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墨書 Inktalez
The sound of footsteps echoed, resembling human steps yet somehow not quite human.
Xu Nuan felt a sense of uncertainty. After spending so long in the cave, they had not encountered any large beasts capable of making such sounds. The largest things they had seen were the bodies submerged in the Dark Water Pool.
Her pupils constricted suddenly, and her heart trembled. Xu Nuan instinctively glanced at Gu Ze, noticing a flicker of worry in his eyes as if he too was recalling something.
"Shouldn't we leave quickly?"
Thinking of the scenes she had seen in her dreams, Xu Nuan casually stuffed her rations into her bag and stood up. She was close to one of the forks in the path; if she wanted to leave, she could turn and flee in an instant.
Gu Ze said nothing, silently gathering his belongings as he prepared to depart. The hollow footsteps grew closer, and the nauseating scent wafting into the cave made her stomach churn. The glow of the Luminous Pearl began to flicker strangely, intensifying Xu Nuan's fear.
Despite this, both of them remained in place, waiting for the others. Their expressions showed a hint of urgency, but they did not leave immediately.
Xu Hang finally realized what was happening and turned sharply to Deng Yinyin and Xie Huai, who were still dazed.
"Pack your things and hurry up!"
"Huh? I haven't finished eating yet," Deng Yinyin pouted in dissatisfaction.
"Listen!"
Xu Hang's tone was urgent, his face darkened. Immediately, Deng Yinyin complied and began to pack her things. She picked up the Luminous Pearl again, but as its light flickered once more, she was startled and let it slip from her grasp. The Luminous Pearl rolled across the ground.
After rolling a few times, its color changed to a bloody hue, transforming the cave into a sea of crimson. The atmosphere became even more sinister as the footsteps outside quickened, seemingly drawn by the Luminous Pearl's glow.
"There's no time, hurry up!"
Xu Nuan frowned as she watched Deng Yinyin still picking at the Luminous Pearl. Just as her words fell, a horde of corpses entered the cave.
They could no longer be described as corpses; they should be called walking Zombies.
Xu Nuan was certain that these Zombies were the same ones from the Dark Water Pool. Their clothes were still dripping water, and the ground was soaked with dark stains, resembling dried blood.
These Zombies had their pupils dilated, pale faces, and mouths stretched into wide grins. Their hands moved with unsettling agility, not stiffly outstretched but flailing as if grasping at something.
The entrance to the cave was not large. Aside from a few that had already entered, the other Zombies were crammed at the doorway, yet each one wore a bizarre smile that was utterly unsettling.
It was a living tableau of Zombies, and the blood-red ambiance only enhanced their grotesque performance.
Xu Nuan felt goosebumps rise on her skin and jumped directly to Gu Ze's side.
"I've dreamed of this scene before, but there was no solution in my dream. Damn it!"
Her voice was filled with urgency and fear; these abominations should not exist in this world and ought to be eradicated.
Therefore, Qin Yaojie could not possibly be the Designer; he could never have created such things, absolutely not.
"It’s fine, we just need to avoid them."
Gu Ze grabbed Xu Nuan's sleeve and pushed her toward the cave's entrance. "You and Deng Yinyin go first; we'll follow behind."
Deng Yinyin was still in a daze, carrying her backpack and holding the Blood-red Night Pearl in her hand, staring at the Zombie without moving an inch.
Xu Nuan had grown tired of reminding Deng Yinyin and simply grabbed her hand, pulling her to run outside the cave. As they passed Gu Ze, she called out, "You all be careful and catch up as soon as you can."
She saw Gu Ze smile at her before he turned back resolutely, standing with Xu Hang and Xie Huai, confronting the Zombies while making their way toward the cave entrance.
Since they were unsure of the Zombies' intentions and characteristics, even if they wanted to escape, they needed to gather some information to prevent encountering similar creatures in the future. This was a tacit understanding that had developed within their team over time.
Xu Nuan understood this well, which was why she was hastily leading Deng Yinyin away.
However, just as they reached another fork in the path, Deng Yinyin suddenly snapped back to reality. She shook off Xu Nuan's hand forcefully, visibly agitated.
"I need to go back and help them! The Zombies are too dangerous. How can we let Gu Ze and the others stay behind without knowing what those creatures want?"
"They stayed behind precisely to figure out the Zombies' intentions," Xu Nuan explained patiently, surprised to see that the Luminous Pearl in Deng Yinyin's hand was emitting a green glow. It turned out that the green light in that hall wasn't caused by passing through green silk after all.
"Could it be that because Xie Huai took the Luminous Pearl, the Zombies are able to move now?"
Xu Nuan suddenly thought of this and reached out to grab the Luminous Pearl.
Deng Yinyin unhappily hid the Luminous Pearl in her arms, clearly displeased.
"How is that possible? When Xie Huai took it, nothing happened. We walked for so long afterward without anything occurring. It can't be because of this Luminous Pearl."
