While a group of handsome men were frantically exploring the Forbidden Land, one person had been lying flat and sleeping for a long time.
When Fatty recovered his consciousness, he almost thought he was still sleeping in his beloved Simmons mattress. In his half-awake state, he affectionately puckered his lips and kissed the ground, then inhaled a mouthful of dust.
"Damn it, cough cough cough! What dared to ambush Fatty Grandpa?!"
Wu Tianzhen, awakened by Fatty's howl: ???
Wu Tianzhen had finally managed to put aside some of his inner turmoil and rest with his eyes closed, but he was suddenly woken by Fatty's howl. His head buzzed, and he almost saw his long-deceased great-grandmother.
Looking at Fatty's energetic appearance, the sadness, confusion, and unwillingness in his heart slowly transformed into a kind of inexplicable grievance. He held back, but still didn't cry. He merely twisted his expression into a mocking smile.
"...You're awake, Fatty?" he said with a forced smile, "Do you remember the earth-shattering thing you just did?"
"Although we said we'd catch a monkey to marry you after we get out, you don't have to be so eager that you turn yourself into a monkey to blend in before we even leave, do you?"
"I never expected that beneath Fatty's rugged exterior, there was always such a soft heart yearning for marriage. I never knew this before, truly a waste of brotherhood. I'll punish myself with a drink to apologize!"
So, just as Fatty had sorted out his current situation, he saw Wu Tianzhen's contorted face downing a large bottle of water.
To be honest, if Fatty hadn't smelled alcohol, just by the momentum, he would have suspected Wu Tianzhen was drinking Erguotou.
"Uh, I say, Tianzhen," this strangeness made Fatty lose the mood to respond to Wu Tianzhen's mockery immediately. He paused, "Are you okay?"
"What's wrong? Did you encounter any life difficulties just now? It's okay! Fatty will help you solve it!"
These words almost turned Wu Tianzhen into a broken faucet. His tears were about to gush out, but he glanced at the faintly visible figure of Hei眼鏡 in the distance and managed to control himself.
"...If every encounter with Hei眼鏡 is a test for myself, then perhaps this time I'm training my tear ducts."
Wu Tianzhen entertained himself with a bit of gallows humor, then took a deep breath and replied, "...I'm fine, don't worry, Fatty."
"The specifics... we'll talk about it when we get back."
When Xie Yuchen saw Fatty wake up, he said he was going to find Hei眼鏡 to settle his wages and walked straight out.
Wu Tianzhen knew this was his childhood friend's unique way of being considerate, but he still decided to tell Fatty these things after they left the Forbidden Land.
"...I am the weakest, so my worries are irrelevant. I shouldn't let Fatty be distracted in the dangerous Forbidden Land."
This answer made Fatty want to speak but stop. But in the end, he sighed and didn't press further. He just glared and began to refute Wu Tianzhen's earlier mockery:
"What the hell, how could I not remember?!"
"Even if Fatty Grandpa were covered in black hair, he'd still be the most handsome and imposing. How could ordinary monkeys outside be easily matched with him?!"
"I didn't see handsome, but imposing is indeed true..." Wu Tianzhen recalled the power of the black-haired Fatty to scare a hundred children, and couldn't help but grin.
Just as the two were about to start bickering, Hei眼鏡's voice suddenly drifted over—
"Yo~ What, are you planning to have an internal conflict?"
"Hua Er Ye," he said, then suddenly turned to Xie Yuchen and said seriously, "This internal conflict doesn't count as my mistake, okay? You can't deduct my wages!"
Such long-term predictive ability made Wu Tianzhen start to imagine their interaction. Then he looked at Xie Yuchen and sincerely applauded.
Xie Yuchen glanced over, clearly catching a plea in Wu Tianzhen's eyes: "Please help me teach him a good lesson."
Xie Yuchen: ...Heh.
"Fatty should have recovered, so let's continue moving forward." Xie Yuchen felt a little relieved as he noticed Wu Tianzhen's emotions had largely stabilized. "Hei Zi and I have just explored ahead. It's best to pass through there quickly, otherwise, who knows if anything will change."
Wu Tianzhen quickly put on his backpack. He intended to take the Black Gold Ancient Saber, but Fatty snatched it away: "...Xiao Hua, do you mean it's very dangerous ahead?"
"Not necessarily. As long as you grasp the knack, you can pass safely." Xie Yuchen walked at the forefront, leading the way, with Hei眼鏡 following him casually.
"However, the ones inside should all be our acquaintances."
...Honestly, hearing the word "acquaintances" now, Wu Tianzhen could only think of King Li who suddenly came back to life on the Bronze Tree.
This immediately sounded an alarm in his heart.
Just then, the group arrived at the entrance of the cave where these so-called acquaintances gathered. Wu Tianzhen held his breath and peeked inside, almost passing out.
He saw that the spherical space before him was densely covered, layer upon layer, with gray, long-legged, slender centipedes. Only the waterway below was free of them.
These centipedes were packed tightly together, as if in hibernation for warmth, frozen in a static state. Only their occasionally twitching antennae proved they were still living creatures.
Wu Tianzhen swallowed, daring not to make a sound. He gestured frantically with his hands, pointing at the inside, then at himself, not knowing what he was trying to express.
"It's okay, talking outside won't cause any trouble," Xie Yuchen smiled. "What, aren't these the old acquaintances we met when we entered Emei?"
"Although Zhang Qiling said they are not poisonous, the attack power of these centipedes should not be underestimated. If they all pounce at once, their sheer numbers can still affect us."
Xie Yuchen's expression turned slightly serious: "Hei Zi and I just experimented. As long as there isn't too much movement, they won't be awakened. As long as we slowly wade through the water, we'll be fine."
This situation, where it was very likely to be fine but also had a chance of something going wrong, made Wu Tianzhen instantly vigilant. With his self-awareness, if the chance of something sinister happening was not zero percent, then it absolutely would happen.
He hesitated, and instinctively looked back at Fatty, only to see Fatty already "hooking up" with Hei眼鏡 again. They were both looking at Fatty's ugly photos on their smart devices and laughing merrily?
Fatty swiped the screen of his smart device, about to comment on his handsome appearance, when he suddenly noticed a signal bar appearing on the screen.
"Whoa, this damn place actually has some signal back, what's going on?" Fatty marveled. "Damn it, it's not like those centipede lords inside are so bored that they've installed internet cables and are just dancing and singing, right?"
Wu Tianzhen: ...
He wiped his face, deeply feeling that Fatty wasn't always reliable.
At this moment, Xie Yuchen had already signaled and walked in first. Wu Tianzhen steadied himself and followed closely.