Chapter 128 (Catching Bugs)

26th floor, outside the study.

The not-so-wide corridor was filled with people, and soon, most of them rushed to one place like a stream of water.

Xu Ming fell twice while being a parrot. Although she didn't hurt any vital parts, it still left some effects. At this moment, she was still a little depressed and her head was aching.

So when the others went into the house to beat people, they tacitly left her outside. Panpan was also very considerate and ran back to the living room to drag two chairs, one for her and one for her mother. After finishing the job, she rushed back to pick up a handful, weighed it in her hand, and excitedly followed the others into the study.

The study door was closed again. The corridor suddenly became empty again, with only Xu Ming and Panpan's mother left, sitting on a chair, blinking inappropriately at the ping-pong and screaming sounds coming from the door, looking at each other in bewilderment.

Panpan's mother had also been there for a long time. When a bunch of people came out of the rule book, she was among them. But her aura was weaker than the others, and she was relatively slow and taciturn, so she had no sense of existence.

It was a rare opportunity for her to be alone with Xu Ming, so she stopped being silent and asked Xu Ming about his current situation with great concern.

Xu Ming nodded and thanked him, indicating that it was nothing serious. As soon as he finished speaking, another shrill scream came from behind the door, mixed with some vicious curses, and the sound was quickly covered by more intense ping-pong.

Panpan was young, her voice was loud, and she was more easily excited than others, so her voice was the easiest to distinguish among a bunch of voices:

"Let me do it, let me do it - ah, I saw him!"

Then there was a bang and another scream.

"..." Xu Ming blinked and continued as if nothing had happened, "Actually, I've always wanted to ask, what is Panpan's full name?"

"Her surname is Tong, and her given name is Pan." Panpan's mother said, "She is a posthumous child and has my surname."

"Oh..." Xu Ming nodded with emotion, pretending not to hear the clanging behind the door, "Then it must have been very difficult for you."

"Not bad." Panpan's mother said, "Panpan became sensible early, and was very well-behaved and obedient..."

"Here, here, here, Sister Yue, hit her here! I'll help you hold it down - kill this bastard!" Panpan's high-pitched voice came through the door at the right time.

"..." Xu Ming continued as if nothing had happened, "Yes, Panpan is really obedient, but it is the nature of children to be lively..."

"That's right." Panpan's mother nodded in agreement, "She understands that I am busy with work, and she has known to stay at home and help me with housework since she was young. I always hope that she can be more independent, make more friends, and participate in more group activities that are beneficial to the body and mind..."

Both of them tacitly ignored the sound coming from the door. After a while, there was a click, and the study door opened again.

Panpan stood alone at the door with a flushed face. Behind her were the people from the demolition office who were still gathered in a group. A leg wearing a worn-out shoe stretched out from the crowd, paralyzed on the ground like a salted fish, twitching from time to time.

Xu Ming looked over her shoulder and chose his words carefully: "Did you subdue him?"

"Yeah." Panpan nodded quickly and showed her the chair that was broken into two pieces in her hand, "Sister, can you ask them not to finish too quickly? I'll go change a chair and be back soon."

Xu Ming: "..."

After a moment of silence, she looked over Panpan and then was silent again.

Not long after, the torn shoe on that leg also flew off, revealing an even more torn sock inside.

Actually... there's no need to move a new chair, right? Xu Ming said in his heart.

This feeling, it's over.

*

Facts have proved that Xu Ming's feeling is correct.

Panpan didn't make it to the end of the excitement. When she came back dragging her chair, the others had already packed up the badly beaten mad bag. Gu Yunshu even rummaged through his body carefully, and found three cards and a note.

All the things were handed to Xu Ming. This was the first time she saw a skill card called "Calling". When she saw the big-eyed black dog printed on the card, she was stunned. After reading the skill description carefully, her expression became even uglier.

And this ugliness reached a new peak when she opened the note -

on the note were several lines of slightly scribbled handwriting:

[No matter who you are, no matter where you find this note, please remember the following words! And tell them when you meet someone who claims to be An Xin Gardening!

[Tell them, we are all on the 100th floor!

