Yes, I became a god just by exercising.

Chapter 178 The Bizarre Time Loop, Xia Fa's Solution—Is He Truly a Genius? (Part 2)

Avalon's words struck everyone like a bolt from the blue.

"The ability to imprison secret contracts? This...this..."

The captain of the Red Pufferfish was speechless, his eyes widening, and continued:

"What should I do?"

Originally, everyone thought there was a great chance of breaking the time loop in this eerie realm, since what appeared was actually a village and a group of ordinary villagers.

But now, the situation seems to have completely reversed, with an ordinary person facing a group of armed and strong villagers...

"This isn't just a simple ability to imprison secret bonds; to be more precise..."

Avalon stared at the pirate's corpse on the ground, stabbed to death by the villagers. After the village's time was reset and everything returned to normal, his corpse strangely did not disappear.

However, it is gradually aging.

It gives the impression that it will soon turn into a skeleton and then into a handful of dust as time flies by.

"...He was directly turned into an ordinary person."

Avalon's words shocked many, and many pirates were plunged into utter despair.

Time loop ghost realms are just that unreasonable. Some time loop ghost realms can even turn people into elderly people or children after entering them.

Becoming an old person is fine, but becoming a child would also mean losing all secret abilities, because it would be like returning to childhood.

It won't be until you come out that you can recover.

Avalon seemed completely unconcerned about the reactions of others to His words, including His earlier soliloquy, which appeared to be more like deep thought. He then continued:
"To be precise, after the three of them went in, time reversed for them, back to the time before they signed the secret contract. Only those with the Sovereign rank can withstand this kind of time reversal."

Prince Justinian suddenly realized:

"Is that so? Then why haven't their appearances changed?"

Avalon's tone remained calm, like a still lake, without a ripple:
"This is normal. Changes in the flow of time, at the level of rules, can be specified. Their 'extraordinary' abilities have regressed, but their 'age' remains."

Prince Justinian sighed regretfully:
"Unfortunately, the things you've discovered can't be known to the people in this time-looping ghost realm, especially Xia Fa. Luckily, he's the third one."

Everyone could see that this time loop was being broken by the three people one by one. Those who weren't in the loop were essentially hiding in the void and watching from the sidelines, but they couldn't move. Only the Dominator could come and go freely.

The advantage of this is that later entrants can learn from the experiences of those who came before.

At least for now, the first lesson learned has been summarized.

That is, you absolutely must not tell the people in this village that you come from the Kingdom of Augu!
However, the price for summarizing this experience was rather painful, amounting to the life of a pirate.

Upon seeing the illiterate pirate appear on the yellow earth of the village, the villagers soon followed suit and came out of their houses.

They still carried farm tools such as sickles, shovels, and pitchforks, and their faces were peaceful, showing no signs that they might kill at any moment.

Someone else shouted, and the villagers immediately surrounded the illiterate pirate.

The village chief was still smiling, with a kind expression that made it easy for people to lower their guard at a glance.

He walked up to the illiterate pirate, smiled, and asked softly:

"Where are you from, young man?"

The illiterate pirate had clearly learned from the experience of the previous hot-tempered pirate. He was somewhat apprehensive, and after thinking for a while, he tentatively answered:
"I...I'm from our village?"

Although he spoke in a questioning tone, the village chief's smile immediately became more amiable upon hearing it, and the villagers also lowered their guard considerably.

"Is that old Mike's son? He's been gone for so many years, he's finally back."

The village chief patted the illiterate pirate on the shoulder, his tone full of emotion:
"It's good that you're back, it's good that you're back. Perfect timing, our village is holding an ancestral worship ceremony today, why don't you come and join us?"

The illiterate pirate, who was sweating profusely, breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that he had answered correctly by sheer luck. He then followed the village chief and the villagers to the center of the village.

On board the Red Porcupine, the crew was somewhat surprised to witness this scene.

"This is okay?"

The first mate, looking utterly astonished, continued:

"I thought this answer would be complicated, but I didn't expect Telslit to be so smart."

The others were also somewhat surprised. They had all guessed that the answer wouldn't be the Boyue Empire, but they never expected that the answer would be that they were from that village!

As for why some people would guess the Boyue Empire, the reason is simple: these villagers are not carrying cloth bags, nor are they particularly large or have hands and feet made of blades, so they must be human.

Based on past experience, the locations where "time loops" occur in time loop-type ghost realms are generally related to nearby countries.

So, since the Kingdom of Augu is being treated as outsiders, shouldn't it be the Wave Moon Empire, which is also a human kingdom?

But to everyone's surprise, the answer was that he directly said he was from the village!

