Doomsday Jigsaw Puzzle

Chapter 145: Chapter 145: The Secret of the Fifth Layer

Lilith looked at Bai Wu with a puzzled expression. She was unclear how Bai Wu knew her secret with Cain.

Bai Wu said,

"Don’t be curious about how I know it. Cain speaks a lot, and although I suspect that as an ’actor,’ he might have different personalities in different bodies, he wouldn’t need to spout nonsense about having lived for seven hundred years just for the heck of it. So I surmise it’s true. But what I really want to know is, what’s the reason that you and Cain have lived for so long?"

Lilith didn’t dare to conceal anything,

"The earliest batch of humans who entered the fifth layer all drank from the Eternal Spring of Immortality."

"The Eternal Spring of Immortality?" Bai Wu was taken aback by the mention.

What on earth was that?

The fifth floor of the High Tower seemed to be entirely different from the fourth floor.

"So drinking from the spring allowed you to attain a lifespan far beyond ordinary people? Does the Eternal Spring still exist?"

"It has long dried up. After the High Tower was truly sealed, many people drank from the Eternal Spring. Because the effects of the spring water were inscribed right above it, it was quickly claimed by the people on the fifth floor."

Thinking of what Little Facial Paralysis had said about the forbidden area, Bai Wu guessed that perhaps the spring hadn’t dried up, but had been completely divided up instead.

But what exactly was this spring water? It seemed Lilith had noticed Bai Wu’s confusion,

"An ancient belief states that the true rulers at the top of the High Tower wish for humans to govern long and peacefully. They dislike uncertainty, so they granted humans immortality. As one generation succeeded another, only secondary powers were handed down. The true power always remained in the hands of the powerful Eternal Beings."

This belief, Bai Wu thought, could be demonstrated everywhere...

Humans from the lower two levels might gain entrance to the third level, but compared to the real inhabitants of the third level, they were always deemed inferior.

Administrators might enter the fifth level due to their outstanding management experience, but they were merely tools for the rulers of the fifth level.

The rulers held the order of the High Tower, but their authority was bestowed by the Eternal Beings.

The Eternal Beings seemed powerful, among them terrifying entities like Cain, but they could only submit to the levels below the sixth.

"An interesting belief. Who was the original source of this ancient saying?"

"Cain..."

Bai Wu’s gaze became playful. Clearly, Cain was someone who had undergone many changes over seven hundred years, but no matter how he changed, at his core, he was evil.

"What’s Cain’s view on the sixth floor?" freewebnovel.cσ๓

"I don’t know... The sixth floor is inaccessible. Although there are elevators that can reach the sixth floor, they can’t be opened. Over the years, only the rulers of the fifth floor were able, through some means of communication, to convey that only those among the top hundred in the Sequence could trigger the elevator to open. In a sense, Cain is mad..."

Bai Wu corrected,

"Not in a sense, but in every sense, he’s mad. Someone like me, who is normal, should use words in this manner, of course, I’m not mad."

Lilith didn’t know how to refute Bai Wu’s self-perception, so she continued on the main topic,

"Cain is extremely crazed. Before he entered the High Tower, he had already contacted some beings that had foreseen the descent of the High Tower. They told Cain that the High Tower wasn’t the final destination for humanity. So he has always been obsessed with what exactly is on the sixth floor. Therefore, following the trajectory of the elevator shaft, he climbed up to the nine hundred meter summit..."

"I guess he didn’t use his real body."

"That’s right. He didn’t use his real body, but because of that action, his other two bodies became weakened as well. It’s as if they were branded with something. Not only those two bodies, but after he left the fifth floor for a long time, when I saw him again, many years had passed. Perhaps even his real body had suffered a great blow."

Bai Wu pondered.

The sixth floor’s existence had evidently dealt Cain a heavy blow on the level of consciousness or soul.

At that time, Cain might have been similar to the Heroes challenging the fifty-first floor. Perhaps all of the fifth floor meant nothing to Cain?

He had always been curious about what was on the sixth floor, but the elevator could not reach it. Considering the previous four floors, he could easily conclude that the higher the level, the more privileges and resources one obtained.

Therefore, he didn’t care about the power games on the fifth floor and wanted to be part of a greater game. And so, he climbed to the sixth floor.

But he was like the Heroes who challenged the fifty-first floor, complacently assuming with a stroke of luck that he would be safe if he didn’t use his real body.

But clearly, there were enemies on the sixth floor far beyond Cain’s imagination.

Perhaps for the long seven hundred years, Cain had been trying to find a way to bring his original body back to life? Or to erase a certain brand.

