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墨書 Inktalez
Before I could strike at my opponent, my wrist was suddenly seized by this person. They reacted with incredible speed; with a twist of their wrist, my Diving Knife nearly slipped from my grasp. Then, a familiar voice reached my ears, "Loyalty and Righteousness, it's me. What happened to you?"
It was Mai Lao's voice. I looked up and, sure enough, it was him. At that moment, I was drenched in cold sweat, as if I had just stepped out of a shower.
My hand holding the knife trembled slightly. "Mai Lao, I'm sorry, really sorry! I didn't know it was you. I... I'm a bit 'disoriented'." Thank goodness for Mai Lao's quick reflexes; otherwise, I would have stabbed him for sure.
I hurriedly put away the Diving Knife and slapped my face hard a few times to regain my composure. After a few loud smacks, I calmed down a little.
This cursed place was terrifying beyond belief. After everything I've been through, even when facing those two female corpses and the Sting Horse Colt, I had never felt this scared. But this place truly felt as Jiao Ba described—filled with evil and Yin Qi.
"What happened? Why does your face look so bad?" Mai Lao asked, gripping my shoulders tightly.
At that moment, Jiao Ba chimed in from the side, "Oh, Mai Lao, you arrived just in time! Brother Yi just said he saw someone—a skinny old man. We were just about to go find you."
"A skinny old man? Where did you see him?" Mai Lao's expression turned serious, his eyes gleaming with intensity.
"Right ahead in a muddy area. There were only footprints at first, but then Brother Yi said he actually saw a person," Jiao Ba pointed back behind him.
"Did you see him?" Mai Lao asked Jiao Ba.
Jiao Ba quickly shook his head. "No, I didn't see anything. I was observing another area at the time."
I glanced at Mai Lao and said, "Trust me, Mai Lao. Everything I'm saying is true. There really was someone there. Remember what I told you before? I saw a figure on top of the mountain peak? I suspect that old man we just mentioned is the same one—the First Witch Consort: The Noble Daughter of a High Family Does Not Discount."
Mai Lao looked at me for a moment before moving forward. Jiao Ba and I quickly followed him as he crouched down next to the muddy area. Jiao Ba handed him a flashlight, and after examining it closely, he said, "This... there are no footprints here."
What? No footprints? Jiao Ba and I exchanged glances and quickly crouched down to investigate further. But upon looking closely, we were both stunned—the footprints that had been visible in the mud were completely gone. The chaotic line of prints had vanished into thin air.
"This... this isn't right! The footprints were right here!" I couldn't believe it; they had been clearly visible just moments ago, but now it was just a patch of mud with nothing left behind. What on earth was going on?
"Yes, the footprints were definitely there. I discovered them first; there's no way I could be mistaken. How could they just disappear all of a sudden?" Jiao Ba stared intently at the muddy ground, his gaze unwavering.
Mai Lao spoke calmly, "Are you sure? Did you not missee anything?"
"How could we missee? One person might, but are you saying that both Lao Ba and I could be wrong?" I felt a surge of anger; it was clear he didn't believe us.
Mai Lao quickly clarified, "That's not what I meant, Loyalty and Righteousness. I don't doubt you at all. However, we can't find anything right now. You mentioned someone was at the mountaintop last time; unless we go up there to check."
I waved my hand dismissively. "Forget it, Mai Lao. I'm not going to any mountaintop. Let's hurry back; Jenny and the others are waiting for us to start a fire."
Mai Lao nodded in agreement. "Alright, let's head back. But we still lack a water source. Without water, it's even harder than being without food. We should think of a way to find some water before we return."
Jiao Ba stood up and said, "In a place like this, there should be edible fruits around. Let's look for them; fruits can quench our thirst too."
The three of us began searching the surrounding area. Aside from those oddly shaped trees, I couldn't find anything edible. I was on the verge of giving up; although I was very thirsty, just thinking about that frail old man made me uneasy.
"Mai Lao! Brother Yi! I've found something!" Jiao Ba's loud voice suddenly echoed nearby.
Mai Lao and I hurried over to him. Jiao Ba stood under a tree, shining a flashlight upward. "Look, there's something up there! I don't know if it's edible."
Following the beam of light, I looked up at the tree. Sure enough, there were many fruits hanging from its branches. However, these fruits looked strange; in all my life, I'd never seen anything like them before. They appeared bright red, but their exact shape was hard to discern.
"I'll climb up and get a few," I said as I pulled out my diving knife and prepared to ascend the tree.