“Telslit hadn’t read many books, and his way of thinking was different from ours. He probably noticed the extreme xenophobia of these villagers.”

The captain of the Red Pork Cuttlefish exclaimed:

"Perhaps he has a chance to break this time loop, although the real problem has not yet emerged."

Everyone turned to look at the whirlpool. Just then, the illiterate pirate arrived at a stone altar with the villagers.

The stone altar was extremely simple, with a circular pit in the center that was bottomless and as dark as an abyss.

It gives you the feeling that even if you threw a huge rock in, you wouldn't hear an echo for hours.

Around the circular pit were stones of varying sizes, each engraved with images of monsters or gods, all of which were dancing in a very eerie manner.

It was one thing for monsters to dance, but for gods to be dancing as well gave everyone on the ship a creepy, presumptuous feeling.

Fortunately, these deities were not any of the nine main gods, but rather some unknown subordinate gods or even external gods.

"Little Mike, it must have been a long time since you attended our village's ancestral worship ceremony, right?"

The old village chief turned around, smiled, patted the illiterate pirate on the shoulder, and continued:
"Come here, take a good look."

Although the illiterate pirate couldn't read, it was clear that he was quite shrewd.

He first cautiously scanned the surrounding villagers, and seeing that everyone's faces were beaming with joy and showed no signs of aggression, he felt relieved.

Even so, he only took small steps forward, not getting close to the bottomless pit, and hid behind one of the large rocks next to the pit.

He gripped the rocks with both hands, only half of his body showing, peering into the deep pit.

Just then, the old village chief quietly stepped back, and two villagers stepped forward, a resolute look flashing in their eyes, and suddenly rushed towards the illiterate pirate's back!
"careful!"

On the Red Porcupine, many pirates couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, even though they knew that the illiterate pirate couldn't hear them at all.

However, some people were not too worried, because the illiterate pirate had anticipated this move and that's why he deliberately hid behind the big rock.

Those huge rocks, each one looked like it weighed tens of tons. Surely he couldn't have been pushed down by just two villagers, rocks and all.
Even though these two villagers were both strong, grown men, they were still ordinary people, so how could they possibly push them?
The illiterate pirate suddenly felt a strong gust of wind coming from behind. He was about to turn around, but it was too late.

The two villagers gave him a push from behind, and the illiterate pirate's body passed right through the large rock several meters in diameter. He lost his footing and stumbled as he fell into the deep pit.

That big rock... somehow, it transformed from a normal rock into a phantom, into an illusion!
"what!!!!!!!!!"

Amidst the illiterate pirate's screams, he fell into the deep pit. The screams grew fainter and fainter, as if rising from the ground, sending chills down everyone's spines.

The old village chief sighed, his face filled with grief and self-reproach.

The other villagers also showed reluctance, but they still knelt down, raised their hands high, and worshipped the deep pit, chanting incantations as their voices merged together.

"Great ancestors!"

"Please accept the offerings from your descendants!"

"Give us your sacred objects, and let us gain freedom and happiness!"

The sound was mighty and grew louder and louder, like overlapping sound waves spreading out in layers.

Suddenly, a monstrous cry, as mournful as a broken violin, rose from the bottom of the pit, instantly drowning out the villagers' prayers.

The villagers all looked puzzled, wondering what had happened; their faces were filled with confusion.

Only the old village chief's expression suddenly changed. He immediately stood up, turned to look at the villagers who were still kneeling, waved his arms, and shouted:

"Run, run, run!"

Click!

Suddenly, a giant python covered in flames leaped out of the deep pit and bit down, tearing half of the old village chief's body off.

The remaining half of his body fell to the ground with a thud, blood seeping from his waist, instantly soaking the sand and dust on the yellow earth.

The other villagers were terrified. Some turned pale instantly, while others collapsed to the ground, their trousers quickly becoming wet and emitting a strong stench of urine.

Many more villagers turned and scrambled away, fleeing into the distance.

But it didn't work.

The giant fire serpent opened its mouth and inhaled, creating a hurricane-like force that swept across the entire area around the circular altar.

All the villagers were lifted off the ground, struggling as they were sucked into its gaping maw, screaming as they were swallowed whole.

Blood flowed down the corner of the fiery python's mouth, but before it hit the ground, it was dried by the high temperature and evaporated into blood-red steam.

Almost everyone on board the Red Porcupine was stunned.

Even Avalon, a genius in the field of mechanical secrets, paused for a second or two before a thoughtful look appeared in his eyes.

Almost instantly, He had already given His opinion.

It was at this moment that everyone snapped out of their astonishment and turned to look at the young overlord, like students waiting for their teacher to answer their questions.

