Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
They found themselves in the Towering and Sharp Peaks, where the mountains rose at a terrifying angle of about 75 degrees, making them impossible for humans to climb. In the distance, the slopes were concave, clearly eroded and sharp, deterring any attempts to approach.
“How are we supposed to get down?”
The group exchanged glances, and Xie Huaicai's voice was hoarse.
“The fog we encountered earlier was definitely suspicious. How did we end up here?”
Deng Yinyin began to speculate. “This doesn’t make sense. That fog might have contained some kind of drug, and what we saw was an illusion. We could still be in the forest, with solid ground just ahead.”
As she spoke, Deng Yinyin seemed eager to test her theory. She moved toward the edge of the peak but halted when she realized the dizzying height before her, unable to take another step.
“Is it really an illusion? There must be land ahead, right?”
Deng Yinyin muttered to herself, unsure if she was trying to convince herself or Xu Nuan and the others.
In fact, Xu Nuan had also considered that this might be an illusion. However, she quickly found a way to prove otherwise using Gu Ze. When the others were distracted, she discreetly stepped on Gu Ze’s foot with just enough force to cause pain without injuring him.
Hearing Gu Ze gasp sharply, Xu Nuan quietly remarked, “It’s not an illusion.”
Xu Nuan felt a twinge of regret; this meant they would need to figure out how to descend the mountain if they wanted to continue their game. Suddenly, Gu Ze's innocent voice broke through her thoughts.
“Just because you feel pain doesn’t mean it’s not an illusion. You have to believe in high technology, mysterious drugs, and the wonders of those unknown realms.”
Gu Ze spoke in a low voice; even if the others heard him, they would only perceive it as a vague whisper between him and Xu Nuan.
Xu Nuan glanced at Xu Hang, who was still trying to grab Deng Yinyin, and then looked at Xie Huai, who was tugging at himself. She took a few steps back to stand beside Gu Ze, raising her gaze to him and speaking in a low voice.
"What information do you have this time, being all mysterious?"
For someone like Gu Ze, who seemed to have an advantage over others, Xu Nuan felt both reliant on him and a bit jealous. The key point was that it was Gu Ze, who liked to show off his superiority in front of her, who held this information. She could already predict the expression he would wear next.
Sure enough, Gu Ze smiled mysteriously, his face full of 'Look how good my memory is, impressive, right?'
"This place is safe; we just need to wait for the next mechanism."
Of course, Xu Nuan often felt that Gu Ze's information did not provide any technical guidance. His understanding of the design blueprints only gave him a general idea of the game; he knew where dangers might lie in each level but had no clue about how these dangers arose or how to solve them.
Gu Ze needed to figure out how to navigate these dangers just like they did, relying on both physical strength and intellect to endure the game. Sometimes, his reliance on his memory could lead him astray, affecting his true judgment.
Having realized this, Xu Nuan decided not to dampen Gu Ze's spirits at that moment and let him take pride in such matters.
Once Deng Yinyin became too frightened to continue and wanted to test walking around, Xu Hang and the others—Gu Ze and Xie Huai—briefly discussed their options. Then Xu Hang decisively made a decision.
"Everyone should rest here for now and observe the situation. Don't attempt to go down the mountain lightly."
Xu Nuan exchanged a knowing glance with Gu Ze as he approached. She understood that Xu Hang's decision stemmed from Gu Ze's influence. However, they were also hesitant to try going down; it was her first time seeing such steep and smooth peaks. She couldn't treat these mountains like slides in an amusement park; observing the situation was indeed the best choice.
"The view here is great; maybe we can find the Special Tree from this vantage point."
Calming herself down, Xu Nuan noticed that this peak was the highest in the area, offering a breathtaking view that almost brought her to tears. Unfortunately, with her eyesight, all she could see were lush green forests or patches of pink and red Rhododendrons in bloom, along with a large expanse of crimson far away that she couldn't make out clearly.
With her poor vision, she had no choice but to seek help. Seeing Gu Ze sitting beside her naturally drew attention from someone else. Deng Yinyin pointed unceremoniously at the patch of crimson and asked.
"Do you see that patch of red? If it's the Special Tree, then we can handle it."
Gu Ze, who had long trained himself to ignore such eager gazes, obediently looked in the direction Xu Nuan was pointing, and then he froze.
"What kind of expression is that?"
Xu Nuan, who was usually straightforward with her words in front of Gu Ze, waved her hand in front of him to grab his attention.
However, Gu Ze caught her hand firmly.
Xu Nuan was taken aback. As she noticed more intense gazes directed at her, she quickly struggled to pull her hand back, not daring to look at the expressions of the other three. Even without looking, she could guess what their expressions were like.
"Nuan, I didn't expect you to spot the Special Tree from so far away. Impressive!"
