Strange Tales from the Deep Mountains (17)
With red eyes, Li Xue shook Gu Qingyan, whose eyes were tightly closed, her voice trembling, "Qingyan... wake up!"
The sheer terror of witnessing Li Su being completely strangled by the giant python coiled in the tree until it disappeared from sight nearly drove Li Xue to the brink of collapse.
In this instance, the person she trusts and relies on the most is Li Su.
Although I don't know why, Li Su always seems to be the lucky one. Even though everyone else is a newbie who has just entered the dungeon, why is it that Li Su always gets the items given by the NPC?
The sharp object in her palm stung her a little, but Li Xue clenched it tighter, as if that could slightly alleviate her unease.
Did Li Su get dragged away by the giant python because she hid this thing? If she hadn't taken it, would Li Su...?
Li Xue bit her lip hard, her eyes brimming with tears.
No, no, it's not her fault. She just wanted to live...
She didn't mean to harm Li Su. This snake is an NPC, right? How could it hurt Li Su?
No, no...
It's just a necklace, Li Su will be fine...
The python, coiled on the tree trunk, continued to move slowly, its scales rubbing against the trunk with a rough, rustling sound. The python was doing something; its head was gently rubbing against the section of its tail where Li Su had been entangled, and its forked tongue occasionally darted out of its mouth to lick that section of skin.
In the quiet environment, the sounds of tree bark rubbing against skin and the hissing of snakes flicking their tongues alternated, sending chills down one's spine.
The female ghost behind them hadn't caught up yet. Li Xue patted Gu Qingyan hard again, calling out in a low, tearful voice, "Wake up!"
This was only their second night in this witch village, and in the blink of an eye, only she and Gu Qingyan remained of the original six...
Li Xue gritted her teeth, tears streaming down her face uncontrollably.
Just as she was about to call out to Gu Qingyan again, Gu Qingyan finally woke up slowly, curled up like a frightened fawn. She relaxed abruptly after seeing that the person in front of her was Li Xue, and tears streamed down her face.
"Waaah... Lin... Lin Ran..." Gu Qingyan couldn't continue, her eyes were frighteningly red, and as if she suddenly remembered something, she trembled violently: "Li... Li Su..."
Li Xue's expression became slightly unnatural. She then covered Gu Qingyan's mouth with her hand and whispered, "Keep your voice down, the snake is still here."
Mentioning snakes made Gu Qingyan shudder again. She shrank closer to Li Xue and shakily raised her eyes to look at the tree trunk not far away. She could only make out a black triangular snake's head before quickly lowering her head.
Just now, just now, Li Su was attacked by this snake...
Li Xue felt a little anxious. Seeing Gu Qingyan's timid and tearful appearance after waking up made her even more annoyed. However, Gu Qingyan was now her only teammate, and having more people was better than having only one.
Li Xue suppressed her frustration, wiped away her tears, and said to Gu Qingyan, "We need to leave this place quickly."
As Li Xue spoke, she carefully glanced around at her surroundings. Li Su left her and Gu Qingyan in a relatively safe location.
"Waaah!" Gu Qingyan suddenly sobbed.
Li Xue frowned as she looked at her.
Before Li Xue could speak, Gu Qingyan sobbed in a trembling voice, "That...that snake...discovered us..."
Li Xue's muscles tensed instantly. She looked up and saw that the giant python's head had somehow risen from its tail, its black bean-like eyes staring intently at her and Gu Qingyan.
"Waaah... what... what should I do..." Gu Qingyan's tears fell like beads from a broken string, one after another, and her pale face completely lost all color.
The muffled, suppressed sobs of the person beside her made Li Xue's already fragile nerves even more sensitive. She frowned and said in a low voice, "Stop crying!"
"What's the use of crying!" Li Xue rolled her eyes in annoyance.
Now that there was no one else around, she no longer bothered to pretend.
"I knew something was wrong a long time ago!!!"
"She's so strange. She wanted to be tied to Li Su right away. Oh, I see!"
"So their true colors have been completely exposed? They're not even bothering to pretend anymore?"
"Damn, no wonder that woman in red was able to touch Su Su; she took the necklace in the chaos!"
"The person upstairs is using more precise language. This isn't 'taking,' it's 'stealing'! It's 'robbing'!"
"How can someone be like this? She wouldn't have been able to clear the last dungeon at all without everyone's help!"
The Shengze Middle School instance was not Li Xue's first instance at all. Li Xue had already experienced three instances before that instance. She is the one who has experienced the most instances among the six people. This instance is already her fifth instance.
As for that pitiful appearance, it was just Li Xue's disguise.
As for the reason, it was because Li Xue was genuinely terrified during the first instance, so she cried like Gu Qingyan. However, the teammates who were pulled into the instance with her were all men, and seeing Li Xue's weak appearance, they didn't let her do anything throughout the entire instance.
Li Xue's first dungeon run was entirely carried by her male teammates.
