When the Wild Beast is Trapped in the Nightmare Cycle (BL)
Chapter 537: Enough Crying

Chapter 537: Enough Crying

"Xiao Shen!"

Gu Luoxin cried out in fright when he heard Shen Nianzu cough weakly behind his back. "Xiao Shen, are you okay?!"

He tried to look over his shoulder to check on the other person, only to trip over the vine beneath his feet in a moment of inattention. But luckily he merely stumbled for a bit before catching his balance and continued sprinting across the woods. His ragged breathing echoed so loudly beside his ears as he gritted his teeth, blinking back the tears springing up on his eyes. "Xiao Shen, hang in there! Just hang in there for a while!"

It was unknown whether he said this to comfort the injured boy he was carrying behind his back, or to soothe his own anxiety.

After confirming that he had thrown off their tail, only then did Gu Luoxin dare to stop. Even then, his hands still trembled badly as he placed Shen Nianzu down.

Tears instantly gushed out of his eyes the moment he took in the crimson stain on Shen Nianzu’s small shoulder. Through the torn fabric, a glimpse of a bleeding gash could be seen which stood out glaringly against the jade doll’s porcelain skin. The skin around the wound was dyed in a bluish tinge, indicating the presence of poison.

Shen Nianzu’s breaths came out in ragged gasps, his brows tightly furrowed. His eyes were squeezed shut, large beads of sweat soaking his temple. He looked as if he was in a whole lot of pain.

The sight of his ever powerful and dependable teammate reduced to such a miserable state stabbed Gu Luoxin’s heart akin to burning needles.

"I’m sorry, I’m so sorry hic...

" he sobbed, nearly choking on his tears. He tried his best to clean and dress the wounds despite his trembling hands. "It’s all my fault... I’m so sorry, Xiao Shen..."

As a matter of fact, Gu Luoxin appeared only slightly better himself. He had lost one of his hair clips, leaving his bangs hanging down messily on one side of his face. His cheeks were streaked with mud, faint abrasions marred his exposed skin, and his tactical gear was splashed in blood in a few places – though all of it did not belong to him. He looked no different than an unkempt mouse which had just climbed out of the dirty sewer. However, compared to the injuries Shen Nianzu had sustained, his current condition was not even worth mentioning at all.

Gu Luoxin had no idea why they were so unlucky. To think that they were actually caught in another elimination game when they were just passing by!

Compared to the previous one, this elimination game was more brutal, vicious, and straightforward. A massacre took place almost in the very first second. The weak were mercilessly slaughtered, and the strong were hunted like preys. Even though Gu Luoxin and Shen Nianzu intended to stay out of the battle, they were forced to defend themselves if they wanted to survive.

—And it’s all because of a team of four!

Gu Luoxin gnashed his teeth hatefully at the painful recollection. He had never seen those players before, but their ranking couldn’t possibly be low for sure. They carried themselves with brashness and arrogance, treating the battlefield as if it was their own playground while disregarding the number of lives which had fallen under their hands. Even after the invisible barrier locking the area had vanished, they continued to pursue the remaining players and kill them in the most bloody way possible, their eyes crazed with manic excitement.

The more they killed, the more thrilled they became!

Shen Nianzu had sustained this injury by covering for him when they were retreating, but those players still were not willing to let them go and resorted to using poison when they realized they couldn’t defeat Shen Nianzu!

Thanks to Shen Nianzu’s protection, Gu Luoxin had managed to escape relatively unscathed. Unfortunately, even though they had held their breaths throughout, they failed to take into account the exposed wound on Shen Nianzu’s shoulder, which resulted in the current predicament.

Only God knew how terrified Gu Luoxin was when the silver-haired boy suddenly collapsed before his eyes. Alas, the situation did not allow them to stop even for a second— those crazy players were still hot on their trail! Gu Luoxin had to grit his teeth and throw Shen Nianzu on his back while he focused on fleeing. All the fear, terror, dread, and seething rage was fully channeled into a burst of adrenaline, propelling him to leave their pursuers far behind. For God’s sake, he did not even know he could run this fast before!

Fortunately... fortunately he managed to shake them off.

Even then, Gu Luoxin dared not let his guard down so quickly. His senses remained sharp and alert, his ears open to any suspicious movements.

A bunch of psychos! He cursed vehemently inside his heart. If they met again one day, he would... he would...

"Urgh..."

Gu Luoxin abruptly snapped his head up at the faint groan, his red-rimmed eyes brightening up when he noticed Shen Nianzu stirring awake. "Xiao Shen!" he cried out in a mixture of excitement, joy and anxiety. "H–How are you feeling right now? Are you dizzy? Nauseous? I tried dressing up the wound but I don’t think it’s working well. Should I... should I take the healing prop out? Do you think it will also work on poison?"

Shen Nianzu raised a hand to halt his barrage of questions, his frown deepening. Gu Luoxin wisely clamped his mouth shut. He helped the jade doll to a comfortable sitting position, his nose turning sour upon catching a pained look crossing Shen Nianzu’s face, which the latter swiftly concealed by smoothing his brows.

"I’m so useless..." he muttered in a nasal tone. "If only I was a bit stronger, you... you wouldn’t have needed to protect me. We could have... we could have worked together... fought togeth... er..." halfway through his sentence, he could no longer hold his tears back. Yet he dared not make any loud noises and could only bite his lower lip tightly, letting out faint suppressed whimpers and sobs, sounding as if the end of the world was upon him.

Shen Nianzu was half-amused and half-exasperated. "Okay, that’s enough crying," he pinched Gu Luoxin’s cheek, a flicker of amusement dancing in his pale purple eyes. "How many tears have you wasted tonight?"

For him, this kind of wound might as well be nothing at all. He had suffered much worse before. But the way Gu Luoxin bawled his eyes out gave him the impression as if he was about to die, leaving him torn between laughing and crying. "Stop saying that you’re useless. Didn’t you manage to bring us to safety with me on your back?"

"B–But that’s because..." Gu Luoxin still tried to argue, but Shen Nianzu shot him a faint glare, forcing him to swallow his protest back.

"Don’t worry." Under Gu Luoxin’s horrified gaze, Shen Nianzu tore open the messy bandage on his shoulder and used a dagger to cut off the poisoned area, causing the blood to flow even harder. He did it all without batting an eyelid. Were it not for the sweat oozing out of his skin, one wouldn’t be able to tell he was silently enduring his pain at all. "After I acquired the divine prop, my body has become resistant to poison to some degree, so this is nowhere near enough to take me down. No need to take out the healing prop, we should save it for later."

As he spoke, he tossed the bloody dagger away and sprinkled some powder medicine on the bloody gash, sucking in a sharp breath as he did so.

When he moved to redo the bandage, only then did Gu Luoxin snap out of his stupor and hastily take over the job. "A-Allow me!"

With lowered gaze, Shen Nianzu quietly observed the young man’s trembling hands. "Besides," he added after some thought, "you wouldn’t be able to beat them anyway. They’re equally strong – if not stronger than me."

Gu Luoxin’s eyes flew open in shock. "Stronger... than you, Xiao Shen?"

Shen Nianzu let out a faint ’mn’ before speaking, "Some people seem good and honest in the real world, but only because they are bound by society’s rules. In the Nightmare Cycle, those chains are gone, and the violence and malice buried in their hearts run rampant. They’re like rabid dogs with nothing to lose. Make sure to avoid players like that in the future. If you can’t bring yourself to finish them... then run."

A cold glint flickered in his pale purple eyes as he added, "And if I’m not mistaken, those players... they should be the infamous members of Imhotep."