Volume 3: Deep Blue Sea
Big Bliss stood upright with a serious expression and spoke, “Dragging along like this, what kind of demeanor is this?”
The two who were “dragging along” exchanged glances. “…”
Big Bliss happily flapped its wings and rushed ahead. After Ye Qian and Meng Muyu inspected the giant centipede, they also walked toward the location where Shu Xun was. Shu Xun had already transformed into a human form at this moment, standing gracefully in the jungle. With the surrounding ethereal scenery, he appeared completely detached from the world. However, in Meng Muyu’s mind, the image of a fluffy ball poking its head out of the ground couldn’t be shaken off. Watching Shu Xun and Big Bliss in all seriousness, Meng Muyu felt that the sense of detachment had dissipated.
Shu Xun walked at the forefront, and Big Bliss clattered behind him. After a while, it found that its short legs couldn’t keep up with the pace. It quickly realized, transformed its wings, and caught up with the group. After witnessing a seemingly ordinary yet profoundly shocking life-and-death struggle in this world, the group embarked on their journey once again, heading towards the depths of the continent.
Three days later, Shu Xun and the others were already far from the edge of the continent. The humidity in the jungle seemed to have decreased, but due to the perennial dense vegetation cover, it still felt cool. During these three days, Shu Xun and the others witnessed several more battles between large creatures, realizing that in this world, creatures exceeding a hundred meters were not just insects. Various mutated creatures roamed the world, with the survival of the fittest as the rule. The closer to the interior of the continent, the stronger the creatures became. Large group organisms even began to appear, with flying birds in the sky, land mammals, carnivorous plants in the forest, and giant plants – a variety of species showcasing the miracles of life to the fullest. One might wonder, who was this magnificent display of life for? Or was it the planet’s final, desperate struggle?
After three days of adaptation, Shu Xun developed a certain degree of adaptability to the unique environment of this planet. Upon realizing the danger of this world, Shu Xun consciously engaged in actual combat to hone his swordsmanship. The result shocked Meng Muyu and Ye Qian, and the live-stream audience was also in a state of awe and astonishment. In almost every battle, the audience held their breath, witnessing not only the exquisite and sharp moves but also hoping to discover the reasons behind Shu Xun’s remarkable growth.
Regarding Shu Xun’s transformed strength, someone had already posted the cause and effect in the discussion section of “Deep Blue Sea,” accompanied by live stream videos as evidence. People sighed at Shu Xun’s good luck, mixed with some lament. After all, not everyone could survive alone for twenty years, and that magical and nearly omnipotent space had become the longing place for countless people. Many even suggested that StarPlay Entertainment should conduct research in this area.
In the game, Shu Xun swung his sword, cutting off the root and stem of a carnivorous vine. The surrounding vines lost their attacking power. Big Bliss grabbed Little Bliss’s antennae and pulled it out from the entangled vines. Ye Qian and Meng Muyu skillfully examined the vines, collecting usable materials and clues.
Shu Xun sheathed his spirit sword into the spiritual space and glanced at the seemingly endless front. The sky had gradually darkened, and daylight in the jungle always seemed very brief, the sunlight appearing particularly stingy. “Let’s camp here tonight. Within the territory of this carnivorous vine, there should be no large insects or predators.”
Meng Muyu looked up at the sky. Sensing the humidity in the air, his expression became slightly serious. “I feel like a heavy rain is coming. We should find a place to shelter.”
Shu Xun pointed to the giant tree entwined by the carnivorous vines. “My intuition tells me there’s no time. Let’s rest in the tree tonight. I’ll set up a lightning protection array. I still have the large lotus leaves I collected earlier. You can secure them to the tree.”
As he spoke, Shu Xun took out a huge lotus leaf, as thick as a palm, with an area of more than twenty square meters. Despite its size, under the towering hundreds-of-meters-high giant tree, the lotus leaf still seemed somewhat petite. Handing the lotus leaf to Meng Muyu and Ye Qian, Shu Xun agilely leaped into the air. As he arranged the formation, he instinctively added a water-repelling spell, ensuring that the lightning protection array would not be affected by rainwater erosion.
Ye Qian and Meng Muyu had also reached several tens of meters above, securing the lotus leaf on the first layer of the tree canopy. As the sky quickly darkened, Big Bliss and Little Bliss each held a cold light lamp, fixing the lamps on the lotus leaf ceiling to serve as illumination for the night. Big Bliss, equipped with a storage backpack, even began arranging a low table for food, while Little Bliss fluttered around, helping with the setup.
The giant trees here seemed to have undergone multiple evolutions, with lush canopies layered higher and higher, presenting a spectacular sight. The tree’s diameter was about ten meters, and the main branches were sturdy enough to lie on. For safety, Shu Xun and his companions had spent most of their nights in the trees during the past three days, of course, after ensuring there were no discoloration centipedes on the trees.
