I'm Trapped in the Block

Just as she was thinking, a commotion suddenly erupted from the crowd.

Several robed Hunters let out incomprehensible roars, holding torches as they rushed toward the observation device.

’They’ve found us!’

Although she didn’t know how the robed Hunters had found her, Li Luo decisively abandoned the observation device and retreated toward the back of the alley.

However, the robed Hunters were in no hurry, simply gathering at the alley’s entrance.

Then, one of them suddenly shouted. A strange syllable escaped his lips, and a rune emerged from his body. The rune transformed into a jet-black pointer, aimed directly at Li Luo’s location.

The jet-black pointer hovered above the caster’s head. Once it formed, the robed Hunters raised their torches and swarmed into the alley.

’What kind of relic is that?’

The sound of footsteps grew closer. It seemed the jet-black pointer could pinpoint Li Luo’s position precisely, making escape impossible.

They were also extremely familiar with the residential area. They immediately split into several groups to cut off her escape, and footsteps began to echo from all sides.

Mo Ling was already prepared for battle. A few robed figures had entered his field of vision. Each held a torch in one hand and a weapon in the other; their intentions were clearly hostile.

Just as it was about to attack, a nearby sewer grate suddenly opened, and a strange diving helmet popped out.

’An enemy?’ Mo Ling was about to teleport when it heard the person in the diving helmet shout something at Li Luo. "Bright moonlight before my bed, could it be frost on the ground? If you understand, get over here!"

The voice was muffled, like someone speaking underwater, and the timbre was odd, but the words were perfectly clear.

’He’s a normal person!’

After shouting, the person in the diving helmet jumped back down.

After a moment’s hesitation, Li Luo scrambled toward the sewer opening.

Once she reached the opening, Li Luo didn’t jump down right away. Instead, she pried open the adjacent grate, widening the hole so Mo Ling could descend first.

After the Block floated down, she slid the grate back into place and dropped into the sewer just before the robed Hunters arrived.

"Follow me!" the person in the diving helmet called to Li Luo. He waved her over, then took off toward the other end of the sewer tunnel.

As they hurried to keep up, Mo Ling realized just how labyrinthine the sewers were. They had been formed from the Black Tower’s original cavities, so the pathways followed no logical pattern.

Though not as spacious as the residential area above, the tunnels were wide enough for several people to walk abreast.

Light from the residential area filtered down through the grates, providing just enough illumination to make out the path ahead. The sewer appeared to be completely dry, likely from long-term disuse.

Looking over his shoulder every few steps, the man in the diving helmet led Li Luo to the edge of a vertical shaft.

"Down you go. Their tracking has a limited range." With that, he jumped down without hesitation.

Li Luo hesitated for a moment before jumping down, with Mo Ling following right after.

After a moment of darkness, Mo Ling found itself hovering over a deep pool. The water was crystal clear, and shafts of sunlight pierced through the opening above, illuminating the cavern.

Tough, resilient plants grew by the pool’s edge, thriving on the light and water and lending the space an unexpected vitality.

The man in the diving helmet was already standing on a rock by the pool, shaking the water off a tablet.

"This should be far enough. They won’t be able to find you," he said, reassuring Li Luo, who was still in the water.

Li Luo slowly swam to the shore. She took a small, yellow, sponge-like cube from her bag, placed it on her clothes, and it instantly wicked them dry.

"Let me get one of those." The man in the diving helmet walked up to Li Luo, holding out his hand.

After getting the sponge cube, he didn’t use it to dry his own clothes. Instead, he dried off his tablet and began to record something on it, looking completely focused.

It was only then that Mo Ling noticed the man was wearing a white lab coat, the kind often worn by researchers. It was completely soaked, but he seemed not to care at all. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

On the tablet, he appeared to be recording the robed figures’ previous actions in detail. His sentences were perfectly coherent, with no trace of linguistic confusion.

When he finished writing, he looked at Li Luo and said calmly, "Judging by how long you’ve been in the Black Tower, you should have been affected by its distortion by now. But you can still understand what I’m saying. You must have a way to prevent it, right?"

Li Luo nodded.

The man in the diving helmet switched to a new document on his tablet and began to record Li Luo’s condition, starting to speak with her like a doctor conducting an examination.

"To prevent any mishaps, I’ll need to run a few tests, if that’s all right with you."

After Li Luo agreed, the man in the diving helmet began his questions.

"First question, regarding nouns. Please select the option that is not an animal."

"A. Sumatran tiger."

"B. Cat."

"C. Fan."

"D. Giraffe."

It was a very simple question, and Li Luo answered quickly. The man in the diving helmet nodded and continued. "Second question, regarding verbs. Please select the option that is not an action."

"A. Blue."

"B. Jump."

"C. Drink."

"D. Hit."

...

"For the tenth and final question, please give me a few idioms about difficult journeys or overcoming adversity."

Li Luo thought for a moment, then replied, "’The light at the end of the tunnel,’ ’through thick and thin,’ ’where there’s a will, there’s a way’..."

The man in the diving helmet nodded, making a checkmark on his tablet.

"You must be new to the Black Tower. The distortion is getting more and more severe these days. It’s impressive that you found a way to protect yourself so quickly."

"My name is Bai Zhou. I’m a medical officer with the Black Tower Monitoring Station. You can check my ID tag, and you can also look me up in the database."

He then took out his ID tag and held it up for Li Luo to see.

"Second-level Hunter, Diver Bai Zhou."

His decisive move to prove his identity dispelled Li Luo’s suspicion, but he didn’t seem satisfied.

"Now, you can ask me some questions to prove that I haven’t been distorted."

Hearing his request, Li Luo was taken aback for a moment before shaking her head. "That’s not necessary. The questions you asked are proof enough."

But Bai Zhou was insistent. "You have to ask," he said stubbornly. "At least one question. It’s the foundation of mutual trust!"

Given his firm tone, Li Luo recalled the test Mo Ling had given her earlier. She tapped on the Block.

Mo Ling understood immediately and displayed its screen.

Bai Zhou glanced at it and answered without hesitation, "D. Obtuse angle."

"Correct."

Hearing Li Luo’s confirmation, Bai Zhou visibly relaxed, seeming quite pleased with himself for answering correctly.

He patted his chest and said, "Finally, another sane human in the Black Tower. I was starting to think everyone had been twisted."

Li Luo, however, picked up on the slightly odd phrasing he used.

"’Another sane human’? Aren’t you one yourself?"

Bai Zhou was taken aback by her question, then waved his hand dismissively. "I may not be twisted, but I’m not human."

"I’m a Fishman."