After clearing a patch of brambles, a narrow path appeared before the five players. The walls on both sides suddenly closed, leaving behind a gap that was several meters wide. At the only intersection, there was a Tree of Ridicule standing there.
The trunk of the tree was very thick, and it was just large enough to seal the gap. There were small gaps on both sides of the trunk, barely big enough for an arm to reach through. The tree was shockingly tall as well. Its crown was like a sea anemone that clung to the wall. If the players tried to go around it, they would enter the range of the poisonous fog.
"Hmm … Looks like it will take quite some time to chop down this tree …" Imaginative Horse mumbled to himself as he looked at the tree.
"I say … if we fail to get this axe …" Atobe added, "will we be stuck here?"
"That might not be the case," Feng Bujue said. "There are at least two ways to pass this."
"Yes, we can force our way through from above and then neutralize the poison," Uncle Worthless said. He paused, and his eyes shifted slightly. "Or … we can use a certain angle and force to destroy the mountains on both sides to clear a path."
Feng Bujue added, "But both of these methods come with a certain risk, and we will have to pay a certain price."
"But now … I only need to do the hard work, right?" Atobe said in a helpless tone.
"Haha … Thank you for your hard work." Uncle Worthless consoled him with a smile.
"Sigh … It is my fault for being an admirer of Ideante," Atobe said as he carried the axe and moved forward.
But at that moment, something unexpected happened.
"Ugh …" A low groan was heard, followed by a strange scene. The bark of the Tree of Ridicule started to move, and the shape of a cross slowly poked out from the trunk. The players thought that it would be the 'giant face' of the Tree of Ridicule, but as the shape became clearer, they realized … it was the shape of a 'human'.
About twenty seconds later, the transformation of the giant tree stopped. A human-shaped bump appeared on its bark. The 'person' was like a living creature wrapped in the bark. Its body was still moving slightly.
"Humans …" The voice came from the head of the humanoid figure. "… You actually managed to come here …" At this point, his head turned slightly. Since this Tree Man only had a basic outline and no details, his expression and gaze were unclear. The players could only guess that … he was moving his gaze.
"You …" Tree Man turned to Atobe. "You want to use the thing in your hand to chop down this tree?"
"Er …" Atobe hesitated for a few seconds before replying cleverly, "It depends on the situation …"
"If you can let us pass …" Feng Bujue took a few steps forward and interrupted, "We can give up violence …"
"No, please …" The man in the tree interrupted. "Cut down this tree."
"Oh?" Something crossed Feng Bujue's mind. "You and this tree … are not one?"
"A long time ago, we were not," the man in the tree said. "But now … I just want to die."
"Hmm …" Feng Bujue scratched his chin and thought about it.
"Is that so …" Atobe turned back to say. "Since we already had this plan, how about … we fulfill his wish?"
"Wait a minute." Feng Bujue waved his hand and walked to Atobe. He lifted his head to look at the man in the tree. "Do you mind if I ask, how did you end up like this?"
"Is that important?" the man in the tree asked.
"I'm just curious." Feng Bujue appeared very relaxed, like the three-hour time limit did not exist at all. Without waiting for the man to reply, he added, "Is it the doing of a god? Or a psychopathic murderer? Or … a group of Sadducees? "
Hearing that, Imaginative Horse whispered to Hong Hu and Uncle Worthless beside him, "What is he talking about?"
Hong Hu replied, "He is purposely coming up with a few unreliable hypotheses to lure the man into revealing the truth."
"Er … I want to ask … what is this Sadducee that he's talking about?" Brother Ma asked.
"Huh?" Hong Hu was startled. "About that … I'm not too sure."
"The Sadducees are a sect of ancient Judaism," Uncle Worthless explained. "They deny the concept of the resurrection of the dead, the existence of souls, and the concept of 'afterlife' and 'angels'. Other than that, they were involved in the trial and execution of Jesus. "
"So, it's a joke …" Hong Hu wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and turned to Uncle Worthless. "By the way … Brother Worthless, you even know about this kind of religious joke?"
"Fufu …" Uncle Worthless blew out a puff of smoke. "When I was in university, to pick up girls … I once joined a club that specialized in studying ancient religions." He looked up at the sky and blew out a ring of smoke. "Haha … the funny thing is, the club was full of atheists. In our opinion, the Sadducees were the wisest group of people in the Old Testament. They were the opposite of the Pharisees. They were passionate about power, money, and fame. They were indifferent to religion … Fufu … "He took another puff." … Basically, they were the ancient atheists. "
At this point, Uncle Worthless stopped looking at the sky and turned to glance at Imaginative Horse and Hong Hu. He had thought that the two of them would look at him with an uncomprehending look of admiration. But the reality was … they were already standing a few meters away and had turned their attention to Feng Bujue.
"Hey! I'm not listening at all! "Uncle Worthless complained in his heart and threw the cigarette butt to the ground.
On the other side, Feng Bujue was still asking questions. "Hannibal? Charles Manson? John Sinclair? Chuck Norris? Jason? "
(The names listed above were respectively: a cannibal from a novel, an infamous hippy killer, a 'mental patient' who tried to assassinate Ronald Reagan, a real man, and a virtual humanoid monster.)
"Enough!" The normally calm Tree Man finally lost his patience. He roared to interrupt Brother Jue's rambling. "It was the Torturer … He was the one who turned me into this state …" The Tree Man's voice was shaking. "That is the answer. Are you satisfied now?"
"Ah … Actually, I was just asking." Feng Bujue shrugged.
"Who would believe you!" Atobe roared out of instinct.
"Fine …" Brother Jue ignored Atobe and continued to address the Tree Man. "Then … let's discuss the terms." He crossed his arms before his chest and put on an arrogant face. "What kind of reward are you going to give me for killing you?"
"Hey … What are you doing …" This time, Atobe did not dare say it out loud, but he thought to himself, There is no such deal in this world!
"Don't worry …" the Tree Man replied. "Chop along my waist, and when the tree is completely snapped, you'll get your 'reward' …"
Atobe was shocked. "There really is!"
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
