Failure, and failure again!
The principal's face grew increasingly grim.
At this moment, cracks had begun to appear on the runes adorning the ancient tower's walls. Excessive use had pushed these runes to the brink of collapse.
He had only requested three hundred replicas from the painter because that was the tower's tolerance limit. If all failed, he would have to temporarily suspend the plan and search for materials to repair the ancient tower.
However, this would be extremely troublesome. Most of the materials needed to repair the ancient tower were in the world of longevity. If he frequently entered and exited the world of longevity and was discovered, the consequences would be unimaginable.
"There are only five left."
The principal's face was solemn, and he pointed to one of the replicas, saying, "You, go over."
The runes activated once more, and as expected, this replica also dissolved into two puddles of ink.
Again.
The last four, three, two!
"Buzz~~" A distinctive buzzing sound rang out, and the principal's heart suddenly tensed.
Within the light, two figures slowly split apart. By the time the light dissipated, two identical replicas appeared in the center of the rune formation.
Success... success?!
The principal's heart swelled with joy. He quickly descended from the ceiling and approached the two replicas. He squeezed their bodies, and they were identical!
Two identical replicas, even with the same strength!
The principal immediately flew back to the dome and reactivated the formation. However, this time he did not activate all of it, only channeling two rune paths to converge at the feet of the two replicas.
The power within the two replicas began to transfer, tilting from one side to the other. The strength of the replica on the left immediately began to surge, while the strength of the replica on the right rapidly declined.
In just a few minutes, the strength of the replica on the left had grown from Ming Sha to You Sha, and a terrifying aura emanated from it.
"Boom!" Suddenly, the replica on the left exploded, scattering into ink that dissipated into the air.
The principal stopped and landed on the ground, rubbing some ink between his fingers to sense the residual power.
"It actually strengthened eighty times?" The principal's face was filled with joy. "I didn't expect a replica to be able to strengthen eighty times. Then its original body could at least be strengthened to three hundred times?"
"As expected of a divine son," the principal sighed and chuckled, "Now that I've found the frequency of division, the next step is to capture her."
Longevity Realm Mine.
Fang Ming cautiously led Nannan, evading patrolling security guards. Although their attire offered some protection, it was best to avoid contact with the guards whenever possible.
"This area appears to be the ore reception zone," Fang Ming said, pulling Nannan into a corner as he watched the miners come and go, formulating some guesses.
As a local, he had heard about some of the main distribution areas within the mining district.
The mine was a collection of multiple ore types. The entire mountain was divided into five zones: one gold mine, three coal mines, and one iron mine.
However, regardless of the mine, the ore had to go through the ore reception zone for sorting and then be transported to the processing area of its respective mine. The five mining zones surrounded the ore reception zone in a pincer formation, and the ore reception zone itself had numerous mining tunnels connecting the entire mountain.
It could only be said that the mine area was absolutely not small, perhaps even much larger than the painter's world.
Searching for his parents in this world was like finding a needle in a haystack. Moreover, he didn't even know if his parents were in this world, or if they were even inside the mine.
After all, from what the miners said, it seemed like one could leave this place?
"Let's go, we'll search this ore reception zone first." Fang Ming led Nannan to wander around the entire reception area, which connected various large and small mining tunnels, with many railway tracks converging here.
The routes were somewhat complex, but Fang Ming had plenty of time, and with the help of the diary, he was able to avoid the searching guards without any danger.
"Hm? There are rooms?" While walking, Fang Ming suddenly saw a row of doors. The doors were very old, showing signs of prolonged wear.
"Let's go in and take a look."
Fang Ming glanced at the diary and confirmed no one was inside before pushing open the door to inspect.
This was an eight-person dormitory. The bedding on the beds was messy, and upon entering, a strong smell of sweaty feet and body odor filled the air. Cluttered items were scattered everywhere, and pots and pans hung on the walls.
In the back half of the dormitory, there was a small door. Pushing it open revealed a bathroom and kitchen. Yes, the bathroom and kitchen were together. Fang Ming quickly retreated and then searched the room for any useful information.
The room contained personal belongings of the miners. Fang Ming also saw a few photos placed on the bedside tables, likely of their families.
"A calendar?" Fang Ming suddenly spotted a calendar hanging by a bedside. It was quite an old calendar, with half of its pages torn off.
