Tongtian Jiaozhu was extremely worried about himself, especially after witnessing Laozi's ordeal of having a tenth of his power stripped away by the Golden List. What a tragic "reward" it was. Though Laozi's miserable state brought him some pity, Tongtian was secretly pleased, as the two of them, despite originating from the same source, had never gotten along well.
For Laozi, losing a tenth of his power was a significant blow, and this turn of events actually benefited Tongtian. However, what truly frightened Tongtian was the possibility of encountering something akin to the Question Card, which could easily spell disaster for him as well.
Now, he fully understood that not all rewards from the Weapon List were good—some could be traps. If one wasn't careful, they might fall right into it, just like Laozi, who not only gained nothing but also lost a significant portion of his strength.
Besides Tongtian, who was feeling uneasy, others simply watched with amusement. Initially, they thought that the Golden List livestream would just give them insights into who would receive the most impressive rewards. However, Laozi's punishment for answering incorrectly revealed to them that being too greedy could result in receiving nothing at all—or worse, being punished.
[Sun Wukong: So this is what the Question Card is like, a hidden trap disguised as a reward. Fortunately, it appeared earlier! If it had been my turn, I probably would have gambled as well!]
[Chiyou: I always thought that once you made the list, the rewards would be enviable. Who knew that the fifth-place reward could still lead to punishment? Even though Laozi is a Saint, this must be a painful experience for him!]
[Fuxi: No one could have expected this outcome! The difficulty of the Double Question Card is far higher than the Question Card!]
This was just Fuxi's perspective, though somewhat narrow. When Luya used the Question Card, he didn't know the answer himself either, but he managed to seek help from others. After paying a considerable price, he finally got the answer from the Buddha and answered correctly. Without asking around, even with his knowledge, Luya would have certainly failed.
The key difference between the two cards was that the Double Question Card carried penalties. However, the Double Question Card had the potential for much greater rewards if answered correctly. In Laozi's case, he failed both questions, which seemed highly incongruent with his status as a Saint.
That being said, it wasn't entirely Laozi's fault. Had the Jing River Dragon King asked a different question, perhaps Laozi could have answered correctly. But instead, the Dragon King had asked Laozi to divine his future—a future that, under the Golden List's influence, could not be seen by others. This was to prevent any collusion between the questioner and the respondent, ensuring no one could ask something overly simple.
No matter how proficient Laozi was in divination, he couldn't outmatch the power of the Golden List. In the end, he had no choice but to guess, which led to his failure. Because of this, the Bull Demon King became curious about his own future, especially after Laozi's incorrect answer still resulted in the Golden List revealing a glimpse of the future.
This convinced the Bull Demon King that by asking about his own future dangers, he would definitely get the right answer. He wasn't about to miss this chance, and at that moment, other concerns didn't cross his mind.
However, in the end, the Bull Demon King didn't gain any significant advantage. Although his situation wasn't as dire as the Jing River Dragon King's, it wasn't much better either. As a renowned demon king, he had already endured the humiliation of having his son beaten by his sworn brother, Sun Wukong, and then being dragged to the Western Paradise.
At this point, the Bull Demon King was starting to suspect that Sun Wukong harbored some hidden resentment towards him. Otherwise, why would things have turned out this way? He even contemplated severing ties with Wukong, worried that similar events might repeat in the future, something he could no longer tolerate.
Laozi, for his part, had no use for regret. His upcoming reward was still to come, and he certainly wouldn't be choosing anything similar to the Question Card again. He would rather settle for a lesser reward than risk it.
Laozi had been thoroughly intimidated by the experience. When the Golden List drained his power, he found himself utterly powerless to resist. The power was extracted from him as if it were never his own, and it was taken away with ease. This made it clear just how overwhelmingly powerful the Golden List was.
[Tongtian Jiaozhu: I just hope my reward will be something peaceful. I certainly don't want any items that require answering questions for rewards. I know nothing of such matters!] Chapters fırst released on Nov3lFɪre.ɴet
Being a Saint, Tongtian could still divine small matters, but he feared encountering something like what had just happened to Laozi. If even Laozi couldn't figure it out, then there was no way he could either.
It was best not to be greedy at all, or else the losses might outweigh the gains.
As a Saint, one would surely understand this principle. Laozi had indeed been tempted by the rewards for answering correctly. He figured that even if he couldn't answer one of the two questions correctly, he would at least not be punished. However, he had never expected to fail both questions and face severe punishment. When it happened, even he found it difficult to accept.
[Yuanshi Tianzun: The rewards for top-ranking positions are truly precious. Though Laozi failed the Question Card, it's understandable—none of us could have anticipated such an outcome. But if the question had been answered correctly, the reward would have been something everyone would envy!]
This challenge clearly demonstrated that if the Question Card were answered correctly, the reward would be exceptionally generous.
However, Laozi's fifth-place ordeal was now a thing of the past. Apart from Laozi, no one else had suffered significant losses. The rest were eagerly anticipating the next reward. Whether they wanted to see another Sage punished like Laozi or witness the unveiling of rare treasures, their excitement was palpable.
After a brief wait, they finally saw the reward for the sixth place.
[Weapon List, Sixth Place Reward: Fusion Token]
[The Fusion Token can fuse several treasures together, creating a more powerful treasure with the combined traits of the fused items. The treasures to be fused must be below the level of Chaos Spirit Treasures!]