A day has passed!
It's peaceful. Everyone is frantically absorbing the energy of the Five Elements Lotus. No one wants to waste such a rare opportunity.
Danger accompanies opportunity, and opportunity also carries danger, just as there's no such thing as a free lunch. However, most people still can't control themselves when faced with temptation.
It's ingrained, an instinct. Many say they can control themselves, but that's only because the price of the temptation isn't high enough. Given enough temptation, no one can resist.
Humans have seven emotions and six desires, so they can't absolutely refuse temptation. They can refuse because the temptation isn't right for them.
Qin Chuan has been paying attention to the gate, which is already one-third closed. Based on this, it should take three days.
However, the closing speed is increasing, so the previously sensed three days might be inaccurate.
The probability of inaccuracy is high.
Moreover, absorbing the energy of the Five Elements Lotus requires about three days to achieve perfection—three days for faster absorption, or close to three days
for slower absorption, and a little more than three days for slower absorption. But now it seems the gate will close in less than three days.
This means that for those who absorb quickly, the time will probably be exactly the same as the closing time, or even slightly slower, so that they've finished absorbing the energy just as the gate closes.
This was the most treacherous trap Qin Chuan had ever seen, mainly because it was so well hidden and infused with human greed.
Qin Chuan didn't know how many people here had seen the danger, but no one had left yet, only Elder Duan had led his men away.
However, Elder Duan probably didn't know how worthwhile his escape was; at least he had survived.
The second day was slowly passing, and Qin Chuan was completely focused, because he had discovered he had absorbed a crucial element.
Qin Chuan's absorption speed was fast; at the current rate, he could complete the absorption in a little over two days.
This was a good thing, a pleasant surprise, but Qin Chuan didn't feel less pressure, because the danger was greater at this stage. Although the trap targeted everyone, he still felt very uneasy.
The second day had passed, and the gate was three-quarters closed. The gate was sealing very quickly; at the current rate, it wouldn't even take two and a half days.
Qin Chuan wanted to leave now, but he had reached the final hurdle, needing only half an hour, while the gate, at its current speed, would close in at most five hours.
This was under normal circumstances; if anything changed, it would be troublesome.
In less than five hours, Qin Chuan needed less than an hour. The time seemed ample, but it couldn't be judged by normal standards.
Gritting his teeth, Qin Chuan continued absorbing. He felt he should be able to manage the time, since getting to the gate would take almost no time.
The test here was whether he would leave or not.
If it had taken three days before, Qin Chuan would have left without hesitation, but now it was only a little short.
Qin Chuan knew he had been greedy this time. Greed wasn't terrible, but it had to be within limits, with a sense of proportion. Sometimes greed was acceptable, sometimes not.
Qin Chuan felt he could manage this time; the time should be sufficient, since this trap wasn't targeting him alone.
Half an hour quickly passed.
Qin Chuan opened his eyes. His body was saturated, carrying the full power of the Five Elements Divine Power. The energy of the Five Elements Lotus had been converted into Five Elements Divine Power.
This power was stored throughout Qin Chuan's body, not directly refined and fused, because time didn't allow for it.
Qin Chuan looked up at the gate, his eyelids twitching, because the gate was now only a little over a meter wide and was rapidly sealing itself off.
Qin Chuan grabbed Long Yuanchong, who was still absorbing the energy: "Let's go, quick!"
The two quickly headed towards the gate
. As they walked, Qin Chuan said, "The gate here will be completely sealed in half an hour at most. Those who believe can leave in an orderly fashion; those who don't can continue absorbing." After saying that, Qin Chuan and Long Yuanchong walked out.
As soon as they came out, someone quickly followed behind them, and others followed one after another. The first one to follow Qin Chuan and Long Yuanchong was the Lord Renjun.
The Lord Renjun and his entourage all came out.
There were also some others who came out. Although the Five Elements Lotus was very tempting, the Lord Renjun's appearance made some people uneasy.
So some of them did come out. These people were absorbing very slowly now, and it would probably take four or five days or even longer to fully absorb it.
Everything needed three days, or even less than three days. Now it was already the third day, and these people were struggling, but greed made them unwilling to move.
A voice told them, "It's okay, just persevere, and you will create a brand new you."
That's how people are. If everyone leaves, then more people will definitely leave, but if the majority stays, then even more people will stay, and even the Lord Renjun can't take away many.
Finally, it was pointed out that less than thirty people had come, and some of them even harbored resentment towards Qin Chuan. This was because they hadn't come willingly; for example, some of the people from the Lord's side were forced to come because the Lord had sent them.
Especially for several crucial moments, if they had just had a few more hours, they could have completed the task in less than half a day. But now, it wasn't exactly a complete failure; the effect was less than 10%.
Anyone in their position would be unhappy. They didn't dare resent the Lord, but they deeply resented Qin Chuan, wishing they could kill him.
Qin Chuan didn't take these people seriously at all. He only told them out of humanitarian concern, a well-intentioned reminder; whether they listened was their business.
He had expected some people to resent him, but he probably blamed him for spreading rumors, alarming them, and disturbing them. He hadn't expected it to be like this.
However, he didn't need to worry about it, because they would soon be grateful to him.
After coming out, no one left. For some reason, the Lord was very amiable, politely introducing himself to Qin Chuan and chatting about everything under the sun, making everyone feel comfortable.
They didn't inquire about Qin Chuan's specific identity, simply exchanging greetings and small talk. During the conversation, Qin Chuan seemed quite interested in places like the Nine Domains and Nine Heavens, so he talked a lot about them.
Before they knew it, over an hour had passed. By this time, the main hall was sealed off, and he was now a death row inmate.
However, to Qin Chuan's surprise, members of the Hu family emerged, and at the very last minute.
The reason was unknown, but it was certain they hadn't finished absorbing the power.
If they knew the Hu family had come out to prevent Qin Chuan and Long Yuanchong from escaping, what would they think?