[If you want to bribe the elevator, bribe it with cards! Twelve different cards or eight identical cards, only in this way will it send you to the designated floor!

[The building is alive, it is growing, seize the time! ! ]

"..."

Very useful information. But what Xu Ming was most concerned about at this time was not this.

What she cared about was that the handwriting on it was slightly tilted-she immediately hurried back to the living room and compared the note with the rule paper. Sure enough, the handwriting on the note was exactly the same as part of the text in the rule.

After a slight hesitation, she took out the note with "The dog is crazy" and compared it again.

The handwriting was exactly the same.

...This is a bit worrying.

Xu Ming thought silently, and pursed his lips involuntarily.

The same handwriting showed that these notes were probably from the same person, and that person was most likely one of the mutant roots trapped on the 100th floor - and it was this person who left the hint "the dog has gone crazy".

Xu Ming originally thought that this was referring to the dog in this room, and that this sentence had caused the "cat" to jump off the building. But what if this hint was not directed at this room?

Then who is the "dog" referred to in this message?

"..." Xu Ming knew that he shouldn't think too much at this time, but his heart was involuntarily hanging again.

On the other side, Gu Yunshu had also followed him to the living room. As if he noticed something was wrong with her expression, he came closer and asked, "What's wrong?"

"...Nothing." Xu Ming's mouth twitched slightly, trying to keep his composure, and handed the note to her, "At least now we know how this guy got here."

Gu Yunshu took the note, looked at it, nodded slightly, and asked, "What about that guy now?"

"The mirror in the living room is still there, take him to look in the mirror." Xu Ming did not forget his original intention, "Be careful not to be reflected... Observe his reflection, and if you find that he has turned into a cat, drag him away, and then lock him in the kitchen and find someone to watch him."

As for whether this guy would be lazy and not catch mice, Xu Ming was not very worried.

When she was a bird, she could not resist the temptation of "mealworms"; she didn't believe that this cat could still resist catching mice.

"..." Gu Yunshu pondered for a moment, and for the sake of safety, she asked one more question, "What if he just doesn't want to cooperate?"

"Then just throw him down from the building." Xu Ming was too lazy to waste time on this kind of guy, "Get another cat."

When she said this, Crazy Bag was dragged out of the study by the Ox-Headed and Horse-Faced Monsters.

Xu Ming was not sure whether this guy heard her or not, but she was very sure that when she said "throw him down from the building", his expression obviously changed.

This made her feel better.

*

Soon, there was one less eye-catching guy in the room. There was an ugly cat that was a bit eye-catching.

...It was really a bit eye-catching, with its facial features squeezed together and its fur color not very good-looking. The whole thing looked like a well-used rag.

But no matter what, it is better than the humanoid cat before.

According to Xu Ming's instructions, Lu Yueling tied it to the kitchen with her hair, and Ma Taigel volunteered to move a small stool and sit in it, taking on the responsibility of guarding. Xu Ming went to find the A Jiao who was still crawling on the outer wall, and asked him to transport the rule book again and send Gu Yunshu back to Qiu Yufei.

Otherwise, Yufei would be left alone, and she was really worried.

After sending the empty rule book back to the 26th floor again, the A Jiao also returned to Qiu Yufei. Xu Ming also asked it to take a few empty work cards and a few self-defense items that Qiu Yufei left with her - the former was used for pyramid selling, and the latter was convenient for pyramid selling.

After finishing this, she quickly found a mirror and transformed herself back into a parrot. It wasn't because she had any special fetish, but because she noticed when she was transformed from a parrot that the bruises on her ankles had basically not changed during the time she was transformed into a parrot.

In other words, when she changed into other appearances, she had no risk of being targeted by that guy again.

In this case, the inconvenience was tolerable.

"...Is this why you feel at ease using me as a microphone?"

The whale man who had transformed into a human form said unhappily, and looked sideways at the parrot perched on his shoulder: "Can't you change to a better-looking species? For example, a bird of paradise, a green peacock, etc.... This white-feathered bird is really unimpressive..."

"Shut up." Xu Ming said unhappily in his consciousness, "Just go away."

