Chapter 598: Ashe, How Do You Plan to Kill ?
“So this palace is mimicking the Ti Continent.”
Upon hearing Ashe’s words, Vesser glanced at the golden do above and imdiately grasped its secret. Yet, she feigned ignorance and asked, “Really? Why is the ground of the Ti Continent white?”
“Well, that’s because…” Ashe paused, “You wouldn’t understand even if I told you.”
“How could I possibly understand if you don’t tell ?” Vesser said softly, “Do you believe that with just a hint of information, I could deduce the truth?”
“No, I don’t.”
“What shall we bet on?”
“Let’s bet on one thing,” Ashe stared at her, “Whoever loses has to do whatever the winner asks.”
Vesser didn’t add any rules and simply nodded, “Alright.”
Ashe confidently said, “The reason the ground of the Ti Continent is white is related to the white bull.”
Vesser pondered for a mont, then pretended to have an epiphany, “I see, the white bull is actually underneath, and the Ti Continent is its belly, hence the white ground.”
Seeing Ashe’s stunned expression, Vesser couldn’t help but laugh.
From the very first day she joined the team, Ashe had told her about the secret toxins of the Golden Fish and the Rainbow Tail. Naturally, she knew the truth about the Ti Continent.
However, she had always been careful to separate the Virtual Realm from reality, never exposing real information in the Virtual Realm nor revealing Virtual Realm intelligence in reality.
This was the first ti she used the intelligence she had gained in the Virtual Realm, just to win a verbal argunt with Ashe.
“Rember, you owe
one thing.”
Vesser said cheerfully, “Although there’s no guarantee, a good person like you wouldn’t renege, would you?”
Ashe retorted, “Do you think soone who travels with a Con Artist and a necromancer can be that good?”
“Good enough to be willing to deceive
is sufficient.”
Ashe didn’t imdiately grasp the aning behind Silver Lantern’s words, but she had already changed the subject, “Is the palace mimicking the Ti Continent just to construct this Golden Flow river?”
At the end of the passage, the torch on the pedestal was still burning, not subrged by the Golden Flow. As ntioned earlier, the palace passage itself had a water flow system, which remained effective even after the Golden Flow erupted. Otherwise, the entire passage would have been filled with the Golden Flow.
In front of the pedestal was a slope, and in front of the slope was a drainage system. The Golden Flow stopped at the slope, naturally unable to invade the pedestal.
As long as they walked up the slope and stepped onto the pedestal, they could escape the Golden Flow. Although they still faced the threat of the Circle Cicada, at least they could take a mont to catch their breath and strategize.
And let’s not forget, the Circle Cicada’s power is built upon the Golden Flow Water. For it, the Golden Flow is its ‘comfort zone,’ just as ti spirits reside within the Golden Flow. Once Ashe and the others escape the Golden Flow, the Circle Cicada might not even chase them out!
Seeing the end point, everyone’s spirits lifted. From then on, there were no more casualties. Even though the Golden Flow slowed and the resistance grew stronger the further upstream they went, everyone gritted their teeth and pressed on.
Suddenly, ss, who was at the front, began to rise out of the river. The further he walked, the more of his body erged from the water-he had stepped onto solid ground.
Whether it was due to the countercurrent or the Circle Cicada’s control, the water beca shallower as they approached the end, almost as if they could run through it.
Yet, ss’s pace slowed significantly, almost to the point of taking one small step per second, inching forward bit by bit.
Even so, his progress was still the fastest among all the sorcerers. It was clear that ss was on the verge of collapse, the resistance of the Golden Flow pushing him to his limits. But with the end so close, it was enough to keep any legendary sorcerer going.
When Ashe and Vesser also stepped onto the ground, the astonishing resistance of the water montarily halted their movents. ss, too, finally overca all his hardships!
The water beneath his feet was now so shallow it couldn’t even cover his heels. All he had to do was lift his leg to step onto the dry slope, completely escaping the threat of the Circle Cicada!
The sorcerers behind him held their breath, watching ss’s back with bated tension, ready to celebrate the first escapee. But so wondered if ss, the “Gears of Ti,” with his cunning and deceitful nature, might turn against them once he was safe…
Yet, ti doesn’t pause for anyone’s will. ss took a deep breath, lifted his right foot out of the water, and stepped toward the dry surface of the slope!
The Circle Cicada did not chirp.
The sorcerers did not interfere.
This legendary figure from over two hundred years ago, a sorcerer who sought Immortality, was finally about to reclaim his fleeting freedom. He had already thought of many ways to leave this place and even began to covet the Circle Cicada behind him…
But all his perseverance, all his ambitions, were shattered in a single step.
Splash.
The crisp sound of water echoed like thunder in everyone’s ears.
ss stared at his right foot, still resting in the shallow Golden Flow Water in front of the slope, montarily unable to comprehend what had just happened.
He tried again, watching as his right leg hovered above the water. But just as his foot was about to touch the slope, he saw golden water trickling down his leg. Then, as he stepped onto the water, his right foot slid back on the slope, which seed to have zero friction after being soaked with the Golden Flow Water.
