Light Fortress-Chapter 48 - 46 Ghost Cage
48: Chapter 46 Ghost Cage
48 -46 Ghost Cage
The time within the “Time Sand” dream is only ten minutes.
After ten minutes, the world resets.
This also explains why Gu Shen, no matter which direction he started from, always ended up back at the same place…
Even if he was engulfed by quicksand, as long as the time reset was triggered, he would return to the starting point.
If one were to enter this dream alone, they might mistakenly believe they had arrived at an endless desert.
In fact, no matter how far one walked, they would be pulled back to the starting point by the “time reset.”
“The reset time of Time Sand is ten minutes…
Is it because the hourglass in reality is made to measure ten minutes?” Gu Shen thought of Chu Ling’s first words.
If one gave it their all, the Time Sand dream could be solved in ten minutes.
“So that’s it…
The key to breaking Time Sand isn’t in space…
but in time.”
“Then, where is the exit of Time Sand?”
Gu Shen crouched down again.
He twirled the sand, gazing deeply into the pit beneath his feet.
“600…
599…”
Gu Shen began to count down silently once more.
…
…
“Time Sand and Green Dice are two completely different types of Sealing Objects.”
Redwood Judge Wu Mengbai asked with concern, “Without finding the ‘pattern,’ one could wander in Time Sand for ten thousand years and never escape.
It’s been almost an hour now…
Lin Beizhu, how many times has the Time Sand dream inverted?”
This man named “Lin Beizhu,” a member of the audit team in charge of the Time Sand Sealing Objects, was an elderly man with a childlike face and a look of vibrant spirit.
He stared at the hourglass in Gu Shen’s hand, his eyes sparkling with keenness, as though he could see through the Sealing Object and gaze directly into the dream.
“Old Wu, ever since Gu Shen broke ‘Green Dice,’ you’ve seemed particularly concerned about him,” Lin Beizhu said with a smile.
“The time flow rate in Time Sand is proportional to that in reality at one to one.
This young fellow indeed has a remarkable talent and quickly discovered the ‘reset’ feature.
He’s currently attempting to solve the dream…
He should be able to finish soon.
Judging by his progress, he’s about an hour ahead of the fastest record.”
Wu Mengbai breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this reply.
He was indeed very interested in Gu Shen.
The fastest record for Green Dice was three hours and one minute.
The record for Time Sand was two hours and eighteen minutes.
It wasn’t that these two Nightmare Sealing Items differed significantly in difficulty…
The properties of Time Sand were more gentle compared to Green Dice, seeming more like a slow “torture.” The faster one deciphered the pattern, the easier it was to unlock Time Sand.
Green Dice, on the other hand, was different.
Even with the knowledge of the right trajectory, one needed to muster all their spirit to complete each necessary twist!
“This performance is quite impressive…
Another new record…”
Wu Mengbai turned to the Grand Judge and said solemnly, “I believe it’s the Dream Interpretation of Green Dice that has exhausted a great deal of Gu Shen’s spiritual power, otherwise this record could have been even faster.
Given his outstanding performance, I think the audit should be suspended after ‘Time Sand’ has been unlocked.
If you’re concerned about the negative impact of that whistleblower report, we could wait for Han Dang’s investigation results before giving the final audit assessment.”
…
Tang Qingquan, faced with the Redwood Judge’s suggestion, showed no sign of conceding, “I understand your proposal, but…
I do not agree.
I maintain my original view that Gu Shen should complete the Dream Interpretation of all three Sealing Objects.
If he cannot pass the test of ‘Ghost Cage,’ I will not give him an ‘S rank’ rating.”
Wu Mengbai’s face turned ugly.
“The properties of Ghost Cage are too intense…”
Lin Beizhu, the owner of Time Sand, started to mediate, stating earnestly, “Having unlocked two Nightmare Sealing Items in a row, Gu Shen’s spirit must be quite exhausted.
Touching the Ghost Cage next might cause him significant distress, perhaps even harm.”
