“Reason! Give me a solid reason!”
Theia grabbed Lin Gui's arm, her emerald eyes staring intently at him.
“Unless you can convince me.”
She enunciated each word clearly.
“Otherwise, I will absolutely not let you go and face such danger!”
She arched an eyebrow, her gaze as sharp as a blade.
“Were you planning to sneak off by yourself again?”
“Wait until you succeed, and then come back to get us?”
Lin Gui: “...”
He had to admit, she really was a companion who had stayed by his side for a long time.
She had seen through his thoughts in a single glance.
He truly had been thinking that.
Lin Gui’s eyes darted around, and he immediately adopted a relaxed tone:
“Ah, I was just joking just now.”
“I actually planned to go look for Gusion.”
He tried to pull his hand away.
“Come on, Theia, let go first. We need to hurry and catch up to Roger—”
Instead of letting go, Theia gripped even tighter.
Battle force flowed between her fingers, and a trace of black demon energy even seeped out.
The corner of Lin Gui's mouth twitched slightly.
Theia stared at him, her voice terrifyingly calm:
“Don't even think about using the Shroud of the Gloomy Night to sneak away.”
“Lin Gui... let me tell you something.”
She suddenly leaned in, until their noses almost touched.
She pinned Lin Gui against the ruined wall behind him.
They were so close they could feel each other’s breath.
Theia looked directly into his eyes, her gaze filled with unprecedented seriousness.
“I won't allow you to make a joke of your own life.”
Her voice was soft, but every word hammered into Lin Gui’s ears.
“If you really must go—”
“Then you must take me with you.”
She paused, her emerald eyes reflecting Lin Gui's stunned face.
“If we die...”
“We die together.”
In the end, Lin Gui agreed to Theia's demand.
He had no choice; she dragged him along and dug out a long, thick iron house-support beam from the ruins.
Then, her pretty face tightened as she gripped both ends with her hands.
Right in front of Lin Gui, she began to exert force.
Accompanied by a tooth-grinding screech of metal.
That solid iron beam was forcefully twisted by her into a pair of crude handcuffs.
Why did she have to twist it right in front of him?
Witnessing the terrifying power erupting from those slender arms.
Lin Gui’s eyelids jumped wildly, indicating he didn't know either.
The handcuffs locked their wrists together, restricting their range of movement.
Now, it was basically impossible for him to slip away quietly.
Helpless, Lin Gui could only bring Theia along.
To attempt this most dangerous first traversal.
As for Eve—
While Theia had been looking for the iron beam, she had already boarded the flying vessel.
She had tied herself firmly into her seat, demonstrating her stance through action.
Boarding the flying vessel, Theia immediately hugged Lin Gui's back tightly.
Her face peeked out from behind his shoulder, her breath lightly brushing his ear.
She said to Lin Gui, whose body was somewhat stiff:
“Don't misunderstand; it's just that the chain is too short.”
“I’m afraid of affecting your control of the flying vessel.”
Feeling the softness and elasticity pressing against his back.
Lin Gui hesitated for a moment but ultimately did not push her away.
He took a deep breath, doing his best to suppress the inexplicable restlessness in his heart.
Right then, a moist, warm whisper suddenly reached his ear:
“Actually, go ahead and misunderstand.”
“I really don't mind if you do.”
Lin Gui was stunned.
He subconsciously turned his head and caught a glimpse.
He happened to meet Theia's face at point-blank range.
Her long silver-white hair fluttered in the airflow, strands brushing against his neck.
Those emerald eyes, usually full of mirth, were as clear as water at this moment.
They reflected his shadow, focused and without a single trace of impurity.
The sunset's afterglow pierced through the mist, casting fragments of golden light onto her eyelashes.
Her lips were slightly pursed, yet the corners of her mouth held an extremely gentle curve.
There was no usual craftiness or playfulness in that smile.
There was only pure, unreserved affection.
The flying vessel soared over Blackwater City, finally hovering above the towering city walls.
Looking down from here, the entire dead city was laid out before them.
In the distance, the faint sounds of clashing blades and roars could be heard.
They sounded exceptionally harsh in the silent ruins.
Theia leaned over to look, asking softly, “What is that sound?”
