Seven days flash by, the trial arrives once more

As the title says.

During these seven days, Xie Yang, who had somehow gotten some promise out of that Prophet girl, cheerfully helped Cheng Shi clear an A-grade Weapon dungeon.

Actually, Cheng Shi hadn't originally planned on getting a weapon; what he wanted were a few Gold Pocket Watches.

But Xie Yang felt that the value of a gold watch couldn't even compare to a bottle of Past Prosperity potion, so he insisted on getting him a weapon instead.

Seeing how stubborn the guy was, like he had no fear of death, Cheng Shi gave in and casually mentioned a mage weapon, letting him go farm it.

When Xie Yang found out Cheng Shi needed a mage weapon, he was stunned for a long time.

"So you're a mage?"

"Do I not look like one?"

"I always thought you were an assassin, really good at hiding yourself."

"..."

Luckily, Xie Yang didn't die in the dungeon, but he was badly injured.

Cheng Shi earnestly advised Xie Yang to go get that bottle of Past Prosperity back, but Xie Yang flatly refused his suggestion and even bought another bottle on credit.

In the end, the weapon was obtained, but another potion was lost.

"Hope you find love soon." Cheng Shi's expression was complicated.

"Thanks."

Xie Yang was genuinely grateful.

Cheng Shi was genuinely disgusted.

If it weren't for the fact that you can at least keep me company in conversation, I wouldn't give a damn about your stupid love.

But this is fine too; at least there's some entertainment.

In this world, relaxing the mind and body is what matters most.

Time flew by, and when he opened his eyes again, new trial information had already appeared before him.

Cheng Shi hadn't gone into a dungeon for a week, but his combat state was well maintained.

[Special Trial (Eternal Night Maze [Memory]) has been activated]

[Matching teammates (1/6)]

[Objective: Among the tangled memories, there is always a way out—but only if the night hasn't yet dispersed. (Time limit: 12 hours)]

"Damn!"

Cheng Shi froze, then cursed loudly.

A trial from the opposing side? Isn't this just asking me to die?

[Match successful (6/6), entering trial]

In Cheng Shi's extreme shock, his vision dimmed once more.

"Sir? Sir?"

Ears full of the clamor of conversation, punctuated by the clinking of glasses and cheers.

This was... a tavern?

Cheng Shi opened his eyes and found himself sitting at a round table. There were six people at the table, all slumped over asleep. He was the first to wake up.

He looked at his clothes; his collar and the front of his shirt were all wet.

Luckily, it wasn't vomit. He'd probably knocked over a drink while sleeping; his whole body reeked of alcohol.

"Sir, should I continue serving the wine you ordered?"

A waiter in black clothes stood nearby, holding a tray and quietly waiting for Cheng Shi's instructions.

Continue serving? Everyone's already drunk like this, what's the point? Use it for a bath?

"No, thank you." Cheng Shi shook his head, watching the waiter bow and withdraw. The teammates in front of him gradually woke up as well.

"Where's this? A tavern?"

"Ugh, my head hurts..."

"Ah, my clothes are dirty!"

"Xuenila Mutton Blood Wine, the favorite of the Blizzard herders. During the mid-Civilization Era, there was a small kingdom south of the Blizzard Mountain Range called Bilius, where this wine was popular."

"Gulp gulp gulp gulp, ah, good wine!"

"..."

Looking at his teammates with their varied reactions, Cheng Shi's expression turned grim.

Three men, three women. This round clearly had some dead weight.

"Big shot?" The bespectacled youth who had spoken first began quickly scanning his surroundings. His gaze lingered for a moment on Cheng Shi and the woman who had identified the tavern's origin, then he asked the latter.

"Fang Shiqing, [Civilization], Singer, Ladder 2047, good morning to all."

This [Civilization] Singer produced a white handkerchief from somewhere, elegantly wiping the wine stains off her white shirt and black necktie, then adjusted her glasses slightly and nodded to each person in greeting.

Cheng Shi quickly made a profile of her appearance: long curly hair, black round-frame glasses, delicate features, and... like a teacher.

An English teacher, specifically.

Fang Shiqing, [Civilization], Singer, Ladder 2047

The bespectacled youth sitting to her right opened his mouth slightly, putting on a very shocked expression.

"A 2000-level game?" Seeing everyone look at him, he scrambled to introduce himself, "A'ming, Ming as in 'remember,' [Civilization], Assassin, Ladder 1717."

As soon as the youth finished speaking, Cheng Shi frowned.

This person was lying.

Whether he was hiding his Path or fabricating his score, his profession was hard to fake, and there was no need to fake it.

But judging by his flustered demeanor, he didn't seem like an assassin.

Assassins were usually... more efficient?

Cheng Shi suddenly thought of Song Yawen. Well, maybe the assassin circle was all about contrast these days.

A'ming, [Civilization], Assassin, Ladder 1717

"Hey, big brother?"

Just as he was thinking, the youth called out to Cheng Shi.

Cheng Shi was slightly startled, realizing the speaking order had somehow reversed, and the youth happened to be sitting to his left.

His turn already?

