Chapter 13
Upon hearing this, Fang Xiaozheng hurriedly pulled up her twin ponytails while chewing potato chips: "Let's go, don't interfere with Sister Xin's work."
"Sister Xin," Shen Chumo was a little puzzled, "Why did they leave?"
"They left because they had something to do. Do you want to eat?" Shen Huaixin pushed all the snacks to Shen Chumo so that they could get on the road after eating.
[Plot Deviation Value -2, Current Value 91. (Conclusion: If this continues, the collapse of the small world is imminent.)]
Shen Chumo looked at the snacks, picked up the corn bar covered with pink chocolate, stuffed it into his mouth, tore open the egg pudding, opened the unopened small box of mousse, and stuffed it all into his mouth. Shen Huaixin turned his head away, not daring to look at him.
"These are all my favorites, thank you."
"There's nothing you don't like to eat." Shen Huaixin replied.
Shen Chumo didn't mind, took a piece of paper and wiped his mouth: "It's beautiful over there, how about we go for a walk?"
When Shen Huaixin saw the direction he was pointing, her heart sank, and she felt the force of the plot correction was like an invisible net, making her a little breathless.
She had never hurt anyone. The white lion cat in her rented apartment was picked up on the street. When she first saw it, it was filthy, suffering from a skin disease, and looked shabby and miserable, not at all recognizable as a white cat. Now, she was willing to personally cause someone to fall into the water. For a 21st-century citizen with a compulsory education, this was a violation of moral principles.
[The system reminds again, in a rather coercive and lucrative manner: Host, there will be a full 10 million after the task is completed. The bonus is huge, so please be patient.]
[Chen Huaixin: I know. I understand the logic.]
"What's wrong?" Shen Chumo noticed her strangeness.
Shen Huaixin shrugged: “It’s okay, I’m just in a bad mood, maybe because I saw you coming.”
Shen Chumo didn't care about the second half of her words and suggested: "If you are in a bad mood, you can sing. You are in a good mood every time you sing."
Shen Huaixin was stunned and said nothing.
Regarding Shen Chumo's fall into the water, the book wrote:
The river's surface was calm, but its undercurrents surged. He was entangled in countless pliant water plants, experiencing death and resurrection multiple times. During repeated near-death experiences, his powers erupted. Cursed black energy burned through the ankle chains like the cold fire of hell. He opened his eyes, his dark pupils erect, like a deep-sea behemoth, looking down at the world with cold and haughty aloofness.
This is Shen Chumo’s first awakening.
When Shen Huaixin read this, she felt that the original owner was not killed on the spot by him, which was already a great mercy from Shen Chumo. Especially the part about the resurrection point refreshing at the bottom of the river, which made her empathize with it. She remembered the pain of only having a dead game save in the past, and she was completely disheartened.
She stood up and walked absentmindedly with Shen Chumo, her steps becoming heavier, leaving long, bare marks on the grass as they dragged on the ground.
The dense forest provided the perfect shelter. A gust of wind blew, sending maple leaves fluttering down, brushing against Shen Chumo's fragile, white neck, carrying with them a certain, unknown, austere feeling. The red maple leaves rustled, and Shen Huaixin's palms sweated nervously as he observed the area around the river, pulling out his phone and typing frantically.
Chen Huaixin: Mr. Wang, didn't you say we need to take safety measures? Where are the guardrails, lifeguards, swimming rings, and warning signs?
Mr. Wang: Miss Shen, you're joking. How can it be that fast? Don't worry, there have been no accidents here before, so there's no rush.
Mr. Wang saw it today. Shen Huaixin looked up at the sky.
Shen Chumo picked up a stone from the ground and said innocently, "Let's try skipping stones? I saw them played like this in TV dramas."
“…”
Shen Huaixin had no mood for wasting time, her fingertips turning pale as she gripped her phone. She looked around, hoping to see if there were any kind-hearted people willing to step up and help, but aside from the two of them, there was no one around, and the noise of her classmates had died down.
This is a plot killer.
[System: Host, what are you hesitating about? Shen Chumo needs to awaken his abilities so the plot can move forward.]
Chen Huaixin: Isn't there another way? Try extreme sports, ride a roller coaster, or something? Or commit a telecom scam and leave him hundreds of millions in debt? It's equally thrilling.
[The system was silent for a moment: Yellow card warning.]
Shen Huaixin shuddered, the painful sensation of the electric shock still fresh in her mind. She subconsciously reached out her hand towards the back of Shen Chumo, who was trying to figure out how to skip stones.
The boy's body was still growing. He wore a brown leather jacket with a sweater inside. Instead of being bulky, he looked taller and thinner. When he stood there quietly, he seemed like a sapling, blending in with the surrounding environment in harmony and unity.
Shen Huaixin ground his back teeth, feeling that what was being ground on the roots of his teeth was his own conscience.
Her trembling hand moved closer and closer to Shen Chumo. He was still unconsciously skipping stones on the water, watching the pebbles gradually create ripples on the river. She suddenly withdrew her hand.
