"It's been so long, and we still can't find a way out." Chen Beixun leaned against the stone wall, his heart filling with frustration and gloom.
He had never been willing to give up. He and An Changyan had searched every corner of the space and tried every method they could think of. Even returning the small cube containing the secret technique hadn't helped them escape.
Leaning against the stone wall, Chen Beixun calmly swept his gaze over every corner of the space. He had repeated this countless times. His mind rapidly sifted through his memories, constructing one mind palace after another in hopes of finding a clue.
He had even tried linking insignificant things to important ones, piecing together things that were separate or even entirely unrelated... but still, he found no clues.
He couldn't help wondering whether he had become the burial offering of this so-called "World Lord." If this was Treasure Land, there ought to be a way out. No matter how difficult it was, it shouldn't be a dead end.
In all his years of adventuring, Chen Beixun had faced countless dangers. This predicament wasn't exactly life-threatening, but he had never encountered such an utterly unsolvable situation.
It was like the medieval "witch hunts," where people were simply condemned to die. Here was an example of a medieval "witch hunt":
How could you tell if someone was a witch? If they could stay underwater for an hour, they were a witch.
Could an ordinary person stay underwater for an hour? It was a complete dead end!
One might ask why he didn't study the secret technique. Perhaps it was the key to escaping. Chen Beixun had thought of that too, but unfortunately, the secret technique was password-protected—with three layers of passwords! On top of that, it had safeguards to prevent anyone from breaking in by force.
"Ugh!" An Changyan stood in the corner with her back against the stone wall, then slowly slid down. The situation had clearly pushed her to the brink.
"This is so frustrating!" An Changyan sat in the corner, twisting a lock of hair around her finger in vexation.
Chen Beixun glanced sideways at An Changyan. He suddenly found him a little adorably silly and couldn't help laughing.
An Changyan caught sight of it and snapped, "How can you still laugh at a time like this?!"
"Heh." Chen Beixun chuckled, then said, "Being alone in a room with a woman reminds me of a night when the rain was pouring."
An Changyan: "?"
Chen Beixun smiled faintly. His unsettled mind suddenly felt a little lighter.
They looked at each other. The atmosphere turned awkward.
Suddenly, Chen Beixun stood up with a smile and drawled, "What's wrong, Your Highness? You were clinging to me just a few days ago. Have you gotten tired of me already?"
An Changyan's pretty face flushed red. Stammering, she said, "I... I... I was just... scared, that's all. Don't get the wrong idea."
Seeing how stubbornly she tried to deny it, Chen Beixun grinned mischievously. "Want some?"
In an instant, a bolt of lightning streaked through An Changyan's mind.
It crashed like thunder.
"You... you..." An Changyan pointed at him with a mournful expression, as though he were some heinous criminal.
"Heh." Chen Beixun grinned at her, then shrugged. "You were the one who said it."
He had done something that would earn him her resentment, and it had nothing to do with finding an exit. Yet it gave him a peculiar sense of satisfaction, lifting his low spirits.
"Don't worry, Your Highness! I won't tell anyone about this." Chen Beixun spoke, then gave her a sinister smile.
An Changyan glared at his detestable grin, inwardly cursing, Damn bastard.
She regretted it now. She had lost both her money and her pride, and still hadn't managed to bring him under her control.
When Chen Beixun saw that she wasn't responding, he said helplessly, "Fine! Since Your Highness doesn't care at all, then I..." Before he could finish, An Changyan hurriedly cut him off.
"Fine, fine, I'll do whatever you say!" After speaking, An Changyan shut her eyes and bowed her head, mumbling something under her breath.
Chen Beixun sat down on the floor and murmured to himself, "You'll... do whatever I say?"
"Mm!" An Changyan shot to her feet like a spring-loaded knife, as if struck by lightning.
She flailed about, listing his crimes. She didn't care whether they were real or not; she threw them all at him in one breath. She looked utterly aggrieved.
"Enough, enough!" Chen Beixun waved a hand, sounding a little annoyed. "I'm telling you, Your Highness, there's something wrong with you."
"Get lost!" An Changyan snapped, then continued listing his crimes.
He had to admit she was gifted with words. He opened his mouth, then stopped himself from arguing with her. Turning his head aside, he sank into a long bout of thought.
Seeing Chen Beixun ignore her so completely, An Changyan grew angry, even though it wasn't the first time, and began cursing loudly.
The girl's temper was like a passing storm cloud: quick to arrive and quick to pass. Before long, it had cleared.
Chen Beixun raised his head and glanced at An Changyan, who had just calmed down. He came up with an amusing idea, thought it over for a few seconds, let out a breath, and stood.
