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墨書 Inktalez
"Warm, look at those flowers, they're quite beautiful."
"Warm, the waterfall over here seems to have a stronger flow."
"Warm, warm..."
Having regained her spirits with the medication and accompanied by someone while also finding the mark left by her boyfriend, He Min was in high spirits, and her tone of voice reflected that joy.
"They are indeed beautiful."
"That's right."
Xu Nuan smiled in agreement.
Her happiness overlapped with He Min's in some way.
It was truly wonderful to find companions who shared that initial connection.
Xu Nuan didn't explicitly express her joy, but her actions spoke volumes about her feelings.
To help He Min recover quickly, she volunteered to go into the mountains to catch pheasants. Even though she was teased by mischievous macaques and targeted by several thick pythons, she managed to bring back food without any issues.
If the price was just looking a bit disheveled, Xu Nuan thought it was worth it for as much food as possible.
The only downside was that her grilling skills were not up to par. Without any seasonings like Gu Ze had, she found herself at a loss when it came to preparing the pheasant.
In the end, it was still He Min who expertly handled the pheasant, skillfully roasting it over the fire.
The night accompanied by Roast Chicken was quite pleasant.
He Min flipped the Roast Chicken while teasing, "After being apart for so long, you haven't just been eating crackers or Jerky, have you?"
Xu Nuan twitched her lips; wasn't that just a roundabout way of mocking her poor cooking skills in the wild? Although, to be fair, her cooking in a proper kitchen was hardly any better.
"Not entirely," Xu Nuan thought of Gu Ze's culinary skills, and the flickering firelight reflected a soft glow in her eyes. "I've also had roasted duck and roasted rabbit."
"Wow, there are barbecue experts among the Third Batch of Players? I need to get to know them and learn a thing or two."
He Min laughed heartily, completely shedding the awkwardness from their first encounter.
"If you keep laughing like that, your eyes will turn into slits," Xu Nuan retorted with annoyance.
"You can't do this to me, specifically targeting my weak spots."
"Sorry, sorry," He Min's smile remained undiminished, her big eyes curving into crescent moons. "It's just that aside from cooking, you're amazing at everything else, so I can only tease you about this one thing."
"Well, I guess that's my fault then."
Xu Nuan pouted, her gaze fixed on the golden-brown chicken. How could it possibly turn this color without any oil? Xu Nuan was baffled.
The stars in the night sky sparkled brilliantly, while the campfire warmed the people below. As Xu Nuan and He Min enjoyed their dinner, their conversation about their only source of entertainment continued without interruption.
"Come on, when did you and Yu Hao part ways? It's been so long, and he hasn't found you yet. When you see him next, you have to punch him."
"The force is mutual; if I punch him, my hand will hurt too." He Min rolled her eyes dramatically after finishing her meal, but the thought of Yu Hao standing there obediently to let her hit him made her cover her mouth and giggle sweetly.
Xu Nuan gritted her teeth. Even when he wasn't around, he could still show off his affection. It was enough to drive her crazy.
When she found Qin Yaojie, she would definitely make him stand still so she could hit him too. At worst, he could just rub her hand afterward.
After a moment of laughter, He Min finally put her hands down to explain.
"Well, it's just our bad luck. As soon as we entered this level, we encountered a beast. We were both too panicked; I stepped wrong at Cliff and fell down. Although it wasn't a high drop and I managed to land on a big tree and save my life, we haven't run into anything since then."
Whenever Yu Hao was mentioned, He Min's eyes sparkled with sweet joy. Even when discussing unfortunate events, there were no complaints because of him. For two people who liked each other, no matter what they faced, the thought of seeing each other soon brought them happiness.
"So you were stuck here alone and got hurt," Xu Nuan sighed, concern evident in her eyes. "It's been so long; you've had a tough time."
As soon as Xu Nuan finished speaking, He Min's eyes crinkled with laughter again.
"Nuan, you've changed."
"Huh?"
Still caught up in her melancholic thoughts, Xu Nuan blinked in confusion. With her cute face, she looked utterly adorable.
"He Min kindly explained, 'Actually, you've changed twice. The saying that those involved are confused while bystanders see clearly applies perfectly here, and there's no need for me to hide it from Xu Nuan.'
'When you first entered the game, I could hardly recognize you. I understood why you became like that because of someone, and I was furious, wanting to bring that person before you to apologize. But ultimately, I was powerless against your cold heart and the dimming of your eyes.'
He Min's words stirred memories in Xu Nuan. After breaking up with Qin Yaojie and discovering that he had silently entered the game, she had been wandering in a deep abyss of despair, with no one to pull her out, not even her parents, who were the root of it all. She blamed her parents, blamed Qin Yaojie, but mostly blamed herself for hesitating and being unable to come up with a good solution.
'But this time when I met you, I knew that the Xu Nuan before entering the game was starting to return.'
He Min raised her index finger and waved it playfully.
'Your eyes have started to regain warmth, your attitude towards the game has become positive and optimistic, and you've come alive again. I'm really curious about what brought about such a big change in you.'
'Change?'
Xu Nuan blinked, feeling ripples stirring within her heart.
'I’ve always been like this; where have I changed?'
