pjbooks Chapter 370 You Can't Hide It From Me!
Chapter 370 You Can't Hide It From Me!
Zhang Yan woke up.
The moment I opened my eyes, everything in the dream vanished as quickly as the tide receded.
The old man's face, the echoes of the ruins, that coordinate.
But one thing remained.
Shennongjia. Deep underground. The first gate.
Zhang Yan turned his head; Nie Qingcheng was still asleep.
Her breathing was shallow, her left hand rested on his chest, the ring on her ring finger pressed against his skin, slightly cool.
He didn't move.
I stared at the ceiling for a long time.
The system interface floated at the edge of the field of view, and the coordinates hung quietly in the corner like a nail.
Zhang Yan closed his eyes briefly, then opened them again.
Get up. Wash up. Make breakfast.
When Nie Qingcheng came downstairs, porridge and fried eggs were already laid out on the table.
She glanced at Zhang Yan's expression.
"Not sleeping well?"
"good."
Nie Qingcheng didn't press the matter. She sat down to eat.
Halfway through the meal, she suddenly said, "I've changed my flight."
Zhang Yan looked up.
"The flight is at 2 PM, direct to Sapporo." Nie Qingcheng picked up her phone and waved it. "The hot spring hotel is booked, the kind with an open-air rooftop."
Zhang Yan nodded. "Okay."
"I'll have someone pack my luggage."
"Um."
Nie Qingcheng looked at him. "You've been very quiet today."
Zhang Yan said, "Thinking about things."
"What is it?"
Zhang Yan paused for a moment. "We'll talk about it when we get back."
Nie Qingcheng paused for a moment with her chopsticks. She didn't ask any further questions.
"it is good."
In the afternoon, the two boarded the plane.
During the flight, Nie Qingcheng leaned on Zhang Yan's shoulder and flipped through a magazine. Zhang Yan had his eyes closed, but he wasn't asleep.
The system interface is always open.
Next to that coordinate, there is a line of small gray text.
"Unknown protocol remnant - Source: Not from this dimension".
This line of text appeared after he woke up.
It is not the energy signature of the Ruins. It is not the protocol format of the Heart of the Creator. It is something that even the system itself cannot fully parse.
Zhang Yan stared at that line of text for a long time.
Nie Qingcheng turned a page of the magazine. "What are you thinking about?"
"It's nothing."
"That's a lie."
Zhang Yan opened his eyes and looked at her.
Nie Qingcheng didn't look up. "Your breathing rate has changed."
Zhang Yan paused for two seconds. "We'll talk about it when we get there."
Nie Qingcheng turned to the next page. "Okay."
When I landed in Sapporo, it was snowing outside.
The car that picked them up from the airport took them to a hot spring hotel by Lake Toya. It was a detached hotel with a private onsen (hot spring bath) facing the lake.
After entering the room, Nie Qingcheng changed into a bathrobe. It was dark blue, and the belt was tied loosely. She turned to look at Zhang Yan.
"Change your clothes."
"Um."
"Soaking in hot springs."
"it is good."
"Now."
Zhang Yan changed into a yukata and walked with her to the open-air hot spring.
Snowflakes fell onto the hot water, turning into white mist. Across the lake were continuous snow-capped mountains, their outlines blurred in the twilight.
Nie Qingcheng went into the water first. The steam rising from her face made her blush slightly.
Zhang Yan followed him down.
The water temperature was very high. The muscles slowly relaxed in the hot water.
Nie Qingcheng leaned closer and put her hand on his shoulder.
"Is it comfortable?"
"Um."
"My shoulders are still stiff."
"I'm used to it."
Nie Qingcheng pressed her fingers on his shoulders and neck a few times. "Relax."
Zhang Yan nodded.
But his gaze fell on the distant snow-capped mountains.
Thirty seconds.
What did Nie Qingcheng say?
He didn't hear it.
Nie Qingcheng withdrew her hand from his shoulder.
Zhang Yan snapped out of his daze. "What did you say?"
Nie Qingcheng looked at him. Her eyes were calm.
"It's nothing."
She moved half a step to the side. It wasn't far, but that half step was quite significant.
Zhang Yan opened his mouth.
Nie Qingcheng had already closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the stone by the pool.
"Call me when you're done soaking."
Zhang Yan looked at her.
"A beauty that could topple a city".
"Um."
"Feel sorry."
Nie Qingcheng didn't open her eyes. "You didn't do anything wrong."
Zhang Yan remained silent.
Dinner was served in the room. It was a kaiseki meal, served course by course.
Nie Qingcheng asked, "Is this fish delicious?"
Zhang Yan was a beat slow. "Delicious."
Nie Qingcheng then asked, "Where do you want to go tomorrow?"
