CH 43

Newcomer

"What a big cave!"

"Who lives here?"

The second sentence is simply nonsense. Lou Fan thinks that this is probably Qitong's place. As for whether it is a residence or not, it’s not certain. After all, the entire Mount Gui is Qitong's territory, and it is up to him to decide where to live.

The 10 people were cautious at first, and after finding that there is no danger, they spread out to look around. This cave is really big, and the 10 people are so small that they seem to have entered the kingdom of giants, looking up at the high dome with their heads raised.

"Look, Brother Lou!" Chen Shuyang's excited voice sounded and Lou Fan turned to look to see him pointed to an illuminating bead. The bead is as big as a washbasin, inlaid on the surrounding stone walls and shining brightly.

No wonder it is so bright here. They even forgot that the torches in their hands are still on.

Lou Fan turned his head and asked Chen Shuyang, "Is this the legendary night pearl? But is there such a big night pearl? I remember most of the night pearl in writing is about the size of a goose egg which is already considered very big. But this one is as big as a washbasin..." Isn’t it a bit unscientific?!

Chen Shuyang corrected Lou Fan, "Brother Lou, it's not recorded officially. Most of the night pearls you read are written with a fantasy element, which means, they are all fabricated."

Wen Lang frowned, "Mount Gui is the mythical world, so there's nothing impossible."

Jiang Dong also echoed, "This is not a world that we can infer with our common sense, so this is probably the night pearl."

As the four of them discussed the matter eagerly, Qin Tan reminded them of the reality, like a basin of cold water on their eagerness, "Even if it's the legendary night pearl, we can't touch anything here. Remember what Qitong did on the first night? Everyone needs to be careful."

There is a huge stone platform in the cave, and there are some things sparsely placed on it. They shone brightly and look like gems. There are also some small stone platforms around, and some things are placed at random on them too.

Zhang Zhang and his team members are very excited. They looked around and put things into their bags from time to time. Lou Fan wanted to remind them, but in this case, it's like someone has a piece of gold in front of them but you stop them from picking it up. Anyone would be angry in that situation.

Qin Tan only glanced around the cave. Then he found a clean spot near the entrance of the cave and waved to Lou Fan to follow him. Lou Fan walked over with a grin, followed by three tails (team members). The group sat together to rest. Lou Fan rested his head on his palm as he looked at the Level 8 team, "Is it really okay for them to move things so casually? Will that implicate us?" Everyone is in the same boat at the moment, and who can beat the gods in mythology? Won’t they be massacred?

Jiang Dong replied aloud, "Regarding this, I have collected data and researched it. Generally speaking, there won’t be a 100% death situation in the mission world, that is to say, there will always be a way of life in any situation. However, once the death condition is triggered, the person who triggers it will die. Or if he did something to resolve the death condition, then there is still the possibility of surviving."

The points that Jiang Dong said, Lou Fan didn't know anything about it. Right now, he felt that he should collect more information on that aspect, which would be very helpful for them when they entered the mission worlds.

"Jiang Dong, not bad. The information you collected is very useful." Lou Fan pondered for a while before saying, "I will leave it to you and Wen Lang to inquire about the information about the mission world in the future, and then share it with us. Chen Shuyang is responsible for analyzing the information and keeping records. Everyone performs their own duties, perfect!" Lou Fan snapped his fingers and added, “Qin Tan and I will be in charge of leading and training you guys."

With such an arrangement, Lou Fan felt that he had fully utilized the abilities of his team members. He winked at Qin Tan, "What do you think of my arrangements, team leader?" As he said that, Lou Fan slipped his hand to Qin Tan's thigh. With the backpack as his cover, he caressed the area, feeling delighted in his heart.

Qin Tan: "You are right."

His b.utt suddenly gro.ped made Lou Fan almost jump up in shock. He looked at Qin Tan, who is acting like a hooligan in a serious manner, and gritted his teeth. He really wanted to pounce on Qin Tan and take a bite!

Just as Lou Fan is about to continue to tease back, Zhang Zhang came over and said to them with a smile, "Team leader Qin, shall we stay here for the night today? We will continue to look for snakes tomorrow." He seemed to have achieved a good harvest, so the previous fatigue is swept away, and is high-spirited.

"Stay here for the night?" Lou Fan frowned, "Team leader Zhang, you didn’t forget where our mission world is, right? You already took the things here, and now you want to spend the night as well? Are you sure?" Are you thinking that you lived your life long enough?

Zhang Zhang obviously came prepared. The big man with a northeast accent rubbed his hands as he explained, "You see, it's very late now and everyone is tired after a long day. This place is spacious and bright. Even if Qitong comes, we can hide quickly."

The most important thing is that their team wanted to pry out a night pearl, but they can't do it right away. If there are only 5 of them left in this cave, they don’t feel at ease. That’s why Zhang Zhang wanted to convince Qin Tan and the others to stay together so that there’s someone to help keep watch.

Qin Tan disagreed, "Team leader Zhang, I'm sure you know the level of danger here. Treasures are very important, but you have to be alive to take them back with you."

Zhang Zhang argued, "Then do you think that the dark and damp forked hole is more suitable for resting at night? If a Chang snake passes by, it will still be a hard fight. It's better for us to get a good rest here, it’ll be easier to deal with the Chang snake then."

Zhang Zhang’s words are not unreasonable, but Lou Fan had a feeling that this place is not that simple. But when he thinks of resting at the fork road, it is obviously more comfortable here.

