Zhou Huai stood there, stunned.

Yes!

No matter how powerful a clone is, it is ultimately just a puppet! A weapon held in one's own hand!

Weapons can kill people and cleave mountains and rivers, but weapons can never think for themselves or break the dimensional shackles that imprison the entire world!

Only a vibrant life with a complete soul and an unwavering commitment can comprehend the rules on the edge of life and death and ultimately break free from its cocoon and transform into a butterfly!

This is why Mr. Duan didn't even bother to glance at those dual S-level clones, but developed a strong interest in Zhou Huai's main body!

Because Mr. Duan knew that puppets could never pose a real threat.

But......

Reason aside, could he really trust the ancient remnant soul hidden in the ruins before him?

The answer is, of course, no.

We're all adults, not three-year-olds who'll obediently comply with anyone's empty promises. Even if everything the other person says is correct and their analysis is flawless, Zhou Huai won't easily choose to come see her in his true form.

Is it worth risking your life to gamble with someone else's kindness?

This is the most foolish thing in the world.

"I'm sorry, your offer is tempting, but I decline."

Zhou Huai, controlling Arthur, pulled the reins. "There are many ways to cooperate. I will use my clone to slowly coordinate with you. As for my main body... forget about it."

Just as Zhou Huai was about to completely abandon the other party's idea and return home.

"bite--!"

Deep in my mind, that long-lost mechanical notification sound rang out!

【Triggering the challenge mission: The Ticket to the Truth.】

【Mission Requirements: Please use your original body to travel to the core of the Simon City Ruins and meet with the ancient remnant soul.】

【Task Reward: None.】

"..."

Zhou Huai sat on the dragon's back, staring at the few lines of light blue text that popped up on his retina.

His eyes twitched.

Good heavens!

"System, what the hell are you doing?"

Zhou Huai gritted his teeth inwardly, "You make me risk my life with my true form, and you don't even give me a reward? Do you think I have too much time on my hands?!"

There was no response.

The system interface remains unchanged.

Zhou Huai closed his eyes, and his brain began to work at lightning speed.

Something unusual must be going on.

Since the system bound itself to me, every task it has issued has been aimed at improving my strength, and the rewards for each task have been extremely generous.

This time they won't even give a copper coin, but insist on having the real person go?

Recalling the time when the Great Sage Li Er used his words to suppress the ancient awakened ones, the system gave him a reward of tens of millions of merit points...

An extremely audacious guess took shape in Zhou Huai's mind.

"so......"

Zhou Huai swallowed hard, muttering to himself, "System...you really are the will of Heaven in this world, aren't you?"

Now, they don't even bother acting anymore.

Fearing that he would continue to refuse the woman from the ruins' proposal, he jumped out and issued a task!

Although the task did not explicitly state "mandatory execution," the choice remained with Zhou Huai, and there would be no punishment for not accepting it.

However, this time it has the backing of a system!

The underlying meaning couldn't be clearer: Go ahead and don't miss this opportunity to connect with the secrets beyond your control. She won't harm you; I'll protect you!

Zhou Huai closed his eyes and spent a brief ten seconds considering the pros and cons.

The will of Heaven is now facing a huge threat from Mr. Duan, who is about to overthrow the world. It needs a proxy, and it needs me to use my clone to suppress the awakened ancient races and quell the chaos in all directions.

So, it won't harm me right now. My death wouldn't do it any good.

The advice it provides is credible.

Even if we take a step back and assume... the system itself is a product of the will of Heaven, and is my greatest reliance in this dangerous world.

If even the system is going to screw you over, then you're doomed anyway, so there's no reason not to trust it.

Fortune favors the bold!

Thinking of this, Zhou Huai opened his eyes.

He looked down at the dark stone door and said in a deep voice, "Fine, you win."

"Since you've put it this way, then I'll come to see you in my true form."

Upon hearing Zhou Huai's reply, the green phantom chuckled softly: "A wise choice. I'll be waiting for you here."

The words had barely left his mouth.

Arthur, suspended in mid-air, silently closed his eyes.

He subsided his violent SSS-level battle aura and went into standby mode.

"call--"

The demon dragon Xiao Hei sensed its master's consciousness leaving, and its massive sixty-meter-long body slowly descended from the sky.

