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墨書 Inktalez
After Gu Ze finished explaining the true purpose of the five Tail Rings to Xu Nuan, Xu Hang and the others returned, their faces grim.
"What happened?"
Gu Ze handed over the backpacks one by one. Xu Nuan silently shouldered her own bag and stood aside, her gaze drifting outside the cave, seemingly indifferent to the situation.
Xu Hang passed his binoculars to Gu Ze.
"I found the Special Tree. There are only two paths to get there."
Not only did Xu Hang look unwell, but his demeanor was also quite somber.
"One path is blocked by a landslide, and the other is red—danger unknown."
"The red land?"
Gu Ze repeated, turning to look at Xu Nuan, wanting to convey with his eyes that he had learned about this level from the technicians. However, he noticed that Xu Nuan was lost in thought, her gaze not meeting his or anyone else's, completely absorbed in her own world.
Looking at Xu Nuan's pale face, Gu Ze understood that she was unwell, but from her brows and eyes, he sensed something deeper.
Xu Nuan was troubled, and it made her sad.
He suddenly recalled his own actions, a flicker of regret passing through his eyes, but his mood quickly sank again. Xu Nuan's sadness was not due to what he had done. No matter how outrageous his actions were, she would overlook them or not react because of their connection as part of the Alliance. Her rationality in facing him only proved that he held no place in her heart.
This realization darkened Gu Ze's previously softened expression again. Turning his head, he met Xu Hang's disapproving gaze and let out a heavy sigh.
"If we take that red path, I should be able to handle any dangers that may arise."
Deng Yinyin unusually missed the opportunity to speak with Gu Ze; instead, she thoughtfully glanced at the lost-in-thought Xu Nuan. When she noticed Xu Hang's gaze sweeping over, she quickly lowered her head, pretending nothing had happened.
The group had lingered too long at this Cliff level; most of them were eager to reach the next stage. Their progress had been relatively quick, having caught up with both the second and first batches of players, yet they were no longer satisfied with their current pace.
As they exited the cave, Xu Nuan spotted a vast expanse of forest engulfed in a landslide from a distance; all paths in that direction were blocked. The destructive power of the landslide was formidable; whether it was animals, plants, or humans, few could withstand its force.
She suddenly recalled the last time she was trapped by a mudslide at the volcano. Her heart ached, but this time it wasn't due to her own obsessions; it was because of a man she owed, a man who had also been wronged by her.
The mountain wind was still cold. Xu Nuan tightened her clothes around her, then reached up to touch her bandaged head, finding her current disheveled appearance rather amusing. Unfortunately, her mood was too poor for laughter.
What she didn't see was Gu Ze, who had fallen to the back of the group again, letting his hand holding the clothes droop helplessly.
The relationship that seemed to be maintained under the pretense of the Alliance felt more awkward than that of strangers when there was no spiritual connection.
Xu Hang had already scouted the path and led everyone straight toward the so-called Red Land.
At first, Xu Nuan thought that the Red Land would be a type of soil rich in iron and highly acidic. Such land existed in reality and posed no significant harm.
However, when she saw the ground that seemed to ooze with blood, she couldn't help but freeze in shock.
So familiar; this scene felt so familiar.
A slightly fearful voice reached her ears.
“It looks just like blood. How is this made?” Deng Yinyin asked.
Xie Huai chimed in, “It should just be a visual effect; it’s probably not harmful.”
No, it couldn’t be that simple.
Xu Nuan stumbled back a few steps in panic. The crimson ground resembled the blood-soaked land from her dreams, where two figures were calling out her name amidst the sea of blood.
Her head felt as if it might crack open from the impact, making her want to hammer it with a heavy object just to relieve the pain.
In her frantic retreat, she stepped on a larger stone and fell backward. Yet instead of reaching out to steady herself, she continued to pound her head in desperation.
Someone behind her caught her before she fell completely. Once she regained her balance, they quickly withdrew their hand, signaling that they wouldn’t overstep any boundaries.
Xu Nuan bit her lip and cast an ambiguous glance at Gu Ze, who was no longer hiding his emotions. Without saying a word, she watched as he stepped forward.
"Everyone be careful, there are aggressive animals in the Red Land. You can step on the stones over there and slowly make your way across."
Xu Nuan followed Gu Ze's instruction and looked in the direction he pointed. Indeed, on the barren Red Land, there were scattered flat stones, and they were relatively dense; if one wasn't careful, they would easily touch the red ground.
Knowing Gu Ze's uniqueness, Xu Nuan felt no concern. She had long understood that Gu Ze's advantages in this game were beyond what someone like her, who constantly faced memory issues and was repeatedly manipulated, could compare to.
There was nothing to envy because they were allies, and resources were shared.
