The game becomes reality: Black Myth invades the real world.

Chapter 35 Pyrotechnic Pocket, Dissection of 7 Bodies

Chen Fu thought to himself, "He really is a friend I've known for over ten years. I'll do whatever you say without any hesitation."

"Your teammates are going to check out the Dharma Hall. It's located outside the Mahavira Hall, connected to the Sutra Repository and the Bell Tower in the southeast corner. It's rich in resources and also has a chance to have some adventures."

"Due to your different choices, you will be working separately for the time being, but you will have the opportunity to meet again in the future."

After reading the game text, Chen Fu nodded secretly; everything was proceeding according to plan.

In other games, you definitely can't search for resources together in the early stages, otherwise it's impossible to distribute them equally, and you'll fall behind others in terms of progress.

Separate searches and individual searches are necessary to maximize benefits.

Based on the situation of the instance that I had discussed with Song Shuangwei before, she shouldn't be too reckless. I'll search for Xiangji Kitchen first, then find a way to meet up with her, and then retreat... Chen Fu thought this was the best outcome, as both of them could get enough items.

"You've arrived, Xiangji Kitchen."

"The kitchen, where Jinshan Temple supplies meals to the monks, is a place of fire and water, yet nothing more than oil, salt, and cooking oil. Demonic influences and evil spirits cannot withstand the onslaught of spoons and chopsticks. Zen is found in the cooking smoke, and Vajra is hidden in the finest food."

"Xiangji Kitchen has a long tradition of using the kitchen as a place of practice and the kitchen knife as a ritual implement. It is said that a fire-wielding monk once hid here. He believed that the way to subdue demons was not outside, but in the harmony of the five aggregates. Why carry a staff? The cooking utensils in hand are enough."

Chen Fu thought to himself, "What kind of gluttonous declaration is this? Have you people from Jinshan Temple cooked all the demons and monsters? Bai Suzhen isn't imprisoned in Leifeng Pagoda, she's in your stomachs, isn't she?"

"This place is the most chaotic, with broken jars and cracked pots, and rotten vegetable leaves and rice. Right behind the stove, there is an old pine cabinet that is half-embedded in the wall. The lower half of the cabinet is soaked in water and has rotted, while the upper half is still intact because of its higher position and sturdy structure. The cabinet door is ajar, with only some old things piled up haphazardly. Do you want to open it and explore?"

Of course I want to! After listening to you ramble on and on, all I wanted was to search for treasures.

Chen Fu chose to explore.

"You opened the cabinet door, took out the old hemp rope and oilcloth piled inside, and found a shriveled, dark brown coarse cloth bag lying flat against the wall deep inside."

"You have obtained the Pyrotechnic Pocket."

"The Fireworker's Bag (legend) is also known as the Bag of Heaven and Earth. It contains food, gathers blessings, carries livelihood, and bears vows. Don't underestimate the small bag. It once filled the stomachs of monks from ten directions with a single meal. It has about five cubic meters of space inside."

"You can store other acquired items in your firework pocket for carrying."

Chen Fu's eyes lit up; this thing was a backpack.

When he was searching the pig farm earlier, he could only take two items because he didn't have a backpack. Unexpectedly, the first treasure he obtained after entering the Legend of the White Snake instance was something he desperately needed.

In reality, Chen Fu took out the fire-working bag, which looked like an ordinary dark brown bag, nothing special.

He put the books and other items inside and found that the bag didn't bulge; there was plenty of space.

He made a profit right away, but the bag is only functional. He'd like to see if he could get anything else... Chen Fu thought to himself, he can't just grab a bag and run away. In other games, this would be like picking up a level 3 backpack and then quitting.

"You continued your search in the kitchen and found a set of unremarkable, shiny black kitchen utensils under a pile of broken bowls and rotten wood."

"A thick, round-bottomed cast iron frying pan, a high-quality jujube wood cutting board covered with knife marks, a pair of long bamboo chopsticks, and a large iron soup ladle. They look somewhat old, but the iron pan is rust-free, the wooden cutting board is free of insects, the bamboo chopsticks are straight, and the soup ladle is heavy, appearing exceptionally clean in the filthy environment."

Chen Fu scratched his head. "No, is this really necessary? The descendant of the Master of Skillful Arts told me to use kitchen utensils as weapons, and then I found this kind of thing in the dungeon. They just forced it on me."

Could it be that the future ruler of the mortal world is a cook? He won't rule over an empire, but rather pots, pans, oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar.

Despite his complaints, Chen Fu still took what he was supposed to take. He put the items into his fire-attack pocket and clicked to exit the Xiangji Kitchen.

Even if he doesn't need the kitchenware himself, he can sell it in the Forbidden City. Who knows, he might find a sucker to buy it. Once he's made enough money from the amulets, he can continue to seek out the Golden Jade Boy to upgrade his skills.

Chen Fu wanted to go to the Dharma Hall to find Song Shuangwei and see what the girl had found. If possible, he would retreat immediately.

