Chapter 5 This is a Trial!

Thunder rumbled and heavy rain poured down.

The two sides faced off, standing no more than five meters apart.

At this moment, the person inside wanted to get out, and the 'person' outside wanted to come in.

But neither could achieve this.

For Yang Siming, this was a matter that concerned his very safety!

First, he was buried in ancient ruins after an earthquake, then he encountered a time-travel event—a phenomenon with incalculable odds—under certain death circumstances.

He had time-traveled for just under an hour; he certainly didn't want to drop dead on the spot, did he?

Even if he had a pass to a children's water park and was paddling in a boat, it wouldn't last only this long.

Even if he really had to die, he would have preferred to die in the ancient ruins... at least that way...

Wait...

Ancient ruins!

A flash of insight struck, and Yang Siming suddenly realized something very important.

The meaning of the word groups he had deciphered from his notes was unclear, a judgment based on modern common language.

But if it was related to the ancient ruins...

The situation would be quite different.

As a professional with relevant knowledge, as long as there was a direction, other things could quickly come to mind.

Firstly, the ruins that buried him were located underground in the northern part of Hashemiye, on a plain in the Tigris-Euphrates river basin atop the Eurasian continent.

It was also the land where the ancient Babylonian civilization, one of the four great ancient civilizations, was born.

His previous work involved an entry into Sumerian Era ruins that were at least 4500 years old; it was because the ruins were buried so deep that all the subsequent events had happened.

So if he took the words he had previously deciphered and referenced them in this direction...

'Iškur' could be literally translated as Iskur—a name with much significance.

Like the widely-known Venus goddess Ishtar, Iskur symbolized the Jupiter deity worshipped by the Sumerians, whose divine authority was directly inherited from the creator god. Due to the obscurity of the mythology, it was generally unknown.

In the Babylonian and Assyrian regions, however, He was known by 'adad,' the True Name of the well-known Storm God, Adad.

Even in Canaanite mythology, He was the supreme deity who wielded the ultimate power of the universe!

He hadn't thought of this deity before mainly because the name Iskur was exceedingly rare and seldom used in various contexts; Adad was more commonly known. It was like how ordinary Chinese people knew Taibai Jinxing was an old immortal, but mythological researchers knew the more secretive fact that Taibai Jinxing was originally a beautiful female immortal.

It was only under specific conditions that Yang Siming came to realize what this True Name meant.

Adad or Iskur.

This was a pure deity who resided in Heaven in mythology, holding many mights and powers, including that of the Heavenly Bull subdued by Gilgamesh, which was a manifestation of His principal authority.

However, specific situations required specific analyses. Since the name Iskur was noted in his journal...

Then he should also make the corresponding analysis based on this.

In the Sumerian Era legends where He used the name Iskur, this mythical entity primarily possessed the powers of thunder and torrential rain!

"Storm God…"

"Thunder and torrential rain…"

As his thoughts reached this point, the turmoil in Yang Siming's mind became evident in his body.

In his hands, the grip on the all-important notebook was so tight that it almost deformed the book!

How could this not make a person anxious?

Was his time-travel somehow entangled with a deity from mythology?

Even setting aside the heavy rain pouring down outside the window, the details of his previous experiences were enough to indicate the extraordinariness of this matter.

Think about it.

From the moment he awoke until now, the development of events could be distinctly divided into three phases.

These three periods also corresponded to the three significant changes in the environment where Yang Siming found himself.

First, he was awakened from unconsciousness by a terrifying clap of thunder, which marked the first change;

Second, as he realized he had time-traveled and intended to examine his notebook, his actions were interrupted by a sudden clap of thunder, which then shifted his attention to the mysterious power hidden in the curtain of rain, marking the second change;

Last, when he once again studied the contents of the notebook and even began to make some progress, the process was halted by a knock on the door from the 'maid' who claimed to be 'Vilarnika' outside, accompanied by the thunder, marking the third change.

Wasn't all of that too coincidental?

