Chapter 40

After the groups were formed, Examiner Crowcrow gave a great sweep of its wing. The four sides of the square pedestal beneath the Six-Armed Goddess Statue flashed with a dark light, and instantly, four different patterns appeared on each face, with four names listed under each pattern.

This was the grouping situation. Everyone instinctively searched for their own name and then walked around to stand by their corresponding side.

Based on the patterns on the four-sided pedestal, the four groups were:

Moon Group: Deng Yan, Yun Zouchuan, Zhu Ming, Wenren Tu

Harp Group: Xiao Lang, Tu Wei, Yin Yu, Zhang Xiaoya

Ruler Group: Bai Lianxue, Wang Ziwei, Sun Ningning, Zhou Xujin

Sword and Shield Group: Wei Yuan, Zhao Shanhai, Zhao Shanhe, Zhao Shanhu

For a moment, those who wanted to hide their real names felt complicated emotions. Why were their names just directly displayed like that?

Examiner Crowcrow paid no heed to the candidates’ feelings. It circled twice in the air, landed, and said, “Next, I will announce several important points. Please be sure to remember them carefully.”

“First: The God loves devout believers most. Offer vanilla, praise, and artwork to the God. The more the offerings display your sincerity, the more the God will protect you all.”

“Second: No disrespectful acts such as fighting or brawling before the God!”

“Third: Do not look directly upon objects of Blasphemy!”

After reading, Crowcrow flew into the air. “Now, everyone follow me.”

Examiner Crowcrow flew ahead, and the sixteen candidates chased after it. Entering the magnificent temple, they found four large tables arranged inside. In the center of the temple stood a small deity statue, about the height of a person, surrounded by offerings like melons, fruits, and fresh flowers.

Going further past these, deep within the temple, they could see four rooms lined up side-by-side. Their windows were of colored frosted glass, complementing the vivid, beautiful murals and reliefs of the temple in splendid harmony. On their doors hung each group’s respective totem emblem.

Examiner Crowcrow flew high, forcing everyone to look up at it. It said, “These are your dormitories; these are your exam tables. Now I will announce the first three exam questions. You have four days to complete them. The more perfect the results, the higher the score, and the more the God’s favor will be upon you, which will be more beneficial for your final assessment on the fifth day.”

“You are all devout believers. The test is your sincerity towards the God. Each group must complete three types of questions: Planting, Handicraft, and Poetry. For specifics, please check your exam tables. Your exam pieces will be offered as tributes to the Great Goddess. Please ensure you complete them in time!”

After Examiner Crowcrow announced the exam content, the three Zhao brothers instantly wore expressions as if they’d seen a ghost. Why were they being tested on this ghostly crap?! Not one out of the three brothers knew how to grow flowers or farm, let alone do handicrafts.

Examiner Crowcrow didn’t care whether they could or not. In its eyes, they were all believers, so they should obediently complete the exam.

“The exam begins, the exam begins!” it announced, fluttering around.

“Examiner, I have a few questions,” spoke up Xiao Lang, the only male in the Harp Group. “Can we go anywhere within this place?”

Examiner Crowcrow cackled. “What the hell does that have to do with me? Caw, caw, caw! But as an examiner, here’s a friendly reminder: The God’s favor is a fixed quota. The lower your scores on the first three questions, the harder the final one will be! Caw!”

Crowcrow lifted its rear and with a splat, shot out a glob of white bird droppings. It landed squarely on Xiao Lang’s head. His face darkened, but he didn’t dare vent his anger at the examiner, so he could only watch helplessly as the examiner flew off into the distance.

The triplet brothers from the Sword and Shield Group couldn’t help but laugh twice. When Xiao Lang looked over, they showed no embarrassment whatsoever. If anything, the more humiliated Xiao Lang looked, the more amusing they found it.

But soon, they were the ones who couldn’t laugh.

The examiner had left, but the candidates still had to take their exam. Everyone followed their group’s symbol to find their large table. On each lay two sheets of paper and some tools.

One sheet detailed the specific exam content.

“Question One: Planting.

Please use the seeds and flower pot on the table to plant a pot of vanilla. Note: Each group’s vanilla is different; do not mix them up.

Question Two: Handicraft.

Please use needle felting skills to felt the piece as shown in the image. Note: 1. Materials differ per group; please search for them yourselves. 2. Must be completed within the designated frame.

Question Three: Poetry.

Please fill in the blanks to complete the poem into a whole work. Note: See attached sheet for answer form.”

