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墨書 Inktalez
Xu Nuan realized that each of them had begun to harbor their own thoughts. This was no longer a simple matter of disagreement; it was clear that everyone was disregarding the group for their own interests.
The mysterious task from the System was indeed formidable.
As she sighed, a sense of desolation washed over her, stemming from both Qin Yaojie and Gu Ze's attitudes. She hadn't spoken to Gu Ze in quite some time. Previously, she often found Gu Ze's chatter annoying and his clingy nature bothersome. Yet now, as Gu Ze returned to being the elegant heir of his family, exuding superiority and an innate pride while navigating the world with indifference, she felt uncomfortable all over again.
People really do have a penchant for self-sabotage.
After cursing herself a few times in her mind, Xu Nuan turned her gaze to Deng Yinyin, who had been waiting for her response. She remained silent, hoping Deng Yinyin would take the hint and back off.
Unfortunately, Deng Yinyin had never been one to pick up on subtle cues. Or perhaps she simply didn't care about anyone but herself. Suddenly, she put on an act of being close to Xu Nuan, sitting right beside her. The two were so close that their voices dropped low enough that others couldn't hear what they were saying.
Xu Nuan knew Deng Yinyin was trying to get close to her, but she was too exhausted to even shift her position, so she allowed Deng Yinyin's attempts at camaraderie to unfold. The cool moonlight cast down on them, highlighting the discord in their relationship.
"You seem quite self-aware; you've really cleared things up with Gu Ze. If you don't talk to him, he won't talk to you either. That's quite nice," Deng Yinyin said with a smug smile.
Faced with Deng Yinyin's pleased expression, Xu Nuan continued to remain silent, though a voice inside her responded to Deng Yinyin's words.
It wasn't self-awareness; it was genuine distrust towards Gu Ze. She no longer trusted anyone and knew that conflicts with Gu Ze were inevitable. What Deng Yinyin said was merely a catalyst. Besides, she wasn't foolish—after the initial panic and misplaced trust, did she not realize the complexities involved after a night of reflection?
But what did it matter? Whether she understood or not, she knew full well that the outcome wouldn't change.
Deng Yinyin didn't retreat in the face of Xu Nuan's cold demeanor and silence; in many ways, she was quite formidable.
"It seems you really liked your ex-boyfriend if you can manage this much while he's not around. I truly admire you for that. From now on, I won't oppose you anymore; we’ll be allies on the same front. We should communicate openly about anything that arises."
Hearing this, Xu Nuan shot a cold glance at Deng Yinyin, a thin smile forming on her lips. This woman was truly amusing—she could spout such grandiose words just to pry information out of her while maintaining a righteous facade. As for the claim that she still liked Qin Yaojie, Xu Nuan chose not to comment. At this point in her life, if she still harbored feelings for that man, it would truly be a joke.
"Just ask what you want directly; there's no need for beating around the bush. We all need rest," Xu Nuan said as she met Deng Yinyin's gaze head-on, as if trying to peer into her very soul.
Deng Yinyin's expression twisted for a moment before she masked her thoughts and feigned familiarity as she asked, "You don’t seem nervous at all. Is your task really that simple? Like catching a wild beast or something?"
Xu Nuan found Deng Yinyin increasingly amusing; how could she use such naive reasoning in broad daylight? Did she really think Xu Nuan had been deceived last night and would fall for it again today? Such obvious words could be seen through easily—how could Xu Nuan have believed them yesterday and be fooled again today?
"None of your business."
Xu Nuan's cold words were the truth; her mission truly had nothing to do with Deng Yinyin. Her target was not Deng Yinyin, and if it had been, she might not have found herself in such a predicament.
Deng Yinyin clearly did not catch the underlying meaning in her words. She puffed up like an agitated hen, her expression fierce, her features showing clear displeasure.
"Xu Nuan, that's a bit too much!"
Xu Nuan noticed that Deng Yinyin had raised her voice, drawing the attention of others around them. Suddenly, she felt a headache coming on and pressed her hand to her forehead in frustration. Was this woman really going to use that tactic again? Didn't she ever get tired of it?
"I was just trying to show concern because you seemed unwell, and you think I'm trying to pry? Who wants to pry into your business? If your mission really involved us, you would have acted decisively!"
As Xu Nuan expected, as soon as Deng Yinyin finished speaking, several men turned their gazes toward her. Xu Hang stood frowning in place, lost in thought. Xie Huai walked over decisively, seemingly ready to defend Deng Yinyin, while Gu Ze merely glanced at her before looking away.