"Okay, okay." The whale man sighed exaggeratedly, "So I'm not only a microphone, but also a taxi... Here, we're here, right?"

It stopped in front of the storage room, and after a moment, under the guidance of Xu Ming, it carefully pushed open the door in front of it.

There were potted plants in the storage room - Xu Ming knew this very well, but to be honest, she really didn't know what the potted plants looked like.

At first, it was because of her idiotic nature that she couldn't see anything; then, because of the interruption of the crazy bag, she had no chance to enter the storage room. She had thought of coming over just now, but the mirror happened to refresh at that time, and she was afraid of missing the opportunity to turn into a parrot, so she thought about it and went to look in the mirror first... so she had been

dragging it on until now. Considering the explosive image of the cats and dogs in the house, Xu Ming also made special mental preparations before entering - but even so, the moment she entered the door, she couldn't help but gasped.

The accompanying whale fat man couldn't control himself and directly shouted "Damn" - the sound was not small, causing Lu Yueling and Niu Bugeng, who were patrolling the living room, to rush over.

And after seeing the things placed in the house, they also burst into a cry of surprise.

...Yes, something.

Xu Ming didn't know whether to call it a potted plant; or, if she hadn't received any information before, she would never call the thing in front of her a "potted plant".

...Although it was indeed planted in a pot.

But what grew out of the soil was not anything green - but spines. The

white spine, made up of thin bones, stood swaying in the pot, and the tallest one almost reached the ceiling.

On both sides of the spine, there are pairs of lung lobes... Xu Ming actually didn't recognize what it was at first. He only vaguely recognized that it was an organ in the human body. It was only after Niu Bugeng said it that he finally reacted...

Looking at the location where these lung lobes grew, Xu Ming suspected that for this "plant", they might really serve as leaves.

The rest of the parts were not seen for the time being, and it was not known whether they did not exist or had not yet grown. Xu Ming flapped his wings, wanting to fly closer to take a closer look, but as soon as he took off, he heard a sudden burst of soft sobbing in the house.

Xu Ming: "..."

For the sake of caution, she quietly landed again and returned to the whale fat man's shoulder.

"How disgusting." Only at this moment did Lu Yueling finally find her voice again. She raised her hand to cover her mouth, not disguising her disgust, "Is this thing... considered a potted plant?"

"Uh, why not?" The whale man pointed to the flower pot below, "It is indeed planted in a pot."

Perhaps because it was a mutant root, it did not react much to the scene in front of it; it said "Damn" before, purely because it was shocked by the size of this thing.

"And its scent is so special." After a pause, the whale man said, "It's very different from those small animals outside... Hmm, so fragrant."

As it spoke, it couldn't help but sniff.

Lu Yueling looked at it in shock, as if looking at a pervert, and the whale man looked back without guilt: "What the hell, kid Xu Ming also thinks so!"

"?!" Then the shocked eyes fell on Xu Ming again. Xu Ming was silent for a moment, pecked the blubber man unhappily, and then nodded.

She didn't really feel whether it smelled good or not, but she did feel that the "plant" in front of her had a special temptation to her - it was just not as strong as "mealworms", so she could still control it decently.

I think it should be because of her current identity... But why can the blubber man also feel the fragrance? Because it is an alien root?

Xu Ming blinked thoughtfully, listening to the sobbing in the house getting louder and louder. For safety reasons, he hurriedly took the others out first.

After all, the rules also said that "potted plants" are very fragile and sensitive, and it is easy to give up the desire to live...

She has to take care of the other party's emotions.

*

"...What should we do now?"

After a while, in the living room.

Ma Taigeer was watching the cat in the kitchen, Panpan's mother stayed outside for a while and then returned the rule book, and Gu Yunshu was sent downstairs to accompany Qiu Yufei - so now only Lu Yueling, Guo Shuyi, Panpan and Niu Bugeng were left in the living room.

Everyone was sitting around the coffee table. The whale man arrogantly took the middle seat on the sofa. Xu Ming stood on the coffee table, looking sideways at the rule sheet and note on the table.

