Xiao Shu carried me all the way to the foot of the mountain, only setting me down when the surging tide of the Sea of the Undead stretched out before our eyes. I stood on the ground, stretching my stiff legs; having been carried, my limbs were numb, so I could only imagine how exhausted the carrier must be.

Wanting to show my gratitude, I immediately pulled the canteen from my backpack, uncapped it, and offered it to him. Not knowing how much farther the descent would take, I hadn't dared to drink all day, fearing I'd drain the supply and be left without water for the rest of the journey. This remaining water was just the right reward for a meritorious deed.

Xiao Shu took the canteen, wiped the sweat from his brow, took a sip, and gave me a knowing smile. "You're not that heavy," he said. "Your sister is much heavier. That time, Old He and I had to evacuate her urgently from the hospital to Silent Mountain. We carried her the whole way—that was truly carrying the weight of Mount Tai."

The topic of my elder sister's weight always opened up many avenues for conversation. As I've mentioned before, Old He and my sister had a brief, early romance. In Old He's eyes, my sister was the unparalleled campus beauty. However, despite her curves and charm, her weight was undeniably a regrettable issue. At this moment, Xiao Shu comparing my weight to hers was clearly an instance of 'a mere drop compared to the ocean,' which made me laugh so hard my sides ached, and I no longer felt embarrassed about being carried for a stretch.

Just as I was chuckling with my teeth clenched, Xiao Shu’s smile abruptly vanished, and he tilted his head, listening intently to the surroundings. A series of rustling sounds came again from the underbrush.

Damn it! I thought, realizing I had gotten too carried away, chatting and laughing freely, forgetting the dangers lurking nearby.

"Hurry up," Xiao Shu muttered, his voice low, short, and urgent. He quickly capped the canteen, snatched up the backpack I had set on the ground, carelessly shoved the canteen inside, hoisted it onto his back, and pulled me along, breaking into a fast run.

This sudden run reignited the agony in my gut. The Intestine-Piercing Gu worm wriggled and churned inside me, as if determined to fight me if I didn't grant them comfort. I couldn't afford to pay them any mind; everyone understood the principle of shared vulnerability, but the worms didn't. I could only grit my teeth against the stabbing pain, clutching my heavy stomach, and keep pace with Xiao Shu as he ran.

We were only a few dozen meters from the Sea of the Undead—victory was in sight—but danger arrived right on its heels.

A sharp gust of wind whistled past my ear, shooting toward Xiao Shu's back like an arrow. As I squinted to see clearly, I realized that the swift wind was actually a fist-sized spider flying past me.

The spider soared through the air just above my shoulder and landed precisely on Xiao Shu’s backpack. A shiver ran down my spine, startling me. Xiao Shu was pulling me forward, and he felt my body jerk twice, so he turned around to ask what happened. The spider remained motionless on his pack. I was afraid that if he stopped moving, he might startle the creature. So, I pretended I hadn't seen anything and urged him to quicken his pace and keep moving.

Xiao Shu ran even faster than before, and I gasped for air with increasing difficulty. The Gu worms in my stomach were relentless, churning and fighting, determined to have a life-or-death struggle with me. This was the taste of being attacked from both front and back. Moving meant piercing agony; stopping meant mortal peril. If I had another chance to choose, I would never so easily place my trust in a stranger, nor would I ever drink water that mysteriously appeared before me—especially water contained in a high-end bottle, with its crystal-clear exterior, designed only to tempt your appetite and lure you into a meticulously set trap. This was the hard-learned, bloody lesson I gleaned while searching for Xing'er and Ah Li.