Ling Jia grinned, brewing a somewhat nauseating soup while mysteriously saying to Lu Luo, "The Nightmare Demon wants to integrate into the human world, and it has already made preparations."

Lu Luo's pupils contracted slightly, but he wasn't surprised by this answer. The various signs before had already led him to suspect and speculate on the Nightmare Demon's actions.

However, he still didn't quite understand. How could an Exotic Species possibly blend into humanity? Could there really be people who believe that Exotic Species and humans can coexist peacefully?

"What preparations has it made?"

Ling Jia stopped brewing the soup and leaned its head in close. "If I'm not mistaken, the Nightmare Demon has already launched a Black Tide against the Fourth Ring."

Upon hearing this news, Lu Luo's aura changed, his tone now carrying a distinct murderous intent. "The Nightmare Demon is going to launch a Black Tide against the Fourth Ring? Has this already happened, or is it your speculation? Is there any evidence?"

Ling Jia frowned and returned to the side of the stone pot. "Why so fierce? It's not like I'm the one who launched the Black Tide against the Fourth Ring."

Lu Luo became somewhat anxious. "How do you know the Nightmare Demon will launch a Black Tide?"

Seeing that Lu Luo seemed genuinely anxious, Ling Jia lost interest in teasing him any further. "Alright, alright, since you asked so earnestly, I'll tell you out of great mercy! The Nightmare Demon had already gathered a large number of Exotic Species from the East Ring before the Twilight Ceremony. Its ability is the Nightmare Power, which makes controlling a batch of Exotic Species all too easy! That's the reason. If it's controlling and gathering so many Exotic Species, and not for launching a Black Tide, what else could it be doing? Playing house? There's no need for that. With so many Exotic Species, there must be an outlet for venting and consumption, so it has to be a Black Tide. Moreover, the purpose behind launching this Black Tide is also hard to say. After all, not many can fathom the thoughts of the Nightmare Demon. Old Ling Jia sees it clearly; the Nightmare Demon will definitely launch a chaotic, indiscriminate attack against the East Ring. Exotic Species are foolish, and under the lead of their Monarch, they will only blindly charge against the high walls. Under the force of this onslaught, the majority of all Exotic Species in the East Ring will be decimated, and humanity's Fourth Ring, the East Ring, will also suffer. By then, both the human and Exotic Species worlds will be in decline. In complete chaos, perhaps its goal will be achieved. Of course, these are all just Old Ling Jia's speculations. Whether to believe it or not is up to you to decide."

Although it's an Exotic Species, its analysis seems to be logical and well-founded.

Ling Jia's words had a significant impact on Lu Luo, even though the old monkey kept saying these were all its own speculations. However, after hearing these words, Lu Luo also felt that the old monkey's speculations were likely true—very likely, in fact.

At the moment, Lu Luo wasn't able to contact the outside world. Therefore, he couldn't confirm whether the situation outside was indeed as Ling Jia had predicted, plunged into a war of the Black Tide.

If a Black Tide has indeed occurred, what will happen to Bai Yuetong and Brother Kane? What about Han Shiyu? Will they be in danger? Lu Luo was feeling somewhat down; the situation here hadn't been resolved when another problem had arisen elsewhere—something he least wanted to see. His eyebrows twitched, and his murderous intent began to spread once more. This situation was clearly becoming abnormal.

Keep calm. Don't panic under any circumstances; you've said that many times yourself. You've let your self-control slip lately, and that's due to the influence of the Netherflame. Netherflame is very similar to the Nightmare Power and inherently has the effect of warping the mind. You can warp others, but the Netherflame itself can also warp you. Therefore, while wielding the Netherflame, you need to be especially calm.

The Observer's hint brought a bit of calm to Lu Luo's mind. That's right, he needed to stay calm. Panicking now was pointless. At this time, he could not offer any help to the outside world. As for the influence of Netherflame, it indeed required some adjustment.

"I understand," Lu Luo said, "the power of Netherflame is really hard to control, and this has caused some issues with my mental state recently. It's useless to be anxious while I can't leave the Nightmare Castle. The most urgent task is to resolve the matters within the castle. After rescuing Qi Xinzhu, everything else will be negotiable! The Twilight Ceremony was probably prepared for Qiu Guling and Ludie. All the other schemes are just part of the Nightmare Demon's game. Understanding this, my course of action becomes clear."

