Volume 3: Deep Blue Sea
Leisurely resting on Shu Xun’s claw, the green grass seemed to realize that continuing this way was inappropriate. After all, Shu Xun couldn’t hold it forever. So, it floated up again, circled Shu Xun, and then stopped in front of Shu Xun.
Under the puzzled gaze of the crowd, the green grass quickly and accurately identified a long whisker. It then tied itself into a knot, securely fastening onto the whisker.
Shu Xun stood tall in the wind with a grass knot on top, ‘…’
Ling Yang blinked, then burst into laughter again. Meng Muyu and Lie Yang also laughed heartily. It’s rare to see someone who could leave Shu Xun helpless. This green grass seems to have a special affection for Shu Xun’s whisker.
Shu Xun extended his chubby paw, trying hard to remove the grass, but the grass skillfully avoided his paw. Even when finally caught, it wrapped around Shu Xun’s neck, firmly securing itself.
In the end, after a struggle, Shu Xun was almost bound by the grass. The grass reluctantly settled on Shu Xun’s neck, looking like a green scarf wrapped around him. During the intellectual battle between Shu Xun and the grass, the live broadcast room was filled with laughter.
“Could the grass think that the whisker and itself look alike, so it settled on the whisker?”
“The agile grass has shown me a flexible and round dumpling!”
“Don’t be surprised if it turns out there’s a connection between Shu Xun and the grass; otherwise, why would the grass, which strongly rejects outsiders, give such a precious gift to Shu Xun?”
“Not only the grass, but Ling Yang also feels close to Shu Xun, with a strange trust. What could be the reason?”
“I sincerely hope to save this world, let the three-leaf grass grow peacefully, and allow the Xuanqiu tribe to return to the city.”
“However, the reality is not optimistic. From the current situation, Shu Xun’s group has only uncovered a corner of this world. They haven’t even found the way the world is heading, but time seems to be running out.”
In the live broadcast room, apart from the discussion about the grass and the whisker, a large number of viewers were also focused on the progress of the game. The public beta of “Deep Blue Sea” had been ongoing for nearly a month. Such a gaming duration was considered lengthy in high-difficulty survival games. However, even so, the clues they had gathered so far were still scarce. If not for Shu Xun’s speculations, they might not have been able to grasp these clues. This unsettling situation gave everyone a sense of illusion as if a mysterious force had been preventing them from exploring this world since they entered. However, this idea was too absurd to mention, so no one brought it up and treated it as a kind of illusion.
As the sky gradually cleared, the bamboo raft had already sailed out of the open circular area and re-entered the dense giant tree forest. The accumulated rainwater decreased gradually with the terrain, and the bamboo raft smoothly glided over the water, shattering the emerald green reflection on the surface and creating ripples.
The bamboo raft traveled through dappled sunlight. On the raft, the people who had had breakfast were sitting leisurely. It was a rare moment of rest. Shu Xun still hadn’t returned to human form. Those with high emotional intelligence naturally didn’t ask why, and those like Lie Yang, who didn’t think much, didn’t bother to inquire.
The reason Shu Xun hadn’t returned to human form was because he had consumed too much spiritual power during the intense battle with the overwhelming insects. Although the energy of this world could be transformed into spiritual power, the conversion process also requires time. To quickly recover spiritual power, Shu Xun maintained the most comfortable beast form.
On the bamboo raft, a row of dumplings lay side by side, basking in the sun. At the forefront was Shu Xun, who was sprawled out like a mouse cake. Next to him was the rarely not clinging to Shu Xun’s body, the green grass, followed by Big Bliss, Little Bliss, and Lan Yang1Lie Yang’s blue butterfly. Lastly, lying on the bamboo raft and occasionally flicking its tail, was Ling Yang. It was unknown why a fish would join in sunbathing, not fearing being dried into fish jerky. Meng Muyu occasionally poked Ling Yang’s belly, only to be predictably swatted away by Ling Yang’s tail. The sunlight above their heads only occasionally luxuriously filtered through the gaps in the branches and leaves to shine on the many dumplings, but even so, they all looked content.
Lie Yang was evidently not someone who could stay idle, especially when his mind was a mess and even the brain he used for thinking was tangled. He glanced at the leisurely sunbathing Lan Yang and sighed silently, not understanding why he was rejected by Lan Yang, a companion blue butterfly. Then he looked at the mouse cake on the other side. Lie Yang’s palm opened, and a wind blade swept across the sky. A thin branch from the towering tree above was cut and fell into Lie Yang’s hands, coincidentally landing there.
Moving to the side of the mouse cake, Lie Yang held a tree branch and quietly approached the contented mouse cake. Then, using the tip of the branch with a leaf, he gently touched Shu Xun’s nose. Indeed, the whiskers of the little mouse trembled slightly, but its eyes remained closed. Lie Yang continued to poke, and the whiskers of the little mouse continued to tremble. After several attempts, the mouse cake finally sneezed forcefully. However, Shu Xun still showed no sign of waking up. Instead, he changed his position, transforming from the prone mouse cake into a curled-up, round ball, burying his face in the fluffy fur, exposing only four tiny, clenched paws.
Seeing this, Lie Yang looked around helplessly, realizing that the face of the dumpling was indeed completely covered, with only a few whiskers sticking out. So, he slyly reached toward Shu Xun’s whiskers.
