You Siqi naturally understood the meaning behind his expression.
However, being useless at times wasn't entirely a bad thing.
Just like now.
Once he was confirmed to be useless, Lu Wuming wouldn't ask him any difficult questions. He wouldn't accidentally say anything he shouldn't, and thus wouldn't have to worry about Liu Buli causing trouble for him.
Thinking this, You Siqi even felt that being useless was quite good.
While he was contemplating these thoughts, Liu Buli had already sealed the magical artifact from the room and brought it out.
Glancing at the two people standing by the door, Liu Buli asked with some curiosity, "I heard you two chatting outside while I was sealing the artifact inside. When did your relationship become so good? What were you talking about? Tell me about it."
You Siqi immediately shook his head, "We weren't talking about anything, just casual conversation, nothing important."
Lu Wuming, unusually, agreed with his statement, nodding slightly. He even added, "I have nothing important to say to him. Master is right, he's quite useless."
Liu Buli tilted his head in confusion.
By instinct, he felt that something must have happened between these two. However, just as they said, Lu Wuming and You Siqi would never discuss anything significant. So, even if something had happened, it didn't matter. Since they were unwilling to speak of it, Liu Buli simply gave up and didn't press further.
Holding the magical artifact in his hands, he extended it forward and said, "You Siqi, can you try to wake up your man? Why is it that every time he encounters illusions or similar things, he gets lost in them and becomes the one dragging us down?"
This was a question You Siqi also wanted to ask.
He awkwardly tugged at the corner of his mouth, contemplating how to answer Liu Buli's question.
Fortunately, this time, Shen Muzhi didn't disappoint for too long. Just as You Siqi fell silent, he opened his eyes. His head, however, remained resting on You Siqi's lap, unwilling to move. Shen Muzhi smiled, a hint of helplessness in his voice, "I didn't waste too much time this time, did I?"
"You really didn't take too long. It's just that we've already solved all the problems here, so there's nothing for you to do," Liu Buli said, gesturing with the artifact in his hand. "Do you want to try and see how this thing can take you back to modern times?"
You Siqi immediately nodded enthusiastically.
His efforts throughout this ordeal were for this very purpose. Now that he had obtained the item, he naturally wanted to try it out.
However, to his surprise, Shen Muzhi, who had always been obedient to him and tried his best to fulfill his requests, flatly shook his head at this question.
Meeting everyone's curious gazes, Shen Muzhi spoke, "This artifact is not a good thing, it's extremely wicked. Daoist Liu, if you like it, you can take it back and study it thoroughly. As for us, we'll find another way. We will absolutely not use this."
As soon as he said this, everyone looked at him strangely.
You Siqi, even more anxious, asked him, "Why? We finally found this thing. Even if the artifact itself has some minor issues, it should be okay to try it, right?"
Shen Muzhi didn't answer his question directly but instead countered, "Siqi, in the story you chose, did the protagonist ever use this artifact?"
Hearing this question, You Siqi paused. He then shook his head and said, "Actually, it's because I forgot about this artifact halfway through writing. So, in the novel, although the protagonist obtained it, he never actively used it once. I only remembered it during a review recently, and I thought it would be very effective. So..."
"So let's not use it either. Just listen to me," Shen Muzhi said with a helpless smile. "I did pass out just now, but what I saw wasn't some inner demon illusion of my own. Instead, it was about the past of the tribe that sacrificed themselves to seal the ghost clan. I seemed to see their souls, their souls wailing and crying within this artifact. You want to try activating it, but do you know the conditions for activation?"
You Siqi blinked and shook his head.
But as he was about to move, he suddenly stopped.
As if he had thought of a shocking answer, You Siqi himself could hardly believe his guess. He opened his mouth, hesitated for a long time, and then timidly asked, "Do you mean that one must offer the souls of living people to successfully activate this artifact?"
"That's right," Shen Muzhi nodded. "And not just one person. To summon those fierce beasts back then, they sacrificed the souls of thousands of people. Even though the fierce beasts have disappeared, they were once things that existed in this world. So tell me, if we were to go to a completely different world, how many souls would need to be sacrificed?"
This question successfully stumped You Siqi.
Just as You Siqi himself had said, although he had become accustomed to this world, he absolutely could not bring himself to actively kill someone.
And using the souls of others as sacrifices to send himself to another world was something he wouldn't even consider.
Therefore, naturally, this became an unsolvable predicament.
For a moment, everyone fell silent.
It was Liu Buli, however, who rubbed his chin and asked, "Shen Muzhi, you said you saw that tribe just now. Does that mean you know how to use this thing?"
Shen Muzhi nodded.
Then he frowned and said, "You're not planning to use this thing, are you?"
"If others don't offend me, I won't offend them," Liu Buli said with a smile. "If the world is willing to coexist harmoniously with me, then I naturally won't use it. But if other cultivators are unwilling to give me a way to live, then I certainly can't act like a saint. So if you don't plan to use it, just give it to me. I hope I won't have the chance to use it, but if I do, perhaps I can even help you gather the required souls."
Shen Muzhi sighed. He handed the artifact to Liu Buli without hesitation. But as the latter took it, Shen Muzhi also sighed, saying, "I also hope that we will never have the chance to use this thing in our lives."