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墨書 Inktalez
Tang Jingshu and Xie Huai were bound by their hands, suspended at the edge of a volcano. The searing heat rising from the crater coated their clothes and hair with mist, and their bodies were supported only by their hands and the ropes that dug painfully into their flesh. Their faces had lost all color.
The most bizarre aspect was that the ropes binding Tang Jingshu and Xie Huai appeared to hang alone in mid-air, with no connection to anything else.
The two looked utterly exhausted, barely able to hold on, while nearby, several massive red lizards watched hungrily as a group of people approached from below.
Those with good eyesight noticed the situation from dozens of meters away, and as Xu Nuan and her companions drew closer, the absence of mist allowed them to see Tang Jingshu and Xie Huai's distress more clearly.
Their path was blocked by the enormous red lizards. Deng Yinyin could no longer contain herself and called out to the two who had their eyes tightly shut.
“Tang Jingshu, wake up!”
“Hey, Xie Huai, don’t sleep!”
The rumbling sound of the mountain combined with Deng Yinyin’s slightly sharp voice was enough to rouse anyone from slumber.
Tang Jingshu and Xie Huai struggled to lift their eyelids. After recognizing who had come, they stared blankly for a moment before their chapped lips began to move.
“You… you actually came?”
Xie Huai’s eyes sparkled with immense surprise, voicing what they both felt.
“Please, save us! We know we were wrong; we really shouldn’t have made that choice!”
Xu Nuan noticed Deng Yinyin frown at Xie Huai’s weak words but couldn’t help tugging at the sleeve of the stoic Xu Hang, her face full of pleading.
Gu Ze fixed his gaze on the several poised lizards.
"I am truly sorry for making such a selfish decision, which ended up falling into the trap of the game. I am just glad that you all could come."
Tang Jingshu's tears were quickly evaporated.
Xu Nuan and the others were still a distance from the volcano's mouth, feeling the immense heat wave that seemed ready to sweep them away. They feared that if they lost their balance for even a moment, it would mean certain death.
"Save your breath until you are safe," Xu Hang said, his tone as serious as ever, his voice steady.
"Right now, conserve your strength; there is still some time before we can untie the ropes."
His stern words brought tears to Tang Jingshu and Xie Huai's eyes, and they couldn't help but murmur several 'thank yous.'
After staring at the lizards for a long while, Gu Ze spoke up.
"We need to divert these lizards before we can get close enough to untie the ropes. Look at those blisters on their backs; with such bright colors, could they be poisonous?"
The one who reacted most strongly to Gu Ze's words was Xie Huai, who should have remained silent.
"Are... are they poisonous?"
His voice trembled with unease and fear.
Xu Nuan let out a light sigh and shot a glance at Xie Huai. Xie Huai quickly turned away, no longer speaking, but his movements caused the ropes binding him to tighten even more.
"The Venomous Fire Lizard, capable of withstanding high temperatures and spitting venom, is an animal that can survive in volcanic lava."
The System's 'kind-hearted' reminder concluded with this sentence, refraining from further comments and offering no evaluation on the decision made by Xu Nuan and the others in the passage.
"Tch, they're just experimental lunatics, obsessed with studying creatures that shouldn't even exist."
Deng Yinyin was, as usual, indignant; her reactions to the System's words were always the most intense.
Xu Nuan, influenced by Deng Yinyin's words, felt a fleeting spark of inspiration in her mind but couldn't grasp it.
Brightly colored creatures are often poisonous; this statement applies to plants, animals, and even humans.
The tremors of the ground left no room for further contemplation. Xu Hang took charge and assigned tasks.
"Gu Ze, Xu Nuan, please lead those Venomous Fire Lizards away. Be careful not to get hurt. Once you've drawn them off, come back quickly to help. Deng Yinyin, you and I will stay here. Once the lizards are gone, we’ll untie the ropes. The distance they’re at is just right."
Everyone was an adult; in a crisis, they wouldn't act foolishly out of spite.
Xu Nuan and Gu Ze exchanged glances and nodded in agreement before drawing their short knives and slowly approaching the Venomous Fire Lizards.
As they gradually entered the attack range of the Venomous Fire Lizards, the lizards' initially wary gazes shifted to one of aggression and predation.
Xu Nuan could clearly see the movement of the lizards' lower jaws and the pulsating sores on their backs. Though disgusting, it was a crucial warning.
As the distance between them closed, the Venomous Fire Lizards no longer remained still; they began to lift their bodies and move forward. Once they confirmed that Xu Nuan and Gu Ze had entered a range intolerable for them, the lizards instinctively advanced.
Xu Nuan casually pulled another knife from the side of her backpack and flung it forcefully in front of one of the lizards. The lizard immediately crouched down, preparing to attack. Xu Nuan, seeing this, turned and ran, while the lizard indeed chased after her, followed closely by two others at its side.
Gu Ze did the same, successfully diverting the remaining lizards.
Xu Hang and Deng Yinyin hurried to the volcano's mouth, steadying themselves as they attempted to untie the ropes binding Tang Jingshu and Xie Huai, only to find that they couldn't even reach the ropes.
Meanwhile, Xu Nuan and Gu Ze were running around the hillside, brainstorming ways to completely deal with these lizards so they could proceed with their next actions.
As Xu Nuan ran, she had to dodge both the gas vents and the relentless pursuit of the lizards.
