145: Chapter 145: The Train That Never Stops (Part Fourteen)

An Ke wanted to slowly stand up, but one of her feet wouldn't move. Looking back, she saw someone tightly grabbing her foot, clinging to the edge of the wooden bridge.

A flash of ruthlessness crossed An Ke's face.

Looking back, she saw that the point where the wooden bridge was vanishing was almost upon her.

Staring at the man who was halfway up, An Ke produced a knife in her hand.

Under the man's terrified gaze, she aimed at his hand.

"No one can stop my progress."

As soon as she spoke, her hand rose and the knife fell.

"Ah..."

"No..."

"You... will die a horrible death..."

The voice echoed in the abyss, and finally, the wooden bridge stopped shaking.

With a triumphant smile, An Ke gave Bai Lin a provocative look.

With one last step, she crossed to the other side and vanished into the mist.

Only Bai Lin was left behind, watching helplessly as the wooden bridge disappeared bit by bit.

Instantly, a sense of crisis struck.

This meant that the suspension bridge before him might also disappear, just like the wooden bridge.

For a moment, a struggle flashed in his eyes, and he quickly stepped onto the suspension bridge.

Though called a suspension bridge, it was made of ropes and was harder to traverse than the other two.

Before the person in front could react, Bai Lin shoved him off.

Screams rang out through the abyss once more.

—

On Qian Ye's side,

The other end of the zip line was a forest.

Qian Ye gazed at the dense foliage; the entire forest exuded a chilly, eerie aura.

Qian Ye's ears twitched; there was no sound around her, only the silence of her own breathing.

Three paths appeared before her.

One was lined with blooming flowers on both sides.

The middle one was covered in thorns, and the far right was a flagstone path with nothing unique about it.

It all depended on Qian Ye's choice.

"Naturally, I prefer a path filled with flowers~"

Without hesitation, Qian Ye chose the flower-lined path.

She didn't want her path to be full of thorns and boredom.

Just as Qian Ye left, An Ke appeared, catching sight of Qian Ye's departing figure.

This time she had learned her lesson; she couldn't choose the same path as her, so she directly picked the middle one.

As Qian Ye walked along the path, it grew quieter the deeper she went. The flowers beneath her feet bloomed silently as she moved.

Qian Ye glanced down at the flowers, the corners of her mouth curling slightly. Holding her hong ling umbrella, she continued forward.

This time, as she raised her foot again, she brought it down hard. With a moderate impact, the flowers were nearly shaken apart the moment her foot landed.

Instantly, they didn't dare to act rashly again and furled themselves up.

Seeing this, the smile on Qian Ye's lips deepened.

Suddenly,

Numerous chains lunged from the surroundings, darting toward Qian Ye at high speed.

Qian Ye used the red singer to ward off the attacks.

The chains danced in mid-air, blocking Qian Ye's path forward.

Within the flower bushes,

Two chains emerged stealthily, creeping toward Qian Ye.

Qian Ye felt a chill on her ankle. Looking down, she saw she had been caught by the chains.

Instantly, the chains in mid-air surged with power and lunged toward Qian Ye's arms.

Their goal was to restrain Qian Ye.

Qian Ye dodged the chains and jumped to the side. Suddenly, there was more movement from behind.

The red singer in Qian Ye's hand flew out.

"It's, it's me!"

It was Bai Lin's voice; he had also chosen this path.

As soon as Bai Lin appeared, the chains doubled in number, rushing toward the two of them.

As they attacked, Qian Ye grabbed one in her hand.

Upon holding it, Qian Ye realized that these so-called chains were actually composed of words.

Looking closely, they were covered in dense text of varying sizes.

Work pressure!

Life's burdens!

In short, they described the pressures and oppressive attitudes toward life faced in middle age.

Qian Ye gripped the chain, feeling it weigh a thousand pounds as an aura of despair emanated from it.

Beside her, Bai Lin's ankles were tightly bound by chains. He struggled even to lift his feet.

With a slight squeeze of Qian Ye's hand, the chain in her palm shattered into pieces.

The spider lily radiated a red light, keeping Qian Ye protected within a safe zone.

The chains repeatedly struck the light shield but couldn't harm Qian Ye, so they eventually withdrew in frustration.

The chains on Bai Lin grew heavier and heavier. Seeing Qian Ye ahead moving with ease, he refused to accept defeat and gritted his teeth, moving forward step by step.

His ankles and wrists were rubbed bloody by the chains, yet he still didn't give up.

There was light ahead; it seemed to be the exit.

By now, Bai Lin could no longer walk. Using both hands and feet, he continued to crawl forward.

As Qian Ye emerged, she saw An Ke collapsed to one side.

If not for her familiar figure, she wouldn't have been sure it was her.

She was covered in blood and filth.

Her exposed skin was covered in lacerations.

Her slightly rising and falling chest proved she was still alive.

Qian Ye looked at her and then thought of Bai Lin, who was still struggling inside, suddenly feeling a bit bewildered.

"So human willpower is actually this strong~"

Qian Ye rested her chin on her hand and crouched before An Ke, staring at her in confusion.

At this moment, she was incredibly fragile, yet her chest was still moving, and she exuded an aura of refusal to yield or accept defeat.

With a "clack,"

a chain hit the ground. Qian Ye looked back.

It was Bai Lin.

Relying on his own willpower, he had also made it out.

Seeing Qian Ye, Bai Lin closed his eyes unwillingly; this was already his limit.

After all...

"Humans are truly complex."

Qian Ye tilted her head, looking at the two "corpses."

—

*Thud...*

*Cough, cough, cough...*

"This, this is..."

"I... I'm still alive?" Bai Lin tried to get up from the ground, pain shooting through his wrists and ankles.

Bai Lin looked at the scars on his hands and feet, then at his surroundings.

He had never felt a place was so dear to him.

It was the train.

He was currently inside the train.

He was back!

He was alive!

"Noisy!"

With that single word, Bai Lin looked up and saw Qian Ye sitting across from him.

At that moment, he also noticed An Ke lying beside him.

Both of them had returned safely.

His intuition told him it had something to do with Su Ye.

However,

Qian Ye closed her eyes, showing no intention of speaking with him.

Bai Lin glanced at the carriage; only the three of them were there now.

The passengers who were there before had all disappeared.

Even with so many doubts, Bai Lin had no energy left to investigate.

For him now, being alive was the greatest blessing.

He wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but the train seemed to be speeding up.

Bai Lin's hands and feet were covered in wounds. The piercing pain forced him to sit on the floor and begin bandaging himself.

He had endured the pain all along the way, so he didn't mind this bit of suffering now.

Gritting his teeth, he bandaged his wounds.

"Dear passengers, we are about to arrive at the final stop, Twilight Coffin Station. Please... prepare yourselves."

What kind of preparation?

Bai Lin frowned; there seemed to be a pause in the announcement.

What was it trying to say?

"Twilight Pass?"

Is it another trial?

These were the thoughts that crossed Bai Lin's mind.