Chapter 1079: Chapter 48: Level 4 Trial
The fireplace emitted flickering light, with narrow shadows dancing.
"The ’Observer’ is really incredible; if only I had that Cursed Title."
In the late night, Naxi’s envious exclamation echoed in the dim, calm, yet cozy lounge.
"It only becomes powerful after releasing the Cursed Title’s power," Yege, who hadn’t slept yet, replied.
"A Cursed Title that hasn’t been released can be powerful too," Naxi said longingly: "Is this Cursed Title from the restricted area?"
"My Mysticology is only level 3, perhaps the captain knows?"
His voice faded away in the lounge without a response.
"He fell asleep, let’s sleep too." Yege’s bed made sounds of turning over.
"Good night, Yege."
"Ugh..."
The lounge returned to tranquility.
Far within the lounge, from a bed, a pair of deep black eyes like the nighttime quietly watched the fluorite lamp outside the curtain, resembling hazy moonlight.
Many people believe that being able to observe more details is a good thing, but Lu Li doesn’t think so.
Human evolution, or rather adaptation, leads the brain to discard useless and cumbersome information. For example, you don’t notice your nose unless you focus on it, like the details of your surrounding environment.
The cost of excessive, intricate information flooding the brain is consuming more energy and introducing more danger—in the Dark Era, no one knows if an accidental glimpse of a ruin’s structure harbors some curse, or if shadows at the corner of your vision lurk some monster.
The more you know, the quicker you die.
This phrase isn’t related to the "Observer" Cursed Title, but it quite matches to a considerable extent.
Cain’s mental state serves as evidence.
Even though he regained humanity due to Lu Li, he couldn’t revert back to a normal state.
If the Cursed Title of the restricted area is "Observer," Lu Li will steer clear of this Cursed Title.
Ceasing his thoughts, Lu Li fell into slumber.
...
In the morning, Lu Li slowly woke up.
His wrinkled shirt straightened again as he left the bed and stretched his arms, sweeping the curtains back straight.
Yege and Naxi were still asleep in their beds, while Kiluat sat in front of the roaring fireplace, browsing a book borrowed from the library.
"Good morning, Lu Li," she greeted, tilting her head.
"Morning."
Lu Li entered the washroom. He emerged shortly after; his handsome face turned pale from the wash, and droplets hung from his forelocked black hair.
Kiluat was watching him intently, feeling an indescribable attraction, until her side face was burned red from the fireplace’s heat, prompting her to look away.
From her peripheral vision, Lu Li went to the coat rack to take off a black trench coat and cloak.
"Are you heading out?" Kiluat asked.
"I’m undertaking the Mysticology level 4 trial."
"Have you prepared?"
"Almost."
"Would you like me to bring back breakfast for you?"
Kiluat carefully placed the precious tree leaf bookmark into the folds of the book before closing it.
"Thank you."
"We’re teammates, aren’t we?" Kiluat smiled gently, feminine-like, offering her blessing: "Wish you pass smoothly."
Leaving the lounge, Lu Li headed to the Mysticology office, applying to participate in the Mysticology level 4 trial.
Professor Grey kindly reached out to the Gatekeeper for Lu Li, but when they arrived, Professor Grey "changed his tune," shouting angrily in front of the Gatekeeper and passing students in the corridor: "Lu Li! Are you here to humiliate me? Get out... Get out of here! I don’t want to see you again!"
Lu Li didn’t need to participate in Professor Grey’s act, just silently following the Gatekeeper out.
"What are you looking at?"
After Lu Li left, Professor Grey trembled, holding the door frame to prevent himself from collapsing, and angrily snarled at the students.
The students exchanged glances, seeing ridicule and disdain in each other’s eyes, saying nothing as they left the hallways.
Clearly, the fact that Professor Grey’s legs went soft from being frightened by Lu Li wouldn’t take long before it’s spread across the entire middle level.
Task hall.
Students were puzzled by the arrival of Lu Li and the Gatekeeper. Some guessed that Lu Li was undergoing the level 4 trial. The Gatekeeper’s move to select a task from the "parchment wall" confirmed their speculations.
Soon, the Gatekeeper returned with Lu Li’s trial task.
[Midnight City - Outer City - Union Street]
[Cleman is tormented by bizarre whispers. Every late night, he hears alluring whispers echoing in his mind. Relying on faith, Cleman seeks help from nearby religious groups, yet even after the believers cleansed his house, Cleman still hears whispers close to his ears.]
[Task: Locate the source of the whisper]
[Advanced: Completely resolve this task]
[Hint: Cleman is key, ask him about places he’s visited or things he’s come in contact with]
[Basic reward: 1 academic credit; 1 team point]
Completing the task alone, Lu Li would pass the Mysticology level 4 trial.
Accompanied by the Gatekeeper, Lu Li donned his cloak and arrived once more at Union Street.
Union Street isn’t a street; it comprises several streets nearby, sufficiently broad.
After consuming a Guardian Potion, Lu Li stepped onto the porch and knocked on the relatively fine standalone house’s door.
Soon after, the task’s subject opened the door.
Cleman’s weary deep-set eyes and wild hair like grass indicated his mental state. He pleaded with Lu Li to help him solve the problem, regardless of the cost.
Lu Li first inquired about Cleman’s encounter with the bizarre, being neither tied to the imagined time nor location, as the whispers persisting nearly a week seemingly weren’t birthed from the house itself—he’s been living here for several years, but the whispers only appeared recently, reverberating even in other places.
"What do the whispers say?"
"I don’t understand... it’s not our language," Cleman said, recalling those whispers caused a headache.
Cleman then confessed he was a writer, and the night the whispers appeared he was working hard on his manuscript. He hadn’t left his house for several days nor had interactions—except for the housekeeper who cooked once a day.
Lu Li requested Cleman to call over the housekeeper, then consumed a Revealing Potion, inspecting every corner of the house.
The focus was Cleman’s manuscript—Lu Li had read about bizarre entities urging writers, but this time it wasn’t, the manuscript showed no signs of the bizarre.
"Mr. Cleman?"
A strange call from the housekeeper came from downstairs.
"She’s here, come quickly and see!"
Cleman hurriedly turned downstairs. As he turned his back to Lu Li, a gray mist seeped from behind Cleman’s head.
...
Holy Light Squad lounge.
In the sofa next to the fireplace, Kiluat looked up at the opening door, seeing Lu Li return.
She thought Lu Li would be gone until at least noon, lazily not having gone to the restaurant yet for breakfast. Even Naxi hadn’t woken up.
"Passed?"
"Mm."
"So quickly!?" Yege’s head, dripping with water, appeared from the washroom door.
"What happened?" Kiluat also asked.
Lu Li succinctly explained the strange story: the bizarre entity was drawn to Cleman’s novel, hiding behind urging daily updates, but Cleman, frightened due to his inability to understand the bizarre language.
"The academy might not have expected this..."
Kiluat was speechless, not just because of the characters involved, but also due to the Revealing Potion easily finding the bizarre.
The academy obviously didn’t expect there would be students using expensive Sequence Potions to pass the level 4 trial.
"I’ll think about what the level 5 trial is... maybe I can complete it along the way?" Kiluat mused, stroking her chin.