Nobody told me this wasn't a game.

Obeying the king's orders is considered loyalty;

To overcome all difficulties and achieve one's goal is an honor.

Currently, their duty is to explore the ruins and retrieve the treasures to present to the king.

but……

Should we just ignore God's warnings?

After careful consideration, the general made a decision.

He first arranged for a small team to ride back to the capital at full speed to report the intelligence, and then ordered the remaining soldiers to stay put and await further instructions.

Finally, he walked up to Zuo Chang and said, "Adventurers, I'll go with you into the ruins and explore what's inside."

Zuo Chang asked, "Are you alone?"

"I am enough on my own!"

The general kicked his sword into his hand and casually twirled it.

His expression was resolute as he continued, "From the bottom of my heart, I do not want to enter the ruins. The warnings of the gods cannot be ignored, but I am bound by the king's command... Even if I have to pay the price, I must accept it with equanimity!"

Oops...

Zuo Chang looked at the general in front of him, whose flaxen curly hair was neatly combed, and said, "You can send one of your men in."

"That's against my principles! Let's go! You two adventurers are just worthless lives anyway, you're not worth dying for!"

The general took the lead and headed towards the ruins.

Zuo Chang and the war demon had been impatient for a long time. Although there was only one general and they might be short of manpower, it was still better than having both of them go in.

……

……

The two people and the dog bypassed the stones blocking their path and passed through an extremely narrow gap.

A chill washed over them, and the air smelled musty. They walked through the half-collapsed gate of the ruins and entered.

Zuo Chang squinted and noticed a thin stream of gold on the ground, guiding him in the right direction.

It's exactly the same as in the game.

The general glanced around warily, instinctively tightening his grip on his sword hilt. The next instant, he noticed that Zuo Chang appeared completely relaxed, showing no sign of tension, displaying utter experience and composure that instantly overshadowed him, the general.

How does this work?

The general forced himself to relax and asked, "Adventurer, you seem very relaxed."

"I've been here once before."

"……makes sense."

If even an adventurer can easily navigate this place, how could he, a general, not be able to adapt?

Thinking of this, he relaxed: "The 'Immortal Pot' you presented is indeed a remarkable treasure... What's inside this ruin? Uh, I'm not talking about treasure, but... danger, or rather, enemies."

There was a pause.

The general added, “Of course, I am not afraid of any danger, nor do I believe anything can defeat me. I just… you know, I am a general, and I must have a general understanding of the situation in order to make appropriate deployments. If I knew what I might be facing, I think I would perform better.”

Oh--

This flaxen-haired general seems to be much more cautious than Zuo Chang imagined!

But this was also Zuo Chang's first time here.

He had no idea what was inside, and could only say, based on the "myths" he had heard before, "There is a dragon in here."

"what?"

The general stopped in his tracks.

He chuckled, revealing his pearly white teeth: "—Dragon? What dragon?"

"Abyssal Dragon?"

"...Is it the kind of abyssal dragon I know?"

Zuo Chang spread his hands: "Hmm?"

The general's expression turned serious, and he immediately said, "Attention, everyone! Adventurers, we must turn back immediately. We need to devise a new strategy!"

You've already come all this way, do you really want to leave?

Zuo Chang quickly said, "I'm just kidding, General. How could there be an Abyss Dragon here? If there were, would I have survived last time? There's nothing here except treasure. We can explore with peace of mind; there's absolutely no chance of anything going wrong!"

Chapter 277 Is extreme selflessness also a form of selfishness?

call……

The general seemed to have calmed down. He tried to relax his body and unbuttoned his white shirt.

Then, he looked at Zuo Chang and said, "My name is Bai Huai."

Zuo Chang was puzzled and turned to look at him: "I am Zuo Chang."

"Hmm? You're also from the eastern part of the empire?"

"what?"

Seeing the suspicion on Zuo Chang's face, Bai Huai felt bored. Zuo Chang's name was too simple, quite different from that of ordinary citizens in the Golden Empire. Bai Huai had even thought he was from the same hometown.

Judging from this, it doesn't seem so.

He added, "I never associate with adventurers, after all, we're from very different backgrounds and not on the same path. But now... it seems we have no choice but to cooperate. Mr. Zuo, let professionals do what they're good at. You're not good at leading troops into battle, and I'm not good at exploring ruins, so I'll leave the rest to you, my friend!"

Zuo Chang nodded haphazardly: "Yes, Chairman Bai."

"??"

What Chairman? What is Zuo Chang talking about?

Bai Huai gestured with his hand: "Give me the instructions, and I will obey."

Strictly speaking, Zuo Chang was just a player. He had never engaged in formal ruin exploration even once.

But the gods clearly put a lot of thought into constructing this "side story".

A shimmering golden line on the ground guided the way forward. Without hesitation, Zuo Chang stepped on the golden line and moved forward.

in this way--

An untimely aroma of tea suddenly appeared.

On the platform at the corner ahead, a young man dressed in white sat on the ground. A tea set was placed on the low table in front of him. He brewed and poured tea, his expression serene and his movements elegant, repeating this process over and over.

The general frowned.

Before encountering the strange old man in red, the general would have assumed that the young man was the one who had gotten there first to steal the treasure.

But now, he subconsciously thought that the young man making tea in front of him was also a spirit or monster!

Therefore, he remained silent and simply placed his palm on the hilt of the sword.

"You are the one chosen by the gods... Your Excellency?"

The young man in white glanced at Zuo Chang, unhurried.

His choice of words was strange; why was it "Your Excellency"?

The young man pushed over a teacup and said, "Please have some tea."

Zuo Chang didn't play games with him: "I'm not thirsty. And I dare not drink."

"Rest assured, as the 'God of Storms and Sky'—though merely an incarnation that has invaded the borderlands—I would disdain to use poison."

Invading the illusion?

An incarnation of the Wind God?

A huge amount of information!

Zuo Chang tilted his head slightly and asked, "I encountered an old man in red earlier, who was he?"

"The gods of fire and bronze are merely incarnations. The space-time you are in now is the gap between fantasy and reality; take a step to the left, and you'll find fantasy."

click -

The wind god extended two fingers and moved the cup in front of him to the left.

The bottom of the cup rubbed against the stone surface, making an unpleasant sound.

Then, he moved the cup to the right.

"One step to the right is reality. The goddess is very cunning. She has stored her true form here, hoping that when the promised day comes, she can send her messenger here to rescue her."

To be honest.

Zuo Chang was already dizzy from listening.

He looked down at the puppy at his feet, but the War Demon didn't even raise its head and said directly, "Don't look at me. I have a very long lifespan, but I spend 90% of my time in a sealed state. I don't understand what it's saying."

Ok.

Zuo Chang honestly replied, "I don't understand."

"I'm not good at explaining or describing; I'm good at gardening and tea ceremony."

The young man in white...

Or rather, the wind god picked up the teacup and took a small sip.

"I'll keep it short. The goddess has single-handedly altered the world beyond recognition, and this certainly comes at a price! The price is that she must use all her power to maintain the system she envisions, a process that constantly depletes her divine power. When her power is insufficient to resist the will of the world, she will collapse."

"This is the origin of the Promised Day. The Promised Day is not a legend, but a systemic flaw in the divine system; it will surely come."

"Now, the tipping point has arrived. The goddess is at her last gasp; she is not far from death!"

"And you are the 'agent' of this era, specifically responsible for retrieving the divine body... and then initiating the next cycle of sorrowful reincarnation."

Feng Shen raised his eyes and looked at Zuo Chang.

His eyes were filled with malice: "Don't you think—she's too selfish and too arrogant?"