However, Old Li countered, "Technician Luo, perhaps there is truly such a possibility. For instance, we Chinese people might possess certain shared traits, a unique magnetic field. This place might classify people based on that field, and similarly, Germans might have their own distinction."

But this reasoning simply failed to convince me; I shook my head, saying nothing. Around us, besides Old Li and myself, there was no sign of life. Even the sporadic shouts from the Germans that had faintly sounded earlier had vanished; all noise disappeared, leaving us able to hear each other's breathing with startling clarity.

This profound silence felt like complete isolation. Within just a minute or two, I felt on the verge of losing my mind, unable to bear the quiet.

Old Li mirrored my anxiety; he began pacing restlessly, walking back and forth in front of me.

"Old Li, let's leave quickly... I have a terrible feeling creeping up on me." The moment the words left my mouth, the sound shot out a long way, yet it still sounded unnervingly quiet. It was like shouting to someone on Earth while standing alone on the moon—an indescribable sense of cold desolation and loneliness.

Old Li paced a few more times, then pulled a compass from his coat, examining it intently. Without a word, he pointed to the right, signaling me to follow.

Moving right led us into continued, impenetrable blackness, as if we were tearing through thick layers of dark mist. Strangely, even the sound of our footsteps had ceased. In this kind of deadly quiet, any slight noise should have been audible, no matter what.

Intense fear and unease instantly washed over me. I hurried to walk closer to Old Li and tried to speak, hoping to bolster my courage. "Old... Li..." As soon as the word was out, it sounded blunt, completely lacking the usual trailing resonance or echo of human speech. I thought my ears were failing, so I called out again—the result was the same. Hearing my own voice like that sent a chill down my spine.

Old Li turned back, looking at me strangely. "Technician Luo, are you still thinking about heading back to Lhasa immediately?"

"Me? No..." I looked at Old Li, bewildered.

"What? You're going to save Matthias?" Old Li looked at me again with astonishment, the look one reserves for a complete stranger.

I nearly went frantic and shouted, "I didn't say anything about returning to Lhasa, nor did I mention saving Matthias!" As my volume rose, the sound immediately carried far away, only to slowly return, echoing incessantly near my ear: "Matthias... Matthias..."

"Ah—" Old Li had no idea what I was talking about; our conversation was utterly disjointed. Combined with this suffocating, maddening silence, I couldn't endure the torment and let out a loud scream.

Seeing my distress, Old Li rushed over and patted my shoulder, signaling that everything was fine. But what I heard him say was: "Luo Lian and Li Zeng, where are you?"

I understood then: whatever we were hearing was being distorted by something, entirely misrepresenting the speaker's intent. That meant... the direction we were heading was also wrong; it wasn't the way out. If it were, this situation shouldn't have arisen.

Since speaking was useless, I pulled Old Li's hand and wrote in his palm: "Something is wrong. Direction seems incorrect. Turn back?" I finished and sought his opinion with a questioning look.

Old Li understood immediately what was happening and wrote back in my palm: "It is wrong. Head left."

I paused, then added, "Let's stick close together, walk in formation like before, try to keep on the same horizontal line."

Old Li nodded, turned around, and began walking left again.

The left side was still eerily devoid of life. We moved like two lonely, lost spirits outside the underworld, blindly stumbling forward in tension. However, thankfully, our voices began sounding normal again; we could hear each other accurately and promptly.

"This must be the right way now," I sighed with relief, telling Old Li. Old Li also relaxed considerably, even managing a faint smile. "Indeed. Best we get out of this cursed place quickly."

We walked on in this unsettling calm for about half an hour without any further incidents. I decided to light a cigarette, and without greeting Old Li, I began digging through my coat. This action naturally left him a beat behind me. "It doesn't matter, though; this time we must have found the exit. Nothing to be afraid of now," I told myself.

The cigarettes were in my outer pocket, but regrettably, I had no lighter. I searched every pocket on my body and found nothing. "Old Li, got your lighter?" I casually looked up, expecting Old Li to be handing me the lighter. To my shock, Old Li was not in front of me! My vision was filled with solid blackness; there wasn't a single figure in sight—where was Old Li?

