B U G Arc
Exam God 17
Lion carefully ignited a tinder at the entrance, and the branches that were lurking there seemed to sense the danger and scattered.
Seeing this, Lion frowned.
“Even the plants have mutated. Should we proceed like this?”
Lion turned to ask Xin Lan.
Their cards indeed stated that they wouldn’t be infected by zombies, but they never said they couldn’t be killed. How should they deal with these mutated plants?
Since they could dodge, they had no idea what kind of situation they would encounter by venturing into this forest.
“We must go through. Let’s move deeper inside,” Xin Lan suggested.
In reality, Xin Lan had a quicker method in mind: setting the forest on fire, using the wind to fan the flames, and protecting the group with a water shield as they crossed. However, this approach would make it more challenging for her teammates, and they might not cooperate. If she or Wan Yan had water-based abilities, they would definitely do it this way, but unfortunately, they did not. So, they decided to proceed as they were.
The group entered the forest, with Xin Lan and Wan Yan at the forefront. Xin Lan even casually took hold of Yuanyuan. Of course, it wasn’t to protect him; the items for submission were still with him, and if something happened to him, they wouldn’t be able to retrieve those items.
The forest was vast and appeared particularly eerie amidst this desert wasteland.
The trees almost entirely obscured the sky, with only a few rays of light trickling in, lending an eerie atmosphere to the deep, shadowy areas within the forest.
It was challenging to discern direction within the forest, but Xin Lan and Wan Yan walked in an almost straight line. When they reached the end, there was no path ahead.
“Should we change direction?”
It was Ah Cheng who spoke, and she looked at Xin Lan, seemingly regarding her as the leader.
“Let’s mark a sign.”
Chen Bai gazed at the trees before him, their branches leaning together. Changing direction could easily lead to confusion, and they might end up going in circles.
“No change of course, Lion, ignite the fire.”
Xin Lan pointed to the branches in front of them.
Throughout their journey, these trees had remained motionless. However, they were well aware that these branches could move.
Lion nodded and stood in front of the tree, setting it ablaze.
Flames darted out between his fingers, and as the fire burned brighter, it hovered in his palm.
“Where should I light it?”
The tree before them was immense, almost requiring three people to barely encircle it, with its branches interweaving with other trees to form a barrier.
“Light it wherever.”
Lion hesitated, and he approached the nearest branch. The end of the branch caught fire, but just as it was about to burn upwards, several branches suddenly shot down, entwining the ignited branch tightly together.
The fire quietly extinguished.
“Watch out!”
Ah Cheng shouted, but Xin Lan was even quicker. She grabbed Lion’s collar and pulled him backward.
A branch swept low, entangling itself on the opposite tree trunk.
If Xin Lan hadn’t pulled Lion back in time, he would have been pinned to the opposite tree trunk.
Lion, startled, had his fire extinguished abruptly and thanked Xin Lan in a low voice.
“It’s starting to move.”
“What?”
The others looked puzzled upon hearing Xin Lan’s words, except for Wan Yan, who understood her meaning and readied her energy gun.
Suddenly, a mesmerizing shower of leaves fell, and amid the falling leaves, vine-like branches as thick as an arm attacked the group.
Xin Lan agilely carried Yuanyuan, dodging through the danger. Wan Yan brandished her energy gun while evading attacks from the tree trunks. Lion swung his hands, ablaze with fire, igniting nearby branches and leaves, while Huo Xu exhibited an elegant and graceful wind-stepping technique.
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Ah Cheng, in a tight spot, saw her teammates using their powers and quickly raised a water shield.
Nurse Chen Bai, unsure of what to do, could only cower beside the sister’s shield, gazing enviously at Yuanyuan, who Xin Lan was carrying.
Suddenly, a piercing scream echoed through the forest. Xin Lan stumbled, causing a splitting headache.
Seizing this opportunity, the vines wrapped around her ankle and pulled her backward.
With quick reflexes, Xin Lan tossed Yuanyuan out and, displaying remarkable agility mid-air, grabbed and forcibly tore apart the mutated vine.
Greenish fluid splattered on her hands, leaving a sticky sensation.
The branches became even more frenzied in their movements. Xin Lan kept an eye on Wan Yan, who was facing the most severe onslaught but still skillfully evading.
An energy gun had burned a large hole through one tree trunk, scattering broken branches and leaves on either side.
The ground trembled beneath them, and Xin Lan, crouching to dodge an attack, suddenly turned her attention to Wan Yan.
Wan Yan happened to look at her at that moment and gave her an OK sign.
The ground tremors intensified, as if the very earth and sky were quaking. The thunderous noise left Xin Lan feeling a bit dizzy. She picked up Yuanyuan, who had just rolled to the side, and moved to the side.
“Move to both sides!”
Xin Lan shouted, and without thinking, the others ran in both directions.
With a deafening crash, the tree toppled to the ground.
Wan Yan had been scorching a portion of the tree trunk since earlier, and after the tree trunk was pierced by the energy gun, she widened the gap, effectively cutting it in half.
The branches that had been swaying lost their means of transferring energy, and their movements gradually slowed down before drooping to the ground.
In front of them, the surroundings suddenly opened up to reveal a wide road.
“That scared me.”
Ah Cheng puts away her water shield. She looked at her damaged clothes and the scratches on her hands from the branches.
Her water shield wasn’t very secure; it kept her hands protected but left her feet exposed, and there was someone nearby.
Ah Cheng looked quite disheveled, and Lion wasn’t faring much better.