Cheng Shi adjusted his expression slightly and introduced himself with a bright, cheerful smile:

"Cheng Shi, [Existence], Priest, Ladder 1501."

The moment he finished, he saw a certain lady across from him furrow her brow slightly.

Oh? Now that's interesting.

"1500?" A'ming's eyes widened even more. He looked from Fang Shiqing to Cheng Shi, even more shocked. "Another 500-point gap?"

"Another?" Cheng Shi smiled.

"Last week's trial also had a 500-point gap. Very tricky, very deadly."

"But you survived, didn't you?"

A'ming forced a smile, not optimistic. "Pure luck."

The introductions continued, moving to the uncle on Cheng Shi's right, who had been rubbing his head the whole time.

This uncle had a head of scraggly long hair, wore a fur-collared jacket in the heat, and his eyes looked somewhat dispirited.

"Huang Bo, [Chaos], Singer, 1998."

[Chaos]! The opposing Path to [Civilization]!

This would be interesting.

Cheng Shi smiled as he observed Fang Shiqing and A'ming's expressions, but they only gave the uncle an extra glance, with no particular reaction.

As for Huang Bo, his fingers were buried in his hair, constantly rubbing his scalp, not even lifting his eyes, as if he couldn't care less that there was an enemy among his teammates.

Huang Bo, [Chaos], Singer, 1998

"Another 2000-point player?"

"Another Singer?" The female player across from Cheng Shi exclaimed, then quickly covered her mouth.

This was the same girl who had frowned when she heard Cheng Shi's Path.

"What, is this a singing competition today?" Another female player, still chugging alcohol, tilted her head, her elbow resting on the table as she swirled her bottle. Her tongue traced a quick circle around her lips, and she giggled coquettishly:

"Bailing, but you can call me Niao Niao. [Sinking], Hunter. My Ladder score's too low to mention. Whatever you good brothers and sisters say, I'll just listen."

With that, she gulped down two more mouthfuls of wine, not caring that the spilled liquor soaked her clothes again, drenching the low-cut black silk dress against her chest, outlining two curves that made blood race.

"What I'm best at is being obedient~"

[Filth and Decay].

Cheng Shi didn't even need to look; he could smell from a mile away that this collar-wearing young lady was a [Filth and Decay] Hunter, a Sensory Hunter.

They excelled at indulging their own desires, guiding their prey to join them, pulling at their nerves, tormenting their minds, making them lose themselves in indulgence and lose their resistance in sinking.

The young lady seemed like a master of physical indulgence, but Cheng Shi noticed she hadn't lied, which meant her Path to Godhood score was indeed very low.

Low score, yet still placed in his game.

She had some skill.

Bailing, [Sinking], Hunter, X

The Assassin A'ming looked somewhat restrained at her posture, Uncle Huang Bo kept scratching his head, Fang Shiqing observed with interest, while the last female player beside her flashed a look of disgust.

Cheng Shi looked thoughtfully at the last female player. The young girl had delicate features and also wore a pair of glasses, appearing quite open and composed, yet she was the only one who seemed to avoid his gaze.

"Xu Lu, [Nothingness], Singer, Ladder 1643."

"?"

As soon as that gratingly sweet voice sounded, Cheng Shi first shivered, then quickly glanced at Bailing, trying to suppress the smile he couldn't control at the corner of his mouth.

Look at that, what a coincidence?

The only Prophet on the field, and he knew her—most likely that sweet-voiced girl Xie the simp had been chasing without success.

Tsk tsk, a follower of [Destiny], huh? Sorry, but my role this round is a follower of [Time].

In other words, I'm a wolf!

Slurp!

Xu Lu, [Nothingness], Singer, Ladder 1643.

Cheng Shi really wanted to laugh but didn't dare show it too openly. He knew Xu Lu was probably sizing him up too, only she was likely still wondering if this Cheng Shi was the same "neighbor" she knew.

Xu Lu was indeed sizing up Cheng Shi. While pretending to glance at him casually, she was recalling in her mind everything Xie Yang had told her about Cheng Shi.

"There's a mage named Cheng Shi on the rooftop of the next building. He looks pretty average, a bit chubby, the typical shut-in. He begged me for ages to help him out, so I felt sorry for him and casually ran an A-grade Weapon dungeon to get him a weapon."

"This guy may not look like much, but he's pretty loyal and knows gratitude. He gave me a bottle of A-grade healing potion..."

"He didn't get that from clearing a dungeon—he must have picked it up in a trial. Anyway, it's definitely worth less than the weapon I gave him."

"I've got a high rank and plenty of tricks, so it's useless to me. Keep it for yourself as a lifesaver. The potion's so-so... it's passable, I guess. No need to thank me."

Clearly, this Cheng Shi sitting across from her was quite different from the one Xie Yang had described. At the very least, this Cheng Shi wasn't ugly—not only was he not ugly, he was actually a bit handsome.

Also, he was a priest.

That didn't match a mage either.

As everyone knew, class was the hardest thing to fake.

So, probably just a coincidence in name?

The only question was whether he believed in [Memory] or its opposite... [Time].