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墨書 Inktalez
Xu Nuan finally took out Tang Jingshu's diary. Its design was as classical as the person it belonged to, adorned with a lock that was merely for show; a little force could easily pry it open.
Xu Nuan had no intention of reading it. Instead, she repeatedly caressed it. This was left behind by Tang Jingshu, something that had to be brought out of the game, and it was their only connection to what they had lost, a responsibility they had to bear.
"Ah, the burden is heavy and the road is long."
When she returned to the agreed meeting spot, Xu Nuan saw Deng Yinyin squatting on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably. Xu Hang and Xie Huai were comforting her while Gu Ze stood silently nearby, and Zhang Xiao observed from under a tree with a cold gaze. Each person displayed their own unique reaction at the end of an event.
As Xu Nuan approached slowly, Gu Ze and Zhang Xiao looked up at her first. The former showed obvious concern while the latter merely watched.
After sizing her up, Gu Ze let out a gentle sigh and continued to remain silent, while Deng Yinyin's cries echoed in Xu Nuan's ears.
Amidst the sound of crying, Xu Nuan recalled something Tang Jingshu once told her.
"Nuan, no matter how calm you appear, you can't hide your thoughts. Just look at your face, and I will know your answer."
This statement was neither entirely right nor wrong.
In front of those who do not care about you, hiding your feelings is futile; yet in front of those who do care, concealing them serves no purpose either.
It was just that without Tang Jingshu, there would be no more warmth.
The elegant and graceful Tang Jingshu, like a classical beauty stepping out of a painting, would ultimately live on only in memories.
Those who are alive must remember those who have passed away and continue moving forward; that is how one honors the deceased.
Though her nose tinged with bitterness and her eyes felt heavy, Xu Nuan still managed to smile at Gu Ze and then at Xu Hang.
There was no need for tears; sorrow would naturally emerge.
It was a silent moment, united in grief.
Xie Huai and Xu Hang comforted each other for a while, while Deng Yinyin could not stop her tears.
Xu Nuan understood the pain of Deng Yinyin, as well as the pain of Xu Hang and Xie Huai.
The former mourned the loss of a close friend, while the latter not only grieved but also tried to suppress their sorrow to comfort Deng Yinyin.
It was a double burden of suffering.
Xu Nuan caught a glimpse of Zhang Xiao, who had begun to grow impatient but held it in. She was the only one unaffected by sadness, for without bonds, one would become an outsider.
Lowering her gaze in thought, Xu Nuan stepped forward, nodded at Xu Hang, bent down, and lowered her voice to Deng Yinyin.
"Deng Yinyin, I know you are very sad; we are all sad. But sorrow won't solve anything. We still need to move forward, taking Tang Jing Shu's diary with us to fulfill her wishes. This is what we should do now."
As soon as Xu Nuan finished speaking, Deng Yinyin, who had been crying with her head down, suddenly stopped. Xu Hang and Xie Huai exchanged glances, thinking that Deng Yinyin had calmed down. However, Deng Yinyin abruptly stood up and shouted at Xu Nuan.
"What do you know? You weren't good friends with Tang Jing Shu; you don't understand my pain at all. Of course, you’re fine! You just want to rush through this to see your beloved. You never regarded Tang Jing Shu as your friend; how could she admire you so much?"
Xu Nuan was stunned into silence, momentarily unable to react as she let Deng Yinyin's outburst wash over her along with her tears.
Did that mean she wasn't sad enough because she didn't cry?
That was because her tears had already dried up.
She wanted to find Qin Yaojie; she wanted to take Tang Jing Shu's diary with her. More than anything, she wanted to walk out alive and apologize to her parents.
In an instant, Xu Nuan's expression shattered.
"Slap!"
Xu Hang swiftly slapped Deng Yinyin, his face stern as he spoke in a low voice.
"Deng Yinyin, I understand, but we can't take it out on each other! Everyone is feeling the same way; don't go too far!"
Deng Yinyin covered her face, looking at Xu Hang in disbelief.
Gu Ze stepped up to Xu Nuan's right front, squinting at Deng Yinyin with a serious expression, anger boiling within him. However, seeing Xu Hang's rising and falling chest, he remained silent.
Xie Huai suddenly rushed in front of Deng Yinyin, turning to confront Xu Hang. He grabbed Xu Hang's shirt, tears streaming down his face.
"It's my fault, all my fault! If I hadn't dozed off and missed Python approaching, Tang Jingshu wouldn't have been silently taken away. It's my fault; I should have reacted faster instead of climbing the tree without saving her. It's my fault!"
Xie Huai clutched Xu Hang's collar, but Xu Hang remained still and coldly stared at him. Eventually, Xie Huai slid down to the ground, burying his face in his hands as he cried out repeatedly.
"It's my fault!"
Zhang Xiao watched the interaction with detached amusement, a faint smirk playing on his lips.
Xu Nuan suddenly felt a deep sadness. When they had gone to burn Python's Nest, everyone had worked together. But now that those Pythons were dead, they couldn't cope with their own grief or that of others.
A team had scattered like sand.
Some were blaming themselves, some were pointing fingers, some remained silent, while others roared in anguish.
It all stemmed from the death of one person.
Ha, it seems turning sorrow into strength is a very difficult task.
