Chapter 1233: The Great Prison of Desperation, Three Great Riddles
Translator: Lordbluefire
Everyone was stunned. This was different from what was previously discussed!
“Teacher Ji, this isn’t what the Saint Gate told us!”
The old farmer argued but before he could finish his words, he got interrupted.
“This place is the Great Prison of Desolation, the place where felons who committed heavy crimes are locked up. Naturally, this is a place that cannot be judged by common sense. It’s basically already a wrong decision by the Saint Gate to put the prison as an exam venue.”
Ji Han was filled with discontent.
“Could this be the second round of the examination?”
Pang Tong moved next to Wu You and mumbled in a low voice.
“It’s possible!”
Wu You also couldn’t confirm this.
“Stop dreaming. I’m not joking. After you get on the island, either you pass or you won’t be able to leave the island until you die of old age.”
Ji Han reiterated.
Everyone sank into hesitation.
“I think you guys must have gone crazy due to studying too much. This is clearly a case of the Great Prison of Desolation being alone on a secluded island for too long and has long since become their own entity. The Saint Gate has lost control of it.”
Lian Hongying sneered in disdain. These great teachers might be talented, but they were too inexperienced regarding the ways of the world.
“You want to quit?”
Ji Han asked.
“No!” Lian Hongying looked straight at Ji Han. “This lady wants to go to the Prison of Desolation!”
Ji Han’s pupils narrowed. “I don’t care what purpose you have, but I can tell you that if you enter the great prison, you will have to coil yourself even if you are a dragon and crawl on the ground even if you are a tiger.”
Ji Han’s cold and emotionless gaze swept past everyone.
“Let me ask you guys one final time. What is your decision?”
Swish~
The group of examinees turned to look at Sun Mo.
“I’ll continue!”
Sun Mo basically had no hesitations.
The other examinees were seemingly encouraged by Sun Mo’s calmness and self-confidence. They also expressed their desire to continue participating.
“Teacher Sun, you will definitely regret the choice you made today.”
After Ji Han finished speaking, he ignored everyone else and returned to his cabin.
Five days later, the boat entered a stretch of mist. A few of the examinees understood hydrography, so they were trying to memorize their location. But now, it was all useless.
When the boat sailed out of the mist, an island shimmered in and out of their view.
Steep cliffs, knife-like peaks of several hundred meters tall could be seen. Ocean waves slammed into them and created countless ‘petals’. The thick clouds covered the sky fully, blocking all light. All of these made it so that this rust-colored great prison looked extremely terrifying.
“Everyone, the second round is to smoothly reach the island. Please feel free to continue.”
Ji Han urged.
“Ah? These cliffs are so smooth that there are no pathways up. How can we get up?”
Pang Tong was unhappy.
“Naturally, climb yourself!”
Ji Han coldly mocked. “You guys only have five minutes. If you exceed the time, that will be counted as a failure.”
This sentence caused everyone’s expression to turn unsightly.
Those on the scene were all 5-stars great teachers. Even if their strength had not reached the Longevity Realm, they were at least at the peak of the Divine Force Realm. There was definitely no problem for them to climb a steep cliff of a few hundred meters. However, it would be very embarrassing.
Ji Han naturally knew that this test wouldn’t be able to stump anyone. He purely arranged this to disgust them.
“Oh right, the next return boat will only set off three months later. So, if you guys fail, you all have to stay on the island for three months. We won’t provide food or clean water. You guys have to handle your survival needs on your own.”
Ji Han reminded them.
“Let’s go, there’s no choice!”
Lu Guodong heaved a sigh and took the initiative to climb
“I shouldn’t have registered!”
Pang Tong felt depressed.
Sun Mo cast a glance at Ji Han. He activated the Skyward Spirit Rune and his entire person floated upward.
“…”
Ji Han had been very joyful as he watched the miserable looks of everyone climbing up. In the end, he saw Sun Mo flying and he was taken aback.
(Damn, this can work too?)
Honestly speaking, although he had heard that someone had invented the Skyward Spirit Rune, the shock that came from watching it personally was something indescribable.
This was especially so since Sun Mo was extremely young. He was like a vigorous wave from behind catching up and pushing all his seniors who were the waves in front of him, slamming them into the shore and crushing them all.
“Outrageous. No matter the price, I have to get that flying spirit rune!”
Lian Hongying was so jealous that she coughed up blood.
“You will be disappointed then. From what I know, this spirit rune is something created by Sun Mo. In this entire world, other than him, only his eldest disciple Li Ziqi knows how to draw it.”
Lu Guodong chortled.
Li Ziqi was the female emperor of the Great Tang. Speaking of wealth and status, she could crush Lian Hongying in both aspects. (What can you use to move her?)
Just three minutes later, everyone managed to reach the top. After that, they saw a gigantic castle northwest of the island. It resembled a wedge in between the land.
…
Ji Han came from the pier. He took his sweet time and made everyone wait half an hour for him.
