The precious library resources in the Celestial Family had to be used effectively!

Even if she didn’t find any substantial information about the Dao Physique at the moment, gaining more knowledge was still beneficial.

As for why her goals didn’t include system-related tasks, it was simply because she couldn’t advance the system tasks at her current stage—she had already reached core formation!

For the system to make significant progress, she needed to enter the Void Realm.

If she could absorb the Fang family’s assets, the system would definitely make a big leap, but that was a far-off concern.

Qin Ruqing took ten days to thoroughly digest the “Endless Vitality” reward from the Tier-4 Heaven-level token and combined it with her experience from overcoming the thunder tribulation to deeply understand the will of life and death.

Regarding the thunder tribulation, Qin Ruqing had a strange feeling that she had forgotten something.

Although she had been close to death, she should have remembered it vividly.

But it seemed like she had forgotten the struggles and pain before successfully forming her core, only recalling the absorption of the thunder attributes.

“If I’ve forgotten, it must not be important, or it’s not needed right now. Just go with the flow,” Qin Ruqing reasoned.

She spent another ten days at the Wan Juan Pavilion reading books, using half of that time to consult with Fifth Youlin.

The young clan leader, whether informed beforehand or not, answered her questions candidly.

Feeling fully prepared, Qin Ruqing rang a bell to summon Fifth Lingyu and then went to the entrance of the Hungry Ghost Dao.

She knew the name of the Hungry Ghost Dao, so she didn’t need Fifth Lingyu to guide her.

However, she felt it was polite to inform him before entering the third prison to avoid any appearance of distrust.

Sometimes, maintaining appearances can be beneficial when both parties are aware of the underlying truths.

This time, Qin Ruqing arrived first, and Fifth Lingyu came afterward.

Seeing him arrive, Qin Ruqing smiled and said, “Director, I’m going in again.”

Fifth Lingyu nodded toward the bronze door, signaling her to go ahead without seeing her off.

It was odd; though he seemed uninterested in talking, he still came promptly when summoned.

Muttering to herself, she asked, “Does the Director have any advice for me?”

Fifth Lingyu smirked and said, “Yes, I suggest you kill everyone inside the Hungry Ghost Dao.”

“Wow, Director, that sounds unreliable!”

“It’s your suggestion, whether you use it is up to you.”

Qin Ruqing nodded, smiled, and didn’t say more, heading straight for the bronze door.

Fifth Lingyu just watched her leave.

The bronze door of the Hungry Ghost Dao opened, and light engulfed Qin Ruqing before the door closed with a thud.

Fifth Lingyu didn’t watch her back but focused on the Hungry Ghost Dao plaque.

He casually flicked his sleeve and muttered to himself, “They are all sinners; what’s the problem with killing them?”

On the other side, Qin Ruqing entered the Hungry Ghost Dao and found it very different from the previous two prisons. Despite the dangers of the first two, they had a clear sense of “challenges” or “trials.”

The interior of the bronze door in the Hungry Ghost Dao looked like a city?

Qin Ruqing looked up at the ancient characters inscribed above the towering gate:

“Sin City!”

What a strange name.

Qin Ruqing carefully examined the city gate, which was tall and massive, built from huge stones and shaped like a trapezoid.

The gate bore the marks of years of wind and sun, giving it an ancient look.

The characters “Sin City” on the gate seemed to be newer than the gate itself.

Strangely, peering inside the city revealed nothing but a thick, obscuring mist.

After hesitating for a moment, Qin Ruqing decided to enter.

As she approached the mist, she recalled what Fifth Youlin had told her earlier.

The handsome and poised young clan leader had said, with a slightly serious expression:

“For the third prison, I can only tell you that it is completely different from the previous two.

You will need more time here, but no longer than six months. If you haven’t found a way out by then, you will be trapped forever.”

Qin Ruqing remembered the six-month time frame and then asked if the young clan leader could describe the conditions inside the city.

Fifth Youlin shook his head initially, but then said:

“In Sin City, you will suffer greatly.”

