Chapter 25

The few people waiting outside only had to wait a minute before they saw the police station light up.

Everyone looked at each other, and after a few dozen seconds, Feng Jue came out from the usual spot: "I found the backup power switch; it seems this police station has a built-in power source."

This was undoubtedly good news, and the five people immediately entered the police station through the gap in the wall.

Once fully illuminated, the inside was actually quite terrifying. Apart from the ceiling, which was relatively undamaged, almost all the desks, chairs, benches, computers, documents, water dispensers, and other movable items were out of place. There were also many suspected door panel fragments and over a dozen damaged door frames. The back of the police station's main door was piled with the most stuff, so it couldn't be opened from the outside, even with a key.

On the first floor, there were a total of three police corpses. The first one Feng Jue found was closest to the entrance. Further inside, there were two more in uniform, both white males. The second corpse was obese, with a large cut on the side of his round belly, from which a long section of intestines had been dragged out. To be specific, it was long enough to hang himself with. The third corpse was of medium build, with a gash on his left shoulder that severed his collarbone and extended to his left chest, where his heart was missing.

The game's realism in depicting such disgusting things was extremely high, but the system would suppress the player's urge to vomit, mainly by making slight adjustments to the olfactory and taste sensations to prevent the player's stomach from feeling severely uncomfortable.

Wang Tanzhi, on the other hand, didn't really care. He had dissected many bodies in real life. Of course, this had nothing to do with courage; he was just used to it. As long as the body didn't move, whether it was eviscerated or not, he wasn't afraid. However, he was afraid of ghosts, goblins, and the dark, and his reactions to horror movies and games were similar to those of women.

Speaking of which, women's reactions to horror movies are often exaggerated, but this doesn't mean they are cowardly. It's a complete deception. While they might have moments of fear in real life, watching horror movies is a different matter. For example, when a young couple watches a horror movie together, the man often has a nonchalant expression, while the woman appears very timid. One might occasionally make a joke to lighten the mood, while the other might scream from time to time. This happens every day, and most of the time, the man is pretending to be brave, and the woman is acting cute. In reality, both have similar levels of fear, and there isn't such a significant difference.

But I must say, a man who doesn't pretend to be brave is not cute, and a woman who doesn't act cute is too brave. The world needs to function this way, so everyone, please continue to put in effort.

Getting back to the three corpses, the one Feng Jue had already searched naturally had nothing left to find. The eviscerated one had a police baton and a pair of handcuffs. Upon closer inspection, the handcuffs were broken, and there was no key on his body.

Feng Jue handed the baton to Gudul, who, despite it being a common-quality item, was very satisfied because it was a specialized weapon and he had been unarmed until then.

The third corpse was in a small room, apparently for cleaning tools, and had nothing on him. Just as Feng Jue was about to strip him to check for tattoos or moles on his feet, Wang Tanzhi finally found a piece of paper in his pocket.

Such an obvious puzzle element couldn't be ignored.

【Name: Paper with Numbers】

【Type: Plot-related】

【Quality: Common】

【Function: Unknown】

【Can it be taken out of the script: No】

【Note: 69185】

The paper had only these five Arabic numerals, and after reading the item description for a few seconds, Feng Jue threw it away.

"Hey! Jue, is it okay to just throw it away?" Wang Tanzhi asked.

Feng Jue took out the keychain he had picked up earlier and examined each key: "69185... 69185... Found it." He selected the key with these five numbers engraved on its end, removed it from the keychain, and then threw away the entire keychain, keeping only this one. "Yeah... that's it."

When the key was taken out and held separately, a new item prompt appeared in the menu:

【Name: Fire Key】

【Type: Plot-related】

【Quality: Fine】

【Function: Acts on the Fire Seal】

【Can it be taken out of the script: No】

【Note: A key with magical energy, one of the five keys to the Demon Gate】

"This is an item required for the main quest," Feng Jue said. "Even if we don't come in now, we'll still have to come back to the police station when we reach the Demon Gate."

"That's great, it saves time, doesn't it?" Wang Tanzhi said.