Lu Yueling had asked that question just now. The fat man looked at her mysteriously, and quickly conveyed Xu Ming's answer in his mind:

"The long-term goal is to accumulate enough cards and go to the 100th floor as soon as possible; the short-term goal is to leave this room first."

"I know that." Lu Yueling crossed her arms, "I'm just asking, how can I leave this house..."

"Potted plants." The fat man spoke without hesitation, paused for two seconds, and looked at Xu Ming in surprise, "Huh? Potted plants?"

"Yes." Xu Ming took the time to glance at it, and answered in his heart, "What else?"

In fact, it can be seen from the rules provided at the beginning-potted plants, in the entire house, occupy a very special ecological niche.

On the one hand, it is the most fragile, and any animal can disturb or even interrupt its growth; on the other hand, it is the strongest, and only needs a branch to calm the frenzied dogs and cats.

The most important thing is that at the end of the original rules, there is also a sentence like this -

"Congratulations on your prosperity?" Lu Yueling subconsciously interjected.

Xu Ming: "..."

"No, it's this sentence." She helplessly let the whale man point it to Lu Yueling.

The penultimate line of the letter did say, [I hope that when I come back, the potted plants will have fully grown. ]

"..." So?

Lu Yueling blinked, and asked in confusion but seriously: "Then what?"

"Then... the potted plants should bear fruit." Guo Shuyi, who was standing by, had already understood, "Didn't Sister Mingming mention it? She had a note that was found in the rotten fruit in the empty flowerpot."

"Is it possible that this itself is a hint? 'The clue is in the fruit'?"

Lu Yueling: "...Then what?"

"Then, the birds will peck at the fruit." Guo Shuyi continued slowly, "But I'm not sure... What do you think, Sister Mingming?"

In response to her, the parrot nodded affirmatively.

Xu Ming's idea was similar to hers - in addition to the potted plants, the birds were probably also an important part of a successful escape. This is probably why the letter says, "If you want to find the key, ask the starling." The italicized words from the outside also emphasize that the bird should be protected...

In other words, if their guess is correct, the normal clearance process is likely to be like this -

the entrant follows the rules and takes care of the potted plants as carefully as possible, protecting the potted plants while protecting themselves. Until the moment when the potted plants bear fruit, the starling will fly up and peck the fruit down, and get further clues from the fruit. Then find the desk key based on the clues, and then use the desk key to open the drawer to get the membership card and the door key to leave...

And other rules, or other factors, are essentially interference with this process.

"Cats" and "dogs" are both likely to attack people and have fatal risks. The difference is that the attack conditions of dogs are fixed. As long as they avoid limited conditions, they are basically impossible to attack people; cats are moody and may suddenly turn hostile and attack people. In addition, the rules also mention something that will appear in the closet...

The letter says it is a "cat", but at the same time it is recommended not to open the closet. Whether the thing hiding in the closet is really a cat is worth discussing.

Maybe it is another monster, but the rules lied about it and called it a "cat", that's all.

Using the branches and leaves of potted plants can avoid one attack from cats and dogs, but the price is that the fruiting time of the potted plants will be delayed... In short, it takes longer to pass the level. In addition, you have to beware of the cat's direct attack on the bird. Without the bird, you can't pass the level either...

But overall, the route to pass the level is still quite clear. At least it's better than the previous pig-face maze - in the pig-face maze, unless you can directly follow the butcher like she did, you can only find the exit by force; the same is true for the parking lot that Qiu Yufei encountered at the beginning. There is no skill, you have to find it by force.

But in this room, if you strictly follow the rules, you will probably be able to get out.

And overall, how should I put it... it's much more "delicate".

"But this way of passing the level can only be implemented under ideal conditions, right?" Listening to the simultaneous interpretation from the whale fat man, Niu Bugeng pondered for a while, but he spoke up, "To stay calm under the attack of those monsters, you have to go to the storage room to get props in time. This is actually quite difficult for ordinary people."

Apart from other things, the "dog" outside is quite tricky. When it suddenly attacked earlier, Panpan and Lu Yueling were both scared. Fortunately, the door between the restaurant and the living room was closed, so it didn't rush in directly.

