A Psychiatrist's Bizarre Game Journey / Dream of the Mist

At the same time, Zhang Buyan suddenly opened his eyes and roared in a low voice. With an unparalleled momentum, he thrust his spear at the storyteller. The speed of this thrust far exceeded the limits that the naked eye could perceive. Even Lengchitu could only see a blurry afterimage flash by.

Then, just as Cold-Eat Rabbit was holding its breath and waiting for the final result, unexpectedly, Zhang Buyan actually... pulled off a clever escape halfway through, letting go of her hand and flying back in a posture that completely defied common sense and the laws of physics. He grabbed the still-dazed Cold-Eat Rabbit and ran away into the distance.

Moreover, Zhang Buyan not only shamelessly deserted his post, but also scolded Lengchitu with a look of disappointment: "I just bought you time, what are you still standing there for? Didn't I just say I wouldn't take you with me and let you leave? Now that you can run, why aren't you running?"

"How am I supposed to know you're just feinting? Why are you yelling so loudly, calling me a god or demon?!"

Cold-cooked Rabbit finally realized what was going on. While regretting that she had been so stupid as not to slip away—if Zhou Ke'er were here, there would be no doubt that she would have already run away when Zhang Buyan put her down—she couldn't help but explain pitifully and aggrievedly.

"boom!"

Before Zhang Buyan could answer, a loud noise came from behind him.

The storyteller aimed his fingertip at the spear tip and thrust it straight at it, producing a metallic clang.

"Sizzle sizzle!"

Immediately, the gun emitted a teeth-grinding twisting sound. The wooden handle tore apart from the ground due to the impact, and the tip was even more outrageous, as the storyteller forced his finger into the handle.

Zhang Buyan was shocked when he subconsciously glanced at the situation. Although he had initially anticipated that his opponent would be very strong, he really did not expect that he would be... this strong!

Even if he managed to break free and let go midway, he had already activated the skill. Letting go would only reduce the momentum slightly and wouldn't significantly affect its power. This was the confidence he had when he dared to abandon his weapon – because this was the strongest move he could use. If this move was useless, then keeping the weapon would be pointless and would only hinder his escape.

He had considered that the opponent might block it, or even block it easily... but to blow up a gun without taking any damage... that kind of strength is just too much to accept! How can anyone fight back like that!

## Chapter 311, Section 306: The Grand Imperial Examination (Part 21)

Meanwhile, Zhou Ke'er and the others, unaware that the storyteller had been held back by Leng Chi Tu and Zhang Buyan, had managed to escape.

After they quickly entered the courtyard that Song Yi had pointed out, they followed him through a winding path to a certain room. At his instruction, they pushed open the wooden bed in the room, and a hidden door leading underground appeared before them.

Even so, neither Zhou Ke'er nor Shi An, nor Dio, showed any intention of going down immediately. Instead, they stood by the entrance to the tunnel, seemingly waiting for the others to go first.

After all... who would dig a tunnel in their own house for no reason? They must have done it for some other reason. Maybe it was prepared for this situation. Who knows if there are any strange traps inside? What if you rush in and run into a knife?

Besides... Zhou Ke'er didn't believe Song Yi at all. Although she didn't know what had happened to the storyteller who suddenly went berserk, judging from the reports he had heard before, it was definitely related to Song Yi. And now he had escaped injured, leading Zhou Ke'er and the others to this secret passage. Although this situation was beyond Song Yi's control, it all felt too coincidental and too smooth.

Based on Zhou Ke'er's intuition, there was definitely something wrong—so it was best to let them go down and test the danger first. In fact, even if Song Yi personally went down to lead the way, Zhou Ke'er wasn't really convinced.

"Hey (third tone), can't we talk this out here? If we can be discovered here, we'll be discovered even if we go down there. It's just a matter of time. Why waste time going around in circles?"

Seeing that Song Yi seemed to really intend to take the lead and go down, Zhou Ke'er couldn't help but speak up to stop him when no one else spoke.

"You're right, I think it's better not to go down into this secret passage."

Seeing that Zhou Ke'er had spoken first, Dio quickly chimed in, "It's just a puddle of something as vulgar as frog pee, why would I need to hide like a rat? Just say what you need to say here!"

