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墨書 Inktalez
The benefit of facial paralysis is that it makes it impossible for others to see one's true thoughts.
In response to Xu Nuan's question, Chi Xiaoming answered very calmly, looking at Xu Nuan with a gaze that suggested she was foolish.
"It's just an analysis, with certain risks. For our team, this is faster."
She felt like an idiot for asking such a foolish question.
Xu Nuan took a few deep breaths to calm herself before seriously looking directly at Chi Xiaoming, speaking slowly and deliberately.
"You all wait for us at the Supply Station. I will tell you everything. For now, allow us to leave."
Chi Xiaoming nodded, his face showing little expression, as if the previous tension had been merely an illusion among the four of them.
However, these four did not stop Xu Nuan and Gu Ze from striding away, with Xu Nuan almost dragging Gu Ze through the morning forest.
Once they were far from anyone else, Xu Nuan finally sighed in relief and walked up to Gu Ze, glaring at him.
"Roll up your sleeve!"
Gu Ze, still lost in his own world, was taken aback and confused. His bewilderment appeared as guilt in Xu Nuan's eyes. Frustrated by the oddity of the day, Xu Nuan took matters into her own hands and rolled up Gu Ze's left sleeve. Sure enough, she saw a long gash—a wound from a sharp object.
Xu Nuan became increasingly certain that this injury had occurred when Gu Ze went out at night, yet he had never mentioned what had happened during that time.
"Injured and still able to take on four opponents?"
This feeling was different from seeing her own injuries; Xu Nuan realized she was acting strangely. She couldn't stand seeing Gu Ze hurt, especially since he no longer rushed to her for comfort after getting even a small injury like he used to. This made her even more perplexed.
"Hmm?"
Gu Ze had been lost in thought when he finally followed Xu Nuan's gaze and noticed the wound on his hand. The injury had been sustained while punishing Guo Xu, much like a cornered rabbit that bites back when threatened. Despite having the upper hand at that moment, he had still been bitten by Guo Xu. However, the outcome would not change.
Xu Nuan, who had been glaring at Gu Ze, caught the cold glint in his eyes and felt a jolt of fear. She instinctively took two steps back. Gu Ze had changed, and she realized this. Yet, she hoped that he could retain his original intentions; it was only by doing so that he could escape this game.
"I got scratched during the confrontation with Xiong Qi," he said lightly.
Gu Ze's indifference did not satisfy Xu Nuan. He returned without a word after getting hurt and didn’t tend to his injury. It dawned on her that Gu Ze had changed into an identical outfit upon returning; otherwise, there should have been scratches on his sleeves. Even so, his clothes were still stained.
Was it water or blood?
Xu Nuan suddenly realized something and reached out to tug at Gu Ze's hem, startling him. What he saw was Xu Nuan’s serious expression as she rubbed against his clothing, discovering dried bloodstains on the fabric.
"The only fresh scent of blood is from your hands; aside from that, you have no other injuries," she stated abruptly, stepping back a few paces to meet Gu Ze's now deep-set gaze.
"You changed clothes, yet there’s so much blood on them. It’s clear what happened before; this much blood isn’t yours—it belongs to someone else."
She should have felt relieved that Gu Ze hadn’t been as severely injured as she feared and that the blood wasn’t his. Yet, why did her heart feel cold? Gu Ze had ultimately changed, and perhaps that was what made her feel sorrowful.
Every player would change; she had long accepted this fact. But when it happened to Gu Ze, she found it hard to accept. She had always viewed him as a special existence, and now her heart felt like it was being battered by the wind.
"When I saw Xiong Qi and Lin earlier, they weren’t injured this badly, and Chi Xiaoming and his group were safe and sound."
At that moment, Xu Nuan felt a pang of self-loathing for her rationality. It compelled her to continue analyzing the situation even though she clearly saw the pain etched on Gu Ze's face. She couldn’t hold her tongue.
"There’s only one possibility: that blood belongs to Guo Xu."
She finally understood why the powerful Guo Xu did not come forward to support Xiong Qi and Lin, allowing the two of them to suffer a crushing defeat. It wasn't that Guo Xu didn't want to appear; it was that he couldn't.
Xu Nuan suddenly felt the morning sunlight was very cold, making her shiver. It took her a while to realize that this chill came from within.
"Warm, sometimes you are just too smart, which makes you very tired."
Gu Ze smiled helplessly, stepping forward as if to pat Xu Nuan's head like before, but she dodged away. Gu Ze's expression immediately turned dangerous.
Xu Nuan looked at Gu Ze with an intensity she had never shown before, her voice so cold it sent chills down her spine, especially facing the person in front of her.
"You killed Guo Xu?"
In that instant, Gu Ze reined in all his emotions, staring blankly at Xu Nuan. She felt she should bear the weight of his expression; she needed to take responsibility for what she had said.
"I didn't. Do you believe me?"
The unfamiliar tone of Gu Ze's words made Xu Nuan's heart grow colder. Of course, she knew he might be feeling even worse than she was.
"I am a very willful person."