Gu Ze casually patted her shoulder. To Xu Nuan, it felt like there was no barrier between them; this man was clearly doing it on purpose.
But she couldn't care less about whether Gu Ze was being intentional or not; she was currently thrilled about discovering the Special Tree. The others also set aside their gossip and jealousy, standing up to gaze at the distant patch of red.
Xie Huai, who wore glasses, had vision similar to Xu Nuan's and couldn't see clearly, while Xu Hang and Deng Yinyin, with their excellent eyesight, confirmed it.
"That patch over there is the Special Tree."
Xu Nuan felt a bit dazed.
"It's so surreal that we found the Special Tree so easily. We just entered this level."
This feeling of unreality made Xu Nuan almost forget that she was standing at the peak of the cliff.
Deng Yinyin had thought of another direction.
“So this fog brought us here to help us find the Special Tree!”
“Deng Yinyin.”
Xu Hang rubbed his forehead in exasperation.
Xie Huai nodded obediently.
“Well, that doesn’t seem wrong, but this place is too dangerous.”
Xu Nuan covered her twitching lips with her hand, silently turning away to continue staring at the patch of red, while also memorizing the direction and location of the Special Tree.
In fact, after recovering some memories, she realized that she often forgot things due to memory confusion, only to remember them after a certain period. This inability to control her memories was quite painful. Whenever she tried to remember something, her head would hurt, which frustrated her and made her want to know who had caused her to lose that part of her memory.
Just as Xu Nuan was feeling low, she heard a very soft voice.
“It’s okay if you can’t remember; I will remember for you. Just stay by my side.”
This voice seemed to chase away all the coldness, warming her from the inside out. Xu Nuan smiled slightly but couldn’t help but retort at Gu Ze, even surprising herself with this rather spiteful side of her personality.
“What if we get separated in the game? I should probably remember it myself.”
As she expected, Gu Ze let out a heavy sigh, looking utterly helpless.
“Nuan, are you planning to cut off all my chances to show off? That would be too cruel.”
What she didn't expect was that Gu Ze would misunderstand her words, which made her feel inexplicably guilty. It seemed she had hurt this proud man deeply.
"Cough, cough."
Not daring to look at Gu Ze any longer, Xu Nuan turned her head, trying to think of something to salvage the situation when she was startled by Deng Yinyin's fierce gaze.
No, more accurately, it was the thick fog surging behind Deng Yinyin that frightened her.
"We," Xu Nuan quickly changed her words, her voice neither loud nor soft, "seem to be able to leave now."
As soon as she finished speaking, the white fog had already enveloped them.
Suddenly, she heard Gu Ze's urgent voice.
"Nuan, hold on to me."
Xu Nuan did not respond; she simply stood quietly in the fog, maintaining a certain distance from Gu Ze. She thought that even without physical contact with him, they would reach the same place as before. Although she had memorized the location of the Special Tree, she believed it would be easier for Gu Ze to figure it out on his own.
She had underestimated the situation.
When the fog dissipated, Xu Nuan found herself alone. It was then that she realized the oddities that had occurred in the fog.
For instance, why Gu Ze had been so anxious, why he hadn’t touched her, and why the others hadn’t reacted.
It was her negligence that led her to discover she had been sent to a strange place where she was all alone.
Looking around, she saw towering, steep cliffs all around her. Occasionally, there were a few openings between the cliffs. The walls were covered in green moss and ferns, with scattered Azure Water Trees and maple sycamores. Nearby was a rushing waterfall that cascaded down into a pool below, surrounded by smooth stones with no convenient paths for walking. The trees were ancient, and for now, there were no signs of aggressive animals.
Xu Nuan quickly analyzed her surroundings in her mind. The terrain was complex and steep, with unknown dangers lurking. It would be difficult to venture out alone, especially since she couldn't determine her location, which made it hard to find the Special Tree, locate the Supply Station, and reunite with everyone.
Tentatively, she called out the names of a few others as she walked, but when no one responded, she merely sighed lightly, seemingly unfazed by the prospect of facing challenges alone.
Yes, long ago, she had navigated challenges on her own.
Just a few minutes earlier, she had joked with Gu Ze about the possibility of splitting up. This game seemed to follow a fixed pattern controlled by human emotions. She was used to it and accepted these impossibilities.
Tightening the straps of her backpack, Xu Nuan picked up a sturdy branch from beneath an ancient tree to use as a walking stick and began her journey alone.
What did it matter if the mountains were treacherous, if the waters were swift, if fierce beasts roamed, or if there were plots and schemes? She had long been forced to prepare for all of this.
"Ha."
Xu Nuan exhaled softly, looking up at the drifting white clouds against the blue sky, speaking to herself.
"I can do this alone, right?"
Comment 0 Comment Count