The other sheet was the fill-in-the-blank form for Question Three. It looked simple, but offered absolutely no clue where to start.

Zhao Shanhe, the second triplet brother, was straightforward by nature and couldn’t help but exclaim, “Planting vanilla? Our family can even kill weeds! How are we supposed to plant vanilla?!”

The eldest, Zhao Shanhai, pulled over their only unrelated group member, Wei Yuan. “Look, which of these can you do?”

Wei Yuan’s eyelid twitched. He took off his glasses, wiped them, and said, “I studied programming.” Meaning he wasn’t good at poetry either.

“How high is your education?”

“Just finished my Master’s.”

Zhao Shanhai said, “Hey, a postgrad must be cultured. Think hard about the third question. We’ll figure out a way for the rest.”

Unlike the all-male Sword and Shield Group, the other groups all had female members. But similarly, those women weren’t necessarily all experts in gardening, handicrafts, or poetry either.

At the Moon Group’s large table.

Zhu Ming leaned on the edge of the table. “Question One can go to A-Zou. She manages our little home garden. If these are ordinary seeds, there shouldn’t be a problem.”

Yun Zouchuan nodded. “Even if they’re not ordinary, I can try.”

Zhu Ming continued, “Our handicraft task requires forging a dagger. There’s a furnace and a clay pot here, but we lack materials. We’ll split up to search later. We all have experience, so we should know what to do.”

It was actually quite clear this time; the dungeon had three newbies, all in the Harp Group and the Ruler Group. They were currently being briefed on the basics. The all-female Moon Group and the all-male Sword and Shield Group, on the other hand, were made up entirely of veterans.

The temple was tall and spacious, but without barriers, the four large tables were set out completely in the open—making it impossible to keep one’s progress secret from other groups.

The Moon Group was on the left side, near the door. On the same side, deeper in, was the Sword and Shield Group. Directly opposite was the Ruler Group, and diagonally across, the Harp Group.

Zhu Ming and Yin Yu were the farthest apart. Neither looked at the other, but that didn’t mean Zhu Ming was unconcerned about Yin Yu’s presence.

She picked up the clay pot. “Out of the three questions, planting looks the easiest so far. I’ll go outside to find water. What are you planning? Right, we need someone to stay here and guard.”

The tools on each group’s large table differed somewhat, related to their specific exam content. Given the group competition setup, everyone had grown a bit more guarded against the other groups.

Yun Zouchuan then said, “I’ll stay here then. Boss, bring back some dirt on the way.”

Wenren Tu looked at Deng Yan, the stranger among them. “Which area do you want to investigate?”

Deng Yan hesitated, then said, “I’ll look around inside the temple and the dorm rooms.”

Wenren Tu nodded. “Alright, then I’ll go outside too, see if I can find some metal.”

Like the Moon Group, after the other groups reviewed their own test papers, they also divided tasks and dispersed to search for clues.

Zhu Ming carried the clay pot and a small shovel outside. Where there was an oasis, there had to be water—though she wasn’t sure if there was soil suitable for planting vanilla. Having never been to a desert, she was completely unfamiliar with this environment.

She carefully observed her surroundings, making marks as she walked forward. Gradually, she heard some strange sounds. The environment ahead seemed quite pleasant; there was some kind of large bird flapping its wings and splashing water, along with frog croaks and insect chirps.

Pushing aside the increasingly dense foliage, Zhu Ming momentarily thought she’d arrived at some southern marsh rather than within a bizarre desert.

A small lake, set into the ground like a sapphire, was surrounded by lush green grass. A dozen or so giant, almost exaggeratedly large egrets were frolicking in the water, striding back and forth on their long, slender legs, treating the entire lake as their own territory.

The muddy shore was soft, growing thick, tall reeds where several frogs were hopping about.

A scene of abundant water and lush grass. Yet, if one sniffed carefully, a faint stench of decay could be detected. Deep within the lake, the water also didn’t seem very clean.

Zhu Ming compared her height to that of the egrets, stunned by just what they must have eaten to grow so large.

Besides Zhu Ming, others had also arrived here, all within moments of each other. The entire oasis wasn’t too large, so following the direction of the densest vegetation was always the correct choice.

Zhu Ming of the Moon Group, Yin Yu of the Harp Group, Zhou Xujin and Wang Ziwei of the Ruler Group, and one of the Sword and Shield Group triplets.

Five people appeared one after another, yet not a single one advanced lightly.

The egrets’ eyes were blood-red; they looked very difficult to deal with. And now, everyone could clearly feel it—their supernatural abilities could not be used. This meant forceful, violent clearance was not permitted for now.

