The Skeptic School's Philosophy (5,300 Words)

The Dante Organization members are actually quite nice...

Xiao Xiao thought to himself that he was just joking. If they really wanted to use the information about the "Fourth Element" to manipulate him and negotiate with him, then in the current situation, he had no choice but to agree. He couldn't just drug and send these people who had just helped Black Gate City to the hospital to be dissected and fed to dogs, could he?

Therefore, upon seeing Lin Bo's smug expression, he was already prepared to pay out a sum of points.

At worst, I'll compensate him with his entire fortune!

I'd even pay double!

But to my surprise, they immediately changed their attitude as soon as I showed the slightest bit of displeasure.

I earnestly explained to myself the philosophy of the Deity School and the importance of the Fourth Element.

"Looks like I might have to go on a business trip soon..."

"..."

Back in his alley, Xiao Xiao was still thinking about what Lin Bo had told him, lost in thought.

No wonder Yang Jia asked him to find Lin Bo to learn about this matter, because his expertise is indeed relevant.

In fact, many city lords and those with more than 10,000 enhancement points have not undergone the fourth stage of enhancement. The reason is as Lin Bo said: as lords, they can maintain a very harmonious relationship with the City Will, rule over the strangers in the city, and have mysterious powers at their disposal. They are practically the masters of the city's dark world.

If you want to continue improving your strength, it's simple: just exchange for more powerful special items.

Don't think that 100,000 points is a lot. In the city's Taboo Museum, there are plenty of Class A or S-level forbidden items with outrageous prices.

But these people have so many ways to exchange for these powerful forbidden items to enhance their strength.

But some people are actually trying to find the Fourth Element.

Once found, it basically signifies the end of the honeymoon period with the City Will, and often brings unknown crises.

Crises can take many forms. After all, if your boss is not satisfied with you, what difference does it make what you do?

Therefore, the Fourth Element is destined to belong to a small minority.

Even within Dante Organization, not everyone understands the Fourth Element; the Lin Bo school is an exception.

They belong to the Skeptic School, also known as the Deity School.

The core stems from a kind of pain, just like the stars in the sky are there, why do some people always want to see them clearly?

An apple can fall whenever it wants, so why bother figuring out why it falls?

The insatiable curiosity that cannot be satisfied has always been one of the greatest human sufferings, and the Skeptic School originates from this idea.

Within Dante Organization, numerous schools of thought exist, each with its own form of madness.

However, their research results are quite remarkable. According to Lin Bo, there are researchers who specialize in studying Pain Substance. They have discovered and recorded thirty-one different types of Pain Substance in this strange world. They are even trying to classify and code them. They have offered extremely high rewards to attract strangers from various cities to discover new types of Pain Substance and then hand them over to them for research.

Some researchers have studied Enhancement Element; the Cannon of Hot Blood is their masterpiece.

Through in-depth exploration of Class D elements, an enhanced weapon with power equivalent to Class A was created.

In addition, there are studies on the life of various cities, the Mist Sea, and the classification and summarization of the enhancement routes of various cities. At least according to Lin Bo, they have now mastered more than a dozen different enhancement routes, including the three routes of Black Gate City.

Of course, he specifically and solemnly pointed out that Collectors are not included in these dozen or so routes.

These gambling addicts are steeped in metaphysics, which clashes with the ideology of the Dante Organization.

What makes Lin Bo's Skeptic School special is that, while their research achievements may not seem as impressive as other schools, their ambitions are immense. They want to provide an ultimate explanation for the world, and because they are pursuing this ultimate explanation, they do not believe any existing explanation of the world from any school of thought. No matter what the other side says, they are determined to refute it...

... Therefore, Xiao Xiao felt that this Skeptic School could theoretically also be called the school of trolls.

"The so-called City Will, Mysterious Source, fantasy worlds—in our eyes, none of these are important..."

When Lin Bo spoke of these things, his voice rose, his pupils dilated, and he appeared somewhat fanatical:

"None of them can explain many of the problems that exist in this world, or rather, they can all explain some of them..."

"So why can't we understand it as: our world simply doesn't have a reliable explanation?"

"..."

"We are actually welcoming the coming of God."

As he said this, his face clearly showed a charlatan-like air. "Because God is higher-dimensional and indescribable, when His gaze or His influence is cast upon us, our spirit, thoughts, memories, and senses are all distorted at different levels. So it is normal that our understanding of this world is different, after all, it is beyond our level."

"This level of understanding can explain some issues well, such as the divide between outsiders and natives."

"It's very simple."

"It's not that we are actually different in essence, but that we have different perceptions of that mysterious power."

"Strangers are messengers chosen by God to maintain order on a mystical level, while ordinary people are the foundation of God. These natives and their cities together constitute the body of God... that is, the City Will, and driven by their own instincts, they conduct different research and development, just like the blood and organs running in the body of God."

"..."

At that moment, Xiao Xiao felt that what he said made a lot of sense, and at the same time, he couldn't help but frown:

"Is this guy trying to proselytize me?"

