Chapter 15: In the Gate World, an Accidental Disappearance Is Pretty Normal, Right?
Chapter 15: Chapter 15: In the Gate World, an Accidental Disappearance Is Pretty Normal, Right?
Xia Yunmeng looked at Fang Xiu, and Fang Xiu looked back at her. He was curious—what was the third point of these so-called "Three Don’ts of Sacrifice"?
"The third ’Don’t’ is that you must not Sacrifice beings with distinct consciousness, including humans and other intelligent races."
Xia Yunmeng said earnestly.
"Hm? Is it that you *can’t*, or that you *shouldn’t*?"
Fang Xiu asked, posing a single question after she finished.
"Huh?"
Xia Yunmeng was clearly taken aback.
’What does he mean, *can’t* or *shouldn’t*?’
"This rule... is it an actual rule of Sacrifice, or is it just a convention agreed upon by the Awakened?"
Fang Xiu stared intently at Xia Yunmeng.
As their eyes met, a faint blush crept onto her cheeks.
Her gaze darted away in a fluster.
"Well... I’m not really sure myself. I just saw it in an old book. I think... um, if you violate these rules, it’s said that you’ll be struck by misfortune."
Xia Yunmeng was a little flustered as she spoke.
For some reason, even though she wasn’t lying, Fang Xiu’s question made her feel as though she had done something wrong.
All the while, Fang Xiu’s gaze remained fixed on her.
After a moment, he smiled warmly. "I see. Thank you for the reminder, Teacher!"
"Huh?"
Hearing this, Xia Yunmeng was taken aback again.
Then it hit her. ’Right, I’m the teacher now!’
"Ahem. It’s nothing. Fang Xiu, if there’s anything else you don’t understand, feel free to ask your teacher!"
Xia Yunmeng said quickly.
At that, Fang Xiu nodded slightly. "Teacher, I have one more question."
"What is it?"
Xia Yunmeng’s expression was full of confidence.
’I’m a teacher, for goodness’ sake! How can I let a student’s question make me feel embarrassed and unconfident?’
’I have to be confident. I must be confident! There’s no question that can stump a teacher!’
"If one day, intelligent beings emerged from a Gate World, and I had the ability to Sacrifice them all, should I abide by the rules, or should I just Sacrifice them all?"
Fang Xiu asked, looking at Xia Yunmeng with great seriousness.
When she heard this question, Xia Yunmeng was visibly stunned.
"I..."
At that moment, Xia Yunmeng had no idea how to answer him.
She had never even considered such a question.
And the book she’d read offered no answer to it, either.
"I was just asking casually."
Fang Xiu smiled. "Well, Teacher, I’ll head into the classroom now."
With that, Fang Xiu turned and went back into the classroom.
’I’m not sure if the things Xia Yunmeng talked about were fabricated by other Awakened or discovered through trial and error by Sacrificial Masters,’ he thought.
’Still,’ he mused, ’they all seem to make sense.’
’The first "Don’t" is about pure objects. The purest objects would certainly be things like Divine Artifacts.’
’If you were to Sacrifice a Divine Artifact to a Deity, it might be fine if it was one they’d lost. But if it was something they had discarded...’
’Even if it’s called a Divine Artifact in this world, to them, it might just be a piece of junk they threw away.’
’Sacrificing something like that to them would be like someone throwing out their trash, only for you to deliver it right back to their home.’
’It would be a miracle if they didn’t get angry.’
’When an ordinary person gets angry, they might just yell at you. But when Deities get angry, the punishments they inflict are not so easy to endure.’
’As for the second "Don’t," I think that one was probably fabricated by the Awakened.’
’After all, natural Elves and Elemental Creatures are already rare. If people started Sacrificing them to the Deities, it would become even harder for the Awakened who need them to find them.’
’That part was easy enough to understand.’
’The third "Don’t" was even simpler. It was just like that morning when I was about to Sacrifice the principal.’
’No matter which Deity I Sacrificed him to, I would have been punished.’
’Maybe some Sacrificial Masters have Sacrificed people to the Deities before—and more than just one—which is why this third "Don’t" exists.’
Of course...
’What does any of that have to do with me, though?’
Fang Xiu smiled faintly.
’I have a system,’ he thought. ’Since the system said I could Sacrifice Lu Yu’er, then it must be possible.’
Just then, Xia Yunmeng walked in and gave Fang Xiu a long, hard look.
She walked to the lectern and said, "Alright class, come up and get your ’Little Genius’ rescue watches. If you run into danger, all you have to do is press this button."
Xia Yunmeng explained, holding up a watch.
Fang Xiu’s brow furrowed slightly. He was sure he hadn’t seen anything in Xia Yunmeng’s hand a moment ago.
It was as if it had just appeared in her hand out of thin air.
Then a second, a third...
’Is that a Space Superpower?’
Fang Xiu was surprised, but then a thought struck him. ’Isn’t Xia Yunmeng a Warrior?’
’Could it be...’
’A Space Storage Device?’
It was a type of Equipment that was exceptionally difficult to obtain.
Imbued with Space Power, it could be used to store items.
If any were sold on the market, they were exorbitantly expensive, and you needed powerful connections to buy one.
Furthermore, there was always demand but never any supply.
Of course, with enough luck, one might also be acquired by chance.
"Acquired by chance" meant killing a specific type of special Demon Beast, collecting enough materials, and having a Forging Master craft the device.
Fang Xiu had been trying to buy one for a while.
But while he had money—an inheritance from his parents—he had no connections and had never been able to acquire one.
He never would have thought that Xia Yunmeng actually possessed such a rare Space Storage Device.
’Looks like Xia Yunmeng’s background isn’t so simple,’ he thought. ’Either that... or her luck is just off the charts.’
"Fang Xiu, take your ’Little Genius’ rescue watch."
Xia Yunmeng walked up to Fang Xiu and placed a watch on his desk.
Then, with a small smile, she looked up at the rest of the class. "Alright, everyone, form a line and come up to the lectern to get yours. One per person. After you have your watch, gather at the classroom entrance!"
After speaking, she glanced at Fang Xiu again.
Then she headed straight out of the classroom.
Fang Xiu picked up the watch, the corner of his mouth twitching. ’Little Genius... rescue?’
Nevertheless, he strapped it to his wrist and walked out of the classroom.
After all, he was just a Sacrificial Master with no skills for self-defense.
If he really encountered a dangerous situation where he couldn’t use Sacrifice, calling for help would be his best chance at survival.
「Outside the classroom.」
All the students had put on their ’Little Genius’ rescue watches.
"Follow me. Next, you’ll be training inside a Gate World. Although it’s just the school’s lowest-level Gate World, for newly Awakened students like you, it still poses a certain degree of danger."
Xia Yunmeng looked at everyone and said, "So, if you’re in danger, remember to call for help. Don’t feel embarrassed about it; your lives are more important than anything. Don’t try to be a hero. Also... don’t wander off too far, and no killing each other, whether it’s someone from our class or a student from another class!"
As she said this, Fang Xiu wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination, but he felt that Xia Yunmeng had glanced at him, intentionally or not.
He paid it no mind, however. ’Inside a Gate World, an "accidental" disappearance would be perfectly normal, wouldn’t it?’ he thought.