Taoist Master of Fantasy World

Chapter 16 Three Questions about the Stone Lion
Xu Zhenyun's will flashed brightly and dimly, and he immediately appeared in front of the short, fat bamboo-shaped jade platform in the world of sea of ​​clouds.

After officially entering the boundary, the "light curtain" at the main entrance has indeed dispersed.

Xu Zhenyun took a deep breath and stepped in decisively!
The moment he crossed the main entrance, Xu Zhenyun's vision widened.

The space is extremely wide.

There were no windows on the surrounding walls, and there was no obvious light source, but the brightness inside was very high. It was as if I was bathing in the moonlight, and I felt inexplicably comfortable all over.

This spaciousness and brightness are completely different from the terrifying secret realm Xu Zhenyun imagined.

His heart skipped a beat, and Xu Zhenyun turned around sharply.

The "portal" behind him has completely disappeared; he is already in a completely enclosed space.

Xu Zhenyun walked slowly, looking at six directions.

The ground is paved with bluestone, neat and even the gaps are of average thickness.

In the spacious hall, there are six thick stone pillars on the left and right. Different types of strange animals are carved on the stone pillars, with teeth and claws showing, and they are vivid.

Suddenly, the wind came from the back of Xu Zhenyun's head, fast and fierce!
Xu Zhenyun reacted very quickly, blocked sideways, and then jumped back three feet.

Turning around and looking, a "guard" covered in golden armor appeared out of nowhere, holding an iron rod two feet long in his hand.

The golden-armored guard was extremely tall, almost like a normal person, and was a full head taller than Xu Zhenyun.

Wearing a bronze mask on his face, his appearance cannot be seen clearly.

He missed a single hit and continued to attack, moving the iron rod like the wind.

Xu Zhenyun felt helpless and dodged again and again. He was at a disadvantage for a while and felt aggrieved:

"It's not fair!"

Although the "Liuhe Exquisite Tower" is known as a desperate situation, it is not difficult to see that the "Golden Armored Warrior" is just an appetizer.

With his combat power as "the most powerful martial arts contender in the national election", it should not be difficult to deal with it.

After receiving a move, Xu Zhenyun thought that his strength and speed were not inferior to the golden armored guard.

But now, I am in "dream mode" and have no weapons at my disposal; this greatly affects my performance in actual combat.

Suddenly, Xu Zhenyun had a strange idea.

Following the guidance of his consciousness, Xu Zhenyun reached out and fished it out in the air, and a copper rod appeared in his palm.

Very handy and familiar!
Xu Zhenyun subconsciously glanced at the head of the stick, and sure enough, seven inches from the top, there was a word "Xu" the size of a fingernail engraved on it.

Can even my own commonly used weapons be manifested?
Xu Zhenyun was in great spirits, brandished his copper stick, and used Baishi Martial Arts School's superior martial arts "36-Way Dog Fighting Stick Technique" to fight against the golden-armored guards!
In the way of martial arts, when it reaches the level of advanced martial arts, it is difficult to distinguish one from another in terms of moves. It is more of a contest of hard power at the level of physical strength and speed.

Although the golden-armored guard was large in size, his basic quality was slightly inferior to Xu Zhenyun's. In less than fifty rounds, he was killed and retreated steadily.

After another thirty rounds of fierce fighting, Xu Zhenyun completely took the initiative.With a flick of his backhand, he was free to hit the golden armored guard on the forehead with the stick, knocking off the helmet and the bronze mask at the same time.

Seeing the face of the golden-armored guard, Xu Zhenyun was slightly surprised.

Under the bronze mask, it turned out to be a piece of white, with no facial features, only the outline of the eyes and nose, like a mannequin displaying clothes in a shopping mall.

In the main hall, a boundless, majestic and solemn voice suddenly came:

"Qualified to accept the assessment."

Xu Zhenyun was not surprised - it was just an appetizer.

But I have to say that the combat effectiveness of the golden armored guards is pretty good.

Being able to persist for nearly a hundred moves before losing, at least he has the strength to be in the top [-] in the martial arts category in the national election.

The bar is really high!

If ascetics in other subjects such as Wen, Mathematics, Yuan, and Bones are not good at practical combat, will the entrance examination change?
Sudden changes in the palace interrupted Xu Zhenyun's thoughts——

Starting from the center of the hall, it gradually spreads, and the space gradually sinks, forming a huge whirlpool.

The whirlpool grew larger and deeper, and soon reached Xu Zhenyun's feet.

Xu Zhenyun quickly retreated to the edge of the hall, no more than ten feet away from the wall.If this vortex continues to expand, there will be no place left.

Fortunately, the changes have stopped here and the surging "whirlpool" has stabilized.

Looking closer, the overall cone-shaped pit turbine is vaguely visible, and there is a clear sense of separation.

The seven floors of space overlap and have distinct levels.At the edge of his left hand, a golden staircase spiraled down.

