The Trap of Time Is...

In the end, Cheng Shi didn't let the Blind Man hand over the cards and chose to trust her this once.

Of course, this was absolutely a genuine expression of trust, and it certainly wasn't because the other party also asked him to hand over his cards that he refused.

Looking at the Blind Man in front of him with a half-smile, Cheng Shi rubbed his nose and finally became serious.

"We only need to clarify two things right now: first, how did the 'Cencha' in the timing of our events occur; and second, when did we both get infected?"

Once we understand these two points, we will surely be able to return safely under the protection of Destiny.

The Blind Man nodded in agreement. She then turned and "looked" at the warehouse door, and after sensing Qin Xin's departure, she frowned slightly and said:

"Qin Xin might be very interested in that Investigator. He has noticed our Change, so he will naturally investigate the Change in his other teammates as well."

He won't be an obstacle for us, but he probably won't be an asset either.

He was indeed an impeccable Fire Keeper, but you're right, the fire he passed on has nothing to do with us.

It's not us, it's you. Passing the Flame has nothing to do with me.

Cheng Shi muttered to himself, but didn't dwell on it. He rubbed his chin and looked at the three people conducting the Experiment not far away.

"The Doctor was probably the first anomaly I discovered. His attitude towards keeping his identity a secret changed before and after the initial investigation. Li Wufang's anomaly came later; his attitude towards 'Destiny' also changed from its the First state..."

Cheng Shi quickly reviewed his thoughts again in front of the Blind Man, then quietly waited for the Blind Man to add to them. After a moment's thought, the Blind Man continued:

"What you said is roughly similar to what I was thinking, but since I... was absent from the 'Annihilation' disaster initiated by Wu Cun, hearing you say this now makes me wonder if Wu Cun himself has changed?"

"?"

Cheng Shi's gaze sharpened, he frowned and pondered for a moment, then nodded and said:

"It is indeed possible. Li Wufang is a shrewd Investigator, and Investigator are good at judging people. Since he is so worried about the impact of [Annihilation], there is no reason for him to let a source of trouble leave his sight."

The only explanation is that Wu Cun, who the First met us, was able to suppress the rage within her, but after separating from Li Wufang, she fell into the trap of [time] and was replaced by Wu Cun on another timeline, a [Annihilation] Believer who could not suppress the rage within her.

Well, this guess makes sense, but we lack crucial evidence.

However, these Change also indicate that the first Cencha in the timing should have occurred during our first investigation when we split up. At that time, Qin Xin... seemed to be fine.

Of course, it's also possible that he has changed, but I just haven't noticed it.

Wang Mou said he was Still Like in a Dream, you should know about this, right?

Blind Man hearing the ID, the blind man frowned. "I asked him, and he said it wasn't him."

"No!?" Cheng Shi looked astonished. "He took out the [Dreamless Mirror]. This mirror is said to be in the hands of Still Like in a Dream."

"[The Dreamless Mirror] is indeed in the hands of Still Like in a Dream, but as far as I know, the Top Rank on the [Memory] list doesn't seem to be a warrior, but rather a... Hunter."

He was a Dream-Peeking Ranger.

"Hunter?"

Cheng Shi was taken aback, and frowned as he began to carefully recall all the details about Qin Xin that day. When he recalled the other party's reaction in the shack area, he suddenly felt that it was not impossible for the other Hunter.

"His speed... really doesn't seem like that of a warrior."

It's not difficult for Hunter to disguise himself as a warrior, but for a warrior to possess the speed of Hunter... that's not easy at all.

But... he'd probably changed by then?

"That's right, he has become who he is now. The Qin Xin we know has probably been thrown into other timelines by [time]."

Therefore, his reaction in the shack area alone is insufficient to determine whether he changed when the first instance of 'time Cencha's occurred.

"This is interesting. No matter how difficult a Trials is, there must be a set of rules for the difficulty. So what happened during the first Trials that caused them to fall into different time Cencha in different places?"

And why were we the two of us affected?

Cheng Shi fell into deep thought again, and just then, the Blind Man frowned and said:

"The Edict of Passage of [time] is precision and punctuality, so is it possible that... it is a rule that evolved around the hour?"

"Possibly, but...it doesn't seem like it!" Cheng Shi shook his head slightly and pondered, "I'm not afraid to tell you this, but because of the tricks my Believer use at certain times, I'm unusually sensitive to the hour. Today, I've been on guard against the hour almost all day."

Every hour on the hour, I clearly remember who the person in front of me is and whether they do anything strange. Of course, I see you the most, but whether it's you or anyone else, they don't act strangely at the top of the hour.

Actually... I already have a guess, but the answer still needs to be verified.

"What?"

"Abyssal Crystal!" Although Cheng Shi was facing the Blind Man, he secretly glanced at the Scholar and Wise One in the center of the warehouse.

"The idea the First arose because only the Change in Wang Mou and Li Wufang were considered; after returning from the mine search, they both underwent some kind of attitude change."

This made me certain that there must be some secret in the mine. Later, after learning that the Cencha of time happened to you and me, I immediately realized that there was a very likely rule for the occurrence of Cencha.

Then there's Qin Xin's Change...

"But Qin Xin was with us during the second investigation, he didn't..." At this point, the Blind Man paused, remembering that there were also two Abyssal Crystal hidden in the shack area!

Those two colored crystals belonged to Xilolin of the Brotherhood of Extreme Desire.

The Blind Man frowned slightly and said, "You suspect that Qin Xin was affected when he walked near the colored crystal during the search?"

"Yes, do you remember the place where Qin Xin went to find the Abyssal Crystal? Only he has walked in that direction. You and I both met up with him from the other side."

Cheng Shi's eyes grew brighter as he spoke, "Wang Mou must have discovered the colored crystals the first time, but he couldn't be sure where Qin Xin was, so he gave up taking them."

Of course, it's also possible that the Cencha on his body appeared when he first found the Abyssal Crystal, which Change his covetousness for it, and he even gave up picking it up. However, this is purely my speculation. A Believer "Truth" would probably never give up Experiment materials of this level.

Therefore, following this line of reasoning, the only reason why Qin Xin was not affected by the first Cencha is that he luckily avoided all the locations in the mine that contained the Abyssal Crystal!

And the Cencha that occur within us likely arise at the moment we witness the Wise One replicating his Experiment!

After listening to Cheng Shi's words, the Blind Man pondered for a moment and nodded, but quickly shook his head and said:

"The reasoning is brilliant, but I must remind you that Li Wufang's first change and Wu Cun, whose first change is uncertain... they didn't pass through the mining area during their first search!"

"Of course I remember, and that's the direction we need to investigate again. If I'm not mistaken, there's probably a piece of Abyssal Crystal around the alley where they parted ways!"

Cheng Shi looked intently at the Blind Man and said, word by word, "If we can find that Abyssal Crystal there, perhaps we will truly find the reason for the appearance of 'Cencha'."