Kaidan Game Train: Abide Rule or Die!
Chapter 771: Coming from Other Wormhole Points

Xu Huo turned and went downstairs.

Last night, the player who stayed on the third floor patted the man’s shoulder with a grin, "Go ahead and try boldly, but this is a matter for you guys on the second floor. It doesn’t have much to do with those of us living on the third floor, we’ll take our leave first."

The other players didn’t bother with him either, passing by his side one after another.

Out of camaraderie from having come all the way together, Lu Zhen stayed behind to give him some advice, "Dong Qiu, you really shouldn’t say things like that in the future. It will offend everyone."

The game did not explicitly state whether guests damaging the villa would lose their "host status," only a fool would waste their chance just to find a "temporary host."

Dong Qiu deflated, "I’m just worried about being the next one killed, don’t you see? We... are probably the weakest in this batch of players, likely just cannon fodder."

Thus, whether to filter out murderous players or to incite conflict among players, it would be to their benefit.

Lu Zhen was at a loss for words, looking not too bright.

You can’t expect everyone else in the game to be fools, can you?

How lucky would a real fool have to be to survive until Level D?

But Lu Zhen was in the same predicament, she encouraged the two fellow travelers with a look, then promptly went to find Xu Huo.

Unable to leave the villa and with the game rules being so direct, there didn’t seem to be many options for the players. Some were cozying up to other players; the rest scattered to stand in corners or easy-to-defend positions, seemingly killing time nonchalantly, but their occasional sharp gazes would sweep over others, showing that no one was letting down their guard.

Everyone was instinctively wary of each other.

So far, it has not been confirmed whether damaging the villa would also mean losing the "temporary host" status, but of course, one had to be careful of being schemed against by others, as a single misstep could mean being trapped in this copy forever.

Xu Huo made a round on the first floor.

The layout of the first floor was simple: the essential living room, dining room, tea room, kitchen, bathroom, plus three maid’s rooms, a specialized cleaning room, and another elderly person’s room.

This seemed to be an empty villa, basic furniture in place, but the wardrobe was bare, and there were no food items in the kitchen or storage cabinets.

Lu Zhen opened a cabinet in the cleaning room, rummaged through the cleansing potions and the like, looked at them, then put them back, and after completing this meaningless action, she couldn’t help but ask Xu Huo, "Are you looking for something?"

"No, just getting familiar with the surroundings," Xu Huo said, glancing around and then moved up to the second floor.

During the day, players could enter the rooms of others, but it was unclear whether the rooms were equipped with props, and once a room was chosen it couldn’t be changed, effectively becoming a temporary private space. Forcing entry could possibly lead to conflict.

Therefore, Xu Huo chose rooms that were unwatched or unoccupied to enter.

The most content-rich of all the rooms was the study, and for some reason, most of the books in this study were about etiquette: the etiquette of different countries, different species, and there were even some about plants and animals.

Indeed, plants and animals have etiquette too. According to the books, it’s a peculiar phenomenon arising from specially evolved flora and fauna, not the usual breeding, eating, or hunting behaviors, but rather, like humans, two different species or animals meeting for the first time would greet each other in a special way while maintaining a safe distance.

The author calls it "elementary human behavior," suggesting that a long time ago, when human society was just establishing its order, honesty and keeping promises were the norms that people used to regulate themselves. Just like when two countries went to war, they would formally send a declaration of war to agree on the time and place, and before the actual combat, issue a notice. Then, both sides would prepare and start fighting only when ready, and if one party felt it was not appropriate, they could even postpone it.

The evolution of plants and animals somewhat echoed this concept.

Although it was unclear how this behavior formed among fauna and flora, researchers enthusiastically promoted this phenomenon of "plant and animal intelligence."

The result was obvious, the etiquette of these plants and animals greeting or visiting each other was substantial enough to fill books.

However, the evolution of these plants and animals was very interesting. From a different perspective, their intelligence was growing, and so too was the method of spreading their scent. Moreover, these "highly evolved" plants and animals had not yet appeared in any of the game districts Xu Huo had visited.

That is to say, this copy’s setting might come from a E27 game district ranking high in the order, or it could even be from other wormhole points.

He found a book on the origins and disappearance of the "Tuo Shou Li."

The Tuo Shou Li, as the name implies, is when two people meet, the one of lower status uses both hands to lift the left hand of the person of higher status and bows their head slightly to show respect. This etiquette was initially a specific privilege of nobles in one country. As the country grew stronger, the practice of Tuo Shou Li spread rapidly and was no longer confined to nobles; ordinary people began to use it as well.

Until the players appeared, and a noble was manipulated by someone during contact, nearly kidnapping the entire family lineage at a major family gathering. After this event, the nobles prohibited this etiquette, making it illegal for anyone in the nation to use it. At the same time, nobles, as well as their bodyguards and servants, were obligated to adhere to a "three-meter rule"—that is, anyone meeting a noble must maintain a distance of more than three meters, or else they would be treated as an enemy.

Xu Huo was interested in the book not because of the special etiquette it recorded, but because it mentioned a unique surname, Feld. Some members of the nobility in that country had married into the Feld family, and in the final part of the book, it was written how that foreign-married noble lady successfully promoted the Feld family’s etiquette within her own family and the Game Government.

He had heard the name Feld quite a few times now, from the Feld family scion in the Skinning Artisan’s Copy who became an administrative officer to the subsequent Super Props relic incident. It seemed this family had a very close relationship with the Game Government, exceeding the level of prestige normally associated with "important dignitaries."

The Feld family’s etiquette being promoted within the government of a game district was telling; it just wasn’t clear what the relationship between this family and the Hengxing Group was.

Speaking of which, so far, Xu Huo hadn’t encountered the Hengxing Group or its subsidiaries in any game district, and there was no information available about the chairman of the Hengxing Group, whose portrait was on the White Notes.

He was eager to raise his Player Level.

Perhaps after leaving Zone 009, he would increase the number of copies he played each month.

After putting the book back in its place, Xu Huo turned and left the study. However, as he reached the door, he suddenly stopped and drew the "Crimson Sword."