Xu Nuan stared directly into Gu Ze's deep eyes, which seemed unable to let any light in, speaking each word deliberately. Because she was willful, she only allowed herself to come to terms with the idea of killing and actually taking action; she would not permit Gu Ze to do such things. They would have completely different futures. Therefore, she could make mistakes, but Gu Ze could not. She could bear the consequences with her life; he could not.
See? This is just how willful she was.
The warm sunlight poured over the Forest, casting a gentle glow on everything around them, yet all the warm rays avoided the two people who were confronting each other.
In terms of stature, Gu Ze had a significant advantage, while Xu Nuan stood tall despite the pain in her back, staring directly at Gu Ze. Her silence represented her doubt. The truth was that even though Gu Ze had done so much for her, he still couldn't earn her complete trust. Trust has its levels; her trust in Gu Ze surpassed that of He Min, and her trust in He Min exceeded that of Xu Hang and others.
Suddenly, a sea breeze swept through the Forest, rustling their clothes loudly. The wind seeping through the gaps in their clothing made her feel cold all over. She stubbornly stood there, looking at Gu Ze and expressing her doubts. Between Gu Ze and Guo Xu stood her; she knew this well and that was why she doubted Gu Ze, thus hurting him in the process.
"Warm, come here."
Gu Ze's voice was cold, reflecting the anger he felt but did not show, reminiscent of Xu Nuan's tone when she had tried to distance herself from him long ago.
"No."
Xu Nuan shook her head and took two steps back, continuing to look at Gu Ze. After a moment, she spoke again.
"I have things to handle. You take the statue and go back first. If I don't return in time, meet at the highest point of the island."
With that, Xu Nuan turned to leave, completely ignoring the anger that had finally surfaced on Gu Ze's face. However, she paused after turning and added one last remark.
"If you follow me, you know what the consequences will be."
While wandering alone in the forest, Xu Nuan found herself lacking the calmness and rationality she had displayed when facing Chi Xiaoming and Gu Ze earlier.
Things were not going as she had hoped. Initially, she hadn't paid much attention to Gu Ze's state when he returned last night, but today she discovered his injuries. After confronting Chi Xiaoming and others, she found something was off during her private moment with Gu Ze.
"Fool."
Xu Nuan wasn't sure if she was scolding herself or Gu Ze. Ignoring the knife at her waist, she pulled out a short blade wrapped in cloth from her backpack. This knife had come from Qin Yaojie's corpse; she didn't know if it belonged to Qin Yaojie or Zhang Xiao. What she did know was that she would use this knife to kill Zhang Xiao. Since she could use this bloodied knife to kill Zhang Xiao, she could also use it to kill others.
Gu Ze's words had been cleverly ambiguous; he might have been telling the truth when he said he didn't kill Guo Xu, or perhaps he was testing her and had indeed killed Guo Xu.
Regardless of which scenario was true, there were corresponding solutions. If Gu Ze had killed Guo Xu, she needed to find Guo Xu's body before leaving this stage and alter her plans accordingly—first locate the Supply Station to secretly send Gu Ze away before confronting Zhang Xiao. If Gu Ze hadn't killed Guo Xu, then Guo Xu couldn't be left alive either; she needed to find the severely injured Guo Xu and finish him off. Her plans would remain unchanged; her target was still Zhang Xiao while simultaneously forcing Gu Ze to uncover the secrets of the Supply Station sooner.
Xu Nuan's hand trembled around the short knife, her face a mix of bitterness and anxiety. The lightheartedness from their earlier banter had been replaced by a suffocating feeling akin to sinking into deep water. Heartache manifested in many forms—being squeezed, cut by a blade, pricked by needles, or drowned.
She truly was fortunate; she had experienced every kind of heartache imaginable.
Calculating the time, Xu Nuan had only rested briefly yesterday afternoon. The rest of the time, she was either searching for the statue or confronting Guo Xu, Xiong Qi, and Chi Xiaoming. She longed to lie down and sleep deeply, without a care in the world, without having to scheme against anyone. Yet her legs refused to obey her, insisting on moving forward, not allowing her to stop or rest until she found the answer.
"When will this end?"
No one could answer Xu Nuan's question, not even those sitting in the monitoring room.
Suppressing her fatigue, Xu Nuan began to traverse the Forest. Even at this moment, she analyzed the areas around their Campsite based on Gu Ze's style of operation. Within that range, she left no corner unchecked. She relied on the large amount of blood that had splattered onto Gu Ze to gauge the situation; the scent of blood should be strong, and with the wind blowing just right, it should carry that nauseating smell to her.
However, Xu Nuan's calculations fell flat. Despite enduring her physical discomfort in hopes of resolving this matter today, she found nothing as she searched through the Forest.
"Impossible."
If Gu Ze had fought with Guo Xu and Guo Xu had lost so much blood, there should be some trace left behind.
Xu Nuan stubbornly clung to this thought as she continued her search. This was also the first time she set aside her usual focus on challenges. The human body has its limits, and Xu Nuan's reckless disregard for her own well-being led to her losing balance while peering over the edge of a slope. Just as she began to fall, a hand reached out in time to catch her.
"If I really killed someone, I wouldn't deserve to embrace you."
Such a bold statement, yet it stirred a desire to weep within her.
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