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墨書 Inktalez
"It's just that we are directly passing through the five gates; it doesn't mean we're being sent out of the game. This time, it must be real."
Xu Nuan felt a bit helpless as she noticed Deng Yinyin's unwavering conviction, her gaze fixed on Xu Nuan.
"I think so too. Besides, everyone is already exhausted from navigating through the fog. Finding the Royal Lotus shouldn't be too difficult; it's our reward for defeating the Green Anaconda. I believe everyone should accept this."
As Xu Nuan listened to Xie Huai's words, she noticed him constantly looking at Gu Ze, his expression mixed with frustration.
This made Xu Nuan even more curious about what they had encountered in the fog that would lead the usually reticent Xie Huai to insist on his viewpoint, while Deng Yinyin, who typically followed Xu Hang, also displayed an unwavering attitude.
Curiosity aside, Xu Nuan expressed her own thoughts, "We encountered the Hidden Level less than three days after entering this stage, which is suspicious in itself. Moreover, we don't know the habits of the Royal Lotus or the potential dangers surrounding it. The success rate of finding the Royal Lotus is too low; when you calculate it all out, it's not worth taking such a risk."
However, as soon as Xu Nuan finished speaking, the System began to counter her argument.
"The Hidden Level is a two-way choice. If you choose to search for the Royal Lotus, we will provide information about its habits and the path to find it. Additionally, all flora and fauna living near the beautiful Royal Lotus are similar to it, so there's no need to worry about that. However, please note that once you choose to only search for the Royal Lotus, there will be no turning back. If you fail to find it, you will remain trapped in this Survival Game indefinitely. Please choose wisely."
Xu Nuan felt that this statement was clearly intentional but was enough to sway Deng Yinyin.
She raised an eyebrow, her tone immediately becoming more assertive.
"With gain comes loss. Since the System has reached this point, then this Hidden Level must be real. Furthermore, during our Beautiful River stage, didn't we discover the Hidden Level on the second day of the game thanks to that poor sacrificed fellow's hint? This time isn't too early either; since we believed in the Hidden Level last time, we should certainly believe in it this time."
Deng Yinyin seemed to revel in her argument or perhaps enjoyed seeing Xu Nuan's discomfort.
"You can't just trust it because it was your favorite person's friend's suggestion; instead, you should trust the System that has always been giving us hints. Or are you even more timid than Xie Huai? He went through hell during that volcanic incident and is willing to believe in the Hidden Level again, yet you're not even as brave as he is!"
Deng Yinyin began to mock her.
Xu Nuan squinted her eyes, first glancing at the embarrassed Xu Hang, then turning to Deng Yinyin, her tone not very pleasant.
"Do you remember my saying that things should not be repeated more than three times, or do you need pain to remind you?"
Seeing Deng Yinyin's face turn pale, Xu Nuan looked at Xie Huai again. "It seems that the pain of past lessons is so easily forgotten after such a short time?"
However, Xie Huai's face also turned white as he glared at Xu Nuan alongside Deng Yinyin.
Calmly, Gu Ze slowly spoke up.
"If the team cannot work together, what is the point of having a team? We established the rules from the beginning. If the captain cannot make a decision directly, we choose 'The Minority Obeys the Majority.' I choose to proceed step by step; what about you?"
His seemingly gentle voice carried a sting that made some people's expressions worsen.
Deng Yinyin and Xie Huai stood one in front of the other.
"Hidden Level."
Xu Nuan crossed her arms and replied leisurely, "Step by step."
In the end, only Captain Xu Hang had yet to make a decision.
It was quite ironic; clearly, it was the captain's inability to decide that led to 'The Minority Obeys the Majority,' yet after going in circles, the final decision-making power returned to Xu Hang's hands.
In fact, before 'The Minority Obeys the Majority' was even mentioned, Xu Hang had already expressed his choice for a step-by-step approach, but he was quickly drowned out by Deng Yinyin's loud voice.
So when the decision-making power returned to Xu Hang, both Deng Yinyin and Xie Huai wore displeased expressions.
At that moment, Deng Yinyin suddenly grabbed Xu Hang's hand, her tone both proud and spoiled.
"Brother-in-law, you promised my sister to take care of me. My choice isn't unreasonable, right? Can't you just go along with it?"
Xu Nuan felt a chill run down her spine and was surprised to see Xu Hang nodding.
"Then let's choose Hidden Level."
Accompanying Deng Yinyin's excited shout was the System's cold announcement: "Hidden Level officially activated."
Xu Nuan rubbed her forehead, astonished as she looked at Xu Hang. Was the magic of calling him "brother-in-law" really that powerful?
However, since he had agreed to The Minority Obeys the Majority, she wouldn't go back on her word. She obediently stood in place, listening to the System explain the habits of Royal Lotus and the direction they needed to take in this level.
Just as she was about to ask about the beasts surrounding Royal Lotus, the System fell silent.
Then Xu Nuan caught a glimpse of Deng Yinyin's provocative and triumphant gaze before she and Xie Huai dashed to the front of the group, their backs straight and proud.
Xu Nuan felt a headache coming on. Why did it seem like her team had returned to square one? This was not a good sign. Once they entered this level, everyone’s personalities had somewhat amplified, and they easily became irritable. Those negative emotions were incredibly fragile, like delicate dolls.
Habitually falling to the back of the group, Xu Nuan noticed Xu Hang apologizing to Gu Ze beside him, his usually stern face softening.
This was a different change; she felt that Xu Hang had become more warm-hearted and human. In the past, he wouldn’t have been swayed by Deng Yinyin’s lighthearted words.
Gu Ze’s voice remained steady.
