Chapter Twenty: The Fantasy Instance "Time Planning Bureau"

In the darkness, Zhao Nan struggled to open his character panel and, using the faint glow, surveyed his surroundings. A sharp pain radiated from his back, but it seemed his spine was intact—perhaps the fall had been cushioned somehow.

A heavy weight pressed upon him: Finina was lying atop him, her eyes gleaming like gemstones as she gazed down at him.

“Could you get up first?” he asked, frowning; his lungs ached terribly, making every breath an effort.

“Mm.” Finina responded softly and shifted off him. Zhao Nan noticed the frost poison still afflicting her legs. Alarmed, he checked her status—her health had nearly reached rock bottom.

“Take this,” he urged, quickly retrieving two small healing potions, handing one to her as he drank the other himself. “The poison from that elite monster probably lasts a long time. Let’s hope we survive until we find a way out.”

As he regained consciousness and took in the surroundings, Zhao Nan realized they had fallen into something like a sinkhole. The damp, soft earth around them explained why they hadn’t lost all their health after such a fall.

During the descent, Finina’s mask seemed to have vanished; now, she kept her head down, unwilling to look up. Zhao Nan paid it no mind—there was little light, and even if they faced each other, only vague silhouettes would be visible. Once his health recovered a bit, he hurried to his feet and began groping blindly along the walls.

“What are you doing?” she asked.

“Looking for another way out,” Zhao Nan replied casually. “Climbing back up is nearly impossible. I just hope this isn’t really a sinkhole.”

“A sinkhole… what is that?”

“It’s hard to explain. Just think of it as a pit with no exit,” he sighed. His voice echoed loudly, suggesting the space wasn’t very large. He continued feeling his way along the wall.

“Why did you save me?” Finina suddenly asked in a low voice. “I was ready to end this journey myself.”

“I don’t really know…” Zhao Nan answered with a wry smile. “If I said it went against my principles, would you believe me?”

“Is it because you still care about that engagement?” Her voice remained somber.

Zhao Nan kept searching, silent for a moment before sighing, “Maybe. I don’t want to give up unless it’s truly hopeless. But… if you expect me to curry favor just to secure the engagement, I can’t do that. I am who I am.”

“Your intentions are too obvious! And you still expect someone to give everything for you without any effort to please them. Do you really think that’s possible?” Finina sneered coldly.

“Wanting to reap without sowing, yet refusing to lower yourself—that’s the contradiction of humanity… selfish and self-serving. So your approach isn’t wrong. If you don’t like it, just end this journey,” she said.

A breeze ruffled his hair, making Zhao Nan pause in surprise. That was the sensation of wind.

“There’s a way out. Seems our luck isn’t so bad after all.”

A small fireball flared to life in Zhao Nan’s palm, casting light as it shot forward. In that instant, they saw what lay ahead: a pitch-black tunnel.

“Let’s go,” Zhao Nan nodded.

Finina did not move, and Zhao Nan, puzzled, walked over and crouched in front of her, offering his back. “Hop on. I doubt you can walk.”

“I won’t thank you,” she muttered.

“Suit yourself.”

Their progress was painfully slow. In the dim corridor, Zhao Nan couldn’t predict what dangers might lurk ahead. Worse still, the map of Dongyuan City’s outskirts showed nothing of their current location.

In other words, this area hadn’t been unlocked yet. From experience, it might just be a simple tunnel—or it could lead somewhere far more dangerous.

“Back then… why did the staff explode?” Finina asked.

“That’s a mage’s last resort—not exactly a skill,” Zhao Nan explained, regret tinging his voice. “You pour all your magic into the staff at once, pushing it to its limit, and it unleashes a powerful attack.”

This technique would only be developed much later, and was strictly a desperate gambit. Without a staff, a mage could still cast spells, but with diminished power. Of course, it was only a beginner’s staff he had sacrificed—he could blow up a hundred of those and not be sorry.

“There’s some light ahead,” Finina suddenly pointed out.

Zhao Nan saw it too and hurried over, only to find a pile of bones emitting a faint phosphorescence from years of decay.

He felt a sudden clutch at his back; the woman behind him seemed afraid. Zhao Nan set Finina down and rummaged through the bones.

“What are you doing? That’s disrespectful to the dead!”

“I’m seeing if there’s anything useful. There’s a backpack here—maybe a clue on how to get out.”

As he spoke, Zhao Nan pulled items from the pack. Most had rotted away, but he found a journal with a leather cover.

“Ding! Mysterious Journal acquired. Player Zhao Nan has triggered the unique hidden quest ‘In Search of Lost Time.’ Quest rewards: one Map of the Fairy Forest, one Instant Healing Potion, the Golden Staff of Sighs (Level 10), 2000 experience points, and 10 gold coins… Accept?”

“Accept!” Zhao Nan didn’t hesitate—the Golden Staff of Sighs alone was more than enough reason to take the quest. Without a moment’s delay, he opened the journal and began reading carefully as the system voice continued:

“To restore the waning vitality of the Mother Tree in the Fairy Forest, Ronaldo, Grand Elder of the Fairyfolk, set out in search of the Heart of Time. When he finally discovered its whereabouts, he was ambushed by the Empire of Night. Mortally wounded, he left a final wish: that someone would open the Gate of Illusions, find the Heart of Time, and return it to the Fairyfolk.”

After a long while, Zhao Nan closed the journal in silence. It detailed Ronaldo’s search for the Heart of Time and precisely marked the location of the so-called Gate of Illusions.

Exhaling softly, Zhao Nan moved the bones aside and began scrubbing the ground with determination.

“What are you doing?” Finina asked.

“There’s no way out here,” Zhao Nan said gravely. “There’s only one way forward—through the dungeon beyond this door…”

As Zhao Nan wiped, the area before them gradually brightened. Soon, a massive door glowing with cyan light appeared before their eyes.

“Level 5 Gate of Illusions.”

Zhao Nan breathed a sigh of relief—though it was a dungeon, the level wasn’t too high. Without hesitation, he pushed open the folding Gate of Illusions with both hands, and a force sucked them in.

At the same time, the system announced:

“‘Time Administration Bureau’ scenario generating…”

^^^

P.S.: Please add to your collection and recommend!!