Li Xue made a decision as she successfully passed the test.
Most men are simple-minded creatures. Li Xue considered herself a pretty girl, and by sobbing a couple of times and inadvertently revealing her gentle and weak appearance, she naturally attracted men.
Thus, Li Xue successfully passed each of the previous levels by relying on her delicate appearance and superb acting skills.
Even in the Shengze Middle School instance, she successfully gained everyone's trust; both men and women took special care of her, until those two players...
Li Xue suddenly furrowed her delicate eyebrows.
What did those two players look like? What were their names? And why was she thinking about those two players in particular? What happened to them?
Li Xue suddenly realized that the two people in her memory had become very blurry, and she couldn't remember anything about those two players.
But a vague sixth sense told her that those two players weren't taking special care of her like the others...
Gu Qingyan was startled by Li Xue's sudden change in expression. She suppressed her sobs, afraid to cry out loud, and cautiously called out, "Li Xue? What's wrong?"
Li Xue was pulled back from her memories by Gu Qingyan's voice. Her tone was not good, and she said coldly, "That snake can't get over here, stop crying."
While Gu Qingyan was unconscious, Li Xue had already observed that most of the snake's body was wrapped around the tree and could not break free, so only its upper body could move freely.
That's why the snake is now staring intently at her and Gu Qingyan with its black eyes, completely still.
So what? It can't get over there anyway.
Besides, even if this giant python could come over, what could it do? She has Li Su's necklace in her hand now.
Li Xue gripped the necklace tightly with her fingertips, digging most of it into her flesh. Only when her fingertips ached from the pressure did Li Xue finally calm down.
She just saw it all; those female ghosts didn't dare approach Li Su at all because of this necklace!
In fact, Li Xue had noticed something was wrong with the necklace on Li Su a long time ago. When everyone entered this instance, they were forced to change their original clothes and wear the same type of clothing as the villagers. However, when Li Su came, she had a necklace with an exotic style around her neck!
Li Xue had been secretly observing the necklace to see what was so special about it, but she couldn't find anything until she saw the reaction of the group of female ghosts. Only then did Li Xue realize that Li Su's necklace was a real treasure!
As long as you wear this necklace, those female ghosts won't dare to come near you!
The female ghosts dared not approach, let alone a python that could not detach itself from the tree trunk.
Li Xue suppressed her nervousness, gripped the necklace tightly in her hand, and felt even more confident.
"Hurry up and go!" Li Xue gripped the necklace tightly and stood up, ignoring Gu Qingyan who was still sitting on the ground.
Gu Qingyan was terrified, and coupled with Li Xue's sudden change in expression, she couldn't react at all and subconsciously asked, "Where are we going?"
"Where else can we go? Run back!" Li Xue looked at Gu Qingyan, whose face was covered in tears, and explained impatiently, "Do you want to wait here to die if you don't run?"
"But...but..." A gust of cold wind swept by, and Gu Qingyan, soaked in sweat, shivered and stammered, "But those ghosts..."
Lin Ran's shrill screams seemed to echo in her ears again. Gu Qingyan's legs went weak, and she stumbled to her feet.
“Those ghosts will definitely kill us if they see us! Lin Ran was…” Gu Qingyan cried out again.
Gu Qingyan didn't think that just because they were girls, the female ghosts would let them go. Would ghosts who had already lost their consciousness let them go?
Gu Qingyan dared not gamble her life on a slim possibility.
The black python coiled in the tree kept flicking its tongue, its upper body completely suspended in the air, reaching towards the two people, but unable to get any closer.
Li Xue was secretly relieved that her suspicions had been confirmed, but she became even more agitated because of Gu Qingyan's words.
Li Xue, with a tense expression, explained impatiently, "With this necklace, those ghosts won't attack us."
"Didn't you see? They're afraid of this necklace!" Li Xue's eyes gleamed with an unnatural light as she finished speaking, her voice trembling with excitement. "With this necklace, we can safely escape from the female ghost!"
Gu Qingyan blinked away the tears in her eyes and looked at the necklace pendant that had fallen from Li Xue's hand.
A red pendant shaped like a crescent moon.
It looked familiar. Gu Qingyan frowned slightly, feeling as if she had seen this necklace somewhere before.
Where is it?
Seeing Gu Qingyan with her head down, seemingly lost in thought, Li Xue urged, "Hurry up! I already have this necklace, what are you afraid of?!"
Gu Qingyan froze, then slowly looked up at Li Xue, her voice low but exceptionally clear: "Is this Li Su's necklace?"
Gu Qingyan moved closer, and this time she could see the necklace on Li Xue's hand clearly.
That's right, this is the necklace that Li Su was wearing. It's just that when Li Su wore it, the color of this necklace seemed to be redder, but now that Li Xue is holding it in her hand, the bright red crescent moon seems to have faded and become dull.
Gu Qingyan frowned, feeling something was off.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com