Anyway, I'm getting the treasure with nothing, so whether I make a lot or a little, it's not a loss. My life is more important.

But this time, the game text did not give him such an option.

"Where are you going next? Are you going back to the main hall, or to the laundry room next to the kitchen?"

After pondering for a moment, Chen Fu realized that they had started from the Great Buddha Hall. If they returned there, it might trigger the Dharma Hall option. He chose option one.

"You have come to the Great Buddha Hall once again."

"You've noticed a side hall next to the main hall, where a small shrine to Bhaisajyaguru Buddha is enshrined. Would you like to go and take a look?"

"You entered the side hall and stood before the Buddha shrine."

The game text still doesn't mention the Dharma Hall, but instead mentions the side hall that was mentioned before.

Unable to reach the Dharma Hall, Chen Fu naturally chose to continue his search.

Furthermore, and importantly, there is currently no option for retreat.

"When the flood hit Jinshan Temple, the beams of the side hall collapsed, but they happened to prop up a corner of the offering table, preventing the Buddha niche from being completely submerged. On the offering table, the small statue of Medicine Buddha has been overturned, and only a set of medical ritual implements symbolizing the healing of the suffering of all beings are scattered in the shadows where the water has not yet reached. Would you like to pick them up?"

While clicking to pick up items, Chen Fu pondered other things.

He seems to have figured out the real reason for the changes in the Legend of the White Snake story.

Once inside, the game text continuously presented various environmental descriptions, from the initial demonic aura to the current flood, giving Chen Fu the feeling that Bai Suzhen had already used her magic to destroy Jinshan Temple.

In other words, the White Snake Legend storyline is in its final stage, which is why it's fraught with danger.

If we follow this line of reasoning, does that mean each instance automatically advances the story? Players enter at different times, and the story they face will be different, so it's impossible to generalize.

Chen Fu felt that this was probably the case, but further verification was needed.

He put the matter aside for the time being and began to look at the treasures he had found.

"You have obtained the knowledge to dissect seven bodies."

"The seven tools used for dissecting (according to legend) are: small scissors, probe, curette, hook forceps, forceps, willow-leaf blade, and skull saw."

"The Medicine Buddha is also known as the Great Physician King. The offerings in front of him symbolize the dissection of suffering and the illumination of the emptiness of the five aggregates. By separating flesh and blood and scraping away karmic poison, under the light of crystal, the blades do not draw blood, and each needle crosses the netherworld. This set of utensils has been imbued with the compassionate light of the Medicine Buddha for a long time, and it has a natural power to deter all viruses and obstacles."

This is a good thing. Whether in the game or in real life, Chen Fu needs to dissect corpses to gain abilities.

He used the tools provided by the game before, but couldn't see any results. When dissecting the ghost groom, he also used things he randomly bought at the supermarket.

Now there is a set of specialized dissection instruments, which will make things much more convenient in every aspect.

Chen Fu smiled and put the seven dissected bodies into his fire-working bag. He would use this bag to perform dissections whenever he encountered a plot or a corpse.

"Having reaped a bountiful harvest, where do you plan to go next? Should you pass by the Great Buddha Hall on your way to the Dharma Hall, or perhaps visit the Washing Hall?"

Finally, they could go to the Dharma Hall. Chen Fu knew that Song Shuangwei was there, so he immediately chose the first option.

Once you get there, assess the situation. If you can retreat, then leave immediately.

"You have arrived at the Dharma Hall."

"There is an entrance exposed in the basement of the Dharma Hall due to water damage and collapse. Do you wish to enter?"

Song Shuangwei isn't here? Did she go inside to collect treasures?

Chen Fu thought to himself, then clicked to enter.

"The underground entrance leads to a crypt. It is not large and seems to be the place where the abbots of successive generations secluded themselves and stored important scriptures. Now the scriptures have long since rotted, but only a blue stone stupa in the center stands still. The inscriptions on the stupa are blurred, and you can see through the cracks that it is empty inside."

"Unfortunately, this place has been completely looted, and there are no treasures left. Your teammates have already gone elsewhere. Are you going to go look for her, or continue searching alone?"

Song Shuangwei took the things and went somewhere else.

Chen Fu's actions were the same as the girl's; there's nothing to say about it. He entered the Legend of the White Snake instance just for the treasures.

He chose to find teammates and prepare to reunite with Song Shuangwei.

"You followed the footprints left on the ground to find your teammates."

"You have arrived at the clock tower."

It's understandable that Song Shuangwei is still searching; he doesn't have the option to retreat, and the girl probably doesn't either.

"You found your teammate. She was observing the entrance to the clock tower. You went up to greet her, which startled her."

"Your teammate was a little startled by your sudden appearance, but quickly calmed down. She said the entrance to the clock tower was damaged, and the only way to explore it was by climbing up from the outside. She asked for your opinion."

They still didn't know how to retreat, but since they had reunited, there was no harm in searching together, so Chen Fu chose to explore.

