We agreed to seek enlightenment together, but how did you end up seeking enlightenment for my mother

[Crafting: Enchantment - Leather Boots]

[Durability: 100%]

【Effect 1: Binding Curse】

【Effect 2: Deep Sea Explorer III】

[Description: Exquisitely handcrafted item, sized to fit the first wearer. Enchanted to increase underwater movement speed. Cannot be completely removed. Effective only for those at the Transcendent rank and below.]

Their eyes swept over the words "cannot be completely removed," and the two of them frowned simultaneously.

"Xu Zhou, you keep this. I'll pass."

Wu Lulu politely declined, her attitude quite firm. She didn't want her delicate feet to be welded into these boots for the rest of her life, even though they were made of soft leather, had exquisite stitching, and had a retro travel style.

"If you can't take it off completely, it means you can still pull it out a little bit, which won't prevent you from cleaning your feet," Xu Zhou tried to persuade him.

Before she could finish speaking, the girl had already shaken her head like a rattle drum, her two chubby ears swaying wildly.

"No, no, no! I don't want to wear it in the shower, and this thing will probably break down on my feet faster than you think."

Wu Lulu didn't spell it out, but Xu Zhou instantly understood.

He recalled the girl's transformation a few nights ago, her feet turning into large, ferocious wolf paws. If he actually put those boots on, they would probably be ruined on the spot.

It seems these shoes will have to be stuffed into my bag for now, taking up a space for nothing.

As for the last gain of this trip, it completely exceeded Xu Zhou's expectations.

【Creation: The Damaged Village Core - Dalin Village】

[Note: This is the spark of human civilization, but it has been completely destroyed. It contains the coordinates of Dalin Village and can be used for long-distance teleportation via the Shim Statue.]

While Xu Zhou was still pondering the practical use of this thing, Wu Lulu beside him exclaimed in surprise first.

"This is... a teleportation point!"

"Teleportation point?" Xu Zhou tilted his head, puzzled. "Explain it in more detail?"

Wu Lulu was taken aback, seemingly unaware of what she had just said. Her eyes began to dart around, and she mumbled incoherently before finally offering a plausible explanation.

Xu Zhou was already used to it; without even thinking, he knew the second personality had gone to consult him again.

It's now almost a given that whenever Wu Lulu says something that doesn't reflect her level of education, it's always attributed to her older sister.

"The Infinite World is extremely large, so large that it has almost no boundaries..." Wu Lulu paused, then added, "It does not include the sky and the earth, but only its horizontal extent."

Then she continued:

"Every time an extraordinary person enters the Infinite World, if they haven't set up a teleportation point in advance, they will be randomly teleported to any location, and there is a very high probability that they will be a hundred and eight thousand miles away from their previous location."

"So this thing is like my anchor point in this world?" Xu Zhou guessed.

"Yes, with it, you can choose whether to go directly to Dalin Village or continue to be randomly teleported," Wu Lulu said.

Xu Zhou weighed the core in his hand, lost in thought.

If it can be utilized, Dalin Village seems like it could be transformed into a safe outpost?

Some buildings in the village remain intact, and the candles used to prevent monsters from appearing are still functioning.

While it's unrealistic to recruit a new batch of villagers to settle down, if I have more superhuman companions in the future, perhaps I can, like the white-haired loli, directly establish a long-term presence in the infinite world.

After all, only in the celestial world can one have more opportunities to come into contact with celestial objects and even comprehend the secrets of the path.

"Under normal circumstances, what is the process for setting up a teleportation point?" Xu Zhou asked again.

"I only know one way: complete more tasks for the villagers, increase their favorability, and once the conditions are met, touch the Shim statue to bind with the village."

Wu Lulu then added, "However, if you harm the villagers, you will not only be marked by the iron golem, but the bond will also be broken."

This answer completely dispelled Xu Zhou's concerns.

Dalin Village has been abandoned, which means that unless he brings people here on his own initiative, or someone is lucky enough to be randomly teleported to the vicinity, it will be extremely difficult for other superhumans to find this place again.

An ideal secret hideout was just handed to us for free.

Wu Lulu's innocent gaze gradually focused, and she became lively and agile again, clearly indicating that she had severed the communication connection with her second personality.

"By the way, this is the first time I've ever seen a village core. I didn't expect it to have this kind of function. You're really lucky."

"It has nothing to do with luck; it's the result of our hard work," Xu Zhou corrected.

Upon hearing this, Wu Lulu immediately put her hands on her hips excitedly, wagging her tail so hard it almost flew off.

"Hmph~ Of course, don't underestimate my super strength! Look, my arm is almost fully healed!"

As she spoke, she reached out to pull off the bandage on her left arm.

Xu Zhou had a sudden inspiration and quickly grabbed her.

"Hey! Wait, don't pick them yet!"

The girl blinked, tilted her head to look at him, and looked puzzled.

Xu Zhou cleared his throat and explained in a low voice:

"Listen to me, just keep it bandaged and don't take it off. If Chi Feng sees your hand is still bandaged, he'll definitely think you haven't fully recovered. When the fight breaks out in the Extraordinary Challenge, you can just give him a righteous sneak attack!"