Half virtual and half real, it connects the second layer, the third layer... a total of seven circles.

This is... an inverted "tower" shape!

It turns out that the name "Liuhe Linglong Pagoda" came from this.

Xu Zhenyun went down the golden stairs without hesitation, and after circling for a week, he reached the "underground level".

The entrance to the second underground floor is on the opposite side, but it is blocked by a "light curtain" similar to the door.

It is not difficult to draw the conclusion: Only by passing this level of test can you be qualified to continue downward.

Looking around, the architectural style of this "basement floor" is roughly the same as the main hall above, except that it is smaller in size and is an octagonal space.

There are twelve pillars missing, but there are two more things:

One is a stone tablet that is as tall as a person but only about a foot wide, standing at the entrance; the other is a lifelike stone lion statue lying in the center of this floor.

Xu Zhenyun came to the stone tablet first.

The top of the stele is cast in the shape of a lotus, and the inscription is short and clear:
"On the first floor of Liuhe Linglong Tower, there are 860 participants and 860 passers."

Everyone passes?Xu Zhenyun felt relieved.

But then I felt awe in my heart. This abnormal pass rate just showed that there was a hidden murderous intention in the subsequent assessment.

"Trialist, come here."

Xu Zhenyun suddenly raised his head!
This voice is obviously not the Tianyin of the main hall, but has a clear source.

Sure enough, the lying stone lion in the center of the first floor seemed to come to life. He slowly extended his fat right paw to wave, like a lucky cat, and repeated: "Trialist, come here. Trialist, come here." , Trialist, passed..."

Thinking of the [-]% success rate of passing the first level, Xu Zhenyun felt no pressure and went directly to the stone lion.

The stone lion slowly turned its head, like a clockwork machine. There was no trace of emotion in its huge purple pupils, and it spoke at an even pace: "The first level, there is no danger, just three questions to all the testers. "

"Are you ready?"

Xu Zhenyun cheered up and said in a deep voice: "Ready!"

Shishi nodded slightly and asked unhurriedly: "First question."

"When the time comes to decide, do you choose the 'ideal' way or the 'rational' way?"

Xu Zhenyun looked confused and blurted out: "What the hell?"

The stone lion made a "hu" sound, shook its head heavily, and the tone of his speech also showed a little more vicissitudes and emotion:

"It turns out that he is an illiterate again... After thousands of years, the level of cultural theory in this world does not seem to have improved."

But its purple eyes changed in light and dark, and it patiently explained:
"The so-called 'rationalism' means respecting the original heart, intuitive direction, and making decisions with a single thought; what I believe in my heart is the truth." "The so-called 'rationalism' means respecting the rules of operation of the world, understanding the situation, and making decisions before taking action. .”

Xu Zhenyun felt relieved, which is not difficult to understand; in the novels I have read, there are many more high-level settings...

But you started talking about "idealism and rationality". Who knows what happened, but you actually said that I was illiterate...

The stone lion lay on the ground with both feet, posing like a kitten holding hands, and said quietly: "Choose, young man."

Xu Zhenyun thought for a moment, frowned, and said, "Do I have to choose?"

"If I have enough time, of course I can choose to 'assess the situation clearly, make a decision and act'; but if the matter is urgent, such as someone sneaking up on me from behind, then I will definitely react based on intuition..."

Xu Zhenyun said plausibly.

The stone lion was stunned, tilting its big head to look at Xu Zhenyun, and sprayed white mist from its nostrils.

Xu Zhenyun suddenly felt guilty.

He doesn't like to argue, but as a time traveler, the consciousness of "I want them all" is deeply rooted in his bones, so his first reaction is not to make a choice in a formal way; instead, he carefully examines the topic to see if he can take both things into account.

The stone lion was petrified for three minutes, and suddenly an angry expression appeared on its face, shouting: "Lazy boy!"

He stretched out his right palm like lightning, and struck Xu Zhenyun three times on the head with his sandbag-sized lion fist.

I just heard the stone lion grunting: "Forget it, I'll see for myself."

Its purple eyes suddenly brightened, and it met Xu Zhenyun's eyes.

Xu Zhenyun was in a trance for a while, feeling that there was a wonderful power that "pointed directly to his heart" guiding him, making him speak the true answer very naturally.

But just when Xu Zhenyun wanted to say, "Evaluate the situation, make a decision and act," his mouth got ahead of him and said without thinking: "I choose 'ideal'! What I believe in my heart is the truth."

"what?"

The unexpected change completely stunned Xu Zhenyun.

After being stunned for a while, Xu Zhenyun finally figured out the reason.

After time travel, the souls and emotions of Xu Zhenyun and the original owner were completely integrated, as if they were one person.

But regarding this issue, Xu Zhenyun and the original owner have different ideas.

The wonderful characteristic of "directly pointing to the heart" emanating from the purple eyes of the stone lion is equivalent to splitting the two merged personalities in an instant and extracting one of the only answers.