"..."

"Of course, the above are just the reasons why we are called the Deity School; the key issue is below..."

Lin Bo continued, "Based on this theory, we did find some key clues."

"Since we live under God's watchful eye, and we are also using the power elements generated by God's gaze to strengthen ourselves, this means that we are getting closer to God... Don't find it funny, even the most insignificant little element can make us a little distanced from ordinary people, which is equivalent to getting closer to God."

"Once we can get closer to God, it means that there are boundaries."

"The Fourth Element is this subtle boundary."

"..."

As he spoke, his expression became serious. "To put it bluntly, the Fourth Element is actually Enhancement Element that is born in a city. However, it is relatively scarce and only effective for specific people. For example, the dark figure behind you earlier was just a special item to you, but to others it might be Enhancement Element."

"If such a thing were made public, it would very likely cause fighting and looting between different cities. So Dante Organization has never supported our research on this. Some of our research results were accidentally posted on a forum before, which led to a war between the lords of two cities, resulting in heavy casualties and damaging the reputation of our Skeptic School."

"... But in reality, we are innocent."

"We simply told those people how to go further and how to verify our conjectures through them..."

"..."

"War between cities?"

Xiao Xiao was hearing this for the first time. Apart from Black Gate City, he had only ever met Dante and members of the Hell Organization.

They were all quite friendly...

... One was a bit crazy and rich, the other was a bit neurotic and poor.

"Yes, if your Fourth Element is discovered in another city, and the other party is unwilling to give it to you in exchange for points, but you still need to obtain it, then war will be inevitable. Therefore, I need to explain the pros and cons to you in advance."

"..."

Lin Bo sighed deeply at this point:

"I'm not being long-winded, but this kind of thing inherently involves a great deal of uncertainty."

"Before finding the Fourth Element, we were messengers, slaves, and strangers living in the shadows of the city. But once we found the Fourth Element, it meant that, in terms of spirit and soul, we no longer completely belonged to the city we lived in."

"Because we have incorporated elements that do not belong to this city into ourselves and brought them back to the city."

"So, before deciding on this issue, the most important thing is to ask yourself the same question first."

"If you truly have the courage to accept the Fourth Element, then I can vouch for you in the name of the Skeptic School..."

"... I'll help you find this element!"

"..."

"..."

Xiao Xiao agreed without hesitation... In fact, he had thought it through carefully, but others couldn't tell... and then left.

He waited for Lin Bo to give him an answer, but felt a little empty inside.

Thinking about the conversation, I returned to the alley and saw my neighbor's three dogs lying lazily on the ground.

Even the ghost and the count looked exhausted, and when they saw him, they tried to stand up by supporting themselves on their four legs.

The Erha opened its eyes, glanced at him, tilted its head, and went back to sleep.

Discarding the jumbled thoughts in his mind, Xiao Xiao took a deep breath and looked at the three dogs with a smile.

"You've worked hard..."

This is the first time I've seen you look so exhausted. Is it because fighting the Hell Organization is too tiring?

...wrong.

Xiao Xiao suddenly realized that this might also be from visiting a dog farm.

With a soft sigh, he took three sausages out of his pocket, peeled them, and tossed them to them.

"Don't think I'm being stingy. It's like cures like, and this stuff is most useful to you right now..."

"..."

Although the Count and the Ghost had already swallowed a bellyful of fresh beef, they still politely accepted the sausage.

Only the Erha whimpered twice, complaining that Xiao Xiao hadn't thrown it closer.

In the distance, at the end of the alley, the Butcher's meat shop was dark, with only a faint blue light. But unlike before, when the television, filled with static, flickered dimly in the darkness all night, this time Xiao Xiao could see some color in the glow, and could even vaguely hear some low laughter... Was the Butcher watching a comedy channel?

Having been promoted to Hellbringer, his taste has actually improved as well?

I can't tell...

Through his conversations with his father, Xiao Xiao discovered that the world might not be as simple as he had imagined. Perhaps the Butcher was a real person who could be arrested by the Guard Hall at any time, and the three dogs were just the neighbor's three dogs.

But ironically, their connection with themselves, their spiritual exchange, is so real.

But it doesn't matter, as long as they can help me in the battle.

As for...

As Xiao Xiao pondered, he slowly looked up at the second floor. Behind the white curtains, a faint melody drifted out.

What's the deal with the Record Player Miss?

Thinking about how he had controlled that bomb, Xiao Xiao couldn't help but feel a surge of curiosity. From his perspective, he could never see who was behind the curtain, the one who occasionally peeked at him, nor had he even seen what the Old Record Player looked like. But now, he was, after all, the observer; in this city, apart from the core areas, very little could escape his notice...

Previously, due to some subtle psychological hurdle, he had never forced himself to pry into the secrets behind the curtains.

But now, he is filled with deep doubt and a sense of dejection and indifference, so he has become bolder.

"If I'm already prepared to offend this city, what else am I afraid of?"

"..."

Thinking this, he suddenly opened his Eye of the Seer and looked towards the second floor.

