One after another, more people abandoned their resistance and agreed to try Qin Yi’s proposal.

  Yet in the end, three individuals remained silent.

  One was Mei Ji, who from beginning to end had harbored an inexplicable hostility toward Qin Yi.

  Another was Su Xiaoxiao, the Xuanmen female cultivator who had kept to the corner, barely noticeable.

  The last was You Ying, the shadow-dweller from Luoshan City.

  Without statements from these three, Qin Yi gave no reaction.

  He sat like an old monk in meditation, motionless, indifferent to the passage of time.

  Finally, someone lost patience.

  Shi Meng strode up to Mei Ji, his broad frame casting a heavy shadow over her.

  “Hey. Everyone’s waiting on you. Yes or no? Say something.”

  Under direct questioning, Mei Ji finally lifted her head. Her charming face was filled with cold mockery.

  “I disagree,” she said flatly, leaving no room for compromise. “Qin Yi’s explanation doesn’t convince me at all. Who knows whether he truly calculated anything? What if he isn’t a genius, but a complete lunatic?”

  She sneered and swept her gaze across the crowd.

  “Perhaps he never intended to live anyway. Perhaps entering this place was convenient, letting him drag us all to our deaths. In any case, I will never believe him.”

  Shi Meng frowned deeply.

  He turned to the other two.

  “And you?”

  Su Xiaoxiao shrank back instinctively. She said nothing, but nodded quietly.

  You Ying, still half-hidden in shadow, expressed agreement through silence.

  Even now, they did not trust Qin Yi.

  Shi Meng clicked his tongue in irritation.

  “Then what do you propose? Should the rest of us wait here because of the three of you?”

  He crossed his arms, his tone openly threatening.

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  “Let’s be honest. Even if you disagree, what difference does it make? You’re the minority now. The majority wants to try. We’re not going to stand still because of three people.”

  “I can’t stop you,” Mei Ji replied coolly. “But you can’t make me agree either.”

  As tension mounted, Qin Yi finally stood.

  He stepped forward, lightly clapping his hands to draw attention.

  “Very well,” he said calmly. “Since none of us trusts one another, let’s make it a wager.”

  He smiled faintly, eyes sweeping over the three dissenters.

  “I will destroy one orb. If nothing happens and no clue appears, I will admit my mistake and take my own life here to atone.”

  “But if, as I said, a new clue appears…”

  “Then those who agreed may continue to follow me, and I will lead them through the remaining trials.”

  “As for you three, I will no longer permit you to follow. Once we leave this room, we go our separate ways.”

  At these words, hesitation flickered across You Ying and Su Xiaoxiao’s faces.

  “Fine!” Mei Ji spoke first. “If you’re wrong, your death has nothing to do with us. If you’re right, I still benefit by escaping. This wager costs me nothing. Why wouldn’t I accept?”

  Su Xiaoxiao quickly followed, timidly. “I… I’ll follow Mei Ji.”

  You Ying gave a cold laugh. “Let’s see if we even survive first.”

  “I’ll take that as agreement,” Qin Yi said lightly.

  He turned and strode to the massive stone door without hesitation.

  His right hand shot out and seized the yellow earth-element orb.

  Under everyone’s breathless gaze, he clenched.

  Crack.

  A crisp metallic chime echoed through the silent chamber.

  The enormous bronze lock snapped open and fell heavily to the ground.

  The stone doors slowly parted.

  “It opened! It really opened!”

  “We’re saved!”

  After a brief stunned silence, thunderous cheers erupted.

  Relief flooded their faces. Some were so overwhelmed they nearly wept.

  “Xiuxiu, you’re incredible!” a disciple from the Xia Ke Gang exclaimed to Huang Xiuxiu. “No wonder Senior Sister chose you as her trump card. With you here, we’ll surely succeed!”

  “Yes!” another from Five Grains Mountain agreed. “Junior Brother Wen Shan is remarkable as well. Not only did you see through the puzzle instantly, you explained it so clearly even we could understand.”

  “I’d say Junior Brother Wen Shan is also well-suited to the Hai Calculation path. Perhaps he’s a genius like Junior Sister Xiuxiu!”

  Wen Shan merely smiled and deflected the praise.

  “Senior Sister, let’s go take a look outside. This chamber gives me an uneasy feeling.”

  She nodded without hesitation and stepped through the doorway first.

  Wen Shan followed after a brief pause.

  The rest eagerly filed out behind them.

  But after only a few steps, they all stopped.

  Shock froze on every face.

  Beyond the chamber was not an open world.

  They stood upon a solitary island.

  Surrounding it was an endless black sea. The water was dark as ink, surging with a sinister aura that tightened around them from every direction.

  “What… what is this place?”

  “A sea? There’s nowhere to go!”

  “Damn it! Did we escape one trap only to fall into another?”

  Despair rose again, spreading like the black waves themselves.

  “Quiet.”

  Senior Sister’s calm voice rang out.

  It carried a strange steadiness that pulled them back from panic.

  “Come here. Look at this.”

  Following her direction, they noticed a weathered stone stele standing near the island’s edge.

  Ancient script glowed faintly across its surface.

  It read:

  The Sea of Suffering has no shore. Touch it, and you shall perish.

  Touch the stele, and a hundred boats shall arrive, each divided into superior and inferior.

  They will approach your side, docking by your will.

  Yet hesitation invites loss, and the boats vanish without trace.

  Choose your vessel, and cross this sea.

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