At this moment, Yan Qing felt as if a thousand alpacas were galloping through her mind.
Good heavens! It wasn't that she didn't trust Yue Qi; after all, the male lead in the book was always portrayed as loyal and righteous. Whether as a friend or a lover, he was someone she could only dream of.
However, fate is quite strange. The protagonist did indeed try his best to protect his teammates all the time. But the negative buffs he brought were too terrifying, and his teammates were often no match for his strength. So in the end, all of his teammates met a shockingly similar fate.
—Not one was left; they all returned to their home in the Western Paradise.
Now, this top-tier treatment has finally fallen on her head. How could she not be incredibly grateful!
However, Yan Qing was not one to accept her fate! Since heaven had chosen her to take the place of the original owner, she would fight with all her might to carve out a way for herself to survive.
What's more, she was very well prepared this time. And she just wouldn't believe it.
Wiping away non-existent tears, Yan Qing extended her hands.
"Hello, my name is Yan Qing."
The male protagonist nodded. "My name is Yue Qi. From today onwards, we'll be teammates in this dungeon. Don't worry, I'll protect you."
Then, he took off his backpack and pulled out more than a dozen necklaces and bracelets of various styles. Finally, he stuffed them all into Yan Qing's hands.
“These are all items that can increase one’s luck; they are blessed artifacts—take them all with you.”
Yan Qing stared in disbelief at the pile of lucky magical artifacts in her hands; it was truly an eye-opener.
These ritual implements were of all kinds, among which she could recognize Buddhist lucky charms, Christian red crosses, and Islamic Quranic ornaments.
She now genuinely admired Yue Qi; he was truly devoted to protecting his teammates.
Yan Qing still cherished her life, so she didn't hold back and hung all the magical artifacts on her body.
Her neck, hands, feet, and even clothes were covered in it. In this way, she had become a human-shaped display board.
Now that the team pairings were finalized, Yan Qing began to proactively share her information.
"Two people have already gone into the alley. The reason I'm staying here is to look for the 'Yongning Alley Rules'."
Yue Qi nodded. "Are you sure the 'Yongning Lane Rules' are right here?"
"Of course!" Yan Qing naturally wouldn't say that she had a bracelet that could give early warnings, but from her observation just now, she did discover some clues.
She led Yue Qi to the back of the huge "Yongning Lane" archway, pointed to a spot on the left, and said:
"Look, the colors over there seem a bit off." But the archway was too high for her to reach, so she could only look at Yue Qi's.
Yue Qi didn't say anything; he simply squatted down slightly. The next moment, he suddenly sprang up and sat directly on top of the archway.
He reached out and scratched at the direction Yan Qing was pointing, and sure enough, the outermost layer was just a little bit of paint. After peeling off the paint, a small hole about the size of a wrist was revealed underneath.
Yue Qi took a roll of parchment out of the cave and threw it down.
Yan Qing quickly took it, patted off the dust, and immediately opened it.
—As expected, these are the "Yongning Lane rules".
"Yongning Alley Rules": Dear adventurers, welcome to Yongning Alley. This is an ancient alley with a history of six hundred years. Please abide by the following rules here:
"1" You can only go out in Yongning Lane during the day. Please keep your doors and windows closed at night. If you see the sun suddenly disappear, don't doubt it, it must be night. When the blood moon shines on the earth, you can go out and play to your heart's content.
"2" Be wary of your neighbors; they're always happy to have guests. However, they'd much rather have your #+@&%$.
"3" Water is sacred, and fire is noble. Remember, this is the key to your survival.
"4" Keep moving forward and never look back no matter what happens, or you will never see the sun rise again tomorrow.
"5" The night of the full moon is the monthly bonfire party in Yongning Lane. As an outsider, remember to prepare your gift in advance.
"6" Be wary of women wearing red flowers. If you have any doubts, talk to the shop owner. He will help you.
"7" The restaurant can provide part-time work, but it can only accept a maximum of two people. Otherwise, the boss will be angry!
"8" The garbage truck arrives at 9:00 AM every day. The driver is mentally unstable, so please do not talk to him casually.
"9" Yongning Lane is quiet, peaceful, positive and optimistic. We do not accept any negative comments here.
Yan Qing glanced at the rules; there were nine in total. It seemed that they shouldn't be much harder than her previous one-star dungeon.
Before she could even feel at ease, she heard a deep male voice say, "It might not be a good thing."
Yue Qi had come downstairs at some point. Yan Qing handed him the parchment, but Yue Qi waved it away, refusing to take it.
He pointed to the second rule and said, "If I'm not mistaken, the rules here have been corrupted."
Yan Qing nodded, and the second point stated:
Be wary of your neighbors; they're always happy to have guests. However, they'd much rather have your #+@&%$.
The writing that followed turned into a jumble of gibberish, which happened to be the crucial information. This meant that what the neighbors truly liked was something "it" didn't want the adventurers to know.
Moreover, Yue Qi's expression turned cold. "Although other rules may appear to be unpolluted, they may not necessarily be unpolluted."
Yan Qing completely agreed with this statement. It was already unusual for a multiplayer instance to have only nine rules.
She glanced at Yue Qi, and besides, the place where the male protagonist was in the book was definitely not an easy dungeon.
Strangely, normally adventurers are automatically notified of the dungeon's level as soon as they enter. Why hasn't there been any response here for so long?
Yan Qing shared her guess with Yue Qi, and the two discussed it but couldn't find any clues. In the end, they could only start by memorizing the "Rules of Yongning Lane."
At any time, only the rules can guarantee their survival.
This is where the advantage of being a top student really shines. Yan Qing quickly memorized it all. She turned to look at Yue Qi, and their eyes met.
The two smiled at each other and walked side by side into the alley.
Once inside, Yan Qing understood why she couldn't see anything when looking into the alley from the entrance.
It turns out that Yongning Lane is built on a slope of almost 70 or 80 degrees. The entrance they entered was at the highest point of the slope.
Walking down the slope, Yan Qing first saw a temple. With its red walls and glazed tiles, it was a typical Ming Dynasty building.
The temple looked exceptionally small from the outside, roughly the size of two ordinary houses. But for some reason, the entire temple gave her a very incongruous feeling.
Directly opposite the temple is a park square that appears to be quite large. The square is covered with lush greenery, giving it a vibrant and lively feel.
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