Lady Yin Yao's back had developed a patchy, deep black stain, about the size of a palm, as if ink had been splashed upon it. This was exactly the same as the blue-uniform employee Suan Qing had seen in the monkey garden—only the difference was that the black spots on the blue-uniform employee had already spread to cover her entire back, while Lady Yin Yao's patch was only just beginning to appear and had not yet spread. However, during Suan Qing's observation, the initial palm-sized mark gradually diffused silently, expanding to cover two palms. "What's happening?" Lady Yin Yao raised her small walkie-talkie with cautious alertness. "Your eyes are as if you're examining a patient with a terminal illness." "You're not terminally ill, but you're on the verge of collapse," the Master of Zhi Sha pointed out. "Your back has turned black." Lady Yin Yao was first startled, then realized what was happening. Her head snapped around to the back, and she looked down at her back. Then, with a sharp snap, she turned her head back to face forward, grabbed Suan Qing's sleeve firmly, and her walkie-talkie buzzed urgently: "Quick— "Princess is quite timid! Zhang Yuanqing nodded seriously: "I'll manage, though I think both you and the Blood Rose can still be saved... Hmm, do you feel any unusual symptoms yourself?" Yin Yao Princess shook her head. "My body and spirit are both perfectly fine." "Not feeling anything doesn't mean you're not in trouble," said the Master of Zhishi Palace, circling around Yin Yao with her red skirt trailing gracefully on the ground. It's strange—she's been running around the zoo, constantly dragging her skirt, yet she hasn't picked up a single speck of dirt. It seems her skirt has a dust-repelling effect. After completing her circuit, the Master of Zhishi Palace said, "There must be some kind of contamination within the garden. Those affected will darken and transform into monsters—like the black-clad staff, or Wang Mingming. The fact that you don't feel any symptoms is actually the most unusual. Didn't Wang Mingming himself feel perfectly normal? And that blue-uniformed employee he saw in the monkey garden—he too seemed unaware of being contaminated." Zhang Yuanqing felt a spark of inspiration and recalled Article Eight of the employee handbook: "Please remember, pandas are soft, endearing, and wholesome creatures. If not, simply look at your name badge and loudly declare your name." "Yin Yao, loudly declare your name," he commanded. This phrase seemed to trigger a switch. The crimson gaze of Princess Yin Yao suddenly grew dull, and she murmured, "My name... I... can't recall it..." At that moment, Zhang Yuanqing noticed that the black mark behind her was rapidly spreading like ink, soon covering half her back. Was the erosion intensifying? His heart sank. With both palms glowing a pure, resolute pale golden aura, he pressed firmly against the back of Princess Yin Yao. The spreading of the "ink" became visibly contained. Lady Yin Yao's red eyes grew dim, murmuring softly, "My name... my name... I can't remember it..." The Master of Zhishi Palace's gaze shimmered with a faint, ethereal light, stepping forward to meet her gaze, and in doing so, the glow in Lady Yin Yao's eyes also began to shimmer. Catalyzing a trance! "You are Lady Yin Yao, you are Lady Yin Yao..." the Master repeated, her voice gentle, carrying a soothing strength that calmed the listener. Yet it proved ineffective. Lady Yin Yao murmured in a dreamlike state, still unable to recover her identity, while the ink behind her, briefly suppressed, began to surge violently, emitting a continuous hissing sound, black mist rising in waves. Zhang Yuanqing felt his hands as though plunged into a pot of boiling oil—strange, impure forces were counteracting the power of the Sun God, attempting to reverse and seep into him. The contaminating force was too potent; his current, half-developed Sun God power could not withstand it. Once Lady Yin Yao fully "darkened," he would be finished. "Does the trance not work?" Zhang Yuanqing took out the Shattered-Obstacle Scroll while shouting—there were only a few left. The Master of Stopping Death paused and said, "The hypnosis seems ineffective; perhaps I didn't get her name right." Originally, Yin Yao was the title