Ling Jia looked at Lu Luo, initially thinking that hearing the news of the Black Tide would throw Lu Luo into disarray. Then it could strike forcefully and take advantage of the chaos to subdue Lu Luo. Unexpectedly, Lu Luo had quite a strong mental fortitude. Such intense fluctuations of Netherflame did not twist his mind—this was getting interesting.

"Alright, alright, I'll continue cooking!"

Lu Luo being fine, Ling Jia could only change the subject. However, Lu Luo wasn't going to let it off so easily. "Don't rush, Mr. Ling Jia. Don't hide. I won't hit you. I'm quite magnanimous as a person. Hmm, while we still have some time, tell me about this power, Netherflame. During our first meeting, you mentioned something about me being dominated by Netherflame. Can you tell me about it?"

Without formal education, Lu Luo was clueless about many types of powers, especially a power like Netherflame that originated from the Exotic Species. There were no records in the documents within the walls. If Lu Luo wanted to study and advance further, he had to ask an Exotic Species. The Ling Jia in front of him was the best teacher.

"Er, Netherflame, this thing... it comes from beyond the Fifth High Wall, from the Nether River."

Lu Luo's expression, which had just calmed, suddenly shifted. "Wait, wait, wait... what did you say? Fifth High Wall? There's a fifth wall in this world?"

"Ignorant. After passing through the end of the Exotic Species' world and journeying further into an indescribable region, there lies the Fifth High Wall. It has always existed; it's just very, very far away."

"Have you seen it?"

"I haven't seen it, no!"

"You haven't seen it, yet you can be sure there's a Fifth High Wall?"

"Of course! We Exotic Species have something called inherited memories. Do you think we're like you humans who have to learn everything?" Ling Jia spoke as if it were a matter of course. Lu Luo opened his mouth but seemed unable to find any counterargument. Education is supposed to be a grand affair. Why does it sound so trivial coming from Ling Jia's mouth?

"Alright, continue."

"The Nether River beyond the Fifth High Wall is a river formed by the power of Netherflame. It's said—of course, I haven't been there either, just heard about it—it's said that the power of Netherflame can control life and death, extract or bestow vital energy. It can also merge with other energies to form new variant powers. Therefore, many Exotic Species speculate that the power of the Nightmare Demon might come from beyond the wall, from the Nether River. That's the source of its power."

Old Ling Jia spoke convincingly, but Lu Luo could only treat such matters as a story. However, he had gained some insight, such as the fact that Netherflame's power could fuse with other attributes. Although there's no specific method to learn this, I could try it with the Fusioner!

"You're quite knowledgeable. Anything else?"

"Ah, that's all!"

Ling Jia sensed something was wrong. Is Lu Luo planning to discard me now that I've served my purpose? No way! Besides, I'm not a donkey.

"Hmm, if that's all, then let's continue!"

Lu Luo's gaze made Ling Jia somewhat afraid, but fortunately, the killing intent Lu Luo had exhibited earlier had completely dissipated. At this moment, his mental state was perfect, and his physical state was also at its peak. In other words, he had achieved a state of harmony and was ready for tier advancement. So Lu Luo had no intention of taking action against Ling Jia anymore.

Lu Luo quietly waited as Ling Jia brewed the concoction, and the time slowly approached around 5:50. Looking at the time, Lu Luo felt a slight stir in his heart.

"How much longer?"

"Almost, almost! It'll be ready very soon."

Finally, Ling Jia produced a murky concoction with strange bubbles and some odd substances floating in it. It brought the bowl over to Lu Luo. "Kid, you're getting a bargain this time. This is 'Bride's Tears,' a whole big bowl of it, enough for you."

"You call this 'Bride's Tears'? Why is it so murky?" Lu Luo felt that what was in front of him was a bit different from what he had drunk before.

Upon hearing this, Ling Jia became somewhat dissatisfied. "Of course! When a bride drinks it, she sheds tears, so isn't it called 'Bride's Tears'?"

Lu Luo: "???"

"Are you going to drink it or not?"

Lu Luo frowned as he took the bowl, and the Observer simultaneously sent a prompt.

Bride's Tears: Upon consumption, can greatly enhance Dark Energy Level. An outstanding alchemical product of the Exotic Species.

