After listening to the report from his subordinate, Bald Ivan asked again, "What are the combat capabilities of those puppets?"
"They are not too strong. They all use cold weapons, and a musket can easily blast apart their bodies…"
Marcus, obviously still shaken, swallowed hard and continued, "But there are just too many of these dolls, and they simply can't be killed! Even if they're blown apart by a musket until only a severed arm is left, they can still chase after you to hack at you. Plus, the house is full of dolls; they can appear from any corner, from inside cabinets, behind doors, the cellar..."
"So they can be blasted apart by a musket? I see..."
Bald Ivan listened attentively to his subordinate's description and felt somewhat reassured.
He analyzed, "It looks like that 'ghostly entity's' ability is just to control puppets to kill, likely just a first-order aberration. Otherwise, if it had second-order strength, killing you all wouldn't be so troublesome... My previous estimate that this cursed space was of A-rank might have been too high, at most it's B-rank."
"..."
Su Lun, standing to the side, heard Bald Ivan's analysis and his pupils shifted; he didn't quite agree with this opinion.
According to his experience from watching over a thousand horror movies, that "ghostly entity's" every move gave him the impression that it was saying, "Hey, I'm not killing you, just playing."
Killing seemed more like a game.
...
Clearly, there were only two choices now facing Bald Ivan.
Either leave this eerie mansion right away, or continue to seek "Sir Isaac's relic."
But no matter what choice was made, there was an eighty percent chance of facing that "ghostly entity" in the house directly.
If the aberration's ability was just to control puppets, then to Bald Ivan, the threat wasn't significant.
At least, those kinds of puppets weren't seen as lethal in his eyes.
The best outcome would be able to grab the treasure and kill the aberration.
But if the "ghostly entity's" ability extended beyond that, they'd have to face it whether they went treasure hunting or decided to flee.
As a veteran hunter who had been through many dangers, Ivan didn't hesitate for a moment and directly said, "Let's go! Let's see what's weird about this mansion!"
As for Su Lun, who served as the "living map," naturally, he had to be taken along. Saying this, Bald Ivan glanced at his subordinate and added, "Marcus, keep an eye on this kid. The moment there's any unusual movement, kill him immediately!"
Marcus glanced at Su Lun beside him and responded, "Yes, Captain!"
....
It didn't surprise Su Lun that Bald Ivan decided to force his way through; he would have done the same.
But what Su Lun found unexpected was that, before leaving, Bald Ivan displayed an extraordinary ability that was baffling to comprehend.
Originally, Su Lun had found Bald Ivan's steam mechanical arm surprising, but then he heard Bald Ivan utter curtly, "Curse Mark Augmentation: Release!"
His hands formed several seals, and then he rapidly muttered some indistinct incantations.
It was this strange behavior, akin to performing some shamanistic ritual, that caused a miraculous transformation.
No sooner had the incantation ended than a brilliant golden glow filled the room.
Upon closer inspection, a radiant six-pointed star magic formation appeared at the feet of the burly Bald Ivan. The patterns on the formation were intricate and arcane, as if harboring a magical power that gave a glimpse into the profound depths of infinite space, bringing with it a rich air of mystery.
"Magic?"
Seeing this scene, Su Lun blinked in astonishment.
But there was something even weirder yet to come!
As the glow from the magic formation faded, the tattoos Su Lun had thought were simply ink on the man's flesh slowly solidified into real objects.
On closer observation, they had turned into a layer of gleaming, metallic scale armor.
After the ritual, the metal scales covered his whole body, and the demeanor of the bald muscleman changed completely, transforming him into an impressively imposing steel-armored giant.
Marcus, seeing this, seemed to gain some confidence, his voice carrying a hint of flattery as he said, "No matter how many times I've seen it, Captain's alchemical augmentation, the 'Vajra Scales,' is still so awe-inspiring..."
"Hmm."
Bald Ivan nodded without saying much, his voice echoing gruffly, "Follow me!"
With that, he opened the door and stepped out without any fear.
Su Lun, witnessing this, felt his interest deepen.
He observed carefully; the metallic scales had materialized from the tattoos on Bald Ivan's body after the magic formation appeared.
Clearly, this was yet another extraordinary power that surpassed Su Lun's knowledge.
Before he had time to think further, a tug on the rope made him lurch forward, nearly causing him to fall.
As his last foot crossed the threshold, Su Lun suddenly had an idea.
He no longer averted his gaze but instead turned to look directly at the "Nutcracker doll" in the corner, then flashed it a smile.
The message was: I've discovered you.
Since it had been found, then let it "trigger."
Based on his years of experience with horror games, triggering certain specific conditions might set off some unexpected scenarios, although most times such actions equaled "courting death," but...