Although the sound of thunder on a stormy night was logical,

The three instances of lightning—so immense in scale, so precise in timing, so important in impact—

Clearly exceeded the realm of 'logical'!

This wasn't like filming a movie; how could one simply ignore it?

...

Lifting his head, Yang Siming's gaze towards the 'girl' outside the door had changed.

Regarding this 'Vilarnika,' he might have had some misunderstandings before.

And aware of the change in Yang Siming's eyes, the 'Vilarnika' outside the door grew cautious.

With her fingers, she adjusted the edge of her maid's apron, her beautiful brows becoming more serious than ever before:

"How about it, do you plan to come out?"

"Going out directly would be too rash."

Shaking his head, Yang Siming just placed his finger on the page of his notes and continued deciphering the content, while simultaneously sharing his perspective:

"First, the existence of the thunder is very likely harmless to me. Otherwise, without the sound of thunder, I wouldn't have woken from my coma. If someone wanted to take action against a person, a comatose state would obviously be more suitable."

"Then, there's the relationship between you and the thunder."

"Considering the timing of your appearance, it's certain that you and this notebook... or the Iskur recorded in the notes, have no obvious hostility."

"After all, if you didn't want me to understand the contents, you should have appeared when the thunder sounded the second time and drawn my attention, thus preventing me from deciphering the contents of the notes to the greatest extent."

Upon hearing this, the 'girl' outside the door revealed a relieved expression as if to say 'you're finally starting to understand.'

"Then why don't you come out?"

"Since you know I have no ill intent."

"I could swear on the grand heart of Iskur that this is absolutely..."

"Alright."

Yang Siming suddenly interrupted Vilarnika before she could continue to radiate benevolence while taking a deep look outside the door.

"It's impolite to interrupt someone else's thinking."

"Just like when you pushed the door open and came in on your own."

"If you had no ill intent, that also means there's no need to disguise your identity to make contact, nor a need to prevent me from deciphering the notes in the beginning; there is a significant risk of alerting me to a key issue."

"So... why did you show up?"

"Miss Vilarnika?"

"..."

'Vilarnika' was truly left speechless.

The question caught the maid outside completely off guard.

Her fingers stiffened for a moment, and the maid's apron she had just lifted drooped limply down.

Immediately after, noticing this, Vilarnika swiftly pressed down on her wrinkled clothes to smooth it. At this moment, her gaze towards Yang Siming was complex, as if looking at some peculiar person.

"Mr. Yang, don't you think your thoughts are a bit absurd?"

"You don't have anything worth..."

"Enough!"

"This is sufficient!"

Suddenly, Yang Siming raised his voice to interrupt Vilarnika, his tone brimming with confidence as if he had mastered everything!

"Based on our previous conversations, I can confirm that you have above average intelligence, as well as corresponding logical behavior."

"Taking that into account."

"If you had ill intent, you wouldn't have responded at all to my questions; and if it was benevolent, it's time for you to be frank, or at least offer me some hint."

"Yet the result is this ambiguous deflection."

"Neither malevolent nor benevolent..."

At this point, Yang Siming had completely left his chair and approached the door very closely.

Assume boldly, verify cautiously.

During the following conversation, he wanted to ensure he could see any minute detail or change in expression from the other person!

At this moment, only a door separated the two individuals.

Yang Siming could almost see the trembling eyelashes above Vilarnika's clear eyes!

"This is a form of test!"

"Or rather a trial!"

"And your role in this is surveillance... no, rather something similar to an invigilator or a verifier, while also being significantly related to Iskur, the deity..."

Bang—

"If that's the case, just say so earlier!"

That brought Yang Siming's analysis to an end.

Because, just as he was about to continue his relentless exposition, the 'maid' outside suddenly lunged in, her warm body twining around his like reunion of lovers.

Ignoring the prior restriction of not being able to enter the room.

She came in!

Then, before Yang Siming had a chance to push her away.

Whispered words carrying body heat came from beside his ear:

"Although it's still a bit lacking, you could barely be deemed qualified~~"