The best method was to find a new body that had surpassed the original one. So he set his sights on Dwarf, who had risen to power only in the past two years.

Everything made sense, but there were still some details Bai Wu was unclear about, so he changed the question:

"Were you once a ruler?"

"Of the seventy-two people who first entered the fifth floor of the High Tower, only eight were eligible to compete for the position of ruler."

So, there were a total of eight ruling families? Those known so far were the Pang Family, Zhong Family, Yan Family, Xie Family, and Qin Family.

"These seventy-two people... all of them had drunk from the Eternal Spring of Immortality?"

"Yes. But only one third survived, those who initially served as ’councilors,’ discussing together how to govern the High Tower. From those twenty-four, only twelve remained, and the councilors began to establish their own forces, eliminating political enemies."

"You were among those who were purged."

Lilith didn’t speak, which was as good as an admission.

Bai Wu found it interesting:

"It seems that in the end, this game of seventy-two rulers stabilized with eight individuals, eight factions jointly controlling this High Tower?"

"Obviously. They have controlled the High Tower for seven hundred years, and these eight families’ power has always been stable."

"Was it Cain who saved you?"

"To be precise, he took me into the fifth floor, and had he not gone to the sixth floor, had he not disappeared for that period, I would not have been purged."

"If your own mind is not sharp, don’t blame others. There might be people in the fifth floor even more formidable than Cain, and if he blocked someone’s path, he would have been purged just the same."

Lilith didn’t dare to contradict Bai Wu.

The questions Bai Wu wanted to ask were almost fully covered. There were seventy-two Eternal Beings on the fifth floor.

These Eternal Beings, through various battles, had apparently left only eight visible.

But it didn’t rule out some who, like Cain and Lilith, had escaped from the fifth floor.

Maybe they were hiding in the tower as humble janitors, or had gone outside the tower to become some sort of supreme Evil Fallen.

And what exactly was the Eternal Spring, whether it was provided by the individuals from the sixth floor, remained unclear.

Lilith knew too little.

"Did Cain already possess various Sequence abilities before he entered the High Tower?"

"Yes, even earlier than I had imagined. I once asked him about where his abilities came from, but I asked several times, over the span of a decade or so, and each time his story was different. Including the questions you asked me about him earlier, I can’t guarantee they are one hundred percent true. He lives in a realm between illusion and reality. Regarding the source of his powers, what I consider most credible is that he had contact with beings who foretold the arrival of the High Tower before it came."

Bai Wu accepted the answer; Cain was indeed a deceiver, lying had become second nature to him.

"How long have you known Cain?"

"I can’t remember. Really, I can’t remember... It’s been too long, far too long. You can’t imagine how long seven hundred years is."

"Indeed, I can’t imagine. By the way, did Cain have any sworn enemies outside the tower? Was there anything he feared? Anything he particularly enjoyed?"

Lilith sensed Bai Wu’s certain fixation on Cain. She did not believe Bai Wu could deal with Cain, but she truthfully replied:

"Weaknesses... Likes, I don’t know any. His likes are probably seducing others. As for a sworn enemy, there once was one, in Food City, Baichuan, Shudu. He had a long battle with a Masked Man there."

At this point, Lilith’s eyes widened as she looked at Bai Wu:

"You have that mask too."

When Bai Wu was rescuing Ruan Qingyun, Lilith had seen the mask, and in that moment, it was as if she were transported back seven hundred years.

Many unpleasant memories surfaced in my mind.

Bai Wu took out the mask and said,

"This?"

"Yes."

"Any clues about this Masked Man?"

"In Cain’s eyes, he’s someone with the potential to change the world, just like himself. In every confrontation with him, Cain tried to seduce him to his side, but failed... And then the Masked Man disappeared. Not defeated by Cain, but just like that... vanished. There was no outcome to their rivalry."

Lilith continued,

"Recently, that mask reappeared outside the tower, and Cain was thrilled. It’s as if a duel suspended seven hundred years ago had resumed."

Bai Wu shrugged,

"You and he should both know that I’m not the owner of the mask."

"That’s not what Cain cares about. He believes this world should have an opponent—or rather, an enemy—who can challenge him to his limits, someone with completely different values and worldviews. Only then does he find the game interesting."

He really is a madman.

"I’ve told you all that you wanted to know... What do you plan to do with me in the end?"

"Letting you go is obviously out of the question. After all, my lady, you’re a living historical archive, with seven hundred years of history. There are many interesting stories in the High Tower that I want to delve into. Once I’ve purified a certain area, I will take my lady outside the tower, and we’ll recount those lovely past events together at the true dusk."