“Let’s go, I will give you guys an introduction about the Great Prison of Desolation. I believe you all already know its history. This is a place once used by a saint for his experiments. In the end, after that saint died, Saint Gate took over this place and used it as a prison for great teachers who committed serious crimes.”
Ji Han walked toward the castle.
“Teacher Ji has returned.”
When the guards saw Ji Han, they didn’t open the gate immediately. They first matched secret signals and only engaged the lever to open the gate upon verification.
Kacha! Kacha!
The iron chains swayed as the heavy city gate was pulled open.
“There’s a total of eight levels here!”
Ji Han took the lead. “The level above ground is called the living area. There are dorms, restaurants, exercise plazas, and even small markets here.
“The gates leading to aboveground and underground will only open once a week during the shift change of the guards. Even great teachers are not permitted entry outside of that time frame.”
All the examinees started frowning severely. One tiny clue could reveal the general situation here. There were simply too many rules, and they made them very uncomfortable.
“Today is precisely the day when the gates will open, so we can go underground. If you guys lack something, you can purchase them now. The next time you want to come up, it will be a week later.”
Ji Han laughed. “Naturally, you can choose to stay up here for a week and head down when the gates open next week.”
“Let us all stick together?”
The old farmer suggested.
“Sure!”
This was the first time everyone came here. Although it was impossible for the relationship between them to always be harmonious, everyone instinctively chose to group up when facing Ji Han who clearly exuded the air of an antagonist.
Half an hour later, everyone gathered at a small public square.
There was an iron gate on the ground. After Ji Han opened it, he led everyone down the stairway.
“This is only the single way out?”
Lian Hongying asked.
“That’s right!”
Ji Han laughed in a very confident manner. “So, once someone enters here, they don’t have to dream of escaping.”
Indeed, the public square was completely devoid of cover and there were people everywhere. No matter when this iron gate was open, it would surely be discovered.
“The underground prison consists of a total of seven levels. The deeper you head down, the higher the star-rank of the prisoners will be. It also goes on that the deeper the levels, the more dangerous it will be, and the degree of severity of the crimes they committed will also increase.
“You guys can casually move around in the first level. But if you want to head down to a deeper level, you guys have to solve a puzzle before you can continue.
“Don’t ask me what the puzzle is. This is a test!”
Everyone exchanged a glance. They felt that this was something intentionally set by the people here because the prison staff didn’t want them to know too many secrets.
After entering the prison, the light immediately dimmed. Even candlelight and the glow from spirit crystals weren’t able to brighten up the gloomy atmosphere.
They felt like they were in a devil’s nest.
“Has a saint died here before?”
Sun Mo suddenly asked, scaring everyone to death. After that, everyone turned their gazes onto Ji Han.
“Haha, take a guess?”
Ji Han didn’t give them a straight answer. “Also, there are many secrets here. If you know them, you might have to die. So, it’s best for you guys to hold the reins of your curiosity back. Don’t ask random questions and just complete your mission.”
The gates of each cell were made from metal. Also, there were spirit runes engraved on them so it was very difficult if one wanted to break them with violence.
Also, the guards would patrol once every half an hour.
Sun Mo listened attentively. The sounds of clamor weren’t great.
“The prisoners on this level don’t seem to be too numerous!”
Pang Tong didn’t hear many breathing sounds, and this indicated that the number of prisoners here was not that many. This also meant that the target he could choose also became fewer.
“It’s already quite high. There are roughly over 300 people imprisoned on this level. It’s enough for you guys to choose from.”
Ji Han introduced.
“Over 300 people?”
Pang Tong was shocked. After that, his countenance sank. There were so many people, but the noise level was so low. This meant that the punishment method here was extremely brutal to the extent that the prisoners didn’t dare to make any random noises.
“There are three great unsolved riddles in this great prison. The prison warden has said before, whoever can solve one will be promoted to become a prison guard. Whoever can solve all three will make the prison warden retire on his own volition, and he will allow that person to become his successor.”
Ji Han stared at everyone. “Are any of you interested in giving it a try?”
Finally, Ji Han turned his gaze to Sun Mo. His meaning was clear without words. His gaze was extremely provocative.
“What riddles are they?”
Everyone’s interests were stirred. They were all great teachers, intelligent people that loved solving riddles because doing so would give them a sense of intellectual superiority.
“The first riddle: On the wall of a certain prison cell, there’s a segment of mysterious language written there. Those who look at it have a certain percentage of becoming crazy.”
Ji Han surveyed the expressions of everyone. “Please note that I’m not exaggerating.”
“Is it because their wills got weakened?”
Lu Guodong was curious.
“No idea.”
Ji Han continued to lead the way. “The second riddle: In a certain prison cell, no matter who it is, as long as they stay a night in there, they will turn into a skeleton on the next day.”
“Oh right, the highest-ranked great teacher who died inside was an 8-stars.”