Okay, there might have been a little uncertainty before, but now we can basically confirm that Dio is indeed a player. Not only is she a player, but she's also a die-hard fan of the same-named old-era anime character Dio. It seems she and Zhou Ke'er's unscrupulous brother, Zhou Nasen, probably have a lot in common.

Hearing Dior's speech, Zhou Ke'er subconsciously curled her lips and muttered to herself: Now you're talking like you're very confident, but why didn't you confront that storyteller directly just now? In fact, I, Zhou Ke'er, had to bring up the idea of ​​not going down the secret passage before this guy agreed. Doesn't he have any shame?

"Why...why is this happening?"

Song Yi was stunned by what he heard, as if he hadn't reacted yet. He never expected that Zhou Ke'er and Dior would say something so illogical.

"Because we don't trust you. No matter how you look at it, you seem too suspicious. Now you want us to go into the tunnel with you. Any normal person, unless they've been blinded by greed, wouldn't easily go in with you."

Zhou Ke'er was trying to come up with a way to brush it off, but Shi An unexpectedly went all in with a straight face, bravely telling Song Yi the truth: "Moreover, the previous situation clearly showed an intention to lead us into a state of panic and confusion, which is even more suspicious. So unless you can completely prove that you are trustworthy—although this also depends on whether we believe your story—we will not easily go with you now. Do you understand, sir?"

However, although saying this made the atmosphere very awkward, once the words were out in the open, everything would be easier to handle—especially since it wasn't Zhou Ke'er who said it, so Zhou Ke'er wasn't embarrassed at all.

After all, she still looks like a pitiful little girl, so who would have the heart to blame "her"? *sobs*

"...I see, that's right, I was being presumptuous."

Upon hearing this, Song Yi was taken aback at first, but then expressed his understanding: "If I were in that situation, I'm afraid I wouldn't have listened to others so easily either. It's only because I was so terrified of Wei Mingquan that I didn't notice this..."

"Wait, wait, who are you talking about?!"

Zhou Ke'er suddenly realized that something seemed amiss and quickly interrupted Song Yi, asking with slight shock, "Wei Mingquan? How is this related to him again? Wasn't he just arrested by our Yanwang Guard?"

"No... This Wei Mingquan is not that Wei Mingquan. The Wei Mingquan I'm talking about is the storyteller who almost killed me just now... the one who tried to attack you with a gavel!"

Song Yi sighed, shook his head, and explained, "Do you know that the Wei family, who are now ordered to guard that ancient tomb... weren't originally surnamed Wei at all! No, rather, the whole family were, all people from the imperial court in disguise, just putting on a show for someone!"

"Hey... no way, I'm a government official and I don't know anything about this, but you do? You're not trying to say... that Wei family patriarch's adopted son, Wei Mingquan the Dragon Spring Sword... is that storyteller from earlier?!"

Zhou Ke'er was shocked by what he said. How did the plot start to take such a fantastical turn?! This is too outrageous, you bastard! And those two people clearly can't be the same person no matter how you look at them! The guy Zhou Ke'er met couldn't have been older than twenty-three or twenty-four, so how old is that storyteller?!

Dior and Shi An didn't understand what kind of witty exchange Zhou Ke'er and Song Yi were having, but it seemed quite important, so they didn't interrupt. Instead, they tried to figure out the situation themselves by following Song Yi's words.

"You could say that... but it's also a little different."

Song Yi's eyes narrowed slightly, and he finally got to the crucial point: "According to my reliable information, Wei Mingquan... that guy probably encountered some kind of extraordinary event in the ancient tomb back then, perhaps he cultivated some kind of peculiar technique, whether he succeeded or something went wrong... in any case, he reached a level that no martial arts in the world can achieve now... he split himself into two! There is an ancient legend of the sage Pangu severing his three corpses, and Wei Mingquan may have also achieved a similar goal through some kind of immortal method that is not revealed to the world!"

"?! How could a human possibly do something like this? There's no such skill in the world!"

Zhou Ke'er couldn't help but shake her head and retort—of course, it was just for show to others (including Shi Andiao and the others), but in reality she was secretly pondering what was going on with this module's shift from martial arts to fantasy.

