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墨書 Inktalez
Upon seeing the request, Xu Nuan and Gu Ze exchanged a glance. Even in the dim light, they could see the difficulty and anger reflected in each other's eyes.
After a flash of light, the electronic screen before them vanished, replaced once again by a sunlit forest. The dappled light filtering through the leaves danced joyfully, tirelessly celebrating on its own.
"Let's look for other Hidden Levels," Xu Nuan said softly after a long pause.
Gu Ze nodded in agreement, choosing not to voice any further opinions. They continued their search, both experienced enough to take out red ribbons and tie them around the nearby trees. Such conspicuous markers would surely be helpful later on.
The sun kept moving, its rays unstoppable, and their search yielded no progress.
Xu Nuan wiped away the beads of sweat rolling down her face, puzzled by how much hotter it was today compared to yesterday. The sunlight felt more intense, clinging to her clothes uncomfortably. Just as she thought this, she suddenly felt a coolness as something blocked the sun's rays.
Looking up, she saw a large leaf—somewhat resembling a banana leaf—but the vein patterns and branches indicated that it was not a banana plant. Following the branch upward, she saw a slender, fair hand, and then her gaze landed on Gu Ze's gentle smile.
Xu Nuan felt dazed; this scene seemed oddly familiar, as if she had experienced something similar before. Memories that were often blurred occasionally resurfaced to confront her.
Taking the leaf from him, Xu Nuan murmured a soft "thank you" before continuing her search for other Hidden Levels.
Why did she feel a bit guilty? Turning her face slightly, Xu Nuan knew Gu Ze couldn't see her expression. Her confusion became more apparent; indeed, forgetting such an impressive alumnus felt somewhat unethical. However, since they had little interaction in college and had never formally met, it was normal to forget someone three years after graduation. Xu Nuan reassured herself with these thoughts.
For most of their time searching together, they maintained silence—one without anything to say and the other struggling to find an appropriate topic.
Rather than awkwardness, it felt more like estrangement; one drifted aimlessly while the other tried hard to change the dynamic.
As the heat of the sun gradually faded away, Xu Nuan realized evening was approaching. The Hidden Level they had found was so perplexing that there was no clear choice. Just thinking about what kind of entanglement awaited her upon returning made Xu Nuan feel at odds with herself.
Gu Ze timely resolved the knot forming in her mind.
"Let's head back first; perhaps the others have found a more suitable Hidden Level."
This statement was mostly comforting, but Gu Ze didn't believe that the game would let them off so easily. Searching for the Survival Game only required patience and attention to detail, which posed no significant threat. Therefore, they still had a backup plan for this round.
Xu Nuan also understood the implication of those words. She let out a light sigh, forcing her face to relax as they made their way to the designated meeting point.
When they arrived, the other three were already back, their expressions varied. A bad premonition settled in Xu Nuan's heart.
"We found a Hidden Level that requires two people to clear it. What about you?"
It was Xu Hang who spoke up. His expression was relatively calm; after all, he could endure another night.
Xu Nuan didn't respond but instead looked at Zhao Xi, whose gentle demeanor was well-known to her. She had heard from Qin Yaojie that Zhao Xi was an exceptionally good-natured person, and it was rare to find someone so talented in design who had grown up being adored yet remained so kind-hearted.
"We also found one, but it requires leaving one person behind while the others can clear it together."
A silence fell over them as they faced the choice of leaving one person or three behind. None of them knew the danger posed by that mysterious blue creature from the previous night; it was clear that leaving just one person behind was not an option.
As they stood in confrontation, the sun began to set.
Xie Huai spoke up hesitantly.
"How about we send two people first?"
At his suggestion, all eyes turned to him. Xie Huai quickly added an explanation.
"I don't mean anything else; leaving so many people here would only make them targets for the water ghost. It would be better to clear it with two people first. This won't affect our search for other Hidden Levels and won't overly weaken our numbers. I truly have no other intentions."
After Xie Huai finished explaining, his face flushed and he began to breathe heavily.
Xu Nuan felt a stir of emotions; she understood Xie Huai's desire to leave first. However, if they could leave one spot for Zhao Xi to also depart and find an antidote, she would agree with Xie Huai's idea.
But Xu Hang's words made her abandon that thought.
Xu Hang pondered for a moment, then looked up at Gu Ze before slowly speaking.
"This proposal is acceptable. Xu Nuan, you and Xie Huai should leave first."
Xu Hang's dark eyes fixed intently on Xu Nuan, his tone leaving no room for argument.
"It’s not convenient to leave just one girl here. Xie Huai has always had a weak constitution. You two should leave tonight, and we will find another Hidden Level tomorrow to meet up with you."
"No."
Without a second thought, Xu Nuan rejected him. "Let Zhao Xi leave with Xie Huai; I can stay until tomorrow."
The light in Xu Nuan's hazel eyes flickered with anger. She was not an innocent girl; if she left now while the remaining Hidden Levels were all about 'one person stays while others leave' or 'two people leave,' there was no doubt that Zhao Xi would be the one left behind.
Xu Nuan understood that her thoughts might be overly cautious, but she had to be wary. Among the third batch of players, the only one she could barely trust was Gu Ze.
She had never liked her instincts.
"You are too headstrong."
