Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
Gu Ze chose calmly, while Xu Nuan, who was usually direct and straightforward, unexpectedly felt uneasy at this moment.
"Gu Ze, if you don't..."
Xu Nuan hesitated, not daring to finish her sentence. In her eyes, although Gu Ze had been pushed into this game by his father, he had a strong sense of purpose. If something happened to him, he would fail the mission assigned by his father. He had a bright future that ordinary people could only dream of; he shouldn't be in danger.
Or perhaps she simply didn't want Gu Ze to be in danger. She owed him a debt of gratitude that weighed heavily on her mind. For her benefactor, she wished for nothing but safety. But she herself could take risks; she had nothing left to lose. With no burdens on her shoulders, she felt light as a feather and could act without hesitation. Gu Ze was different from her, especially since it was her connection with Qin Yaojie that was at stake—Gu Ze shouldn't be involved.
She struggled to find the right words, hoping to persuade Gu Ze to leave and return to the main group before Sun Ming fully led them into the trap.
However, when she met Gu Ze's threatening smile, all words escaped her. This man had his dignity; she couldn't insult that.
What should she do?
Xu Nuan's mind was racing—she was torn between recalling the scenes of the so-called trap and wanting to send Gu Ze back. The former was beyond her control, while she couldn't think of a reason for the latter.
As they walked, Sun Ming remained silent, seemingly confident that the two behind him would follow without attempting to escape.
Desperate for a solution, Xu Nuan grabbed Gu Ze's hand, trying to catch his attention but unsure how to express her thoughts once she did.
Just as Xu Nuan nervously studied Gu Ze's profile again, he suddenly turned his head and locked eyes with her worried gaze. Before she could react, he leaned down, and she felt a rush of warmth against her lips before it vanished.
Blinking in surprise, Xu Nuan met Gu Ze's satisfied smile, reminiscent of a cat that had just eaten its fill.
"Now I'm willing to do anything for you; you don't need to hesitate anymore."
Xu Nuan suddenly felt heat flooding through her body; even without realizing it, her ears turned red and spread warmth across her cheeks.
This man who always pushes his luck!
Filled with a mix of shame and anger, Xu Nuan found herself numb, being led by Gu Ze as they followed Sun Ming.
Xu Nuan and Gu Ze had encountered Sun Ming in a quiet forest with widely spaced trees. They then followed him to find the First Batch of Players, fulfilling Xu Nuan's desire to confront Qin Yaojie and seek the mastermind behind her entry into the game, as well as the one responsible for her parents' deaths. As they walked behind Sun Ming, they noticed that the scenery around them began to change.
They were still in the forest with yellow-brown soil, but the trees had transformed into unfamiliar species, and the spacing between them had narrowed. The nearby bushes had also become slightly denser.
If they hadn’t looked closely, they would have missed these changes. Suddenly, Xu Nuan recalled that Sun Ming had mentioned this place was a Maze, easy to enter but difficult to exit. She speculated that there might be some traps here, so she began to memorize their path: how many of each type of tree they passed, where they turned at each tree, and the variations in soil color.
As she focused on remembering, Xu Nuan felt dizzy and panicked, suddenly forgetting how many trees they had passed or where they had turned last.
With a grim expression, Xu Nuan lost hope in her memory. She then thought of Gu Ze's excellent memory and looked at him hopefully. To her surprise, Gu Ze smirked at her, his smile carrying a hint of mischief that startled Xu Nuan into quickly turning away, adopting a serious demeanor and avoiding eye contact.
It was the first time she had seen Gu Ze smile like that, and she found it surprisingly charming.
Shaking her head, Xu Nuan tried to dismiss such thoughts when suddenly she caught a strong whiff of blood in the air. A gust of wind swept through the forest, carrying an increasingly potent scent of blood toward them.
Her heart tightened, and without thinking, Xu Nuan instinctively moved closer to Gu Ze.
At that moment, Sun Ming, who had been silent since leading them, finally spoke up.
"Don't rush; we still have a long way to go."
Unable to hold back any longer, Xu Nuan opened her mouth.
"Did you guys get attacked by Zombies? Were there a lot of them?"
Xu Nuan felt confused after speaking. Sun Ming was the one who had been ordered to lead them here; to put it bluntly, he had lured them here. Why would he share such detailed information with them?
Unexpectedly, Sun Ming actually answered her question.
"There aren't many in number, but these Zombies are quite special. We've never encountered anything like them before, so we fell for it."
"Aren't you a Designer? How could you fall for it?"
Xu Nuan deliberately blurred the titles, wanting to know if there were more Designers among the First Batch of Players.
Sun Ming let out a helpless laugh, waving his hand in front of his nose as if he found the smell of blood repulsive.
