Chapter 34: The Door and the Commission

By the time the three of them reached the top, sweat had appeared on Yue Yun’s forehead, while Wen Xishu’s breathing had become uneven and slightly hurried.

Only Nisen, skipping and hopping while singing happily, didn't even pant for breath.

Wen Xishu had finally witnessed Nisen’s terrifying physical talent.

If he really went to the Slaughter Tower and underwent some tempering, he would likely become a "blood tank" level existence.

The top of the library was a vast open space, looking just like the helipads on those buildings from Wen Xishu’s past life.

After the three arrived, they looked around, only to find... nothing at all.

Yue Yun said:

"I hope your legs aren't shaking. It looks like we wasted our effort and still have to go back down."

Anyone who climbs mountains knows that the effort of going up isn't what’s scary; what’s scary is having to go down after your legs have turned to jelly...

Nisen hadn't found anything either, and he was somewhat dejected:

"Bro, it looks like our theory for tonight was wrong. A wasted joy."

Wen Xishu didn't speak; he looked up at the sky.

"Have you noticed that the rotation of the clover has slowed down?"

The giant brass clover looked even more massive when viewed from the top of the library.

Yue Yun nodded:

"It does seem a bit slower."

Wen Xishu said:

"Haste makes waste; let’s wait and see a bit longer."

The brass clover continued to rotate.

But as time passed, the speed of the rotation grew slower and slower, and slower still.

After a long while, when the time had likely reached the middle of the night—

One could easily distinguish the three petals with the naked eye. It was like the final rotation of an electric fan after the power has been cut.

Circle by circle, the speed slowed until it finally hit zero.

When the giant brass clover... truly stopped rotating, Wen Xishu walked to the edge of the library’s top floor.

He first looked at the brass clover in the sky.

The moonlight simulated by the dome shone through the veins of the clover’s petals... making the night scene hazy.

But the giant clover petals also blocked much of the simulated moonlight, casting shadows.

One of these shadows fell onto the gate of the Slaughter Tower sector. Another fell onto the gate of the Desire Tower sector.

Standing on the top floor of this tallest building, Wen Xishu, Yue Yun, and the others could all see this scene.

And the final shadow... fell onto the top floor of the library.

The giant petal-like shadow looked like an entrance to hell.

At this moment, Wen Xishu didn't need to explain anything; Yue Yun and Nisen both guessed it... the shadow falling on the library roof looked exactly like a door had been opened on the top floor!

Of course, this could be a coincidence, just a geometric pattern of light and shadow.

Although it looked like a door, their feet were standing in the shadow on the top floor... and nothing had happened.

However, Yue Yun and Nisen both firmly believed that this was likely the place where treasure was buried.

Because when their gazes fell into this shadow that resembled a door...

They saw a note, a string of garbled text.

They didn't recognize a single character; it was all bizarre symbols, and these symbols made Yue Yun and Nisen feel restless.

Yue Yun thought of his mother, thought of that great woman begging humbly for a bite to eat in the lower levels.

Nisen thought of the father who had abandoned him and his mother. He thought of the hellish jokes told in the lower levels about why Black people don't celebrate Father’s Day.

Gradually, they began to grow irritable.

"Look away."

Wen Xishu barked.

This shout actually brought the two back to their senses; Yue Yun and Nisen turned their heads away in tacit agreement, looking elsewhere.

"What... what exactly is going on?" Nisen felt a lingering fear.

He had felt as if he were gripped by some invisible force, a massive agitation rising within his heart.

Yue Yun looked at Wen Xishu, surprised that Wen Xishu was still staring at the garbled text, yet appeared exceptionally calm.

"How many characters can you recognize?"

Wen Xishu withdrew his gaze and also turned his head in another direction.

Nisen shook his head:

"Bro, where are there any characters? This ghost-drawing stuff is just like garbled code and curses. I can't recognize a single one. Ah, I can't look at this thing anymore."

Yue Yun also shook his head and said:

"I can't recognize them, not a single character. Can you?"

Wen Xishu thought for a moment, then finally said honestly:

"I can recognize a few. There is a lot of garbled code in here, and this code can pollute a person’s heart and nature."

"Don't stare at them. Stare at the characters you recognize. If you don't recognize a character... then look away, don't look at it at all."

The corner of Yue Yun’s eye twitched slightly, his inner turmoil immense. What exactly was this Wen Xishu’s background? Why could he recognize them?

Could it be that the person destined for this treasure was actually Wen Xishu?

Wen Xishu ignored the "Impossible, what right does he have?" barrage of thoughts that had popped up in Yue Yun’s mind due to his shock.

He continued, adding:

"I don't recognize many characters either. Master, Core, Most, Power, Purify. Just these few."

Master, Core, Most, Power, Purify.

A single character could be explained, but these characters strung together were, to Nisen and Yue Yun, just as incomprehensible as the garbled text itself.

Yue Yun said:

"Why can you recognize some characters? While Nisen and I can't recognize a single one?"

Wen Xishu said:

"Everyone has secrets, and I have mine. I won't ask you why you are so obsessed with surpassing everyone else."

"And I won't ask Nisen why he likes singing so much."

"Of course, you can tell me, but that is your kindness, not your duty."

Yue Yun nodded; he accepted this explanation.

Anyone who could enter the Slaughter Tower Academy was not simple, even though the threshold for the Slaughter Tower was far lower than the Desire Tower.

But the Academy was different.

Even if they only entered the Slaughter Tower, students who came out of the Three Towers Academy were bound to be fierce warriors in their own right.

It wouldn't be too surprising if they managed to sneak into the Security Bureau and secure an official post in the future.

Geniuses were everywhere here; having a few secrets was perfectly reasonable.

"After the midterm exam, I will tell you my secret. If we don't despise each other by then, I think we will be very good friends."

Yue Yun had a feeling of "He’s actually acting even more arrogant than me," but Yue Yun wasn't jealous; he had a competitive spirit, he simply had a pure desire to become stronger.

Nisen said:

"Wen, I knew you weren't simple. I love people with stories. My mom told me that a man should have stories."

Yue Yun looked at the shadow again:

"This thing looks like a door... You can see some of the characters clearly. Do you think these characters have any meaning?"

Master, Core, Most, Power, Purify.

Wen Xishu vaguely guessed that these characters could be expanded into—Teacher, Core, Power, Purification.

Then what about "Most"?

He thought of "Earliest."

If these words were combined and expanded...

A sentence had already appeared in Wen Xishu’s mind.

(End of chapter)