Xu Hang's expression remained impassive as he spoke, his voice calm and steady, his gaze still fixed on Xu Nuan. This reminded her of the many times they had faced off like this before. Despite both being reticent, whenever they spoke, they would inevitably clash—an oddity in itself.
Xie Huai dared not interject, fearing that if he did, he would be thrust into the spotlight to make decisions. He simply wanted to live a stable life.
Before Gu Ze could intervene in the argument brewing between the two, Zhao Xi spoke up.
"Nuan, you should leave first. It's not appropriate for a girl to stay here with us men."
This remark drew Gu Ze's attention, and he looked at Zhao Xi with curiosity but said nothing.
Xu Nuan, somewhat displeased, withdrew her gaze. Upon seeing the disapproval in Zhao Xi's eyes, she retracted her earlier thought of asking him to leave. After all, she was part of this temporary team, while Zhao Xi was a stranger to them.
It was a precarious situation, and Xu Nuan felt even more determined to stay. She shot a glare at Xu Hang before turning to Gu Ze.
"You should leave first."
Gu Ze was momentarily taken aback but then broke into a smile. He walked over to Xie Huai's side and placed a hand on his shoulder with slight pressure, maintaining his usual demeanor.
"Why is everyone so tense? We have ways to deal with the water ghosts. Staying another night isn't a big deal; tomorrow there will be better Hidden Levels available. Why don't we sort out dinner first?"
While Gu Ze exerted pressure with his hand, his gaze was fixed on Xu Hang.
Xu Hang offered Gu Ze a helpless smile before turning back to Xu Nuan with an expressionless glance and then headed toward his backpack to prepare dinner.
Xu Nuan also calmed her previously angry expression and turned to focus on her own tasks. Meanwhile, Zhao Xi, sitting in his wheelchair, exchanged a meaningful look with Gu Ze, while poor Xie Huai dared not breathe too loudly.
As night fell, the water ghosts came swarming as usual, and the shallow pit continued to release blue creatures. That night, everyone finally understood the power of these beings.
"Cough cough." Xu Nuan coughed heavily several times, pulling out a handkerchief to cover her mouth and nose. Her eyes were fixed on the intertwining blue creatures above her head, struggling against the rising nausea in her stomach.
They never expected that such things would pollute the air, making it difficult for everyone to breathe and stimulating those water ghosts to gnaw even harder at the tree trunks, dragging the remaining people into the river as sacrifices.
Xu Nuan scanned the surroundings. Aside from Zhao Xi, the other three had expressions that clearly indicated they understood they needed to leave.
They could barely manage the issues of food and water, but this polluted air was something they all wanted to avoid.
Xu Nuan closed her eyes, trying not to let the unease in her heart grow.
As mentioned before, Xu Nuan hated her intuition. Another morning arrived, and they gave up on catching up on sleep, tirelessly searching for Hidden Levels. They had nearly turned the vast forest upside down and found quite a few Hidden Levels, but these Hidden Levels only came in two types.
Leave one person behind or have two people team up to leave.
And there were five of them; no matter which Survival Game they chose, one person would be left behind.
When Xu Nuan noticed that all the men across from her had adopted serious expressions, she glanced anxiously at Zhao Xi. She sensed that he might be the one to be sacrificed; it was yet another instinct she had.
Xu Nuan realized her lips were dry, unsure of what to say to salvage the current situation. She didn’t want to be left behind; she still wanted to clear challenges. She also didn’t want Zhao Xi to be left behind—he was a friend of Qin Yaojie. Moreover, she couldn’t force any of the three people across from her to stay behind, whether due to psychological reluctance or because her own strength couldn’t measure up against them.
Clearly, the three people across from her understood Xu Nuan's thoughts as well. After all, over the past few days, they had all witnessed Xu Nuan's fervor towards Zhao Xi. Someone who could bring out a hint of softness in the otherwise cold and distant Xu Nuan would not be easily abandoned by her.
What a case of love for what one cherishes.
As everyone fell into an awkward silence, Zhao Xi took the initiative to speak up.
"You four should go. You are a team after all, and you must continue being one in the future. I will continue searching for a way to clear challenges on my own. Perhaps someday in the future, I will find myself ahead of you in a Survival Game."
Zhao Xi attempted to lighten the mood but failed.
Is there really such a great and selfless person?
Several people chose to remain silent, while Xu Nuan spoke in a changed tone.
"What are you saying? Do you want me to apologize when I see him? Sorry, I left you behind to clear the level, leaving you to fend for yourself?"
Tears welled up in Xu Nuan's eyes, causing Xu Hang to retract his harsh words.
Gu Ze wanted to step forward but was stopped by Xu Hang.
Because he had no right.
"Nuan, I'm very happy," Zhao Xi said, looking intently at Xu Nuan, though the smile on his lips remained unchanged.
"But I need to tell you something."
"Don't!" Xu Nuan suddenly took a few steps back, warily watching Zhao Xi. Her intuition told her she wouldn't want to know what was coming next, but Zhao Xi spoke anyway.
"In fact, my leg has already necrosed. Even if I detoxify, it won't get better; I've become disabled. And there are still dozens of Survival Games left. Even if I manage to clear the levels, I won't be happy. Moreover, the toxins in my body have spread to my internal organs; I will soon become a water ghost."
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