Wu Tianzhen finally understood what Zhang Qiling had said after glancing at the bullet screen.
He felt a bit disappointed amidst his embarrassment.
He had clearly felt like he had touched the threshold of the mysterious side, about to uncover the secrets of this world, but the key before him was unwilling to take him along.
After a moment of silence, noticing Zhang Qiling's dwindling patience and his intention to leave, he lunged forward without a second thought!
"Um, um—" he gritted his teeth, closed his eyes, and said, "Take me with you, I promise I won't be a burden. It's so lonely here, and it would be more fun with me. It's too dangerous here; I just encountered a snow monster and an avalanche. Please take me!"
As he spoke, recalling his miserable experiences here, his heart filled with sorrow, and he almost choked up.
Zhang Qiling: ...
Dangerous? Encountered a snow monster and an avalanche right after arriving?
...Why had he wandered here for three days without encountering anything?
For three whole days, he had just been admiring the natural scenery of Changbai Mountain. If it weren't for the system insisting he explore here, he would have started to doubt if there was any mysterious side power at all.
Why was it like fast-forwarding for Wu Tianzhen? Had he skipped some plot introduction? Like, perhaps, the plot where Wu Tianzhen was actually the protagonist?
As Zhang Qiling pondered, he pulled up the system panel and glanced at it. To his surprise, he found that saving Wu Tianzhen had added another point to his role-playing progress, reinforcing his belief that he was the protagonist.
...So it must be that Wu Tianzhen himself is just peculiar, attracting these things more easily.
Wait, then isn't Wu Tianzhen just a special human-shaped detector?
...
After finishing his lengthy plea, Wu Tianzhen closed his eyes, awaiting his fate. He felt Zhang Qiling leave without hesitation, heartlessly, without even a glance.
Utterly disappointed, he slumped like a drowned puppy, but then he suddenly heard a clear, cold voice: "Follow."
Wu Tianzhen instantly felt like his ears were malfunctioning again. He stood there dumbfounded, rubbing his ears vigorously. If it weren't for the bullet screen almost flooding his face, he wouldn't have reacted at all.
"Oh, oh, okay... Okay!!!"
Zhang Qiling only saw Wu Tianzhen rush towards him in a few quick steps, and then start rambling about all sorts of nonsensical things. For a moment, he regretted bringing along this source of noise.
Just then, he heard the system voice chime in.
[Equip Wu Tianzhen as a pendant]
[Matches with Xiao Ge, role-playing progress +1]
[Current role-playing progress: 26%]
[Unlocked Key Feature: Fa Qiu Finger]
As the voice faded, Zhang Qiling felt a sharp pain in his right index and middle fingers. After a subtle sensation of bone growth, his two fingers had become incredibly long.
These fingers were incredibly hard, possessing the ability to explore ancient tomb entrances and decipher all intricate mechanisms.
Acquiring Xiao Ge's signature skill was a good thing, but at this moment, another matter made Zhang Qiling feel a peculiar sensation.
...So Wu Tianzhen was considered a pendant?
Why would a human-shaped pendant increase role-playing progress?
Handsome guy confused.jpg.
However, this temporarily dispelled his thought of abandoning Wu Tianzhen. In his eyes, Wu Tianzhen was no longer just a human-shaped detector but also a role-playing progress booster.
Thinking this, Wu Tianzhen, who was walking backward in front of him, still chattering non-stop, became a little more bearable.
However, less than two minutes later, before he could even properly orient himself, he heard a familiar "click." The gesticulating Wu Tianzhen in front of him suddenly, again and again, fell into a snow hole.
In the blink of an eye, Zhang Qiling heard Wu Tianzhen's screams of "ahhh ahhh ahhh." He stood there speechlessly. The scene before him was silent, and the wind blowing by stirred up snowflakes, making the snow-covered ground, now devoid of Wu Tianzhen, appear exceptionally peaceful.
Zhang Qiling: ...
The snow hole wasn't deep. Before long, Wu Tianzhen's startled voice rang out from below again.
"Xiao Ge! There's a huge door down this hole!!!"
Zhang Qiling: ...?
Is the human-shaped detector really that accurate?
He flipped and jumped down, landing silently, as light as a cat.
Indeed, there was a door before him. Its ancient bronze texture, illuminated by the light filtering through the hole, revealed intricate and mysterious patterns carved upon it.
Wu Tianzhen was currently leaning over it, studying it closely. Seeing him enter, he scrambled back over.
"I just took a look. The patterns on the door are a bit blurry, but I can make out that it depicts a creature with a human body, a bull's head, and a snake's tail."
"This reminds me of a tribe I learned about in class—the Li tribe."
"It's said that this tribe lived in the area of Dandaling 2200 years ago, which was ancient Changbai."
"The Li tribe worshipped a creature called 'Ji' for generations, which is said to have the image of a human body, a bull's head, and a snake's tail!"
Passing Wu Tianzhen, Zhang Qiling extended his Fa Qiu fingers and slowly traced along the door.
This massive door was extremely heavy, yet Zhang Qiling could still feel subtle vibrations within it.
There was no space behind the door; the vibrations were muffled, and beyond was just thick snow and the mountain wall.
Straightening up, Zhang Qiling gazed silently at the door.
When he heard the words "Li tribe," something vaguely flashed in his mind, but a careful search yielded nothing.
He thought that perhaps this was the fragmented memory of Xiao Ge being instilled by the system, but it was unfortunately incomplete.
He needed to increase his role-playing progress quickly, otherwise, encountering such a situation again might be more troublesome. xxs壹贰
He thought a lot, but in the eyes of the observing Wu Tianzhen, this mysterious Xiao Ge had merely touched the door once and then fallen into a vacant contemplation.
It wasn't so much contemplation as an attempt to search for something, his gaze calm yet lost.
His gaze at the door seemed to pierce through thousands of years of mist, as if conversing with the departed spirits.
Wu Tianzhen inexplicably felt a sense of unease. He spoke up to break the strange atmosphere.
"Xiao Ge, can we go in and explore now?"
To his surprise, Zhang Qiling looked at him with a slightly strange expression and said, "We can't get in."
"Geological movement. The door and the main body have separated."
At this moment, Zhang Qiling's mood was somewhat complex. He looked at the system notification that had just popped up:
[Host successfully role-played Xiao Ge's confusion in front of Wu Tianzhen, stimulating Wu Tianzhen's curiosity.]
[Role-playing progress +1, current role-playing progress 27%]
[Skill Unlocked: Feng Shui Divination]
Although he was happy...
But what exactly happened just now? What were you imagining?
Never mind, having someone who overthinks things around is probably a good thing, maybe.
He carefully absorbed the new knowledge in his mind and slowly walked towards Wu Tianzhen.
As expected, Wu Tianzhen felt the weight on his collar again.
Zhang Qiling lightly hopped, and without seeming to exert much force, he lifted Wu Tianzhen and returned him to outside the snow hole.
Although this door couldn't be used, the main body must be nearby.
He had to find that place soon.
Even though the Qilin tattoo could ward off the cold, he didn't want to stay in this mountain ravine forever.