On the ninth floor of the high tower, Qi Si heard the roar of surging waves the moment he pushed open the door. His ears were instantly filled with a tumultuous din, as though a torrential downpour had come crashing down.
The sea breeze, carrying the salty, fishy scent of seawater, rushed toward him. He saw that he was standing atop a black high tower, its peak reaching deep into the clouds. Looking down, he could see only vast clusters of rolling yellow clouds.
Those yellow clouds gathered and dispersed from time to time, their varying shades forming lines thick and thin. Against the canvas of the sky, they outlined the shape of a gigantic eye, tightly shut as if sunk in an eternal dream.
Sea of Hopelessness. This was the Sea of Hopelessness. This tower was the Clock Tower of the Sea of Hopelessness, which chimed once every two hours...
Fragmented thoughts surfaced in Qi Si's mind. He looked around, but there was nothing but clouds in every direction. There was no way to search for the inn or the Altar. It seemed that only he and the Clock Tower he stood in existed between heaven and earth.
This stage was similar to the previous one. The players' range of movement was confined to a certain location, so there would not be overly complicated clue-gathering or puzzle-solving tasks.
Qi Si looked around and saw the clock hanging in the very center. Its hour hand was currently pointing at 8:08.
There was no Bell Ringer's corpse beneath the clock. In the place where lyrics had originally been carved were the rules for this round of the game:
``` [The great Sea God sleeps within this tranquil dream. Lost traveler who has strayed into the dream, please leave this tower as