Fang Senyan walked ahead, Zi followed behind. Though they remained silent, an unspoken understanding flowed between them.

Soon, Fang Senyan paused at the corner near the elevator. Once inside, a series of verifications would begin, requiring him to strip off most of his gear. By the time the elevator reached the top, he would be in the real world. If Zi followed him in, she wouldn't see him unless she also possessed clearance to return to reality.

Upon seeing Zi, Fang Senyan gave her a nod, the same gesture as always, and then lowered his voice:

“Do you remember? Back in Nice, you gave me a string of prayer beads, telling me they were the key to the path of the strongest MT.”

Zi, who had felt an inexplicable mix of shyness and apprehension when Fang Senyan called her over, felt a strange flicker of disappointment when the answer was revealed. Nevertheless, she grew serious:

“Yes. Do you feel you can use that token now?”

Fang Senyan nodded:

“In my last mission, some things happened—very complicated things. They pushed my innate talent to a critical threshold, demanding a breakthrough. I have a strong intuition that what you gave me might just be the key to that breakthrough.”

Zi smiled:

“Then congratulations are in order. By the way, Reef is probably about to attempt the Awakened state as well, so you need to hurry!”

Fang Senyan considered this:

“You know I’m cautious. So, could you perhaps tell me the origin of those prayer beads? That might be very helpful for my impending breakthrough process.”

Zi fell into thought. Her eyelashes were long, lending her a captivatingly feminine grace when pensive—a beauty rooted in earnestness. Fang Senyan could tell she wasn't trying to hide anything but was struggling to organize her thoughts and articulate something complex coherently.

“There was a time when I was very fond of mountaineering and exploration. Once, my climbing team was caught in an avalanche, but I survived. I obtained these prayer beads from the ruins of a lama temple on a snow mountain straddling China and Nepal. That lama temple was highly unusual; they didn't worship a deity, but a stone.”

“A stone?” Fang Senyan questioned, bewildered. In his memory, only Shintoism in Japan or certain primitive tribes engaged in the worship of stones.

Zi continued:

“You wouldn't understand unless you’d seen that stone. It was such a peculiar creation. It stood on the altar as if it were a towering mountain range itself—majestic and solemn. Looking at it gave me the same feeling as gazing up at Mount Everest from Lumbini in Nepal.”

Zi paused here, smiling faintly as if lost in thought:

“And this string of prayer beads I gave you was placed right before the Divine Stone they worshipped. When I picked them up, I distinctly saw ancient Tibetan script underneath, quoting a line from the Epic of King Gesar. Translated, it meant: Within these spiritual beads lies the secret to becoming a powerhouse as mighty as Mount Everest.”

Fang Senyan listened intently, not missing a single word. Zi then laughed self-deprecatingly:

“You probably think that’s just the exaggeration of a lost sect now. But the very first time I gripped those beads, four words manifested clearly in my mind: You are not suited for the path of the strongest MT. It felt exactly like receiving a system prompt for a mission.”

Fang Senyan nodded. Zi paused again, then said:

“I considered it for a long time and finally reached a plausible explanation. Do you want to hear it?”

Fang Senyan smiled:

“Of course.”

Zi looked at him seriously:

“Do you remember my Soul Equipment, the Quill of Recollection?”

Fang Senyan confirmed:

“Of course. Mr. Sean Heim of Devonshire... he seems to be living happily in this world. That Quill of Recollection was left behind by the Sean Heim of another parallel world before his death.”

Zi took a deep breath and looked directly into Fang Senyan’s eyes:

“Then, is it possible that on another parallel Earth, this ruined lama temple is actually flourishing, on the verge of rivaling the Potala Palace, and they possess a secret method to become the ultimate MT? This is because both worlds share that same consecrated Divine Stone, and those prayer beads possess an incredible ability to resonate between the two planes. That is the root of everything.”

Fang Senyan immediately cooled down and voiced his objection:

“Then what is their motive? If your hypothesis is true, it might be a powerful being attempting to awaken their parallel self. But you also told me that individuals with powerful talents are often unique and cannot be found in other parallel worlds—otherwise, Zeus would have already claimed the Zi from his parallel world? What worries me is the other party's intent.”