"The key to breaking this time loop lies in the 'sacred relic' that the villagers crave."

Avalon's soft voice rang out, as clear and crisp as the clinking of ice shards on a lake:
"Clearly, something strange happened in this village during this time loop, which led to the summoning of a terrifying monster, the giant fire serpent, during their ancestral worship ceremony, ultimately resulting in the complete annihilation of the village."

As He spoke these words, everyone could see from the vortex that the giant fire serpent was spewing out fiery breath, burning the houses in the village.

Flames filled the sky, and black smoke billowed everywhere, turning the once peaceful and tranquil village into a hellish scene.

Prince Justinian pondered:
"You mean, as long as Xia Fa eliminates the monster for the villagers, obtains the sacred relic, and brings them so-called 'freedom and happiness,' this time loop can be broken?"

Avalon nodded slightly:
"That should be the case, but the real difficulty lies in the fact that Xia Fa's power of the secret contract will also be imprisoned, making him completely unable to deal with that monster. As a result, how to obtain that sacred object has become the biggest problem."

After thinking for a moment, the young overlord immediately added:
"Moreover, in this time-looping ghost realm, once you're dead, you're dead. Only the villagers can be resurrected with each time time is reset. In other words, under normal circumstances, Xia Fa only has one chance, provided that he is not pushed down by those villagers."

Everyone immediately thought of the illiterate pirate who was pushed off the cliff. He had been very cautious, even standing behind a several-ton boulder to avoid being pushed off.

But who could have known that the large rock would suddenly turn into an illusion, allowing the villagers to succeed?
"These villagers are quite something. They even pushed Telslit down to offer sacrifices to their ancestors, and then they pretended to shed a few crocodile tears and put on a show of grief. Especially that old village chief, damn it!"

The captain of the Red Pufferfish suddenly cursed, gritting his teeth.

Regardless of the circumstances, those two pirates were his men, and now they are both dead.

Avalon, however, seemed oblivious to or completely unconcerned about the Red Pork Belly Captain's anger, shaking his head and saying:

"No, their grief is real. They truly considered Telslitt one of the villagers. However, when they had to sacrifice someone, they chose to sacrifice Telslitt, who had been away from the village for many years and had just returned from the big city."

The captain of the red porcupine boat was startled:
"Do you know Telslit?"

Avalon looked at him with some strangeness:

"Isn't it the name you just mentioned?"

Just as the captain of the Red Pufferfish was about to say something more, a ripple appeared in the whirlpool, and the village, which had been burned to the ground, was reset.

Thatched houses rose from the ground, and wisps of smoke rose from their chimneys, creating a peaceful and tranquil scene just like before.

The blood on the yellow earth had disappeared, the blackened rocks around the pit had returned to their original state, and the pit itself looked empty. The giant fire python had vanished, leaving only a bottomless abyss.

On the yellow earth at the village entrance, Xia Fa's figure slowly emerged.

Perhaps because the village has entered the time loop for the third time, the body of the original hot-tempered pirate has completely disappeared, leaving only a pile of yellow earth in its place.

As soon as Xia Fa appeared, he looked deep in thought, clearly having just witnessed the two pirates' ordeal and was racking his brains for a solution.

On board the Red Porcupine, everyone was completely on edge.

After all, of the three chosen to break the time loop, only Xia Fa remained.

If Xia Fa also fails, everyone will be trapped in this time-looping ghost realm, and can only pray that a ship will arrive on this rarely traveled route within the next day.

Moreover, the people on the arriving ship will have to decipher the new time loop—even within the same time loop-type ghost realm, each time loop is different.

Otherwise, they would be trapped just like them and this group of traveling whales.

Imagine being trapped for endless years until you die of old age, or being trapped in a time loop until you become a dazed and confused person, or even completely out of control and turn into a monster... Even Prince Justinian couldn't help but shudder.

Just then, the villagers poured out of their houses again, carrying farm tools such as sickles, shovels, and pitchforks.

Among the villagers, a burly man with a dark face and a thick beard shouted, and the crowd immediately surrounded Xia Fa.

The people on the ship finally recognized that this dark-faced, bearded man was one of the two who had pushed the illiterate pirate into the pit!

The other man was bald, with a hooked nose and triangular eyes. He had a rather sinister expression and looked like the kind of idle person in the village who liked to bully the weak.

The old village chief stepped forward from the crowd, a kind smile on his face, and stood before Xia Fa.

"Where are you from, young man?"

Having learned from the mistakes of the two pirates, Xia Fa certainly knew how to answer; not only did he know, but he also learned to answer first.