Lilith felt that Bai Wu was even more twisted than Cain.

Bai Wu said,

"I really appreciate the information you’ve provided this time, madam. But I forgot something just now."

Bai Wu put an ordinary Spirit Possession wristwatch on Lilith.

"Science requires data for validation. I need to record the exact terror value you’re experiencing, madam."

Bai Wu once again inflicted the "Punishment of Thorns."

Due to fear, the wristwatch’s value jumped to over two hundred forty, already in the red zone of the dial.

This was still with the help of Heart Like Still Water, suppressing the fear of the needles.

"A pain I’ve endured since my teens, you, a seven-hundred-year-old auntie, should try to be as calm as possible."

Bai Wu recorded the fear value and said,

"I’m not sure when our next conversation will be, but I’ll do my best to keep you feeling this fear. If it falls below this level, as a meticulous scientific researcher, I’m afraid I’ll have to increase the intensity of the Punishment of Thorns."

Lilith’s fear wasn’t feigned. During their conversation, she felt that Bai Wu wasn’t as twisted as before. But now she realized she was wrong.

Terrifically wrong.

"Goodbye."

A syringe of anesthetic was injected into Lilith, and soon the woman drifted into a dream.

In the midst of her deep sleep, the wristwatch value dropped significantly, but it never fell below seventy-five.

Clearly, the dream was a nightmare.

...

...

Bai Wu left the interrogation cell and prepared to find Wu Jiu to discuss matters concerning leaving the tower.

On the way, Yun Shu and Xue Ci behaved oddly when they saw Bai Wu.

Their reactions made Bai Wu feel they were in some kind of special excited state.

In fact, they were somewhat afraid of Bai Wu, but Bai Wu misunderstood.

"Could it be that Xue Ci likes Yun Shu, Yun Shu likes Jing Chu, and Jing Chu likes Xue Ci? Why do they seem so odd?"

"They’re so excited, are they about to accept this mighty, solid love triangle?"

Bai Wu’s gaze towards the two of them became peculiar as well.

Consequently, the three of them exchanged weird looks for half a minute before each walked away.

...

...

After Bai Wu arrived in Wu Jiu’s office, he recounted the aftermath of the military exhibition to Wu Jiu.

He believed that Wu Jiu needed to quickly stabilize the Investigation Corps’ corps commander, and then have the corps commander steady the Garrison Corps’ commander to nip the conflict in the bud.

Since all fault lay with Cain, allowing the issue to ferment would only stir up the conflict between the fifth level and the two legions.

"What we should be doing now is continuously exploring outside the tower, strengthening ourselves. Attracting attention from the fifth level might not be a good thing."

By now, Bai Wu knew that among the rulers of the fifth level, there were eight elder-monster-level beings, their strength possibly on par with Cain’s.

Maybe they even possessed exceedingly high sequences. The current feeling to Bai Wu was that the fifth level was much more dangerous than the sixth.

From Lilith’s words, people of the sixth level did take away those with rare sequences, but they didn’t seem very proactive.

In seven hundred years, the sixth level hardly ever interfered with the matters of the levels below, only activating the elevator after being informed by people from the fifth level.

So, in a way, it was the people of the fifth level who truly decided the fate of the rare sequence holders.

And the managers of both legions had previously agreed to keep rare sequence holders as hidden as possible.

But if the military exhibition incident continued to escalate, the pang-named ruler might enact severe measures, potentially bringing disaster to both forces.

And Wu Jiu was the most suitable to resolve this incident, as he was Liu Mu’s best friend. If he could just convince the corps commander, this issue would be considered resolved.

After understanding the pros and cons, Wu Jiu agreed to Bai Wu’s request.

"I can handle this today. Anything else?"

"Leaving the tower," Bai Wu replied with a smile.

"The tower holds no pleasure for you, does it?"

"There are many benefits to leaving the tower, I’m just after the gains."

"Who will be in the expedition party?"

"The Vanguard Group members."

Wu Jiu was puzzled, "Not taking Bai Xiaoyu and Qin Lin with you?"

"The Vanguard Group has been with the captain longer. I trust the captain, but not so much those two. Lin Wurou, Xiaoyi, Yin Shuang, Wang Shi, they are all good people. I hope that after this expedition, our relationship can improve further."

Wu Jiu understood.

Bai Wu hoped to share some of the core secrets with more key members.

"When do you plan to leave the tower?"

"After the captain has dealt with things."

"Then five o’clock this afternoon. Meet at Lower East Square."