The rugged mountain path made the lizards' speed less intimidating; however, Xu Nuan couldn't gauge when they would spit out their venom. That would be the most critical moment.
Eliminating them before they could unleash their venom was the best strategy. Xu Nuan felt troubled, wondering how to deal with them since close combat was definitely not an option.
While running with a heavy heart, she suddenly heard Gu Ze's voice.
"Nuan, use the gas vents."
At that moment, Xu Nuan was certain she hadn't misheard Gu Ze calling her name. Yet it was not a time for questions or complaints. She looked up and squinted her eyes, spotting Gu Ze sprinting quickly on the other side, causing the lizards behind him to accelerate. As Gu Ze dashed toward a gas vent, he skillfully rolled his body to the side. The lizards behind him lacked such reflexes and charged forward, falling into the vent one after another. A few that reacted in time managed to avoid falling in but were swiftly kicked aside by Gu Ze.
In such a dire situation, being able to devise and execute such a plan left Xu Nuan once again in awe of Gu Ze's hidden abilities.
Awe aside, Xu Nuan obediently followed his lead and sped toward another gas vent. However, her ability to stabilize her body was clearly not as good as Gu Ze's. As she approached the vent without stopping in time, she stumbled forward, nearly falling in.
It was just in time that Gu Ze rushed over and grabbed her arm. They both rolled to the side, ignoring the pain from their bumps and bruises. Xu Nuan kept a close watch on the movements of the lizards, only letting out a sigh of relief once she confirmed they had all fallen in. Despite sitting on the ground in exhaustion, she extended her dirty hand to pat her chest.
“Ha ha.”
A light laugh came from beside her, and Xu Nuan didn’t need to think to know who it belonged to. Pressing her forehead where a vein throbbed, Xu Nuan's lips curled into a dangerous smile as she turned to look at her ‘savior.’
Just as Xu Nuan was about to say something to stop Gu Ze’s occasional whims, she found herself gazing deep into his eyes.
A familiar feeling washed over Xu Nuan, and she quickly lowered her head to avoid that gaze, only to see Gu Ze’s shoes slowly being corroded.
“Hurry and take off your shoes; they’ve been poisoned.”
Xu Nuan urged anxiously, causing Gu Ze to pause for a moment before leisurely glancing at his shoes.
Blinking, Gu Ze then calmly pulled out another pair of shoes from his backpack and began changing them at a leisurely pace.
Xu Nuan switched her attention between monitoring the volcano's situation and watching Gu Ze change his shoes. While internally criticizing Gu Ze for being so slow at a time like this, she also worried about Tang Jingshu and the others. The ropes were difficult to untie, and the two were suspended above the ground; ensuring their safety would require considerable effort.
Just as Xu Nuan had anticipated, when she and Gu Ze ran back, they saw Xu Hang and Deng Yinyin looking helplessly at the writhing forms of Tang Jingshu and Xie Huai.
Tang Jingshu and Xie Huai were trying to inch closer to Xu Hang and Deng Yinyin’s hands for support, but no one could reach the height of the ropes.
Furrowing her brow, Xu Nuan thought that those ropes must require some form of support. Conversely, there had to be something holding them up, but they couldn’t see it.
Can’t see it?
Xu Nuan squinted her eyes, carefully examining the knots in the ropes, her gaze gradually moving outward.
“Gu Ze, don’t you have good eyesight? Look above them; is there something reflecting light? I can’t see it clearly.”
Xu Nuan naturally expected the capable man beside her to fulfill his role.
Gu Ze chuckled lightly, not saying much, but focused intently, squinting his eyes to observe. After a while, he confirmed, “It looks like some nearly transparent steel cables. The ropes binding their hands are tied up there as well. I can estimate the height.”
“Your eyesight really is impressive,” Xu Nuan said dismissively as she quickly approached Xu Hang and the others. “So you should have a way to handle this.”
There was only one way.
“Of course.”
Gu Ze smiled confidently, his already handsome face radiating an even more dazzling charm.
Xu Nuan turned her face away, clicking her tongue a few times.
The method to rescue Tang Jingshu and the others seemed simple yet complicated.
First, Gu Ze and Xu Hang would cooperate. At a certain distance from the volcano's mouth, one would lift the other and grab hold of that nearly transparent steel cable, then pull down forcefully.
Once they lowered it to a certain distance, Xu Nuan and Deng Yinyin would take over to control the height of the cable while Xu Hang and Gu Ze ran to the edge of the volcano, each grabbing one person waiting to be rescued and slowly moving them outward. The knot of the rope would also slide down due to its smoothness. Once both individuals were completely free from the volcano's mouth, the rest of the rescue process would become much easier.
Everyone was drenched in sweat and gasping for breath after the entire ordeal.
"Thank you all. If it weren't for you, we would have been doomed," Tang Jingshu and Xie Huai kept apologizing.
Xu Nuan furrowed her brows and interrupted, "There's no time. If we don't leave now, we'll be buried in molten lava."
Her words were terrifying, but the violently shaking ground served as a warning to everyone.
The group quickly ran down the mountain, stumbling as the trembling earth made it difficult to maintain their footing. After a series of struggles, they finally reached the foot of the mountain. However, this was still not a safe distance. Exhausted, they continued to run, ignoring the rumbling and explosive sounds behind them.
Turning back could mean facing the scythe of death.
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