Considering the situation couldn't get much worse, right?
In the blink of an eye, the trio had walked through the exit.
Nobody saw it at the time, but the "Nutcracker doll" suddenly began to tremble its lower jaw, emitting "crack" "crack" sounds that were eerily reminiscent of a grotesque laugh...
....
"Kid, you take the lead!"
Compared to Baldy's cautiousness, Marcus' tiptoeing, Su Lun seemed much more composed.
He was well aware of his limits; though he had decent combat and shooting skills in his previous life, in this fantastical world where bodies could resist bullets, he was at a "noob" level.
To survive, using his brain was definitely more reliable than using his fists.
He was bound with a rope, serving as a human shield as he walked in the front.
But this was also fine, as Su Lun could closely observe everything in the corridor.
As he had predicted, this was a lavish mansion.
The corridor was brightly lit, not by electric or gas lamps, but by gemstones emitting light within glass lampshades. On both sides of the corridor there were many sealed doors, the floor was carpeted with soft cashmere, and the walls were adorned with exquisite oil paintings every few steps...
But this corridor seemed a bit too long.
After walking for a while without seeing the end, Marcus asked with a trembling voice, "Captain, where are we going? We... seem to be trapped."
Bald Ivan pondered for a moment, as if he too had noticed the anomaly of the mansion, and asked, "Kid, where's that room you spoke of?"
Su Lun looked around and replied directly, "I've never been here before. But to find the room marked on the treasure map, we must first find the banquet hall..."
In fact, he had already noticed that, even for a large mansion, this corridor was abnormally long.
But before he could elaborate, they suddenly heard an old lady's chilling laugh echoing near their ears: "Hehehe... according to the rules of the game, if you're found, you'll be killed..."
This voice didn't quite sound like it could come from a human, it was deep and chilling, like the whisper of a demon, sending shivers down one's spine.
Upon hearing this, Marcus turned deathly pale in an instant, as if he had received an enormous shock, and said in a rush, "It's coming... it's coming!"
Every time they heard this voice, a companion was killed. At this moment, Marcus was on the edge of collapse, shaking uncontrollably.
Su Lun's gaze swept over everything in the corridor as he quietly moved to the side of the wall, becoming exceedingly cautious.
Bald Ivan, however, snorted coldly, "Pff, playing tricks!"
And just then, several figures "floated" towards them from a distance.
On closer inspection, they were several eerie puppets hovering in the air. Their designs were quite crude, resembling segments of lotus root strung together. However, each puppet held a slender sharp knife in its hand, its lower jaw rapidly snapping shut, producing a dense "crack" "crack" sound that made one's scalp tingle.
"Is this the murder puppets the guy mentioned in the mansion? And they can fly?"
Su Lun watched the strange puppets swarming from both sides of the corridor, his eyelids involuntarily twitched.
But just then, they suddenly heard a "thud" of a muffled sound.
Without needing to look, just by the blast of air that nearly knocked them off their feet, they knew it was Bald Ivan firing his weapon.
The shot directly hit a group of puppets dozens of meters away, and then chaos ensued, shredding the approaching puppets to bits.
But this did not stop the puppets from continuing their tide-like onslaught.
Those puppets with severed arms and legs, as well as a bunch of "parts," continued to charge forward.
"Hmph!"
Bald Ivan gave a thunderous shout, unafraid as he charged into the puppet horde.
His metal scale armor proved to be extremely effective, as the puppets' swords struck it, creating sparks, "clang clang," but failing to harm him.
"Baldy's really strong... but those puppets simply can't be killed. If we don't break the game, we'll eventually be worn down here," Su Lun thought.
With his hands tied, Su Lun had limited movement, making the likelihood of survival under this onslaught of puppets extremely low.
However, he had no intention of surrendering without a fight.
By this time, Marcus was so frightened he was shaking too much to even hold his gun, and he had long since dropped the rope binding Su Lun.
And with the majority of the puppets distracted by Baldy, it was the perfect opportunity.
"Now's the time!"
Su Lun quickly took in his surroundings and, without hesitation, kicked off the ground with one leg and then fiercely crashed through a glass window on the side of the corridor.
He had observed earlier that there was a mist outside the window, and although he didn't know which floor the corridor was on, judging by the structure, it was definitely not high up.
The chances of dying from a fall weren't high.
But then...
This very leap took an unexpected turn!
....
With a "clang," Su Lun easily shattered the glass window and flew out, plummeting into the thick fog.
He had expected to land in a garden or similar area and had prepared for the fall, adopting a position to cushion the impact of a fall from a high place.
But unexpectedly, when he landed, his feet hit the soft carpet again.
Glancing around at the familiar surroundings, Su Lun himself was stunned.
"Fuck... am I back again?"