yasinovel Chapter 4267 Question
Chapter 4267 Question
Chapter 4267 Question
Angel paused for two seconds, then nodded heavily.
“A vanished civilization—it sounds like just an objective description, but the weight it represents…” Angel’s lips trembled slightly, “is immeasurable.”
An unbearable weight... Upon hearing this conclusion, the decaying one's eyes glazed over.
A moment later, it gently exhaled a breath of stale air from its chest.
"Since you're willing to let me stay and observe, I'm indebted to you in this way." The withered one said, "I'm not a greedy person. In return, I can help you..."
The withered creature instinctively wanted to say, "I'll do you a favor." — This was a phrase it often used when it acquired new knowledge in the City of Faith.
But it suddenly realized that it was no longer in the City of Knowledge, and in its current state, it was unable to help others.
It is no longer an examiner and can no longer provide Angell with any advantages in the challenges of the Chapter of the Heart.
So it stopped halfway through its sentence, unsure how to "repay" the favor.
He closed his eyes for a moment, then slowly opened them: "There's nothing I can do to help you. All I have left is some useless knowledge."
When it was still a seeker of knowledge, knowledge was "useful," but now it is of little use to it.
It even sees it as a burden.
If it hadn't left its homeland in pursuit of knowledge and truth, perhaps it could have perished along with its civilization without any burden...
Instead of carrying all the burdens like I do now.
"Although knowledge is of no use to me now, as a follower of the ruthless scholar, I cannot give it to you for free. However, as a token of my gratitude, I can answer one of your questions for free."
"You can ask me any question, as long as I can answer it, and as long as it doesn't go against my beliefs or my will."
At this point, the Decaying One suddenly remembered Angor's earlier example of alchemy, and added, "Even if you want a... skill from a lost civilization, I can tell you."
Angell was stunned.
He hadn't expected the Decaying One to ask for... a favor in return?
However, being a bystander was not considered a favor in his eyes.
Angell shared his thoughts.
The withered one gently shook his head: "No, rules are rules."
The little devil host then chuckled and said, "The City of Academia has a motto: you have to give something for something you get. This is a rule that every scholar who leaves the City of Academia agrees with."
Although Angell didn't see it as a big deal, from the perspective of the Decayers, it was a violation of the rules, and violations always come at a price.
Seeing that the withered man insisted so much, Angell no longer declined.
It's just asking a question.
However, when Ingres considered what questions to ask, he became conflicted.
He was somewhat interested in the techniques of lost civilizations. But time was too tight now; even if he asked, he wouldn't have time to digest that knowledge.
Of course, he could also request that he "not ask questions now, but ask them after this is over."
However, this is not the chapter of the heart of the abyss.
It is a reflection of reality created by the powers of the fairy realm, a chapter of the heart that lies between reality and illusion.
Once this level is over, everything will collapse, and there won't be any more chances to ask questions.
Therefore, if Angell does not want to waste this question, he can only ask it now, and the question cannot be complicated, otherwise it will also waste time.
With so many restrictions, Angell was momentarily at a loss for what to ask.
Should we inquire about matters related to the Cruel Scholar? Even if the Decaying One knew, it would most likely refuse to answer.
Or perhaps it could help with the subsequent trials of the Chapter of the Heart? But that would also violate the rules, and the Decayer, as the former host, would certainly not agree.
As for other unimportant questions, he has no interest in knowing them now.
Angel frowned and pondered for a moment, unable to think of what to ask.
Just as Angell was considering whether to temporarily reserve this opportunity to ask the question and then ask it at his discretion during the third test of conscience.
Just then, a low, hoarse voice rang in his ear.
"If you don't know what to ask, I might be able to give you a suggestion."
The transmitter of the voice was none other than Normefens.
Angell remained calm, lowering his brow as he listened to Normefens's account.
Angor thought its suggestion was a "strategy guide" similar to the Chapter of the Heart, however, Normefens simply said: "Let that person ask."
The "that one" it refers to is the book fairy.
According to Normefens, the Book Fairy was nearby and witnessed the clash between Angor and the Decayer.
When the withered one said he could answer one of his questions, Normefens noticed that the book fairy seemed somewhat tempted.
Clearly, the book fairy wanted to ask the withered one some questions.
