Qiu Yu woke up in a nightmare.

In that nightmare, the world was empty. There is no sky, no earth, no stars. Even time and space are gone. He was the only one who was silently mourning in this world that was darker than darkness and more nihilistic than nothingness.

Because the dream was too real, it was not until a long time after Qiu Yu woke up that his mind slowly crawled out of the abyss of despair. Then, as if instinctive perception spread to the surroundings, he happily touched the tangible things around him, and then infiltrated all the information called existence into Qiu Yu's mind.

The world began to turn again.

Qiu Yu opened his eyes as calmly as possible. Perceptual spread had allowed him to grasp his surroundings, and to confirm it with his eyes was just a habit that overrode reason.

It's a dark and cramped space. It is only three or four meters long, and only a little more than two meters high. It's like an underground shelter that has been dug in a hurry. Of course, if this was indeed a shelter, it was probably the highest-level shelter he had ever seen, because no matter how much his perception spread, he couldn't go behind the walls. The walls that look like ordinary masonry can even be blocked by the ability of the law.

In the corner of the space, where Qiu Yu was getting up, was a folded cloth mat laid on the ground and spliced together from rags. Not only was the mat broken, but it was also as if it had been used by thousands of people, staining it with strange and inexplicable stains and smells.

Next to the cloth mat, the candle that was the only light source here was only half a small one, and the flickering candle flame writhed and struggled, scattering the little light towards Qiu Yu, imprinting a dark shadow on the wall that seemed to be writhing and struggling as well.

Uncontrollable, unknown, lonely. The things that Qiu Yu feared were all available here. It was evasion and necessity, and Qiu Yu focused all his attention on the exit of this space.

It was a crumbling "wooden door" that was moth-eaten, slashed, burned, and so broken that even Autumn Feather couldn't identify. But in the spread of perception, this wooden door is like a wall that blocks the detection of the ability of the law. Although it is impossible to determine how strong it is, the fact that it can spread perception without any effort shows that it is a creation of the ability of the law, or even the power of the transgressor. Something that can leave those marks on it...... Just thinking about it makes people's hearts pound.

"Have you been kidnapped again?" Qiu Yu sighed helplessly and walked towards the door.

Because he has already encountered the City of Destiny, and he happens to be alive now, then this is by far the most likely situation. As for what to do next? There is no second option other than to push open the door that is filled with a dangerous aura.

"Are you going out?"

Just as Qiu Yu moved cautiously, and his fingers were about to touch the door, a voice with an old aura and an obscure tone suddenly sounded from behind him.

Qiu Yu flicked his knees and quickly jumped to the side. He was really scared.

A person hiding in a corner outside the field of vision, suddenly jumping out can still scare people, not to mention that this small space has always been full of Qiu Yu's perception, without any blind spots, suddenly popping out, this is no longer a simple sense of fright.

"Who are you?" Qiu Yu first threw out an inconsequential question to confirm the other party's purpose and attitude, and then quickly looked at the other party.

As with everything else in this space, perceptual spread is blocked around the other person's body, but the eyes can get more information. It was a humanoid figure completely shrouded in gray-black robes. The hem of the robe clings to the ground. The cuffs are also overgrown, and even though the hands are naturally drooping, even the fingertips are not exposed. And where it should have been the face, it was directly covered with a hood to the chin.

Although the place is dimly lit, you should still be able to see something under the hood if you adjust the angle slightly. However, Qiu Yu couldn't give birth to the slightest idea of snooping.

"Gatekeeper."

Surprisingly simply answered.

"What gatekeeper?"

"Gatekeeper of the Lands of Chaos and Chaos."

The existence of a self-proclaimed gatekeeper is like having rehearsed these problems millions of times, or it is simply a programmed machine. Almost as soon as Qiu Yu's question came out, these answers couldn't wait to follow.

There was no intimidation, and no hostility was felt. But these answers, which can lead smoothly to the next question, make Qiu Yu have a strong sense of crisis and oppression that only occurs when facing the regulators, or even those who transgress the law.

Just as he tried to ignore the hallucinatory discomfort and was about to ask what the Land of Chaos and Chaos was, the alarm in his heart suddenly exploded. It was as if an invisible hand had been caressing his heart, and when he waited for him to speak, he would clench it hard.

"How did I get here?" After desperately calming down his chaotic breathing, Qiu Yu entered his own rhythm.

The other party was silent. (Don't want to answer?) ）

"Where are the other people I'm with?"

Still silent. (This question will not be verified, no matter how you answer it, you will gain an advantage, or if you don't open your mouth, only two possibilities are left that he does not know and cannot lie, and that he is limited to not being able to answer.) ）

"Am I kidnapped or captured?"

Silence continues. (If you don't answer, you don't need to threaten me and show me kindness?) ）

"So, the current state is the work of conceptual creatures?"

The gatekeeper finally responded, "I only have knowledge here about behind the door." Other than that, it won't answer any of your questions. ”

"Oh......" The situation returned to square one, and after careful consideration, Qiu Yu found that the only question he could ask was, "Can you tell me the most necessary and least dangerous piece of information?" ”

The gatekeeper's hand slowly raised, and from the wide cuff, he handed out a yellowed note full of unknown stains. Only half of the note was exposed outside the wide cuffs, so it was still impossible to see his hand hidden under the sleeve.

Qiu Yu took the paper, and when it was unfolded, it was a dense and distorted pattern that could not tell whether it was text or graffiti. What can be understood is only a long line from pure white to pure black, running through the entire paper. In the center of the line, where black and white intersect, there is a small arrow pointing downwards to the line. Of course, this is to see with the eyes, and after Qiu Yu used the perception spread, he found that the arrow was not in the center of the black and white, but slightly biased to the black side.

Qiu Yu looked up at the gatekeeper again, "Regarding the world behind the door, every question I ask has a price, right?" ”

The gatekeeper's answer was still incredibly fast, "You don't have to pay a price, just an equivalent exchange." ”

As the gatekeeper answered, the arrow on the paper shifted slightly towards the black area.

Qiu Yu had roughly understood the current situation.

To use a game metaphor, this piece of paper shows the difficulty of the game. Each problem, depending on its importance, will lead to varying degrees of difficulty in the game. The more you know, the more difficult the game becomes, and the less you know, the easier the game will be, but being too ignorant and not even knowing the rules of the game is also difficult in another sense.

"Behind the door, which civilization is dominating this game?" What Qiu Yu wants to know is not civilization, but to confirm his situation. Cleverly limiting the problem to a certain range can make the cost smaller.

"Order and chaos." This answer, which was not an answer, shifted the arrow on the paper in the direction of black a little more imperceptibly. However, this subtle point is twice the distance of the previous questions combined.

Although there were still many necessary questions, Qiu Yu did not dare to ask them again. The feeling in the dark reminded him that the difficulty had reached a dangerous level now.

"If there are no problems, please come with me." The gatekeeper turned to the wooden door, seemingly convinced that Qiu Yu would not have any more problems exiting.

"I know it's impossible, but I still want to ask, is there anything I can let me know for free?"

A person named Qiu Yu will not be arrogant, will not be conceited, and as long as necessary, he will use the methods used by fools to test all possibilities.

Although it was brief, for the first time, the gatekeeper spent time thinking about the answer.

"The wise die first, then the curious, and finally the common man."