The building and curtains in front of him vanished instantly, and the entire floor, furnishings, and lights of that mysterious room came into view. At the same time, Xiao Xiao's heart couldn't help but tighten uncontrollably.

His gaze wandered through the room, searching for his target.

From the elegant living room to the neat and clean bedroom, and then to the balcony filled with small blue flowers.

I didn't see a single shadow, except for a bronze record player in the corner of the wall.

But this was not the target Xiao Xiao was looking for this time. He continued to look around, quickly moving from the balcony to other corners. Finally, when his gaze suddenly entered the bathroom, he saw a slender figure behind the thin plastic curtain. He could even sense the owner of that mysterious gaze and feel a mysterious aura.

Suddenly, his gaze turned fierce as he rushed toward the curtain, with a ruthless intent as if he wanted to see through all the secrets.

Then, at that moment, the plastic curtain was suddenly pulled open, and a white shadow instantly filled Xiao Xiao's vision.

Xiao Xiao was completely stunned.

The figure behind the plastic curtain seemed to freeze for a moment, then hurriedly covered their body with one hand.

A terrified scream rang out, "You pervert..."

"..."

Xiao Xiao, standing outside the window, shuddered and immediately turned around, fleeing back to his own yard under the stunned gazes of the three dogs.

"What the hell is this?"

He felt his face burning hot; the ruthlessness he had just displayed, which had shown him through everything, had turned into embarrassment.

"Ha, in any case, I'll eventually figure it out..."

He thought to himself, feigning composure. "You also have times when you don't shower..."

"You just said so much, it's clear you really want him to understand the philosophy of your questioning academy."

On the same night, Yang Jia looked at Lin Bo, whose expression had changed drastically and who had returned to his previous proud and smug demeanor, and said calmly, "I don't know what you're planning, but I just hope that you haven't deceived him about the Fourth Element. He is somewhat different from us. The Fourth Element is a choice for us, but it is a necessity for him."

"Cheat?"

Lin Bo sneered, "We never lie!"

"It's just a hoax at best!"

"..."

Under Yang Jia's somewhat strange gaze, he quickly added, "But this time I didn't even try to fool anyone."

"The reason I told him all that is because I've just figured it out. I will indeed help him find the Fourth Element, and even help him obtain Fourth Element, making him the first person outside of the Dante Organization to perfectly undergo the fourth stage of enhancement..."

"..."

"Why?"

Yang Jia was slightly taken aback, not expecting Lin Bo's attitude to change so drastically.

She hadn't told Lin Bo about Xiao Xiao's unusual behavior, so she couldn't understand his decision at this moment.

"Anyway, the bet has already been lost..."

Lin Bo said straightforwardly, "I came here to help for nothing, and I only had a few dozen points, which I lost. Especially since those guys in Dante Organization were waiting for us to bring back the Mysterious Guidepost. Now look what happened, we've lost everything. If we go back like this, I think our meager funds will definitely be cut, and we might even be fired by Dante Organization."

"We can't expect our advisor to plead for us, after all, he's about to be expelled too..."

"..."

Yang Jia listened, feeling a pang of sadness, yet also a strange urge to laugh...

"Since that's the case, why not take another gamble?"

Lin Bo noticed the low spirits of the other members in the room and quickly put his hands on his hips, saying loudly, "This time, let's gamble on him. The Fourth Element has always been one of the topics we've been researching. Now, we can take advantage of this opportunity to make some new progress, fabricate a little bit, and present it as our achievement to the Dante Organization... At least we won't get kicked out, right?"

Yang Jia found these words a bit strange, thought about it carefully, and suddenly said, "Have you already figured out where the Fourth Element is?"

"Heh, of course I know, I don't even need to look it up..."

Lin Bo said, "But I have to appear difficult to investigate, lest Chairman Xiao not appreciate my favor..."

Yang Jia's pupils contracted slightly. "Where?"

"Night's End City."

Lin Bo's pupils dilated slightly, and he chuckled softly, "The Fourth Element is right there, and it's even quite famous there. People have discussed it on the forums, and you might have even heard of it. However, these ignorant fools only know how twisted and bizarre that element is, but they don't know that it is actually the key to helping the Insightful One complete the fourth stage of enhancement!"

"Night's End City?"

Yang Jia didn't even ask what this special element was; his expression changed slightly upon hearing the name of the city.

"Those stingy guys..."

"Are you sure you want him to deal with those people?"

"..."

"Of course."

Lin Bo's laughter grew louder and louder. "Even our Dante Organization can't take advantage of this city."

"But I think he can."

"After all, Night's End City only prevented us from gaining any advantage, but Black Gate City directly caused us to suffer losses..."

"..."

Yang Jia, who was listening, was about to lose her composure and interrupted, "So, there's an element of personal grudge involved, right?"

Lin Bo's expression showed slight embarrassment, but he quickly regained his composure and said seriously:

"Personal grudges only account for a small part..."

"The key point is that the Fourth Element he needs really is there..."