Chapter 29: Wen Xishu’s Hardcore Studies

"You must change your name before the midterm exams of the first semester," Albert said.

Wen Xishu understood the intention behind this immediately.

"Are there... some children of noble families in the academy who know about the Wen family's affairs?"

Albert nodded. "There are many great families in the bunker. The matter of the Wen family is a secret, but among those great families, there are a few who know."

"I won't tell you which families they are; that would be too boring. Your sequence is so interesting—go and figure it out yourself."

A vein almost popped on Wen Xishu's forehead. This old headmaster definitely had a mischievous, childlike streak.

Albert continued, "If you don't want to die at their hands, you had better live under a different name for the next half-semester."

Wen Xishu asked the question he most wanted to know: "What crime did Wen Chaohua actually commit? And what crime did the entire Wen family commit?"

The old headmaster laughed heartily again. "Hahahaha! Your brain has cleared up, yet you don't remember many things? Oh, that's right, you used to be an idiot. You weren't involved in the Wen family's affairs at all, so naturally, you wouldn't know."

Wen Xishu’s blood pressure rose slightly, but upon reflection, it seemed the man was simply stating an objective fact rather than insulting him. Wen Xishu had indeed been an idiot before. He sighed helplessly, "It seems you must know."

"Looking at the Security Bureau's attitude toward me, I assume... it's not just about digging up secrets. Did the Wen family truly commit acts that outraged both gods and men?"

Albert shrugged. "I do know. There are many things in this bunker I don't know, but I likely know more than most."

"However—it’s none of my business, and it’s none of your business. Kid, just study hard and focus on self-improvement."

Albert said quite arrogantly, "I have decided to rely on exploring the Three Towers to unravel all the mysteries. I will not ask you about the secrets of Wen Chaohua."

"Likewise, if you want to know everything, use the same method."

"If you learn through hearsay, the sequence of events you know will always be framed by someone else's inherent perceptions."

"Perhaps this will cause you to harbor certain biases from the very beginning."

"For instance, you have already concluded that the Wen family truly committed acts that outraged both gods and men, but in fact, you don't know the course of events at all, do you? What if they didn't?"

"Of course, I am not implying anything; I am merely listing possibilities."

Wen Xishu murmured in acknowledgment. He knew this was the old headmaster guiding him, telling him not to let others' perceptions lead to prejudice. This made sense. No matter how monstrous the Wen family members might be, or how heinous Wen Chaohua’s crimes were, the success he achieved in his first exploration of the Weird Tower was directly related to what Wen Chaohua had left behind.

Therefore, he had no need to hate Wen Chaohua. It was better not to listen to what others said about the kind of person Wen Chaohua was, but to uncover the truth himself.

Wen Xishu said, "I understand. I am willing to change my name. But why only until the midterm of the first semester?"

Albert laughed, "Hahahaha! If you can't reclaim your own name within half a semester, and can't live under your real name in the second half... then you would still be an idiot."

"Likewise, if they can't discover your true identity within half a semester, they are also idiots. But for now, it seems they are not."

"Some of these people are your seniors, and among them are those with sequence abilities. It might take them less than half a semester to dig up your secrets."

"So, if you don't want to be the idiot who gets killed by them, you had better become strong enough within half a semester."

"The academy does have methods to help one grow stronger—a little surprise, though no one knows where it is because everyone has been looking in the wrong direction."

"You, however, might want to give it a try."

Wen Xishu was speechless. "..."

The midterm exam meant reclaiming his name and being able to live truly as a member of the Wen family. This trial would involve facing many sequence holders. Beyond the exam, he might also be forced to explore the Weird Tower several more times. Wen Xishu had to admit, his tests were hardcore. But... it wasn't bad; he felt that thrill and anticipation he used to get from extreme sports.

He was currently at the height of his fame; Wen Xishu was already the new legend of the bunker's lower levels. Countless people had a new future because of the Level 6 hospital he had brought back. Sadly, the fragrance of this fame would take half a semester to diffuse.

Albert gave Wen Xishu a new name: Wen Xun.

The name was a homophone for Wen Xun. It contained the "Wen" of the Wen family and the "Xun" of the Xun family. Naturally, it also sounded like the "Wen" of the Wen family. These two characters could make Albert think of his three most prized pupils: Wenren Jing, Xun Hui, and Wen Chaohua. The name "Wen Xun" also embodied a certain expectation Albert had for Wen Xishu.

Albert could not explore all three towers simultaneously. He had once lamented to Wen Chaohua that time spares no one and that responsibilities kept him from doing as he pleased. Throughout his life, he could only explore the Tower of Slaughter. If he could, he wished to experience all three towers. Ultimately, he chose to cultivate three people with different talents.

But if he could be divided into three, when would the three be united into one? "Wen Xun" actually contained this layer of expectation.

Wen Xishu seemed to understand the meaning of the name and was somewhat surprised. Before Albert left, he asked, "Being personally recruited by the headmaster of the Three Towers Academy, I am flattered, and I am honored to be a student of the Three Towers Academy."

"But... my guide had a black head, which means my exploration tendency is toward the Weird Tower."

"I suspect that even if you protect me, the Bunker Security Bureau won't be so accommodating. I will likely still have to carry out missions to explore the Weird Tower, right?"

"In fact, judging by your reaction when you learned of my sequence, you also expect me to explore the Weird Tower and collect more weird sequences of unknown effect."

"But as far as I know, there is no 'Weird Tower Academy' within the Three Towers Academy."

Albert nodded. "There certainly cannot be one."

"Although the descent of the Weird Towers has been going on for some years, consider this: the Tower of Slaughter and the Tower of Desire both have traceable patterns."

"The Tower of Desire focuses on untangling the emotional lines between people, while the Tower of Slaughter focuses on combat techniques, methods, and combinations of various sequences."

"These can all be studied."

"But the Weird Tower truly cannot be studied. Do you have even the slightest certainty that you will survive the next time? Is your experience from last time useful in the next Weird Tower?"

It was true. Wen Xishu had absolutely no certainty, and he was completely unable to predict what the next task in the Weird Tower would be.

As for the Tower of Desire, human emotional changes—joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness—have traceable patterns. The Tower of Slaughter is the same; one can summarize the laws of combat.

But the reason the "Weird" is weird is precisely because there are no laws to summarize.

Wen Xishu said, "Since the Three Towers Academy has no Weird Tower Academy, and I am specialized in the Weird Tower..."

"How do you plan to arrange me? Should I go to the Tower of Slaughter Academy or the Tower of Desire Academy?"

Albert smiled and said nothing.