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墨書 Inktalez
They had strength but lacked resolve, and that was their downfall.
Xu Nuan felt an overwhelming sense of unwillingness at that moment. She did not want to give up the statue she had fought so hard to protect, even risking her life for it. Yet at the same time, she did not want to sacrifice the lives of her companions.
From the expressionless Lin and the smug eyes of Xiong Qi, she reached a conclusion: Xiong Qi was serious. They had made up their minds to kill in this game. If she did not hand over the statue, He Min would die, and Deng Yinyin would die.
She hated moments like this the most. Xu Nuan clenched her fists tightly and unconsciously took a step forward. Lin, who had been silently observing her, quickly stepped back with He Min. He Min was not as quick as Lin, and the short knife sank in a little deeper.
Red blood, white neck.
Xu Nuan gritted her teeth and raised her hand, stepping back.
"I have no other intentions."
She could imagine the expressions of Gu Ze and Xu Hang behind her without turning around; no one could accept such a drastic turn from heaven to hell.
But reality stood before them, leaving no room for denial.
Xu Nuan had only taken a few seconds to think, while Xu Hang and Gu Ze remained silent for several seconds. The smug Xiong Qi interrupted their contemplation.
"There’s no time for you to think. One minute. If you don’t hand over the statue in one minute, I will kill one person."
Xiong Qi's smile was painfully bright, his thick lips constantly moving, making sounds that made one want to grab his neck and crush his bones.
"Of course, if you decide to abandon your companions for the sake of clearing the challenge at this moment, we won’t say anything. After all, it’s all about exchanging lives; it doesn’t make a difference."
Throughout this process, He Min remained silent and did not call for help. This was the He Min Xu Nuan knew well, and she understood that He Min knew her so well.
"Captain."
This was the first time Xu Nuan addressed Xu Hang in such a manner. Xu Hang was recognized as their captain by all of them, but no one usually referred to him like that. The weight of this title was not light; rather, it felt heavy enough to make her arm holding the backpack ache.
"We agree to the exchange."
A few seconds after Xu Nuan's words, Xu Hang's voice rang out. Xu Nuan closed her eyes, suppressing the anger in her gaze; at this moment, anger would not help them.
Lin, who had been holding He Min with a tense expression, couldn't help but smile at this statement. Xiong Qi stood up readily, lifting his chin towards Xu Hang.
"You really are quite considerate, valuing the bond between companions so much."
The tone was dripping with sarcasm.
"Throw it over. As long as we get this and walk out two hundred meters, we'll release your companion."
Upon hearing this, Xu Nuan immediately retorted.
"That's unfair. You should release him when we hand over the statue. Since you are willing to kill, your credibility is highly questionable."
Xu Nuan trusted no one.
"Xu Nuan."
Xu Hang walked up behind her and patted her shoulder.
Xu Nuan managed to rein in some of her hostility, narrowing her eyes at Lin He and Xiong Qi. She didn't pay much attention to He Min, who was being held hostage; instead, it was Gu Ze standing behind him who noticed He Min's calm demeanor in the face of danger.
Calm under pressure—this was a phrase laden with meaning.
"Let's each take a step back—one hundred meters."
Xu Hang, who had a significant height advantage, looked down at Xiong Qi and Lin.
"We just stand here, and a hundred meters is our visible range. You left her there."
Xu Nuan clenched her fists tightly, the sound of her knuckles cracking echoing in the air. She had never imagined she would feel so powerless. Even when she had faced Zhang Xiao alone, she could think of a way out. But now, with companions by her side, she felt completely at their mercy. Her pent-up rage surged forth, reminiscent of the time she had confronted Guo Xu and contemplated killing him.
Such murderous intent surprised Lin He and Xiong Qi, who were still deep in thought. Even He Min, who had remained unusually calm despite being taken hostage, looked up at her.
The resolve to kill in order to survive in this game was not something only they possessed!
"Nuan."
This time, it was Gu Ze who stopped Xu Nuan's overwhelming urge to attack Lin and the others, gently prying her clenched hands apart.
Reluctant but with no other choice, she believed that if Deng Yinyin and Xie Huai were awake, they would feel just as frustrated as she did. Success was within reach—damn it!
Perhaps startled by Xu Nuan's murderous aura, Xiong Qi surprisingly agreed to Xu Hang's suggestion. However, Xu Nuan worried that Forest might be hiding an unseen Guo Xu. Even if she guessed that Xu Hang and Gu Ze were trying to make tracking easier, she couldn't guarantee that Guo Xu hadn't set other traps.
Nothing seemed right; this situation was infuriating!
Xu Hang tossed three statues at Xiong Qi's feet and coldly watched as Xiong Qi eagerly stuffed them into his own collection before nodding at Lin.
The two of them took He Min into the woods while Xiong Qi anxiously watched them, fearing they might suddenly charge at him. But upon reflection, they had already handed over the crucial items for passing the game; why would they take risks while holding a hostage?
