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墨書 Inktalez
"One person cries while two laugh, three cause a ruckus and four argue, five and six are simply overwhelming."
"Single-faced is good, double-faced is bad, three-faced is alarming, four-faced is terrifying, hundreds of faces and thousands of faces have come to an end."
As far as the eye could see, there was an endless expanse of lakes. Countless lakes dotted the open land like stars in the night sky, occasionally interrupted by a few low pine trees that resembled decorative green ribbons. The Azure White Clouds reflected on the surface of the lakes, which appeared like pieces of blue silk; just looking at them felt soft.
The lakes were not large; they could be described as small pools. The starry scenery should have been unique to this place, combining both grandeur and elegance.
Unfortunately, the sound of the Ballad from the loudspeakers at the Supply Station echoed in everyone's ears.
"What’s with one person crying while two laugh? It sounds a bit frightening."
Deng Yinyin immediately complained about the game's dark humor upon stepping out, but the others were too captivated by their surroundings to pay her any mind.
A gentle breeze occasionally swept across the lake, bringing a refreshing coolness that was not cold.
"There aren’t many good places to rest at night," Xu Hang remarked while gazing at the beautiful scenery. Xie Huai scoffed nearby; was it any wonder he was the captain? The first thing he did upon reaching a new level was look for a suitable resting spot.
After surveying the area, Gu Ze shook his head at Xu Nuan. She immediately understood that Gu Ze had no recollection of this level—either it was unimportant or it was well-hidden.
Regardless of which it was, it wouldn’t obstruct their path forward.
In fact, only a few days had passed since they encountered that cave level. During that time, they had smoothly navigated through one level without encountering significant danger. Finding the Special Tree had also gone well; they hadn’t spent much time on it before arriving at this level.
Calculating the time, it was already 2017. In this game, time seemed to fly by; in the blink of an eye, half a year had passed.
The appearance of those outside began to blur in their memories. What occupied their thoughts most each day was what kind of dangers they might face and how to prepare for them in advance. At the same time, for Xu Nuan and Gu Ze, who were allies, they needed to investigate the identity of the Game Designer with extra diligence.
Finding out identities was the most challenging task. If they were given information about certain individuals—such as their living habits—they could trace clues to uncover the truth. However, they were faced with an endless array of game-related survival challenges and various modified animals. Trying to gather information about those humans through interactions with animals was indeed pushing their limits.
Although the information was limited, the relationship between them had progressed rapidly. This was particularly true for Gu Ze; prior to this, Xu Nuan's attitude towards him had been quite dismissive, often lost in her own world. But now, she was willing to share her true feelings and analyze things together, taking on responsibilities mutually. Xu Nuan seemed to come alive.
Gu Ze was pleased to see this change. For these past few days, a smile had rarely left his lips. Aside from the usual Xu Nuan and Xu Hang, Xie Huai looked confused, while Deng Yinyin was bursting with youthful enthusiasm.
As usual, Xu Hang led Xie Huai and Deng Yinyin ahead, observing the surrounding lakes for any differences. Gu Ze and Xu Nuan lagged behind, engaged in conversation.
Looking around, Xu Nuan noticed that aside from the abundance of lakes, there were too few trees and no sign of the Special Tree. She caught sight of Gu Ze again, radiating an almost palpable aura of charm. His sharp features, striking sword-like brows, squinting eyes that sparkled with laughter, and thin lips that curved into a smile created an appealing image. His tall stature and long legs made even the simple act of brushing dust off his shoulders look graceful.
"This isn't school or work; why act so pretentious?"
Xu Nuan wouldn’t admit to feeling jealous. Living in a game meant neglecting personal care for hair and skin, and her wardrobe consisted only of outdated Tactical Jackets with monotonous styles. As a woman with ambition, she found it intolerable. Yet she had to endure; the high-end dresses in the Supply Station that could be worn to a ball were never meant for everyday wear—wearing one would be like throwing herself into the jaws of a beast.
However, Gu Ze faced similar circumstances; he lacked modern comforts yet still exuded charisma.
Just like now, as they walked along the soft soil between the lakes, Gu Ze wore a simple blue Tactical Jacket that made him look as if he were strutting down a runway.
Ah, no—this word didn’t seem appropriate for describing a man.
Gu Ze responded to Xu Nuan's sarcastic remark with a smile and added, "I’ve always been this way; it’s just my habit."
Xu Nuan immediately realized, "I almost forgot you’re an heir to a corporation. Honestly, you don’t seem like one at all."
Gu Ze found it amusing. "What do I seem like then?"
Xu Nuan turned her head away defiantly, but her flushed ears betrayed her thoughts.
"By the way," after some playful banter, it was time to get serious. The numerous lakes around them created an eerie atmosphere that could give anyone goosebumps; however, upon closer inspection, the scenery was quite pleasant.
“Do you have no impression at all of the person who knocked you out?” Xu Hang asked.
Gu Ze nodded. “Don’t be fooled by his outward indifference; he’s definitely thinking about finding that person. But I wonder, why did that person knock Hang out?”
“Conflicts of interest, secret conflicts,” Xu Nuan said, waving a finger. “The reasons are probably among those few. However, if that person is a Player and not the Dark Room Manipulator hiding in the shadows, I’m really curious about who could coexist with us in the same cave without being discovered.”
Xu Nuan paused, staring blankly, and exchanged a glance with Gu Ze. They spoke in unison.
“Dark Room Manipulator!”