Zhu Ming glanced at Yin Yu standing just three feet away from her, gripping her clay pot as she sighed. “Can I ask you to stop haunting me like a lingering ghost?”

Yin Yu smiled. “No.”

Zhu Ming took a step back, leaning against a tree trunk. “You refuse to tell me your purpose, yet insist on clinging to me. Yin Yu, are you just that idle?”

Yin Yu said airily, “Perhaps.”

Zhu Ming: “…”

Neither moved for a moment.

Over on the Ruler Group’s side, Wang Ziwei nudged the newbie, Zhou Xujin. “We can’t just go straight over there.”

Zhou Xujin said nervously, “Then what do we do?”

Their group had two newcomers: himself and a woman. That woman knew Bai Lianxue, so naturally the two of them acted together. Zhou Xujin, knowing no one else and terrified of something happening if he was alone, had followed Wang Ziwei.

Wang Ziwei lowered his voice. “Are you dense? You get someone else to test it first, of course. Look, see those two women over there? Come on, follow me. When we get there, you just echo whatever I say, got it?”

Zhou Xujin quickly nodded. “Got it.”

The two strode over. Wang Ziwei called out loudly, “Hey! Since you two were here first, you should be the first to get water.”

Zhou Xujin said, “Right, you go first.”

Under the dense shade of the trees, Zhu Ming and Yin Yu turned their heads to look. One was expressionless, the other wore a faint smile. Wang Ziwei suddenly choked up. “Look, I’ve got this newbie with me. It’s a bit inconvenient…”

But before Zhu Ming and Yin Yu could even reply, another person stepped forward first.

It was Zhao Shanhai of the Sword and Shield Group.

“What’s so inconvenient about it? Looks to me like you have more people, meaning it’s even more convenient.” Zhao Shanhai sneered, stepping forward. His build was extremely imposing, though his smile was a bit simple and honest. He said, “Stop wasting time. Hurry up, get your water, and get back.”

Wang Ziwei frowned. This Zhao Shanhai, judging just by his physique, was no match for him. Now that supernatural abilities were unusable, even both him and Zhou Xujin combined wouldn’t have fists as hard as this guy’s.

Of course, he instinctively felt fear and didn’t want to oppose him. But the key question was: why was this man stepping in?

Wang Ziwei asked, “What’s it to you? Can’t you get your own water?”

Zhao Shanhai cracked his knuckles. “Who says it’s nothing to me? I just can’t stand seeing you bully women, got a problem?”

Wang Ziwei gritted his teeth. “Quit pretending, damn it. Fine, fine, you’re so tough.”

The examiner had warned them not to fight or brawl before the god’s presence, but here, the deity statue couldn’t be seen—so that rule might not necessarily apply. He had already noticed that during the test discussion, the Sword and Shield Group triplets kept sneaking glances at the Moon Group. Furtive and ill-intentioned. The Moon Group hadn’t noticed what was beside them, but from across the way, he had seen it clearly.

And now putting on this act in front of everyone! Hah, who knew what sinister intentions they were harboring!

Wang Ziwei pulled Zhou Xujin along and headed towards the lake. “You go get the water.”

Zhou Xujin said nervously, “They won’t attack me, will they?”

Wang Ziwei glanced back surreptitiously and said, “If you can get someone else to test it first, you’re welcome to try.”

Zhou Xujin said honestly, “I can’t. I can’t even use my ability now. Want him to go instead?”

Seeing that they were no longer harassing Zhu Ming, Zhao Shanhai also followed them over. Feigning simplicity, he said, “Your group sent two, so of course you go first. Surely you wouldn’t gang up on someone all alone, right?”

Zhou Xujin clutched the clay pot, extremely hesitant. But whether it was the veteran from his own group or the other, they both wanted him to go first.

Wang Ziwei urged, “Is it really such a big deal to drag this out? I’m right here watching. If you don’t trust my experience, then don’t follow me around anymore. From now on, just operate on your own.”

“No, no! I’ll go, okay?!”

Zhou Xujin broke off a thick branch, clutched the clay pot, and gingerly approached the lake. The egrets were either bathing in the water or bending down to preen, showing no particular reaction to his approach.

Zhou Xujin sighed in relief, put down the branch he had intended to use to shoo the egrets, crouched down, and filled his pot.

Just as he lifted the water pot from the lake, a shadow loomed over him from above. Before Zhou Xujin could even look up, a long, slender beak pierced through his head with a sickening squelch, as if skewering jelly.

