Seeing the cave entrance hidden behind an openwork rock, Chen Mo turned to the obedient nun by his side and asked, "Do you have anything for illumination?"
"Yes, Brave One. Take this Luminous Stone. It will illuminate a fifty-meter radius in the dark without being glaring. It's perfect for use in darkness."
The nun handed over an unremarkable, semi-transparent white crystal.
"Then I shall go down."
Taking the Luminous Stone, Chen Mo tentatively stepped into the cavern.
As expected, when he brought the Luminous Stone into the darkness, it emitted a very soft light, yet bright enough to illuminate the surroundings.
It was as if a bright moon had been instantly installed in the cavern.
Chen Mo could clearly see the steps beneath his feet and the cavern's interior.
The cavern connected to a staircase sculpted from quartz. Descending, he couldn't see its end.
Chen Mo quickened his pace, keeping an eye on the dungeon timer displayed on the semi-transparent floating window.
Just reaching the shrine had already taken more than half an hour.
How could he possibly finish if this staircase took another half hour?
Luckily, reality wasn't so harsh.
Chen Mo reached the bottom in just five minutes.
After descending the stairs, only walls and a huge stone door were visible.
Chen Mo reached out to touch the stone door. Before he could even push, it rumbled and slid open automatically.
An automatic door?
Just as Chen Mo had thought, the two stone doors retracted into the walls on either side, like automatic doors.
Seeing this, Chen Mo stepped through the doorway.
Behind the stone door lay a spacious stone chamber.
The stone chamber was bare, save for six stone doors embedded in the walls.
Upon closer inspection, these six stone doors each bore distinct symbols.
Chen Mo examined each one carefully.
So these six stone doors correspond to six God Altar Spaces. According to the information on the doors, each one leads to a space associated with a different BOSS's divinity.
Chen Mo immediately started looking for the God Altar Spaces corresponding to Deified Body and Thorny Body Guard.
After checking just one door, Chen Mo found the altar stone door corresponding to Deified Body.
I wonder what kind of trials are in store? I hope they don't waste more of my time.
Muttering to himself, Chen Mo reached out to the stone door.
When his palm touched this stone door, it didn't retract to the sides. Instead, it pushed inward with surprising ease, as if he were pushing through cotton, completely belying any sense of the stone door's weight.
As the door swung open, Chen Mo saw another stone chamber behind it, though this one was much smaller.
Inside, there was only an altar and a figure in a black cloak sitting cross-legged before it, their face completely hidden.
Is this "The Forbidden One"?
Chen Mo cautiously took a few steps closer.
"'This is a forbidden place. Outsiders, halt! Who goes there?' the cloaked figure suddenly asked, raising his head.
Only then did Chen Mo get a clear look at what was under the cloak, and it surprised him somewhat. The face beneath the hood was a swirling black mist, its true features indiscernible.
"'The Shrine of Hope has been desecrated by Evil Followers. These Evil Followers have stolen Divine Power and are using it to harm the innocent. I am a warrior, summoned by the God of Hope to resolve this matter,' Chen Mo explained, relaying the identity the nun had provided.
"'I see. However, we made an agreement with the God of Hope long ago: only those possessing great wisdom or great courage may touch the altar. I know nothing of the conditions in the outside world. But if you were truly sent by the God of Hope, you must possess at least one of these qualities. If you can solve the riddle I pose using your wisdom, then I will acknowledge that wisdom and permit you to activate the altar behind me.'
A brain teaser? Are you kidding me?
Chen Mo was speechless. Although he considered his intelligence to be average, he wasn't very confident when it came to puzzles designed to test it.
But since he was already here, he had to try.
"Fine, pose your riddle," Chen Mo said, forcing himself to remain calm.
"'Don't be too nervous. If you cannot answer, I also have a test of courage. You need only pass one of the two, and I will allow you to activate the altar.'
I see. That's a relief.
Hearing there was an alternative, Chen Mo relaxed considerably. He would try the test of wits first; if his brain failed him, he could always resort to brawn.
As Chen Mo agreed to begin the test, "The Forbidden One" somehow materialized a piece of paper and an ink pen from thin air.
"'Please place two dots on this paper, at least one centimeter apart, in such a way that I cannot connect them with a straight line.'
"The Forbidden One" spread the white paper on the ground and handed the ink pen to Chen Mo.
Huh? Are you sure this is your riddle?
Upon hearing the problem, Chen Mo was clearly stunned.
"'Perhaps you find this riddle too difficult, Brave One? Indeed, as the God of Hope once said, ninety-nine percent of warriors cannot solve it. I can change to the test of courage for you.'
Seeing Chen Mo's stunned expression before he even took the pen, "The Forbidden One" mistook it as him finding the riddle too difficult.
Indeed, a glance at the white paper on the ground suggested that no matter where two dots were placed, they could always be connected by a straight line. It seemed like an utterly impossible riddle.
Hearing "The Forbidden One" offer to change the riddle, Chen Mo quickly took the ink pen and said, "No, no, this riddle is fine. I just want to confirm: if I solve this, I pass the trial completely, right? There are no further tests after this?"
"'Yes. This riddle is exceedingly difficult. I myself pondered it for a hundred years before stumbling upon the answer by chance. Anyone who can solve it truly possesses great wisdom,' "The Forbidden One" said, looking at Chen Mo with anticipation.
Looking at the blank paper, Chen Mo almost laughed. This riddle posed no difficulty for him whatsoever; in fact, it was a freebie because he already knew the answer.
But on second thought, he suddenly understood.
I almost forgot, this world is different from my original one. Here, martial prowess is valued far above literary pursuits. Young people spend most of their school time on physical training, with very little time dedicated to cultural subjects. And of those cultural subjects, seventy to eighty percent focus on information related to professionals. So, riddles like this, which required a bit of lateral thinking in my past life, have become genuinely difficult problems here!
Thinking back carefully, Chen Mo recalled that when his teacher had first posed this riddle in class, none of his classmates had been able to answer it either.
Only after the teacher revealed the solution did everyone have an epiphany: the riddle was actually that simple!
The entire difficulty stemmed from rigid thinking!
This demonstrated the inherent difficulty of the riddle. However, for someone who already knew the answer, it was a giveaway. And Chen Mo was precisely such a person!
Under "The Forbidden One's" expectant gaze, he picked up the ink pen and placed a dot on the white paper.