Jiao Ba stepped forward and grabbed my arm. "No, Brother Yi, let me do it. You're not in good shape." After saying that, he began climbing the tree.
Though Jiao Ba's movements were slow and somewhat awkward, he managed to climb safely up the tree. He was clever too; instead of picking the fruits one by one, he used his knife to cut off entire branches laden with fruit.
This way, the branches would drop many fruits to the ground below. I crouched down and picked one fruit up to examine it closely. It was quite peculiar; aside from its red exterior, it bore no resemblance to other fruits I'd seen before. If I had to compare it to something, its shape resembled a doll's face—specifically a smiling face—which made it look quite amusing.
“What is this fruit, Mai Lao? I've never seen anything like it.” I held the Doll Face Fruit and asked Mai Lao.
Mai Lao had one in his hand as well. After examining it, he said softly, “It looks a bit like Ginseng Fruit, but I remember Ginseng Fruit being white. This one is so red; it's strange. I've never seen it before either.”
At that moment, Jiao Ba climbed down from the tree. “So, can we eat it?” he asked.
I shook my head. “I don't know what this is. You take a look.” I casually tossed the fruit into Jiao Ba's hands.
Jiao Ba examined it for a long time. Since he first saw the fruit, his brow had been furrowed. He then took out a knife and made a small cut in the middle of the fruit. As soon as he did, a red liquid began to flow out.
“Wow, it’s actually bleeding?” I blurted out, feeling rather foolish.
Mai Lao looked at Jiao Ba with confusion as well. Jiao Ba dipped his finger into the red liquid and then touched it to his tongue. He slowly nodded and said, “Hmm, it's edible. No problem.”
“What... what exactly is this?” I still didn’t understand; he hadn’t clarified what kind of fruit it was, only that it was edible.
Jiao Ba glanced at me and said, “I can't quite recall what it is specifically, but I think I've heard of something like this before. It's a type of food similar to Ginseng Fruit, but there are significant differences. Just wait until I remember more; for now, you don’t need to worry since it's edible.”
“But what is it really?” I felt uneasy about this strange fruit.
Jiao Ba replied impatiently, “Are you annoying or what? Who cares what it is as long as we can eat it?”
I shot him a glare and said, “What if it's poisoned?”
Mai Lao chuckled from the side and said, “Heh, that shouldn't be the case. Didn’t Xiao Ba just try it?”
“Exactly! I already tasted it; what are you worried about? Let’s hurry back; they’re waiting for us,” Jiao Ba said as he picked up some firewood and headed out.
Mai Lao and I picked the strange fruits off the tree, each carrying a pile as we followed in Jiao Ba's footsteps back home...
On the way back, I dared not look around anymore. I was terrified of encountering that old man again. He gave me a sense of not just unknown mystery, but also a terrifying killing intent, like a ghost, sending chills down my spine.
Especially his orange-yellow cat-like eyes; aside from that color, how could he resemble the Cat-Eyed Man in Black so closely? There was almost no difference. For a moment, I even doubted that he was the Cat-Eyed Man in Black.
However, from his physique and that unpleasant odor, he was clearly different from the Cat-Eyed Man in Black. The two were obviously not on the same level. He was skin and bones, emaciated like a twig, while the Cat-Eyed Man in Black was tall and robust, a stark contrast.
From his clothing, he looked like a beggar, especially with his disheveled hair, which made him even more inscrutable. His unkempt appearance resembled that of a wandering spirit.
If he wasn't the Cat-Eyed Man in Black, then who was he? Surely he couldn't be the legendary wild man? Could it be that he had some connection to the Cat-Eyed Man in Black? I couldn't figure it out; for now, this was the only understanding I could come up with. I simply couldn't think of a better explanation.
I kept pondering over what had just happened. That shriveled old man—had he always lived here, or was he like us, stranded here by misfortune?
Moreover, why had he followed us all this way? If he wanted to kill me, it would have been easy because I barely sensed his presence. He was so close to me that I couldn't even feel him.
If he truly wanted my life, it would have been effortless. Or perhaps he intended to scare me deliberately to make us retreat? There was definitely something wrong here; this Shriveled Old Man would not appear before me without reason. Clearly, there was an intention behind it.
What secrets did this strange little island hide? There must be some interconnected relationship here; I just couldn't grasp what it was yet.
Suddenly, I felt that our arrival on this island wasn't mere coincidence. It seemed as if everything had been arranged by fate. All these issues seemed to trace back to that enormous underwater cave; if we hadn't been swept into its entrance, we would never have reached this deserted island...
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