harleyscars Chapter 83 Forest
Chapter 83 Forest
Lin Yu navigated quickly through the maze of bookshelves, relying on his keen sense of perception and direction to gradually approach the central area of the library.
During this time, he was attacked by the "Hungry Book" several times, but he skillfully escaped each time.
Lin Yu also discovered some traps: some books that shimmered with silver light, but when approached, the silver light would turn into a strange purple or green, clearly a disguise.
Once you pick it up, you may be dragged into a dangerous illusion within the book.
Lin Yu avoided these traps thanks to his caution and intuition.
About half an hour later, he found the second book of truth—"Is the Deep River Like a Pearl?".
Ten minutes later, in a secluded corner near the central area, Lin Yu found the third book—"Deep River, How Will You Repay What You Owe Me?!"
With the three books in hand, Lin Yu immediately headed towards the altar he sensed.
Soon, he passed through the last bookshelf area and came to a spacious circular space.
In the center of the space was a stone altar with three grooves, which clearly corresponded to three books.
There were already seven or eight trial participants around the altar.
They seemed to have just found the book, or were waiting, maintaining a wary distance from each other.
Lin Yu also saw a familiar figure, it was Red Falcon.
She arrived in a hurry, faster than Lin Yu had expected.
There were several other trial participants who appeared to be quite capable, including a young woman dressed in a magnificent mage's robe and wielding a crystal staff.
A tall man covered in bone armor, exuding a chilling aura, and a short dwarf squatting by the altar, idly carving something with a dagger.
Lin Yu's appearance caught their attention.
"Another one's here." The dwarf raised his head, revealing a mouthful of sharp teeth, and chuckled, "Not bad at all."
The man in bone armor glanced coldly at Lin Yu without saying a word.
The woman in the mage robe nodded slightly to Lin Yu as a greeting.
Red Falcon walked to Lin Yu's side and whispered, "Everyone seems to be waiting. There's something strange about the altar. What might the first person to place the book trigger?"
Lin Yu observes the altar.
The altar has three grooves, each engraved with a different symbol, and the book needs to be placed into the corresponding groove.
But what about the order of priority?
Lin Yu sorted the books, then said to Red Falcon, "I'll try."
Lin Yu then placed "Is the Deep River Like a Pearl?" into the slot.
All eyes were on his hands.
The spine and groove fit perfectly, one second, two seconds...
Nothing happened.
"Is the Deep River Like a Pearl?" is correct!
Lin Yu then placed the second book into the slot.
Nothing happened.
However, the moment the third book was placed into the altar, the altar trembled violently!
All three grooves lit up with a dazzling golden light at the same time!
The three books opened automatically, their pages dancing wildly without any wind.
Countless golden characters flew out of the book, intertwining and swirling in the air, eventually converging into a giant pillar of light that shot into the sky.
Within the pillar of light, a portal inscribed with countless runes of knowledge slowly emerged.
It worked!
But just as the portal stabilized and everyone was preparing to enter, a sudden change occurred!
The dwarf who was squatting by the altar suddenly let out a strange laugh, and his figure darted out like a ghost. His target was not the portal, but the mage-robed woman who was closest to him.
The dagger in his hand glowed with a ghostly green poisonous light as it pierced straight into the woman's back!
The woman in the mage robe reacted extremely quickly, her staff paused, and a crystal shield instantly formed behind her.
"clang!"
The dagger struck the shield, sparks flying.
But the dwarf's real goal doesn't seem to be killing.
After missing his first attack, he used the momentum to flip over and lunged directly at the light portal, trying to be the first to enter the next door!
The bone-armored man snorted coldly, his figure moving like lightning, striking first despite being behind, and punching the dwarf in the back!
The dwarf had to turn around to block, and was knocked back several steps.
In that brief moment of delay, Lin Yu and Red Falcon had already moved simultaneously.
Lin Yu's target was the dwarf; such a sneaky attacker was a potential threat if left unchecked.
The kestrels swooped toward the light gate in perfect unison, giving them priority passage.
Immediately afterwards, Lin Yu pulled out a revolver and aimed it at the dwarf's forehead.
Bang! A gunshot rang out, and the dwarf was instantly killed.
The man in bone armor and the woman in mage robes both sharpened their eyes, their gazes towards Lin Yu filled with apprehension.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Red Falcon grabbed Lin Yu's hand and rushed into the portal.
After the two disappeared, the man in bone armor and the woman in mage robes exchanged a glance and then entered one after the other.
Then came the other trial participants.
As for the dwarf, nobody gave him a second glance.
In the trials of the abyss, mercy is a luxury, while foolish greed and sneak attacks often mean an early exit.
As they passed through the portal, before Lin Yu and Red Falcon could even assess their surroundings, a stream of information flooded their minds:
[Given that the trial participants Lin Yu and Red Falcon were the first to solve the puzzle at the third door, "Forbidden Library," and advance to the next level, they performed exceptionally well.]
Special Bonus: In subsequent levels, you may choose one opportunity to team up with someone and be exempt from the team penalty, but this applies only to one door.
Please choose the timing of use carefully.
Lin Yu and Red Falcon exchanged a glance.
This was an unexpected delight.
"Shall we use it now?" the falcon asked.
"No rush." Lin Yu shook his head. "Let's save it for a more troublesome level, if there's an opportunity."
The falcon nodded in agreement: "Then let's part ways here." The falcon pursed its lips.
"You must live!"
Lin Yu smiled slightly: "What, you're reluctant to part with me?"
The hawk didn't answer, but instead gave Lin Yu a charmingly disdainful look.
...
In the next few doors, Lin Yu relied on his strength, wisdom, and careful use of his rewind ability to advance unstoppably.
He easily passed through the fifth door, "Poisonous Mist Swamp," by using a time-lapse to learn the safe route and the location of the antidote herb.
In the sixth door, "Puppet Theater," he saw through the puppeteer's disguise, killed the puppeteer directly, and broke the control rules.
The seventh door, "Infinite Corridor," allowed Lin Yu to discover the pattern of spatial folding after rewinding time and find the shortest path out of the maze.
In the eighth door, "Nightmare Gallery," Lin Yu relied on his strong willpower to resist the mental erosion within the painting and found the gallery's eye, which he then destroyed to clear the level.
The Ninth Door...
The tenth door...
Lin Yu's speed in clearing levels increased, and the rewards he received also increased.
During a reward selection, Gambler Revolver fused with a "Symptom of Guaranteed Hit," which implicitly boosted his hit rate.
Lin Yu's name began to circulate among some of the trial participants.
"That guy with the black and red flames... he's ruthless. I almost died inside the seventh gate, and he came out in about half an hour?"
"Lone Wolf, don't mess with him. 'Blood Axe' Buck from the Tenth Gate tried to steal his stuff, and he was burned to ashes."
"I heard he has some kind of relationship with that chestnut-haired woman who carries a dagger? But they don't seem to be together all the time?"
"Who knows? Anyway, it's always better to stay away."
When Lin Yu stepped into the fifteenth door, fourteen of the marks on the back of his hand had already lit up.
The fifteenth door, codenamed "Mind Forest".