"Your teammates looked at you, and after a moment, a look of confusion appeared in their eyes. They asked, 'Why did you go up there again?'"

A question mark appeared in Chen Fu's mind. So you want me to climb up and scout ahead?

It certainly fits Song Shuangwei's personality.

Chen Fu remained silent and chose to climb.

"You have entered the clock tower and found that the huge bronze bell used to tell time has fallen to the ground. Beside the overturned bell frame lies a wooden mallet, made of dark hemlock wood with a natural curve. It is very heavy and produces a whistling wind when swung, which can dispel evil. Successfully hitting a target will cause triple damage."

Chen Fu thought to himself, "It's already this heavy, the damage must be considerable."

Just as he was debating whether to pick it up, the game text updated.

"Your teammate caught up, and she picked up the log bell."

Fine, I don't really want it anyway.

The main problem is that this thing is big and heavy. Although it looks impressive when you swing it, it makes movement inconvenient.

However, it seems to work fine on Song Shuangwei as well.

Chen Fu could imagine that in the future, Song Shuangwei would take long strides and carry a piece of wood to smash people.

that must be very interesting.

It seems that Song Shuangwei also had a backpack that could hold props, otherwise she wouldn't have been able to take them directly.

Chen Fu actually wanted to tell the girl that since they had obtained the items, they should retreat, but the game did not provide a dialogue box, so he could only wait for the text to be generated.

"My teammate said that when she passed by Jiangxiyuan earlier, she saw an ancient well inside that was glowing faintly, and asked if you wanted to go there and take a look, maybe you could find a way to escape."

Chen Fu's eyes narrowed, and he immediately chose to go over.

"You and your teammates have arrived at the laundry house."

"A gigantic skeleton, resembling neither a dragon nor a snake, lay in the courtyard. Its bones were as translucent as jade, and its empty eye sockets seemed to still hold a lingering desire to live. But alas, it was dead, and its soul was about to enter the underworld."

Beside the remains, an ancient well was emitting a faint light. Next to the stone platform by the well, old monk robes that had not been washed away by the flood were piled up in a mess. Among them, one piece was the most eye-catching. It was not a complete monk robe, but was made of countless palm-sized pieces of coarse linen, stitched together with a near-perfect thousand-stitch technique. It resembled a kasaya, but more like a sleeveless short jacket.

"Your teammate said they just got the log bell pestle, so you're the one to take it."

This must be Bai Suzhen, right? She's dead, only bones remain... Chen Fu shook his head and focused his attention on other things. He didn't expect Song Shuangwei to know how to allocate resources reasonably. Not bad, not bad.

You picked up the sleeveless short-sleeved shirt.

"You have obtained the patchwork robe of merit."

"The patchwork robe (rare) is made of rags stitched with a hundred stitches, but it is a patch of merit. Every drink and every bite is covered in dust, but it is a field of blessings. This is not the robe of a high monk, but is made from the old clothes and scraps of cloth worn by the ascetic monks and sweeping monks of Jinshan Temple over the years. Over time, although the cloth is simple, it has incorporated the power of human life and the Zen mind of tireless labor."

"When you are attacked while wearing the patchwork merit robe, the power of vows stored on the robe will be depleted first. You will only be harmed after the power of vows is depleted. The power of vows will be automatically replenished every day at midnight."

This one is also good. With its defense maxed out, it's unlikely that its head will fly into the sky immediately if it encounters any residents of Blood Blade Town.

Chen Fu put on the clothes immediately. After shopping for so long, his haul was pretty good.

The fire-making bag can hold things, the kitchen utensils can be sold for money, the seven dissected bodies correspond to different professions, and the merit robe can provide defense.

It's unclear what else Song Shuangwei found in the basement of the Dharma Hall besides the wooden bell and pestle.

But it doesn't matter. Anyway, he took a lot. If the girl needs it, he can find a way to get it through the God of Wealth statue in the Forbidden City.

"You and your teammates gaze at the glowing ancient well, and in a moment of inspiration, you feel the power of a summons."

"So, this is the escape point for leaving the Legend of the White Snake instance. Do you want to leave? Or continue searching?"

"Note that if you and your teammates make different choices, this team-up will end."

Of course, we have to leave. Zhou Jianbang said that the Legend of the White Snake copy has changed. The text also described that this place was hit by a flood, which was very likely caused by Bai Suzhen.

Grab the stuff and run; that's the safest thing to do.

As planned, Chen Fu chose to leave.

"You and your teammates have chosen to leave. Please jump into the ancient well."

"The ancient well was dimly lit, its walls covered with thick moss that emitted a faint glow, while the water was deep and black, as if it could devour everything."

"Light and darkness, a strange fusion, the root of all this, comes from the bottom of the well. There, there is a space that can distort the surrounding things; pass through it, and you can leave the Legend of the White Snake instance."

"Coroner's Walker Ability, triggered."

"At the bottom of the well, beside the distorted space, lies the corpse of a monk."

He felt the ripples in the water, slowly opened his eyes, and looked at you.

……