I'll also work hard to conquer the dungeon today.

Chapter 351 1.23 14 Paper Cutting
"Wow...it really is like my whole body was sucked in. It's amazing no matter how many times I see it." Koya touched her chin with interest and laughed.

The palace bell rang softly, producing a melodious and enchanting sound.

Ling Tong looked down at the bells hanging on the palace sash, lost in thought. Suddenly, he looked up at the surrounding buildings. Although they were all made of beautifully cut paper, he felt something was strange about them.

He pointed to an empty space and said, "Isn't this area a bit too spacious? Logically, we should put a building inside."

"Huh? Wouldn't it be better to have more space?" Ke Ya blinked. Although she felt something was off, there wasn't anything particularly jarring about it, so she naturally ignored it.

"It's not that it's bad, but it's not a real building; it's cut out of paper. Anyone with common sense wouldn't make this mistake. This place is clearly meant to hold something." Ling Tong walked over, reached out and touched it, but felt nothing.

“How about… we draw a map? A macro perspective would give us a clearer view. I don’t deny your point of view, but I think you’re probably overthinking it,” Koya said, shaking her head.

"Are you overthinking it..." Ling Tong lowered her eyes, not intending to argue with Ke Ya.

Perhaps he felt it was unnecessary, or perhaps he had long lost the courage to argue about who was right and who was wrong.

"Um... is there anything I can do to help?" Yu Yin asked hesitantly.

"If possible, could you please help me survey all the buildings in the city? See if they are all like this, and where the largest open space is." Ling Tong nodded and said.

"I don't know if I can make it all by myself," Yu Yin said, frowning.

"It's not that you have to finish it today, you can take your time," Ling Tong said slowly as she bent down to pick up the box.

His narrow, golden-orange eyes gazed silently at the box. He remained silent, the tassel earring hanging from his left ear swaying gently in the breeze.

"You wouldn't want to put your hand in there too, would you?" Koya teased.

“I’m not Mu Yegui.” Ling Tong glanced at him and said expressionlessly, “I’m not as playful as her.”

Koya: "..." So true.

"This is a cardboard box, which is originally a paper product, so there's no issue of it being assimilated by paper. However, I have a question: since people can inhale it when they touch it, will other things also be inhaled if you put them inside?"

Or is it limited to living creatures only?

Thinking this, Ling Tong casually took off the bird ornament from the button and threw it into the box.

He tilted the box over, but the ornament didn't fall out.

"So she really was sucked in. Lan Xiao was right, there should be a space inside." Ke Ya leaned closer and said knowingly.

"The key question is what the purpose of this space is," Ling Tong said.

He was well aware that there were special spaces within the Food Kingdom instance, after all, he was originally a resident of the Food Kingdom and had participated in far more Food Kingdom instances than anyone else present.

Generally, a space and its corresponding instance must correspond, and the two are interdependent. Since the level of this instance is unknown, it's very likely a Crown Prince instance. If it's not displayed, it's probably because the instance owner is not present. In other words, the instance owner is actually in this space. Due to the special nature of the space, it's hidden by the rules, hence the instance's level is unknown.

“This should be the Crown Prince's instance.” Ling Tong stated her conclusion calmly.

"Didn't you say the dungeon level was unknown? I thought it was a normal dungeon that could be upgraded to a Crown Prince dungeon." Ke Ya said in surprise, completely not expecting that this dungeon was Crown Prince level from the beginning, rather than being an upgradeable dungeon.

"Because the owner of the instance couldn't accurately pinpoint its location, it displays an unknown level. I always felt it was familiar, and now I remember, I have some connection with the owner of this instance." Perhaps that's the biggest reason why he was invited to be a designated player.

"Huh?" Ke Ya blinked. Could it be that she was like Qin?

“During the September event, she was invited as a representative guest of the Gourmet Kingdom. At that time, I burned at least a thousand of her paper doll works. She probably started to resent me then, so she deliberately added me to the list this time, wanting to use this opportunity to get rid of me,” Ling Tong recalled.

Koya's lips twitched slightly. "What kind of grudge would someone have to go to such lengths? And then what? Have you even seen what he looks like?"

"She's a woman who likes paper cutting, but she's rather pretentious and prefers to operate from the shadows. She's Ji Qi's direct subordinate. Because she's never been able to become an apostle, she settled for becoming a dungeon master. In the rankings, she's not considered particularly good at combat."

He resembles Shang Qing, but Shang Qing is much stronger than the dungeon owner, and he is also a collateral apostle. Although he is only a collateral apostle, the strength of an apostle is still higher than that of the dungeon owner.

Apostles are divided into direct and collateral lines. Direct lines refer to the most immediate subordinates and confidants, while collateral lines are ordinary subordinates who belong to the periphery. However, regardless of the line, the selection criteria for apostles are much more stringent than those for the selection of instance masters.

While there are individuals who simultaneously hold the roles of both Apostle and Dungeon Master, generally speaking, an Apostle will never be a Dungeon Master, and vice versa, except for Apostles who are ordered to become Dungeon Masters.

As far as he knew, only Dionysus, the high priest of the Kingdom of the Inconceivable, was simultaneously the direct apostle of Sloth and the master of his copy; there was no one else like him.

I've always thought about the relationship and purpose between the dungeon master and the apostles. The dungeon master is responsible for assessing whether players can become the crown prince, so what about the apostles?

Is it merely to protect its owner?
There should be other, more important responsibilities...

Ling Tong thought that these mysteries might not be solved until the Crown Prince entered the next stage of the King's Game, which was the second playthrough. For now, all he could do was wait.

Waiting for the Crown Prince to arrive...

There is only one criterion for determining whether the Crown Prince is complete: obtaining all 35 Crown Prince items. There is no limit to the number of people who can obtain them; one person can obtain multiple items until all 35 items are acquired. Then the Crown Prince will be complete.

At this point, even if there are only 5 people, it's considered that everyone is present; even if there are 15 people, it's considered that everyone is present.

However, since the next stage requires acquiring real gems, according to the King's Game standard, it would indeed be better to have more crown princes.

Otherwise, if the number of crown princes decreases, and obtaining the real gems requires a crown prince, then we will be in dire straits.

After all, this isn't a real game where you can go back in time and start over.

Once you miss it, there's no going back.

(End of this chapter)