Chapter 1280: Hundred out of Ten

Liao Liao cleared her throat.

“First, the black creatures are embodiments of different languages. Despite their language barrier, humans want to build the Tower of Babel that would take them to heaven. But they are doomed to fail. That’s why they have been repeating the process.”

“Now, back to the name of the room: Forest of Riddles.”

“The ‘riddle’ part is self-explanatory. It’s difficult for people using different languages to communicate, just like guessing the answers to riddles.”

“Then there’s ‘forest’. Visually speaking, the countless black towers have formed a forest. The trees reached toward the sun, but there is a ceiling to their growth. That implies the fate of the black towers. They cannot reach the dome no matter how hard they try.”

“Individually speaking, humans are all lonely individuals who can never understand each other. As a whole, however, humans aren’t truly alone. As long as we hold the same ideals and goals, we may create a forest where humans can live even if we will never build a tower leading to heaven.”

Liao Liao turned to the others.

“A hundred out of ten!” Zhang Wei clapped dramatically. “Very astute. I have nothing to add!”

“As expected of an intellectual from formal education,” Gregor praised. “I’m just a more learned bumpkin in comparison.”

“Oh, no. I just said whatever came to mind,” Liao Liao said humbly.

“No, you explained the situation well.” Vermilion Bird looked at the others. “So, what is the question?”

“I still think it’s loneliness!” Zhang Wei said. “Maybe I just gave the wrong answer.”

Adept Horse shook his head. “It feels close, but not good enough to describe the room.”

“It may not be that complex.” Gregor made a bold guess. “I think the question is ‘language’.”

“Agreed,” Adept Horse nodded. “The black creatures are the main feature of this room.”

Gregor shared his analysis. “Humans create languages for communication, coordination, and union. Deep down, humans crave expressing themselves and being understood, being completed. Because humans are born lonely.”

They all agreed.

“Language is wonderful,” Gregor continued. “It conceptualizes everything and allows humans to create countless miracles. But language is also limited. Humans can never truly understand each other through language. Or it can be said that language is what makes the human heart more complicated and reserved, creating barriers.”

He thought for a moment. “Think about it. Animals express their love by nuzzling, licking, or waggling their tails, and they express hostility by growling, baring their teeth, or attacking. Without complex languages, animals do not misunderstand or lie to each other. There is no barrier between their minds.”

He inhaled through his cigarette. “Just my two cents. Nothing to write home about.”

“It’s not trivial,” Liao Liao returned the flattery. “It’s valuable insights!”

“Mr. G’s the real deal.” Zhang Wei gave him a thumbs-up.

“The question is language,” Qing Ling said with certainty.

The others nodded.

“Alright, we have our question.” Vermilion Bird looked at the others in turn. “How about the answer?”

“Heart.”

This time, Gao Yang told the answer—the one he got from Little Qing Ling.

“Agreed.” Gregor shook ash off his cigarette. “Loneliness in the heart compelled humans to invent languages, and the constraint of languages makes humans realize the loneliness of the heart.”

“Aren’t we just back to the beginning, then?” Zhang Wei asked. “Might as well have never gone through the trouble.”

“No.” Vermilion Bird looked at the countless broken towers reaching beyond the mist, her gaze unwavering. “Only by acknowledging our loneliness can humans truly devote ourselves to greater belief and faith. Even when there is no tower leading to heaven, there must be a bridge leading back to our heart.”

“Nice! You’re all grade A students! All got a hundred out of ten!” Zhang Wei crowed. He looked up and shouted, “The question is language, and the answer is heart!”

No response.

“The question is language, and the answer is heart! Cerulean Dog, make some noise if you heard me!”

Still no response.

Really? Did we get it wrong?

Liao Liao ducked his head. She had just shared her interpretation of the room in detail, and it was wrong? This was embarrassing.

It’s okay. Embarrassment does not go away, but it can be shifted.

She turned to Gregor. “Mr. G, why don’t you tackle it from another angle?”

“Ahem.” Gregor could not deal with this can of embarrassment, so he tossed it to Gao Yang. “Why don’t we let Captain Gao, the one who started the conversation...”

“Watch your feet!” Chen Ying warned.

A black tower rose beyond the misty clouds, flying toward them. Nainai quickly brought them to the side.

Whoosh

.

The tower shot past them, generating a gust of wind.

“Look!” Hong Xiaoxiao called out.

As if summoned by an unseen power, all the broken towers upon the clouds soared into the sky like an array of rockets heading to the cosmos. Soon, the towers stabbed into the invisible dome like giant black swords suspended in place.

“Creepy.” Zhang Wei felt his skin crawl. He was reminded of a cave filled densely with stalactites, ready to pierce his head any second.

“Watch out. Those beings are rising, too,” Chen Ying sounded another warning.

The black creatures on the land flew past the clouds in dense clusters like a black meteor shower in reverse. The “shooting stars” converged and stretched to form two asteroid belts. They spun and intertwined while rising like a double helix connecting heaven and earth.

Countless lonely individuals brought about the miracle of reaching the sky by holding onto the same belief. The grand demonstration seemed like proof of their deductions.

At the same time, a translucent sphere rose quickly along the double helix, stopping right before them like a space elevator making a pit stop.

A masked Cerulean Dog stood at the door. “Come on in, everyone.”

“Brother Dog, couldn’t you have shown up earlier?” Liao Liao joked. “I was dying from embarrassment here.”

“Yeah, you sure took your time,” Zhang Wei complained.

Cerulean Dog didn’t respond.

They wordlessly entered the elevator. It soared along the path and found the countless black towers suspended at the top of the dome transformed into a strange vortex. The double helix pierced through its center like an umbilical cord.

As the elevator accelerated, vortexes seemed to form in their heads, too, making a mess of their thoughts, logics, concepts, and memories.

Right before getting sucked into the vortex, Cerulean Dog spoke.

“The next room, Desert Ocean.”