Chapter 145 – Guardian No. ①

Volume 3: Rising Winds and Clouds

"Ding! Welcome to the large-scale Treasure Land-the Demon-Suppressing Tower!"

"For detailed information about this Treasure Land, please consult the Stone Platform beside the Demon-Suppressing Tower."

Two short announcements laid out their predicament.

Wen Yu looked around. He immediately spotted a tower so tall he couldn't see its top-and Kuangliu beside him.

Their eyes met. The helplessness in their gazes all but struck sparks in the air.

After a moment, both spoke at once.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me!"

…

With a thought, Wen Yu opened the Third Soul Realm. Sensing Xing, he relaxed at once.

Xing was not only his strongest combat asset, but also an indispensable part of Dark World. If the Treasure Land's rules separated them, Wen Yu's fighting strength would fall to a pitiful level-possibly below even Kuangliu's.

He opened the Third Soul Realm and "pulled" Xing back from outside. Instead of going to read the Stone Platform, he and Kuangliu called out.

"Guardian! Where's the Guardian?"

"I'm here, my lord."

Golden light flashed in midair. A young man stepped out, dressed in golden armor, with golden hair and even golden eyes. He bowed respectfully to them both.

Wen Yu studied the Treasure Land Guardian in silence. After frowning in thought for a long moment, he spoke.

"What exactly is going on?"

The Guardian straightened, a smile touching the corners of his eyes.

"Are you asking about this Treasure Land, my lord?"

Wen Yu shook his head wearily. He already had a good idea what had happened.

"Why are we here…?"

His voice lacked energy. He already knew the answer.

If Lin Haifeng could buy Kaldor off with food and drink, who knew what Peng Jun had used to buy off this Guardian?

Sure enough, the reply came exactly as expected.

"You entered through a Treasure Land entrance, of course, my lords."

The certainty in his tone made one thing clear: he had nothing to fear.

Wen Yu waved a hand. He had no desire to keep talking.

Kuangliu, on the other hand, was growing anxious.

From Peng Jun's manner earlier, all of this had plainly been planned. No one could say what losing the Military's strongest fighters would mean for the battle between Modu Settlement and Yanjing Settlement.

"I invoke my authority as Sequence 3 to request Teleportation out of this Treasure Land. Carry it out immediately!"

The Guardian shook his head slightly at the urgency beneath Kuangliu's stern voice.

"I'm sorry, my lord. This Treasure Land does not offer that privilege to Sequence holders. To leave, you must read the rules on the Stone Platform over there carefully."

"Then what privileges do Sequence holders get here?"

"This Treasure Land is intended for challenges. Furthermore, it is at full capacity, and all its occupants are Sequence holders. No special privileges will therefore be available."

"Full capacity?"

Wen Yu took a careful look around. His tone said, You've got to be fucking kidding me.

The Treasure Land Guardian nodded firmly.

"This Treasure Land's maximum capacity is two."

…

A large-scale Treasure Land. Maximum occupancy: two.

Apparently, there was nothing wrong with that…

Wen Yu couldn't even muster a sarcastic comment. He went straight for his trump card.

"We should both be under the Ruler's close observation by now. If Sequence 2 and Sequence 3 die here-together-won't the Ruler take a very 'careful' look at your little tricks?"

He was afraid the Guardian would produce another revolting rule like the one in the Battlefield Between Two Worlds.

The Guardian gave the threat some "serious" thought before answering with certainty.

"This Treasure Land poses little danger to you, so the situation you fear will not arise. Of course, if you insist on getting yourselves killed, there will be danger. You're welcome to try. But then you would deserve to die. The Ruler has no interest in the dead, or in those who deserve death."

"And there's something else I should say…"

He sent a mental message to both of them.

"Everything I've done complies fully with the Ruler's Guardian Regulation for Treasure Land Guardians. In other words, everything is perfectly lawful-at least on the surface. So if you wish to leave, please follow the rules properly!"

He remained faintly smiling and respectful. His meaning, however, could not have been clearer.

Yes, I did this. Yes, I played a few tricks. But there's nothing fundamentally wrong with any of it, so behave yourselves and finish the Treasure Land's Trial.

Wen Yu and Kuangliu stood without speaking for a long time.

"If you have no further questions, Guardian No. 1 is at your service. And if there's nothing else, I wish you both success in your Trial."

His golden figure vanished, leaving Wen Yu and Kuangliu staring at each other in silence.

…

"A perfect trap…"

Kuangliu gave Wen Yu a helpless shake of the head, a bitter smile on his face.

From Lin Haifeng's perspective, using the two of them for a decapitation strike had been absolutely the right choice.

But Peng Jun, that old fox, had accounted for everything. Kuangliu suspected that even if they hadn't come to Modu Settlement, Peng Jun would still have found a way to "deliver" them into a Treasure Land.

After all, a Super Treasure Land could open dozens or even hundreds of entrances around the globe. A large-scale Treasure Land probably couldn't go that far, but it should still be able to open quite a few-and likely across an enormous area.

Wen Yu said nothing more. He turned toward the Stone Platform.

The Guardian's words had allowed them to piece everything together. Peng Jun and Guardian No. 1 were in cahoots. When the two of them came to cut off the enemy leadership, they had sprung this trap that wasn't quite a trap.

Its purpose was confinement more than killing.

What remained unknown was what other cards Peng Jun held that made him confident of defeating the Military's Class Holder legions once Wen Yu and Kuangliu were gone.

But that wasn't their immediate concern.

"If I'm right, we're going to be here for a while."

Kuangliu nodded helplessly.