"Young lady, can you tell me what mortal methods you believe could have been used to create that magnificent and enormous ancient tomb?"

Song Yi glanced at Zhou Ke'er, who seemed not to believe him, and immediately retorted.

## Chapter 312, Section 307: The Grand Imperial Examination (Twenty-Two)

"this..."

Zhou Ke'er narrowed her eyes and suddenly changed the subject, asking, "Speaking of which, you should remember Wei Mingquan, whom you mentioned at the beginning. He was telling stories in the teahouse before you came, right? Was that story... related to the ancient tomb you're talking about now? And how much of that story is true?"

"...It is indeed related, but as for its authenticity..."

Song Yi was a little surprised that Zhou Ke'er would suddenly ask him this question. He was stunned for a moment before hesitatingly answering, "The authenticity should be quite high. This legend... basically everyone in the martial arts world of our generation knew about it, but later it disappeared for some reason, as if it was deliberately concealed."

"Oh? In that case... then you should explain this legend to us properly. Wei Mingquan just mentioned a man and a woman discussing swordsmanship at the top of the Forbidden City. He said it was related to the origin of that ancient tomb. What exactly is the reason for this?"

Zhou Ke'er nodded and continued to ask.

Isn't this essentially the main storyline of this module, or even possibly some hidden plot? Since the situation doesn't seem that urgent right now, figuring out this background first will naturally be more beneficial for our next actions.

After hearing Zhou Ke'er's words, Shi An and Dio had no objections and seemed to be deep in thought.

"Well... okay then."

Song Yi hesitated for a moment before finally nodding and saying, "However, my explanation wasn't as vivid as that guy's; I just gave a brief overview. I'll continue from where Wei Mingquan left off."

In short... on that day, countless heroes and warriors gathered around the Forbidden City, closely watching the sword duel. And then, without warning, a man and a woman appeared atop the Forbidden City in full view of everyone. Just as the crowd was filled with fear and confusion, the two began to fight. One wielded a wooden sword, the other a rapier of an unprecedented design.

"Then, the two engaged in a fierce sword duel, each displaying exquisite sword techniques. Everyone present watched with rapt attention. Suddenly... sparks began to emanate from the man's body, eventually coalescing into a blazing fire—legend has it that this was his ultimate sword technique, inspired by fallen peach blossoms, taking its meaning from the phrase 'The peach tree is young and tender, its blossoms are bright and beautiful.' The wooden sword he wielded transformed into a finely crafted, ornately designed, and entirely blood-red longsword."

Ah, this...

Zhou Ke'er couldn't help but be a little surprised when she heard this. It was one thing for sparks to emanate from her body, and she could barely explain it away with the excuse of some strange technique, but for the wooden sword in her hand to suddenly turn into another sword... that was really a bit surreal, wasn't it? Was this some kind of magic trick?

"However, what is most surprising and fascinating is not these exquisite sword techniques and divine skills, but the love and hate between the man and woman, their bitter entanglement. In the end, although the man had the upper hand, he could not bear to lay a hand on the woman and had to close his eyes and give up."

Just as he said, Song Yi was really not good at storytelling. What sounded like a wonderful little story turned into a rambling account. But he still continued on his own: "Then, something unexpected happened to everyone present! Just as the woman's sword was about to strike the man, another stunningly beautiful woman in a long dress flew down from the sky and blocked the sword for the man."

"Aba aba aba..."

Zhou Ke'er was completely dumbfounded. Oh my god, what kind of melodramatic script is this...?

"Wait... so what exactly does this sword duel have to do with that ancient tomb?! You're talking way too much nonsense!"

Dior finally couldn't hold back any longer and immediately interrupted Song Yi, who seemed about to continue rambling on, and questioned him.

"..."

Upon hearing this, Song Yi hesitated for a moment before replying, "In fact, this sword duel... doesn't have much of a direct connection to the appearance of that ancient tomb..."

"??? So what are you trying to achieve by rambling on like this?!"

Dio was instantly enraged. His eyes narrowed sharply, and a crimson glint appeared in his pupils. He said in a chilling tone, "Are you stalling for time?! What are you waiting for?!"

No...that's not the case.