My heart plummeted, and I felt instantly chilled to the bone. I yelled, "Old Li! Old Li! Old Li!"

"Technician Luo..." Simultaneously, I heard Old Li's voice calling out in panic, "Where are you?" Judging by the sound, he was very close. I immediately shouted back, "I'm here, I'm here... Don't move, I can hear you..." Old Li made an "Mm" sound in response. I hurried toward the noise. Old Li should have been holding a flashlight, meaning there should have been light, but before me was only darkness. Perhaps I had found Old Li, hearing his voice right beside me, but I couldn't see him.

"Old Li..." I shouted, "Reach out your hand so I can grab you..." Saying this, I stretched out my hand, feeling around beside me. Since Old Li's voice was within arm's reach, even if I couldn't see him, I should have been able to touch him. Yet, after sweeping my hand 360 degrees, I grasped nothing but wisps of cold air. All the while, Old Li was still talking to me—he was supposed to be right next to me!

"Old Li... have my eyes gone bad..." I cried out in despair, close to tears. "Why can I clearly hear you beside me, but I can't touch you or see you?"

Old Li's voice was also trembling. He replied, "No... Technician Luo, I can't see you either... Maybe... this place is affecting our vision again, just like before... Maybe it is..."

No, my eyes must be the problem. We had passed through so many dangerous places, seen so much, and my eyes had been perfectly fine—always fine. Now, sudden blindness... it must be that.

The moment I considered that I might be blind, all hope deserted me. What was the point of getting out alive, only to become a burden, a blind man everywhere I went? Proud as I was, how could I allow myself to fall to such a state? It would be better to die. Perhaps it was fitting, as I had never found much meaning in living anyway—I had completely fallen into a state of inexplicable despair and madness.

"Technician Luo, don't be afraid," Old Li soothed me in a deep voice. "We talk, use sound to keep track, and maintain distance. Let's walk back. Don't worry, it's fine; your eyes are not damaged."

I tried to stand up and walk back, but my legs felt weak, lacking the strength to even take a single step. "Old Li... I..."

Old Li kept encouraging me. "It's alright, Technician Luo, we'll walk back. Everything will be fine."

Will it be fine? Can we go back? I didn't know. I remained half-sitting on the ground, struggling to rise.

Just then, a miracle occurred: I could see things again, albeit an illusion. But I truly, vividly saw something—Matthias. Yes, it was him. He was running toward me in a state of panic, and upon seeing me, a smile of joy seemed to light up his face. I could clearly discern every expression and every movement—even though it was a hallucination, it at least confirmed that my eyes' function was keeping pace with the brain's phantom images, meaning they hadn't completely failed.

"Luo Lian—" Auditory hallucinations also appeared. I actually heard Matthias joyfully calling my name, followed by the sound of heavy footsteps rushing toward me.

"Wait. Old Li, why do I see Matthias?" I murmured. "Didn't he disappear?"

"I heard it too!" Old Li’s voice was slightly excited and incoherent. "Technician Luo, it’s over, it’s fine, you’re fine. That’s Matthias. I can't see him, but you can... That's good, that's very good!"

Hearing this, my spirit immediately lifted, and strength flooded back into my body. I scrambled to my feet. Looking at Matthias, he seemed indescribably precious right then, the most lovable being in the entire world.

"Luo Lian!" "Matthias!" We exclaimed almost simultaneously, "Is that you?"

"It is, it is! You are really you!" Matthias was almost tearful with emotion. "I finally found someone!" He pinched his own cheek, "It's real, it’s me, and you are Luo Lian... I was going mad, about to collapse! Heavens!"

Old Li’s voice sounded nearby. "Technician Luo, be careful of any German." He didn't bother concealing his words from Matthias, not even lowering his voice. I knew, but I couldn't see him now; I could only see another living creature, Matthias, who proved to me that I was still alive, still functioning like a normal person. How could I possibly be on guard against him? Right now, Matthias was the dearest person in the world.

However, I regained some composure and responded to Old Li with an "Mm," without making any other move. Matthias, on the other hand, dissolved into full hysterics, sobbing uncontrollably while constantly muttering things in German. I panicked, unsure how to handle such a scene, let alone how to ask him how he ended up here.