It folded its pair of obsidian dragon wings that blotted out the sky, and its massive body lay quietly on the open ground at the entrance of the ruins, even suppressing its heavy breathing.

...

Time passed by, second by second.

A full half hour later.

At the entrance to the ruins of Simon City, space distorted.

Buzz—!

A white beam of light descended from the sky, dispelling the surrounding mist.

The fluctuations of the spatial laws dissipated.

The sage Li Er, with his otherworldly air and Taoist demeanor, stood quietly in the open space, holding his whisk.

Beside Li Er stood a young man dressed in casual clothes, panting from the dizziness caused by the spatial teleportation.

The person who arrived was none other than Zhou Huai in his true form.

That young man had only an E-rank clone master panel and his attributes were so weak that he was not even as good as an ordinary low-rank alien beast.

Zhou Huai raised his head, dusted himself off, looked at the dark stone door, and declared loudly, "My true form has arrived."

"Now that we've laid our backs on each other, what are you going to do?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a faint green light shone from the depths of the stone gate.

The alluring plant phantom appeared and floated in front of Zhou Huai.

The two were only a few meters apart.

The illusory woman looked down at Zhou Huai, her gaze carefully scanning his face, his figure, and even the depths of his soul.

A moment later, the smile on her face faded.

"indeed......"

The ethereal woman stared at Zhou Huai, her voice trembling: "It really is you..."

She murmured softly.

"I...I didn't mistake you for someone else..."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Huai frowned.

"What do you mean you didn't mistake me for someone else?"

Zhou Huai stared at her: "Have we met before?!"

How is that possible?

The other side are all ancient monsters who have been dead for countless years.

How could one possibly know oneself?

Unless it's one's past life.

Faced with Zhou Huai's barrage of questions.

The illusory woman fell silent.

She shook her head, not wanting to dwell on the topic any further.

He simply turned and drifted into the darkness deep within the ruins, leaving behind a single sentence:

"I want to become stronger, I want to know the answers to everything..."

"Come in with me."

After she finished speaking, her illusory figure disappeared into the shadows of the stone gate.

Only that dark door remained, open to Zhou Huai.

Zhou Huai stood there, stunned.

Yes!

No matter how powerful a clone is, it is ultimately just a puppet! A weapon held in one's own hand!

Weapons can kill people and cleave mountains and rivers, but weapons can never think for themselves or break the dimensional shackles that imprison the entire world!

Only a vibrant life with a complete soul and an unwavering commitment can comprehend the rules on the edge of life and death and ultimately break free from its cocoon and transform into a butterfly!

This is why Mr. Duan didn't even bother to glance at those dual S-level clones, but developed a strong interest in Zhou Huai's main body!

Because Mr. Duan knew that puppets could never pose a real threat.

But......

Reason aside, could he really trust the ancient remnant soul hidden in the ruins before him?

The answer is, of course, no.

We're all adults, not three-year-olds who'll obediently comply with anyone's empty promises. Even if everything the other person says is correct and their analysis is flawless, Zhou Huai won't easily choose to come see her in his true form.

Is it worth risking your life to gamble with someone else's kindness?

This is the most foolish thing in the world.

"I'm sorry, your offer is tempting, but I decline."

Zhou Huai, controlling Arthur, pulled the reins. "There are many ways to cooperate. I will use my clone to slowly coordinate with you. As for my main body... forget about it."

Just as Zhou Huai was about to completely abandon the other party's idea and return home.

"bite--!"

Deep in my mind, that long-lost mechanical notification sound rang out!

【Triggering the challenge mission: The Ticket to the Truth.】

【Mission Requirements: Please use your original body to travel to the core of the Simon City Ruins and meet with the ancient remnant soul.】

【Task Reward: None.】

"..."

Zhou Huai sat on the dragon's back, staring at the few lines of light blue text that popped up on his retina.

His eyes twitched.

Good heavens!

"System, ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) what the hell are you doing?"

Zhou Huai gritted his teeth inwardly, "You make me risk my life with my true form, and you don't even give me a reward? Do you think I have too much time on my hands?!"

There was no response.

The system interface remains unchanged.

Zhou Huai closed his eyes, and his brain began to work at lightning speed.

Something unusual must be going on.