He scratched his head, revealing a shy expression of nervousness as if he were returning home, and said with his head down:

"I...I'm Old Mike's son. You even held me when I was little, village chief, have you forgotten?"

Upon hearing this, the villagers not only lowered their guard and vigilance, but also gathered around him to look him over, marveling at him.

"He really is Mike's son, he looks so much like Mike!"

"Little Mike, I'm your Aunt Linda, do you remember me?"

"Finally back. It must be tough living in the big city, right?"

The villagers all started to care about Xiafa, and judging from their expressions, they really treated Xiafa like a little Mike.

The old village chief smiled and patted him on the shoulder:

"It's good that you're back, it's good that you're back. The village will always be your home. Come on, today is the day of the ancestral worship ceremony."

Xia Fa smiled innocently and answered loudly:

"Yes, Chief!"

On board the Red Porcupine, everyone was stunned.

"Xia Fa... isn't his mental fortitude a bit too strong?" Dagney asked, somewhat surprised, her beautiful eyes widening slightly.

"It's less about mental fortitude and more about acting skills, haha. I'm starting to get a little optimistic now, and I hope my optimism is genuine." The captain of the Red Pufferfish was actually laughing at this moment, clearly quite admiring of Xia Fa.

"Hopefully he can guess that the key to breaking the time loop is to get the sacred object for the villagers. Alas, it's a pity that even though he has analyzed such information, he can't get it through." Prince Justinian sighed.

Everyone fell silent and continued to watch quietly.

By this time, Xia Fa had already walked with the village chief and the villagers to a spot not far from the edge of the deep pit.

Xia Fa seemed to have deliberately slowed down, falling to the very back of the crowd.

Moreover, he was chatting with a villager of similar age, pretending to talk about all sorts of novel experiences from the big city, which made the young villager's eyes light up.

Several villagers even gathered around, listening with hopeful expressions.

Seeing that all the villagers had stopped outside the pit, the burly, dark-faced man with a thick beard also stopped. The old village chief was about to turn his head to look at Xia Fa when...

Just then, a fierce glint flashed in Xia Fa's eyes, and he suddenly accelerated and charged towards the dark-faced, bearded man!

Amid the villagers' gasps, Xia Fa shoved the dark-faced, bearded man from behind, sending him crashing down with a thud!
The burly, dark-faced man with a thick beard was already heavy, and Xia Fa's push, combined with the kinetic energy from his charge, added to his already considerable strength.
He recovered his health during this period and took the black potion given to him by the storyteller. Not only did he grow to 1.9 meters tall, but his physique also became as agile as a leopard, full of explosive power.

The burly man with the dark face and thick beard was pushed so hard that he couldn't stop himself and fell straight into the deep pit.

After Xia Fa pushed him down, he immediately became alert and prepared to rush out of the crowd to avoid being surrounded by the villagers.

But immediately, he froze.

Because he saw that the villagers' eyes were filled with gratitude and respect as they looked at him!
“Actually, Rosehu is the most suitable person to serve the ancestors, but no one dares to lay a hand on him. After all, everyone in the village knows how vicious he is. Little Mike, you are indeed as brave as your father.”

The old village chief's eyes were full of approval, giving Xia Fa the feeling that he had rid the village of a great scourge.

Immediately, the old village chief seemed to have no time to waste. He turned around and led the villagers to kneel down in front of the deep pit.

Xia Fa did not kneel; he deliberately stood, refusing to kneel even when villagers quietly tugged at his clothes.

The villagers are in the third time loop, so of course they don't know what will happen.
But Xia Fa knew very well that the giant fire python in the deep pit was about to appear!

"Indeed, we cannot use our secret abilities. It seems my judgment was correct. In this time loop, everyone's secret abilities are imprisoned, or their extraordinary powers have been reversed through 'time reversal'."

Xia Fa's mind raced as he racked his brains for a solution.

He witnessed the illiterate pirate's fate and vaguely guessed that to break this time loop, he would probably have to help the villagers retrieve the sacred object from the deep pit.

These villagers weren't as bad as people thought. They killed the irritable pirate at first because they thought he was an outsider.

The subsequent tweet, "Blind Pirates Enter the Deep Pit," is likely due to the demands of the ancestral worship ceremony. They had no choice but to select someone they were most distant from, someone who had just returned from a big city.

Judging from the villagers' reactions, even though he pushed the burly, dark-faced man named Rossehu into the pit, the villagers didn't blame him; on the contrary, they were very grateful to him.

In this way, Xia Fa was willing to obtain the sacred object for the villagers in order to break this time loop. Of course, his main purpose was to save himself and everyone on the Red Porcupine.