“I don’t know if you know her identity, but I think she has some connection with the Cruel Scholar, and her knowledge of the Decayers should be very deep,” Normeffens analyzed.
The fact that the Book Fairy could immediately tell the origin of the Decayer was already a testament to this.
Therefore, after weighing the options, Normeffens gave Angell a suggestion.
After listening, Angel was actually inclined to agree, since the book fairy did indeed understand the withered ones better and might be able to ask more suitable questions.
However, he didn't express it immediately. Instead, he used the Nightmare Illusion to conceal the possible overflowing fluctuations around him and whispered, "Why are you helping me?"
Normfins: "As I said before, I do have some ideas... If you don't mind listening to my long-winded explanation now, I can tell you."
Normeffes seemed certain that Angell wouldn't waste time listening, and his answer remained the same as before.
Although Angell felt that Normefens's so-called "long discourse" was just a deliberate act, he decided not to press the matter further.
He continued to use the illusion to conceal his identity, asking, "So, who exactly are you?"
“I am Normfins… I know you want to ask deeper questions, but I don’t know the answers to those questions right now. I’m still slowly probing…”
"But I can tell you clearly that I am not your enemy. Our goals are the same, and sealing the demon god's thoughts will also benefit me."
After a moment of silence, Angell ultimately chose to believe Nomefens.
After all, without Normefens's help, he might not have been able to pass the first two questions of the Heart Chapter. From this perspective, Normefens wasn't lying; their goals were indeed aligned.
“If we have a chance to meet again after sealing the Demon God’s thoughts, I hope you can answer my questions then,” Angel said in a low voice.
Nomifens: "Yes, if we have the chance to meet again, I will answer you truthfully."
Having received the promise, Angel agreed to Normefens's suggestion and asked the book fairy to inquire.
Normfins: "I'll contact her right now."
A moment later, Normefens responded.
"That person gave you the opportunity to ask and answer questions, expressing her gratitude. She does indeed have a question she hopes the Decayer can answer..."
According to the book fairy, although she had never stayed in the Citadel of Faith, she knew many scholars, all of whom came from the Citadel.
According to these scholars, the Decayer was extremely famous in the Citadel and was truly a man of unparalleled talent and elegance.
Whether in terms of knowledge or appearance, he is outstanding.
Even later, when the Decayed One learned of the destruction of its civilization and fell into a long period of madness and stagnation, its face was at most a little haggard, but it still did not lose much of its charm.
In fact, its sense of fragility and its desire to die during that period attracted many sympathizers overflowing with maternal love.
However, the decaying being had already begun to sink into a state of nothingness, and instead of endless thoughts, it spent its days and nights contemplating the idea of dying.
It nearly ended itself several times, but was stopped by its fellow scholars.
Then one day, it suddenly left the school town, and no one knew where it went.
Scholars speculate that it may have felt unable to commit suicide within the academic city, and thus chose to end its remaining life outside.
Many scholars who had benefited from the kindness of the withered and decaying couldn't help but sigh with emotion.
Time passed slowly, and several years later.
Just when everyone thought that the Decayer had already committed suicide outside, it suddenly returned to the City of the Scholars.
At this moment, the withered one underwent a dramatic change in appearance—it became emaciated and its head was abnormally large, as if its head might explode at any moment.
The change in appearance was only one aspect; even more strangely, the temperament of the decaying being also changed.
Although it is still trapped in nothingness, it no longer has the strong suicidal tendency it once had, and has even become more afraid of death than before...
If it weren't for the unchanging divine grace it possessed, others would truly not recognize it.
A nihilist who has become extreme due to the destruction of civilization, a disqualified person with an existential crisis, has actually begun to fear death and cherish his life.
This obviously puzzled everyone.
But what puzzled everyone even more was that, in order to live a better life, the withered one actually went to see the demon god and became the presiding officer of the Heart Chapter.
The host has the authority to control the sealing monument, so he can use the seal of the monument to prolong his own life.
Although the Decayer has left the Citadel, the scholars there, including its former friends, are all very curious about its past.
What happened to him during the time he was away that caused such a change in him?
Some curious people have inquired about this withered man.
But the withered one was unwilling to talk about that period of time away from the university town.
Therefore, this matter has become an unsolved mystery of the academic city.
