Chen Tian found himself unable to advance, as if a barrier blocked the path ahead. No matter how he pushed forward, his body couldn't break through the protective membrane, not even with his full strength. It seemed there was a restriction, but he wondered if such restrictions existed in this labyrinth.
Curious, he opened his friend list and sent a message: "I've stopped moving, what about you guys?"
"Nothing on my end, Chen Tian, did you trigger something?"
"Possibly, but I haven't encountered this situation before when triggering traps. Let me think."
He closed the message and looked at the road ahead. Why couldn't he proceed? Was it a trap? But if he had triggered traps before, the interception should have happened immediately, not so long after. Moreover, was this barrier the only effect?
That was impossible. There had to be other factors he hadn't considered. Chen Tian remained stagnant. Beside him, Chen Shi Xue's clothes were tattered, revealing glimpses of her fair skin. Who knew what hardships she had endured to reach this state? As she walked, she kept an eye on the sky, as enemies constantly fell from above, leaving her no time to defend. Even the surrounding trees were mobile. According to the system interface, these were normal trees; how they had come alive before was unclear.
As Chen Shi Xue walked through the forest, three vines suddenly swept towards her, entangling her legs and causing her to fall. A creature made of wood charged at her furiously. She swung her long sword, severing the vines, and slowly stood up. Her arm moved rapidly, releasing several beams of light that sliced the tree creature into four or five sections. When she approached, it was just a pile of branches. It was too strange.
She didn't dwell on the situation, unable to figure it out. It was better to keep moving. However, as she advanced, a sound rang out, as if she had stepped on something. She warily scanned her surroundings. After a few seconds, nothing happened. How strange. Could it be that the trap, as Chen Tian had said, was just meant to scare them?
She continued forward, slowly entering the heart of the forest.
Meanwhile, Chen Tian was still trying to figure out how to pass the barrier. A massive object descended from above. It was a good thing he reacted quickly and avoided being crushed. It was the first fully silver robot, or rather, not a robot, but a puppet. A mechanical puppet. This was a three-faced puppet, with three cheeks corresponding to three directions. It had four arms and four legs, looking very peculiar.
He instantly sensed something was wrong. He hadn't triggered any traps earlier. How did this thing appear from the sky? As he pondered, the mechanical puppet offered no respite. It charged forward, wielding a long sword and a long spear in its hands, unleashing two devastating attacks. Chen Tian somersaulted, executing an extreme evasion. The two attacks narrowly missed him.
Standing his ground, he realized he had no choice but to fight. He would think about what was happening after dealing with this.
He stepped forward, his fist gathering power. As he swung his fist, the mechanical puppet's faces turned expressionless. The weapons in its hands disappeared, and it clenched its fists, meeting his punch. BOOM! The shockwaves and turbulent energy pulsed, but the surrounding labyrinth walls remained firm. Such hardness was truly terrifying.
Their fists collided. He was slightly surprised. This guy's punching power was on par with his own, even comparable. What a joke. With his full gaming strength, even a player three realms above Chen Tian couldn't withstand a single punch, yet this puppet was evenly matched with him.
As the shockwaves and ripples continued to spread, Chen Tian pulled back. This mechanical puppet was formidable. He looked at the three-faced puppet, and information flooded his mind. His eyes, modified by the Divine Pupil, could uncover any information, though there were usage limitations. The stronger one was, the more information one could obtain. For those with lower strength, some things wouldn't be revealed.
This also corresponded to the saying, "With great power comes great responsibility."
As a member of the game's privileged users, he didn't need his eyes. Just by drawing out the interface, he could know the attributes of this colossal creature before him.
The information from his eyes revealed, Chen Tian's lips curved into a smile. "No wonder it's evenly matched with me. It's just a pity it lacks intelligence. Being a puppet makes it easier to deal with."
Multiple solutions instantly appeared in his mind. Ending the fight was simple. He moved like an afterimage, his clones surrounding the puppet. The eyes on its three faces shot out lasers. The puppet spun, lasers raining down, and the clones were pierced one by one in the laser storm.
When the laser rain ceased, a long sword descended from above, piercing the puppet from top to bottom. The puppet exploded into countless fragments. The long sword retracted into his body, and he said with a relaxed expression, "If it had intelligence, it might have taken me a bit longer."
He clapped his hands and continued forward. Still no progress. Was the previous battle not the key to unlocking the barrier?
"Chen Tian, I just triggered a trap. Just like you said, these traps are really annoying."
"Why is it so safe on your end, while mine is so dangerous? I've only reached the mountainside so far."
He stared at the messages from the other two, his mind racing with possibilities. Soon, one scenario emerged.
Chen Tian: "You two, stop moving. If I'm not mistaken, I need your help to advance here."
Chen Shi Xue: "Chen Tian, what help? We're not even together. I can't help even if I want to."
Yun Shui Ying: 'Chen Tian, have you figured something out?'
"Indeed. If my calculations are correct, the traps on this level are connected in three places. When I triggered a trap earlier, combat traps or ambushes appeared on your ends. If you two trigger one, it will cause the same situation for the other two."
"If I want to advance here, it might require all three of us to trigger a trap together."
He presented this possibility. Chen Shi Xue and Yun Shui Ying found it hard to accept at first. But upon careful consideration, they realized that in this game called "Epoch of Time," such a situation was quite reasonable and fit with modern engines—chain reactions!
"Then Chen Tian, where do we find the trap? We'll trigger it together."
Given the current situation, they had to trust Chen Tian's words. He closed the message. Traps couldn't just be stumbled upon; it required exceptionally good luck for him to trigger one right after mentioning it.
"Dong!"
He leaned against a wall, and a concave groove in the wall was pressed down. His mouth twitched. His luck seemed a bit too extraordinary.
Just as he spoke, he triggered something. This way, while waiting for the other two to find their trap switches.
Simultaneously, in the other two regions, switches were triggered. Lights bloomed in three areas, and the labyrinth, forest, and snow mountain trembled, giving the impression that they were moving. This was not an illusion; they were truly moving.
The three maps merged at that moment. A glowing portal appeared before the three of them. Chen Tian and the other two entered, seemingly to proceed to the next level.
His calculations had never been wrong. The moment they entered the portal, all three were stunned.
They had merely swapped maps with each other; they hadn't exited this level.
The confusion wasn't just Chen Tian's; the other two were equally bewildered. They thought they had passed the level, but now they were in someone else's area.
Where were the other two then? Were they still there?