"I am a Designer, but I'm just one Designer. To put it simply, I know what I've designed, but I have no idea where it will be used. Compared to you Players who know nothing, we have a bit of knowledge about certain things in this game, which makes us more prone to making mistakes. That person really is..."
When it came to the so-called 'that person,' the tall Sun Ming suddenly shrank back, not daring to continue. He seemed genuinely afraid of this mysterious individual.
Xu Nuan wasn't sure if 'that person' was the one who had made an agreement with Sun Ming to send him to find her or if it was someone else entirely.
The reason they had returned here was that they heard gunshots, and Sun Ming's acquaintances must be among the First Batch of Players. Her first suspicion fell on Zhang Xiao and Ning Han, followed by other unfamiliar members of the First Batch of Players.
Thinking carefully about it now, the relationships among the First Batch of Players seemed quite intricate. There were Designers who knew the inside story but weren't involved in the design process, and then there were Players. This combination was stranger than that of their Second Batch or Third Batch of Players.
While Xu Nuan paused to think, Gu Ze seized the opportunity to ask more questions.
"Those Zombies you just mentioned are quite special. What makes them special? This should be something you can tell us, right?"
Hearing this, Xu Nuan quickly pulled herself away from her thoughts and waited earnestly for Sun Ming's response. This information was crucial; they were going to help, and it was only reasonable to understand the enemy's details in advance.
Sun Ming suddenly shrank back a little, chuckling softly before speaking in a hoarse voice.
"If those Zombies bite a human, that human will also turn into a Zombie."
Xu Nuan suddenly recalled an encounter they had with Zombies in a cave. They had reacted quickly at the time and hadn't been bitten, so they weren't sure if the Zombies could transmit the infection through bites.
As she pondered this, she heard Sun Ming continue.
"At that time, the human who was bitten still retained some consciousness. As long as he bit other humans and turned them into Zombies, he could revert back to being human within ten minutes."
When he said this, Sun Ming deliberately lowered his voice, making it sound sinister and eerie. A chill ran down Xu Nuan's spine. The very nature of these Zombies seemed designed to incite a team to turn against each other. Once one person was bitten and the infection spread, there would inevitably be a sacrifice. Even if the others managed to fend off or eliminate the Zombies, their relationships would deteriorate, leading to suspicion among them. Xu Nuan had experienced this firsthand; their last mission had involved direct mutual harm that was even worse than this.
Why had this game suddenly become so cruel? She didn't understand and felt perplexed until a thought struck her.
"If you could escape, then others could escape too, right?"
"Heh," Sun Ming chuckled again, but with his back turned to Xu Nuan, she couldn't discern his expression.
"It's not escape; it's betrayal. You see, we were all supporters of Qin Yaojie once—well, I mean during the design of this game. But now everyone has their own pursuits and naturally doesn't want to die alongside Qin Yaojie."
"What do you mean?"
Xu Nuan's hand that wasn't holding Gu Ze's tightened into a fist, her body tense and clearly anxious.
"What I mean is," Sun Ming suddenly turned around, grinning widely.
"It's better for you to see this for yourself."
Sun Ming pointed in a direction.
"Walk fifty meters that way, and you'll find him."
Xu Nuan looked in that direction and saw a relatively open area of forest, devoid of humans or Players, but she could indeed smell a strong scent of blood coming from that way.
"Are you not planning to take responsibility for this?"
Before Xu Nuan could take a step forward, Gu Ze smiled and called out to Sun Ming, who was turning to leave.
"I'm curious about what benefits this so-called person has given you that makes it worth your while to take this risk. The Game Company is so wealthy, and you're one of the main Designers. You don't lack money—what kind of agreement could possibly drive you as a Designer?"
Sun Ming didn't turn back or respond to Gu Ze, simply walking away.
Xu Nuan felt the atmosphere was bleak and tragic.
Once Sun Ming had gone far enough, Xu Nuan finally looked up at Gu Ze and took a deep breath.
"Let's go."
"Mm."
Gu Ze simply nodded, not releasing the hand he held with Xu Nuan. They walked a few steps side by side in that direction, then suddenly turned back to glance, his expression somewhat serious.
"What's wrong?"
Xu Nuan also looked back, seeing only the empty forest; Sun Ming's figure had long since vanished.
"Nothing, I was just confirming whether Sun Ming had left."
Gu Ze explained lightly before continuing to walk.
Fifty meters was a short distance.
With Xu Nuan and Gu Ze's pace, they covered that fifty meters in under two minutes, arriving at the so-called center of the Maze.
What greeted them was a scene of chaos, with zombies having pale blue-white skin, vacant stares, and black liquid oozing from their mouths. There were also players who had become zombies yet retained some human consciousness, along with injured players scattered about.
Amidst this chaotic scene, Xu Nuan spotted someone immediately.
Qin Yaojie.
Comment 0 Comment Count