Go to the Mine Again
The group set off, their first stop being the earthen prison where Arad had once appeared.
They planned to capture the leader first, eliminating the head of the Proxy Hand to complete Xilolin's mission, and then going directly to the mine to take over all of the Proxy Hand's assets.
The number of people in the team has doubled. Cheng Shi in front, Qin Xin is at the back, the Blind Man is in the middle to command, and the two Wise One men obediently follow behind Cheng Shi, step by step, without any intention of leaving the team.
While their understanding of the situation certainly played a part, the main reason was that Cheng Shi confiscated Zainjil's fingers, forcing them to proactively raise their awareness.
Xilolin was completely healed. Cheng Shi simply took out a bottle of "Past Prosperity" and restored the one-armed big sister to her former charm. Of course, this charm now belonged only to Qin Xin and the Blind Man, because when she looked at Cheng Shi, there was still an unknown fear in her eyes.
The group of six left the shack area and headed quickly toward the territory of the Proxy Hand. As for the shack area underling who had just participated in the discussion, in order to prevent him from leaking information and affecting the players' actions, Qin Xin had to find a place to bury him as well.
Everything went very smoothly, but there was one thing that needed to be noted. In the past, a steady player like Cheng Shi would never have cleared the way for everyone at times like this, but today he had a skeleton bodyguard. "Gongyang Jiao" was moving back and forth at a suitable distance in front of the group, protecting his master behind him. It was precisely because of the presence of the Shrieking Servant that Cheng Shi dared to walk ahead of the Fire Keeper.
"I feel like Cheng Shi's behavior as a [death] summon looks familiar, but I can't quite place where I've seen him before. Mingyu, do you remember him?"
Hearing Qin Xin's doubts, the Blind Man said meaningfully, "No, if even a Mirror Walker can't remember the other's movements and habits, then I, a [Nothingness] traveler, would have even less of an impression."
Qin Xin sensed the sarcasm and gave a wry smile, "Alright, it seems I'm not a qualified Believer in [Memory] either."
The two Fire Keeper exchanged a strange glance, seemingly having reached some unspoken understanding.
The little incident on the way was quickly put behind them, and soon the group arrived at the place where Cheng Shi and the Blind Man had the First found Yadelik. But before they even got there, the Shrieking Servant brought back some not-so-good news: Arad was missing from the cell, and there seemed to be some movement in the direction of the mine. He had already gone to the mine after sobering up.
Unable to find anyone, Cheng Shi had no choice but to lead everyone back to the mine. However, this time they did not take the main city road as before, but instead, guided by Xilolin, they found a shortcut through the residential area.
The group walked quickly, but Cheng Shi didn't stop along the way. He kept observing how the local people and illegal immigrants lived, and what was unusual about the ecology of the shantytown.
This wasn't just his simple interest in the Door of Falling; he was deepening his understanding of the region. Cheng Shi suspected that the answer to "time" might not be so simple, so any detail could become a key to his thinking. Although the Blind Man knew this place very well, what he knew on paper could never compare to seeing it with his own eyes.
He needed to carefully memorize everything here so as not to miss the best clues or window of opportunity when he needed them.
As he walked, he actually discovered something in this area that was different from the city center and the shantytowns.
The Small Ball Flower, these decorative bouquets planted in large numbers in front of many houses, seem different from what I've seen before in this residential area.
He raised an eyebrow and voiced his curiosity.
"An the Chosen, do you know why people here like to plant colorful Small Ball Flower in front of their doors?" Cheng Shi pointed to the green Small Ball Flower planted in front of someone's door.
The Blind Man glanced at it, frowned, and shook his head.
"The History School doesn't record every single detail. It's already quite remarkable that someone can find the history of the Door of Falling. They're piecing together the broken historical spine of the Isle of Hope, and they won't care how many different colored 'stones' grow on which sprawling ribs..."
But I remember this flower.
The impression An Mingyu mentioned was naturally the scene of Cheng Shi picking Small Ball Flower and sticking it in Yadelik's nostril. She carefully recalled the Small Ball Flower she had seen in the city today, and after a moment's thought, she answered:
"I'm guessing it's about factions? Are they using colors to mark their territory?"
Power?
Cheng Shi was taken aback. Recalling the red Small Ball Flower in the city center, the orange-yellow Small Ball Flower in the shack area, and the green Small Ball Flower he saw now, he blinked and felt that it seemed to make sense.
As the two were discussing, the Wise One who had been silently watching Cheng Shi all the way suddenly spoke. Allen Doyle could no longer suppress his disdain and sneered, but he quickly realized that he had no right to sneer at anyone, so he quickly withdrew his disdainful smile and said in a muffled voice:
"This is the Abyssal Rainbow Orchid, Experiment observation object created by the Creation Alchemy Department together with the Department of Life Extension Studies in their search for the Abyssal Crystal."
It is drought-resistant and heat-resistant, and can absorb heat to grow in extremely harsh high-temperature environments. It will reflect the temperature of the current environment with its color, based on the iridescent spectrum. The closer it is to the hyperspectral light, the lower the current temperature. Cyan indicates that the current environmental temperature is not suitable for finding Abyssal Crystal. This crystal mineral is generally only found when the Abyssal Rainbow Orchid appears red.
The Rainbow Orchid seeds here are probably those that fell into the ground after being scattered and lost by the Tower of Reason in the [Abyssal Volcano]. After all, apart from these, there aren't many other plants that can be grown in this place called the Door of Falling.
Cheng Shi was taken aback and suddenly realized that he had overlooked the Change in the environment along the way. He felt the current temperature and found that it was indeed not as hot as at the beginning of the Trials. It turned out that this was a natural thermometer.
"Mr. Allen Doyle is indeed very knowledgeable. However, what you are talking about are all old knowledge from when your fathers were still in the camp of [Truth]. Could you share some new principles that you have only come up with after you Faith [Folly]?"
Otherwise, I always feel that "Folly" is inferior to "Truth."
"..."
Cheng Shi's taunts left the two Wise One bewildered. Allen Doyle wanted to retort, but when he remembered that the core Experiment equipment was in the other party's hands, he silently opened his mouth, his face stiff as he swallowed his "contempt."
Seeing Cheng Shi [Folly] had once again turned to [Silence], Cheng Shi burst into laughter.
Qin Xin, however, shook his head and smiled after observing Cheng Shi all the way, saying, "This Fate Weaver is quite different from what I imagined."
"How is it different?" the Blind Man asked, pausing slightly.
"He's much more cheerful than I imagined," Qin Xin said only once, then refused to say anything more, smiling as she pushed the Blind Man forward.