Originally, Xu Zhenyun, as a time traveler, was the leader of consciousness, and he should prevail.

But this power of "directly pointing to the heart" is very wonderful. Whichever will in the body is more determined, it will be "extracted" faster.

Xu Zhenyun oscillates slightly between "idealism" and "rationalism", but he prefers "rationalism".

But the original owner is a person who believes in intuition very much, so the original owner’s consciousness took the lead first and completed the answer!
Unexpected changes...

Is a blessing or a curse?

It won't make me the first person ever to fail at the first level, right?

Xu Zhenyun felt uneasy.

Shi Shi ignored it and continued to ask: "Second question, please make a choice: 'Follow the trend' or 'Follow the trend'?"

Since it was already known that Xu Zhenyun was illiterate, Shi Shishi explained directly:

"The so-called 'following the trend' means having no attachment, being flexible, being able to bend and stretch, and being able to advance and retreat."

"The so-called 'No Advance' means that the edge of the sword points to the point of advancing without retreating; fight until you have no regrets, and fight until death!"

But the stone lion seemed to be infected by what he said. He suddenly became excited, raised his front feet, and spun around in a gorgeous circle before lying down again.

Xu Zhenyun hesitated slightly.

He is definitely more inclined to "follow the trend" - before time travel, Xu Zhenyun was keen on Internet writing and talked about the novel "Gou Daoliu". A man is a man who can bend and stretch. He can fight when he can be beaten and run away when he can't... He definitely shouldn't be a dazed young man.

But he also has a passionate dream in his heart: thousands of armies can defeat enemies and be invincible, which is very fascinating.

And looking at the stone lion's very excited appearance, it is obvious that it is more inclined to "inexhaustible". Is this answer a better choice?
Seeing Xu Zhenyun's delay in answering, Shi Shi's eyes widened like bells, and he opened his mouth wide: "I see... You kid is thinking about how to argue with me again... Hum, don't give me a chance! I See for yourself.”

The purple eyes are shining again!
Xu Zhenyun's spirit immediately fell into a state of elegance and trance, and he replied: "I have no ambitions, and I will fight until I have no regrets, and I will fight until death!"

The smooth utterance of this sentence was actually faster than the reaction to the first question!
……

Xu Zhenyun was caught off guard again.

It was the original owner’s subconscious answer that took the lead again!
Xu Zhenyun pondered for a long time, and finally decided to respect his heart and choose the way of "following the trend" - being able to bend and stretch, advance and retreat.

But I didn’t expect that the original owner was very obsessed with this issue.

In fact, the original owner was relatively easy-going in family life, and sometimes a little funny; but in fact, he was aloof and arrogant in his heart, which can be seen from the self-portraits accumulated in his childhood.

"Wherever the edge of the sword points, there is no retreat." This is the motto in his heart.

In the process of answering, the consciousness of the original owner was still stronger and "emerged" directly.

The stone lion had no expression on his face and continued to ask:

"The last question - 'ruthless' or 'sentient'?"

"The so-called 'ruthless' person is one whose heart is unmoved by the eight winds and is like iron. No matter how many winds and clouds arise, I look at the world with a cold eye."

"The so-called 'sentimental' person is one who easily gets drunk when picking up flowers, hurts his mood when falling leaves, and rises and falls thousands of times. I laugh at myself and face all living beings."

In fact, "ruthlessness" and "sentiment" do not need to be explained. This is the simplest concept.

After explaining, Shishi was too lazy to talk nonsense, and his two big purple eyes directly discharged!
Xu Zhenyun sighed inexplicably, looked into the distance, and said leisurely: "The road is ruthless."

"what……"

After coming back to his senses, Xu Zhenyun was speechless!

Different from the slight hesitation in the first two questions, Xu Zhenyun's answer to this question is relatively clear.

His previous experience on earth was full of colors and unrestrained emotions, so it was natural for him to choose the path of "sentiment".

But there is still no competition against the original owner.

In Xinyuan Continent, when you embark on the path of Taoism, no matter what kind of literature, martial arts, or mathematics, the first lesson of the Tao Heart Course is about "the ruthlessness of the Tao."

Although the meaning of "the ruthless road" is profound, it is not to turn everyone into a piece of wood without emotion, but to pay attention to "the depth of love turns into ruthlessness"; but the final footing is after all the four "the ruthless road" Character.

In the consciousness of the original owner, "ruthless" is the first meaning, and "affectionate" is the second meaning. This is natural.

Suddenly, Xu Zhenyun was surprised to discover:

After the three questions were disturbed by the stone lion's power of "directly pointing to the heart", the original owner's soul gave the answer, and the answer was different from the answer in his own heart!

The stone lion knocked its huge head lightly, then returned to a steady tone and said: "Huhu... the first level of the assessment is over."

"Remember - the three questions in the first level are the key outlines for the next six levels; don't forget your answers!"

"Go away."

After the words fell, light curtains scattered across the entrance leading to the second floor.

(End of this chapter)