"Let's wait until Cang Liu recovers, is Gu Mingze okay?" Bai Cha asked again.
"I'm fine, I'm fine, I'm okay," Gu Mingze quickly replied. With Cang Liu unconscious, he had put Cang Liu's earpiece communicator on his own ear. The communicators were all interconnected, and upon hearing Bai Cha mention him, he immediately responded.
"This barrier seems to be man-made, Bai," Xiang Nan said, sitting on a rock and gently tapping the barrier. "I've asked Meng. His side is specifically designed to be immune to spiritual entities, while mine is immune to energy attacks. This is targeted."
As everyone knew, Meng Qinghuan was most skilled in spiritual attacks, while Su Qingli and Li Rong's partnership excelled in sonic energy attacks. It seemed this person intended to target their weaknesses.
Unfortunately for them, it probably wouldn't go as they wished.
"Oh, I know about that. I just captured one," Bai Cha shrugged, stepping on the severed hand of the fat, big-eared man beneath him. "Turn on the external speaker, let Zhi Yue hear her uncle's voice."
"Ah! Ah!! Bai Cha! May you die a terrible death! Ah! You bastard!"
Fierce screams blared from everyone's earpieces. Those who hadn't removed them in time felt their ears ache. Xiang Nan, having the foresight to remove his earpiece and turn on the external speaker, held his hand out straight. Even so, he felt a jolt that made his jaw twitch.
"Bai Cha! This is vigilantism!" Zhi Yue immediately exploded, rushing to Xiang Nan and yelling. "You beast! Worse than a dog or pig! If you have any guts, come at me!"
"Alright, then promise me this: once we get out, will you have a deathmatch with me?" Bai Cha's voice, laced with contempt, came from the earpiece. "As long as you agree to fight me to the death outside, I'll release your uncle. I'll see if you can last three moves against me."
Bai Cha's voice was cold and mocking, almost driving Zhi Yue mad. Yet, she only dared to curse back, her tirade of insults towards his ancestors and parents continuing for a while, but she didn't dare to accept Bai Cha's challenge.
Bai Cha was ranked in the top three of the first world in Country Z, while Zhi Yue was only in the top hundred, not even as good as Gu Zitan. Though her temper was fiery, she wasn't foolish enough to risk a deathmatch with Bai Cha.
"Tell me your plan, perhaps I can spare your daughter and parents," Bai Cha's voice came through again. "Of course, if you want to see your daughter flayed and dismembered like you, that's fine too."
"I'll talk! I'll talk! We've rigged the machines to deliberately separate you and prevent you from returning. When the time comes, we'll directly cut open the passage, and you'll all die! Several of our key figures have special protective shields that will last until we can rescue them!"
Upon hearing this, not only the Shadow faction and ordinary people, but even some members of the Light faction were stunned by these words.
Several key figures? So everyone else was abandoned?
Most people's hearts sank. They knew they wouldn't be among those key figures, and looked at each other in dismay, then collectively turned their gaze towards Zhi Yue and Mo Ziye.
They vaguely recalled that when they encountered danger, a few more important individuals from the Light faction had activated protective shields to shield themselves. Since those slightly more important members of the Light faction had shields, wouldn't Zhi Yue and Mo Ziye, as key figures, definitely have them?
So, aside from the few important individuals, even if they were from the Light faction, they were abandoned simply because they weren't from prominent families?
"Bai, aren't you disgusting! If you have the guts, don't use other people's children!" Zhi Yue, with red eyes, lunged forward, only to be easily dodged by Xiang Nan. "Where is my uncle's daughter! When did you kidnap her!"
"You mean that," Bai Cha's voice seemed to carry a few light chuckles through the communicator, his tone flippant. "I was just teasing him."
"Then, where did the photos of my daughter, bloody and mangled, come from!" Zhi Lian exclaimed in disbelief.
"Oh, you mean that, I photoshopped it," Bai Cha said casually, and even through the communicator, everyone could hear his smugness. "One-click synthesis, it's super useful. Do you want to try it?"
Everyone: "..."
Boss, you're being mischievous again.
"Bai, if what they say is true, then the passage should be sealed by them," Xiang Nan turned off the amplification mode and put the earpiece back on. "They are likely waiting outside the vortex gate, which is disadvantageous for us."