Everyone’s curiosity was completely ignited.
“The third riddle: spirit apparitions would occasionally appear in the great prison. They might ask you for your help at one moment but turn around to kill you at the next moment. So, if you see one, you guys better run.”
Ji Han continued walking. “Alright, this will be your room.”
Lian Hongying cast a glance at it and was instantly unhappy.
“Isn’t this a prison room?”
Lian Hongying looked at Ji Han. “Why don’t staff like you stay here?”
“You guys can choose not to stay!”
Ji Han couldn’t be bothered to explain. “Alright, I’ve explained all the things you guys need to take note of. If you still have things you don’t understand, ask me quickly!”
“Can we go anywhere we want to in this place?”
Sun Mo asked.
“As long as you can solve these riddles, you can go anywhere you want!”
Ji Han shrugged. “Also, if you guys can solve one riddle, we will treat you like a VIP.”
“Teacher Sun, this fellow is too arrogant, let us go and solve a riddle to show him what we are made of?”
A great teacher walked toward Sun Mo and whispered in a low voice.
“That’s right, we should establish dominance and let them know that it isn’t good to antagonize us, new stars.”
Pang Tong urged.
Sun Mo hadn’t made his decision, but Wang Bibao already decided to act.
“I wish to solve the riddle in the prison room where one has a certain chance to go crazy.”
Spirit apparitions were random and the prison cell that would cause one to become a skeleton was very dangerous. So, Wang Bibao had chosen this particular riddle. His thoughts were simple. He felt that going crazy should be something that belonged to the field of medical studies. He was very familiar with it.
“Is there anyone who still wants to go and try?”
Ji Han asked.
“Teacher Wang, you better hold your horses first.”
Sun Mo suggested. This Ji Han had intentionally brought up the three riddles and even said that there would be great rewards if someone solved any of them. Why did it seem like he was planning to use these riddles to finish everyone off?
“Teacher Sun, I know that he has no good intentions. But no matter what, we have to take a look at the riddles.”
Wang Bibao was very rational. He told himself that he could only take a single glance and would leave immediately if he couldn’t solve it.
Finally, everyone decided to stay together.
Hence. Ji Han brought everyone to the fifth level. The atmosphere here was even dimmer and gloomier. The humidity here was very high, and it formed water droplets on the walls.
“There, it’s this cell!”
Ji Han opened the cell’s gate and stood at the entrance.
Wang Bibao entered first. Later on, six other great teachers followed him in, while the others decided to wait.
“Teacher Sun, are you not a genius? Why are you not entering?”
Lian Hongying provoked.
“Are you coveting my body? Why do you keep talking to me?”
Sun Mo rebutted.
“You..”
Lian Hongying was so angry that she wanted to kill someone.
“Are you guys not a little too cautious?”
Ji Han chortled mockingly. Two examinees couldn’t stand it anymore and also chose to enter the jail room.
Sun Mo remained unmoving and surveyed the surrounding environment.
Five minutes later, those who remained outside felt that there were no problems and were preparing to enter. In the end, they heard a sudden roaring noise within and people started fighting.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
“Teacher Wang has gone crazy!”
Wu Yao shouted. There were people retreating in a panic.
Sun Mo stared at Ji Han, “Are you not going to save him?”
“Life and death are fated, while wealth and poverty are destined as well. This is the rule of the great prison.”
Ji Han remained unmoved. “In addition, I can’t save him.”
When Wang Bibao saw that he was the only one remaining in the cell room, he started laughing uproariously. “It’s mine, it belongs to me!”
Wang Bibao roared loudly and swiftly rushed toward the wall. After that, he kept slamming his body into the wall as though he wanted to embrace the mysterious language written on the wall.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Very soon, he began bleeding from his head due to the heavy impact.
Everyone fell silent and felt a coldness in their hearts, giving rise to chills.
Sun Mo hesitated for a while before rushing into the prison room.
“Teacher Sun, don’t be impulsive!”
The old farmer persuaded.
The others changed their perception of Sun Mo and involuntarily contributed a portion of favorable impression points.
This was a good person.
In any case, they wouldn’t dare to enter to save anyone.
Upon noticing someone entering, Wang Bibao immediately rushed over.
His eyes glared with rage. Blood was flowing from them.
“Scram, it belongs to me!”
Wang Bibao went all out, completely disregarding his life.
Sun Mo could only activate his Invulnerable Golden Body to resist. He could kill the other party, but wanting to defeat Wang Bibao and ensure that he stayed alive? That was too difficult.
Just when Sun Mo was vexed, everyone was actually stunned.
“It can’t be right, he’s so strong?”
“Did he start cultivating when he was still in his mother’s womb?”
“Damn, so outstanding that it makes people feel jealous!”
Everyone praised out loud in unison. Even Ji Han had his eyebrows raised.
This Sun Mo might become an uncontrollable factor.. Things would be troublesome then.