Almost as the group finished their respective tasks, the ink-colored sky was torn apart by several lightning bolts spanning the horizon, followed by deafening thunder that echoed through the entire world. Torrential rain poured down, the raindrops almost falling in a stream-like state, as if it were not rain but a river from the sky. It was hard to imagine how such rainwater had condensed. In the blink of an eye, a shallow layer of water had accumulated on the land, leaving no dry spots.
Shu Xun and his companions stood on the branches of the giant tree. Big Bliss and Little Bliss seemed startled by the intensity, landing quietly on the branches and staring dumbfounded at the world where rainwater flowed.
A hint of confusion crossed Meng Muyu’s eyes. “Why does this rain seem more… more intense than what we experienced in the initial tests?” The usually talkative Meng Muyu struggled to find suitable words to describe the world beyond the lotus leaf.
Shu Xun’s elegant voice resonated. “It’s as if the sky is falling like the ocean is pouring down in torrents.”
“Yes,” Meng Muyu nodded, his voice almost drowned out by the deafening thunder.
Big Bliss flew to Shu Xun’s shoulder, sitting obediently, then lifted its chubby hand to touch Shu Xun’s cheek. “Don’t be afraid; I’ll be with you all the time.”
Shu Xun paused, a smile playing on his lips. Such comfort and companionship had persisted for twenty years in that other world, until now, he was no longer afraid of the raging storms. Shu Xun raised his hand and gently stroked Big Bliss’s little head. “I’m not afraid anymore.”
Suddenly, a large palm gently touched Shu Xun’s head. Turning to look, Shu Xun found it was Ye Qian, who had been standing beside him. In Ye Qian’s deep ink-colored eyes, there was a reassuring stability, and in his lustrous pupils, there was a subtle sense of heartache. His icy voice cut through the lightning and thunder, clearly reaching Shu Xun’s ears, “If you stay, I’ll be here. If you leave, I’ll always be behind you.”
Purple-red lightning streaked across the sky, dazzling like a fleeting meteor. The ink-black night was briefly illuminated, and amid the raging storm, the mountains and forests seemed on the verge of collapse.
However, at this moment, Shu Xun truly let go of all the anxieties he had independently grown over the years. He genuinely felt that, in those twenty years, besides Big Bliss, there were actually many people accompanying him in places he couldn’t see. With them all there, he fears neither the raging storm nor the torrential rain. With them all there, he is willing to believe forever that all storms are just for the eventual clear sky.
In the faint cold light of the lamps, two figures stood on the branches, silent and natural, forming a sharp contrast with the outside pouring rain.
Meng Muyu looked around, feeling inexplicably as if he had been force-fed something strange. It seemed particularly awkward not to do something, so he walked to Little Bliss’s side and patted its head. “Don’t be afraid, little butterfly. I’m with you.”
Little Bliss shifted away from Meng Muyu’s palm, then leisurely fluttered its wings and flew away.
Meng Muyu: “…” Feeling like traveling with these two was an extremely wrong decision.
The heavy rain seemed unlikely to stop anytime soon. Since there were giant lotus leaves overhead, Shu Xun and his group didn’t have to worry about getting wet. However, others were not so fortunate, especially in this world with strong gravity, where rapidly falling rainwater was a disaster. And at this moment, they had no idea that challenges beyond their understanding were far from over.
On the giant tree, beneath the massive lotus leaves, Shu Xun and his companions sat around a low table, eating under the cover of the cold light lamps. They exchanged their speculations and clues they had discovered along the way. However, the information they gathered after exchanging and organizing wasn’t particularly abundant.
Firstly, the creatures in this world exhibit an extremely strong territorial instinct. It’s impossible for two equally powerful beings to coexist in the same territory. As they venture deeper inland, this phenomenon becomes even more pronounced. It seems that powerful creatures are consciously moving deeper into the land, and it’s unclear whether they are heading somewhere specific or avoiding something.
Secondly, there are giant arthropods, where individuals possess formidable strength and can stand alone, such as the color-changing centipede. However, more challenging are the swarming insects like ants and mosquitoes. In the jungle, they seem to be invincible entities. Oddly, almost all creatures, regardless of whether they prey on insects, engage in combat when encountering powerful insects. Even in situations unrelated to territorial disputes, it feels as though insects are the common enemy of all life in this world.
Apart from this, whether it’s an illusion or not, insects seem to have a particularly high desire to attack Shu Xun and the others, while other creatures are relatively weaker in this regard. Of course, this is currently just a speculation, as there is no rational logic to explain it. To verify this, they need to continue their journey.
However, the progress of Shu Xun and the others faced obstacles because the torrential rain persisted until the second day, and it even intensified. The vast jungle formed a marvelous spectacle as raindrops fell on the leaves of giant trees, rapidly converging into rivers. Looking around, it resembled a cascading waterfall, with differences in size among the leaves creating a varied landscape. Each giant tree stood like an immovable green mountain. On these mountains, numerous waterfalls spread like veils, falling gracefully like satin. Each colossal tree, every green mountain, and segments of sparkling waterfalls outlined a splendid and magnificent landscape of mountains and rivers.