The item is genuine, but why are these 'Bride's Tears' as murky as Ganges water...? Never mind. Advancing to the Fourth Tier is what's most important right now.

Lu Luo put the Bride's Tears into the Noah Ring, then turned to look at Ling Jia.

Ling Jia instantly trembled. Is the kid going to make his move? After all this delay, I've recovered some strength too! I...

"Ling Jia, your intelligence and information are very useful. I thank you for this. If I really can get out, I promise to let you all go and won't go back on my word." Lu Luo's expression was indifferent, but he no longer had any intention to attack.

Ling Jia found Lu Luo's promise a bit strange. "You really will let me go? Oh, and them too?" Ling Jia pointed to a group of chefs behind itself.

"Didn't I already say I would let you all go? Although my promises aren't worth much, it's still a man's word."

Ling Jia was stunned for a moment. Among negotiations with Exotic Species, there was never any talk of such intangible things as promises. This quality of humans is indeed much stronger than that of Exotic Species!

Seeing that Lu Luo was about to leave, Ling Jia quickly stopped him. "Hey, hey, wait a minute! Take these things to eat; they might increase your strength a little."

Ling Jia handed over two items: one was a type of meatball, and the other was a fruit that looked like a pear.

Ling Jia's Meatballs: Consumption comprehensively increases all attribute values by 1. Maximum 5 servings.

As Lu Luo looked at these grey, meatball-like items, his expression turned rather odd. This thing... are you sure it's not just rolled-up boogers or something?

After putting away the meatballs, he picked up the pear. As soon as he touched it, he realized this item was far more remarkable than the meatballs.

[Thunder Fruit]

Grade: Epic

Effect: Grants you the power of lightning. If you already possess the power of lightning, it enhances your lightning power.

Description: A fruit formed in a special environment, likely one of the Nightmare Demon's collectibles.

Lu Luo stared at the pear, stunned. This is truly a great item!

"How about it? This thing's amazing, right? It wasn't easy for me to get it from the Nightmare Demon's... uh... private stash."

Alright, I think I know where this came from now.

"Thanks. I hope you all don't die here. I'm leaving!"

"Nonsense! I certainly won't die here."

When Lu Luo returned to the dining room, Kuding once again stopped him. "It seems Mr. Lu Luo has already gotten what he wanted."

"Mr. Kuding, are you here waiting for morning tea time?"

Kuding shook his head, his gaze directed towards the top of the castle, profound. "No, I'm waiting for the groom!"

Kuding's words made Lu Luo frown slightly. "Waiting for the groom?"

"If they're lucky, some of them should have already obtained the items the groom needs. Or, they're about to become the groom themselves."

"I see."

Lu Luo's expression was quite calm, which made Kuding a bit puzzled. This reaction wasn't what it had anticipated. "Aren't you worried, Mr. Lu Luo?"

"Why should I worry, Mr. Kuding?"

Kuding paused, slightly taken aback. Lu Luo's objective is Qi Xinzhu. Hearing that someone might have gathered the groom's items, shouldn't Lu Luo be worried? "Mr. Lu Luo isn't worried? If they've all found the groom's items, then you've lost."

This old lizard is still too naive. If the Host kills all the potential grooms, then there won't be any grooms left, will there?

"No worries. The Twilight Ceremony takes place at dusk, so I have plenty of time." He truly wasn't concerned. As long as he killed all the potential grooms before the Twilight Ceremony, there wouldn't be any grooms left. Since he was prepared for that, why rush?

"What you say is true, but the identity of the groom can be determined in advance. Every additional groom means Mr. Lu Luo has one more competitor."

"Hmm, thanks for the reminder, Mr. Kuding. But for me, the outcome of the Twilight Ceremony's game isn't important, nor is the number of grooms. As long as I kill them all before the Twilight Ceremony, the game ends."

Lu Luo's straightforward declaration left Kuding silent for a moment. After a while, it started laughing. "Mr. Lu Luo's approach is... quite simple and straightforward. Although I don't want to admit that it's a very sensible method, achieving this task requires considerable strength."

"Yes, it indeed requires considerable strength!"

Lu Luo turned and headed to the second floor. Kuding's words also implied something else: someone was close to collecting all the ceremonial tokens!

Who could it be? Chen Mo? Duorang? Or Qi Gefei?

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