Since the system bound itself to me, every task it has issued has been aimed at improving my strength, and the rewards for each task have been extremely generous.

This time they won't even give a copper coin, but insist on having the real person go?

Recalling the time when the Great Sage Li Er used his words to suppress the ancient awakened ones, the system gave him a reward of tens of millions of merit points...

An extremely audacious guess took shape in Zhou Huai's mind.

"so......"

Zhou Huai swallowed hard, muttering to himself, "System...you really are the will of Heaven in this world, aren't you?"

Now, they don't even bother acting anymore.

Fearing that he would continue to refuse the woman from the ruins' proposal, he jumped out and issued a task!

Although the task did not explicitly state "mandatory execution," the choice remained with Zhou Huai, and there would be no punishment for not accepting it.

However, this time it has the backing of a system!

The underlying meaning couldn't be clearer: Go ahead and don't miss this opportunity to connect with the secrets beyond your control. She won't harm you; I'll protect you!

Zhou Huai closed his eyes and spent a brief ten seconds considering the pros and cons.

The will of Heaven is now facing a huge threat from Mr. Duan, who is about to overthrow the world. It needs a proxy, and it needs me to use my clone to suppress the awakened ancient races and quell the chaos in all directions.

So, it won't harm me right now. My death wouldn't do it any good.

The advice it provides is credible.

Even if we take a step back and assume... the system itself is a product of the will of Heaven, and is my greatest reliance in this dangerous world.

If even the system is going to screw you over, then you're doomed anyway, so there's no reason not to trust it.

Fortune favors the bold!

Thinking of this, Zhou Huai opened his eyes.

He looked down at the dark stone door and said in a deep voice, "Fine, you win."

"Since you've put it this way, then I'll come to see you in my true form."

Upon hearing Zhou Huai's reply, the green phantom chuckled softly: "A wise choice. I'll be waiting for you here."

The words had barely left his mouth.

Arthur, suspended in mid-air, silently closed his eyes.

He subsided his violent SSS-level battle aura and went into standby mode.

"call--"

The demon dragon Xiao Hei sensed its master's consciousness leaving, and its massive sixty-meter-long body slowly descended from the sky.

It folded its pair of obsidian dragon wings that blotted out the sky, and its massive body lay quietly on the open ground at the entrance of the ruins, even suppressing its heavy breathing.

...

Time passed by, second by second.

A full half hour later.

At the entrance to the ruins of Simon City, space distorted.

Buzz—!

A white beam of light descended from the sky, dispelling the surrounding mist.

The fluctuations of the spatial laws dissipated.

The sage Li Er, with his otherworldly air and Taoist demeanor, stood quietly in the open space, holding his whisk.

Beside Li Er stood a young man dressed in casual clothes, panting from the dizziness caused by the spatial teleportation.

The person who arrived was none other than Zhou Huai in his true form.

That young man had only an E-rank clone master panel and his attributes were so weak that he was not even as good as an ordinary low-rank alien beast.

Zhou Huai raised his head, dusted himself off, looked at the dark stone door, and declared loudly, "My true form has arrived."

"Now that we've laid our backs on each other, what are you going to do?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a faint green light shone from the depths of the stone gate.

The alluring plant phantom appeared and floated in front of Zhou Huai.

The two were only a few meters apart.

The illusory woman looked down at Zhou Huai, her gaze carefully scanning his face, his figure, and even the depths of his soul.

A moment later, the smile on her face faded.

"indeed......"

The ethereal woman stared at Zhou Huai, her voice trembling: "It really is you..."

She murmured softly.

"I...I didn't mistake you for someone else..."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Huai frowned.

"What do you mean you didn't mistake me for someone else?"

Zhou Huai stared at her: "Have we met before?!"

How is that possible?

The other side are all ancient monsters who have been dead for countless years.

How could one possibly know oneself?

Unless it's one's past life.

Faced with Zhou Huai's barrage of questions.

The illusory woman fell silent.

She shook her head, not wanting to dwell on the topic any further.

He simply turned and drifted into the darkness deep within the ruins, leaving behind a single sentence:

"I want to become stronger, I want to know the answers to everything..."

"Come in with me."

After she finished speaking, her illusory figure disappeared into the shadows of the stone gate.

Only that dark door remained, open to Zhou Huai.