I really only stop

"Ancestors of [our], child."

After correcting the mistakes in Lu Xi's words, the old man's face did not show much displeasure:

"I can't blame you for this, it's all because you have been wandering outside for too long and have forgotten the history. After going through the ceremony, you will know everything that happened to the Tibetan Shadow Werewolf."

"Ah."

Lu Xi stopped talking, and silently followed the footsteps of the old man.

--------------

After bypassing the dreaded deep pit, Lu Xi and the others finally came to the tall main hall of the temple.The ground here is obviously only paved with pure white frosted marble, but because of the ingenious setting of light sources and decorations, various wonderful shadows are projected on it. The whole scene looks very strange and beautiful.

"Whoa! Come see this!"

Standing in front of one of the decorations, Celica exclaimed as if she had discovered a new world:

"Obviously it looks like a strangely shaped piece of wood, but after being illuminated by a torch, it can actually cast the shadow of a goshawk! It's amazing!"

Smiling and looking at Celica who was yelling, the old man was not annoyed, but stretched out his hand and gestured in a circle:

"Son, turn that wooden block to the right."

"?"

Although she was puzzled, Celica's little hand turned around obediently according to the old man's words. The next moment, under her surprised gaze, the shadow cast by the wooden block changed from a goshawk to a cheetah:

"Look, Ruoweixi! It's the same piece of wood, but it can cast two completely different shadows!"

"Well, I see it."

Different from the surprise of others, Lucy scratched his cheek subtly.

Although this kind of thing does not even use magic, it is just a design and calculation of optical problems, but it has to be said that the craftsmen of the Shadow Wolf Clan can be called masters in making such an exquisite device.Even if this piece of wood is sold in the imperial capital, it will definitely fetch a sky-high price in the hands of noble ministers—but these are not the point.

Looking at the pattern projected by the wooden block, Lu Xi couldn't help but gasped.

Why is there a sense of déjà vu of a well-known game?A few screaming zombies won't jump out to attack us in a while, right?

Anyway, with Yuxiya here, don't be afraid.I'm really curious if things like zombies will be saved first by Yuxia or by Nana, the lord of weirdness, and kneel on the ground first.

"Come on, boys, sit down here."

Without further explanation, Harris just made a random move, and the cheetah shadow in front of Celica suddenly changed and solidified, forming a whole set of dark tables and chairs on the ground:

"From now on, I will give you a brief introduction to the situation here. If you want to ask more questions, go to Broca."

"okay--"

Lu Xi just wanted to pull out a chair and sit down, but what he found with a slight glimpse made him froze in place.

There were four of us, one Harris, and two brothers and sisters Broca, but there were only six chairs at the table in front of us.

Judging from the position of the chair, it is obvious that Harris did not intend to leave a place for Qianqian to sit from the very beginning.

Obviously facing us with a kind and gentle face, but he can express his disgust towards Qianqian in such an obvious way without making a fuss—what the hell is going on with this old guy.

Like Lu Xi, everyone present sensed the intention of the first old man the moment he pulled the chair away.And this obvious and undisguised disgust also instantly stiffened the atmosphere present.

He vaguely sensed that everyone's attention was on him, and the small fist hanging slightly by his side loosened and tightened, tightened and loosened again.Finally, as if she couldn't bear it anymore, she stomped her foot hard:

"—Hmph! If you don't sit, don't sit! What's the big deal!!"

"Hi! Qianqian—"

Looking helplessly at the back of Qianqian rushing out of the door, Brother Broka just wanted to get up and chase, but was blocked by a small hand.

"Leave it to us to deal with it here."

Stretching out her hand to stop the little brother, Yuxia's tone was gentle but with unquestionable firmness:

"Mr. Broca is here to accompany the priest to explain the situation, and to pursue Qianqian's work, it is enough for me and Nana to go."

Weighing the pros and cons, Broca gritted his teeth tightly, and finally nodded:

"Then I'll leave it to everyone, Qianqian."

----------------

"Then, let's continue our conversation, children."

Seemingly turning a blind eye to the back of Qian Qian who ran out, Harris naturally sat in the first place, beckoning to the remaining three:

"How about starting with the simple situation of Hidden Shadow Secret Realm?"