Everyone has weaknesses, and Xu Nuan desperately hoped she didn't have any.
Before Xiong Qi and the others reached a hundred meters, Xu Hang had already crouched down to check on Deng Yinyin and Xie Huai's injuries, letting out a sigh of relief.
"They were hit with some muscle relaxant; they'll be fine in a bit."
Though he said this, Xu Hang's expression was far from pleasant. No one was satisfied with this outcome.
In the midst of their conversation, Lin Xiongqi stopped with He Min. In the night, Xu Nuan squinted her eyes and couldn't see what Xiong Qi and the others were doing; she suddenly noticed that He Min had tilted and fallen to the ground, while Lin He and Xiong Qi quickly ran in another direction.
Xu Nuan didn't know where her burst of energy came from, but she dashed forward. Gu Ze beside her didn't hesitate either, moving much faster than Xu Nuan. He passed by the fallen He Min without pausing, chasing after Lin He and Xiong Qi, who had vanished into the forest.
She only glanced at Gu Ze's retreating figure before stopping in front of He Min, struggling to help the unconscious He Min, who had also been injected with Muscle Relaxant, toward the location where Xu Hang was. Once she and Xu Hang managed to move the three unconscious individuals, she finally looked up at Xu Hang, hesitating to speak.
Xu Hang guessed what she wanted and nodded expressionlessly, glancing at the three people half-lying beside the sleeping bag.
"You should go after them. Although I regret leaving the statue behind, I hope you and Ze won't take any risks."
In that moment, Xu Nuan truly felt Xu Hang's charm as a leader and realized how fortunate it was to be part of this team. How could she allow this team to fail at this stage? A good team should bravely move forward in this game, shouldn't they?
She was ready to embrace death if necessary, willing to do whatever it took for the team.
"I understand."
Xu Nuan stood up hastily. Before running out, she paused and whispered two words.
"Thank you."
Thank you to Xu Hang for making a decision that made her happy as a leader; even though there was reluctance in her heart, it was something that could be salvaged.
Xu Nuan had always thought she was afraid of the night—not because of the darkness itself but because of the dangers lurking within it. This was her first time daring to navigate through the Forest under the faint moonlight. She maneuvered around large Olive Trees, bypassed resilient Lemon Trees, and skirted those white houses whose purpose she did not know. For the first time, she could clearly discern directions in the dark and search for Gu Ze's traces, looking for those bastards.
It wasn't true that she wasn't afraid; however, her determination to reclaim what belonged to them was genuine. For that reason, she was willing to do anything.
Xu Nuan continued searching for Gu Ze and his companions in the Forest, worried about potential ambushes from Guo Xu lurking in the shadows. She feared for Gu Ze, who had gone ahead, and worried that Xiong Qi and Lin had run too far away.
Whenever she lost her sense of direction, she would stop in the darkness, hold her breath, and listen intently to the sounds around her. Upon detecting any faint noise from a particular direction, she would choose that path and rush forward. It proved effective; after an unknown distance of pursuit, she finally spotted Gu Ze's figure in the distance but did not see the other two. As her heart sank, she still pushed herself to run faster.
As she approached Gu Ze, she finally understood why he had stopped in his tracks.
There was a saying that perfectly described the scene before her: the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.
Lin He and Xiong Qi, who had resorted to despicable means to steal the three statues their team had worked hard to obtain, did not anticipate that Chi Xiaoming, Yu Yu, and the others had already sensed their intentions and lay in ambush behind them, setting a trap in advance.
Now, the scene was this: between Xu Nuan and Gu Ze stood Chi Xiaoming, Yu Yu, Zhang Hui, and Fan Beibei, separated by a pile of chaotic fallen trees. Lin He lay trapped beneath those trees—some thick, some slender—unconscious with traces of blood beneath him. Xiong Qi was pinned down by two sturdy trees on his back and legs; his hands were free, and he was struggling to push the trees off while calling for help.
"Please, pull me up! You've already taken the statues!"
"Help me! I beg you, save me!"
Undoubtedly, this trap had been set by Yu Yu and her group as they casually rummaged through Xiong Qi's backpack. This meant that Yu Yu's team had already secured six statues.
As Gu Ze glared coldly at Chi Xiaoming, who remained expressionless on the other side, Xiong Qi's cries continued to pierce the air. This time, however, Xu Nuan felt no impulse to help them as she had when rescuing Rao Tingxue before.
If one was truly prepared to kill, then one must also be ready to be killed and abandoned at any moment.
Originally, the System's mission for this level stipulated that only two teams could leave alive. Helping those two would mean creating rivals for themselves, and they were already at a dead end.
When Xu Nuan realized she could remain completely indifferent to Xiong Qi and Lin He trapped under the trees, she understood that this game had once again achieved its purpose.
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