He wasn’t very skilled with the fire, and a few strands of his own hair had been singed.
Yuanyuan was being swung around, even thrown to the ground at times, covered in leaves and looking quite disheveled.
Who could endure this? And the way the sister was swinging him around, it seemed effortless, which was downright terrifying.
Chen Bai, who had resembled a playboy, looked as if he had been through a robbery. His clothes had several tears, and his face bore minor wounds.
Xin Lan and Wan Yan looked as pristine as when they had entered, not a hair out of place.
“Where are you injured? Let me help you out.”
Chen Bai muttered to himself, healing the wounds on his body and then looked at the others.
He mainly glanced at Xin Lan and Wan Yan, and both shook their heads, looking cool and composed.
Chen Bai shrugged and went on to tend to the others’ injuries.
Xin Lan’s hands were a mess.
They were covered in greenish fluid and had bits of leaves on them.
In the pocket of Wan Yan’s clothes, there was a piece of cloth, which Xin Lan took to clean herself but was stopped by Wan Yan.
“Let me do it for you.”
She lowered her head and meticulously wiped Xin Lan’s palms, patiently cleaning each finger one by one.
Her movements were incredibly delicate, as if she were doing something of utmost importance.
Suddenly, Xin Lan’s hand was grasped, and an unexpected warmth began to fill her. When she realized these emotions, her heart fluttered with surprise.
How could she be experiencing such a nearly embarrassing feeling? It was unfounded, strange, and overwhelming.
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She uncomfortably looked away into the distance and then redirected her gaze to Wan Yan’s strands of hair.
It seemed like there was something of interest in that direction. She was fixated on it, concentrating on the spot and sensing the warmth transmitted from the point where she and Wan Yan held hands.
By the time Wan Yan had finished wiping, Xin Lan realized that the surroundings had become oddly quiet.
She and Wan Yan turned around together and were met with several pairs of eyes.
Yuanyuan and Ah Cheng were lost in thought; something significant was going on here.
Huo Xu and Chen Bai appeared to be quite understanding; clearly, there was a problem.
Lion was the only one left baffled, feeling that something was off between the two attractive girls.
Xin Lan and Wan Yan, however, were not the type to be concerned about other people’s scrutiny. They straightforwardly allowed them to observe, gesturing for Yuanyuan to retrieve the car.
Yuanyuan brought out the car, but she remained silent about the password box.
Everyone knew what it meant; it was the key to the successful submission.
Wan Yan wouldn’t let this crucial item fall into anyone else’s hands, so she reached out to Yuanyuan.
“Put it in here for convenience, so you don’t have to carry it.”
Lion suggested, but no one agreed. Wan Yan raised her chin, and Yuanyuan still took out the password box.
“We should discuss where we’re heading, right?”
Lion was getting a bit impatient. It was evident that there might be more than one faction now. If they blindly followed one path and ended up in someone else’s main camp, they’d be eliminated directly.
“Our destination…”
Ah Cheng hesitated.
While everyone maintained an outward semblance of calm, the underlying tension was undeniable. No one had taken any steps to disrupt the harmony, but it was a reality that had to be confronted. Everyone desired to survive, and nobody was willing to simply die without a fight.
“So, I suggest we be more candid with each other.”
Xin Lan tapped on the car’s hood, her gaze sweeping over everyone present.
“Your goals are not aligned.”
Huo Xu chimed in, pointing directly at Xin Lan and Wan Yan.
“Yes, indeed, our goals are not aligned.”
Xin Lan nodded, openly admitting it.
“So what’s your plan?”
Huo Xu was curious about how these two individuals intended to reconcile their differences, considering there was only one life to live.
“So, we plan to merge the two bases.”
Xin Lan said it in a matter-of-fact manner, as though she were casually discussing the weather of the day.
“Merge?”
Ah Cheng exclaimed, her face filled with disbelief.
“That actually seems like a good idea.”
Huo Xu nodded, appreciating the solution.
“But what if it doesn’t work? What if the rules reject it?”
“So what?”
Xin Lan replied indifferently, as if she didn’t care about her words.
If she and Wan Yan were players in this world and bound by its rules, they would do the same.
Even though this was a gamble with their teammates’ lives, so what?
Setting aside the nature of the rules, they had the strength to decide how the game would proceed.
At this moment, Xin Lan had little sentiment, as this was not their real-world, after all.
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“Regardless of which side you are on, we don’t care. If you want to board the car, then sit in it. If you want to grab the password box, feel free to try.”
Xin Lan declared, but no one made a move.
Xin Lan chuckled and opened the car door, taking a seat, and Wan Yan sat in the passenger seat.
Everyone eventually boarded the car, wearing expressions of unease.
“May I ask which base you intend to deliver the answer sheets to?”
Ah Cheng’s face is filled with anxiety.
When Xin Lan and Wan Yan each gave their answers, Ah Cheng breathed a sigh of relief.
As for the others, their thoughts remained concealed, and their expressions didn’t reveal any hints of joy or otherwise.
Xin Lan didn’t pay any attention to their reactions.
Regardless of whether they were teammates or not, the choice of this base was already settled.
If, as Huo Xu suggested, it was rejected by the rules, they would see what changes it would bring.
Xin Lan didn’t mind, and Wan Yan cared even less.
Her goal was crystal clear: Bug and Xin Lan. In her eyes, the rest of the world was nothing more than a string of code.
She only cared about Xin Lan; to her, all other beings were but dust in the wind.