"……Um."

Looking at Celica who was about to move, Lu Xi focused on the little brother who was averting his gaze, and then showed a humble smile to the old man:

"I've heard about the general situation from Brother Broca. It seems that Hidden Shadow Secret Realm is not in the forest of monsters, nor is it the forest where it was before?"

"That's right. The Hidden Shadow Secret Realm is independent of the mainland, and the only way to connect with the outside world is the shadow teleportation array you walked through when you came in. Thanks to this, the Hidden Shadow Clan can avoid the negative influence of the outside world, It is not completely isolated from the outside world or even misses internal development opportunities."

He stroked his beard meaningfully, and a wise light flashed in the gray-robed old man's eyes:

"Adventurers seem to divide our secret realm into the category of [maze], right? The old man has also done research on these issues. I have to admit that there are too many secrets hidden behind the maze, whether it is the adventurers or us. The Cangying Clan are just scratching their heads. But what can be confirmed is that our secret realm neither has the feature of reset at zero time, nor does it have those monsters that are constantly refreshing inside. But if it is a [Honkai Labyrinth], our clan The ancestors have lived here for generations, and there is no sign of expansion of the channel connecting with the outside world—as for more, we don’t know.”

It seems that not only the little brother, even the highest priest has gone deep into the human world and learned a lot of knowledge there.

However, since this place has certain characteristics of [Maze], then my time-stop ability——

The countdown panel of the system was summoned by the mind, and after confirming the sufficient time on it, Lu Xi was slightly relieved.

In such an environment that feels wrong, it is really reassuring to be able to stop when you can use it.

Chapter 244 The Prosperous Period

"I've finished the brief introduction, do you have any questions?"

Facing the old man's question, Lu Xi thought for a while:

"May I ask Mr. Harris, what is the shadow sun in the secret realm?"

"Well……"

Looking at Lu Xi who asked such a question in astonishment, the old man was stunned for a while before smiling dumbly:

"Son, Shadow Sun cannot use such disrespectful words as [thing]. It is our [source], the source of life that supplies the entire Zangying clan."

While speaking, the old man gently raised his hand.A cluster of shadows rose from the table following his movements, changing into complex patterns.

"Like most secret realms—ah, the outside world calls it a [maze]—same, in Hidden Shadow Secret Realm, there are completely different rules from the outside world."

Controlling the shadow to condense the shape of a sun, Harris flipped his palm, and the sun was wiped out in an instant:

"This is very obvious, and you should be able to see it if you think about it—the concept of [sun] does not exist in the Hidden Shadow Secret Realm."

Lucy nodded silently.

"Without the sun, crops cannot grow, and even the temperature itself cannot be guaranteed. We who believe in shadows will eventually be swallowed by shadows and sleep forever in the cold darkness."

Sighing deeply, Harris turned his palm over again, and the sun that had just disappeared reappeared with his movement—but this time, it was underground:

"Fortunately, we still have the shadow of the sun. In the prosperous period, the brilliance of the shadow sun is even brighter than the real sun in the outside world. It is it that brings light and warmth to the entire Hidden Shadow Secret Realm, and it is precisely because of this , and it became something we all should be thankful for."

"[Prosperous Period]?"

Lu Xi frowned without letting go of any detail in the old man's mouth:

"The light of the shadow sun I saw outside just now was very dim. I wonder if this has something to do with the prosperous period you mentioned?"

"...Of course there is."

Mentioning this, the gray-robed old man's eyes dimmed slightly: "Every few decades or even a hundred years, the power of the shadow sun will suddenly weaken. Because of this, the crop production in the secret realm is greatly reduced, and the dark environment also brings It's a terrible plague, and it's a headache."

Recalling the desolate scene he saw along the way, Lu Xi frowned: "So, what's the solution?"