Zhang Yan was a beat slow again. "Anything is fine."
Nie Qingcheng spoke for the third time. "What do you think of this wine?"
Zhang Yan paused, his chopsticks still. "What kind of wine?"
Nie Qingcheng put down her chopsticks.
The movements were very light, but the sound was very clear.
"You've been out of sorts ever since you boarded the plane."
Zhang Yan looked at her.
Nie Qingcheng wasn't angry. Nor did she press for answers.
She picked up her teacup and took a sip.
"I'll listen whenever you want to talk."
Zhang Yan's lips moved slightly.
Nie Qingcheng has picked up her chopsticks again. "Let's eat."
Zhang Yan lowered his head. "Okay."
The two remained silent for the rest of the dinner.
It's not a cold war. It's a very quiet wait.
Nie Qingcheng can wait.
She can wait.
At 11 p.m., Nie Qingcheng came out after taking a shower, her hair half-dry, wearing a white bathrobe from the hotel.
Zhang Yan sat by the window.
She glanced at him.
"Not going to sleep?"
"You go to sleep first."
Nie Qingcheng didn't say much. She walked to the bedside, lay down, and pulled the blanket up to her shoulders.
"Good night."
"Good night."
The room darkened.
Zhang Yan listened as her breathing gradually deepened and lengthened.
About twenty minutes later, she fell asleep.
Zhang Yan turned to look at her. She was wrapped tightly in the blanket, only half of her face was visible. Her brows were slightly furrowed, as if she were thinking about something even in her sleep.
He looked back.
Open the system interface.
That coordinate is suspended in mid-air.
神农架。北纬31°27′，东经110°41′。地下约1200米。
The small gray text next to it is still there.
"Unknown protocol remnant - Source: Not from this dimension".
Zhang Yan stared at the line of text.
Not this dimension.
It's not a ruin.
It is not the work of nature.
It is not a remnant of a seal from 30,000 years ago.
It's something else.
The words Xu had said resurfaced.
"Something is approaching from beyond this world."
"More dangerous than you?"
"Yes, for you."
Zhang Yan tapped the window frame lightly with his finger.
Outside the window, the snow was still falling. Lake Toya was pitch black, and the opposite shore was not visible.
He closed the system interface.
It opened again.
It was turned off again.
The last time he opened it, he noticed a new message below the coordinates.
Automatically generated by the system.
"Recommendation priority: Undetermined. Reason: Insufficient data to assess threat level."
Even the system can't make a judgment.
Zhang Yan leaned back in his chair.
Behind her, Nie Qingcheng turned over.
He didn't turn around.
The snow fell silently onto the windowpane.
……
The next morning, Zhang Yan woke up earlier than Nie Qingcheng.
He went to the kitchen and made miso soup, and heated up the leftover rice from last night.
When Nie Qingcheng came out, her hair was tied in a ponytail and she was not wearing makeup.
She sat down and took a sip of soup.
"I've cancelled my plans for Hakodate today."
Zhang Yan paused, his chopsticks still. "Why?"
Nie Qingcheng put down her bowl.
She looked at him.
"Speak."
Zhang Yan did not respond immediately.
Nie Qingcheng's voice was calm. It wasn't a question, nor was it anger. It was a calm that came from having waited long enough.
"You promised me you wouldn't go to faraway places alone anymore."
Zhang Yan said, "I'm not going anywhere."
Nie Qingcheng looked at him.
"Keeping my thoughts from me, that counts too."
Zhang Yan fell silent.
The snow outside the window has stopped. Sunlight shines through the clouds onto the lake, dazzlingly bright.
Nie Qingcheng didn't urge her. She picked up the bowl and continued drinking the soup, her movements slow, as if giving him time.
Zhang Yan put down his chopsticks.
"I had a dream the night the seal was completed."
Nie Qingcheng didn't stop moving. But she was listening.
"There was an old man in my dream. He was the one who survived from 30,000 years ago."
Nie Qingcheng put down her bowl.
"What did he say?"
"He said he had waited a long time. He said he was afraid I would be alone." Zhang Yan paused. "Then he disappeared."
Nie Qingcheng looked at him. "And then?"
Then the ruins appeared.
Nie Qingcheng's eyes changed.
It wasn't fear. It was alertness.
"It wasn't sealed off?"
"It's not the original body," Zhang Yan said. "It's an echo left behind before the seal was placed. Like a recording."
Nie Qingcheng's fingers tightened slightly. "What did it say?"
Zhang Yan looked at her.
"It says that something is approaching from beyond the world."
Nie Qingcheng remained silent.
"It said it was more dangerous than that."
Nie Qingcheng remained silent.
"It gave me coordinates. Shennongjia. Deep underground."
Zhang Yan paused for a moment.
"It says there is a first door there."