Xu Nuan took a deep breath, forcing herself to appear a bit calmer.
"It turns out that the place where these corpses are located is far from that hall and also far from where we just rested. It would take them some time to come over."
"What a joke. Are you really trying to blame everything on Xie Huai? I never expected you to be this kind of person, Xu Nuan."
Xu Nuan felt like she was talking to a wall, but thinking of the few who had deliberately stayed behind with Gu Ze, she still managed to hold her composure.
"What I mean is, we can return this Luminous Pearl and see if those Zombies stop moving."
"No!"
Deng Yinyin continued to hold the Luminous Pearl tightly. "This was given to me by Xie Huai. It's mine, and you have no right to decide."
Xu Nuan took another deep breath.
"Alright, it's your property. We won't return it. Let's hurry and leave this place, away from those Zombies."
Xu Nuan began to admire her own patience.
"No!"
Deng Yinyin was still unhappy with this decision and turned to run back in the original direction, but was quickly grabbed by the swift Xu Nuan.
"I want to go back and help them. I want to save them. I'm not going to be selfish and heartless like you."
Xu Nuan's face darkened. "Going back will only hold us back, and they aren't in danger yet. What we should fear the most is that they might need to save you."
"Hey, Xu Nuan, what do you mean? If you're scared and don't want to go back, then don't drag me into it. I'm going to save Gu Ze, and I don't care about you."
Xu Nuan released her grip and pointed in the direction of their return. "You can go back; I won't stop you."
As Xu Nuan turned to leave, she suddenly realized that Zombies had appeared from several other paths, surrounding them while she and Deng Yinyin were arguing.
Deng Yinyin noticed this too and immediately pointed an accusing finger at Xu Nuan.
"This is all your fault! If it weren't for you, I would have gone back earlier and wouldn't be surrounded by these Zombies now."
"Shut up!"
Frustrated, Xu Nuan shouted back, drawing a short knife from her waist as she slowly backed away, keeping a wary eye on the approaching Zombies.
"Going back might be even worse. Here, at least we have multiple directions to choose from, but they are probably trapped in that cave."
"Ah, that's so dangerous! Then I definitely have to go back; I won't abandon everyone!"
Deng Yinyin looked particularly brave, yet she refused to put down the Luminous Pearl in her hand.
Xu Nuan gritted her teeth. "Their situation is bad but not dangerous. That cave has large stalactites; if they climb up, they can hide for a while. But here, we don't even have a place to hide."
Deng Yinyin seemed to finally realize the difficult situation she and Xu Nuan were in. She stopped arguing with Xu Nuan and curled up her body instead.
"Gu Ze will come to save me, he definitely will! He is a good person! A good man!"
"Is this really the time to hand out 'good person' cards?"
Xu Nuan found it amusing, but as soon as she thought of Gu Ze's determined figure, the smile faded away.
She believed in Gu Ze, but she also knew she could choose to save herself. With her strong abilities in the Alliance, she should improve her skills; otherwise, she would be left behind!
The zombies were already very close to them. Unsure of what would happen if they encountered these zombies, Xu Nuan hesitated to break through. Suddenly, she noticed a gap among the zombies surrounding them and felt a surge of hope.
Of course, these zombies were dead beings; expecting them to coordinate perfectly was unrealistic. This gave her and Deng Yinyin a chance to escape.
"Deng Yinyin," Xu Nuan called out to Deng Yinyin, who was still lost in her thoughts about how Gu Ze would surely come to rescue her. When she realized there was no response, she walked over and tugged at her, pointing in a direction.
"I'm going to move closer to the zombies in that direction. That area will definitely open up; you just need to break through."
"No! What if the zombies touch me?"
Deng Yinyin shook her head vigorously. "I want to wait for Gu Ze and the others to save me."
Xu Nuan decided that from now on, she would consider Deng Yinyin someone she wouldn't communicate with anymore. However, at this moment, she still had to continue persuading Deng Yinyin.
"They will come to save us, so we need to stay alive until they arrive, understand? I won't hurt you. You run out and find a higher place to hide, then wait for everyone to find you. Do you hear me?"
Xu Nuan recalled the sweet words she once shared with Qin Yaojie during their passionate romance, and she felt a twinge of disgust at herself.
However, unexpectedly, Deng Yinyin seemed to be someone who responded better to gentleness than force; she actually nodded obediently and moved toward the vulnerable spot.
Xu Nuan nodded in satisfaction, then positioned her short knife in front of her as she cautiously approached the group of Zombies from another direction. She tried her best to avoid making eye contact with their wide, staring eyes, forcing her voice to remain calm.
"When I count to three, you need to run out suddenly without looking back. No matter what happens, even if a Zombie grabs you, just shake it off and keep running. Do you understand?"
"I... I understand."
"One."
Xu Nuan took a few steps forward; the Zombies were now less than two meters away from her.
"Two."
The distance between Xu Nuan and the Zombies shrank to just one meter.
"Three, run!"
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