And wasn't it precisely for this reason that she tolerated Gu Ze's overstepping behavior? If it weren't for the need to progress faster, her intolerant nature would have surely led her to give Gu Ze a good beating and cut ties with him completely.
Was it really like that?
A voice suddenly emerged from deep within her.
Xu Nuan shook her head, dismissing such thoughts. Once the voice in her mind faded away, she leisurely caught up with Xu Hang and the others.
Every few steps, they encountered a stone, requiring them to jump to continue moving forward. This reminded Xu Nuan of playing hopscotch as a child.
She could still recall those afternoons spent playing with just a few lines and a stone; such warm memories surprised her. After falling off a cliff and hitting her head, she realized her memory had become problematic. This time, it wasn't as simple as relaying what she had heard to Gu Ze and asking him to help piece together important information with his knowledge of game details to restore her complete memory.
This time, she discovered that some of her lost memories had returned.
In fact, she believed her memories were complete yet vague; there had been too many experiences in the past, many of which were insignificant. It was normal for her to feel confused about her own memories. She didn't think she had lost any memories; it was just when those memories flooded back into her mind that she had to acknowledge that reality.
So, setting aside those returning memories, Xu Nuan wondered if she was missing other memories as well.
The feeling of being unable to control her own mind frustrated her. She even doubted whether someone had tampered with her or drugged her. However, her social circle was fixed, and the people she spent time with were also constant. She was unwilling to suspect them.
As Xu Nuan pondered these matters while jumping on the stones, the injury on her head began to throb due to the movement of her body. Her still-healing body protested against working too hard, and the wound on her left hand hadn't fully healed either. She admired herself for being able to endure it all.
Indeed, with determination, one could stay in this game for a long time.
She completely forgot about Gu Ze, who remained silent at the back.
After jumping for a while, Xu Nuan heard a familiar voice.
“Ah, they’re coming! Quickly burn your clothes to get rid of them!”
It was Rao Tingxue again!
Xu Nuan looked up towards the source of the voice and saw Deng Yinyin frowning, her brows twitching as if she wanted something.
Rao Tingxue and Ning Han were just a few dozen meters away on a rock, surrounded by a group of strange creatures.
Xu Nuan took a closer look; those creatures resembled centipedes, entirely red and about the size of an adult's forearm, though there weren’t many of them.
At that moment, Gu Ze suddenly shouted towards the direction of Rao Tingxue and Ning Han.
“Don’t use fire! It’s dangerous!”
Gu Ze’s words surely made sense. Xu Nuan hurriedly glanced at Ning Han, hoping he hadn’t actually set fire to those crimson centipedes.
It was too late. She watched in horror as Ning Han threw a burning piece of clothing into the midst of the Crimson Centipedes. To her astonishment, the blood-red centipedes grew visibly larger at an alarming rate, nearly as thick and long as an adult's thigh.
At the same time, more crimson centipedes began to emerge from the Red Land surrounding Xu Nuan and the others, and there were quite a few of them.
Xu Nuan blinked, finding it hard to accept the scene before her. Before she could react, Gu Ze jumped onto the rock where she stood and instinctively picked her up, shouting at the others who were startled by this sudden turn of events.
“Head that way! There’s a stream over there; these centipedes are afraid of water!”
Crimson Centipedes are afraid of water but not fire? The designers’ thoughts were indeed strange.
Xu Nuan thought to herself, but she quickly pushed Gu Ze away, feeling uncomfortable being carried like that.
“Put me down! I can walk on my own; I’m not that weak!”
In fact, her body told her that being carried by Gu Ze was much more comfortable than forcing herself to endure her ailing condition.
But would she admit to such a thing?
Now, every time she had physical contact with Gu Ze, she couldn't help but recall that day. Whether it was her cowardice or sensitivity, or the pressure she put on herself, as a woman, it was impossible for her not to be haunted by such memories.
Even if that person was Gu Ze, whom she owed so much, she couldn't forgive him.
Moreover, that incident happened after Gu Ze confessed his feelings; it made forgiveness even more unattainable.
Did this man think of himself as some kind of animal? To take the final step right after confessing?
Xu Nuan realized she was spiraling into chaotic thoughts and quickly pushed them out of her mind. With newfound determination, she shouted softly, "Put me down!"
Gu Ze ignored her, continuing to run swiftly ahead. Xu Hang and the others were in a hurry as well, needing to stay alert for the occasional Crimson Centipede that might spring up from the ground. They had no time to pay attention to the awkwardness between the two of them!
Xu Nuan attempted to jump down herself but immediately spotted the disgusting centipedes on the ground. After a shiver ran through her, she reluctantly wrapped her arms around Gu Ze's neck to avoid falling and coming into contact with those revolting creatures.
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