Xia Fa didn't want to be trapped in a time loop; it was too terrifying, just thinking about it was horrifying.

"It seems that if I feel enough burning sensation in my heart meridian, I can break through the restriction that prevents me from using my secret bond abilities. However, that giant fire python doesn't seem very strong, at most equivalent to a whale, and it can't stimulate that burning sensation at all..."

Xia Fa's eyes flickered slightly. If he could use the Secret Contract ability, it would be very easy to destroy the giant fire python and obtain the sacred object, but unfortunately, he couldn't.

Roar! ! ! ! ! !

Just then, a sound like the roar of a giant dragon burst forth from the deep pit! The sound was actually equivalent to a sonic attack, and many villagers were immediately thrown to the ground.

Immediately, an astonishing scene unfolded!

From the deep pit, a blue-white, semi-transparent lizard emerged from its upper body. Its body was like an ice sculpture, yet it was as huge as the fiery python.

An extremely dangerous aura surged from the icy, monster's body.

As soon as it appeared, it suddenly sprayed water, and many villagers who had been overturned to the ground in the fan-shaped area in front of it were instantly turned into ice sculptures.

With a swift movement of its claws, it grabbed all the ice sculptures and placed them into its massive mouth, filled with sharp teeth, where it began to chew.

The old village chief turned pale with horror, and the other villagers screamed and cried as they scattered and fled.

Once Xia Fa confirmed that the ice sculpture lizard was indeed only equivalent to a whale-level monster and could not ignite the burning sensation in his heart meridian, he immediately turned and fled without hesitation.

In any case, if he survives, things might take a turn for the better.

Both the first and second time loop resets were due to the deaths of the two pirates; it seems that the deaths of the villagers do not trigger the event.

Wow——!
The ice-sculpted lizard unleashed another burst of icy breath, sweeping across the land and freezing many fleeing villagers instantly within the ice. Some were even still in the posture of raising their legs to run away, their faces frozen in terror.

The ice sculpture lizard seemed unable to move its lower body, but this didn't stop it.

Its arms, covered in translucent scales, stretched out as if they were rubber, instantly grabbing the frozen villagers in its giant paws and chewing them up again.

Fortunately, unlike the giant fire python, it couldn't suck up everyone present with a single breath, giving Xia Fa and the other villagers time to escape.

With a clear goal in mind, Xia Fa sprinted towards the village entrance, his legs almost leaving afterimages.

Strangely, no other villagers ran towards the village entrance. It seemed that even in such a life-or-death situation, trying to leave the village was a great taboo for the villagers, and would result in a punishment more terrible than death.

Xia Fa immediately noticed this and slowed down as he was about to reach the village entrance.

Looking back, the ice sculpture lizard had almost frozen and devoured 90% of the villagers, and was now spewing icy breath, attacking villagers further away.

Undoubtedly, even if it was only equivalent to a whale-level monster, given that everyone else was just an ordinary person without any supernatural power or the ability to use secret contracts, its icy breath, which could cover the entire village, and its arms and claws that could stretch at will, allowed it to eventually kill and devour everyone in the village.

Even if Xia Fa is the last one, he certainly won't be able to hold out for long.

"This is a contest of pure intellect."

Onboard the Red Porcupine, Avalon sighed, and a rare glint of fighting spirit flickered in his usually calm, lake-like sky-blue eyes:

"If I were chosen, I would be very willing to try to break this time loop, even if it means dying."

Prince Justinian gave a wry smile and shook his head.

Avalon was His old rival, and the only one who defeated Him ten years ago in the Earthly God Kingdom Selection Battle in the [Silver Universe].

He naturally knew Avalon perfectly.

For Avalon, only the most difficult problems in the world could interest him.

Avalon chose "Magic Mechanics" as its first contract because, among the many contract development directions, mechanical contracts require the most ingenuity.

Rather than saying that He is the greatest mechanical genius in the Kingdom of Augu in the past century, it would be more accurate to say that He is the most intelligent being in the Kingdom of Augu in the past century.

Therefore, when faced with such a time loop problem, even if the slightest mistake could lead to death, He seems quite willing to try it himself.

At this moment, few people on the ship were as interested in Avalon's words as Prince Justinian was.

Everyone was extremely tense and anxious, trembling with fear. Some were ashen-faced, while others had cold sweat on their foreheads. They all stared intently at Xia Fa's figure in the village within the vortex.

The villagers are being turned into popsicles one by one and then devoured by the ice sculpture giant lizard. There are fewer and fewer people left, and soon it will be Xiafa's turn!