"Time..." Feng Jue said. "Hmm... let's not talk about it. The item note mentions that there are five keys in total. Following this Legend of Zelda-style setup... I estimate that when we reach the Demon Gate, the follow-up quest will be to find all five keys and then open or close the gate."

Long Aomin walked over from the other end of the corridor and said, "The stairs to the second floor are completely destroyed; it seems we can't go up."

"Expected..." Feng Jue handed the key to him to check its attributes. "What we need is on the first floor."

Gudul and Jimo seemed to have found something. They had discovered a first-aid kit in a pile of debris in one of the rooms and brought it over.

When opened, it contained a roll of bandages and two bottles of clear liquid. These were naturally consumable items. The bandages were for stopping bleeding, and the two bottles were standard recovery agents provided by the Horror Park.

【Name: Survival Value Restorer (Large) *2】

【Type: Consumable】

【Quality: Common】

【Function: Restores 100% of the player's survival value】

【Can it be taken out of the script: Yes】

【Note: Maximum stack size is 5; the effect will gradually weaken with consecutive use】

Feng Jue understood the note immediately. The maximum stack size was clearly to limit the number of items players could carry, as the inventory only had ten slots, and even if there were larger ones in the future, space would still be needed for equipment and other items. The setting of a gradually weakening effect with consecutive use was to prevent players from relying too heavily on the restorers in combat.

"Great... one bottle is 100%..." Feng Jue took out his [Disposable Syringe] and handed it to Wang Tanzhi, saying, "Doctor, it's up to you."

Wang Tanzhi, being a smart person, immediately understood Feng Jue's intention. He picked up one of the restorers and drew about four-fifths of the liquid, then gestured for Long Aomin to roll up his sleeve.

While Dr. Wang was giving him the injection, Long Aomin returned the key to Feng Jue and asked, "What does 69185 mean?"

Feng Jue replied, "A low-level puzzle, just the alphabetical order: 6F, 9I, 18R, 5E, Fire."

Though the explanation was simple, Long Aomin felt he might not have thought of it.

Wang Tanzhi completed the injection neatly. The amount he drew was quite accurate, and this injection restored 83% of Long Aomin's survival value, bringing it back to 95%.

The remaining 17% in the bottle, Wang Tanzhi first asked Gudul and Jimo if they had lost any survival value. Both said they were at full health, so Wang Tanzhi didn't hesitate to drink the rest, restoring his survival value to 100%.

Some might wonder why they didn't just take turns drinking from the bottle. The reason is that as soon as a player makes the "drink" action, the item disappears instantly.

The survival value restorers, as the most common "health potion," will be one of the main items sold in the game store. Unlike the realistic items in the script, these are system items. As soon as a player makes the "drink" action, even if they just pour it randomly, it is considered fully consumed, and the player won't even feel the liquid passing through their throat, and the bottle will immediately disappear. These items are designed for "use," not for quenching thirst or creating a sense of fullness, so they are set up this way.

The disposable syringe, in a sense, exploited a loophole, and only someone like Feng Jue, who had thoroughly read the game manual, could have thought of it. At this moment, Wang Tanzhi and Long Aomin hadn't fully grasped the implications; they were just following Feng Jue's lead. It wasn't until after the script ended and they read the item descriptions that they understood the reasoning.

From the system's perspective, this was not considered a bug but rather a technique that deserved a reward for Wang Tanzhi. Since the [Disposable Syringe] disappears after one use, the player effectively split one item into parts, with a gain and a loss, not creating something out of nothing.

"One police baton, one handgun, one plot item for the main quest, and two bottles of health and an item to stop bleeding..." Feng Jue did a quick calculation. "After completing the main quest and killing the blood corpse, it's possible to have a 'bleeding' injury, so the survival value restorers are necessary. The plot item aside... killing such a monster and only getting two weapons seems a bit too little..."

Feng Jue lowered his head, his left hand on his chest, his right elbow resting on his left hand, and tapped his forehead with two fingers. "I was hoping to find a room like an armory or a pile of confiscated marijuana..."

"Hey! What are you thinking about? Virtual drug experiences and sexual services are strictly prohibited!" Wang Tanzhi said.

"Right!" Feng Jue's eyes lit up. "The fat guy's intestines are out, but his belly is still so big. There must be something inside!"