AnalogHorror: Rule Kaidan 4016
Chapter 931 - 431: Surrounded by Zealots_2

Chapter 931: Chapter 431: Surrounded by Zealots_2

A mist lingered around the figure, like someone who had crawled out of dust and grime, remnants of powder and ash clinging to its body.

It wore a tattered dark green robe, resembling the attire of an Art Student, yet there was something indescribably off about it.

"Pseudo-Human Art Student?! No... it’s a Zealot?!"

Lin Yi’s heart gave a violent jolt as his hand, hidden behind his back, instinctively tightened into a subtle grip. The sky-blue Secret Mark in his palm began to swirl, as if ready to weave itself into a weapon at any moment.

The Zealot spoke slowly, its tone devoid of any obvious inhuman abnormalities:

"Experience Student? Sports Student? Oh... seems like the latter."

It noticed the faint glow of the sky-blue aura, its eyes flicking briefly toward Lin Yi’s hand behind his back.

"Interesting. Very interesting..."

The sinister expression on its face gradually faded, replaced by a stiff, eerie smile.

"Are you here looking for someone... or is there something else you need?"

Its voice carried no discernible issues—Lin Yi couldn’t sense any overt malevolence in its tone. But precisely because of this normalcy, Lin Yi felt an even greater unease, a creeping sense of wrongness he couldn’t articulate.

Lin Yi remained silent, offering no answer or reaction. He simply stared at the figure intently, as if trying to discern something from its expression.

But the Zealot showed no signs of impatience. After asking its question, it stood motionless, that rigid smile etched on its face, as though brimming with infinite patience.

Li Huiyuan seemed to sense the eerie tension as well. Her full attention was on the Zealot and she failed to notice Lin Yi’s other hand slowly inching toward the mini bat he was preparing to unleash.

She tugged cautiously at Lin Yi’s hand behind his back, her expression tense and solemn.

The Zealot, noticing this, didn’t appear hurried. Instead, it smiled faintly before continuing:

"It’s rare for anyone to come here. You... you don’t seem to be invited, do you?"

"’Invited’?" Lin Yi’s heart stirred as a thought surfaced in his mind. Immediately, the contents of the "Teaching Building Rules" crept into his memory...

[If anyone invites you to the above-listed areas, please refuse. If refusal is not possible, seek help from the nearest Sports Student or Physical Education Teacher. If necessary, seek assistance from a Security Guard.]

[Be wary of anyone exhibiting such behaviors. They are no longer who you know.]

"So that’s what it meant?"

"No longer who you know" wasn’t referring to being replaced by a Pseudo-Human. It meant becoming a Zealot!

That made sense. Pseudo-Humans likely lacked sufficient intelligence for such behavior.

"So, is the area above the fifth floor a gathering place for Zealots?"

Yet, going by this logic, there were some inconsistencies.

"That shouldn’t be the case. If it were, why wouldn’t the teachers have warned us in advance?"

Lin Yi’s thoughts raced, but he struggled to weave them into a coherent reasoning.

As time ticked by, Lin Yi internally weighed his options—a mental debate on whether or not to respond to this Zealot.

According to the rules, he shouldn’t respond. But based on Boss and Class Teacher-039’s advice, he could adapt based on the situation.

Suddenly, a lightbulb went off in Lin Yi’s mind. He recalled something—refusing to engage with the Chef in the green apron or Pseudo-Humans had been to avoid being dragged into their "Layers," which would leave him vulnerable to their attacks while simultaneously risking Contamination.

Boiling it down, there were two primary reasons: first, insufficient firepower; second, fear of Contamination.

With this realization, the dilemma became much simpler.

Insufficient firepower?

His current firepower was more than enough to obliterate any corporeal supernatural entity below the Position of a Rage Angel.

Fear of Contamination?

A joke—who’s the real contamination source here, buddy?

My contamination, surpasses yours!

With these two certainties, Lin Yi suddenly felt a wave of calm. An idea began to take shape in his mind.

"You seem to have a lot of concerns." The Zealot spoke again, still probing for Lin Yi’s response. "Unless you turn around and leave now, we’re bound to have some interaction. Besides... even if you want to leave now, you might have to see if my classmates would agree."

As soon as it finished speaking, figures began to emerge from the mist-filled corridor, as though summoned by some silent call.

The figures varied in height and size, but judging from their attire, they were all Zealots.

Some still wore the tattered dark green robes resembling Art Students, while others donned ragged clothing wrapped in layers of bandages and strips of cloth.

That particular outfit brought one distinct image to Lin Yi’s mind—the Weird Art Student made entirely of bandages who had pursued him just the day before...

After emerging from the mist, the Zealots began to close in systematically, tightening their encirclement around Lin Yi and Li Huiyuan, like wolves preparing to hunt.

Li Huiyuan clutched the mini bat in one hand, while the other gripped Lin Yi’s hand tightly in fear.

Lin Yi gently patted her hand as if comforting her, then sighed with feigned helplessness. He finally responded to the Zealot: "It seems we have no choice..."

"Smart people aren’t defined by how high their IQ is, but by their ability to make the right choices." The Zealot’s smile became less stiff but remained palpably aggressive.

Lin Yi nodded regretfully. "I understand, ’adapt with wisdom.’ So, what should we do next?"

Having made up his mind, Lin Yi surmised that these Zealots likely originated from the classroom. This meant their next destination was probably an area already occupied by Zealots—a scenario that Class Teacher-039 and Class Teacher-040 might not yet anticipate.

In that case, rather than forcibly breaking through with Li Huiyuan, it might be better to play along and follow them into the classroom. By appearing to yield, he might even glean more information—truth or lies, any clues were better than none.

If the Zealots had ulterior motives, Lin Yi figured they’d simply fight their way out after.

He had already experienced the terrifying power granted by layered Cautions. Apart from the Alien Angel he encountered the previous night, he doubted anything else at their Position could stop him—though the cost of such action might be severe. Still, Lin Yi weighed his odds of handling the worst outcome.

The result? A 90 percent chance of success.

Ninety percent—that was enough for him to take a gamble.

The remaining ten percent? He reserved that for the Conceptual Rank sculpture—the "Ashen Apostle."

"Come with me; I’ll take you to the teacher." The Zealot glanced at him and said, "If you delay any longer, you won’t be able to leave once it arrives."

With that, it turned and began walking in the direction of the classroom.

The other encircling Zealots parted to create a path, leaving a narrow stretch for Lin Yi and Li Huiyuan to follow their lead into the classroom.

The other surrounding directions, however, remained tightly sealed, resembling a fishing net—seemingly full of gaps but primed for deadly retaliation if breached.

Lin Yi glanced at Li Huiyuan with a look of confident determination. "Do you trust me?"

"Yes!" Li Huiyuan nodded emphatically. The bond forged in the crucible of life and death wouldn’t falter, no matter the circumstances.

"Good. Just keep holding my hand like this. No matter what you see later, don’t worry—I’ll make the call." Lin Yi instructed her. "All I need from you is unconditional trust. If I fall into one of those Layer shifts again, find a way to wake me up."