Lin Gui’s gaze swept over that direction, and he replied indifferently:
“Those hunters are fighting over the ‘dying’ that Ryan brought.”
“The range a guide can protect is limited.”
“It’s not enough to let all the hunters stranded in Blackwater City leave.”
He looked no further and steered the flying vessel to change direction.
He headed straight for the billowing gray mist outside the city walls.
Eve suddenly spoke up from the back seat to remind him:
“This direction... is not toward the Wailing Corridor.”
Her tone was very certain.
Hearing this, Theia’s eyes lit up:
“Lin Gui! Have you finally come to your senses?”
“Are we going to find Roger and Gusion?”
Lin Gui shook his head.
“No.”
He watched the wall of mist getting closer and closer ahead.
“It’s just that before crossing the Wailing Corridor—”
“I need to verify something first.”
“Verify what?” Theia pressed.
Lin Gui didn't answer.
He only said in a low voice:
“You'll know in a moment.”
The flying vessel’s speed didn't decrease as it plunged headfirst into the vast grayish-white.
This time, they didn't have the protection of any of "the dying."
They entered the thick fog just like that, completely exposed.
And Lin Gui didn't activate his Eyes of the Netherworld either.
The flying vessel traveled for only a few minutes.
The surrounding air filled with that eerie sighing sound that seemed to surge from all directions.
The sound was hoarse and long, sometimes distant and sometimes right by their ears.
It was like countless invisible hands scratching at one's sanity.
Theia instantly tensed her body, gripping her dagger in a reverse hold, her emerald eyes alertly scanning the surroundings.
Eve’s brows knit slightly, and her right hand unconsciously moved to her chest as she began to whisper a strange magic incantation.
They flew into the nearest forest.
Lin Gui silently reduced the flying vessel’s speed.
Ultimately, he actually brought the vessel to a complete halt in mid-air.
It just stayed there, suspended in the mist.
His left hand tightly gripped the control lever, and his right hand held the wind pressure cannon’s activation button, his knuckles turning slightly white.
If the verification encountered an accident later.
He would immediately retreat at full speed.
Although the two girls were confused, neither spoke up to ask.
They only grew more tense.
Stopping within the Wall of Sighs was no different from exposing oneself to invisible dangers.
The sighing sounds grew closer and clearer.
They began to be mixed with a tooth-grinding “creak” and “scrape.”
Like something sharp was rubbing against rock or withered bone.
Theia’s forehead broke out in a fine sweat, her dagger held out in front of her.
Eve’s chanting became rapid, and a faint light appeared at her fingertips.
Just as the sound seemed to have pressed against the flying vessel’s hull.
A sharp, piercing cutting sound suddenly rang out!
Screech—!
Three deep scratches abruptly appeared on the protective plating of the flying vessel's flank!
A phantom, hideous spectral face suddenly appeared out of thin air!
Theia's pupils contracted, and she almost instinctively lunged with her dagger.
At that exact moment.
Lin Gui, who had kept his eyes tightly shut, suddenly snapped them open.
Within those gray eyes, a glimmer of soul energy flowed silently.
He didn't look toward any direction of attack.
He only looked forward into the empty, thick fog calmly—even with a hint of scrutiny.
In the next second—
“Aieee—!!!”
A shriek so shrill it was distorted suddenly exploded!
That wasn't a sigh; it was a scream mixed with extreme terror!
Immediately following, all the “creaks,” scraping, and whispers from every direction...
Were cut off instantly, as if by an invisible hand.
It stopped abruptly.
The thick fog continued to roll.
But those hair-raising “noises” within it.
Disappeared without a trace the moment Lin Gui opened his eyes.
The entire forest fell into a deathly silence.
Only the humming of the hovering vessel still echoed softly.
Theia remained frozen mid-lunge with her dagger.
Eve’s chanting also stopped, her eyes wide as she looked around.
Lin Gui slowly retracted his gaze.
Beneath those gray pupils, those hideous spectral demons seemed to have seen something terrifying as they fled into the distance.
Lin Gui chuckled softly.
He gripped the control lever again, turned the flying vessel, and accelerated toward the coordinates of the Wailing Corridor.
Rate on N.U.