'Tsk tsk, don’t deceive yourself, Nuan.' He Min continued to hold onto this topic, casually giving Xu Nuan a reassuring pat.
'This is a good thing; I'm just very happy for you, not asking you to come out or anything.'
A figure appeared in Xu Nuan's mind—one that shouldn't have surfaced—causing her to shake her head vigorously in an attempt to dispel it. Deep down, a voice kept reminding her that he was just someone who had helped her; there was nothing special about him.
'Nuan, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?' Seeing Xu Nuan shaking her head with a troubled expression frightened He Min into standing up quickly. However, due to her right foot being unable to exert force, she had to sit back down and breathe heavily."
Xu Nuan was startled by this sudden action and quickly pushed aside her other thoughts, rushing to He Min's side to carefully examine her wounds.
Due to this incident, the topic of 'Xu Nuan's change' was abruptly dropped, and Xu Nuan herself did not even notice the sense of loss rising within her.
On the third day of their journey together, Xu Nuan and He Min set out on the second day of the shortcut leading to the Special Tree.
Initially, Xu Nuan had one hand supporting He Min while the other held a stick to clear the bushes ahead. He Min, feeling somewhat distant, leaned on her cane with one hand while resting the other on Xu Nuan, distributing some of her weight.
Suddenly, a few butterflies with black wings and vibrant spots flew toward them.
Xu Nuan paid no attention to these butterflies, thinking they were just ordinary ones passing by.
However, as one butterfly brushed past Xu Nuan, she felt a burning sensation on her shoulder. Turning to look, she discovered that the blue fabric on her shoulder had been burned through, leaving a hole.
“Amin, we need to get out of here quickly.”
Xu Nuan's expression changed instantly; her tone became serious as she fixed her gaze on the remaining butterflies that had not yet flown away, doing her best to protect He Min.
He Min did not ask any questions and trusted Xu Nuan completely, trying to quicken her pace.
The two moved swiftly along the narrow path, ignoring the brush of their bodies against the surrounding weeds. Just when they had distanced themselves from the butterflies, He Min suddenly exclaimed.
“Nuan, my bracelet is gone.”
In a panic, He Min dropped her cane and extended her right hand to look closely. The pale wrist without any adornment made her expression unusually frantic.
"It's really gone, Nuan, what should we do?"
He Min tugged at Xu Nuan's sleeve.
Even without He Min's prompting, Xu Nuan noticed He Min's wrist, where a bracelet should have been. It was the bracelet that Yu Hao had bought, crafted from raw crystal material he personally polished as an apprentice. It was also their token of love.
Such an important item certainly couldn't be lost.
"I understand, Amin, don't worry. Just wait here for me. I'll retrace my steps and see if I can find it. I will definitely find it."
Xu Nuan gently patted He Min's shoulder to reassure her before turning to leave.
He Min still clung to Xu Nuan's sleeve, clearly anxious.
"But..."
"Don't worry, nothing will happen. Just wait here for me." Xu Nuan cut off He Min's words, freeing herself from He Min's grip and starting her search from where they stood.
Searching for a lost bracelet on a muddy path overgrown with weeds was quite challenging.
Xu Nuan felt somewhat fortunate that her eyesight was good. One hand pushed aside the grass while the other held a stick to poke through the underbrush.
After searching for a while, when Xu Nuan turned back, she could no longer see He Min.
Rubbing her sore waist, Xu Nuan continued her search undeterred. The path shaded by ancient trees was brushed by a light breeze that did little to dispel the heat. As she searched, she suddenly noticed several black butterflies fluttering in front of her.
The burning sensation in her left shoulder had faded, but the charred hole remained. Xu Nuan remained vigilant as she searched for the Bracelet, keeping an eye out for the butterflies fluttering nearby.
"Ah, found it."
Finally, Xu Nuan spotted the light green Bracelet in the grass. Excited, she picked it up and watched as it reflected beautiful rays of sunlight, a smile forming on her lips.
Suddenly, the sound of wings flapping interrupted her joy.
Surrounding her were swarms of black butterflies, thick and numerous, emerging one after another from the underbrush.
Xu Nuan felt a wave of nausea and turned to run back the way she came. As she sprinted, the butterflies followed closely behind her. A sharp pain shot through her shoulder, causing Xu Nuan to drop to one knee in agony. After a few seconds, she glanced at her shoulder and realized that not only was her blue short-sleeve shirt burned, but her black quick-dry shirt had also been scorched. There was a Butterfly Mark left behind that wouldn’t wipe away when she tried to touch it.
As Xu Nuan paused briefly, more butterflies surged toward her. She quickly removed her jacket from her waist and covered her head and neck with it before accelerating back into a run.
The sound of countless wings created a strong wind that howled in her ears. The fabric wrapped around her skin began to feel increasingly hot and painful. In that moment, all Xu Nuan could think about was escaping; she couldn't devise any other plan to deal with the crisis at hand.
She had no idea how long she had been running until she finally spotted He Min a few dozen meters away. Realizing that there were no more butterflies around her, she gradually slowed down and gasped for breath, clearly hearing He Min's startled exclamation as she approached.
"Nuan, how did you get burned?"
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