mad?