You Haven't Realized the Severity of the Problem

You make it sound so simple, but it's full of danger! People could actually die!

Just encountering two monsters outside has already resulted in casualties, and you want everyone to go deeper inside?

Fu Qian's words immediately stirred up a strong reaction, or rather, strong opposition.

Entering the ruins...

Li Weixuan pondered for a moment, glancing at Ji Liushuang and the others.

"What do you all think?"

"If we don't want to sit around and wait for death, entering the interior to find a way out is our only option."

Surprisingly, Ji Liushuang's attitude was unexpectedly resolute.

"And the sooner the better. While most people still have their strength, any further delay is a slow death."

She's really decisive! Fu Qian praised her inwardly.

"Won't the risk be too great!"

At this moment, Yuan Xin suddenly interjected.

"This ruin is full of strangeness. We have no idea what we'll encounter inside. Rushing in like this is too reckless."

He's actually sticking to his guns and going against the goddess?

Fu Qian glanced at Yuan Xin with interest, only to find the latter glaring at him coldly.

I overestimated him. It feels like he's just unhappy that Ji Liushuang agreed with my suggestion.

"We haven't reached a dead end yet. Some people are injured. I think it's better to rest here and recover in a more stable environment."

Huang Zhaoyan, standing nearby, quickly chimed in.

Although he had conflicts with Yuan Xin in the past, it didn't mean he didn't value his life.

"If they don't hear from us for a few days, the people outside will definitely notice something is wrong. When they send people to investigate, we can coordinate from the inside and outside to find a solution. The situation is far from that dire."

"Resting and waiting for rescue in a place where you don't know what danger you'll face next – what are you thinking? Do you even know how far the Academy is from here?"

Ji Liushuang sneered and retorted unceremoniously.

Seeing everyone arguing, Li Weixuan's brow furrowed. He was inclined to explore the interior, confident in his abilities, but with lives at stake, he knew he couldn't act unilaterally as a leader and ignore the students' opinions.

"Idiot."

At this moment, Fu Qian shook his head.

"What do you mean?"

Huang Zhaoyan, who had been avoiding Fu Qian's gaze since earlier, couldn't help but react when he was directly called an idiot.

"Have any of you considered a question?"

Fu Qian scanned the surroundings.

"This place has clearly existed for a long time. Why don't you have any information about it?"

This...

Fu Qian's words successfully plunged everyone into thought.

It was true, it was strange. While this place was remote, it was unlikely that such a dangerous and unique location would have no rumors surrounding it after all these years.

"Could there be such a possibility?"

Fu Qian looked at their reactions with satisfaction.

"The moment you entered this place, your existence in the outside world was erased."

What?

The group froze in unison.

"Is that hard to understand? Then let me ask you, has anyone heard of anyone going missing here?"

"Not that I know of," Ji Liushuang murmured, her eyes unfocused.

"Then how do you explain the pile of hair and arms we encountered? Judging by those two alone, there were quite a few victims."

"So the fact is, once you step in here, all information about your existence in the outside world is erased. No one will remember you or recognize your existence – not family, friends, or lovers."

"Note, it's not death, but erasure. They won't even retain any memory of you. Even if there's a wedding photo on your bedside table, your closest person will still look right past you, only wondering why they bought two sets of cutlery."

Fu Qian winked at Ji Liushuang.

"My dear beauty, there's a slight possibility that your parents have already forgotten they ever had a daughter like you at this very moment."

"Nonsense, how is that possible?"

"Simply absurd!"

"Alarmist talk, I've never heard of such a thing!"

The scene Fu Qian described in his leisurely tone was so horrifying that the group involuntarily retorted.

Could it really be like this?

Ji Liushuang bit her lip. Thinking back now, some things truly didn't add up.

They had all done their homework before coming to such a strange place, yet found no information related to it.

Unless it was deliberately hidden...

But if what he said was true...

The thought of completely disappearing from her parents' world, without even leaving a trace of memory, made even her, usually so strong, feel breathless.

"So, give up your futile fantasies. No one is coming to save you."

Fu Qian delivered another blow.

"Unless you can run out yourselves."

In the end, Li Weixuan was the first to regain his composure. Seeing that everyone else had fallen silent, he took a deep breath.

"This place is indeed bizarre, and waiting to die is not an option. From now on, everyone follow me, and we'll explore the interior of the ruins."

No one objected this time, or rather, no one made a sound.

"Got it!"

Fu Qian snapped his fingers, very satisfied with the current outcome.

No matter what, for the first exploration of the ruins' interior, he couldn't afford to lose Li Weixuan, this powerful fighter, so this group had to come.

Of course, what he had just said was, strictly speaking, still unconfirmed speculation.

But often, people are like this. Once you give them an explanation for something, no matter how absurd, they can't help but consider the possibility if there are no other answers.

The more they thought, the more terrifying it became.

On the way, the group fell into a heavy silence, everyone lost in thought, their morale at -99.

Fu Qian had successfully brought the team's morale to the brink of collapse single-handedly.

Li Weixuan was not as calm as he appeared, but as a master of masters, he fully utilized his strengths, successfully channeling his unease into rage.

Wielding the longsword temporarily borrowed from a student, he led the way almost the entire time. Anything that moved was met with a rain of sword strikes.

The sinister and venomous hair monsters, the agile and ferocious hands – these creatures that had previously caused the team so much trouble were all shredded into pieces by the berserk sword energy of a peak fourth-tier cultivator.

The efficiency was so high that even Fu Qian abandoned the idea of stealing kills.

The students behind him were even more terrified, already mentally distraught, and now their courage was completely shattered by this divine might.

Under the lead of the berserk Li Weixuan, the group was almost invincible, charging straight into the interior of the ruins.

It was even more bizarre inside than outside.

Various types of buildings were stacked layer upon layer, crammed together in an unbelievable fashion. At a glance, it resembled rush hour during the Spring Festival travel period, with no clear paths, and many areas requiring them to walk on rooftops.

And here, in addition to the hair and hands they had seen before, there was a new type of creature: a giant white centipede.

Upon closer inspection, each segment of the centipede's body was made of human skulls.

Their deformed mouths were agape, biting down on the skull above, and so on, forming an endless chain.