“Suffering?” Qin Ruqing repeated the word as she stood at the misty entrance, her tone light. “Suffering is an understatement for cultivators. Every trial has its hardships. However, suffering that the young clan leader describes must be extraordinary.”

“Then let me experience it thoroughly,” she said, stepping calmly into the mist and the Sin City.

Before entering, Qin Ruqing had imagined the internal conditions of this so-called Sin City.

It was likely a lawless place filled with the most vicious criminals!

In such chaos, rules were nonexistent, and power ruled supreme.

Therefore, to thrive in the city, she needed to act tough and commanding.

The delicate, demure persona wouldn’t work here.

So, Qin Ruqing donned a dark red, practical outfit and tied her hair up in a high ponytail, giving herself a fierce and unapproachable look.

Wrapped in mist, Qin Ruqing felt like she had entered another world.

Before she could ponder further, the scene around her shifted, and she could already see the bustling crowds on the streets.

She thought to herself, if a burly man approached her soon, she’d start with a fight to establish her dominance.

Cool and imposing Qin Ruqing was ready for a fight.

As soon as she stepped onto the inner city’s land, before even seeing the surrounding buildings, a fierce, burly man with a knife scar on his face approached her.

Qin Ruqing puffed out her chest, exuding confidence, and walked straight toward the burly man.

Their fierce gazes met, sparks flying.

Qin Ruqing expected the classic “What are you looking at?”

“Looking at you, so what?”

fight to break out.

But to her surprise, the burly man, after locking eyes with her for two seconds, suddenly looked panicked, avoided her gaze, and bowed slightly in a fawning manner, as if afraid he was blocking her way, and stepped aside.

The fierce burly man instantly turned into a scaredy-cat.

Qin Ruqing was stunned.

This wasn’t how she had envisioned it!

Are the people in this City of Sin really this polite?

Puzzled, she began to observe the situation inside the city.

Although there were quite a few pedestrians on the streets, the city gave off a strangely old and desolate vibe.

The buildings were clearly not of modern style, and the pedestrians’ clothing was also very ancient.

Qin Ruqing couldn’t tell if this city was truly from some ancient era or just an “out of context setting” of the Four Hall Trials.

She entered a teahouse to take a break. Usually, such places were hubs of information, and Qin Ruqing hoped to gather some useful intel while sipping tea.

She came to this City of Sin without a guide and with no task prompts, completely clueless about what to do next.

Unfortunately, the teahouse’s business didn’t look good.

There were only a few sparse individuals, each sitting alone, expressionless and lost in their own world.

Qin Ruqing thought they looked like they hadn’t woken up yet.

Just when Qin Ruqing thought she would gain nothing from this visit, a commotion broke out in the teahouse.

It was caused by some late-arriving guests for a rather peculiar reason.

A guest who arrived first was unhappy that the shopkeeper served tea to a later-arriving guest first, so he beat up the tea server.

The later-arriving guest felt provoked, and thus a fight broke out between them.

The teahouse erupted in chaos, but the other guests remained very calm, as if nothing had happened.

That was until a red glow appeared on the bodies of three individuals: the two fighting guests and the tea server.

Seeing the red glow, the previously unbothered guests suddenly panicked and fled.

The shopkeeper, who hadn’t intervened during the commotion, rushed out upon hearing the news.

Seeing the red glow on the tea server, he was horrified and declared, “From this moment on, you are no longer an employee of Shengfeng Teahouse!”

The tea server’s face turned ashen.

He didn’t react to being fired; all his attention was on the red glow on his body.

He touched himself helplessly and mumbled, “I’ve been chosen for judgment…”

Qin Ruqing set her teacup down on the table with a thud, noting the word “judgment.”

Compared to the shock and fear of the waiter and the innkeeper, the two troublemakers remained quite calm, even exchanging a glance.

“You don’t seem new to this, either,” said the guest, who was emitting a red glow and carrying a large sword on his back.

His face showed a mix of weariness and madness. “I’ve been judged three times already.”

The person fighting him calmly sat down and took a sip of cold tea, saying disdainfully, “I’ve been judged five times.”