An Changyan, leaning in the corner across from him, saw him get up and turned to face the wall.
"Still angry?" Chen Beixun said with a smile. He walked over and reached out to touch the hair at her temple, rubbing the loose strands between his fingers.
"I'm not usually like this," he said, speaking more to himself than to her. "I've lived this long and rarely been cheated... Uh... I remember getting swindled on a commercial planet until I was left with nothing. I was only at Planetary Level back then. I lost all my savings, and they even dumped me on a remote, scorching, uninhabited planet to fend for myself..."
An Changyan paused. She recalled the intelligence reports about Chen Beixun. That incident was indeed in them.
But the details were different. According to the reports, Chen Beixun was a con artist who had spent years swindling people and amassing a fortune. He was eventually caught, stripped of all his possessions, and exiled to an uninhabited planet.
"Was that a lie?" An Changyan clenched her fists. She couldn't help wondering whether there was any truth to it. She was somewhat eager to know, because his words sounded bewilderingly genuine.
Everything he said seemed at odds with the kind of person he was. It was like a clown who had always used bad acting to make people laugh suddenly creating a masterpiece one day.
An Changyan's eyes sharpened. It seemed she had caught him in a slip. She turned to look at him, eager to expose him.
But An Changyan met his gaze—and saw tears in his eyes.
"He... was crying?" An Changyan froze. She had never imagined that someone so cold and heartless could shed tears.
For a moment, the sharp-tongued, quick-witted princess was at a loss for words. She lowered her head to avoid his gaze. Her heart churned, and she could no longer stay calm.
"What has he been through?" An Changyan turned to face him and reached out to touch Chen Beixun's cheek.
Chen Beixun stopped speaking and leaned closer to her. The faint fragrance around An Changyan made him reluctant to pull away.
An Changyan's feelings for him were strange. At first, she had wanted him under her command, but she had failed. She should have given up then, yet she stubbornly refused. Now she had gradually begun acting strangely. Many things had led to this, such as the fact that Chen Beixun was the only person who dared to ignore her.
"Your Highness," Chen Beixun said softly.
"Hmm?" An Changyan looked up, clearly a little shy, but soon composed herself. Then she said, "When we're alone, you don't have to call me Your Highness. Um... call me whatever you like."
Chen Beixun nodded.
Suddenly, a violent tremor shook the space.
Boom! Boom!
The exit they had entered through opened, and at the same time, a long, narrow passage appeared opposite it—one they had never seen before.
"This!"
They both stood up at once and looked at each other, unable to believe their eyes. After searching for so long, the way out was suddenly right in front of them.
"Let's go!" An Changyan was thrilled. She looked to Chen Beixun, waiting for him to point out the right exit.
Chen Beixun fell silent. He could feel something in the unknown passage calling to him. His usual calm returned as he weighed the choice between leaving and exploring the unknown.
"What's wrong?" An Changyan tugged at him.
Chen Beixun frowned, making up his mind. He looked at An Changyan, handed her the small cube containing the secret technique, and spoke as though giving his last instructions. "Give this to the Lotte Family, all right?"
"Huh? Aren't you coming with me?" An Changyan asked, looking at him earnestly.
Chen Beixun said nothing. Instead, he released the twenty-one guards from his World Ring.
An Changyan understood at once: Chen Beixun was serious.
"Don't do this!" An Changyan grabbed his hand and said in a low voice.
Chen Beixun yanked his hand away, then called out to Moluo among the guards, "Moluo, I'm leaving An Changyan's safety in your hands! I've already sent you the coordinates for the exit."
Moluo: "Yes! But what about you, Your Highness?"
Chen Beixun frowned slightly. "Don't ask questions!"
"Why?" An Changyan felt shaken. She couldn't understand how Chen Beixun had suddenly changed like this.
Chen Beixun gave her a calm look, then shoved the captured E-grade weapon into her hands. Turning around, he rushed into the unknown passage.
An Changyan stared blankly at Chen Beixun's vanishing figure.
"Let's go, Your Highness," Moluo said. "His Highness has a Domain Lord-level plant life form!"
An Changyan said nothing. Suddenly, it seemed to her that everything she had done was no different from a worthless daydream.
"I hope you come back... If you do, come to my family." An Changyan headed toward the exit, glancing back at the passage from time to time.
Meanwhile, Chen Beixun raced through the crisscrossing passages, which were as tangled as a net.
"Almost there!" Chen Beixun's eyes flashed like lightning. Riding the Gold Cloud Shuttle, he shot forward at high speed like a streak of golden light.