"Don't worry, child, of course there is a way. The wisdom of our ancestors has long left us a way to reawaken the shadow sun, as long as the ceremony is successfully carried out—"

As if just remembering, Harris patted his forehead: "Look at my memory, because I am so happy to see you coming, I almost forgot important things. The ceremony to reawaken Shadow Sun will be held in three days. In order to ensure nothing goes wrong, the old man has to prepare the related work himself... Let’s go here first today, let Broca receive you well, and the old man will leave first.”

"Hey! I haven't asked a question yet, wait a minute—"

Before Celica finished speaking, the gray-robed old man's figure completely merged into the shadow under his feet, and disappeared without a trace in an instant.

"Really! I still want to ask that old man why he bullied Qianqian! He ran away!"

Stamping her feet indignantly, Celica turned her head to look at Brother Broca angrily:

"Where will Qianqian go? I want to find her."

"If there are no accidents, it's probably time to go home."

It was the little brother who answered her with a deadpan expression:

"Here, come with me."

--------------

Looking helplessly at Qianqian who covered herself from head to toe in the quilt, leaving only one tail hanging outside, Nana, who had almost zero comforting skills, panicked:

"Qian, Qianqian? Or you come out first? It will be boring to hide under the quilt..."

"……don't want."

Qianqian murmured under the quilt, because her head was covered, the voice sounded muffled:

"Qianqian hates that old man. My intuition tells Qianqian that the old man's smile is [-]% malicious! He is the culprit who took the lead in bullying Qianqian!"

"But, then you don't have to cover yourself under the quilt..."

"—Leave it to me here."

When Nana tried her best to organize her words and wanted to imitate Lu Xi to make a beautiful blow but couldn't do what she wanted, Yuxia who was beside her shook her head lightly and made a 'shh~' gesture to her.

You, Yuxia?

Facing the puzzled eyes of the soft girl, Yuxia blinked playfully, showing a reassuring smile

[Don't worry~ It's my job as a saint to enlighten my little sister who is worried~]

【Then... please. 】

Seeing Nana nodding slightly and retreating from the bed, Yuxia took a few steps forward and sat beside Qianqian:

"Qianqian, why do you say that Mr. Harris is a bad person? If there is no evidence, guessing about others is not what a good boy should do?"

"Qianqian didn't lie! It's just...it's just a hunch."

Probably also aware of the weakness of his reasoning, Qianqian's voice immediately sank again:

"The old man is very kind to everyone else, and he is very respected by everyone. But only to Qianqian, he has been pretending to turn a blind eye. Even if Qianqian went to say hello to him, he continued to move on as if he didn't hear him. Let's go—everyone in the village must have seen his attitude, and then slowly began to reject Qianqian!"

Not [bullying], but [ignoring]?

Sensitively finding out the suspicious part from the shallow cry, Yuxia frowned slightly.

There is often a blind obedience to the superior in the population with superior-subordinate relationship.As Qianqian said, if Harris, who has an extremely lofty status in this secret realm, takes the lead in ignoring Qianqian, the rest of the people will naturally "stand in line" even if they have no grievances with Qianqian, and may even behave Worse than Harris' own disregard.

However, such an explanation does not make sense in some respects.Judging from the brief contact, Harris is an elder in the clan who has a high sense of responsibility for his own clan, cherishes every fellow clan, has a funny personality and is wise. What about maliciousness?

... Those things should be discussed after Lu Xi comes back and hears what happened to them.The most important thing now is to make Qianqian happy.

Not knowing what to think of, a little devil-like smile appeared on Yuxia's face.

Speaking of the 'sacred art' that can make a sad girl laugh and cheer up the atmosphere regardless of any conditions, of course it must be [that skill]——

He rushed forward and stuffed his hands into the quilt, Yuxia's body flashed with holy light:

"[Spiritual Soothing Technique] + Tickle Attack!!!"

"Wahhahaha! Forgive me! Qianqian will stop throwing temper tantrums! I beg sister Yuxia to forgive Qianqian!!!"

It only took an instant, and the slightly tense atmosphere was easily dispelled by Miss Saintess.

Chapter 245 The Reason for Shallow Rejection

"……So this is ah."

As soon as he entered the little brother's house, he was pulled aside by Yuxia, and after listening to her fully explain the conversation that happened here, Lu Xi nodded thoughtfully: