Bab 159: The Cursed Middle Finger
"Deputy leader, we did it! Hahaha! We did it! We did it!" Old Dog laughed out loud, not realizing his high-pitch voice. If it was the usual day, many would make the crap out of him. But today, at present, no one bothered with him. Or more exactly, each of them was drowned in euphoria, making a little ruckus as their own celebration.
Of course, it would happen since they just did the almost impossible, which was also a dangerous bet.
Like the people in the surroundings, Song Ronghua was considered calmer.
Sweeping his glance at his people, an evil smirk appeared inside Song Ronghua's mind. Not only winning the heart of his own people, making their bond even stronger than before, but also winning the heart of everyone from San Wuji's people. Having double benefit in one try. No, it was three benefit, along with the completion of the almost impossible mission, the Trials of the King.
And perhaps, he could win the support from the San Wuji faction's people, making his faction stronger and weakening the latter faction.
And of course, he would bring these people along to the Sword of Judgement, for the new future.
Too many benefits to reap.
But of course, he wouldn't reveal it - he was not some newbie in mind warfare.
"Un. Nice teamwork." Not forgetting to add a little flattering to the fourteen people, Song Ronghua returned his focus toward the unsealed door in front of him.
"Hahaha! Deputy Leader is the MVP! This crappy fourth trial isn't a matter for him! Hahaha!"
No one knew who said it, but they were thinking of the same thing.
"Yeah, yeah. . . Without Deputy Leader, we wouldn't be here, safe and alive!"
"As expected of Deputy Leader!"
"F**k with this fourth trial! without Deputy Leader, we will be in a deep sh*t! Hahaha!"
One by one, they sang their praise, akin to a symphony.
There was no change on Song Ronghua's expression, but deep inside, he was flattered.
Of course, the main reason for this was traced to half an hour ago, at the fourth trial.
Unlike the third trial which forcing them to take down the stoneman, the fourth trial was more like a test of strength – sacrificing lives half of the total number of people in this room.
Many were surprised by the absurd trial, not expecting that it would ask to kill their own people. More importantly, half of them were people under Song Ronghua, while the others were under San Wuji.
And this trial literally asking for only one of the two factions to stand alive.
The peaceful and cooperative atmosphere between the fifteen people was broken as they were divided into two factions, two camps, two opposing sides.
With their boiling temper, it was easy to lit the fuse of conflict.
"F**K! BURNING THE BRIDGE AFTER CROSSING THE RIVER? UNBELIEVABLE!" Little Three was the one with the lowest boiling temperature, making him easy to provoke. And of course, the other party would be glad to reply the 'polite answer'.
"What a 'burning the bridge', there is only some bastards tails the peacock's feather shamelessly."
"YOU THINK YOU ARE PEACOCK? I THINK YOU ARE A COCK, A D**K! A LIMP D**K AND THE IMPOTENT ONE!"
"Screw you! Don't bring the impotent thing! I can't bear to argue with the inelegant people such as you."
"HAHAHA! YOU CAN'T TALK BACK? IF YOU CAN'T, JUST SCRAM AND HUG YOUR MOMMY!"
"F**K! I AM DONE WITH YOU! I'LL KILL YOU!"
"YOU DARE? GOOD! COME HERE! ONE HEAD IS PREPARED!"
The gunpowder between them intensified as the arguments between them was out of control. No one cared about anything as they just spouted every nonsense that they could think of. It was not their fault as the fourth trial's content was literally re-ignite the rivalry between the two factions, making them similar with water and oil.
No one would think that the content of the fourth trial would directly half their number. And the most important point, they themselves get to choose.
Faced with this kind of situation, Song Ronghua kept his calm. He didn't say anything, but also didn't antagonize the other faction – as if enjoying the squabble in front of him.
"Deputy leader, say something!" Old Dog turned his head toward the silence Song Ronghua.
"Humph! What deputy leader? I believe this old crap is thinking on how to massacre all of us! Men! Prepare yourself!" Big Foot, member of San Wuji's faction took the lead of this faction. Little Three was too hot-headed, thus he had to hold the grip on his mates, his group.
Even though their number was lesser, not to mention Song Ronghua's capability as Spell User, San Wuji's faction was doomed. Their end was almost assured, but it didn't mean that they would go down without any retaliation.