“Holy shit!” Wang Ziwei couldn’t help shouting. He never imagined things would escalate to this degree. Zhou Xujin collapsed without a sound, half his body submerged in the water, which soon began to redden. The clay pot in his hands plopped back into the lake.

The commotion seemed to stir up all the giant egrets. They crowded over noisily, their sharp, iron-awl-like beaks pecking at Zhou Xujin’s corpse, simultaneously emitting piercing shrieks.

It seemed the egrets were quite satisfied with this human flesh buffet.

Taking advantage of the opening created by the egrets being distracted by Zhou Xujin’s body, Zhao Shanhai dashed to a section of the lake far from that spot. He swiftly scooped up half a pot of water, turned, and ran.

Wang Ziwei followed suit immediately. Seeing that his clay pot had been jostled and drifted farther away by the mob of egrets, he panicked and jumped right into the water, grabbed the pot, and fled.

He ran even faster than Zhao Shanhai, terrified that now that he’d gotten his entire body wet, the egrets would be all the more eager to hunt him.

The egrets screeched a few times, flapped their wings and flew a short distance, but were too heavy-bodied to continue and landed again. Unable to catch the two men, they weren’t persistent either, and simply returned to the lake to paddle around once more.

The deadly shock had happened in an instant. The flesh on Zhou Xujin’s body was rapidly pecked clean, leaving only a ghastly white human skeleton streaked with blood. The egrets dragged it into the water, the bones sank, and the lake surface returned to calm once more.

The giant egrets scattered, leisurely playing in the water.

Even after the small lake had completely quieted down again, Zhu Ming and Yin Yu remained utterly still.

“What’s the matter, guarding against me?” Yin Yu tilted her head. “This dungeon forbids brawling. You needn’t be so wary of me.”

No need to guard against her?

Zhu Ming found this somewhat laughable, and couldn’t help but look at her as if she were a rare spectacle. “Just because we can’t brawl doesn’t mean we can’t kill. Are you the one thinking too simply, or are you thinking I’m too simple? A ready-made example is right there. Aren’t you guarding against me too?”

Yin Yu was silent for a moment, then sighed faintly. “So I’m already this despicable in your heart.”

“Ha, ha, ha.” Zhu Ming fake-laughed three times, rolling her eyes without the slightest hesitation. “Did you think your image was stellar? Won’t say a peep when asked anything—who’d dare trust you?”

Yin Yu then looked at Zhu Ming seriously, and suddenly stepped closer to her.

Zhu Ming uncrossed her arms, fully on alert. Yin Yu, however, acted as if she didn’t see her eyes, continuing until she was right in front of Zhu Ming.

Although there was no deity statue here, making it seem like breaking Crowcrow’s second rule might have no consequences, given how quickly the man had just died, Zhu Ming thought it best not to violate the examiner’s words before the situation was clear.

The invitation letter had said to heed the examiner’s words.

A tree was right behind her. Unless Zhu Ming pressed herself against it to sidestep, there was absolutely no way to avoid Yin Yu.

The two were almost nose-to-nose. At such close range, even the sound of their breathing was clearly audible. Zhu Ming didn’t dare inhale deeply, afraid even one deep breath might brush them together.

Zhu Ming blurted out, “What do you want? Wanna fight? If you’ve got the guts, hit me first. Don’t try provoking me into hitting you.”

Yin Yu looked at her intently, her eyes reflecting Zhu Ming’s figure like a watery mirror. She said, “Since you call me despicable, I suppose I must live up to the image you have of me.”

Truly despicable, actually trying to anger her into striking first.

Zhu Ming blustered, “Stop provoking me. Where there are rules, there are loopholes. Even if you can handle yourself, you’d better watch out for your group members getting hurt!”

Yin Yu raised her hand and gently tucked a stray strand of Zhu Ming’s hair behind her ear. “You wouldn’t do that.”

Slap.

Zhu Ming grabbed her hand. “Don’t touch me. And don’t underestimate me. I’m far more vicious than you imagine.”

Yin Yu shook her head gently. “Your mouth, indeed, is far more vicious than your heart.”

Zhu Ming: “…” That certainty was utterly infuriating, as if the other party knew her inside out. Zhu Ming’s fists hardened once more!

“And you are right.” Yin Yu smiled as their breaths tangled. Separated by a sliver of space, their bodies were on the verge of touching but not quite. “I am trying to provoke you into striking first. So what? After all, I’m so despicable. Mingming, are you going to make a move, or shall we just continue like this?”