"Yes, and there is also the potted plant itself! It's also quite troublesome!" Lu Yueling said, "Just when we went in to take a look, we sobbed non-stop. If it really had its branches and leaves pulled out, who knows if it can still be healthy?

What if it dies just because it can't bear it?" It was directly dead.

"There is another possibility." Guo Shuyi added, "Sister Mingming, there was only one person when you came in. But what if two people came in at the same time? Or, after you came in, someone else came in?"

... Indeed.

Xu Ming sighed inwardly. She had considered this possibility before - although she once hoped that someone would come in to cooperate with her, but when she calmed down and thought about it, if more than one person came in at the same time, it would be called Shura Field.

"Well, I'm sorry." Panpan raised his hand with great curiosity, "I don't quite understand this part..." "

..." Guo Shuyi and Xu Ming looked at each other and took the initiative to explain, "It's very simple. That is to say, if two people come in at the same time, the dog will definitely attack. Either it bites one person to death directly, and the remaining one continues to act according to the rules; or one of them looks in the mirror and turns into an animal, thus avoiding the risk.

"But if this goes on, it will lead to two different developments - either the people who turn into animals can't control their desires and eat the feed, or chew the potted plants..."

The result of eating the potted plants is clear, everyone will die together; as for the consequences of eating the feed, it is not mentioned in the rules, but looking at the quality of the feed, you can imagine that it is not a good thing.

Or, it is even worse -

they will turn against each other and start to fight for the position of the only human beings.

"...Fight?" Panpan still didn't understand, "What do you mean?"

"It means that you win if you kill others or turn them into animals first." The whale fat man said, "Use a mirror, or an animal... Hey, if that's the case, it would be a high-end game."

"It's a hell game." Lu Yueling complained, and imagined the scene, and couldn't help but feel a chill on his back.

"In that case, can I make a suggestion?" Niu Bugeng spoke again, softly, "The director resolved this crisis by modifying the rules before, so can we leave the modified rules in this room and keep them in effect?" In this way

, even if someone else comes in later, they won't kill each other because of the number of people, and at least some of the risks can be avoided.

"Hey, this is okay!" Lu Yueling nodded in agreement immediately, and then looked at Xu Ming, who had changed direction at some point and was struggling to flip through the rule book with his paws. He couldn't help but poke her with his hand, "Teacher Mingming, what do you think?"

"..." Xu Ming was thinking about something at the moment, and he habitually opened his mouth to speak when he heard it, but unfortunately, he said "Congratulations and prosperity" again.

Translator Po Haitang spoke dutifully: "She agrees with the idea of ​​​​oxen not plowing, but she is not sure whether the modified rules will still be valid after she leaves, so she needs to confirm it again."

Although this whole building is essentially a horror story... but who knows? A serious horror story doesn't cut itself into a honeycomb.

Guo Shuyi seemed to think of something and lowered her eyelids slightly. After a moment, he tentatively said: "Or, you don't actually have to leave?"

Xu Ming: "......?"

As soon as this was said, not only her, but everyone's eyes looked at Guo Shuyi. Guo Shuyi seemed to be a little shy because of being looked at, and smiled shyly, and his eyes quickly fell back on Xu Ming.

"You said before that you were going to leave here first, collect membership cards, and then go to the 100th floor, right?" She looked at the parrot opposite her seriously, and waited for the parrot to nod hesitantly before continuing, "Okay, then let's think about a question - why do you want to leave here?"

"From your perspective, there are two motives. The first is that there are scratches on your feet left by something strange, and the scratches will grow as you stay here for a long time. When they grow to a certain size, they will reappear, so you need to leave as soon as possible*; the second is that you need to collect membership cards and find Landor, right?"

Xu Ming nodded subconsciously, and then realized something, her eyes widened slightly, and the crown feathers on her head gradually spread out - and as if echoing her thoughts, Guo Shuyi smiled, and then continued: "And the first problem has actually been solved. When you turn into an animal, the scratches will not change, which means that as long as you stay here in animal form, you don't have to worry about this, right?

"As for the second problem... it's even simpler. Who said you have to go by yourself to collect membership cards? "

There are so many of them. It's not possible that all of them are sitting here watching cats?