Upon hearing this, Song Yi quickly shook his head and denied it, saying, "The reason I just told this legend is... When you all entered the city, didn't you see that blood-red longsword on the city wall? That was made by the imperial court based on the style of that man's sword. As for why... that's an even more unbelievable matter. The sword competition in the Forbidden City was just a prelude!"

"Then just tell me! What is it?! Stop beating around the bush and get to the point!"

Dior urged impatiently, and Zhou Ke'er couldn't understand what was so urgent about her. Wasn't it nice to listen to a story? Did she have something urgent to do?

"...Well then, I'll get straight to the point."

Song Yi had no choice but to nod – after all, he was seriously injured, and if Dio, who was clearly not a good person, got angry and attacked him, wouldn't that be terrible?

"The duel ended with the woman's death and the man being saved by another woman. After everything was over, the three of them disappeared again, just as they had when they first arrived. Even the woman's body vanished without a trace, making it seem like a dream."

Song Yi quickened his pace, and before Dio could frown and say anything more, he quickly continued, "And what was unexpected was that... many years later, another young man appeared in the capital, wielding a sword that was extremely similar to that man's. According to him, he did not know that man, but the sword and the cultivation technique he obtained came from an overseas fairy mountain called Penglai."

"!"

Zhou Ke'er was shocked. This description... it felt so familiar! Why did she always feel like those legendary guys were players from some other game?! Teleporting into the dungeon at the start and teleporting out at the end, it's too similar! As for that guy at the back... maybe it's some kind of account deletion and restart where weapons are retained!

"And that year happened to be when... the then Prince of Yan, who was also the emperor of the previous dynasty... launched a military campaign to quell the rebellion and purge the court of corrupt officials."

Song Yi hesitated for a moment, then continued, "And for some reason, that man actually entered the palace and participated in this matter. As for the secrets involved, they are beyond our knowledge. All we know is... that man seemed to have been attacked and killed in the palace, but at that moment... the entire palace foundation sank, and that magnificent ancient tomb rose from the ground. And that man actually came back to life and walked out of that ancient tomb."

"Therefore, everyone in the world said that there was a magic method to reverse life and death in that ancient tomb. Although the ancient tomb has always been controlled by the imperial court, it has not stopped countless people from entering it one after another. Even though countless people have died or been injured, they still have nothing to gain."

"Later, for some reason, as for Wei Mingquan's time... after him, no one else entered the ancient tomb."

## Chapter 313, Section 308: The Grand Imperial Examination (Twenty-Three)

"Wait, wait, wait... so why? Why has no one else entered the ancient tomb since Wei Mingquan? How did you determine that?"

Zhou Ke'er frowned and glanced at Shi An discreetly. Just now, this guy had casually mentioned that he could take Zhou Ke'er into the ancient tomb—putting aside the possibility that he was just making it up, if it were true, it would mean that it would be very easy for people from the imperial court, at least the emperor's people, to enter the ancient tomb. So where did Song Yi get the information he was talking about?

"Well... actually, that's a bit of an exaggeration. After all, there are plenty of people who want to sneak into the ancient tomb, and I can't guarantee that no one has ever succeeded in infiltrating it over the years. But at least one thing is certain, and that is... no one has ever come out of that ancient tomb."

Song Yi shook his head and added an explanation.

"What about the people from the imperial court? Take this guy, for example? Didn't any of them get in?"

Upon hearing this, Dior showed a hint of disbelief on his face, immediately pointed at Zhou Ke'er, and continued to press Song Yi for answers.

Although Dio's question, asked while Zhou Ke'er was still present, was clearly a very direct and blunt question, it was indeed the question Zhou Ke'er wanted to ask. Moreover, as a member of the court, Zhou Ke'er couldn't very well say that she knew nothing about this matter and ask directly. Dio's question actually helped Zhou Ke'er ask what she wanted to ask.

"How could I possibly know about matters of the imperial court? Why don't you ask this young lady directly? After all, she is a member of the imperial court and knows more than I do."

Unfortunately, Song Yi did not answer Dior's question directly, but instead passed the question on to Zhou Ke'er, which made Zhou Ke'er slightly disappointed.

"How could I possibly know that? Do you really think a lowly official like me would have access to such confidential matters? But speaking of which, you could ask him... Master Song, I believe you should know him, right?"