Main Plot Boss: “Lala, did you take on a special mission?”
Lan Tian was confused. Was there such a thing as “special” missions?
The “Lala” main plot quickly sent a message: “I was on a special mission from the start. Let me tell you, I’m bored to death over here, and Little Mengmeng gave me this kind of task. I’ve been waiting forever, and even worse, this mission is affecting my protagonist value…”
The Lala main plot instantly sent a super long message. Lan Tian glanced at the wall of text and felt slightly dizzy, quickly closing his eyes and shaking his head. He looked over at Min Yue and found his face had suddenly turned ashen, feeling both amused and empathetic. The Lala main plot… was such a chatterbox.
Main Plot Boss: “STOP!”
Yu Shengyan had been pacing inside the cave. Suddenly, he caught sight of Lan Tian shaking his head… He was startled, hurried to Lan Tian’s side, and tested to see if his “Light of Annihilation” had injured him. As it turned out… it hadn’t.
The moment Lan Tian looked up and saw Yu Shengyan suddenly appear before him, he easily startled as he was caught off guard and recoiled, shrinking his neck back. Yu Shengyan stared at him, stunned.
In that split second, Lan Tian realized… he… seemed to have gone OOC (Out of Character). A Demon Lord wouldn’t be so easily startled. However, his reflexes were quick, and he managed to salvage the moment before Yu Shengyan’s surprise could turn into suspicion.
“Stay away from me.”
Lan Tian spoke coldly, instantly reframing his startled reaction as one of wariness and a desire for distance. Yu Shengyan didn’t stand there frozen anymore; a smile suddenly tugged at the corner of his dazed face.
“Haha, alright.”
He held up his hands, took a few steps back, and stopped approaching. He was incredibly obedient to Lan Tian’s words.
Lan Tian suddenly felt like he was a… deadbeat boyfriend… watching Yu Shengyan’s slightly dejected silhouette… and couldn’t help but secretly think… was he too harsh?
Before he could dwell on it, the Lala main plot sent another message.
Lala Main Plot: “Hey, I’m telling you, Boss, if you don’t let me talk, I’m going to suffocate. I don’t believe you’re not lonely when you’re busy acting cool.”
Lan Tian recalled that the Boss had indeed been stifled by his own character settings before. But… it was still no match for Lala’s long-windedness.
The Main Plot Boss was rendered speechless, unable to say a word for a moment. Seeing that the conversation was drifting off-topic, Lan Tian hurriedly pulled it back to business.
Lan Tian: “Lala, what is your special mission? Why do you have to be with us?”
Lala Main Plot: “Little Anti-Protagonist, my special mission only gave me a location, a place called the ‘Hidden Village,’ and I know it has something to do with you.”
Lan Tian: “With me?” Lan Tian thought carefully through the plot points Little Mengmeng had mentioned to him and confirmed the term “Hidden Village” wasn’t among them… Why would it be related to him?
Main Plot Boss: “Actually, this is normal. Lala’s main plot is very likely linked to the final mission. It’s not time for the Little Anti-Protagonist to know yet, so Little Mengmeng wouldn’t have told you beforehand.”
Lan Tian: “I see.”
Lala Main Plot: “Haha, exactly! I figured out that to find the Hidden Village, I first have to find the Demon Lord. So… I’m coming to find you guys.”
Lala Main Plot: “Hey, by the way, where are you guys right now?”
Lan Tian: “…” Main Plot Boss: “…” Lan Tian: “So, you don’t even know where you are.”
Lala Main Plot: “Of course not. Hurry up and tell me, I already boasted to them about it!
Lan Tian: “Actually… we don’t know either…”
Lala Main Plot: “xue kei xuan?”
Lan Tian: “A puppet of mine, Jialuo, brought us here. He should know where we are. Don’t be in such a hurry, Lala; I’ll ask him later.”
Lala Main Plot: “Sigh, fine.”
The group chat quieted down, and Lan Tian and Min Yue turned their attention back to their current task. Lan Tian turned and secretly glanced at Jialuo again, noticing the little squirrel was still persistently gnawing on the rope. He found the squirrel quite cute, though he was surprised by how loyal it was to the stubborn Jialuo. It also served to show that Jialuo wasn’t a bad person.
Would the trace of vitality on him bring about more changes?
After their turbulent journey, most of the time outside the cave had slipped away unnoticed. The area outside was no longer dark and gloomy; sunlight was gradually filtering in. Yu Shengyan walked outside the cave entrance and discovered that, strangely, there was no vegetation here, yet the sunlight shining down was still intense.
With sunlight this intense, it’s impossible for there to be no grass at all… He was surprised by this strange sight. He gazed into the distance and realized the place looked like a desolate wilderness. Wangxian Mountain was the tallest mountain in the world; theoretically, you could see its silhouette from anywhere. Yet here… it was nowhere to be seen.
Yu Shengyan raised his hand to block the sun and turned back to ask Min Yue. “Master, we must go out and investigate to understand where we are. However… there are only two of us. One must go out while the other keeps watch here.”
Min Yue walked to his side and nodded. “That would still be dangerous. Why don’t we set a schedule? You go out to investigate for one hour, then switch with me. That way, if one of us runs into trouble, the other will immediately notice.”
Yu Shengyan thought the method was sound. He nodded in approval, performed a disciple’s bow, and stepped out of the cave to find a path.
With only Min Yue left in the cave, Lan Tian signaled him with his eyes. Min Yue blinked to acknowledge, then looked toward Jialuo.
Hehehe, heard there’s a little squirrel… let me find it.
Yu Shengyan walked east outside the cave, discovering that while there was no vegetation near the entrance, he could see fruit trees and ordinary small trees further away. He picked a few small fruits, placed them in his wide sleeves, and gathered some small stones to mark his path. Walking and observing, he roughly sensed that an hour had passed. He peered at the end of the road and found… he couldn’t see the end at all… He was overcome with a sense of melancholy; he considered himself quite fast, yet he couldn’t even see where the road ended.
Regardless… he had to turn back first to report to his Master and discuss strategies.
However, the moment he turned around, he was startled. The small stones he had just placed on the side of the road… were gone. He hurriedly rubbed his eyes and knelt on the ground, scraping through the dirt to look for them. He remembered placing them there just a second ago, and they were large and conspicuous. They shouldn’t have disappeared so easily…
After searching repeatedly, the stones seemed to have vanished into thin air, leaving no trace…
He could only furrow his brows, his expression solemn, as he stared at the road back.
The stones… they were all gone.