Lunchti.
The mbers of the Guardians' Union returned to the dining table, each covered in black dicine and bandages, looking utterly miserable.
One even had both arms broken, his arms in casts, being fed. While wolfing down his food, he said, "Don't look at my broken arms, but the Orc warrior I fought was far worse off. I think these Orc warriors are all just for show. It's mainly because Little Seven wouldn't let fight him one-on-one, otherwise, I'd show you how I'd take him down."
Everyone burst into laughter: "You're still mouthing off even in this state, they just flicked a steel cable and broke your arms."
"Wait till you need to use the toilet, let's see if you're still so tough. No one will help you then!"
The man with the broken arms imagined needing help to urinate and fell silent.
Just then, Qing Chen and Yang Yang walked into the dining room hand in hand.
The Ho Families imdiately stopped talking: "Wow!"
Qing Chen chuckled: "Eat your food.
Little Seven, what are the casualties?"
Little Seven limped to his feet and replied: "Leader, only injuries, no deaths."
"Is everyone's injury alright?" Qing Chen asked. "It's fine, we can manage!" Little Seven grinned.
Then, Yang Yang said: "You should worry about yourself. Your injuries aren't any better. Co on, I'll treat your wounds before you eat."
Saying this, Yang Yang dragged Qing Chen back to the room. Ho Families: "Wow!"
In the room, Yang Yang helped Qing Chen take off his jacket. She looked at his bruises and wounds in silence.
After a long ti, she said: "If you hadn't eaten Dragon Fish, your bones would have broken countless tis. You'll have aftereffects when you get old. When you can't move, I'll push you around in a wheelchair and watch dance in the square."
Qing Chen laughed: "I may not get old."
"I know Knights have long lifespans," Yang Yang said with a pout, "But it's good that you live longer, so you can die after ."
But at this point, she suddenly felt dejected: "I can only live a hundred and more years, maybe I'll die at 120. Then you have to endure 131 years without , what will you do? Who will apply dicine for you? Who will watch over you in heaven?"
Qing Chen fell silent for a mont: "I used to think it was great that Knights have long lifespans, Shendai envied them, Black Knights envied them too. But I suddenly feel that living so long isn't actually good."
Such a long lifespan will cause a mismatch in two people's lives. When one grows old, the other is still in their pri.
Yang Yang stood in front of Qing Chen, holding his cheeks and smiling: "Just cherish the mont."
In the evening, the two sat on the edge of the training base's rooftop, with coffee Alice made for them, chatting about random things, such as how many female celebrities were pursuing Luo Wanya recently, how Little Seven was also invited to a celebrity banquet, and so gossipy secrets from Black Knights' third mber's mory.
Not a single word was serious.
Yang Yang's arrival suddenly relaxed Qing Chen's life for a mont, preventing him from being tense like before, like a clock pendulum that would never stop.
Qing Chen lay on the rooftop, resting his head on Yang Yang's lap, falling asleep. Yang Yang woke him up 1 minute before the ti travel.
The girl, like a wife, tidied his hair: "I know you have a sense of crisis, and I know how powerful the Roosevelt Kingdom is, but you are soone who can create miracles. We believe in you, and you must believe in yourself."
Countdown to Ling. Ti travel.
When the world brightened again.
Qing Chen was wearing Wildlanders' clothes, carrying a worn-out backpack, walking through the wilderness.
His face was covered in mud, and his posture was no longer so upright, as if life had beaten him down.
From any angle, this was a genuine Wildlander.
The sound of hamring ca from the distance beyond the mountains and fields, along with Ling's firelight.
Qing Chen looked up, and further away was a boundless "carpet" of treetops, the pitch-black Forbidden Zone No. 1 in the midnight.
And outside the Forbidden Zone, there was a sowhat quiet town in the night.
Or rather, it wasn't quiet, but gloomy. As if it was emitting cold air.
From the mountain, the town was pitch black, with only two gas lamps hanging on a wooden archway at the entrance. When the wind blew, they swayed, like two severed heads hanging by their hair.
Town No. 1, a very simple town.
There was no town here before, only because so prospectors collected plant fruits and caught small wild animals on the edge of Forbidden Zone No. 001.
Gradually, the prospectors set up camp outside the Forbidden Zone, forming a small town.
There are occasional news reports in the Federation of "prospectors finding rare treasures in the Forbidden Zone, thus becoming rich overnight." Soone found a withered vine and sold it for three million.
Soone found a strange stone and sold it for five million.
Soone found Forbidden Artifacts left behind by tahumans who died inside and sold it for one hundred million.
Qing Chen slowly approached, but saw several n guarding the town entrance, playing poker.
Seeing Qing Chen's dirty appearance, they imdiately shouted to the inside: "Another prospector, soone co out and greet him!"
Qing Chen stood outside the town and hesitantly asked: "Do they pay wages here?"
Several n burst into laughter: "You really don't know anything. Prospecting in the town, joining the team, whatever you find in the Forbidden Zone is yours. After selling it, you only need to pay 50% commission to the town. There's no wage."