If Xia Fa dies, the attempt to break the time loop will fail, and everyone will be trapped in the terrible time loop forever, just like those poor traveling whales.

On the other hand, since Xia Fa had boarded the ship, he was now a partner, and the pirates did not want Xia Fa to die.

Wow!
A terrifying icy breath swept in from afar, like a sandstorm sweeping across the sky, heading straight for Xiafa, carrying a death-dealing wind that sounded like the wailing of demons from hell.

"Xia Fa, watch out!"

"Get out of the way!"

"Xia Fa, behind you!"

In their desperation, the pirates cried out, even though they knew Xia Fa couldn't hear them.

Xia Fa was running towards the village entrance, his back completely to the giant ice sculpture lizard, as if he had no idea that the terrifying icy breath was approaching.

The yellow earth behind him instantly froze, and the icy breath, powerful enough to freeze everything, was about to strike him.

Just then, Xia Fa seemed to suddenly sense the approaching danger, and rolled to the left.

boom! ! !
The icy breath slammed into the ground, instantly unleashing a massive burst of cold air and countless ice flowers. The shockwave rippled outwards, sending Xia Fa flying several meters away.

Xia Fa was sent flying backward, crashing into an old tree at the village entrance before sliding down.

The old tree was surrounded by dry, fallen leaves. Xia Fa fell into them, crushing countless leaves with a series of soft, crackling sounds.

Seeing that its attack had missed, the giant ice sculpture lizard revealed a cruel look in its scarlet vertical pupils and unleashed another icy breath at Xia Fa below the old elephant tree.

It seemed to want to punish Xia Fa for daring to dodge its attack, or perhaps it wanted to devour him. This icy breath roared straight towards Xia Fa at an unbelievable speed.

Xia Fa was completely disoriented from the fall, and he barely managed to get up, clutching his forehead.

Seeing the icy breath rushing towards him, he seemed to have no way to dodge it anymore.

"No! No no!"

Many pirates cried out in terror: if Xiafa were frozen and then eaten by the ice sculpture giant lizard, everyone would truly be trapped in a time loop!

Besides, no one wanted to see Xiafa die; the pirates had already lost two of their companions!

The next moment, Ice Breath rushed in front of Xia Fa, about to smash into his body.

But at that moment, everything disappeared.

The icy breath that was about to hit Xiafa disappeared, the ice sculpture giant lizard that had half its body protruding from the deep pit disappeared, and the broken ice and frost all over the ground also disappeared.

The village... has undergone its third time loop reset!

Xia Fa's figure appeared on the yellow earth at the village entrance as if by teleportation. He was still holding his head, swaying, and his head was still a little dizzy.

The pirates were taken aback at first, but then they couldn't help but cheer, and even Avalon had a faint smile on his face.

"what happened?"

"Has the time loop reset again?"

"No matter what, this is a good thing!"

"Yes! Xia Fa has another chance to try!"

"But no matter what, he's just an ordinary person without the ability of secret contracts. How is he supposed to deal with that monster? Why did you hit me?"

"Go to hell, don't say anything discouraging, even if Xia Fa can't hear you."

"Yes, all we need to do is support him!"

The pirates were excited and began to speak up, each expressing their own opinions.

After a moment of contemplation, Prince Justinian looked at Avalon:

"Could it be... that hitting that old tree is the way to trigger the time loop reset?"

The Time Loop Ghost Realm gets its name from the fact that time within it can be reset and can loop countless times.

Generally speaking, there is only one way to reset: when the person chosen to solve the time loop puzzle dies, the next person appears and begins the solution.

However, in some time-looping ghost realms, there are other methods to reset the time loop, but they are generally difficult to find.

This time, in particular, the villagers were all carrying dangerous weapons, and the ancestral worship ceremony was about to begin.

The two pirates didn't dare to act rashly before. Even Xia Fa only stumbled upon this method by chance after the ice sculpture giant lizard appeared and the village was in chaos.

Unexpectedly, Avalon shook his head:

"No, it's not that old elephant tree. It's obviously the fallen leaves under the old elephant tree. If you crush one of them, you can reset the time loop in the ghost realm."

Prince Justinian was initially somewhat unconvinced, frowning slightly, but then suddenly realized:

"Hiss...it seems that's true."

If hitting the old elephant tree could trigger a time loop, then there would be no chance of the ice sculpture giant lizard breathing a second time.

Because the time loop resets instantly, without wasting even a second.

Clearly, it was when Xia Fa stood up from the fallen leaves that, while swaying, accidentally stepped on a leaf, thus triggering the time loop.

Just as he stepped on that fallen leaf, the icy breath was about to strike him; it was a close call.