"Wow, there are such underhanded tricks? No wonder I have such super wisdom!"

Wu Lulu's eyes lit up, and she seemed to picture the bald priest's miserable state in her mind. She immediately covered her mouth and laughed sinisterly.

Xu Zhou knew perfectly well that with Chi Feng's cunning, this trick would almost certainly not fool him, but it would be different if Wu Lulu used it.

Who would have thought that such an innocent child as Wu Lulu would lie?

"Huh? Am I implicitly admitting that Wu Lulu is a silly child? Isn't that a bit impolite?"

As long as it wasn't said aloud, there was no offense involved, and Xu Zhou quickly put that thought out of his mind.

At this point, there are less than two days left before the invitation challenge begins.

The two did gain quite a lot, but to be honest, it wasn't very helpful for the challenge; most of it consisted of items and props for the future.

Besides these gains from Dalin Village, there was another matter that had been troubling the two of them.

The mark I received at the raider outpost has quietly changed at some point.

[Marked: Sign of Trial (To be activated)]

Xu Zhou had consulted the village chief, who also shook his head and said he didn't know. However, he had a feeling that the mark must be related to Dalin Village, otherwise it wouldn't have changed in the last few days.

As for the specific triggering conditions, we can only investigate that after returning to the real world.

Returning to Xu Zhou himself, the greatest gain from this trip was the Seed of Path, which directly revealed Xu Zhou's future advancement path.

【III. Nurturing a Free and Unfettered Form: Using the path as fuel to melt away shackles, transforming into a unique and unrestrained form. (Condition: Consumes one Seed of Path) (???)】

He originally thought that unlocking the option of "turning rotten wood into flowers" was entirely based on inspiration, but now he realizes that he needs to obtain the corresponding materials first.

Although the conditions represented by the last three question marks are still unknown, he thinks he can give it a try when the reserve value is full next time.

With its foolproof design that brings flowers to life, any additional needs would naturally inspire him on the spot.

The only thing that puzzled him was why it was [Destruction - Judgment] and not Justice?

Xu Zhou wanted to consult Wu Lulu about this route, but on the one hand, the girl herself lacked knowledge, and on the other hand, he really couldn't trust that so-called "older sister".

So he had to keep this question to himself for the time being, and prepare to investigate it on his own after returning to the real world.

Waiting is always long.

Taking advantage of these few days, Xu Zhou didn't stay idle. He simply asked Wu Lulu to teach him some basic combat skills.

However, it turned out that Wu Lulu was not a qualified teacher at all. Her teaching was entirely based on intuition, and she would say whatever came to mind. Sometimes she would even use vague phrases such as "do this first and then that."

Xu Zhou spent two whole days studying diligently, but in the end he only mastered one unique skill – feinting and running away.

In short, it means first assuming a charging forward stance, then turning around and running away while shouting loudly.

It wasn't exactly a resounding success, but it was certainly a waste of effort.

On the contrary, Xu Zhou's self-taught knife throwing was more skillful. After practicing for a few days, he could hit the target at least eight out of ten times in ten throws. As for whether the knife hit the blade or the handle, that was none of your concern.

By using the strands of his true words to bind a short sword as a rope blade, and with the aid of subtle mental adjustments, he almost never missed the target, achieving an astonishingly high hit rate, which left Wu Lulu in awe.

And so, in this noisy and cheerful atmosphere, three days passed in the blink of an eye.

The invitation challenge has finally arrived as promised.

The familiar discomfort of teleportation washed over me like a tidal wave, and the moment my vision flipped, an unfamiliar notification sound rang in my ears.

[Enter the challenge: The Longest Night in the Black Forest Mansion.]

[Time limit: 12 hours.]

[Background Information: The Earl of Lionheart is hosting a grand birthday banquet for his beloved only daughter, inviting numerous celebrities and dignitaries to celebrate.]

Your identity: Treasure Hunter.

Your objective: Find the most precious treasure in the Black Forest mansion and survive the banquet safely.

Your faction: None.

[Hint 1: This round of challenges has ended. The team with the highest overall evaluation will receive the grand prize.]

[Tip 2: They are lurking in the shadows, so please remain vigilant.]

As the notification tone ended, Xu Zhou finally saw his surroundings clearly.

This appears to be a corridor inside a mansion. The light is dim, and it is pitch black outside the window. The walls on both sides are covered with old, faded wallpaper, and the candlelight on the metal candlesticks flickers, casting the spider webs hanging between the beams and pillars in an alternating light and shadow.

Chi Feng was not by his side, indicating that members of the same team would be teleported separately.

However, when Xu Zhou saw the figure standing beside him, the corners of his mouth finally slowly turned into a smile.

A silver-white metallic giant stood quietly beside him, its body gleaming with a cold, icy light.

Xu Zhou smiled with relief.

"You should have said it was a great game earlier, otherwise I would have been so nervous for nothing."

"I'm invincible this time, do whatever you want!"