Ning Zhuo couldn't hear, see, or smell anything as he once again found himself plunged into a world of darkness.
But he was very pleased.
"I've finally made it inside!"
"From now on, I can enter the Magma Fairy Palace on my own initiative."
The previous method was too passive.
"Maybe I could even activate the 'Trial Disciple' mark to leave the Immortal Palace on my own?"
This thought circled in his mind, but he decided it didn't need to be verified just yet.
Ning Zhuo mused as he activated the Five Elements Qi Regulation Art, unleashing his spiritual power.
The dispersed spiritual power quickly aligned with the first mechanism part.
As before, it started with the left arm.
Next was the head.
And again, it was a big head.
Ning Zhuo assembled himself swiftly and then leaped off the heap of mechanism parts.
He limped towards the door.
This time, to save time, he didn't focus too much on matching the lengths of his legs.
"With the hangman's noose, even if I limp, it should be enough to pass Room Two."
"Right now, the urgent matter is to remain anonymous. I'm on at least three lists, even with the most conservative estimate, I'll need to make three trips."
But when Ning Zhuo touched the door, he didn't see the hangman's noose as a reward option.
The three options were: a spirit stone, a recoil silk (mechanism part), and a spell.
"No hangman's noose?!" Ning Zhuo was briefly stunned.
In the next moment, he smacked his head. The wooden palm clashing with his big head produced a resounding thud.
"Mistake!"
"I should have figured it out earlier."
"When I explored the second time, I found that the Embrace Ice Technique was replaced by the Grasping Fire Technique."
"This indicates that the reward options are not fixed. They probably rotate because I chose them earlier."
"Since spells can vary, it's likely that mechanism-related rewards also change."
"The spirit stone being a constant option had made me less perceptive."
Everyone makes mistakes.
Ning Zhuo was no exception.
Of course, his anxiety to remain inconspicuous had clouded his judgment.
Staring at the three rewards in front of him, Ning Zhuo quickly chose the recoil silk.
He couldn't pick the spell; he still intended to get off the list on this try.
Even though he could enter the palace on his own using the Trial Disciple's mark, this mechanism was not yet fully understood and could have other restrictions.
"Maybe it requires several days before one can enter the palace again?"
Ning Zhuo didn't want to complicate things further. His priority was to get off the list!
He didn't want to take unnecessary risks.
He also decided not to choose the spirit stone.
His spiritual power was currently abundant.
The recoil silk was transmitted over.
It was a coil of metal wire, rather thick. Upon close inspection, one could see the mixed gold and silver glimmer on its surface.
Ning Zhuo was very familiar with it.
He sat on the ground and disassembled both of his lower legs.
Then, he pulled out a segment of the recoil silk, winding it around and around between his nimble fingers, forming a spiral-like shape, much like a whirlwind.
Next, he installed this spiral metal wire at his knee, creating a new connection between his lower legs and thighs.
Finally, he reattached his lower legs.
Using the same method, he added recoil silk to his elbows.
He stood up and tried moving around, feeling good about it.
Finding no practice use in Room One, Ning Zhuo directly pushed the door into Room Two.
He ran on the retreating tiles.
With the recoil silk between his lower legs and thighs, each step compressed the recoil silk. Once compressed to a certain extent, the recoil silk would release a surge of force, forcing itself back to normal length. This gave Ning Zhuo extra propulsion.
Previously, Ning Zhuo advanced by running steadily. This time, he bounced, covering greater distances with each leap.
The first two times, he was overtaken by the tiling speed halfway through. But this time, his efficiency was high; even past the midpoint, he remained ahead of the retreating tiles.
The massive log came swinging, but Ning Zhuo was prepared. He lightly jumped and landed directly on the log.
"Before, it required a two-legged jump; now, even with one leg, my height and leaping speed are better than before!"
Ning Zhuo leaped between the log and the wall, occasionally touching the tiles.
He failed twice, but on the third attempt, he successfully crossed the final hurdle and reached the door.
"The recoil silk is more suitable for clearing Room Two than the hangman's noose," Ning Zhuo concluded.
At that moment, he thought of the speedrun leaderboard.
"The Three Ancestral Masters set up these checkpoints not only for assessment but also to teach."
"Speedruns encourage us trial disciples to continually hone our skills and learn to use mechanism artifacts."
"What if Meng Chong were to tackle this checkpoint?"
"Could he skillfully use these mechanism parts?"
"No, the deciding factor isn't that but rather his puppet. A superior talent person's puppet is surely far stronger than mine!"
During the surprise attack on Ziyang Courtyard, Ning Zhuo also saw Meng Chong ambushing Han Ming through mechanism artifacts.
"Although Meng Chong's powers were surging with potent mana, the fierce attack was thanks to his talent, Frenzied Rushing Thunder."
Ning Zhuo, a human-shaped library, understood the significance of superior talent. Still, witnessing it firsthand left him deeply shaken.
What constituted superior?
Inferior, medium, and advanced were all on one level, while superior transcended ordinary levels.
Often, a million cultivators would produce one such person.
With enough growth, cultivators with superior talent would become prominent figures and national pillars.
"The Meng Family is a superfamily in the Southern Bean Country, with countless members. With such large numbers, a superior talent crops up every so often."
Ning Zhuo harbored no jealousy.
Since he had inferior precocious talent and a mysterious arm talent, why couldn't others have better ones?
Why couldn't others possess even greater talents?
Why not?
The year his mother died, Ning Zhuo learned a fundamental truth—this world didn't revolve around him!
He was merely the protagonist of his own life, while everyone else was the protagonist of their own lives.
All protagonists performed their dramas on the grand stage of the world, weaving together tales of enmity, ambition, and intrigue.
"It's this dynamic that makes the world so fascinating."
Meng Chong hadn't yet arrived, but Ning Zhuo already felt the pressure from behind.
Remaining anonymous was just a means to secure his current lead.
But with Meng Chong officially joining, how long could this lead last?
Ning Zhuo had no certainty.
The only thing he could do now was to keep moving forward.