"I just don't know if Xia Fa can figure out the key, but he seems pretty smart."

Avalon sighed softly and continued to gaze intently at the village within the vortex.

Prince Justinian was slightly surprised that Shaphat had received such a compliment from Avalon as "quite intelligent," which was quite unexpected for him.

After all, only truly intelligent people can catch the eye of a genius like Avalon with such high intelligence.

It's worth noting that the Royal Sinnaree Mechanical Academy, which gathered almost all the geniuses of the Augu Kingdom, was once described by Avalon as having "stupid people from students to professors."

In comparison, Avalon's evaluation of Shafa is actually quite good.

Villagers carrying farm tools once again poured out of the houses in the village.

It was the same dark-faced, bearded man who shouted again, and everyone surrounded Xia Fa once more.

The old village chief stepped out from among the villagers, smiling kindly at Xia Fa with a gentle and benevolent gaze:
"Where are you from, young man?"

Xia Fa gave the same answer as before, and followed the village chief and villagers to the ancestral altar.

This time, however, he did not try to conceal his next move by deliberately engaging in conversation with the villagers, as he had done before.

He had his head down, his brows furrowed, as if he were deep in thought.

The villagers had originally wanted to talk to Shafa, or rather, to catch up with Mike, but seeing Shafa's serious expression, they all wisely avoided him.

Xia Fa remained at the very back of the group until the villagers and the village chief stopped outside the dark, deep pit.

Suddenly, Xia Fa raised his head and accelerated sharply once again.
This time, however, he didn't rush towards the burly, dark-faced man with a thick beard, but instead rushed towards the bald man with a sinister expression.

boom!
With a full push, the bald man, who was thin and frail, couldn't withstand the force of Xia Fa's push, who was 1.9 meters tall. He was sent flying backward and crashed into the deep pit in a parabolic arc.

"What the hell are you doing?!"

An angry roar rang out from the burly man with a dark face and a thick beard.

Seeing his cronies being pushed down to worship their ancestors by Little Mike, he was consumed by rage, like a mad bull, about to charge at Xia Fa.

"Rossehu! This is the time for ancestral worship!"

The old village chief gave a low shout, his tone carrying an air of authority for the first time.

The burly, dark-faced man with a thick beard was taken aback at first, his massive body seemingly frozen in place. Then, his anger gradually subsided.

His gaze, sharp as a dagger, pierced Xia Fa with intense resentment before he turned and knelt down with the villagers before the deep pit.

The sounds of prayer and chanting rose up once again.

"Great ancestors!"

"Please accept the offerings from your descendants!"

"Give us your sacred objects, and let us gain freedom and happiness!"

Xia Fa shook his head, giving the dark-faced, bearded man who was kneeling down with his back to him a pitiful and disdainful look.

You know, in the last time loop, when he pushed Rossehu down, his bald, hook-nosed brother didn't avenge him like this, and didn't even say a word.

Without much thought, Xia Fa quietly retreated to the back of the crowd. Then, while everyone was sincerely praying, he turned around and immediately ran towards the old elephant tree.

Just as he had run less than half the distance,
A monstrous howl, like that of a broken violin, erupted from the deep pit, followed by a surge of intense heat that engulfed the entire village.

For some unknown reason, this time, the monster that appeared in the deep pit... actually turned into that giant fire python again!

boom! ! ! ! !
The scorching breath of fire spewed from the gaping maw of the giant fire serpent, forming a wall of fire not far from the altar, instantly sealing off all the villagers' escape routes.

Immediately afterwards, the giant fire python opened its mouth and inhaled, and countless villagers were lifted off the ground, as if swept by a gale, and involuntarily flew towards its giant mouth.

Xia Fa happened to be outside the wall of fire. The giant fire python was clearly planning to eat more villagers first before dealing with him, the one who had escaped.

At the critical moment, Xia Fa glanced at the giant fire python from afar through the wall of fire.

Like the ice sculpture giant lizard, the fire python's lower body was also located in the deep pit, seemingly unable to move.

This giant fire python had no claws, so it could only use its suction to pull up the villagers, but even so, the villagers, being ordinary people, were completely unable to resist it.

Without thinking twice, Xia Fa continued running wildly toward the old tree.

The next moment, the screams abruptly ceased, and the flames vanished.

The scorching heat distorted the air, and amidst the swirling ashes and burning flames, the crimson eyes of the giant fire serpent gazed at Xiafa in the distance.

It had just opened its massive jaws, preparing to unleash a fiery breath upon Xiafa.

Almost the next second, Xia Fa stepped on the fallen leaves under the old elephant tree.

