Chapter 65
The six of them set off in a formidable procession.
Because He Mingyue was down to his last life, he walked in the very middle to prevent anyone from ambushing from the front or rear to eliminate him. Shen Shuyu stood on the right side, with Wen Jiafei beside him.
He looked back at Wen Jiafei. Only his eyes were exposed now. Those eyes held no emotional color. Seeing Shen Shuyu turn to look at him, he lowered his eyes slightly, meeting his gaze. “What is it?”
Shen Shuyu muttered, “Can’t even look now?”
After speaking, he turned back around to find Lin Xuyi. Over the past two days, Shen Shuyu had made his own gains; he and Lin Xuyi got along quite well. The two had even secretly agreed to go out for a meal together after this ended.
After walking for about ten minutes, they arrived at the desert entrance. At the entrance, there was already plenty of brownish-yellow sand. Standing a bit closer, they could feel the sand blowing onto their bodies.
Chi Yanxun coughed lightly. “We’re here. Is everyone ready? Or should we rest here for ten minutes before going in?”
After all, once inside, there would be no rest at all.
Shen Xili looked down at his watch, then at the tablet, saying, “Let’s not rest. Planet Puce is almost here too.”
A few days had passed, and they and Planet Puce were the two teams that reached the desert entrance the fastest and with the most members. As for the other teams, some had just finished half the missions, while others were left with only two or three members, suffering heavy losses.
“They really are fast,” Lin Xuyi said. “I also agree with going straight in. If we’re ten minutes faster, our advantage is greater.”
The others had no issues with it either. Then, everyone implicitly focused their gaze on Shen Shuyu.
It had been a long time since Shen Shuyu was stared at by them in unison. He said, “I’m fine with it too. I’ll do my best to get through the desert map.”
Chi Yanxun said, “Then let’s go in.”
He took out the rope he had been carrying from his bag. Shen Shuyu raised an eyebrow; he had almost forgotten about this rope, thinking it was lost somewhere, but unexpectedly, it was in Chi Yanxun’s bag.
Chi Yanxun said, “To prevent getting separated, just like in the Mist Forest, everyone hold onto the rope while walking.”
If they encountered a sandstorm, visibility would be very low. It would be hard to see each other even with eyes open. If they walked blindly, the probability of getting separated was as high as ninety-five percent!
Moreover, standing at the entrance, they could feel the wind inside. He guessed there was a one hundred percent chance they would encounter a sandstorm. That was why the rope Shen Shuyu broughtāwhich was inconvenient to carryāhad stayed in his bag instead of being discarded. It was to prevent getting lost due to uncontrollable factors. After all, as long as everyone was together, there would be more ways to solve problems.
As usual, Chi Yanxun took the lead, Lin Xuyi was second, He Mingyue and Shen Shuyu walked in the middle, and Wen Jiafei and Shen Xili brought up the rear.
The group grasped the rope tightly. Chi Yanxun said, “Move out!”
He took a deep breath, pulled the rope, and went in first. The six of them entered the desert map in an orderly manner.
As soon as they entered, all six were splattered with raised sand.
Shen Shuyu shook his head to shake off the sand, thankful for the silk scarf Lin Xuyi had prepared; his breathing was perfectly normal.
He looked up and saw a golden desert that stretched boundlessly. He had only seen videos and pictures of deserts on TV and the internet before. Seeing it with his own eyes this time was truly shocking.
Magnificent, beautiful, yet terrifying.
The thought of finding an exit here made Shen Shuyuās scalp tingle. But there was no extra time for him to stop and lament these things. Once inside the desert map, they set off non-stop under the overhead sun.
In Chi Yanxun’s hand were the prizes won from the level: a desert map and a desert-specific compass. Although the desert level was a classic annual event, the scenery and routes inside changed every year, making the map and compass especially important.
Furthermore, their watches monitored everyone’s condition. As soon as someone’s life count hit zero, staff would immediately come out to take the contestant away for treatment. The longer the delay, the easier it was to be truly out of the game.
