But Wen Xiang Yuan’s mental stability looked very stable.
Zhao Ke'er speculated, "Could it be that you were affected by something else?"
Since Wen Xiang Yuan did not seem like someone who would be affected at the lowest hole, and because she was a cautious person, Zhao Ke'er had to consider if the reason she fell for the trap was different from Xie Roufen’s.
Wen Xiang Yuan pursed her lips tightly, looking like she wanted to say something, but she glanced at Nan Yue hesitantly.
"I didn't feel anything else strange..."
The others were somewhat skeptical, but Nan Yue spoke up after a moment of silence.
"She also suffered some mental attacks in the last mission and hasn't fully recovered yet, so her mental stability is still quite fragile."
Oh, so that was it.
The group came to a realization, and no one questioned the discrepancy further.
As the others began discussing what kind of ghost or monster this was, Wen Xiang Yuan hesitantly shuffled over to Nan Yue’s side.
"Boss..."
She knew Nan Yue was bailing her out just now, but Nan Yue certainly didn't believe those words herself.
They had just tested their mental stability before entering the mission, and hers was fine.
Furthermore, Wen Xiang Yuan was a smart person; she could tell that Nan Yue and Zhu Xi Ning were also somewhat surprised.
"Everyone has secrets; you don't need to feel guilty for having your own,"
Nan Yue said calmly. She thought of the things she carried; back when she first teamed up with Gu Xiang Kai and the others, she had also been secretive.
"Carrying a secret is exhausting. If you trust us one day, you can let us help you share the burden."
Zhu Xi Ning stood nearby, smiling as she patted Wen Xiang Yuan’s shoulder. "Alright, don't be so nervous. If I really suspected you, I wouldn't have pulled you back just now."
"After all, we've done missions together. Mutual trust is the foundation."
Wen Xiang Yuan lowered her head, thinking about something unknown. After a long silence, she whispered a small "Thank you."
Nan Yue had always felt a sense of dissonance from Wen Xiang Yuan, but since she herself was the biggest anomaly, she couldn't say if there were many others like her.
As long as Wen Xiang Yuan didn't harbor ill intentions toward the team, there was no need to be on guard.
Moreover, Nan Yue wouldn't actually die. If Wen Xiang Yuan put herself in danger because of her own lack of ability, she wouldn't need her teammates to sacrifice themselves for her, so she wasn't exactly a liability.
Nan Yue didn't dwell much on personal secrets. She was willing to share her own with Gu Xiang Kai and Zhu Xi Ning because they had passed through many life-and-death trials together.
And to put it bluntly, her personal self-preservation skills were much stronger than Wen Xiang Yuan’s.
Although Nan Yue and Zhu Xi Ning didn't mind, Wen Xiang Yuan was clearly deep in thought the entire way back, appearing somewhat despondent.
As soon as Luo Liu returned to the village, he headed straight for Suo Qisi’s house.
Suo Qisi’s stone house was next to where they had eaten the previous night. it was slightly larger than the stone houses they stayed in, and it contained a few small stools in addition to the beds.
When Suo Qisi saw them return with so many Ant-red Flowers, a smile appeared on his face.
However, before he could say anything, he was abruptly interrupted by a long, rapid-fire explanation from Luo Liu.
Suo Qisi’s expression visibly soured. He said something to Luo Liu and then ran out of the house.
Luo Liu’s face was pale as the others surrounded him.
"What did the village head say?"
"Yeah, just tell us already."
Luo Liu swallowed hard. "Suo Da said... the interior of the ant nest is extremely complex, and those who fall in simply cannot be found... unless..."
Luo Liu’s face was filled with despair. "Unless they crawl out on their own."
The group fell silent, all knowing that Xie Roufen had fallen into the hole because of hallucinations; there was no way she could crawl out by herself.
"Then where did the village head go?"
"He... he’s organizing the villagers to go to the ant nest for an exorcism."
It was already dusk, and the blood-colored sky made the already humid air feel even more suffocating.
The villagers were all called out by the village head. The women used stone pestles to crush the Ant-red Flowers they had gathered, collecting the juice in bottles, while the crushed petals were wrapped in cloth and tied to sticks.
Once finished, the men of the village held these makeshift torches made of petals, their expressions solemn as they walked toward the ant nest.
Nan Yue and the others followed the villagers and met the men returning from cutting wild cogon grass by the river.
Nan Yue immediately spotted the tall Gu Xiang Kai and then counted the heads.
None of the men were missing, though Zhou Jie Feng’s expression was very ugly, as if he had encountered something.
The young boy leading the male scavengers to cut grass saw the villagers and went up to communicate with them, his expression worsening the more he heard.
The man leading the villagers said something, and the boy gestured for the others to take the grass back to the village.
However, some were willing, while others were not.
He Jiang stepped forward with a smile to block the lead man. "Big brother, it’s obvious something happened. Let’s go along and take a look together."
The man looked at He Jiang coldly and gestured wildly while saying something.
He Jiang’s expression stiffened; he had forgotten they didn't speak the same language.
Fortunately, the boy seemed to understand. He spoke to the leader, and the man nodded coldly before giving some orders.
A few men stepped out of the line and took the grass from the scavengers.
In exchange, they handed over the torches in their hands.
The meaning was clear: they could go, but they were short on hands, so if they went, they had to work.
On the way there, Nan Yue briefly explained what had happened to Gu Xiang Kai, specifically telling him not to go to the higher holes and to be extremely careful.
Regardless, they were nearby, so saving just Gu Xiang Kai wouldn't be a problem.
But the others didn't know what was going on and looked around in confusion.
Su Sheng and Liu Kai Xu seemed to have struck up a good rapport with Gu Xiang Kai just now, and they whispered to him to ask about the situation. Gu Xiang Kai simply told them someone had fallen into a hole and there might be danger.
But He Jiang was clearly unsatisfied with such a simple clue. He didn't dare provoke Nan Yue, so he turned his gaze toward Song Sisi, who looked easy to talk to.
"Little girl, a team should cooperate, shouldn't they? If something happens to us because we were kept in the dark, you’d feel very guilty, wouldn't you?"
He Jiang smiled kindly, but his words were unpleasant. "What exactly happened back there just now?"
Song Sisi looked at He Jiang and said innocently, "Brother He, if something happens to you, isn't that just your own bad luck? Why would we feel guilty?"
He Jiang was speechless.
"Pfft!"
Zhu Xi Ning burst out laughing right next to them. He Jiang couldn't keep his composure, and Jiang Mingfu, who was following him, directly questioned her.
"What are you laughing at? Was Brother He wrong? A team is supposed to support each other. If you're so selfish, don't expect us to step in and save you if something goes wrong."
As soon as He Jiang heard Jiang Mingfu confront Zhu Xi Ning, he knew it was going to end badly, but before he could stop him, Jiang Mingfu had already spoken.
His face twitched, and he wished he could slap Jiang Mingfu.
Zhu Xi Ning was amused by the remark and immediately gave Jiang Mingfu a piece of her mind.
Rate on N.U.
