Retreat Timer!

The gigantic pupil covered most of the crack—through the few unobstructed partings golden light of the Sun poured inside.

His trembling eyes burnt under the brightness, and he stared right into the moving pupil.

'What is it? What is that? When did it come?'

''Was it always here? When did it notice me? Did I make it notice me?'

'I didn't make any great sound, I didn't strike or holler or make any commotion. Divine sense, I held it, I held back my divine sense—'

Li Ao bit his lip in frustration.

'I didn't! I didn't! I am an idiot. I am a retarded, brain dead motherfucking idiot!'

'What did excitement do to you!? What were you so excited for!? Some bullshit four words—'

A bead of sweat trickled down his temple towards his nose.

'But did it notice me?'

The golden pupil moved about in the room. It glanced at where he stood, then around to the empty bookshelves. It rolled about near the empty bed, then focused at the cracks and spacerifts leading down the floor.

Li Ao stood deathly still, deathly silent. His Qi was calm, his blood frozen, and his breath held within the deflating lungs.

'It didn't notice me. Why? Movement? Divine sense? It looks like a demon—fluctuating emotional state?'

Mighty demons always had deformed forms—few with intelligence generally preferred humanoid forms.

'I'm calm. I should be calm, I must be calm! Don't be anxious! Don't blink, don't breathe, don't—'

The bead of sweat gathered at the tip of his nose. His gaze trembling, Li Ao watched it roll down and down.

Right as it trickled down his nose, the golden pupil froze. It slithered back to the center and stared at the droplet.

'Movement? Movement!? Is it movement or what!? What the fuck are you looking for!?'

'Retreat, I must retreat. How do I retreat?'

He looked at the blinking interface in front of him. No matter how hard he thought, he couldn't open the missions tab.

'Why the fuck does it not work with thoughts!?'

'I have to move it myself. I have to move quickly.'

Right then, the bead of sweat fell.

Slow at first, accelerating bit by bit, the glistening droplet escaped between the cracked floors.

Li Ao didn't separate his gaze from the tilting pupil as it did.

Ten floors it dropped, and plopped into the pool of fresh blood.

The entire exchange lasted four seconds.

A storm exploded in front of Li Ao's face. Winds whipped, walls shattered, and the piercing screech of the demon's speed rattled his eardrums. He was thrown back to the wall.

With an incredulous gaze, prying himself away from the rubble, he looked at the hundred meter ravine in front of him. Golden light spilled into the three rooms above and below, revealing torn apart space rifts.

'RUN!'

His blood and Qi circulated at the same time. Bronze blood pumped in bulk, Spiritual Qi bolstered his body—Silver began to shine and Prismatic Gloves let out booms of thunder with a tick.

Taking a single step, Li Ao leaped over three rooms.

Something exploded below, rattling the entire section.

He didn't cast a look back—instead, Li Ao swiped at the air.

'Missions—where is retreat? Abort?!'

A howling wind began to rise behind him. With another step, Li Ao flashed past three more rooms. Still, the gale cut through his fabric.

'Abort it then!'

Right as he clicked, a ding echoed in his mind.

*Agent In Movement*

*Retreat In Process*

*5*

''Why the fuck is there a timer!?''

''SHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSH~''

The demon let out a shrill laugh right behind.

*4*

Li Ao cast a short glance at the climbing monstrosity.

It was an amalgamation of four limbs and a large eyeball. Four muscular dark arms, each with six fingers, clawed up at the rooms to chase after him. The golden pupil hung in their midst, flashing black and red with Demonic Qi.

The foremost hand of the demon had a bloody finger, with bits of flesh stuck under its hideous nails. Swinging that finger, it disintegrated countless space rifts on the way.

*3*

A great terror welled up inside Li Ao.

The creature smashed through the diamond walls and floors of the estate with ease, shattering them as he climbed five floors in half a second.

Face pale, heart pulsating, Li Ao overexerted his meridians.

''AAAAGH!''

The pain ate within his body—as if tiny claws scratched his insides. Thunder boomed and flames crackled, then his figure sped up another degree.

*2*

''SHSHSHSHSHSHSSHSHSHSHSHSHS~''

The demon raised the bloody finger at his back. Li Ao's instincts began screaming at him at that moment—his gut felt as if everything collapsed on itself.

Right then, the finger began to grow and expand—it inflated to a dozen meters wide and shot forward like a lunging snake!

*1*

Wincing, hearing the incoming whistle, Li Ao slammed his foot on a crack, twisted his ligaments until they tore, and shot left through the open wall.

A great cloud of debris and Demonic Qi exploded where he just left. Cracking, booming, a terrifying force traveled a hundred rooms above.

Right behind it, the finger, like a dark pillar stretched hundreds of meters to pierce through the building. Constant explosions, cracks, booms echoed, as well as ruffling of sheets and paper.

Falling down the golden clouds, his teeth chattering, Li Ao saw half of the visible walls collapse from the strike. A thousand meter long debris shower fell over him.

Books, stones, wood and jade and diamond furniture, clothes, dishes, statues, pens, even children's toys...

Within all the chaos, he saw the golden pupil flash again. The finger slashed down towards the clouds.

*Returning*

He fell head-first into his bed. Rattling and squeaking from the momentum, the bed cracked and gave way to the ground.

For a moment, everything was still.

Outside, it was evening. Only a few chirping birds accompanied the moonless scenery.

Next moment, Li Ao pushed himself up with heaving breaths. Face, back, hands drenched in sweat, some even dripping down his eyelids, the boy threw himself off and rolled on the ground.

''What the fuck is wrong with this mission!?''

Clutching his pulsating chest, Li Ao kept heaving for over an hour. Even then, he couldn't stay put. His breaths stabilized, his sweating went away, but the beating of his heart remained.