Many of the sorcerers stopped. Except for Ashe, everyone else’s Physical bodies had been enhanced by the creations of Physical Weakness. Compared to them, an eagle would be considered nearsighted, so they could clearly see what had happened to ss.
“The Golden Flow Water originates from the movent of all things in the world,” Skadi suddenly said. “Everyone generates Golden Flow Water.”
“It’s not just that he generates Golden Flow Water,” another legend chid in. “It’s that the Golden Flow won’t let him leave! The slope is just an illusion. If there were no slope to push him back, the Golden Flow would follow him wherever he goes!”
“Is it the influence of the Circle Cicada?”
While the legends were debating, ss finally spoke. “Chapter 2, third sentence of The Wheel of Ti.”
Skadi replied, “‘Ti has no beginning and no end.’”
ss said calmly, “The Golden Flow is the manifestation of ti, and ti is the concept of the Golden Flow. Any law that holds true in ti is a natural law of the Golden Flow.”
The legends’ expressions turned grim. “ss, are you saying…”
ss continued, “The Golden Flow has no beginning or end, so those within it cannot escape from either end.”
Ashe couldn’t help but interject, “But I can traverse the Golden Flow! I can even fly out of it!”
“You can traverse it from the sides or spread your virtual wings to fly out of the Golden Flow,” ss answered Ashe’s question kindly. “As long as there’s no rule against it, it’s not forbidden.”
He looked up at the golden do and the four white pillars beside it. “This place goes to great lengths to mimic the Ti Continent, creating the perfect environnt for the rules of the Golden Flow to take effect, all to ensure that those in the river cannot leave.”
“It seems the Circle Cicada cult has another backup plan…”
Thud! ss fell backward onto the slope, but as expected, Golden Flow Water seeped from his back, sliding him back into the river.
He allowed himself to be carried by the Golden Flow, drifting back under the watchful eyes of the sorcerers.
“If yesterday placed in tomorrow becos two days ago, then should the day after tomorrow be today or yesterday?” he asked.
“First page, first question of Advanced Golden Ti Problem Set,” Skadi replied. “Today.”
Though the Circle Cicada hadn’t finished its al, when it saw ss, it eagerly put down its yogurt and greeted him with the highest level of etiquette.
It seems that in the eyes of the Circle Cicada, there’s a hierarchy among its ingredients, and ss undoubtedly ranks at the very top.
Another legend slowly made his way to the slope. He tried jumping toward it with both feet together, only to be slid back by the Golden Flow Water. He then attempted to leap onto the slope by stepping off the wall, but again, the Golden Flow Water seeping from his body sent him sliding back.
If they were on the Ti Continent, they would have many ways to escape the Golden Flow: flying up, traversing the sides, or even breaking through the riverbed… But here, they were just ordinary Trial Takers with their spirits sealed.
Soon, the remaining legends began to give up one after another, collapsing like ancient relics left behind from two hundred years ago, their faces pale as they allowed the Golden Flow to wash over them.
In the blink of an eye, only four were still holding on.
“Does the wall not count as the sides?” Ashe muttered.
“It does.”
Skadi, walking slowly ahead, pointed to the ceiling. “If you could leave through the edges of the ceiling, you wouldn’t trigger the Golden Flow chanism.”
“We’re essentially in the riverbed of the Golden Flow, and the sides are just the river walls,” the legend even chuckled. “You see, by creating such an environnt, we can deceive the Virtual Realm and its rules. Sorcerers are truly creative beings, and this world is endlessly fascinating.”
Ashe asked, “Is there really no way to survive?”
“There is,” Skadi replied firmly. “The rules of the Golden Flow exist because of the Golden Flow itself.”
“If the Golden Flow were gone, we wouldn’t be bound by its rules.”
“Is there any point in stating the obvious, Skadi?” another legend couldn’t help but interject. “The Golden Flow originates from our Gates of Truth, and we can’t close those gates…”
“To completely stop the flow, we’d all have to die, closing all the Gates of Truth!”
“If we’re all dead, what’s the point of the Golden Flow?”
Hearing this, Ashe’s pupils constricted, but he forcefully resisted the urge to glance at Vesser.
However, at that mont, he felt a gentle scratch in his palm.
Not long after, that legend reached the slope, tried a few more tis, and finally gave up. Surprisingly, he stripped off all his clothes and lay freely in the Golden Flow, as if taking a bath.
Skadi walked up to the slope. She lifted her foot and stepped onto it, watching as the Golden Flow Water seeped out and slid her foot back. Slowly, she opened her clock-like eyes, revealing a satisfied smile.
“Ti… what a delicate plaything.”
As Skadi, too, was swept by the Golden Flow to the side of the Circle Cicada, the vast river was left with only two people still trudging forward.
The surroundings suddenly grew quiet, yet Ashe could hear his own heart pounding wildly. Their upper bodies had already erged from the water, and he could feel his palms drenched in sweat. His breathing beca shallow and rapid, almost uncontrollable.
Splash.
Splash.
Splash.
He looked down at the surface of the Golden Flow, faintly catching his own reflection. Then, a fox Mask suddenly appeared beside him.
“Ashe, how are you planning to kill ?”
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