The Trial Game of Life – Chapter 159

Table of Contents | Character Guide

Chapter 159: Sword of Judgment (6)

After Tang Cuo took a bath, he sat in the guest room to have breakfast and Jin Cheng played the piano next to him. As Tang Cuo rested beside the window sill, the soothing, euphonious sound of the piano calmed his nerves that had been tense all night and made passersby look up in wonder.

Outside the window were clusters of roses that were blooming in full against the rising sun. As the morning breeze blew over, one or two flower petals casually flew by and fell on Tang Cuo’s plate.

Tang Cuo didn’t push the flower petals aside. He simply stuffed the last bite of the poached egg into his mouth, licked away the little bit of runny egg yolk on the corner of his lips, then put down his knife and fork. He changed into a comfortable position and curled into a ball on the armchair.

Jin Cheng turned around and spotted Tang Cuo being lazy. He couldn’t help but raise the corner of his lips and chatted with him about the dungeon.

“I met Louis XIV. He was very strong. But that was in the secret realm, so his strength might not have been fully stimulated. Overall, he was just a tad weaker than Xiao Tong.” Tang Cuo said.

Tang Cuo was only able to hold Xiao Tong back for merely three minutes. Even though Tang Cuo was stronger now, it was still difficult to kill Louis XIV, an opponent who was already weaker than Xiao Tong. The chance of winning was less than 10%.

Jin Cheng thought for a moment and said: “In the role-playing dungeon, the system won’t give you a completely unbeatable opponent. Let’s wait for a bit first. Maybe Roger Reeds has something to say.”

Tang Cuo nodded in agreement.

“And you?”

“I’ve only gotten 99 points. Do you want to see it?”

Jin Cheng shrugged. Power of Faith was really hard to collect. He had to really touch the hearts of the audience, resonate with their souls and make them sincerely respect the heroes sung in the poems. After an experiment, Jin Cheng naturally discovered that it was okay if people simply worshipped Lancelot like an idol.

Although respect for heroes and worship for idols weren’t the same thing, they were both a sort of faith. Those 99 points under Power of Faith were mostly thanks to Lancelot’s influence alone.

“The little boys at Dandelion could basically sing all the songs I wrote. I gave each of them a triangle and made them sing in the streets. If they can bring back a new friend to join my choir, I will give them an extra reward of ten beautiful candies from the Pinwheel Harbour. So far, the effect is pretty good.”

Dandelion was an orphanage on the continent of Sicilit, which was also called ‘Home for the Wanderers’. It not only housed orphans but also homeless people.

Jin Cheng understood very clearly that it was almost impossible for him to gather 10,000 points of Power of Faith in seven days by himself. Although music had the power to spread to people’s hearts, the singer and the place were also important. The so-called ‘right time, right place and right people’ were thus indispensable.

As such, he set his sights on children.

Children were pure and innocent. They had the cleanest, truest voices in the world, and they could touch people’s hearts more easily. Jin Cheng gathered a group of children and formed a choir, told them stories, taught them how to sing, then spread the words through their mouths.

Things were going smoothly very much thanks to the Greenvines Alliance.

After composing the songs, Jin Cheng headed straight to the Greenvines Alliance office. Since Roger Reeds had already given his words, Jin Cheng easily got the help he needed. The Greenvines Alliance went to talk with Dandelion’s manager and saved him a lot of effort.

Furthermore, the Greenvines Alliance had a lot of money. The office was able to not only provide beautiful candies and triangles but also help him prepare for the final performance. He planned to hold a performance at the Spring Square, which was at the heart of the city, on the seventh and final day.

As for publicity, Jin Cheng borrowed Roger Reeds’ established reputation.

The Greenvines Alliance was a huge organisation, its members being people from all walks of life. As long as the members knew about it, most of the folks in the capital would know about it.

If Jin Cheng conveniently revealed the news that “Your Excellency The Watchman will also be there”, he knew a large number of people would be lured. Even the nobles would turn up.

Of course, Jin Cheng did this without telling Roger Reeds. Act first, talk later. Roger Reeds couldn’t do anything to him anyway.

In addition, Jin Cheng also sent invitation letters to other bards and attached the music scores. Since he was already on this, he might as well make it big. 10,000 points of Power of Faith must be obtained on the seventh day.

“Do I have the honour to invite you to watch my performance?” Jin Cheng asked Tang Cuo teasingly.

“If I can make it in time.” Tang Cuo answered with utter seriousness. He really wanted to go to Jin Cheng’s performance. He knew that Jin Cheng was used to doing these things. As a boyfriend, he should go and support him.

And he also wanted to take this chance to see how many people Jin Cheng flirted with.

Jin Cheng was pleased by his attitude. He changed the rhythm of his fingertips and played a brisk melody. He also liked mornings like this: gentle, quiet and sunny.

The Kingdom of Hundred Flowers was truly a great country to live in. It would be lovely if he and Tang Cuo could reside here forever. He thought so.

The trial continued.