The Book Fairy wanted Angor to ask this very question: What exactly did the Decayer go through back then?
After hearing Normefens's message, Angell suddenly understood.
Previously, the Decayer asked Angor, "Are you interested in my question?" Now it seems that the one most interested is not Angor, but the Book Fairy.
Before this, Angell had never even considered asking such a question.
The main reason was that he felt the second question of the Heart Chapter had already been answered, and the text column had been verified. He had previously said he was interested, but in his heart, he was more agreeing with the decaying one.
Angel himself had already started looking forward, but the book fairy seemed to still be looking back.
However, having already promised the book fairy, Angor didn't intend to change the question.
Besides, he can't think of any other more suitable question right now, so this question will do.
But how should he ask?
If you ask the questions given by the book fairy directly, wouldn't that be admitting that you know about the Decayers?
He had previously been tricked by the Little Devil host, but he managed to hold his own. He can't just expose himself here, can he?
After a moment of contemplation, Angell decided to ask the Decayer a different question, one that would neither expose himself nor fail to help the Book Fairy.
……
He looked up at the withered one.
The withered one's gaze never left, so he immediately noticed the change in Angor.
"Have you thought it through? Do you want to inquire about some kind of alchemy-related technique?" the withered one guessed.
Angor's eyes lit up... The civilization of the Decayers also has alchemy-related skills?
He really wanted it.
But the problem remains: not enough time.
Even if the Decayer uses the method of memory inheritance to directly transmit the memories related to the skills to Angor, it is still possible that Angor will be trapped in a period of self-digestion.
Even if the speed of memory processing could be accelerated, and it could be roughly recovered in one or two hours, there is no time for that right now.
So we had no choice but to give up, even though it was painful.
Angell sighed inwardly and said softly, "No need. I'm actually more interested in the examiner than in these things."
The withered one was taken aback, and the little devil host also raised an eyebrow and let out a strange laugh.
"I'm curious, was the examiner's head naturally this big?" Angell asked, looking at the withered man with a curious and inquisitive expression.
Yes, the question he could think of that wouldn't expose himself but could still accurately pinpoint the unknown experience of the Decayer was to start with the "changes" that followed that experience.
The biggest change after the decaying one's experience was that his head became enormous.
This is obviously not in line with common sense.
So Angell asked the question.
“Of course, if the examiner feels this question is a bit too presumptuous, I can ask another one.” Angell remained calm.
The Decayer was somewhat surprised that Angor would ask this question.
They neither inquired about the skills nor about the "lost civilization," but rather about the abnormality in its head.
Even the little devil host was a little confused. Why ask such a strange question? It thought about it carefully, and suddenly, it seemed to understand something.
"Gah gah gah—I see—"
The little devil's sudden speech drew the curious glances of both Angor and the withered one.
“You said before that you didn’t want to debate with examiners who were going to give long speeches, because you felt it would be a waste of time… I didn’t understand why you suddenly said that.”
“I understand now. Your time is of the essence, and you are eager to see the great deity.”
"For this reason, you even chose to quickly gloss over the opportunity given to you by the Decaying One and asked a meaningless question."
"So you can skip this part as soon as possible, right?"
Seeing Angel's strange expression, the little devil host chuckled and said, "I've seen many test-takers like you. Those who want to ask the gods to save their sick lovers, or those who want quick revenge, all come here looking impatient."
The little devil host had a look on his face that said, "I understand everything now."
Angell remained silent on this.
Although the little devil host's guess wasn't entirely correct, the process was right; he was indeed in a rush and didn't dare ask many questions.
But the question he asked about "Big Head" wasn't just a casual one.
Looking at the withered man's eyes, which clearly showed some struggle and contemplation, one could tell that this problem was definitely not simple.
Angor had even prepared how he would react if the Decayer refused to answer.
But unexpectedly, the little devil's sudden interruption attracted the attention of the Decayers, and Angor's true purpose seemed to have been temporarily overlooked by the Decayers in this murky situation.
Angor did not refute the words spoken by the little devil, but simply looked at the withered one casually, as if waiting for his answer.
After hesitating for a moment, the withered one nodded slightly.
"If you absolutely must ask this question, I can tell you the answer."
(End of this chapter)