At some point, Ye Qian, who had walked to Lie Yang’s side without expression, casually stepped on the grass next to Shu Xun. The grass instantly woke up, swaying left and right, seemingly looking for the culprit. However, it quickly noticed Lie Yang’s actions and didn’t bother finding the one who stepped on it. In an instant, it stood up, its leaves extending, and swiftly swung over. With a crisp sound, it smacked Lie Yang, who was crouching beside Shu Xun, and a splash sounded as he fell into the water. The sunbathing dumplings made a slight mouth click, completely unaffected and continued sleeping. Even Lan Yang shook a bit, then flipped over and continued basking.
Caught off guard, Lie Yang took two sips of water and then got out of the water with a splash. As soon as he settled back onto the bamboo raft, the grass leaves smacked him heavily on the forehead. After the smacking, the grass leaves retracted, and with a crisp sound, it lay back on the bamboo raft, continuing to bask in the sun. Occasionally, it turned over to ensure an even sunbathing.
Lie Yang: “…”
The audience in the live broadcast room burst into laughter. There was no sympathy for the impulsive Lie Yang. Many fans of Ye Qian, who were usually expressionless and never impulsive, took pride in their own face-paralyzed deity. However, after finishing the barrage, they were immediately contradicted. Though Ye Qian remained expressionless, he sneakily reached out and pinched Shu Xun’s tiny paw exposed outside.
The lying dumpling’s paw curled slightly, with round and sharp nails. The fluffy paw looked full and plush, making it hard to imagine that such a chubby paw could instantly dig hundreds of meters underground. Just as Ye Qian pinched the chubby paw, the dumpling instinctively retracted, pulling back its paw. Ye Qian paused for a moment, then continued to extend his hand, pinching again.
The dumpling pulled back its chubby paw once more, then tucked it into the fluff. Ye Qian raised the corner of his lips and switched to another paw. After a moment, all four paws of the dumpling were curled up into the fur. In that instant, Shu Xun truly became a round and fluffy ball, with his head and paws deeply buried in the abundant fluff.
Ye Qian waited for a moment, still not seeing the fluffy ball extending its paws. So, he reached out again, touching the chest of the fluff ball, trying to find Shu Xun’s chubby paw based on memory. His fingertips seemed to touch a protrusion, but before he could react, three sharp cold lights suddenly flashed, instantly slashing toward Ye Qian’s forehead. He slightly tilted his head to avoid it, but still couldn’t dodge it completely, leaving three distinct bloodstains on his cheek.
At the same time, the fluff ball instantly bounced up, standing on the bamboo raft in a fluffed-up state. Its paws sparkled with a cold light, but upon seeing the person in front clearly, he froze in place. Shu Xun and Ye Qian squatted on the side and stared at each other for a while. Finally, Shu Xun snorted, twisted his body, turned around, and sat on the edge of the bamboo raft, leaving Ye Qian with a round back. Through the clear reflection on the water surface, you could still vaguely see the fluffy dumpling’s tender little ears.
In the live broadcast room:
“Hahaha! Ye Qian actually attacked the chest!”
“I’m flipping the table; can Shu Xun still have a good sleep? You guys are so impulsive!”
“I also want to squeeze the dumpling; it’s too soft!”
“The dumpling’s ears are so pink; guess why?”
“In the future, the whiskers belong to the grass, and the paws belong to Ye Qian!”
“Shu Xun looks even more like a ball when sitting up. I can’t understand why my Shu Xun, with a tall and perfect proportion, has such a round beast form.”
Meanwhile, Ye Qian stood still on the bamboo raft for a long time, his face expressionless, his heart almost collapsing. Looking at Shu Xun sitting at the front of the bamboo raft, Ye Qian felt the need to explain himself. Finally, under the gaze of many viewers, Ye Qian, with a stiff posture, walked to Shu Xun’s side and sat down awkwardly. Shu Xun raised his furry little head, looking puzzled at Ye Qian.
Ye Qian stiffly extended his hand, pointing his index finger at the paw in front of Shu Xun’s chest, then pinched his index finger and thumb, making a pinching motion, and coldly commented, “Feels good.”
Shu Xun: “…”
Swish! Three more cold lights flashed by. This time, the wounds on Ye Jian’s face finally achieved symmetry. Shu Xun raised his head proudly, strutting with his small short legs, clattering to the tail end of the bamboo raft, and then sat back down.
Ye Qian: “…”
Ye Qian maintained a poker face, his inner self almost collapsed, shedding rivers of tears, giving up on explanations.
Meng Muyu, who witnessed the whole process: “…” Is this person really Ye Qian? Explaining it this way, getting a paw is considered light punishment.
In the cool giant tree forest, where the space seemed infinitely expanded, the spirit bamboo raft, sailing within, resembled a small green leaf—tiny and leisurely. This journey continued for a full two days before the scenery before everyone’s eyes finally changed. The accumulated water beneath the bamboo raft gradually diminished and eventually disappeared. Land reappeared in their sight—rocks, soil, and green grass, everything appeared unusually familiar. What made people even more relieved was that the towering giant tree forest that blocked out the sky and sun had finally vanished. Before them lay an expansive mountainous terrain. Exposed green rocks undulated, extending far into the distance. The azure sky was clear without a single cloud, seeming as if it hung within arm’s reach. The entire world seemed incredibly close to breaking free from the forest in that instant.
“Why does it feel like the sky has become lower?” Shu Xun retracted the spirit bamboo raft, and everyone set foot on land again. Lie Yang gazed at the sky and couldn’t help but exclaim.
Lan Yang leisurely spoke, “Generally speaking, this indicates that we have reached a place with a sufficiently high land elevation, closer to the center of the continent.”