Shen Shuyu walked a few steps and felt his sweat dripping down madly like rain. The scarf, wet with sweat, stuck to his cheeks, feeling very uncomfortable.
He raised his free hand to scratch behind his ear and continued walking forward without a word.
But as he walked, Shen Shuyu sensed something was wrong.
Where were his teammates?
No, where was the rope in his hand?
Shen Shuyu stopped in his tracks. Wind and sand rose around him, enveloping him.
[Little One?] Shen Shuyu called out.
The System in his brain gave no response.
Fuck, not again? The silent treatment again?
Shen Shuyu recalled carefully. He had been holding the rope tightly since entering. Although everyone was silent, he could still clearly see everyone’s figure.
And abandoning the rope was impossible. He was positioned in the middle. Even if he accidentally let go, Wen Jiafei and Shen Xili behind him would definitely have noticed and reminded him.
So… what exactly was going on?
Shen Shuyu frowned deeply. Just then, the roar of some animal rang in his ears, and even the ground where he stood felt some tremors.
What was happening?
Swaying unsteadily, Shen Shuyu couldn’t stand firm at all. Instinctively wanting to run, he turned around only to see a familiar figure.
“Wen Jiafei!” Shen Shuyu shouted in surprise. Ignoring whatever thing was behind him, he hurriedly stabilized himself and ran toward Wen Jiafei on the other side.
Wen Jiafei seemed not to hear his call. The more Shen Shuyu chased, the further away he walked. But the distance was deliberate; Shen Shuyu could clearly see his back but couldn’t catch up no matter what.
What on earth was this?
Shen Shuyu had exhausted too much stamina and really couldn’t run anymore. Sensing the ground shaking less, he simply plopped down onto the sand.
He gasped for large breaths of air. Wen Jiafei ahead of him also stopped.
Shen Shuyu watched him turn around. Wen Jiafei saw him!
Shen Shuyu waved his hand frantically. “Wen Jiafei! Come here, quick!”
Wen Jiafei actually started walking over. His pace was extremely slow but very determined. Step by step, he walked toward Shen Shuyu.
Shen Shuyu was too excited to see a familiar person to notice that this Wen Jiafei seemed a bit strange.
The ground began to shake violently again. Shen Shuyu felt a vague shadow over his head, as if something was blocking the sunlight. He turned his head suspiciously to look. About twenty meters away from him, a gigantic wolf appeared. How big was it?
Shen Shuyu felt that if it opened its mouth, it could eat the sun directly.
“Holy shit!” Shen Shuyu scrambled up from the ground. Seeing Wen Jiafei still walking toward him, he ran over angrily and grabbed his wrist. “Run! Are you walking up to send yourself to death?”
After shouting, Shen Shuyu dragged Wen Jiafei and sprinted. The giant wolf behind them followed relentlessly. One of its paws sank deep into the sand, causing Shen Shuyu to wobble. If not for Wen Jiafei’s strength pulling him, he probably would have fallen flat on his face.
He turned his head, about to discuss with Wen Jiafei how to solve this, but upon turning, he saw Wen Jiafei raise his short knife. Before Shen Shuyu could speak, he stabbed it ruthlessly into Shen Shuyu’s heart and pulled it out expressionlessly.
Blood sprayed out with his movement, dyeing both their clothes red.
Shen Shuyu was stunned for a moment. His brain couldn’t process why Wen Jiafei would stab him to death. But the imagined pain didn’t occur; he only felt his eyelids becoming unusually heavy.
Before he fell completely unconscious, he heard Wen Jiafei say in a tone devoid of inflection: “You have been killed by me.”
I have been killed by Wen Jiafei.
Shen Shuyuās brain was muddled. He felt his physical strength draining away.
No.
Wen Jiafei wouldn’t kill him right now!
Shen Shuyu opened his eyes and sat up abruptly from the ground.
He looked around blankly. At this moment, he was still in the barren desert.
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