80: Chapter 8: The Gods' Dormitory!

"A special dormitory?"

Lu Yin was stunned for a moment upon hearing this.

Xiao Wanguo gave a mysterious smile and didn't answer immediately. Instead, he led Lu Yin through a lush garden area.

The further they went, the sparser the surrounding buildings became, and the environment grew increasingly quiet and secluded.

Eventually, they stopped in front of a dilapidated three-story building surrounded by emerald bamboo.

Most of the building's exterior had peeled away, and it was covered in vibrant green vines.

A small bronze wind chime hung from the eaves, letting out a crisp sound as it swayed with the wind.

Compared to the modern architecture of the surrounding academy, this place seemed to exist outside of time.

"This is it."

Xiao Wanguo came to a halt.

Lu Yin looked up at the building, feeling somewhat puzzled.

"Officer Xiao, this is even older than my home's residential complex. Are you sure people can live here?"

Xiao Wanguo burst into laughter and patted Lu Yin on the shoulder.

"Young man, you shouldn't judge things solely by their appearance."

"Though this building looks dilapidated, it is one of the most storied structures in Holy Hall Academy."

He pointed at the vine-covered walls, his expression becoming somewhat sentimental.

"This building is known as the 'Gods Dormitory.' It is said that true gods once resided here."

Lu Yin raised an eyebrow slightly, his gaze falling once more upon the old building.

"That's right." Xiao Wanguo nodded and pushed open the seemingly rickety wooden door, which let out a soft "creak."

From the outside, it looked like an ordinary three-story building, but the interior space was exceptionally spacious.

A simple, antique chandelier hung from the high ceiling of the hall, emitting a soft glow.

Unknown crystals were embedded in the walls, faintly forming mysterious patterns.

Unlike its dilapidated exterior, the interior was surprisingly tidy, and the air was filled with a faint scent of sandalwood.

Sunlight slanted in through the carved wooden windows, casting dappled shadows on the smooth wooden floor.

While Lu Yin was observing his surroundings, a series of slow footsteps suddenly came from the second floor.

An old man dressed in grey cloth clothes, leaning on a broom, slowly walked down the stairs.

He had white hair, a withered face, and drooping eyelids, looking as if he hadn't fully woken up.

The old man raised his dim eyes, scanning Lu Yin and Xiao Wanguo before finally stopping on Lu Yin's face.

"The newcomer?"

The old man's voice was raspy, as if he hadn't spoken in a long time.

Xiao Wanguo stepped forward and bowed respectfully. "Elder Zhou, this is Lu Yin, the new resident. He has been specially authorized to stay in this dormitory."

The man addressed as Elder Zhou nodded slightly, a hard-to-detect glint flashing in his cloudy eyes.

He looked Lu Yin up and down before slowly speaking after a long pause. "Level twenty, yet able to slay an Abyssal Demon King... interesting."

"The room at the end of the first floor belongs to you today."

After saying this, Elder Zhou spoke no more. He simply leaned on his broom and walked slowly toward a corner of the hall.

He began to sweep the already clean floor, stroke by stroke.

The sound of the broom brushing against the wooden floor echoed rhythmically in the hall, bringing a strange sense of peace.

Xiao Wanguo whispered to Lu Yin.

"Elder Zhou is the manager here. If you need anything in the future, you can look for him."

"I'll leave you here. You can explore the rest yourself."

After finishing, he bowed in Elder Zhou's direction and turned to leave.

Seeing Xiao Wanguo's respectful manner, Lu Yin knew that Elder Zhou must be a powerful individual.

After all, Holy Hall Academy was a place of hidden talents, gathering most of the Awakening Level experts in the Celestial Dynasty.

Watching Xiao Wanguo depart, Lu Yin took another look at this place called the "Gods Dormitory."

The hall was empty and quiet, with only the leisurely sound of Elder Zhou's sweeping echoing through it.

He walked toward the end of the first floor. The wooden floor beneath his feet creaked slightly but was surprisingly solid.

On the walls of the corridor, the patterns formed by the embedded crystals seemed to flow slowly as the light changed.

Lu Yin stepped closer for a better look and found that these patterns seemed to depict some ancient legends.

There were Golden Crows with outspread wings soaring across the sky, Giant Kun swimming in the abyss, and figures draped in divine light confronting each other amidst the clouds.

Arriving at the room, a seemingly ordinary wooden door was left ajar.

The moment Lu Yin pushed the door open, a cool breeze brushed against his face.

The room wasn't large and was simply furnished with only a wooden bed, a desk, and a chair.

However, as soon as Lu Yin stepped inside, he saw his notification bar flashing continuously.

[Experience +1 point!]

[Experience +1 point!]

[...]

"Oh? It's actually increasing experience points automatically?"

Lu Yin was slightly surprised, a strange light flashing in his eyes.

Although one point per second wasn't much, the advantage was its constant flow.

There are 86,400 seconds in a day, which translates to 864,000 experience points.

In other words, even if Lu Yin didn't grind Dungeons, as long as he stayed here, he could level up in less than ten days.

Such an abnormal effect was indeed somewhat inconceivable.

However, while leveling up in about ten days might seem fast to an ordinary person, it was a bit slow for Lu Yin.

With his current strength, he was fully capable of soloing Nightmare difficulty Dungeons for speedruns.

The increase in experience points there would certainly be incomparable to idling here.

While Lu Yin was marveling at the extraordinary nature of the Gods Dormitory, he suddenly felt someone behind him.

Turning around, he saw Elder Zhou standing silently at the door at some unknown point, still leaning on that broom.

"Young man, you must remember the rules here."

Elder Zhou's voice remained raspy, but his eyes had cleared up a bit.

"The rent for a first-floor dormitory is one dream god crystal per day."

"dream god crystals can be obtained by challenging the Dream God Dungeon. The entrance to the Dungeon is right there."

Elder Zhou pointed with his broom toward the stairwell leading to the second floor.

"Since you're moving in today, I'll waive the rent for one day."

"If you don't obtain a dream god crystal by tomorrow, you will be directly evicted from the dormitory and will never have the chance to stay here again."

Lu Yin looked in the direction Elder Zhou pointed. His heart skipped a beat, and he asked.

"Elder Zhou, is anyone else living in this dormitory besides me?"

An inscrutable light flashed in Elder Zhou's cloudy eyes.

"Those who have lived here aren't just humans."

"Some existences, even after leaving, will leave a part of themselves here."

"As for the rest, you will find out in due time."

After saying this, Elder Zhou turned and left, his hunched figure quickly disappearing around the corner of the corridor.

Lu Yin stood in the center of the room, looking around this seemingly simple yet mysteriously hidden residence.

Elder Zhou's words stirred ripples in his heart.

The phrase "those who have lived here aren't just humans" was profound.

Especially since there were even God Challenges here; these were special Dungeons where one had the chance to face a god directly.

Those who performed excellently could even gain the favor of a god, obtaining items and equipment that did not belong to the mortal realm.

A glint of excitement flashed in Lu Yin's eyes, and then he impatiently headed to the stairwell Elder Zhou had pointed out earlier.