They Realized How Serious the Problem Was

They Realized How Serious the Problem Was

"Feng Yunhong!"

Li Weixuan's expression turned grave.

"That's right. I believe you've heard that name."

The old man sighed with the weight of age, his face suggesting that such a trivial reputation was hardly worth mentioning.

"Fame is nothing but passing clouds."

"Sorry, I've never heard of him."

Li Weixuan shook his head.

Everyone else did the same.

What?

Feng Yunhong's expression instantly became quite something.

"And I'm absolutely sure that the fourth dean of the Academy wasn't called that."

"Bullshit! You probably weren't even born when I was dean. What would you know?"

Anger flickered in Feng Yunhong's eyes.

"That's true. The world changes, and it's only natural not to know what happened decades ago."

Li Weixuan's tone was calm.

"But I'm absolutely sure about this one thing, because the fourth dean was my grandfather."

"I'm absolutely sure his surname was Li, and he should be vacationing in the Southern Hemisphere right now."

The look Li Weixuan gave Feng Yunhong clearly said: Old-timer, you should get your head checked. You've been in here so long that you've even forgotten your own name.

"Li? Was your grandfather called Li He?"

Feng Yunhong stared blankly for a moment, then suddenly asked Li Weixuan.

"How do you kno—"

Li Weixuan got only halfway through his question before he froze. His gaze instinctively turned to Fu Qian.

Everyone else did the same, all turning to look at Fu Qian, who stood some distance away.

Finally realized how serious the problem was?

Fu Qian nodded to everyone and pointed at Feng Yunhong.

"See? Case in point."

Now that was a genius's intuition. They were seeing it firsthand.

There hadn't been much information to go on when he first made his guess, but it turned out that the most terrifying nightmare had come true.

"What's wrong with you all?"

Feng Yunhong noticed something was amiss, too.

"Old... Old Man Feng."

Li Weixuan swallowed.

"You knew my grandfather?"

"Of course I did. When I was dean, he was my deputy. The boy was exceptionally talented, especially in his steady temperament. He had great potential."

Feng Yunhong stroked his beard, recalling the past.

"But to say he was the fourth dean is utter nonsense. He hadn't even grown a full head of hair back then. How could they possibly have made him dean?"

Li Weixuan took a deep breath and glanced back.

That mental blow had been brutal. Every student wore a bewildered expression, the light of hope fading from their eyes.

It really was just like that guy had said!

Once they entered this place, all information from the outside world was erased. No one out there would remember them.

No reinforcements were coming!

Only Fu Qian stood there, still studying Feng Yunhong with interest.

"Old Man Feng, the facts I've learned may not be what you think."

Li Weixuan swallowed and chose his words carefully.

"My grandfather really was the fourth dean of the Academy. There had just been a long vacancy before he took over.

"As for your name, I'm sorry, but no information about you was ever passed down."

Seeing Feng Yunhong's expression crumple again, Li Weixuan explained as he gestured for Fu Qian to come over.

"We've come up with one possible explanation for why this happened. I'll have my student explain it to you."

After calling Fu Qian over, Li Weixuan quickly stepped aside to compose himself.

Fu Qian strolled forward and greeted the senior, then went over his theory about the nature of this ruin.

By the time he finished, not only was Old Man Feng dumbstruck, but the team members, forced to hear it all over again, looked even more devastated and crestfallen.

What kind of cursed place was this?

"Old Man Feng, if you don't mind, may I ask you a few questions?"

After giving Feng Yunhong half a minute to process everything, Fu Qian spoke again.

"Go ahead."

Feng Yunhong answered gravely, no longer looking as spirited as before.

"By your account, you've been trapped here for a long time?"

"Yes. It happened many years ago."

Feng Yunhong raised his head, his gaze hazy.

"I've been conscious less and less often over the years, so it's hard to estimate exactly how much time has passed. But Li He's grandson is already this grown, so it must be nearly a hundred years."

"At first, I couldn't understand why no one had come looking for me after I'd been missing for so long. I never imagined something this bizarre was happening."

"When you first came in, you were already quite powerful, weren't you?"

"Why do you ask?"

Feng Yunhong frowned and glanced at Fu Qian.

"I was only at the fifth rank back then. But after all these years, I've made some progress."

"I can tell."

Fu Qian nodded.

"Did anyone else accidentally wander in during that time?"

"Plenty. You've seen those monsters outside, haven't you?"

"Were any of them as powerful as you?"

What exactly was this guy trying to do?

Everyone around them watched Fu Qian, baffled.

He kept rambling and asking a bunch of pointless questions. Was he hoping to get the old man to take him on as a disciple or something?

Never mind the difference in seniority. They were all trapped here. What good would it do if they couldn't get out?

"There were a few powerful ones."

Feng Yunhong considered it for a moment.

"But none of them lasted. This place swallowed them up."

"Got it. Thanks for clearing that up."

Fu Qian thanked him with a grin.

The next moment, he took a step back and, using his turn to shield the motion, pulled out something and flicked it straight at Feng Yunhong.

"Are you crazy?"

Feng Yunhong's voice rang out in shock and fury. At such close range, by the time he noticed it, there was almost no way to dodge. The object struck him squarely.

Li Weixuan and everyone else were just as startled, unable to understand what Fu Qian was doing.

By then, they could see what Fu Qian had thrown: a bloodied finger.

Could it have been his own finger? Had he ripped it off and turned it into a projectile?

This guy really was out of his mind!

But the next moment, everyone stood dumbstruck.

After hitting Feng Yunhong, the finger didn't bounce to the ground. Instead, it sank straight into his body.

Was he really that fragile?

Feng Yunhong looked down at the finger embedded in him, his expression turning exceedingly strange.

Then the half of the finger still sticking out melted like a candle and flowed into Feng Yunhong's body, leaving no trace behind.

At the same time, a twisted, inhuman grin appeared on Feng Yunhong's face!

This guy really was up to no good!

Holding the wound where his finger had been severed, Fu Qian felt that taking the injury had been worth it.

The next moment, Fu Qian raised both hands and shouted a famous line he remembered well.

"You fools, run!"

Huh? Most of them were still reeling from the horrifying scene and had no idea what Fu Qian meant.

"Where do you think you're going?"

Feng Yunhong's chilling voice rang out.

Amid a series of muffled booms, his enormous body exploded into a storm of flesh and blood.

An indescribably violent force swept over everyone around him in an instant.