of a Princess? She was actually a Princess with a formal title... Zhang Yuanqing activated the Shattered-Obstacle Scroll, briefly halting the ink's encroachment. Yet he found himself at a loss—Yin Yao had never revealed her personal name. To whom should he turn? Historical records might contain her full name, since she had a title; the scholarly Xia Hou Aotian and Li Chunfeng would surely be able to find it. But the zoo had blocked all information—this rule-based item even suppressed the Art of Stargazing. Even with the Beidou satellite phones arriving, it wouldn't help. "She was a Ming Dynasty Princess, with the surname Zhu!" Zhang Yuanqing turned to the Master of Stopping Death. Though he didn't know her full name, he could at least call upon her surname—now, with no other option, he had to try. If silver princess Yin Yao cannot be awakened, then only the Blood Rose can be sacrificed. Master Zhi Sha, ever sharp-minded, instantly grasped his meaning and shifted his tone: "You are Princess Yin Yao, your surname is Zhu..." The musician's voice possessed a powerful magic, amplified further by the hypnotic effect—stone itself could be stirred to life. The vacant, dazed gaze of Princess Yin Yao flickered with a brief spark, only to fade away moments later. "You are Princess Yin Yao, your surname is Zhu..." With each repetition, the spark within her gaze grew stronger, more persistent. "I—I am... Zhu Huiyao!" A sudden burst of brilliance erupted in her eyes, her crimson gaze shining like two small lamps. With a passionate outburst, she raised her small horn as if a fiery protagonist from a热血 manga, radiating energy: "I am Zhu Huiyao!" Zhang Yuanqing watched the black spots on her back hiss and rise into thick plumes of black vapor, which then dispersed into the night sky. Your parents must truly be naming geniuses—your full name is "Pig that bites," and your title is "Lustful Medicine." Zhang Yuanqing sighed with relief and smiled, saying, "Pig that bites—don't shout it so loudly, or you'll draw the attention of the staff." Yin Yao, the Princess, stiffened momentarily, quickly straightened up, and pressed the small microphone to Zhang Yuanqing's ear, correcting herself, "Zhu Huiyao, Zhu Huiyao—Zhu Huiyao!" Beside them, the Master of Zhishi Palace furrowed her brows deeply, speaking in a cold, detached tone, "Are you two flirting?" Yin Yao, ever cautious of her, immediately quieted down. The Master of Zhishi Palace gave a cold snort, scanning the surroundings carefully. They were situated between the "Giant Panda Garden" and the next garden, surrounded by vast greenery, with a stone-paved path beneath their feet, and two public benches along the roadside. She shifted her gaze, her tone serious: "Something's off. The dangers we've faced have been too frequent. If this were the norm, the campus would have long since fallen into chaos, with administrators constantly hiring new staff and putting out fires among the blackened employees. Yet in fact, this very artifact has remained stable for over twenty years in Songhai." At that moment, Princess Yin Yao raised her small horn. "I have a different perspective." Both Zhang Yuanqing and the Master of Zhishi Palace turned to her. Her mature, commanding voice suddenly softened. "I've experienced the power of pollution firsthand—I have the right to speak." "Go on," both Zhang Yuanqing and the Master said in unison. Yin Yao said, "Do you remember the rules of the Monkey Garden?" Zhang Yuanqing replied, "The monkeys in the garden don't speak." Yin Yao held her small horn, nodded, and continued, "Just now, the Prime Immortal was on the verge of turning into a monkey. Such a severe crisis was not met with any solution. The purpose of the employee handbook is to ensure that employees perform their duties and face the strange occurrences—not to hand over colleagues to the strange forces. So, why haven't they outlined specific solutions?" Before Zhang Yuanqing or the Master could respond, she added, "There's only one possibility: the power of pollution is gradual. It subtly influences the body and mind over time, without directly causing death." The blue-clad staff gradually become contaminated during their patrols, but as long as the contamination is detected and addressed promptly, there's