Xi Zhongcang looked at the clock on the wall but couldn't see anything amiss.
But he was certain that there was something wrong with the flow of time here, a kind of experiential illusion that made people unable to perceive the exact passage of time.
What's terrifying is that the private messaging system on the screen remains frozen. Not only are they completely unable to contact the outside world, but the walkie-talkies are also unresponsive, as if they have been abandoned by the entire world in this icy valley.
Xi Xi thought for a moment, then looked at the synesthetic ring on her hand and suddenly realized that the ring could actually generate heat normally! She was overjoyed, and an idea quickly flashed through her mind.
Given that the "passenger ship" can read minds, Xi Xi pondered for a long time and finally decided to start with an ambiguous narrative.
As she stroked the ring in her hand, which was gradually heating up, she exclaimed in a slightly exaggerated voice, "Oh my god! I've made a great discovery!" Then she picked up the game console next to her.
The moment she finished speaking, the ring suddenly became even hotter, and then Xi Xi heard a deafening scream.
The moment Liu Yunyan heard Xi Xi's voice, she burst into tears of joy, crying without any regard for her image.
"Xi Xi! Where did you go? You've been missing for so many days, we've been looking for you everywhere!" She sobbed as she screamed in her heart, as if to vent all the worry and fear she had accumulated over the past few days.
Yunyan quickly called everyone over and gathered them together. With tears streaming down her face, she said to Xixi, "We can't get in touch with you no matter what we do! We're going crazy with worry!"
Xi Xi was stunned for a moment before realizing that she hadn't heard a single word from Liu Yunyan since boarding the passenger ship.
In a synesthetic chain, the chain is represented by A and the link is represented by B. In theory, the transmission should be unidirectional, from B to A. However, A, having control, can sever the connection with B.
The problem is that Xi Xi did not deliberately block Liu Yunyan from receiving outside information.
Thinking this, Xi Xi frowned deeply. It seems that although both rely on telepathy, the telepathic communication of the synesthetic chain ring and the telepathic reading of the passenger ship are affected but incompatible!
Cheng Xu was very familiar with the synesthetic chain ring. He understood the reason when he saw Xi Xi rubbing the ring. So, he stood up and acted out a scene with Xi Xi.
They pretended to chat face-to-face, but in reality, it was to cover up Xi Xi's secret discussion with Liu Yunyan. Although the cruise ship could read minds, it couldn't discern true human emotions; this loophole had to be exploited!
Xi Xi turned her head slightly and said to Cheng Xu in a casual tone, "How many days have we been here?" Her voice was soft, but with a hint of deliberate effort that was hard to detect.
Cheng Xu pretended that his attention was completely drawn to the game console in his hand and said casually, "It's only the second day. Have you mixed up the dates?"
Liu Yunyan, unaware of their coordinated act, wiped away her tears and said, "Four days! A full four days! We even experienced a major earthquake in the middle, didn't you feel it?"
Xi Xi's expression shifted slightly as the scene from the previous day on the ice quickly flashed through her mind. At that time, everyone did feel a strange tremor, but it was clearly not strong.
Does this mean that they had already come under the control of the cruise ship from that time onwards?
Xi Xi pondered to herself, and the more she thought about it, the more likely it seemed.
She tried to recall the details of the incident; the tremor seemed to have lasted only a few seconds.
The tremor occurred so abruptly and at such an inopportune time that she did not associate it with an earthquake, but rather attributed it to normal activity of the ice.
As Xi Xi pondered this, she randomly turned the directional buttons on her game console a few times. Suddenly, an idea struck her, and she feigned anxiety, saying to Cheng Xu, "What's going on? I'm trapped here and can't get out."
Cheng Xu glanced at Xi Xi and immediately understood, replying, "You're really bad at this game. You need to use the jump button here!"
Liu Yunyan: "Where are you trapped?! According to the chat, a large avalanche has been triggered by this earthquake, we all need to escape as soon as possible! The geology here in the canyon is also very unstable..."
Liu Yunyan responded repeatedly and carefully noted down the route Xi Xi had described.
Following that, Xi Xi, pretending to play games with Cheng Xu, cleverly used various codes and hints to secretly convey messages to Liu Yunyan.
She quickly conveyed the cruise ship's exact location and precautions to Liu Yunyan in a roundabout way.
At first, Liu Yunyan was able to engage in a seemingly respectable question-and-answer session with Xi Xi, maintaining a smooth conversation. However, as time went on, her responses gradually became scarce, and eventually she fell silent altogether, only responding with single words.
Xi Xi felt much more at ease. Liu Yunyan was so intelligent that she must have noticed the unusual nature of her words and realized that what she was saying were indirect and coded messages.
Just then, Cheng's father returned, with a few beads of sweat still clinging to his temples, clearly having just engaged in strenuous exercise.
A smile suddenly broke out on his slightly tired face as he shouted to everyone in the room, "Hey, there's a rock climbing wall downstairs that looks so fun! Any of you interested in coming over for a competition?"
His words were so smooth and easy to read that Cheng Xu couldn't stand watching his father act, so he turned his face away and tried his best not to laugh out loud.
Xi Xi and Xi Zhongcang looked at each other and exchanged glances, seemingly both understanding the unspoken meaning in Cheng's father's words.
After a brief silence, Xi Zhongcang stretched his limbs and said, "Alright, let's have a competition then!"
So they quickly split into two groups: Xi Xi and her father in one group, and Cheng Xu and his father in the other. The two groups went to opposite ends of the climbing wall, ready to begin their "competition".
At the command, both groups exerted their strength simultaneously, using both hands and feet to nimbly climb upwards.
Xi Xi's strength was not to be underestimated. While searching for a foothold, she observed her surroundings, trying to understand Cheng's father's intentions. She even looked at the protrusions and indentations on the climbing wall.
Soon, Xi Xi was far ahead and reached the top of the climbing wall first.
Just as she was wondering about this, she suddenly heard a strange sound.
The sound seemed to come from the ceiling above, which was within reach. It appeared and disappeared intermittently, like the panting of some creature, sometimes low and sometimes high-pitched, which was chilling.
Xi Xi's heart tightened, and she tried hard to see, but she couldn't see anything.
Just then, the other three also climbed to the top. They had obviously heard the strange sound as well, and their expressions turned somewhat grim.
Xi Xi looked at her father, Xi Zhongcang, who nodded solemnly, signaling her to be quiet.
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