Qing Chen was wary: "Why 50%? That's too much."
The man laughed, spitting on the ground: "Have you ever been to Forbidden Zone No. 1? It's the path we risked our lives to clear, allowing you to get out alive. That's why we take 50% commission."
Qing Chen seed relieved: "Get out alive?"
"Don't worry," the man replied.
At this ti, a wobbly old man walked out of the town. When the n saw him, they imdiately put down their poker cards: "Why did you co yourself, where's Doggy?"
The old man waved his hand: "There's trouble in there again, Doggy is dealing with it."
Qing Chen was stunned: "Trouble?"
"Not real trouble, you'll know when you go in," the old man sized up Qing Chen: "Why are you here?"
"I want to get married, but I can't afford a house in Zone 5," Qing Chen replied, "My brother needs money for treatnt, I need money."
The old man snorted: "Who here doesn't need money? Rember, once you enter here, don't value your life. Those guys said they can get you out alive, but I can't guarantee that."
"Can you make money?" Qing Chen asked urgently.
"Make money? It depends on your luck. How much is your life worth?" The old man glanced at him: "They told you the rules, right?"
"Yes, 50% commission."
"Good. Search him, don't let Hope dia's investigative reporters sneak in again."
Several n searched Qing Chen and shook their heads: "Just a phone, no caras."
"Keep the phone, give it back to you when you leave."
Qing Chen asked: "Have reporters sneaked in before? But I haven't seen Hope dia report on this."
A man grinned, revealing his yellow teeth: "We killed them. You're not a reporter, are you?"
Qing Chen shrank his shoulders in fear: "I'm not."
"You don't look like one," the old man stooped and walked inside. The town was muddy everywhere, with dilapidated shacks on the roadside, housing thin n and won.
The entire town had no sewage system or basic living facilities, with mountains of garbage outside, emitting a stench.
There was even a bloody sll.
The bloody sll ca from the old man in front.
Then he heard soone muttering in a shack: "Where did everyone go? Where did everyone go? They're all dead!"
Qing Chen's heart sank, this person's ntal state was clearly disturbed, and even showing obvious symptoms.
While pondering, he saw soone rush out of a shack in the distance with a knife: "Co and kill , I'm here,
kill !"
The next mont, the man turned to the old man and Qing Chen, charging nacingly with his rusty machete.
The old man pulled out a walkie-talkie from his pocket and said nonchalantly: "Another one's gone crazy, co and take him away, lock him up."
Footsteps ca from the darkness, several shirtless n with gas lamps ran out, they pressed the man who was about to slash soone into the mud, bound his hands with rope, and dragged him back into the darkness.
The old man looked back at the trembling Qing Chen: "Don't be afraid, just be obedient and you won't beco like him."
"What's wrong with him?" Qing Chen asked: "Did you make him like this?"
The old man said: "We didn't hurt him. If you don't follow the rules of the Forbidden Zone, you'll beco like this. This is trouble, like being possessed!"
Continuing forward for hundreds of ters, Qing Chen heard the heavy panting of n and won in the shacks, and countless murmurs.
The only constant was the sound of hamring from sowhere, ding ding ding ding, incessantly.
But, Qing Chen looked for a long ti, but didn't find any blacksmith shop.
Qing Chen suddenly realized that most of the people here seed to have so ntal problems.
If it was only one or two people, it might be because they were driven mad, but if it was a widespread phenonon, it indicated a problem with Forbidden Zone No. 1.
However, the master didn't ntion this situation before. Did the master not know? Or was there a special reason?
"Alright, you'll live here," the old man pointed to the shack, "We'll set off the day after tomorrow, don't leave the town or enter the Forbidden Zone alone without my permission."
Qing Chen agreed: "Is this shack ownerless?" The old man grinned, revealing his black teeth: "Dead."
Qing Chen retreated fearfully, the old man was pleased with his reaction: "Call Wang Tou'er from now on, go to sleep."
Qing Chen bent down and entered the shack, and saw that soone had collected branches and hay to make a small bed, and a palm-sized vanity mirror was scattered beside the bed. The previous owner of this shack was probably a woman.
He looked around, suddenly startled.
On the wooden post of the shack, soone had carved lines of small words with a small knife, and a broken eyebrow razor was thrown beside the post, with dried, blackened blood on the blade.
"Soone is shouting from behind you not to agree!"
"Don't drink the blood flowing from the tree trunk!" This sentence was crossed out, and soone added another sentence: "It's not a tree, trees don't cry."
Don't give the sign to others! "Rember your na!"
"Don't eat the fruits on the red tree!" "You can eat the fruits on the white tree!" "Walk backward to get out!"
These small characters.
Qing Chen frowned, the person who carved the words was clearly ntally disturbed, he was sure that not all of this information was helpful, and this chaotic logic might even mislead him.
He must see through the chaotic mind and find the truth.
This Forbidden Zone was unlike any Forbidden Zone he had ever been to.
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