Tang Cuo got up after sleeping for a few hours, borrowed Roger Reeds’ study to draw a schematic diagram of the battlefield and began to plan the best attack route.

His ‘Sharpen The Knife’ plan had entered the second half, and he didn’t plan to spend too much on the small fries. There were three days left, and he had two days to familiarise himself with Louis XIV’s fighting style. He had to win on the last day.

In the evening, Jin Cheng finally returned. Tang Cuo wanted to discuss the situation of the battle with Jin Cheng, an expert in this field, but before he could say much, from downstairs came the sound of a visitor.

Soon after Tang Cuo vaguely heard the words “His Excellency the Duke”, the visitor turned up at the door of the study.

This was His Excellency Duke Edwin of the White Knight Family of the Kingdom of Hundred Flowers, Theodore’s brother. That waist-length, silverish-white hair was easy to recognise. It was loosely tied with a dark green velvet band, the colour of which exuded the same air of warmness as the person himself.

His face resembled Theodore’s, but Theodore’s looks seemed a tad more upright and heroic, whereas the brother’s looks, as though blessed by the moonlight, gave out a stronger feeling of a nobleman.

“Theodore.” Edwin’s voice also sounded more amicable than Theodore’s.

“Brother.” Tang Cuo walked out from behind the desk. He didn’t expect Edwin to come here in person, but when he thought about it carefully, it turned out unexpectedly reasonable. He then introduced Jin Cheng to Edwin, and Jin Cheng promptly took his leave after the two exchanged a few words.

Edwin’s trip was mainly about the [Sword of Judgment].

The family’s inherited sword was of great importance. After he had come all the way here to look at it, Edwin’s eyebrows furrowed: “There’s no obvious issue. It may be a problem of energy leakage. Each sword has its own energy field. Over time, if the sword is struck or severely hit by something else, it may become unstable, causing the energy to overflow and reducing the power of the sword. When did the problem start to appear? “

Tang Cuo: “In Louis XIV’s tomb, I used the [Sword of Judgment] to destroy his magic formation.”

Louis XIV was a perfect scapegoat.

In any case, this wasn’t doing him any injustice. The [Sword of Judgment] should’ve been fully functional at this point in time, but the one in Tang Cuo’s hand was actually taken from the dead Theodore at the end of the story. The damage to the sword must have something to do with Theodore’s death, and Theodore’s death must have something to do with the Rose Sect, so after going one full round, Louis XIV was still to blame.

Edwin had no doubt at all: “This isn’t a major problem. When you return from the secret realm tomorrow, I’ll have the best swordsmith in the Kingdom of Hundred Flowers help you repair it. It’s just nice that I’ve obtained a starry sky stone. Adding the stone to the [Sword of Judgment] may make it stronger.”

Tang Cuo’s heart trembled lightly: “Thank you, brother.”

Edwin then took out another roll of parchment and handed it to him: “I also heard Uncle Roger Reeds talk about the matter of your swordsmanship. It’s time to give this to you. The [Sword of Judgment] is sacred yet overpowering, making it not suitable for the delicate sword-fighting style of our White Knight family. Take a look at this, perhaps it might be able to help you.”

Tang Cuo took the parchment and used silence to cover up the turmoil in his heart — Edwin, who had only appeared for ten minutes, had already won the title of ‘Brother of the Year’.

“Remember, Theodore. No matter what you do or where you are, always put your own safety first.” Edwin patted Tang Cuo on the shoulder, his tone gentle but firm: “Big brother will be waiting for you at home.”

“Certainly, brother.” Tang Cuo said the word ‘brother’ with sincerity.

The two brothers chatted for a while, mostly about the White Knight family. Tang Cuo didn’t know anything, so he only answered with simple “Uhm”, “Is that so?”, and “I understand”. Fortunately, Theodore wasn’t a chatty person, so Edwin just smiled and lamented that he was still the same as when he was a child.

At the end, Edwin suddenly asked: “Have you seen Aesop again?”

“Yes. And he seems to know you?” Tang Cuo remembered that when they first met, Aesop said that Edwin and he had similar eyes.

“I knew him when I was a student in the northern land. At that time, he wasn’t known as The Rebel Aesop. Few people knew that Aesop’s ambition was to be a doctor. Although he could be moody, he wasn’t a murderer.”

Tang Cuo knew that during [Song of the Wind], Aesop was lurking in the Principality of France under the alias Dr. Albert. At that time, his reputation was very good, and everyone said that Dr. Albert was a kind man.

Otherwise, Bazz wouldn’t have followed him.

Which side was the real Aesop?

Tang Cuo suddenly felt curious.

Edwin was busy with work and took his leave not long after. As they went downstairs, the two met Roger Reeds and Jin Cheng in the living room, who were discussing the performance in three days’ time.

“Uncle Roger Reeds.” Edwin’s tone was that of a junior to an elder.

Roger Reeds picked up the hat on the side and stood up, saying: “Are you heading to the palace to see your aunt? I’ll come with you.”