【Chen Huaixin: I can’t do it.】
After saying this, she closed her eyes with the look of a dead pig that was not afraid of boiling water, her whole body tensed, waiting for the system's punishment. Suddenly, she heard the sound of "splash" falling into the water. She opened her eyes abruptly and looked towards the river, only to see that half of Shen Chumo's body had already submerged in the river.
[Chen Huaixin:? I haven't even started yet, how could this happen? Dharma King, please save him!]
[System: You should be thankful that he made a mistake, otherwise you would be punished...]
"Plop——" Shen Huaixin plunged into the river.
There was no time to think about it. She relied on her swimming ability that saved her from drowning in her childhood and swam desperately towards Shen Chumo.
Shen Chumo kept choking on the water, replaying the scenes from his dream in his mind.
In his dream, his last sight before falling into the water was of the girl's outstretched hand. Afterward, he was drowned by the current, his vision blurred, leaving only fragments. A voice resembling his own echoed, yet far colder, carrying a chilling chill, like the eternal, unmelting ice of the Far North. The voice was majestic and alluring, as if it were coming through the cracks of the gates of hell.
It says, "You will not die, you will gain the power to destroy the world. You must fall into the water."
It also said that you must see the true faces of all human beings. They are shameless, evil and pathetic. No one truly treats you well, just like the "sister" you treat sincerely.
"I won't listen to you!" he shouted, resisting with all his might. "You're a liar!"
"You should know whether I lied or not."
"No, you are a devil! I won't listen to the devil's instigation!"
The voice paused: "Chen Chumo, the devil is you."
But today when he stood by the lake, he saw himself stretching out his foot, obeying the words and taking a step forward like a possessed person. Only then did he realize that this was exactly the same river that drowned him in his dream. But before that, he seemed to be blinded by something, causing him to completely lose his vigilance and forget about the dream.
Is everything in the dream real? Is it a malicious prophecy or... a destined outcome?
The rushing river water rushed into his mouth and nose, and his ears were buzzing and noisy, like an old TV flashing snow signals and making electric crackling sounds. But Shen Chumo still caught the sound of something falling into the water in the distance. It seemed like a long time had passed, but it seemed like only a moment. Something suddenly grabbed him and held him tightly.
Shen Chumo knew it was waterweed, and it should be. This was what he had predicted in his dream. But why was it the arm that was entangled? The feet should have been entangled first.
"Hold on—"
The girl's call was so close that it could not be conveyed from the shore.
Shen Chumo shuddered, only then could he see her face clearly at the interface between the water and the air. She was completely soaked, her usual delicate makeup gone, leaving only pale lips and hair clinging to her face like seaweed. She didn't look as smug as she had in her dream, only the corners of her eyes were red and filled with worry.
Who is she worried about? Shen Chumo was puzzled.
The waves hit, and her frail body trembled violently. He could hear Shen Huaixin choking on the water, accompanied by painful groans, and the violent trembling of her fingertips on her grasped arm. Countless undercurrents surged in, wreaking havoc on her fragile body.
It was a sense of reality that was far beyond his reach in dreams, and it made his heart feel as if it was being clenched.
The voice said he would not die.
But she will.
She risked her life to save an immortal, a deal so bad it wasn't worth it. If he died, it would be in her best interest.
The force on his arm gradually loosened, and he saw that Shen Huaixin had closed her eyes, as if she had fainted. Her face was as quiet as a pool of stagnant water, about to be washed away by the current. The moment her hand slipped out of her sleeve, Shen Chumo grabbed her with his backhand, interlocking his fingers and clamping her slender fingers tightly with his knuckles.
...If this continues, she will die.
Shen Chumo held her back in his arms, pulling her nasal cavity out of the water, and desperately swam her towards the shore. He didn't know how to breathe, and he didn't even know how to exert force. He could only use all his strength to get them closer and closer to the shore.
The overwhelming waves submerged him, and he was knocked to the bottom of the river again, losing his direction. However, his tightly clasped hands never separated from Shen Huaixin, and there was only one thought in his mind - to keep Shen Huaixin alive!
Suddenly, an unknown force surged from deep within his body, flowing continuously. His hands instantly became strong, able to easily lift Shen Huaixin and swim towards the shore. However, he did not notice that where he swam, he left behind traces of ink, as if ink dripped into a pool of water and then disappeared.
Shen Huaixin felt that if he drowned, he must have died unjustly.
Her act of saving people was immediately judged as a serious ooc, and she was punished with a severe electric current, which directly knocked her unconscious. As a result, her good swimming ability was completely useless and she became a burden instead.
The feeling of suffocation is not pleasant. There is an unbearable dull pain in the chest, as if being pressed by a sharp and heavy rock. It is difficult to breathe, and everything is dark in front of my eyes. I am overwhelmed by unprecedented despair and fear.
When she forced her eyes open, she saw a handsome face slowly enlarging, its pale lips drawing ever closer. He was frowning, but there was no hint of frivolity.
"Cough..." She turned her face to the side and coughed heavily.
As Shen Huaixin moved, the warmth covering her chest instantly faded. She gasped for air, not having time to think about where to perform the cardiopulmonary compressions, as she was busy breathing the hard-earned fresh air.
[Plot Deviation -23, Current Value 68. (Conclusion: Survival or destruction, that is the question. Host, please keep up the good work.)]
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