"It's fine, I've called for backup," Bai Cha said calmly. "My world bubble belongs to the second layer, and I still need to go to the first layer to use it as a stepping stone to break the heavenly barrier. Once you break the barrier later, you should be able to reach me, and then I'll tell you the next steps."
"But for now, let's rest. There's no rush anyway."
"Okay," Xiang Nan nodded, then casually walked to a large tree and sat down.
The sun was scorching, but this oasis, for some unknown reason, was lush and verdant. Sitting by the pond, everyone felt a sense of comfort.
"Three of diamonds!"
With a soft snap, this originally quiet sound was remarkably abrupt in the silent atmosphere.
Everyone looked over, only to see Gu Mingze pulling the newly awakened Cang Liu, along with Su Qing and Yan Ziyu, playing cards. A few people were scattered around them, watching them play with great interest.
"Still this carefree at a time like this? As expected of the last place, no ambition," Zhi Yue's voice, sharp with anger, came from not far away. She was directing all her anger at Gu Mingze. "Your brother is still here, why aren't you going back to your own house and hiding in the sewers? You brought playing cards instead of food? Truly..."
"I brought it," Cang Liu's voice, as cold as the murmur of the sea, interrupted Zhi Yue. Wearing a cooling device, Cang Liu had set the temperature to minus thirty degrees, coldly cutting off Zhi Yue's words.
Cang Liu already disliked Zhi Yue, and now he couldn't help but speak up to protect Gu Mingze. How could he not see that Zhi Yue was picking on the weaker one? Yan Ziyu and Su Qing were both playing, so why wasn't Zhi Yue accusing them?
Zhi Yue immediately got stuck. She couldn't believe that someone like Cang Liu, who was meticulous and serious in everything he did, would carry such a toy. She was more certain that someone had corrupted Cang Liu, and a surge of anger rose within her.
"Cang Liu, you are the Crown Prince of the Sea Kingdom, and you're being a lackey for others! And for people with such a terrible reputation! Do you know that proximity to ink stains black?" Zhi Yue calmed herself slightly and tried to persuade him earnestly. "Whatever you want, we can give it to you. Why are you mixing with them! You can threaten me in your first year, your future is limitless!"
Zhi Yue knew that Cang Liu was a Merman. Mermen had always been detached from worldly affairs, pure people of the Sea Kingdom. Zhi Yue firmly believed that it was the Shadows who had corrupted Cang Liu, and her resentment grew. Just as she was about to jump up, she was interrupted by an excited voice.
"Four sixes! I'm out!" It was Gu Mingze again. Gu Mingze was grinning broadly, his teeth showing, a smile of pure delight on his face.
"Gu Mingze, are you sure you haven't practiced card-sleight-of-hand?" Su Qing ran a hand through his hair, completely flustered. Grabbing Li Rong's sleeve, he pulled her over. "Rongrong! Help me, I've lost the fourth round already!"
Li Rong gave a helpless glance at Su Qing, who had four strips of paper stuck to his face, and took the cards from him.
"Four tens." It was Cang Liu.
As Cang Liu played his cards, Gu Mingze's smiling face immediately fell. He said with a distressed expression, "Brother, we're a team, we're the peasants. Why are you blocking my cards?"
Playing Dou Dizhu, Gu Mingze felt he was already numb from being blocked by Cang Liu.
"Pay attention next time," Cang Liu nodded dully, treating playing cards like a training session, with a look of serious concentration.
"Sigh, it's okay, it's okay, I think I can do it, I'll carry you," Gu Mingze scratched his head and sighed.
This was a stark polarization. The atmosphere here was extremely relaxed, with people playing cards, playing chess, and others setting up bets.
However, Xiang Nan did not participate. As a senior, he, Meng Qinghuan, and Bai Cha were all considered seniors in the Shadow faction. Since bets had been placed, it would be too bullying to compete against these still-developing juniors.
On the other side, the atmosphere was extremely tense. Mo Ziye and Michael wanted to join the fun, but their own people were discussing the Shadow faction's lack of seriousness and other such matters, so neither dared to go over. As for Zhi Yue beside them, her temper was well known, and people dared not even whisper for fear of incurring her wrath.
"That's enough, this endless behavior is not acceptable."
