Chapter 12: Tang Xian Is Right

Dong Ran nodded. It made sense now: Tang had been sent to the lower levels because he was accused of cheating.

But that wasn't right.

Dong Ran frowned, realizing that the matter was not as simple as it seemed.

Wait, does that mean Tang Xian scored a perfect score?

A monster with a perfect score in digitalization?

Dong Ran asked, "Tang, did you score a perfect score in digitalization?"

Tang Xian nodded.

It wasn't just digitalization, but also all the other subjects he had access to, or rather, subjects that humans were still teaching at this stage.

Dong Ran fell silent for a while, then said, "Actually, you didn't cheat, did you? If you had cheated, how could you have let your classmate come in second?"

Tang Xian showed a rare smile of satisfaction, yet said, "Because all this was made up by me."

Frozen, made up? Had he been toying with me all along?

She looked at Tang Xian, feeling somewhat aggrieved.

Tang Xian found a spot to lean against and said,

"Whether I cheated or not isn't important. In any case, this conclusion is a reasonable one for everyone. It can even be said to be a joyous one, and that's enough."

Dong Ran realized that Tang Xian indeed had been teasing her, but she wasn't angry, thinking about how a person skilled enough to score full marks in a single subject had fallen so low, she felt somewhat sad for Tang Xian.

"Was there no one... to speak up for you?"

"Speak up for what? Ke could have spoken for me at that time, but unfortunately, he was transferred to Fortress Fifty-One too early. As for the others, there were a few who I had taken care of who wanted to speak for me. Although they are now influential figures, at that time they had little influence."

"They're busy now. Those who helped me in the past have repaid the favor of my mentorship. They owe me nothing, and I naturally have no reason to seek them out."

Dong Ran felt inexplicably sad.

Tang Xian chose a comfortable position and reclined, showing no sign of sadness.

Perhaps this is why some people still resent me to this day? They expect me to show a mournful face, loudly proclaiming my innocence or 'I didn't cheat.' They want to compare me to some broadcaster from over a thousand years ago, or throw out 'So you're saying you can't do martial arts?'

But back then, I was very calm, simply taking it as a misjudgment by them.

In any case, ascending to a higher level or descending to the lower level didn't make much of a difference to me.

So although Tang Xian disliked being branded as a cheater, he truly didn't care about the punishment or treatment.

Living in a stratified pyramid, even at the very top, aren't you still just a monkey locked in a cage?

…

…

The following morning, Tang Xian and Dong Ran started their journey early.

This time, Dong Ran refused to eat the Bogen Fruit that resembled a human organ, so Tang Xian left her hungry.

Dong Ran was slowly getting used to Tang Xian's lack of sympathy and tenderness; as long as there was food in the evening, it was fine.

Tonight they would eat fox meat, Silver Fox Stew, it sounded delicious. It was a brilliant idea to empty her stomach now to save space for later, anticipating eating more at night.

"Tang, how much longer until we reach the Tree Sea?"

"Not long, about two hours' walk and we'll be there," he replied.

"And how are you planning on capturing the three-tailed fox?"

This was the most pertinent question at the moment. Although Tang Xian seemed to be smart, the idea of capturing a group-dwelling three-tailed fox seemed nearly impossible to Dong Ran.

The difficulty of the task was like facing a pack of bone hyenas.

It was much harder than dealing with a single Hellhound.

Tang Xian said, "Actually, foxes are solitary animals by nature, and six-tailed foxes are no exception. Common foxes in the real world are also solitary creatures, it's just that three-tailed foxes are outliers."

"Three-tailed foxes are social animals. If they encounter another group, they will either recruit or plunder. No matter what, such animals will always investigate cautiously."

"Shi Wenbin's 'Foxology' mentions a phenomenon where even when their prey is dying, foxes won't rashly approach; they observe first. Foxes are known to be cunning, and they truly are. They share at least one thing with clever people, and that's skepticism."

"Is skepticism a trait of clever people? How come you're not skeptical?" Dong Ran asked.

Tang Xian gave Dong Ran a look.

"I seldom encounter issues that require doubt. But that doesn't mean I'm not skeptical."

"So what if foxes are skeptical... Skeptical three-tailed foxes still come in groups, don't they?"

Tang Xian nodded his head and said, "Here, you should be skeptical."

Dong Ran was stunned for a moment, then had an epiphany. Tang Xian was calling her foolish again!

"Do you see those blue flowers over there?" Tang Xian pointed ahead.

"Wow, what beautiful flowers."

"This flower is called Five-leaf Biphasic Orchid. It has two scents. The first is incredibly fragrant when you smell it, but once you pick it and it's detached from the root, it changes to a completely different smell. This smell is still within the range of fragrant but less intense, more fresh. Many animals, including the three-tailed, six-tailed, and nine-tailed foxes, like to line their dens with Biphasic Orchids."

"First, it helps in identification, and second, it covers their musky fox scent."

This time Dong Ran caught on.

"Does that mean we can find the fox's den by following this scent?"

"Yo, you've made some progress."

"But... the scent of the flower isn't that strong. If the fox den is far away from us, how can we smell it?"

Tang Xian was very pleased and patted Dong Ran's head.

Dong Ran's face instantly turned red.

"Not bad, you've thought it through. As for how we can smell the scent, that problem has already been solved. As to how it's been solved, here you can be skeptical."

Dong Ran stamped her foot.

Tang Xian paid her no more mind. His sense of smell could now detect scents from a great distance, so naturally, he wasn't worried about not finding the fox's den.

In fact, Dong Ran had completely misunderstood Tang Xian's point.

"There will be a lone fox coming later. I didn't bring any capture tools, and since we're dealing with elite-level creatures, do you think you can beat one?"

Tang Xian watched Dong Ran closely.

Feeling a bit uncomfortable under his gaze, Dong Ran was about to say she couldn't win but inadvertently ended up telling the truth, "I should be able to beat one."

If it's just a lone one, an elite-level creature, as a four-talent individual, Tang Xian thought Dong Ran shouldn't have any problems.

Dong Ran was surprised. She should have hidden some things, but she just couldn't hold up in front of Tang Xian.

Whenever this man stared at her, she felt somewhat... uncomfortable, as if he could see right through her.

She quickly thought about other matters to distract from the awkwardness and discomfort.

For example, if the skin of the three-tailed spiritual fox were sold, it would probably shock the merchants at the Pyramid, wouldn't it? Adding the elite boss's Soul Crystal Mine, if Tang Xian took these two items to register as a hunter...

His initial ranking would definitely be high.

Tang Xian said, "Good, as long as you can beat it, that's fine. But unless I say to strike, you're not allowed to. Understand?"

"Okay... but why would a fox come here? A lone three-tailed fox at that?"

"Be skeptical on your own or you can choose to develop a habit of thinking."

"What habit?"

"If Tang Xian says something will come, it definitely will come."