Chapter 116 The Deeply Locked-Up Awakening
Zhou Zhiheng seemed to be acting on instinct, pressing her tightly into his arms.
The world spun around.
Data fragments, like phantoms, flew around me. The sounds of impacts, the rustling of fabric, and muffled groans suppressed in my throat mingled together.
It rolled countless times before finally coming to a stop.
Ning Shuyin steadied herself amidst a wave of dizziness, raised her head, and realized that she was lying on Zhou Zhiheng's chest.
Beneath me was a warm touch, and in my ear was his heavy yet restrained breathing.
The two were entangled in an extremely intimate manner in the dimly lit spiral staircase.
"Are you alright? Did you break any bones?" Ning Shuyin asked anxiously.
Zhou Zhiheng released her hand first, then shook his head: "Don't worry, you won't suffer any physical harm in this space."
Zhou Zhiheng propped himself up to sit up. Ning Shuyin thought he would push her away.
However, after he sat up, he did not do anything else.
In this space, his external sharp edges were retracted. This resulted in them being closer together at this moment.
You can hear their breathing.
She tried to get away from him, but Zhou Zhiheng's eyes suddenly went unfocused.
He suddenly reached out and grabbed her wrist again. This time, the force was immense, his fingertips even trembling slightly.
Like a drowning person grabbing onto a piece of driftwood, a broken plea escapes from their throat:
"...Don't go."
"What's wrong?" Ning Shuyin asked.
His voice, pleading for her to stay, was so weak it was almost inaudible, while his gaze quietly drifted towards the top of the stairs.
Ning Shuyin followed his gaze.
Behind the Chinese-style columns on the second floor, a middle-aged woman stood faintly, wearing a simple gray coat.
"Who is that?"
“My…wet nurse,” Zhou Zhiheng whispered in her ear.
For the first time, Zhou Zhiheng, as proud as he was, revealed such a helpless side in front of her.
This allowed her to glimpse the cracks beneath the hard exterior. The emotions revealed within were unclear—whether from abandonment or betrayal.
Ning Shuyin hesitated for a moment, then reached out and gently patted his shoulder.
"Zhou Zhiheng, wake up."
As if awakened by her voice, Zhou Zhiheng's eyes refocused.
He abruptly released his grip, a hint of embarrassment flashing in his purple eyes, as if regretting his earlier lapse in composure.
“Get up,” he said to her.
Ning Shuyin propped herself up. He instinctively helped her up, his fingertips briefly touching her elbow before pulling away, creating distance between them again.
"I'm fine," he said calmly, turning his face away as if trying to bury his vulnerability.
“There’s a door over there,” Ning Shuyin pointed ahead.
"Let's go." He changed the subject, no longer looking at her, and the two walked quickly forward.
I pushed open the door, thinking it was the exit, but was instead drenched by a warm, misty curtain of water.
The fine stream of water instantly soaked everything, blurring the view.
This was an extremely luxurious bathroom, filled with a warm, humid atmosphere. Just as they were about to leave, the door behind them vanished.
"What's going on!" Ning Shuyin complained, frowning as she wiped the water off her face.
She reached out, intending to reach past Zhou Zhiheng to turn off the water valve.
The slippery tiles beneath her feet caused her to lose her balance. She involuntarily lurched forward—
Zhou Zhiheng did not move.
He neither pushed her away nor helped her up.
He simply stood there, letting her bump into his arms. The warm water continued to wash over them both.
Their soaked clothes clung tightly to their bodies.
Zhou Zhiheng's long black hair was scattered by the water, a few wet strands clinging to his fair neck. Water droplets rolled down his superior jawline, past his Adam's apple, and into the now-transparent front of his shirt. He lacked his usual sharp and intimidating aura, and possessed a more bewitching and alluring quality.
Ning Shuyin's heart started racing the moment she was thrown into his arms.
It's simply because the intimate touch before my eyes feels too real.
She touched Zhou Zhiheng's body, feeling its damp warmth. She smelled the sweet, lingering scent mixed with the bath gel.
Beneath his soaked clothes, she could even feel the lines of his muscles and his equally rapid heartbeat.
His gaze was like a deep, turbulent purple sea. His eyes, uncontrollably drawn, swept over her moist lips and finally met her eyes.
His gaze was burning hot as his palm slowly touched her vest. Then, he lowered his head and leaned closer to her.
Ning Shuyin clearly sensed the change in his aura and the strangeness in his eyes.
She seemed to be held firmly by some nameless gravitational force.
“Zhou Zhiheng,” she staggered back a step, barely managing to find her voice, “I just wanted to turn off the water; the switch is behind you.”
These words seemed to help Zhou Zhiheng regain his rationality, and also extinguished the escalating atmosphere of ambiguity around him.
The young man's eyes flashed, the tears in his eyes receded, and his face showed a look of bewilderment and embarrassment.
Even a little... injured
Taking advantage of his momentary lapse in concentration, Ning Shuyin pushed him back half a step.
His back was pressed against the wall.
She approached. Finally, she reached the shower switch behind him.
With a gentle tap, the overhead shower was turned off.
The bathroom fell silent again, with only the sound of their suppressed breathing and the soft dripping of water onto the floor.
A door suddenly appeared at the other end of the bathroom.
From inside the door came the boy's suppressed breathing, his voice tinged with a faint sob.
Ning Shuyin looked toward that door.
On a messy large bed, the young Zhou Zhiheng was deeply immersed in the pure white bedding.
His cheeks were flushed, his eyes were moist, and he was biting his lip as if resisting something.
His body trembled slightly with unease, and his skin turned a rosy hue.
The impact of this scene was too strong. Ning Shuyin suddenly understood what the emotions in this room represented.
No wonder he lost his composure in the bathroom just now.
"Don't look!" Zhou Zhiheng, standing beside him, blushed instantly, the redness even spreading to his ears.
He grabbed Ning Shuyin's wrist, hastily dragged her out of the bathroom, and fled past the room into the dark passageway.
As soon as they left the room, the water droplets on their bodies disappeared without a trace.
It's as if what happened in the bathroom just now never happened.
Outside the door, it was still a corridor.
However, the surrounding scenery began to distort, like a signal of poor contact.
“This place is starting to become unstable.” Ning Shuyin keenly noticed the change.
"We should be close to the exit soon," Zhou Zhiheng said in a hoarse voice.
He pulled Ning Shuyin along and pushed open a heavy alloy door.
Bright lights streamed out; this was a training room.
A middle-aged man with a cold face sat cross-legged in the center of the room, his palms facing the sky.
Across from him sat a little boy wearing loose-fitting Tai Chi clothes.
The boy stretched out his hand, with a Rubik's Cube floating in his palm.
“Remember, my son,” the middle-aged man’s voice was devoid of emotion, “never make a losing deal. Every exchange you make must yield greater value.”
Ning Shuyin recognized the middle-aged man as Zhou Zhiheng's father. This was the classroom where Zhou Zhiheng was learning his "equivalent exchange" ability.
“I have a feeling that the exit is right here,” Zhou Zhiheng’s voice rang out.
Ning Shuyin looked around but did not find any new doors appearing on the wall.
"Where's the door? How do I get out?" she asked.
Zhou Zhiheng's eyes suddenly revealed a hint of obsession. He said, "Follow the rules, complete a transaction that maximizes value, and perhaps the exit will appear."
He raised his hand.
His gaze swept across the room and locked onto an energy spear inside.
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