"September 21st?" Fang Ming picked up the calendar and checked the date. He then looked at the year indicated by the calendar on the back.
"1994..." Upon seeing this year, Fang Ming's expression suddenly became grave.
Nannan noticed the change in his expression and asked, "What's wrong?"
"On October 2, 1994, H City experienced a sudden heavy downpour, causing a mine collapse. Overnight, it became a living hell, burying tens of thousands of miners," Fang Ming slowly recited a date that everyone in H City was familiar with.
There was no other reason; the event was too tragic. Countless people in H City had lost loved ones in that accident, and some children had lost both parents in that disaster.
Nannan didn't understand why Fang Ming was saying this and asked, "What does this have to do with us?"
Fang Ming gave a wry smile. "Of course it has something to do with us. It's September 21st now, only eleven days until October 2nd. If I can't find my parents within these eleven days, and we can't leave here, we'll be buried by the flood."
It had to be said that this was definitely not good news.
Fang Ming even suspected that the reincarnation node of this world was the upcoming flood.
However, what Fang Ming didn't understand was why the reincarnation node's timing could be so far off from the current time?
Was there something influencing this event during this period?
After all, generally speaking, the longer the reincarnation interval in a realm within a realm, the more resentment was consumed. In fact, if the interval was too long, the resentment gained from reincarnation might not be enough to sustain the world's consumption.
Knowing the current time, Fang Ming felt a sense of urgency. He had to hurry and resolve this world. If he could find the resentful spirit behind it and reach an agreement, finding his parents would be easier.
Of course, this was assuming the resentful spirit was as accommodating as the painter. Otherwise, upon meeting, it would undoubtedly be a fight, as Fang Ming's actions were no different from a thief breaking into someone's home.
"Let's go, we'll look for more information."
Afterward, Fang Ming led Nannan to search the other rooms. To his surprise, he found some useful information.
It was unclear which miner it was, but a rough map of the mine area was drawn on the wall, with the offices of several mine managers clearly marked. It was unknown what this person intended.
However, this proved to be beneficial for Fang Ming. He took out his phone and took pictures of the map, planning for his next steps.
After searching these dormitories, Fang Ming casually picked up some small items like cigarettes and then led Nannan to check the conveyor belts, looking for any couples.
He speculated that his parents might have disguised themselves as miners and were hiding in this world.
But there was one thing Fang Ming didn't quite understand. According to the painter, his father, Fang Daolong, should be very powerful. Why would he be trapped in this world? Based on the estimated time from the diary, the entity behind this place was at most a You Sha. However, the painter had said Fang Daolong's strength was at the Void Sha level.
Strange.
He would have to wait until he found Fang Daolong to ask for clarification.
Each conveyor belt was monitored by two miners. Especially at the gold mine conveyor belt, there were even security guards watching. After all, compared to the other two types of mines, the raw ore from the gold mine was much more valuable, and it was possible for miners to secretly take it.
Fang Ming meticulously checked each area. After a busy half-day, he had finally screened the entire ore reception zone, but there was no sign of his parents.
"Let's go, Nannan. We'll check the gold mine processing area first."
Since there was nothing in the ore reception zone, Fang Ming had no choice but to search within the five mining zones.
The five mining zones didn't have any particular differences; they were all places for processing ore, so it didn't matter which one he went to first.
Fang Ming took out his phone to check the route and led Nannan into a mining tunnel. Along the way, they encountered a few miners pushing small carts. Those miners glanced at Nannan curiously but didn't pry.
Soon, the two passed through a long mining tunnel and arrived at the gold mine processing area. This was a cave similar to what they had seen before, with three giant furnaces hundreds of meters high. Below the furnaces, countless miners were busy, like ants.
"They won't suddenly go crazy and attack us, will they?" Fang Ming chuckled to himself. Of course, he knew this was impossible; these miners were as normal as could be, so why would they suddenly attack?
However, although no miners attacked, two security guards discovered them.
"Hey, hey, you two, which unit are you from?" one of the security guards shouted at them.
Fang Ming's heart stirred, but his expression remained calm. He replied, "We're from the ore reception zone, here to find someone."
"Looking for someone?" The two security guards had already walked up to Fang Ming, looking him up and down, and then at Nannan.
"What's with this little girl?" the security guard asked with a stern face.