"The established rules must be followed; otherwise, everything will fall apart. More importantly, what did you see in the fog? Was it Lan Ling?"
Xu Hang nodded, offering no further explanation. He patted Gu Ze on the shoulder and quickly moved ahead to lead the group, casually teasing the excited Deng Yinyin and Xie Huai along the way.
Once Xu Hang had left, Xu Nuan hurried a few steps to walk alongside Gu Ze and casually asked, "Is Lan Ling his girlfriend?"
"Yeah," Gu Ze replied, extending his hand toward Xu Nuan. "Lan Ling is also Deng Yinyin's cousin; I heard they have a good relationship."
"I see," Xu Nuan said thoughtfully, but she didn't understand why Gu Ze was reaching out. Not wanting to ask directly, she simply gestured with her eyes.
Gu Ze sighed in exasperation. "You're injured, and you still want to carry such a heavy backpack?"
Xu Nuan shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm used to this weight. If I don't carry it, I feel too light when walking, and that makes me uncomfortable."
"That's true," Gu Ze replied, always eager to poke fun at Xu Nuan's logic while trying to charm her.
"No wonder you're so short; it's because you're being weighed down!"
Xu Nuan's forehead twitched with irritation. "I'm one hundred sixty-three centimeters tall; that's a normal height!"
The word "normal" was emphasized heavily.
"Tsk tsk, I'm one hundred eighty centimeters," Gu Ze tossed out his height lightly.
"Hmph," Xu Nuan retorted, displeased. "Your height has nothing to do with me. Besides, I've already stopped growing; I'm not short because of being weighed down."
Xu Nuan was quite concerned about this matter.
Gu Ze chuckled a couple of times before responding.
"I think my height is enough to handle two backpacks."
"No, there’s no necessary connection between height and strength."
Xu Nuan was at odds with Gu Ze.
"Alright, I'll try another approach," Gu Ze said. Helping someone carry a bag shouldn't feel so burdensome, yet he appeared to be enjoying himself.
"You’re injured. If you encounter a beast attack, you might not be able to run fast or could get hurt again, and then you might not be able to take care of your backpack, which could lead to it getting lost. But Tang Jingshu's diary is in that backpack."
Xu Nuan fell silent, convinced by Gu Ze's quick words. However, her expression as she took off the backpack and handed it over was quite reluctant, giving Gu Ze the illusion that he had bullied her.
What Gu Ze didn’t know was that Xu Nuan willingly submitted; she would never entrust her important backpack in the game to someone she didn’t trust.
Aside from the unavoidable factors, Gu Ze was the first person Xu Nuan had chosen to trust.
Perhaps it had something to do with Zhang Xiao; now that the danger had passed, even though she was injured, Xu Nuan felt good. Moreover, discovering that Gu Ze was one of the people Zhang Xiao couldn’t harm piqued her curiosity. Additionally, she shared a secret about Zhang Xiao with Gu Ze.
All these factors combined led Xu Nuan’s trust in Gu Ze and her fondness for him as a friend to rise steadily.
If Gu Ze knew this, he would be incredibly frustrated and lament how difficult it was for Xu Nuan's fondness for him to increase.
Aside from their back-and-forth banter along the way, it was Deng Yinyin, who deliberately slowed down to flaunt herself in front of Xu Nuan, that troubled her the most.
"Hmph, I choose the Hidden Level. Look, we haven't encountered any dangers along the way."
Xu Nuan walked straight ahead, her expression serious. Considering that Xu Hang had saved her, she would let it slide with Xu Hang's future sister-in-law.
Deng Yinyin was relentless.
"See? We're almost at the location indicated by the System. If we calculate it, we've only spent half the time. Once we get the Royal Lotus, we can directly bypass five levels, saving us over a month! My choice was indeed correct."
Xu Nuan's face remained expressionless as she gritted her teeth. She had always been skeptical of the System's words, or rather, she selectively chose to trust them. Hadn't they been played around enough times already?
Moreover, it was too coincidental that they encountered the Hidden Level right after Zhang Xiao left. Was this System deliberately showcasing the uniqueness of the Third Batch of Players when Zhang Xiao wasn't around?
Frustrated but forced to suppress her emotions, Xu Nuan's mind was filled with various imaginations just to avoid Deng Yinyin's loud chatter.
When she looked towards Gu Ze for help, he merely chuckled and subtly distanced himself, still carrying her bag.
Damn!
Xu Nuan felt like cursing, while Deng Yinyin continued to ramble on. Finally, with her mind going blank, Xu Nuan turned directly to Deng Yinyin.
"Go bother Gu Ze; you'll enjoy that more."
A deadly strike!
Deng Yinyin froze, a blush instantly appearing on her face.
Not far away, Gu Ze also froze, his expression one of reproach towards Xu Nuan for her reckless behavior.
As the three of them found themselves in a stalemate, Xu Hang finally spoke up.
"Look, ahead is the Royal Lotus."
The others quickly retracted their glaring stares and turned to look in unison.
The so-called Royal Lotus was a Floating Leaf Herbaceous Plant, similar to a Water Lily, lying flat on the River Surface.
However, the Royal Lotus they were seeing this time was a bit special.
On the slightly murky River Surface lay a Royal Lotus, its leaves measuring an estimated three meters in diameter, with a golden lotus flower resting on top. The flower's calyx was covered in thorns, making it both beautiful and dangerous.
Xu Nuan suddenly recalled what the System had mentioned: the animals living near the Royal Lotus were just as perilous as the plant itself.
Dangerous?
Xu Nuan noticed the water around the Royal Lotus rippling, as if something was moving beneath the surface.
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