Xu Nuan, who thought she could brush everything off, felt a chill in her heart at that moment. The realization that this was self-inflicted turned that chill into pain.
In fact, Deng Yinyin had used this tactic before. The first time everyone fell for it; the second time, thanks to Xu Nuan's relatively good performance, everyone remained silent and let them resolve it themselves. But this time, perhaps due to the tension of their current mission, everything had reverted back to square one. Of course, there was another reason: Xu Nuan closed her eyes briefly to hide the pain deep within from others because Gu Ze would no longer defend her as he once did.
"Please don't be a nuisance," Xu Nuan interjected before Xie Huai could speak. She stared directly at the somewhat guilty but pretending-to-be-strong Deng Yinyin. "If you want to complete your mission and get through this stage, that's your own business. Please don't make random assumptions. Otherwise, someone pushed into a corner might do something you can't accept."
Xu Nuan revealed a hint of a manic smile reminiscent of when she wanted to eliminate Rao Tingxue during the Stone Forest challenge. Deng Yinyin trembled slightly; Xie Huai glanced at Xu Nuan with fear in his eyes, his expression showing hesitation. Xu Nuan couldn't determine the cause of his hesitation but truly didn't want to say anything more; high-intensity mental work was not suitable for her.
With this overt display of dominance and intimidation, Xu Nuan gained a brief moment of silence. It wasn't long before they began preparing for dinner. Even though everyone had their own thoughts, they still needed to maintain appearances as a team.
Xu Nuan continued to be responsible for gathering firewood, but her companion had shifted from Deng Yinyin to Xie Huai.
She recalled the glance exchanged during the day and felt alarm bells ringing in her mind as she reached for the short knife at her waist, maintaining an outward appearance of calm.
The Gobi was a place filled only with sand and gravel; the only greenery was sagebrush, with an occasional poplar tree. Water sources were a luxury. This meant that finding firewood was not an easy task; sometimes animal remains and fur were also valuable fuel.
Xie Huai seemed still caught up in Xu Nuan's earlier manic smile; even while walking, he deliberately kept his distance from her, appearing timid and withdrawn.
Xu Nuan had no intention of mocking Xie Huai; everyone's temperament was shaped by their surroundings to some extent. Some people simply had stronger minds and better defenses against negative external influences.
She remained somewhat wary of Xie Huai; even the most honest and timid person has their limits and can explode one day. Who knew where his limits lay?
The temptation of clearing the challenge and the allure of a billion were incredibly powerful; she never doubted that.
It was once again the time when darkness enveloped the land. Xu Nuan bent down to gather firewood while keeping a wary eye on Xie Huai, who was not far away. Her palms had begun to sweat; in the dim light of night, her already poor vision made it difficult to find firewood. Coupled with the occasional throbbing pain in her head, she found it hard to focus on keeping an eye on Xie Huai.
Being cautious of her companion was a cruel thought. She longed to relax for a moment, but Rationality would not allow it. Rationality was the reason she had managed to come this far and had not collapsed despite everything that had happened.
However, when her body reached its limits, even Rationality could do little to intervene.
After struggling to find some firewood, Xu Nuan simply sat down on the ground. They were currently at a higher elevation, with a hillside nearby covered in gravel and towering Wind Pillar Stones. Under the sparse moonlight, the scene appeared cold and sharp, instilling a sense of dread.
Xu Nuan was openly slacking off, but given Xie Huai's nature, he would not let this slide. He remained busy about five or six meters away from her.
Without realizing it, Xu Nuan's gaze shifted from the indistinct scenery in the distance to the closer surroundings, where Xie Huai's figure came into view. She suddenly realized that his maintaining of distance might not be due to fear of her earlier threatening smile; rather, he was also wary of her, believing that she might very well be his target.
Without knowing each other's missions, they remained on guard against one another. While exhausting their mental and physical strength, they were also depleting each other's trust—this was the true purpose of their mission.
She became aware of another point: in the remaining dozens of Survival Games ahead, there might occasionally be missions like this one—single-player clearances. In such cases, the only person one could trust in this game would be oneself.
With that thought in mind, Xu Nuan smiled again. This realization did not affect her much; after regaining her memories, she had no intention of trusting anyone other than herself. Missions like this would only turn more Players into cold-hearted individuals like her.
As night deepened further, clouds drifted in front of the moon, causing the light that fell upon the earth to grow increasingly faint. Xu Nuan reluctantly turned on her flashlight and began shining it around randomly while planning to gather more firewood before returning to camp. However, as she shone the light around, she discovered something extraordinary lurking not far from her.
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