Killing one was without loss, and killing two was profit.
And even if they would be sent to hell, they sure would drag Song Ronghua's people down. Or perhaps, Song Ronghua himself would be dragged down.
"F**K! DO YOU THINK BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T DONE ANYTHING, WE ARE SCARED OF YOU? SCREW YOUR ASS! SEE HOW I WILL WRECK YOUR BUTT!" Another one from Song Ronghua's faction flared up as he brandished his weapon.
Covering his butt, Big Foot had an apologetic tone as he pointed to Old Dog, "Er, sorry, I am not a gay. Please choose another guy. Maybe, he is suitable to your taste?"
"F**K!" "LET ME CUT YOUR D**D AND FEED IT TO DOG!" Two people flared up at the same time, making the muddy water in a more mess. One by one, they brandished their weapon and ready to lunged forward.
But before the fight broke up, Song Ronghua pulled in their attention and said, "Can all of you stop this stupid thing?"
His facial feature was so sincere, with pitying gaze and clear eyes, making all of them lowered their weapon. But it was clear that they still didn't lower their vigilance toward each other.
For the people from San Wuji's faction, they only lowered their weapon because of what Song Ronghua had done before at the third trial. That was all, nothing more. If Song Ronghua said anything that would make them in disadvantage, they would start the fight.
Seeing that all eyes were aimed toward him, Song Ronghua chuckled a bit and continued, "Someone, read the fourth trial's requirement. Old Dog, you do it. Read it clearly and loudly."
"Er, deputy leader, I am not a child." Old Dog felt that he was being looked down, but there was nothing that he could say. But, there was a big problem.
Standing in front of the wall of text, Old Dog furrowed his eyebrows as he tried to read something out of it. "Err, blood, er, half, what is this thing read as? Book?"
"SCRAM OFF YOU ILLITERATE DOG!" Little Three took a few wide steps toward the wall of text and read it loud, "BLOOD SIGNIFIES LIFE, AND LIFE SIGNIFIES WORLD. OPENING THE WORLD, BLOOD MUST BE SPILLED. SACRIFICING HALF FOR THE OTHER HALF, AN EQUIVALENT EXCHANGE FOR THE NEW WORLD. THAT'S ALL."
"SCREW YOUR ASS! WHO IS THE ILLITERATE ONE!"
"THE ONE WHO REPLIED IS THE ILLITERATE ONE!" Little Three took a few steps back while covering his delicate butt. "AND MY BUTT IS EXPENSIVE! A RARE AND NOVELTY THING! THE ONLY ONE IN THIS WORLD! THE LOSS OF IT MEANS THE LOSS OF THE WORLD! AND DON'T AIM MINE FOR YOUR SHITTY ORIENTATION!"
"F**K YOU! F**K YOUR FATHER AND GRANDFATHER!"
"DON'T DO THAT! I'M STRAIGHT, YOU ASSHOLE! AND MY FAMILY IS THE SAME! JUST POKE YOUR TINNY WEENY INTO WALL OR SOMETHING!"
"S**T!"
"Can you stop it? Leave your lover's quarrel and let's talk about the hint." Song Ronghua clapped his hands, not caring for the pair and attracting the attention of the others. "Sacrificing half for the other half. Simply talking about it, since there are fifteen of us here, what is the half of this number? Seven? Eight? A little weird, right?"
"It is not the end. There is about this 'sacrificing half for the other half', meaning the number for each side have to be the same, right? What is this number means? The number of people who arrive from the very first trial? It is possible, but I don't think so."
The surroundings were quiet, thinking that Song Ronghua's point was a little right.
"The most probable is the number of people in the fourth trial, right? Like the present, there is a total of fifteen people here, including myself. But my main question is, if all of us leave this place, only leaving only two people here, what is the sacrificed number? Is it still seven or eight? Or is it only one?"
Little Three nodded, but his vigilance was still up there. "So, what you want to convey is killing only one person here? If you are pointing at your people, I am fine with it. If it is the otherwise, then forget it."
Song Ronghua chuckled, not caring for little Three sharp words. "There is a possibility to manipulate our situation for this fourth trial. And here is my suggestion. How about using a slave's corpse from the previous room? There is no any saying about killing in this place, right? So, using the dead that already dead should be a legit way."
