Following the old man's lead, the captain and Kiki came to an underwater living room. Suddenly, the old man turned around and asked, "Where are you from?" Where are you going? ”

"The Castle." Kiki was unwary of saying it directly, and she didn't know if it was appropriate to say it.

"The Castle!" The wrinkles on Du's face were full of surprise: "That place doesn't often have outsiders go, once someone goes, it means that something is going to happen." Do you mind saying what happened? ”

Captain Akang hesitated a little, although the old man opposite had a kind face. But can he be trusted? But there's no reason to judge him as a bad person.

"Oh!" The wrinkles on Father Du's forehead stretched: "I'm not a bad person, to tell you the truth, I am the oldest disciple under the Anemone Thousand Thorns Sect." It was only because of old age and infirmity that he could no longer work, so he was relieved and returned to the field to live in seclusion. ”

The captain's hanging heart relaxed, and when he heard the word 'disarming and returning to the field', he secretly laughed at himself in his heart, maybe he was really not at the level of the detective world before he encountered so many passive things. It's really time to disarm and return to the field. It's just that the things I'm facing now haven't been dealt with yet, and I can't stop:

"It turns out that he is another disciple of a thousand thorns, and I almost blamed you." The captain replied apologetically: "It's just that this matter is a long story, and I can't explain it in a few words." ”

"Then ......" Father Du seemed to guess the end: "Did the old man of Thousand Thorns use the trick of the judge's blood seal to fight with others?" ”

"How do you know that? It did fight a fight. The captain replied.

"Needless to say, the old man must have passed away, right?" Father Du's originally sad face was now distorted even more sad. The voice is low and the mood is heavy.

"This ...... You've got it all. How did you find out about this? ”

Father Du was silent, and there was a bottomless sentimentality in his eyes. It seems to be sad for the world, and then worried about this "world". Although he is in seclusion, he still cares about the warmth and coldness of the outside world. It took a long time before he turned around and replied slowly:

"Old Man Thousand Thorns is very old, and the last time I saw him, I reminded him that he could no longer use the Judge's Blood Seal technique. Once he uses his life force it dries up, so why doesn't he listen? ”

"He used that trick to save us, and we didn't know it was so dangerous for him at the time." Said the captain.

"Save you?" Father Du seemed to understand something: "I will also save the people saved by the Thousand Thorns, regardless of the reason." You rest here for a while, and I'll send you away when the whales above are gone. After sending you away, I have to rush to the castle to see if I can read a prayer for the old man of a thousand thorns. By the way, where are you going? ”

"We want to go back to the Taiping Imperial City."

"This ......" Father Du said: "I'm afraid that you will encounter whales if you take the regular route, I think you will be less likely to be spotted if you take the form of a terrestrial human and take a boat on the sea." ”

"Ugh! For now, this method, known as water smuggling, might work, what do you say, Kiki? The captain asked her, but found her hunched and bowed her head, crying silently without saying a word.

"What's wrong, Kiki?"

"Nothing...... It's just a little sad, I've encountered so many things along the way, I'm so scared, and I'm living in a daze. Every time I have Lingji, I feel a little courage, but when I think of Lingji not around, I feel frightened again. Not only can't I save my companions in danger, but I can't even protect myself, so I feel uncomfortable......"

"Don't be sad, little girl. You're just a little bit behind, a little bit of it. Actually, that's all, what's so sad. Father Du's words seem to be often said by old people: "In fact, even if the second evolution is completed early, not everyone will achieve something." They will go through life with mediocrity and will not leave many good memories. It's the same whether such a person has evolved twice or not, but child, if someone has paid a lot to save you, don't you think it's worth putting in a little effort to repay them? ”

"That being said, what should I do?" Kiki asked in a low voice.

"Excuse me, what did the Old Man of Thousand Thorns tell you before you left the castle?" Father Du turned to the captain and asked, "You know, he often does things in order to achieve the result. If he saved ten people, but nine of these ten people came back to reprimand him and hated him, he did not hesitate to do so, and his logic in dealing with things is very incomprehensible. ”

Listening to Father Du's comments on Thousand Thorns, the captain could tell that he knew the old man Thousand Thorns very well. He had reason to believe that Father Du knew a lot about the old man of Thousand Thorns. So he told him: "Treasure, the treasure of the Taiping Imperial City." ”

"Treasure!" Father Du's eyes were stunned: "What exactly does the treasure he mean?" ”

"I thought, maybe it's gold, silver, jewelry, or something, he didn't say it was very detailed."

"Hmmm! Wrong. I have known him for hundreds of years, and he has always been indifferent to fame and fortune, and regards gold and silver jewelry as dung, how can gold and silver jewelry be called treasures by him? It should be something else. ”

"Ugh! What could it be? The captain asked.

"I have been living in seclusion here for many years, meditating on things that I didn't understand before, and letting my soul continue to practice penance. I hope to understand all the truths in the world, get the comfort I want, and get myself out of the sea of suffering and happiness. If I had to say what treasure was to me, I would explain that knowledge is treasure. ”

"That's a good point, old man Du. Perhaps, as you say, that treasure is knowledge. The captain replied, "Is this an allusion to a book?" ”

"Akang, whether it is a book or not, the location of the specific treasure may already have a definite answer in your mind, don't doubt it. If the Old Man of Thousand Thorns saves you and tells you certain secrets, then these secrets must be important to you. You should explore these secrets, and perhaps all your questions will be answered. ”

"Makes sense!" The captain was a little excited, and these words really made the captain feel that he had the next direction: "Qiqi, I know where to go next, we should all say thank you to Father Du!" ”

"Thank you, Father Du!" Kiki respectfully thanked the old man, but in her heart she thought about Lingji and Aaron, and she didn't know what was going on now. How do you face them if we meet again? Will they be on Acantero's side? How do you explain to them why you're leaving? Will Lingji feel like she has betrayed them? After all, does this practice have to go through such a frightening road?

Outside the residence where Du's father lived, many whales passed by lingering for a while in slightly murky waters. Feeling nothing out of the ordinary, he slowly moved into the distance. Du's bobo fish hides in the sand, revealing its two eyes, like a sentry on secret patrol.