When this question was raised, a slight blush warmed Zi’s pale cheeks. She couldn't help but roll her eyes at Fang Senyan, yet she frowned:

“Your concerns aren't unfounded. If the other party has set a trap, and you lack the buffs from your strong equipment in the real world, it could indeed be perilous. Perhaps you should wait until our world’s cycle is complete? With Reef, AK, and me, the four of us working together could mitigate many risks.”

Fang Senyan seriously shook his head:

“No. If I’m not mistaken, in the next world, we will confront the mastermind who has been subtly sabotaging us all along. His ability synergy with his bizarre schemes is a match made in heaven. I must become strong to have any hope of leading you all out safely. Now that I’ve learned some background information from you, I feel more confident.”

Zi frowned, worried:

“But hearing you say that actually makes me more uncertain. What if those prayer beads are truly a deception?”

Fang Senyan suddenly grew serious:

“Then you’ll have to give me some encouragement.”

Zi stared blankly:

“What kind of encouragement?”

She suddenly felt her shoulders roughly and powerfully pressed down by Fang Senyan. The distance between them rapidly closed, quickly invading her personal space. Zi clearly knew she could and should resist, but she was overwhelmed by the intense masculine aura rushing toward her, leaving her limbs weak and soft, devoid of strength.

She felt a sense of disorientation and suddenly recalled a QQ signature she had seen years ago: Everyone meets that one bastard they are utterly helpless against.

“Have... have I finally met that bastard?”

Lost in this daze and confusion, Zi became unexpectedly pliant. Her crimson lips weren't just captured; Fang Senyan thrust his tongue deep inside, moving wantonly. Fang Senyan seized the rare opportunity of Zi’s trance, letting his hands roam unrestrainedly along her curves, even slipping beneath her clothes.

Perhaps in the Nightmare Space, the sight of a woman pinned against a wall like this, utterly dominated, was rare. A passing bystander deliberately coughed. This cough immediately shocked Zi out of her hazy state, and she instantly registered the man's hardness, as well as her own dampness...

Zi pushed Fang Senyan away, filled with shame and annoyance, raising her hand to slap him. But Fang Senyan wore a smile that made Zi’s face burn and her heart pound with irritation. He took a few steps back, extended his right index and middle fingers, made the motion of blowing smoke from a gun barrel, then threw his head back, laughing heartily as he walked into the elevator.

“The female species, indeed, can inspire boundless fighting spirit in a man.”

Fang Senyan, having just woken up from a nap, lay lazily in a hammock wearing only swim trunks. He casually picked up a fresh coconut and guzzled it down, letting out a satisfied breath, still feeling unfulfilled. He then grabbed a piece of betel nut and began chewing slowly.

Hanging next to Fang Senyan’s hammock was a string of beads that looked strangely textured. This was the string of prayer beads Zi had given him, rumored to hold a massive secret. Although their external appearance had drastically changed.

The moment Fang Senyan returned and touched the unassuming prayer beads, their outer shells automatically dissolved, revealing their true form.

The string consisted of thirty-six beads that looked like bone yet felt like stone. Each bead strangely bore five dot-like markings resembling eyes, faintly emitting a smoke-like, five-colored halo in the sunlight. Yes, this was a string of Dzi beads with colored halos—a variety so rare it was seldom seen even in Tibet.

An ancient poem spoke of: The bright moon in the vast sea has tears; the warm sun on Lantian births smoke. This attested to the immense value of these Dzi beads.

When Fang Senyan first obtained them, it felt like grasping a burning coal; he could only release his grip and toss them away. As time passed, their surface temperature gradually dropped. Fang Senyan estimated he wouldn't be able to hold them comfortably and experience that illusion of "a voice sounding in his mind"—the sensation Zi had described—until after dark.

There were still at least three hours until nightfall. Fang Senyan lay in the sparse coconut grove by the sea, feeling the familiar ocean breeze and listening to the sound of the waves that seemed ingrained in his very bones, resting leisurely. At this moment, his mind was utterly blank; he thought of nothing and did nothing, allowing his brain the opportunity for a lazy rest and a chance to apply some lubricating oil...

Finally, darkness fell. Though Fang Senyan remained lying down with his eyes closed, his right hand decisively reached out for the string of colored halo Dzi beads hanging from the tree beside him. (To be continued)