Song Ronghua smiled without making any fuss, but the others all began to be convinced, thinking that there was nothing wrong to try this harmless trick.
…
Returned to the present.
"HAHAHA! OUR DEPUTY LEADER IS THE BEST!" Old Dog shouted the loudest, but no one chided him as it was the truth. Without intervention from Song Ronghua, a bloodied battle would happen, and no one would profit from it.
"Hahaha, indeed. Tricking the trial, no one thinks like that, hahaha!" Little Three's wording was akin to scowling at someone, but everyone here understood that it was filled with admiration. For someone who liked to break many rules, this kind of trick opened his mind.
"Okay, men. Enough with your squabble and finish this mission." Song Ronghua took the lead and the first one to went into the small and dark tunnel, followed by the others. No one fought for the lead as they treated Song Ronghua as a genuine leader, even including people from San Wuji's faction.
It was a respect for the strong and the capable.
Similar with the place before, it was filled with damp air along with the disgusting smell. But no one cared as they couldn't wait to see the Trial of the King's prize.
It was not a long tunnel, but it felt like a long journey, making them had their own imagination of the reward.
Maybe a golden sword adorned with tens or hundreds jewel? Or perhaps ancient Battle Technique manual which was suitable for a king? Or perhaps, an old man soul who would teach and guide them?
It was not a long alley, but each of them couldn't wait as they began to speed up.
Batta batta batta batta. . .
The end of the alley was seen, and it was another room. Smile crept up on their smile, making them grew impatient. One by one, they ran forward.
It was another dark room, but this was the end of the place. There was no other way out of this room with the exception of the alley they came from.
"Damn! What the heck with these cool things!"
All their eyes were glued at one spot, no, one area. It was beautiful, but there were more of greed in their gaze. A set of armours. Not only one set, but a bunch of it. It was enough for each of them to wear one. In fact, there were some spares.
"Treasure, it is a real treasure! It is not losing to any expensive jewellery or something similar!"
"One, three, five, . . . ten, nah, I won't count again."
"Armour? This armour is the reward? This full armour? Damn! So wealthy!"
Their eyes were blinded by the glittering armour under the limited illumination, but it wasn't enough to hide their surprise.
"Don't be greedy, men." Song Ronghua disdained their greedy eyes, but he was skilled enough to hide his true emotion. "These things are not ours, but rather higher-ups in Sword of Judgement. In exchange, we will receive benefit from them."
There was no greed in Song Ronghua eyes because all of these things were only useful for warrior, not for Spell User like him. Perhaps, only the thing like Earth Moonlight Crystal was useful for him.
Clapping his hands, Song Ronghua gave his command, "Pick all of it. We will bring these out. Don't leave anything behind-"
But before Song Ronghua could continue his word, Big Foot fell near his feet. With terrified face, Big Foot stuttered while he pointed his trembling finger toward the opposite direction of the armours.
Song Ronghua leapt back and raised his vigilance, and it was the same with little Three, Old Dog, and the others. They were prepared in case of the abnormality like the stoneman appeared again in this place.
Silence. . .
Nothing happened, but Big Foot was still in fear. "Lo- look. . ."
Song Ronghua glanced at Old Dog, meaning that the latter had to move forward, giving an illumination in front of them. This way, they could see the reason for Big Foot's fear.
Old Dog wanted to cry as he was being used as cannon fodder. As the person who moved closer, he was very vulnerable to a stealth attack. Especially, in a place filled with darkness.
Step. . . step. . .
The illumination from Light Lantern gradually filled every corner, giving a better vision for all of them. But some of their faces cramped at the sight of something, and some others wore a terrified expression like Big Foot.
"Big Foot." Song Ronghua couldn't hide his bulging veins on his temple. "Is that what you want to point?"
A golden gauntlet stood tall in front of them, showing its radiance when the light from Light Lantern was shone toward it. Along with six embedded gems and exquisite carving, exuded the elegance of the ruler. No, the ruler's dominance. But. . .
"Hi- hi- hi, his finger!" Big Foot stuttered a lot, but he finished with a shriek, "THAT THING IS GIVING US HIS MIDDLE FINGER! IT IS A CURSE! WE ARE BEING CURSED!"
". . ." Song Ronghua.
". . ." Old Dog
". . ." Little Three and people from San Wuji's faction.
…
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone