Chapter 1009 - 1005: The Labyrinth
Stepping into the tunnel, Xiao Tian thought to himself that indeed the more enticing things are, the less straightforward they seem. The pitch-black darkness surrounding him was a stark contrast to the colorful outside world.
"That’s odd!" Xiao Tian complained unhappily, "Entering the Divine Sense Realm previously wasn’t as troublesome. Why does it become more complicated when dealing with ordinary people?"
Although Xiao Tian grumbled, his steps did not show any sign of halting, nor did his inner vigilance relax in the slightest. While somewhat anxious, he couldn’t help but feel a thrill and excitement.
This historical moment that defies common sense was something Xiao Tian had experienced once before, but even after having gone through it once, he couldn’t avoid inner turmoil.
However, Xiao Tian’s reaction was restrained enough. It’s common for scholars who successfully achieve results to be speechless and cry with joy when receiving awards.
That’s a kind of release after relentless efforts finally come to fruition. Even people with the strongest mentality can’t avoid it!
...
As he stepped into the suddenly illuminated scene, Xiao Tian shielded his eyes from the strong light. When adapted to the surrounding brightness, he eagerly opened his eyes but the sight before him instantly dampened his joy.
Seeing the winding architecture resembling a maze, Xiao Tian grew puzzled, "Could it be that only by entering will I be able to find Ozawa Miwa’s figure?"
"But how long would it take to find that moment?!"
After a preliminary assessment, Xiao Tian concluded that the maze’s size indicates walking straight from one end to the other would take three minutes even if he activated his Body Technique fully.
Moreover, the maze is filled with dead ends, wasting time on probing and backtracking. Unless every path taken is correct, the time consumed would be immeasurable!
Yet Xiao Tian wasn’t the maze’s designer, how could he possibly step on the right path every time?
Besides, there’s much more to consider, such as whether the maze is mobile, trapping him once entered, or the presence of traps and mechanisms—all factors must be evaluated.
These various conditions laid before Xiao Tian made him exclaim with a headache. His previous excitement at the Dream Realm had long been discarded somewhere.
After pondering for a while, Xiao Tian suddenly raised his palm and struck the wall ahead, but the result exceeded his expectations again...
With one palm strike, a pot-sized gap appeared in the high wall, through which he could faintly see what lay inside.
However, before Xiao Tian could celebrate this workable approach, the gap on the wall began to recover, as if an invisible mason conducted repairs, taking less than five seconds to become complete with no trace of repair, as if it was merely a dream.
Unwilling to accept this outcome, Xiao Tian tried striking the wall again, creating an entrance-sized gap. Yet, within seconds, the wall started to heal visibly, returning to its pristine state.
No initial shock of smashing the wall without harming it while being repelled by the backlash happened, but what transpired wasn’t any more comforting to Xiao Tian.
He paced back and forth, knowing he couldn’t linger too long, as the silver needle inserted in Ozawa Miwa’s head was like a doorway to this place—once withdrawn, exit was impossible.
Considering this, Xiao Tian stopped walking and approached the maze entrance. His heart began conceiving a solution. If the upcoming method fails... then the only path left is to explore the maze himself.
With thoughts halting, Xiao Tian promptly took action, implementing the newest and simplest idea...
...
Persistently making choices at intersections and occasionally doubling back, Ozawa Miwa began to feel fearful, questioning whether she was dreaming or even dead, hence appearing in such a bewildering place.
Upon reaching a T-junction ahead, Ozawa Miwa paused, her brows furrowed, "Wasn’t I poisoned by Heart-Breaking Fruit? How did I suddenly end up here; moreover, despite traveling for long, why don’t I feel tired at all?"
For a moment, countless questions surged, causing Ozawa Miwa distress, and she felt like an animal trapped in a glass box—looking up, the sky was visible, yet attempting to escape seemed utterly impossible.
"No way!"
Ozawa Miwa shouted strongly, clenching her fists as she declared with determination, "I refuse to stay in such a place!"
She then grasped her clothing’s hem, pulling forcefully with her other hand. A tearing sound echoed as the fabric split, revealing Miwa’s strained expression, and she continuously tore the fabric into long, thin strips.
Clearly, Ozawa Miwa realized that blindly wandering like a clueless fly won’t help escape the massive maze, where identical structures easily disorient, causing east-west confusion and endless circles.
From past attempts, she has learned painfully that even after traversing a path, she forgets whether she’d gone through it already, thus using this method to mark her way, avoiding redundant routes and saving unnecessary time.
Before long, the fabric in Ozawa Miwa’s hands became strips, but she remained dissatisfied, her brows still knitted tightly.
"Who knows how big this maze is? Will these be enough?" Ozawa Miwa mumbled, staring at the handful of cloth strips.
Soon, Ozawa Miwa resolved. She realized, in such an uncertain maze size, it’s better to exert a little more effort to ensure enough markers are prepared—otherwise, tears might be too late!
With this in mind, she decided to split the cloth strips further, conserving more fabric.
Completing her preparations, Ozawa Miwa commenced action, hanging a cloth strip on the wall at each road entry as a marker and continually offering herself encouragement.
As time went by and the fabric almost depleted, Ozawa Miwa had to pause, readying to continue crafting strips.
However, just as she was about to act, she faintly heard someone calling her name, and the voice sounded quite familiar...