Zhou Wen didn’t know if kneeling down was of any use in real life, but it proved useless in-game. Don’t ask Zhou Wen how he knew. It would only bring him to tears.
After a few days of grinding in the camp, he had failed to obtain the Dragon Pearl. He did manage to kill plenty of poisonous bats and he managed to raise his Poison stat to 15. A few poisonous bat Companion Eggs dropped, but their stats were far inferior to the White Shadow of Poison. They were all fed to his pets as food.
On the fourth day, An Sheng brought Ouyang Lan and a few others back. Zhou Wen had an ominous feeling when he saw that the former principal wasn’t among them.
“Sis Lan.” Zhou Wen went forward to ask about the former principal.
Ouyang Lan looked a little tired as she forced a smile and said, “Little Wen, An Sheng told me of the tremendous help you provided him. However, don’t take such risks again. This is beyond your abilities. Luck won’t stand on your side forever.”
“Got it, Sis Lan. Where’s the former principal?” Zhou Wen hurriedly asked.
Ouyang Lan’s expression fell. “I couldn’t find him. We found some things that belonged to my father and the other experts in the temple, but we couldn’t find any traces of them.”
Upon hearing that the former principal hadn’t been found, Zhou Wen’s mood improved ironically-not finding them meant that there was still hope. Hence, Zhou Wen asked, “Could they be trapped somewhere else?”
“I don’t think so. It’s easy to enter the temple but it’s hard to get out. The people inside can’t come out without someone opening it from the outside. My dad and the rest have clearly ventured deep inside the temple. It’s unlikely they can come out without any rescue,” Ouyang Lan said as she shook her head.
Zhou Wen was stunned when he heard that. He was about to ask something when An Sheng said, “Madam didn’t manage to rest while inside. Let her rest.”
Zhou Wen had no choice but to swallow the words he was about to say. He planned on asking An Sheng later.
Everyone returned to the encampment. Without waiting for Zhou Wen to visit him, An Sheng went to Zhou Wen’s tent and explained the situation inside.
Ouyang Lan and An Sheng had followed the markings left by the former principal and found the temple. They did not find any markings left behind by the former principal elsewhere. They could confirm that he had been inside the temple but they could not find him, despite searching the entire area for him.
The former principal’s last marking was on an altar. It meant that something had happened after they arrived. However, it was already the inner sanctum of the temple and there was no other way out, nor did they find any mechanism that made people disappear. The former principal and the others appeared to have disappeared into thin air.
After Zhou Wen heard that, he frowned and didn’t say a word. There must be a problem with the temple, but it wouldn’t be of any use even if he were to go, considering how An Sheng and Ouyang Lan had failed to find any clues, despite being such knowledgeable people.
“Don’t worry, we’ve already explored a portion of the battlefield ruin’s interior. With the chariot, it’s safe when heading to the temple. We’ll get professionals to investigate and seek out every possibility.” An Sheng paused and added, “But based on the present circumstances, trying to find Old Mister Ouyang won’t take a day or two. Madam wants you to return to school and stop wasting time here.”
“Alright, I’ll head back. But before I leave, can you take me to the temple? I want to take a look too.” Although he knew that there was no point in going, Zhou Wen refused to give up unless he managed to see it with his own eyes.
An Sheng seemed to have guessed that Zhou Wen would have such a request, so he nodded in agreement.
The route to the temple was indeed very safe. The chariot was a direct route to the temple, and it would automatically stop when it reached it. It would only be sent to the entrance if someone activated it.
An Sheng led Zhou Wen into the temple. Since he had already figured out the dangers inside, Zhou Wen didn’t sense any danger when An Sheng took him in, until he arrived at the innermost sanctum of the temple.
An Sheng showed him the former principal’s markings. Zhou Wen looked around the temple for a long time but didn’t find any clues.
Although he couldn’t accept this result, Zhou Wen had no choice but to return. There was no point in staying there. He could use his phone to continue exploring the temple when he returned. Perhaps he could find some clues.
However, the chariot didn’t exist in the game, so if Zhou Wen wanted to reach the temple, he had to pass through the underground sea first. This was also a problem.
Zhou Wen guessed that the chariot in-game was most likely parked in front of the temple. As no one had activated it, it didn’t appear at the entrance.
It was obvious that the chariot’s purpose was to send people out and not bring them in.
An Sheng sent someone to take Zhou Wen back to Luoyang. After Zhou Wen returned to school, he felt a sense of familiarity. He hadn’t left for many days, but he felt uncomfortable. Perhaps the great contrast between the safe days at school and the dangerous days in the Zhuolu battlefield had gotten to him.
The most pressing matter at hand is to quickly advance to the Epic stage. Otherwise, if something were to happen, it would be difficult to handle it with my lack of strength. Zhou Wen thought about how he could obtain the Dragon Pearl.
Aerial movement techniques like Dragon Gate Fairy Skill were less effective underwater. The water resistance also weakened Ghost Steps. Therefore, the fact that the Dragon Pearl was underwater left Zhou Wen vexed.
Unable to think of a good solution, Zhou Wen went to Wang Mingyuan’s place. Since he knew that Wang Mingyuan loved drinking tea, he even got An Sheng to buy him some high-quality tea that he obviously paid for himself.
“Teacher, this piece of paper was a life-saver. But I tried it again and it doesn’t work anymore, why is that so?” Zhou Wen took out the paper slip and respectfully returned it to Wang Mingyuan.
He later tested it a few more times and discovered that ever since the slip of paper had been used on Lord Alcohol, it had no effect on other dimensional creatures. It was just like an ordinary piece of paper.
“Have you ever seen a bowl of rice that can’t be finished no matter what?” Wang Mingyuan asked with a smile as he took back the note.
Zhou Wen immediately understood that the power on the note had been exhausted.
“Teacher, how did you know that my Life Providence would react if I knelt down to beg for mercy?” Zhou Wen voiced out his doubts again. He had never told Wang Mingyuan what his Life Providence was.
Wang Mingyuan smiled and said, “My research includes the reading of people, and you can say I have some success in it. Therefore, I was able to figure out something about your Life Providence. There’s some pride in your Life Providence, something I’ve never seen before. I knew it was extraordinary, and it wouldn’t tolerate such humiliation, so it might have been of some use. That’s why I got you to test it out to see if it worked. From the looks of it, it really did.”
“Test it out...” Zhou Wen was instantly rendered speechless.
“Then can I still use this move in the future?” Zhou Wen hurriedly asked. Since this move was so useful, and there was no real need for him to kneel, it was a waste not to use it.
“Have you ever heard of the saying that one would rather die than be humiliated? A single instance might make your Life Providence erupt due to anger, but I’m afraid a repeat of that will cause that anger to be vented on you. I’m not sure if you can withstand that. If it’s possible, you can test it out,” Wang Mingyuan said with a smile.
Zhou Wen couldn’t help but shudder when he thought of Lord Alcohol’s outcome. He quickly replied in all seriousness, “A man should have dignity and not kneel. I’ve never considered it and was just asking.”