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墨書 Inktalez
Gu Ze woke up on the second day after the fierce battle, realizing that when he was pulled into the water by the Green Tentacle, Xu Hang had immediately jumped in to save him.
The group had fought hard until late into the night, and all the tentacles mysteriously retreated, leaving the lake calm once more. The lakes did not merge again, and after injecting him with a bunch of medications while he was unconscious, the others had exhaustedly fallen asleep. It wasn't until this morning that they began to panic when he still hadn't woken up.
"I knew you were tough; you have a strong constitution and a hard life."
Xu Hang joked, clearly relieved.
Deng Yinyin wiped her tears as she lamented, "I was so scared last night. We all agreed to leave together. What would we have done if something had happened to you?"
Xie Huai also spoke with a pale face, expressing his relief.
Gu Ze's gaze finally landed on Xu Nuan, who stood at the edge of the group. She simply smiled quietly, saying nothing.
He couldn't help but chuckle lightly; how wonderful it was to be alive.
Now that Gu Ze had awakened, there was no reason for the group to linger in this strange place any longer. They quickly packed their belongings and set off. The lake during the day seemed as if nothing had happened; it remained quiet like a maiden, with Azure White Clouds reflecting endlessly on its surface, and birds occasionally visiting. The sparse forest still echoed with the calls of unknown beasts, mingling with the sound of the wind, creating a slight chill in the air.
However, upon closer inspection, they noticed some changes in this place. For instance, there were no fish swimming in the lake anymore, and the soil that had fallen from the shore last night had not been restored. The narrow paths between the lakes had completely merged together. All of this indicated that what had happened last night was not just an illusion, and according to the game's setting, such scenes would reoccur tonight.
It felt endless.
The Red Special Tree had yet to make an appearance, while the sun alternated between shyly hiding behind clouds and boldly radiating heat.
"What should we do tonight?"
Xie Huai murmured unconsciously. Having spent so much time in this game, Xu Nuan's foresight or worry had begun to spread to others; it was no longer just her unique trait.
Xu Nuan could only shrug her shoulders in response to such changes, expressing her helplessness.
The group walked ahead and behind each other, feeling a bit restless in the unchanging environment around them.
However, they all knew that impatience would not lead to good results.
Xu Nuan and Gu Ze were the steadfast duo lagging behind.
"What did you see in the water?"
Xu Nuan glanced at Gu Ze, who had been lost in thought since waking up. Her right hand unconsciously brushed against the short knife at her waist, tracing the familiar patterns on the sheath until it reached the connection between the hilt and the blade.
"I didn't see anything."
Gu Ze's tone was somewhat flat, as if he didn't want to discuss it or perhaps didn't know how to articulate those dreamlike events.
"I see," Xu Nuan withdrew her gaze. "I thought the main mechanism of those tentacles wouldn't be too deeply hidden; otherwise, we wouldn't have any chance at all. It seems I was overly optimistic."
"No one knows what the Designers are thinking, do they?"
Gu Ze suddenly brought up the Designers for some reason, prompting Xu Nuan to turn her head back toward him.
"I was thinking, have we fallen into a trap? We try to determine the dangers in each level by guessing the thoughts of the Designers. But what if our understanding of the Designers is flawed? Then we would only be pushing ourselves into more dangerous situations."
Xu Nuan furrowed her brow, feeling that Gu Ze's words were pointed. She believed that given their current alliance, they should be more straightforward with each other.
"Are you implying something? My brain can't keep up with yours."
Gu Ze raised an eyebrow and chuckled lightly.
"Given our current relationship, I can be quite direct. You don't think you know one of the Designers, yet you have expectations about it. You want to use your understanding of that Designer's perspective to navigate through, right?"
Xu Nuan remained silent for a moment before speaking with a hint of bitterness in her voice.
"Being too straightforward can be uncomfortable. As part of the Alliance, I have indeed kept some things from you. So, what about you? Haven't you hidden some things as well?"
Gu Ze raised a finger and waved it lightly. "A man with a few secrets is more intriguing."
The feelings Xu Nuan had been cultivating instantly dissipated. Gu Ze was indeed a man who couldn't stay serious for more than three seconds, although he was reliable most of the time.
"Nobody is forcing you, but brainstorming is the best way to survive in this game."
Xu Nuan's tone turned calm, and the words she had wanted to say were quickly retracted. She kicked a small stone into the nearby bushes, where a well-concealed camera cracked open, proving just how much force Xu Nuan had used.
Gu Ze, who had witnessed this, cleared his throat softly.
"I'm just learning your way of survival. If you stop doing it in the future, I will too. As for secrets, I can tell you right away."
"My way of survival?"
Xu Nuan was puzzled and momentarily at a loss. Since joining this team, they had mostly faced challenges together; the dangers and opportunities were similar. Her way of survival was no different from everyone else's.