Time seemed to freeze for a moment, and then the burning houses, the swirling ashes, the ferocious fire python... everything vanished.

The village has returned to its original state, with smoke rising from every household, quiet and peaceful.

It was as if the disaster that had just occurred had never happened.

"Shafa has indeed discovered the key to resetting time!"

Avalon's eyes brightened, but his face still held a deep look of contemplation.

"However, a way to break this time loop still doesn't seem to have been found..."

The other pirates, however, were extremely nervous, watching the village in the whirlpool and observing Xia Fa's every move. When they saw that time had been reset again, they all breathed a sigh of relief, but immediately became tense again.

After all, the monster was about to reappear as the villagers held their ancestral worship ceremony.
Whether it's the Flame Serpent or the Ice Sculpture Giant Lizard, if Xia Fa is careless and gets hit by their breath, all his efforts will be in vain.

Xia Fa's figure reappeared on the yellow earth at the entrance of the village.

But this time, things are quite different.

A faint smile appeared on his face, no longer the furrowed brow in deep thought.

He seemed to have found a way to break the time loop and was full of confidence.

Avalon naturally noticed Shafa's subtle expression. For the first time in a century, this angelic overlord, the greatest genius of the Augu Palace, showed a look of surprise:

"Xia Fa has already found a way to crack it? How did he find it?"

Even Avalon was so surprised, so Prince Justinian and the others were completely baffled.

But everyone was genuinely curious, wanting to know if Xia Fa had really found a way to break the time loop.

You know, if Xia Fa really breaks this time loop, he can not only save everyone, but also save those traveling whales who are exhausted by the time loop!
So, once everyone is free from this time-looping eerie realm, they will be able to capture these eleven traveling whales!
Xia Fa made the greatest contribution, so he naturally got the lion's share, and the others also got a share. It was a win-win situation for everyone!
The key lies in whether Xia Fa can break this time loop.

At this moment, Dagney crossed her arms, her sky-blue eyes also looking expectantly at Xiafa's figure in the vortex.

In the village, the villagers once again emerged from their thatched huts, carrying pitchforks and other farm tools.

The same burly man with a dark face and a thick beard shouted again, and the villagers surrounded Xia Fa once more.

The old village chief stepped forward from the crowd, looked at Xia Fa with a kind expression on his face.

"Where are you from, young man?"

Xia Fa used the same trick again, fooling everyone, and for the third time followed the villagers to the deep pit.

This time, Xia Fa was different. Standing at 1.9 meters tall, with the physique of a cheetah that no one in the village would dare to mess with under normal circumstances, he put his arms around the shoulders of the dark-faced, bearded man and the bald, hook-nosed man, and started exchanging pleasantries.

"Brother Roseju, do you remember me? Haha, you even took me pheasant hunting when we were kids..."

The two men were the type to bully the weak and fear the strong. Seeing that Xia Fa was so tall and strong, and that he had come from a big city, they immediately started chatting with him enthusiastically.

As they talked, Xia Fa put his arm around the two of them and walked almost at the front, until they reached the edge of the dark pit.

Suddenly, he released his arms and placed his palms on the backs of the two men, giving them a shove before the black-faced, bearded man and the bald, hook-nosed man could react!
The bald, hook-nosed man fell straight down, while the dark-faced, bearded man swayed for a moment, managing to withstand Xia Fa's push with one hand.

But Xia Fa clearly wasn't going to give him a chance, raising his leg and kicking him in the buttocks.

The burly man with a dark face and a thick beard was kicked so hard that he bent backward and fell directly into the deep pit.

The old village chief was taken aback at first, then a look of astonishment appeared on his face:

"Little Mike, what... what are you doing? Only one person is needed to perform the ancestral worship!"

Xia Fa, however, smiled and looked at the old village chief:
"Don't worry, Village Chief. This is the only way to obtain the ancestral artifact. Trust me."

Not only were the old village chief and the villagers taken aback, but everyone on the Red Porcupine was also puzzled.

Why... why did Xia Fa do this?
Could doing this really break the time loop and retrieve the sacred object for the villagers?
Only Avalon, after a brief moment of contemplation, suddenly brightened up and abruptly raised his head:

"I see! So that's how it is! So that's how it is! Hahaha!"

He was quite pleased, like a student who had solved a world-class problem.

Everyone was even more confused, and suddenly felt that their intelligence had been crushed by Xiafa first, and then by Avalon.

Prince Justinian, in particular, was quite dissatisfied and, without asking Avalon, began to ponder the matter on his own.

Just then, in the dark, deep pit within the village, an unbelievable scene unfolded!

(End of this chapter)