Deng Yinyin couldn't do it; she herself couldn't do it.
"Ha." Xu Nuan exhaled, watching Xie Huai's complaints and Xu Hang's dark expression. When she met Deng Yinyin's gaze again, she suddenly realized that Deng Yinyin's eyes were filled with anger and resentment.
Resentment towards herself?
Xu Nuan was puzzled. Before she could figure it out, Deng Yinyin suddenly rushed over and shoved her hard.
Xu Nuan didn't react in time, losing her balance and tumbling into the nearby bushes. Gu Ze, who was close by, also failed to react quickly enough; he reached out but couldn't catch Xu Nuan.
"Hiss."
Xu Nuan instinctively protected her head, but her right elbow scraped against something sharp. As she sat up, a sharp pain shot through her leg.
Gu Ze's delayed concern echoed in his voice.
Her vision blurred instantly, and she felt her consciousness beginning to fade. Xu Nuan shook her head, forcing herself to look at her leg, only to find a colorful snake coiled around it.
She wanted to reach down and pull off the snake, to find something to tie above the wound to prevent the venom from spreading.
But she had no strength.
Her vision grew increasingly hazy as she shook her head again, but it was futile.
In the midst of the blur, she saw someone leap forward and violently yank the snake away, tossing it aside.
She heard Gu Ze's voice—loud and urgent.
"Is there any Antidote left? Hurry!"
"No."
"I don't have any here either."
"No."
Several people expressed their lack of resources.
As consciousness faded more and more, Xu Nuan felt a strange urge to laugh. Initially, she had worried that there wouldn't be enough Antidote and that someone would suffer an accident before they could be saved. Little did she know, the one who would end up in trouble was herself.
There was no remedy.
Huh.
Just as this thought crossed her mind, Xu Nuan suddenly felt a chill on her leg, followed by something warm pressing against it.
She seemed to sense a liquid flowing.
Next to her, Xu Hang gasped in shock.
"Gu Ze, are you crazy? That's highly toxic!"
There was no response.
Yet Xu Nuan felt her cold body gradually warming up, her consciousness slowly returning, and her vision becoming clearer.
Clear enough that she could see the man's movements. She didn't want to describe it, but the toxins within her were being drawn out bit by bit. When the man looked up, she saw his dark purple lips.
Poison.
Gu Ze inevitably came into contact with poison.
Xu Nuan had no time to consider the reactions of others; her mind was racing with thoughts about why Gu Ze would go to such lengths. Indeed, she had overlooked something.
This debt was too much to bear.
This man was too much.
When the blood he expelled turned red again, Gu Ze took the clear water that Xu Hang offered to rinse his mouth. Xu Nuan could see that Gu Ze's complexion was somewhat wan, and of course, her own face must have looked just as pale.
"Although it's a potent poison, it doesn't act immediately. You both have managed to save your lives."
Xu Hang reproached Gu Ze before turning to Zhang Xiao.
"How far is the Supply Station? If we hurry through the night, can we make it by dawn? This snake venom is aggressive and time is of the essence."
Zhang Xiao suddenly chuckled lightly, not addressing Xu Hang's question but instead casting a mocking glance at Gu Ze and then at Xu Nuan.
"Xu Nuan, is it really okay to be so close to other men? Don't you still have feelings for Qin Yaojie?"
Xu Nuan met Zhang Xiao's cold gaze.
"Yaojie is barely hanging on in the game because of you, yet you seem to be leaning towards other men. I truly feel sorry for Yaojie!"
Xu Nuan's pupils constricted sharply, leaving her momentarily speechless as her mind went blank.
"Hah," Gu Ze stood up straight, threw down the water bottle, and reached out to pull Xu Nuan up before turning back to look at Zhang Xiao.
"I have to wonder if you are truly a friend of Qin Yaojie. At a time when lives are at stake, it seems your concern lies not with his safety but with other meaningless matters."
"Even if Qin Yaojie were here right now, he wouldn't stop me," Gu Ze said, his tone measured and resolute. "Because Nuan's life comes first, doesn't it? Qin Yaojie's friend."
This was the first time Xu Nuan heard Gu Ze mention Qin Yaojie, and a sudden, inexplicable pain shot through her heart. The sharp pangs made her involuntarily gasp.
Gu Ze, who was facing off against Zhang Xiao, immediately turned around, concern etched on his face. "Is there anywhere else that hurts? Did you get hurt somewhere else?"
Xu Nuan fought the impulse to clutch her heart and flee, shaking her head.
"I'm fine, much better. Let's go to the Supply Station. It looks like you're more poisoned than I am."
Gu Ze paused for a moment. "Yes, I am deeply poisoned."
Poisoned by a woman named Xu Nuan, and there was no cure.
Xu Hang, uninterested in the underlying tension between Gu Ze and Xu Nuan, grabbed the dazed Xie Huai and shot a fierce glare at the stunned Deng Yinyin before turning back to Zhang Xiao.
"We have no choice now. Regardless of how far the Supply Station is, we need to travel through the night along the Special Tree route. If you want to rest properly, then we'll wait for you at the Supply Station."
Zhang Xiao, who had suppressed all expressions, said nothing but simply slung her backpack over her shoulder and stepped aside, silently indicating that she intended to leave with Xu Hang and the others.
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