Just as Gu Mingze, with fifteen wins out of twenty games, triumphantly bounced up and clung to Cang Liu, Gu Zitan finally couldn't stand it, his tone carrying a hint of reproach.
"Stop messing around all day and dragging others down in the end," Gu Zitan frowned, clearly displeased. "What's the point of just playing around all day?"
The people of the Shadow faction: "..."
Damn it, I never realized our principal was so annoying before.
Gu Mingze shrunk his neck and slumped back down. He was actually a bit indignant. He felt he wasn't completely useless, but he didn't know how to retort. He thought about how he had always been protected by others.
Moreover, he was accustomed to staying at home, and his parents and brother had always chided him like this. Even though he had now become a member of the Shadow faction, Gu Mingze still subconsciously feared Gu Zitan.
Gu Mingze might have been subdued, but that didn't mean the other members of the Shadow faction had good tempers. They had already become close to Gu Mingze. Bai Cha had even said he would take care of Gu Mingze, so why should others point fingers at them?
Do you have something to say? Are you alright?
"Hiss, what's it to you? Is it bothering you? You're the principal, you're amazing." A short-haired girl was the first to jump out. Cang Ling'er also had a fiery temper, but unlike Zhi Yue, she could control her temper.
However, controlling one's temper was one thing, but crossing the line was another. Cang Ling'er only knew that anyone from the Shadow faction was her brother, and no one else could criticize them. Hearing Gu Zitan's accusatory voice, she immediately exploded.
"Are you making a blanket statement? We're playing with him, we're also playing, are you scolding the mulberry to curse the locust!" Cang Ling'er, her face contorted in anger, yelled. "Can you break through the barrier and get out or something? You can't do anything yourself but you have to butt in, so impressive!"
In fact, it wasn't entirely unreasonable for Cang Ling'er to fly into a rage. Gu Zitan's accusation, from a certain perspective, was indeed like scolding the mulberry to curse the locust.
Whether Gu Mingze was on anyone's side, the entire group of the Shadow faction was playing together. Suddenly, someone jumped in and pointed at one person, saying that he only knew how to play and was not doing his proper job. From any angle, it looked like a direct bombardment of everyone.
"Exactly, we're playing our own games, what's it to you?"
"And you're not even allowed to play? Must we all sit here and worry with you?"
"If you have the ability, then break the barrier! You can't do anything right now, and you're not even allowed to let people pass the time?"
"..."
For a moment, accusations rose one after another. Some even sat next to Gu Mingze, blocking the space between Gu Mingze and Gu Zitan.
Qing Lin, broad-shouldered and strong, was like a brown bear. Sitting on the ground, he looked like a small mountain. He patted Gu Mingze's shoulder, making him wince.
"Play your game. I just bet on you for ten consecutive wins. If you make me lose money, you're finished," Qing Lin clenched his fists in a threatening manner. Despite his fierce demeanor, Gu Mingze's eyes welled up.
"Principal Gu, I think you've misunderstood. Mingze isn't dragging us down; we need his guidance," Cang Liu coughed lightly, speaking up for Gu Mingze. "In our team, he's the commander."
"Also, I'm not good at playing games, he's the one leading me to victory," Cang Liu added after some thought.
The last sentence was a bit superfluous, but it was the truth. The calm and meticulous Cang Liu was utterly clueless when it came to playing games, especially team games. Even after remembering the rules, he would play in a chaotic manner, often inadvertently blocking his teammates' paths.
What's more, he himself didn't know what to do next. Even Gu Mingze, who played well, was made to lose several times by Cang Liu.
In the past, Cang Liu had played games with others. Shenji, a game of universal competition, had three modes: five-on-five, three-on-three, and one-on-one, each with different heroes.
Xiang Nan took Cang Liu for a week and then uninstalled the game. Only Gu Mingze was willing to play with Cang Liu in the game, with a fifty-fifty win rate.
At first, when Gu Mingze couldn't adapt to having such a troublesome teammate as Cang Liu, he almost lost his world ranking.
Gu Zitan was dumbfounded. He clearly hadn't expected that scolding his own brother would stir up such a storm. For a moment, he didn't know how to retort. He then looked at Xiang Nan, who was pinching his earlobe with a look of indifferent amusement.