“Okay.” Edwin turned around and told Tang Cuo to “pay attention to safety”, nodded to Jin Cheng and smiled at Old William, who opened the door for them, before heading out.

Old William watched the two people leave and suddenly heaved a sigh.

Tang Cuo was a little concerned about the relationship between Edwin and Roger Reeds, but since he was Edwin’s biological brother, he couldn’t reveal that he didn’t know. Fortunately, Jin Cheng was an exceptional man, so he exceptionally and naturally struck up a gossip session with Old William.

“Does His Excellency Roger Reeds intend to remain unmarried?” He asked.

“What can we do about this?” Old William shook his head, looking very distressed but helpless. “Although Master’s expression is always cold, he is actually very popular. Many lovely ladies use the excuse of playing with Charles II to get a chance to talk to my master.”

Tang Cuo could roughly deduce the content of the gossip from this fragment of information, and Jin Cheng later confirmed it. He had been walking around the streets these days and heard a lot of interesting things.

“The current queen is Edwin and Theodore’s aunt, and also Roger Reeds’ childhood sweetheart. Roger Reeds is a descendant of a noble family from a small principality, but compared to the White Knight family of the Kingdom of Flowers, his origins are still very humble. It is said that either Edwin or Theodore is supposed to marry into the royal family, but since you are both men, they can only look for someone else from the branch family. The aunt is a few years older than the king, and is already the most suitable candidate available.”

Hearing this, Tang Cuo thought of the people from other Greenvines Alliance offices that he met in [Forest of The Elves]. Many people wanted to be Roger Reeds’ students, but Roger Reeds eventually chose him. Now it seemed that it was not all due to talent.

Looking back at the time, it wasn’t yet six o’clock. While waiting for Roger Reeds to return and open up the secret realm, he could first delve into the parchment given by his awesome brother.

When Tang Cuo opened it, what he saw inside was indeed sword-fighting skills.

At Zone D of Yong Ye City, Lin Yandong was facing a tough choice.

“Time to choose. Is it him or yourself? If you choose him, you’ll cut off one of your arms and put this chemical on it, such that the broken arm will never regenerate. If you choose yourself, I’ll make him kill himself, such that he will perish for an eternity.”

Such a classic topic that would never go out of style.

Lin Yandong gasped for air and clutched his chest with one hand, a trace of blood dripping down from the corner of his lips. This was a hidden warehouse at the edge of Zone D. When he arrived here as the letter had requested, before him was Yan Ye, who concealed herself behind a black robe, and Miao Qi, who had been tied up and gagged at the mouth.

He could guess it was Yan Ye, but he couldn’t guess that Yan Ye might actually cause harm to him. It seemed that she truly abhorred him all these four years.

“Did your poison come from the Vaccine Research Institute?” Before coming here, Lin Yandong had already found out everything that happened to Yong Ye City while he was in jail.

“Yes.” At this point, Yan Ye no longer had to hide anything. “But they still can’t cure my aging. Every day I live like it’s torture. You saved me and asked me to be grateful, but have you ever thought that it was because of you that I became like this?”

She spoke through her clenched teeth.

Lin Yandong was silent for a few seconds: “Have you ever thought that I’m not forcing you to be grateful? When I ask you to do something, it’s a request, not coercion. You totally could refuse.”

“Don’t you think it’s too late for you to say that now? If you hadn’t brought me into that dungeon, how would I have become like this? It’s all because of you!”

“You went in on your own accord.”

Lin Yandong said, his eyebrows finally furrowing slightly. He looked directly at Yan Ye’s face. Although his sight was blocked by the black robe, his eyes seemed to be able to see through everything. He could firmly catch Yan Ye’s eyes.

“I warned you not to drink the water from that Well of Time. It’s because you can’t resist the temptation and insist on doing things your way.”

Yan Ye’s tongue was tied. She turned hysterical. Covering her face, she let out an unsettling shriek, as though the painful memories had come pouring in.

As she screamed and screamed, that voice turned into laughter again. Gradually, the laughter became lower, and she lifted her head again, her eyes as clear as daylight: “Do you think you could make me go nuts with just your words? The time has come to make a choice, Lin Yandong. You can’t run away now.”

Hearing this, Miao Qi, who was tied up, struggled like mad and winked at Lin Yandong in desperation, trying to get him to leave immediately. But Lin Yandong only cast a glance at him before resolutely looking away.

He took a deep breath, his expression calm.

Yan Ye continued: “Don’t even think that you can just make some nice-sounding excuses to deceive everyone, even yourself. Lin Yandong, although you weren’t involved in Scarlet’s affair, did you really know nothing at all? You’ve always been like this. You think that by hiding behind the scenes, you can remain innocent and upright. People like you are the most hypocritical.”

After a pause, she seemed to have just recalled something: “I remember now. That year, you and Xiao Tong parted ways because of a choice you had to make, wasn’t it?”

“So what do you choose now?”