“Whether it’s Green Dice or Time Sand, both are Dream Sealing Objects that lean towards ‘discerning patterns,'” the Grand Judge said seriously.
“Since Gu Shen has already shown an unrivaled Spiritual Potential, our assessment should be more comprehensive…”
The Redwood Judge still wanted to say something.
At that moment, Gu Shen woke up from the “Time Sand” dream.
The voices of all the arguments from the auditing team also disappeared at this point…
“One hour and three minutes.”
Lin Beizhu smiled and said, “Congratulations.
Your Dream Interpretation score is very good.
How did you find the last ‘exit’?”
The youth returned the hourglass to the elder with both hands, and nodded politely with a smile, yet his complexion visibly lacked some color…
Even with Chu Ling’s assistance, interpreting the Time Sand dream still consumed a considerable amount of spiritual power.
“I was rather lucky.”
Gu Shen humbly smiled and said, “I accidentally fell into quicksand…
I thought I was done for, but it triggered a ‘time reset’.
Otherwise, it would have taken me a bit longer.
As for the last ‘exit’…
I figured since this world wasn’t as big as I imagined, direction didn’t matter anymore.
So, I started looking for clues from the Dream Sealing Object itself.
I hypothesized that the time reset’s feature corresponded to the narrow point at which the hourglass resets its sands.
Thus, I lingered at the last second of the time reset and dived into the deepest part of the sand, and sure enough, that’s where the final exit for the Dream Interpretation was.” ƒreewebɳovel.com
“Indeed, that’s some good luck, to find the pattern through ‘drowning in sand’.” The old man nodded in approval.
“If you were a little bit luckier, you might have completed the Dream Interpretation with your first ‘drowning’, which isn’t impossible.”
The key to completing this Dream Sealing Object was to reach the deepest part of the Time Sand at the moment of the time reset.
The hourglass was flipped.
The deepest end became the initial exit.
Gu Shen scratched his head, “Luck, it’s all luck, just fluke.”
Compared to the Green Dice, interpreting the Time Sand did indeed involve an element of luck, and without Chu Ling’s help to alleviate the pressure of being engulfed by the sand, he wouldn’t dare attempt such a life-threatening act.
Normally, Dream Interpretation would take a bit longer.
But it should still be faster than the previous record.
Having completed two Dream Interpretations in a row, Gu Shen felt a fluttering sensation in his chest, an emotion beyond his control, a reminder from his body that it was time to rest, to stop going on.
His spiritual power was still weak.
Touching too many of these Nightmare Sealing Items at once wasn’t a good thing.
As for that third Sealing Object, which also seemed to be the most dangerous, Gu Shen knew that relying solely on his own strength, it might be very difficult to complete the Dream Interpretation like before.
“Gu Shen.”
The Redwood Judge spoke up.
When Gu Shen had chosen to touch the Time Sand, he already faced moral accusations.
Now, he chose to stand out.
Wu Mengbai said gravely, “Listen to me, let’s stop the audit here.
There’s no need for you to continue, I’ll fight for an ‘S grade’ rating for you.”
Gu Shen was somewhat surprised as he saw the looks in the eyes of the rest of the auditing team’s heavyweights, most of which were encouraging, appreciative.
Only one person’s gaze was the exception.
“No…
the audit isn’t over yet.”
Grand Judge Tang Qingquan stared at the boy, calmly saying, “Gu Shen, as the chief examiner of this audit examination, the final grading will be guided by my opinion.”
“You now have two choices—”
“First, choose to touch the third Sealing Object, complete the Dream Interpretation, end the audit!”
“Second, choose to give up, end the audit, and do not pass!”
Tang Qingquan’s face held neither joy nor sorrow; he seemed to be speaking of something utterly unrelated to himself, “You have one minute to rest, to think it over.”
“I don’t need to think it over.”
Gu Shen’s reply came quickly, without even a second’s hesitation.
He bowed deeply to those examiners showing goodwill, then straightened his back, and looked expressionlessly at the Grand Judge, saying, “I choose to continue.”