After Qin Tan’s team inputted their opinions, Jiang Dong analyzed and concluded, "We should stay here, separated from them. This location that Brother Qin chose is very suitable. If there is an emergency, we can evacuate in time."

Everyone thinks that this proposal is feasible. If nothing works, they’ll just have to run faster.

And so, Qin Tan said to Zhang Zhang, "Team leader Zhang, we will be resting here. It is better for the 2 teams to be separated. If there is an emergency, we can escape in time."

Seeing that Qin Tan’s team agreed to stay, Zhang Zhang became happy. He nodded a few times and said, "Then, you guys get some rest first, and I will tell my team."

Zhang Zhang left with a smile.

Wen Lang snorted softly, "Humans. Greed is an innate human characteristic, but it also depends on how he enjoys his life. Brother Lou already said that, I thought this team leader Zhang is a sensible person before. Unexpectedly, he doesn't understand." Wen Lang shook his head and sighed.

Seeing Wen Lang acting like that, Lou Fan felt an itch on his hand and he slapped Wen Lang on the head, "Don't act like an old man here. Be alert tonight. If there is any movement, don't worry about anything and just run away."

The time is approaching midnight, and they are indeed very sleepy. Qin Tan is the first vigil, and the second is Lou Fan. After Lou Fan fell asleep, Qin Tan shifted Lou Fan’s head to rest on his shoulders. Lou Fan’s brows are still wrinkled in his deep sleep. He is sound asleep, but the sleep is unstable.

Originally they are supposed to change shifts every 1.5 hours, but 2 hours had passed by the time Lou Fan woke up.

"Why didn't you call me?" Lou Fan rubbed his neck. Then he poured a handful of water from the water bottle and splashed it on his face, instantly sobering up.

Because Lou Fan had just woken up, he has a confused look on his face. Qin Tan liked it, so he couldn't help rubbing his hair. After that, he leaned in and pecked at Lou Fan’s cheek. The touch on his cheek surprised Lou Fan. Turning his head, he glanced around and smiled. Then, he kissed Qin Tan's lips. It is just a light touch but the sweetness in his heart made the corners of Lou Fan’s mouth rise up.

Lou Fan pushed Qin Tan to rest, "Go to sleep soon."

Qin Tan chuckled lightly and nodded. He squeezed himself to Lou Fan's side and rested his head on the nook of Lou Fan’s neck. Lou Fan shifted his body to let Qin Tan lean more comfortably. After a few seconds, the person beside him fell asleep immediately. Lou Fan’s body is stiff as he didn't dare to move, for fear of waking Qin Tan up.

The members of the Level 8 team are also resting, they are leaning behind a stone platform. It is some distance from the entrance of the cave, but there is a stone platform covering them, so they won’t be easily discovered.

The night pearl on the stone wall is shining brightly, and Lou Fan stared at it, not knowing how long he has been staring. Suddenly, Lou Fan's heart skipped a beat, and an indescribable feeling of panic spread from the bottom of his heart. The fur ball in his arms twitched and it made rapid short chirps.

Something is wrong!

Lou Fan immediately felt that something has happened, and he immediately pushed Qin Tan and the other three, "Wake up, something is wrong."

Everyone looked very alert, and they woke up immediately when called as if they didn’t sleep at all. Lou Fan was going to call Zhang Zhang, but it is too late.

A tremor came from the ground, followed by a heavy bell sound. Zhang Zhang and his members had woken up by now and Lou Fan and his members are standing at the entrance of the cave. The next moment, no one saw what happened but a huge figure appeared in the cave. The figure is very tall, and everyone realized that they couldn't see the figure’s face at all. It seemed like there is a layer of fog over his face.

It's Qitong!

Qin Tan didn't even think about it, he pulled Lou Fan and roared, "Run!" The rest of his team kept up without hesitation. The team ran into the entrance immediately and disappeared in an instant.

However, Zhang Zhang's team is not so lucky because they are behind the stone platform. As soon as they stood up, Qitong only stomped his feet gently, and the ground shook violently, like an earthquake. Zhang Zhang and the others couldn't stand firm at all. They staggered to and fro, barely holding onto the stone platform to avoid falling.

"Yo, it seems that I have a few little ants here, and you guys have been bad."

The deep mellow voice slammed down from the top of their heads, like an invisible wall slamming on them. Zhang Zhang’s team felt that their internal organs are churning, and couldn’t suppress the metallic blood taste in their mouths.

Fu Chun gritted his teeth and waited for his breathing to calm down. Then he picked up his shovel and rushed forward, shouting, "Run, team leader! I'll attract his attention!"

Despair appeared in Zhang Zhang's eyes, "Fu Chun, come back!"

Du Jun pulled Zhang Zhang to run, "Team leader, don't disappoint Brother Fu Chun’s goodwill!"

Zhang Zhang took a few deep breaths before reaching out to pull You Xing up. Du Jun pulled Du Feng, and they stumbled towards the entrance.

"Want to run after taking my things?"

Qitong picked up the ant-like Fu Chun and brought him to his face. Next, he opened his mouth wide and released his fingers...

At this moment, how can Zhang Zhang not understand? Immediately, he threw away the things he collected from the cave as he ran. None of the things here should be taken out!! He regretted not listening to Qin Tan and the others, but it is useless to regret it now. The strong man with a northeastern accent didn't even dare to look back at his teammates.