no issue. "Only a few staff members make mistakes during patrols—fail to follow the employee handbook—do so, which deepens the contamination and transforms them into black-clad staff." "Yet, when we first arrived here, we had never been contaminated at all. Why did we skip the gradual accumulation phase and instead experience a sudden outbreak?" Whether the Primordial Heavenly Sovereign's transformation or her darkening are fatal—this clearly represents a sudden outbreak when contamination reaches its peak. It seems illogical. Hearing this, Zhang Yuanqing finally reached a conclusion: "Unless we've been subtly contaminated all along." With that, the three fell silent, reviewing every detail of their journey since entering the zoo, trying to pinpoint exactly when the contamination began. Zhang Yuanqing’s thoughts weren’t pure—he had only thought for less than ten seconds before abandoning his deeper inquiries. His primary mission was to save the Mage’s Eye, which brought immense pressure, leaving him unable to focus intently. “Wait a moment—” Just as he was about to say that, emphasizing that saving the Mage’s Eye was the priority, he noticed the beauty of the palace’s chief, beneath her mask, shining with brilliant insight: “We’ve overlooked a detail. Wang Mingming’s notes are inconsistent—the door to his dormitory was locked, so he couldn’t return to his room. That’s why he went knocking on the windows of other dormitories, and that’s why the dorm staff one by one perished. Yet, in the notes we’ve seen, it’s clearly recorded that people went missing every night—doesn’t that create a contradiction?” Zhang Yuanqing felt a chill. If he couldn’t enter the dormitory, then the “killings” were a result of that—so why were there so many detailed entries about missing persons in the notebooks? Who had written them? Hey—hadn’t thought the dormitory storyline had concluded. It seems it’s been waiting for me all along. Zhang Yuanqing looked at his two companions, who were also gazing at him. In the silent stillness, the one at the center spoke: "This might be a curse—a high-level one—but I believe I'm now fine. The Palace Master has not yet encountered misfortune, which suggests your level is sufficient to withstand the curse's effects. As for the Lady Junzhu...” He didn't dare to say that Lady Yin Yao had already eliminated the threat, even though she had just undergone the purification seal. After all, the curse affecting someone with the power of the Sun God indicates that the purification seal itself may not be sufficient—unless the Day-Wandering God intervenes. "Why, after my cultivation has strengthened, do I feel weaker!" Lady Yin Yao voiced her complaint to the host. I'll try to get involved less in the struggles at the level of the Sovereigns, try to... Zhang Yuanqing murmured to himself. "Time is running short—we should keep moving ahead." The group sprinted along the winding viewing path, and after just a few minutes, a man-made lake appeared ahead. The surface of the lake was dark and still, veiled in a thin mist. At the center stood a sturdy camphor tree, its branches lush and spreading like a canopy, with vines cascading down like curtains. Amid the dense tangle of vines, a human silhouette with bowed head was faintly visible. Magi-Eye King! Zhang Yuanqing was overjoyed, and as he rushed toward the lake's shore, he burst out of the shrubs. In his peripheral vision, he suddenly spotted a robust, majestic white lion lying at the bank. A sudden brake! "Hide! Hide!" he urged, guiding the Princess of the Palace and Lady Yingyao to take refuge behind the shrubs. The two cautiously extended their heads, gazing at the lion, which lay languidly by the shore, eyes half-closed as if dozing, occasionally swaying its tail—indicating it was not truly asleep. "What rank is this white lion?" asked the Princess of Zhishi. If it were merely a Level 7, she would have to engage and defeat it herself. "I don't know. I've never seen it take action. At first, I thought it was just a peripheral guardian, but after reviewing the employee handbook, it seems quite likely that this white lion is actually the strongest in the campus. I'm even beginning to doubt whether the Dog Elder could possibly defeat it." Zhang Yuanqing lowered his voice.