(3/3)
Changsheng Building
Chapter 225: Unknown minefield
“!!!”
As Wu Zhu’s words fell, Wen Jianyan sharply gasped and abruptly broke free from that semi-chaotic, near-death state.
In the “Changsheng Building” instance, falling into darkness means certain death on a fundamental level.
Although the mirror shard had pulled Wen Jianyan in at the last moment, he had indeed brushed past death’s door this time. He was still alive, but the extreme terror of being so close to death could not be erased from his body and mind.
Wen Jianyan’s pupils shrank to tiny pinpoints, staring vacantly into the void, unable to find a focus.
His mind was blank, and his skin still carried the sensation of the cold, chilling air. The touch of death was clear and real, and the intense pain brought by the boundless darkness clutched his throat, making his throat emit a sharp cry like he was drowning.
Wu Zhu frowned slightly.
In his palm, the other’s waist was trembling violently, and his skin had lost the warmth of a human, becoming closer to Wu Zhu’s own cold temperature.
He was used to this guy’s cunning and ruthless demeanor. Even when Wu Zhu had him by the throat and tied up his limbs, his eyes were always filled with a lively desire to survive. Seeing his empty gaze and strong stress reaction now made Wu Zhu feel somewhat strange.
He frowned, pushing aside the strange feeling inside him.
It was odd. Ever since he fused with that shard last time, Wu Zhu has felt somewhat unfamiliar with himself, as if he had gained many emotions that shouldn’t belong to him.
Normally, he wouldn’t have any emotional fluctuations.
Maybe he should seal that shard away again.
As Wu Zhu was lost in thought, the young man before him suddenly jumped up violently, like a lively fish, flailing his limbs and struggling fiercely.
As a result, Wu Zhu, who was closest to him, became the victim, taking several hard hits.
“…”
Though it didn’t hurt, Wu Zhu’s temple twitched involuntarily.
He raised his hand and skillfully tied the person up.
That unfamiliar feeling disappeared.
It was probably just an illusion.
Wen Jianyan struggled but found he couldn’t move, so he finally quieted down.
His chest heaved rapidly, his pupils gradually returned to normal, and rationality and brightness reappeared in his eyes.
The recent stress and vulnerability seemed like a disguise, vanishing in an instant and deeply hidden away from the light.
What just happened?
Wen Jianyan’s gaze fell on Wu Zhu, and it seemed to take him two seconds to recall the other’s identity.
Upon realizing this, the previous memories quickly came back.
The woman in red, the television, the mirror world…
Yes, he had exploited a bug in the curse transmission, using the discrepancy in numbers to hold off the stares, creating an opportunity for his teammates in the mirror world to lift the curse. However, just as he was about to return to the mirror world to bring his teammates out, the oil lamp suddenly went out.
Wen Jianyan’s expression darkened slightly.
Even without a lampshade, he didn’t think the oil lamp in this instance could be extinguished so easily. Moreover, the shop was tightly closed at that time, and there was no wind, so there was only one possibility.
But the question was, how did the other side do it?
Wen Jianyan recalled the scattered clues he had gathered before entering the instance and couldn’t help but show a thoughtful expression.
Suddenly, he seemed to realize something. He quickly looked up at Wu Zhu:
“Wait, where’s An Xin?”
“…”
Wu Zhu looked up, gazing steadily at the young man in front of him.
“That anchor who was walking with me, is he alive?”
Wen Jianyan asked urgently.
After the lights went out, the rule of certain death in darkness would be triggered indiscriminately, which should also apply to An Xin. If he were left in the dark shop, he would be dead for sure.
After Qi Qian temporarily “died,” An Xin became the only remaining combat member of the team. If they were to clash with other teams later, his talent would serve as a great deterrent. If he died in this action, their team would suffer a severe blow.
Wu Zhu still wore his indifferent expression, his pupils showing a metallic texture and sheen, looking at him without any emotion, with a primal, inhuman quality.
Just like always.
“If An Xin is gone, our team will only have three and a half members left. One’s talent is overdrawn and unusable; one is cursed and gasps after two steps; and the last one is a powerless prophet,” Wen Jianyan said. “If he’s gone, the next instance will be very tough.”
He looked at the man in front of him earnestly and sincerely, saying:
“But didn’t you want me to clear this instance?”
“…”
After a brief few seconds of silence, Wu Zhu finally showed mercy and spoke indifferently: “He’s fine.”
It wasn’t that he was particularly kind-hearted; it was just that when the mirror shard fell, an indiscriminate protection mechanism was activated, and An Xin happened to be nearby, so he was pulled in directly. His life was saved and fell into Wu Zhu’s hands. Upon entering, he was tightly bound by the darkness and remained in a near-death state.
He almost died completely just now.
But now, he’s most likely alive.
“…”
Wen Jianyan breathed a sigh of relief.