“Exactly,” Xu Nuan exclaimed, clapping her hands excitedly. “That dark room clearly indicates someone has been living there. When I accidentally stumbled in, I didn’t notice anyone; that means that person must have stepped out temporarily.”
Gu Ze continued, “Then that person encountered Hang but couldn’t let Hang discover his presence, so he had to knock him out.”
“That’s right.”
Xu Nuan’s excitement was palpable, her light-colored eyes sparkling.
“I thought of this earlier, so we don’t need to rush to leave that level. Let’s set a trap and wait; we might just catch the Designers’ tail.”
At this moment, Xu Nuan was both thrilled and frustrated; all thoughts of calm Rationality were thrown aside, and she nearly pounded her chest to express her inner regret.
Gu Ze stifled a laugh and offered kind reassurance.
“If that person or those people realize we’re inside, they won’t show themselves. Our food and daily supplies are limited; we don’t have time to waste with them.”
“That makes sense,” Xu Nuan nodded, still feeling a bit regretful. Then she heard Gu Ze continue.
“What you said about ‘catching their tail’ isn’t wrong. At first, I thought this Game Base was just equipped with some cameras and speakers, and everything else was more primitive wilderness. But this time proved that the base has actually been technologically modified. This means every creature we encounter in each level might be programmed to appear at specific times. None of this is coincidence; do you know what this implies?”
Xu Nuan eventually laughed, letting out a light sigh.
"It means that each level has a control room, and we are currently on the twenty-something level, with over seventy chances left to flush them out. This is a good start; I should be more spirited."
Gu Ze smiled slightly. "That's more like it."
The temperature in this level was pleasant. Xu Nuan specifically used the Tail Ring to measure it; during the day, the temperature remained around twenty-four degrees Celsius, and the sunlight was not too harsh. The few of them were comfortable wearing quick-dry clothes with short sleeves over them.
Occasionally, a light breeze carrying moisture would blow by, and a few water birds could be seen searching for food along the shore. They could also see fish swimming among the Azure White Clouds.
The scenery was undeniably pleasant, and the atmosphere just right. The only flaw was that they had not found the Special Tree.
"What kind of dangerous props could be set up in so many lakes?"
The sun had not yet reached its zenith, so they continued walking while the weather was nice. However, they encountered no dangers along the way, which made Xu Nuan start to speculate.
Gu Ze chuckled. "Do you have a masochistic tendency? It's a good thing there’s no danger; why are you hoping for it?"
Xu Nuan shot Gu Ze a glare, feeling annoyed.
"Don't you know I'm just a worrywart?"
"No, that's being prepared for unforeseen circumstances—a good quality."
Gu Ze immediately went along with her, interpreting Xu Nuan's glare as a flirtatious glance.
The smile on his face was too dazzling; Xu Nuan turned her face away to calm herself before turning back.
"If there’s no danger at the beginning, then there must be something extremely thrilling in the middle. The routine of this game is really tiresome."
Gu Ze approached Xu Nuan and patted her shoulder. "Then let's treat this as a sightseeing trip when there's no danger, and when there is, we’ll give it our all to overcome the challenges. That way, we won't waste the design of this place."
Xu Nuan remained silent, staring at Gu Ze's hand resting on her shoulder. Her gaze was intense, as if she wanted to chop that hand off.
She had already begun to reach for the short knife at her waist when Gu Ze quickly withdrew his hand and offered an explanation.
"Well, it's fine. I'm used to teasing with Hang like this."
Gu Ze smiled on the outside but felt a pang of sorrow inside. Was there anyone in the world more unfortunate than him? While others competed for affection, he was battling with a knife.
Sometimes, a woman's skills could be more of a curse than a blessing.
Gu Ze felt uneasy; as soon as he finished speaking, Xu Nuan narrowed her eyes, revealing a dangerous expression.
"What do you mean? Are you treating me like a man?"
Xu Nuan emphasized the word "man," and her words spilled out like pearls from a broken string.
"Even though I don’t wear makeup or dress up in the game, occasionally hunt for snacks, or climb trees and mountains, it's pretty obvious that I’m a woman, right? For instance, my figure."
For the first time in his life, Gu Ze displayed a look of shock.
What was wrong with Xu Nuan? Had she taken something strange or had her leg injury flared up again? She seemed like a completely different person.
When he saw Xu Nuan about to pounce on him without regard for appearances to inspect him from head to toe, she suddenly let out a laugh, narrowing her beautiful almond-shaped eyes at him and speaking slowly.
"I was just teasing you. You really can’t take a joke."
Gu Ze was left speechless.
After a long while, Gu Ze walked numbly, lost in thought.
“Nuan, are you really sure you didn’t eat something wrong? There are some things you shouldn’t just eat randomly; you need to take medicine.”
“Nope, if you keep repeating that, heehee.”
Gu Ze shivered slightly, firmly believing that Xu Nuan had indeed eaten something wrong.
Just then, Xu Nuan suddenly stopped in her tracks, clutching her chest.
“Nuan, what’s wrong?”
Gu Ze thought it was the bad food acting up and hurried over to check on Xu Nuan. She waved one hand dismissively.
“It’s nothing, just a sudden pain in my heart.”
“That’s still something! Wait a moment, let’s rest for a bit before we continue,” Gu Ze said as he quickly walked a few steps ahead to catch up with Xu Hang, who had wandered further away. They discussed something briefly. Meanwhile, Xu Nuan straightened up and looked around, puzzled.
“Who is calling me?”
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