Pushing himself up, Li Ao looked at the dark sky for a moment.

''...shit.''

Thinking of the gigantic pillar of a finger, the pool of blood at the very bottom floor flashed in Li Ao's mind.

''Was he smashed from above?''

The thought made him shudder.

It must have been a terrifying death.

''What was the last difficulty?''

Ignoring the mission notification, Li Ao opened the last Log.

*Current Mission Difficulty Evaluation Change: Easy/Hell -> Hell*

''...hell? How the fuck is that hell!?''

What kind of a being could cause hundreds of meters of destruction with a strike?

Especially within that castle with insane durability.

How could he defeat something like that?

''...who said I needed to defeat it?''

The mission was to gather knowledge, not to defeat any demon.

The fear made him sidetracked for a moment.

''But hell should be still accomplishable—how can you resist a strike from that thing if it becomes serious?''

''How do you even hide from it?''

Heart heavy, shaking his head, Li Ao closed the log and looked at the other notification.

*Retrieved Ancient Knowledge: 52*

*Retrieved Pages: 6710*

*Awarded 6710 Universal Coins/67100 Spirit Stones, do you wish to redeem the contents?*

*Retrieved Ancient Knowledge has been listed in Universal Store -> General Shop*

Li Ao frowned.

While he accepted the Universal Coins with a certain down-cast glee, the other notification made him confused.

Checking the satchel, Li Ao swept his divine sense. Every letter and book remained safe there, even those he noticed to be Ancient Knowledge.

''Was that what the system wanted?''

To copy and spread knowledge.

Was there a need for it, when there were so many other, better options?

Still frowning, searching with specific keywords, Li Ao saw the Advanced Metallurgy book priced at 100 Universal Coins.

Among similar forms of knowledge, its price was on the higher end of the spectrum.

''It is just free knowledge...''

Was that danger worth getting them for free?

Shaking his head, Li Ao suddenly remembered his current balance.

*Universal Coin: 7100*

''...''

A smile bloomed on his face, but fell not long after.

''I need to take another rest.''

It would only be detrimental to his safety to continue the mission in this panicked state.

That sounded reasonable.

''...actually, I can break through foundation establishment.''

He had most of the qualifications already. He just needed to make some preparations.

''...stop.''

As he sat there alone, listening to the chirping birds, Li Ao touched his left chest.

''Why am I so anxious?''

''Why did I get sidetracked?''

His first aim was to get enough resources to reach Foundation Establishment.

However, when something related to his master came to the surface, Li Ao lost sight of it very quickly. This matter told a great deal about his character.

Perhaps it told even more about his flaw.

He told himself over and over again that strength was the way. If he had no strength, he would not be able to take care of himself, let alone others.

He boasted that without knowing fear of death, without knowing danger, one couldn't live very well. He had the childish thought that suffering made someone more aware.

More complete.

Now hearing his heart expanding out of his chest, feeling the lingering fear unsettle his mind, Li Ao felt his idiocy so much more violent in a way that further dispersed his joy.

His mind was a mess, and for a while he realized things were too out of order to consider.

A moment later, clenching one fist, he slammed the floor.

''Stop!''

''Stop! What are you so afraid of!? What is there to be afraid of!?''

''Were you not ready for this!? You retarded idiot—you stuck-up spoon fed bastard!''

Punching again and again, his fist carved a five centimeter dent into the floor.

Then he stopped.

He took deep breaths, circulated his Qi and Blood, and took another deep breath.

He thought of one of the torn letters.

''...harboring all these contradictory emotions, how can I respond...''

''How do I respond?''

It dawned on him for a moment.

The person who wrote this passage was dead.

Yet they felt the same as him in a special corner of time and space.

His fear, his hesitance wasn't unique.

Here, right now, Li Ao didn't want it to be unique.

''...I need to take a rest.''

He needed to take a rest.

Closing the system interface, Li Ao laid on the sunk floor and cast his gaze to the portraits of his family. The trio looked down on him with straight, refined gazes.

His father had a proud, muscular look, bearing a short hair and beard, which his grandpa said was an imitation of a person.

His mother was even more so—as if a chosen of the heavens, she had this smug, charming smile, all the while glaring at the recipient of her gaze.

His brother was much like his mother. He smiled, glared, and kept long hair that the portrait couldn't contain.

Looking at them, Li Ao thought for a while.

For the first time in his life, he imagined what his parents might have felt before death.

He imagined where his brother was gone, and how he would feel upon his return.

''...Li Yong, you bastard, where are you?''

In that silence, he thought of Lei Jin as well.

''...is this what he felt like?''

He thought of the pool of blood, who most likely was an agent as he was.

''What did you feel...?''

What could they even feel?

Were they given a chance to feel and think?

For an entire night, Li Ao listened to the chirping birds, his mind wandering around his memories.

Near dawn, he slept, and when he woke up, he found a tray of dessert in front of his door.

The next week, he spent in solitude, not leaving the room.

He thought and laid, sometimes browsed the personal diaries and notes of the people in the castle, and mostly slept.

Sleeping made him less anxious, and reading words of dead people made him much more accepting of his fear.

Gradually, he lost that special, contemplative feeling.

Li Nan came to visit him once he missed the family dinner, but he was in deep concentration and did not hear any of her words.

Another week passed, and at last Li Ao woke up from his stupor.

Rising from the bed, touching his calm chest, Li Ao let out a sigh.

''...I'll make a complaint to master.''

It was her fault he suffered this...right?

If not to search for her relation, he wouldn't have been this rash.

...probably.

With a wry smile, Li Ao left his room to attend the family dinner.

Six hours later, he returned with a wine-bloated belly and flushed cheeks.

''I'm never attending family dinner again!''