"If you need someone to remind you of this, then you're not Xu Nuan."
As Xu Nuan pondered this, she heard Gu Ze's leisurely remark. Her lips twitched involuntarily, and a vein throbbed on her forehead as her right hand instinctively reached for the knife at her waist.
Seeing the knife, Gu Ze quickly stepped aside and waved his hand helplessly.
"I'm not saying we need to resort to violence just yet. Even though we've distanced ourselves from civilized society, we still have to abide by the law. Hurting someone can lead to criminal charges. Besides, if you pull out a knife at the slightest disagreement, it might scare off the Pursuer."
Gu Ze began to imagine a scenario where he and Xu Nuan were together; if he ever upset her, she might casually pull out a fruit knife and slice him like an apple.
However, if Xu Nuan were really to be with him, he would surely only have eyes for Xu Nuan. How could he possibly make her angry?
He probably wouldn't make her angry, right?
Gu Ze felt somewhat uncertain, yet he had no idea that between him and Xu Nuan stood a person, a game, and a barrier of the heart.
Before Xu Nuan could explain why she had drawn her knife, she saw Gu Ze completely lost in his own emotions. One moment he was beaming, the next he wore a bitter smile; sometimes he looked triumphant, and at other times, he seemed to invite trouble.
Indeed, something must have happened to him underwater; otherwise, he wouldn’t be acting so erratically and disregarding his own image. Although after getting to know Gu Ze, Xu Nuan believed he had lost any semblance of an image. At times, she felt like telling her friends at university—who admired Gu Ze and regarded him as their idol—about his ridiculous antics.
“It’s just a habitual action; you don’t need to mind it.”
Thinking of those Bad Friends from university made Xu Nuan's expression dim slightly. Her words became dry, and her steps lagged behind, while Gu Ze remained oblivious, lost in his own fantasy world.
But soon enough, Gu Ze snapped out of his daydream—not because Xu Nuan or any of their companions called him back, but due to an urgent voice.
“Don’t look back!”
Gu Ze froze for a moment and truly didn’t look back. Even in his waking state, he heard that voice. Did this mean that what he experienced underwater was not just a dream?
He lifted his shirt to check; there were no scars from being bitten by ghosts or having blood drained from him. His wrists bore no marks either. So it must have been a dream after all?
Why did he have such a dream? Was there something special about it?
As he pondered this, another sinister voice echoed in his mind.
“You can’t escape; you will die here. No one will replace you.”
Each word was pronounced with heavy emphasis, sending jolts through his nerves as if they were transmitted directly to his brain.
Gu Ze looked at the few people in front of him, all behaving normally, moving forward without hesitation. It seemed like a facade; only he could hear those words. Was it an illusion? Some kind of technology?
He was puzzled, and then he suddenly remembered Xu Nuan standing behind him. Should he turn around?
"Don't look back!"
It was that anxious voice again.
Gu Ze froze in place, afraid to move forward. He wanted to wait for Xu Nuan to come over, but he kept waiting, and Xu Nuan still hadn’t caught up or said anything. The others in front, including Xu Hang, continued on without stopping. The whole scene felt as if he were the only one there.
Was it a dream? An illusion? High technology?
Gu Ze pondered endlessly, unable to find an answer.
"Nuan?"
"Nuan, are you not coming yet?" Gu Ze tested his voice, but there was no response. He could clearly see the Azure White Clouds, the lakes and trees, and the few people not far away, yet he couldn’t see Xu Nuan, who was behind him.
Really can't I look back?
He felt confused and fearful when suddenly he heard Xu Nuan's scream.
"Ah!"
"Nuan?"
Without hesitation, Gu Ze turned around. He didn’t see Xu Nuan; instead, there was only darkness. He could look left and right or move forward and back, but all he saw was darkness.
"Nuan, are you there? Is everyone there?"
Gu Ze struggled to calm himself, carefully contemplating everything that had happened.
Was it true that he had fallen into the water and experienced all of that while being unconscious? Or had Xu Hang really saved him?
No, if he were dreaming, or if these were just his hallucinations, then what Xu Hang and the others told him would be false. How could his unconscious self communicate with them?
Ah!
Gu Ze felt his mind was in chaos, but the more chaotic it became, the more he needed to stay calm. He made a firm decision; he would not resign himself to this fate.
There must be a way out. Gu Ze slapped himself a few times, yet he felt no pain.
Was this a dream?
Gu Ze remained uncertain, and he desperately hoped someone would hit him again; perhaps then he would find clarity.
Just as he was thinking this, a sharp pain shot through his abdomen.
"Hiss."
It wasn't a sound he made. Gu Ze realized that he was no longer enveloped in darkness.
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