Damn, he’s hard to deal with.
Especially when this guy holds such great power and is completely unaware of his own thoughts and desires… If Wen Jianyan weren’t used to observing and reacting quickly and sharply, he would have stumbled into some unknown minefield again.
Hearing that An Xin was okay, Wen Jianyan’s tightly wound nerves finally relaxed.
He leaned back weakly, and the darkness behind him supported him steadily, preventing him from falling.
Ever since he and Wu Zhu reached their so-called “agreement,” this place would no longer pose a life-threatening danger to him. Compared to the interior of the Changsheng Building, it was practically a resort.
After dealing with so many eerie and terrifying corpses, even Wu Zhu’s expressionless face seemed much friendlier.
Thinking this, Wen Jianyan genuinely smiled at Wu Zhu: “Thanks.”
For some reason, Wu Zhu’s face darkened again.
“It’s time for you to go,” he said coldly.
Wen Jianyan: “…”
Damn, this dumb god is hard to please. He’s so unpredictable and mercurial that even dealing with him is tricky.
However, Wu Zhu was right about one thing.
The longer he stayed here, the longer Su Cheng and the others would remain in the mirror world. They didn’t have the red comb, so they had no way to leave the mirror. Although they obtained the tool related to the curse source, there was still a female corpse in the mirror that could become active at any time. The longer they delayed, the more dangerous it would become.
He took a deep breath and stood up.
“By the way,” Wen Jianyan suddenly remembered something, “Your task for me is to clear this instance, but this is a timed instance. That means, regardless of how many floors we reach, as long as we last 12 hours, we can clear it. But I think what you want to obtain or accomplish isn’t something that can be easily achieved by just surviving on the first floor for 12 hours… Can you give me a floor range?”
Wu Zhu turned his head to look at him, his gaze suddenly pausing and then moving downward.
At this moment, Wen Jianyan realized that his appearance had disappeared, but his clothes were still on.
The clothes were forcefully stretched by the long figure of an adult male. The fabric that originally covered his knees now only reached the middle of his thighs.
“…”
Even though Wen Jianyan prided himself on having thick skin, he was feeling a bit embarrassed now.
Although it was his own choice, it indeed wasn’t very decent.
Wu Zhu’s gaze fell on him.
In those golden, almost beast-like pupils, there was a flicker of a somber light, making Wen Jianyan’s hair stand on end and giving him a strong sense of impending danger.
He instinctively took a step back and couldn’t help but speak faster:
“But I think it would be better if I found the answer to this question myself. After all, you can trust my ability, so there’s no need to trouble you with an answer.”
After an endless, nerve-wracking silence, Wu Zhu finally spoke two precious words:
“Fifth floor.”
.
Wen Jianyan, with the re-lit oil lamp in hand, circled back into the shop.
The shop was dead silent. The dim light illuminated a narrow row of shelves, reflecting off the TV screen and creating an especially eerie feeling.
An Xin was curled up on the floor like a shrimp, his face pale, his pupils constricted, sweating profusely, and trembling as if in shock. His recovery from the danger was much slower than Wen Jianyan’s—after all, he had been in a “death” state for a longer time and had more close calls with death than Wen Jianyan.
After a long time, clarity gradually returned to his eyes, and his expression was dazed and fearful.
“W-What happened?”
The faint light of the oil lamp was reflected in An Xin’s eyes. His voice was extremely hoarse, as if he had swallowed hot sand, making it almost unrecognizable:
“J-Just now, wasn’t it…”
“Yes, the light went out,” Wen Jianyan said. “But I relit it as quickly as I could. Don’t worry, we’re safe for now.”
He comforted in a gentle voice, patting the other’s back and glossing over the inexplicably missing minutes without mentioning a word.
An Xin’s breathing was chaotic and rapid, seemingly still not recovered from the fear of death and darkness: “I thought, I thought I was really going to die…”
“So did I,” Wen Jianyan replied.
His answer was completely honest. Even now, thinking back to those few seconds in the dark, he still felt a lingering fear.
“But we need to move faster,” Wen Jianyan said. “Although the remaining lamp oil can still last, it’s best to reunite with the main group. The number of oil lamps they have can ensure that we don’t fall back into that darkness again.”
“You’re right.” An Xin gritted his teeth, his face pale, forcing himself to stand up from the ground. “We really need to get going.”
Time in the darkness couldn’t be calculated. He felt like he had been there for an entire century, with the terror spreading boundlessly. That cold, near-death feeling was something he really didn’t want to experience again. Even though his legs were still weak, An Xin forced himself to stand, stumbling as he followed Wen Jianyan toward the warehouse.
Wen Jianyan walked quickly, a slight glint of light reflecting in his narrowed eyes, his expression particularly serious and solemn.
…The fifth floor, huh?
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