Perhaps the name of its owner had worked. Believing its master had arrived, the broom paused and hurriedly spun around in midair.
It turned its handle as if trying to locate Cen Yao's position.
But the surroundings were completely empty. There was no sign of its master anywhere.
Just as it turned back in anger, intending to teach a lesson to the little lackey who had deceived it, it suddenly felt its load lighten.
Seizing the opportunity, the vine monster gave a violent tug.
Xie Zhouxing was dragged straight toward the ground.
“Ahhhhh!”
Before he could even continue swearing, his entire body traced an arc through the air, plunging toward the ruins below.
The vines dragged him through collapsed walls, loose rubble scraping past him continuously.
A piece of rebar tore his hospital gown before the vines dragged him into a pitch-black underground passage.
Hearing the commotion, the broom turned to look, only to find that the little lackey its master had entrusted to it was gone!
It rushed down to give chase, but it was already too late.
!!!!!!!
Oh no, oh no, oh no!
The broom flew in circles in midair like a headless fly.
...
Light vanished rapidly, and the whistling of the wind was cut off by thick walls.
Xie Zhouxing crashed from the air to the ground, rolling twice before his back slammed into a hard stone wall.
“Ugh...”
He groaned in pain, but the vines remained wrapped tightly around him.
Those tiny mouths pressed against his clothes, making hungry swallowing noises.
Gasping for breath, Xie Zhouxing groped along the ground with his palms.
The space was very narrow, the air damp and smelling of soil and decaying plants.
Something like roots seemed to hang from above, occasionally dripping ice-cold water.
And from deep within the darkness came waves of heavy breathing.
There was more than one.
Xie Zhouxing's expression gradually grew grim. He finally realized that he had been dragged into a monster's nest.
The vines dragged him deeper bit by bit. In the darkness, several massive silhouettes slowly approached.
They made no sound of attack, as if observing him, or perhaps deciding where to take the first bite.
Xie Zhouxing was dragged into an open underground space.
He felt the vines loosen slightly before suspending him in midair, hanging from a massive web woven of roots and bones.
A faint green light gradually lit up the surroundings, revealing eyes embedded in the walls.
They were of different sizes and various shapes.
Some resembled human eyes, some looked like insects, while others were merely narrow slits.
They all opened at the same time.
Xie Zhouxing: “...”
He heard them.
Countless tiny, sticky breaths.
There was also something crawling slowly on the ground, a cold, wet tongue sliding across the floor.
Xie Zhouxing couldn't help but swallow hard.
The vine monster hung him high up, as if storing its prey inside its nest.
A massive monster crawled out of the darkness.
Its body resembled a rotting tree.
A human face was stretched across its trunk-like torso, the skin torn apart by roots.
Dozens of vines extended from its back, each covered in thorns and tiny mouths.
It raised its split face.
“Clack, clack...”
The monster made a sound resembling laughter.
The surrounding eyes turned along with it, making Xie Zhouxing's skin crawl.
After waiting for ages without the monster coming to eat him, Xie Zhouxing felt a faint sense of relief, but quickly felt like crying.
Was he forced here to be some bandit chief's bride, or was he just emergency rations?
Could it be that monsters also cared about looks?
...
Up above, the broom let out a sharp screech and hurriedly went to find its master according to their contract.
Cen Yao was still hunting down monsters. She had nearly wiped out all the monsters in the vicinity when she felt a ripple and saw the broom flying back alone.
It circled Cen Yao again and again, its bristles wagging rapidly. Every now and then, it would dive toward the ground before immediately flying back up.
Cen Yao had originally thought it was just having too much fun.
It was only when the broom tried to drag her toward a certain direction for the third time that she finally reached out and held down its handle.
“Where is Xie Zhouxing?”
The broom stiffened instantly.
The next second, it began to gesticulate frantically.
First, it stood its handle upright to represent a person.
Then, it wriggled its bristles to mimic vines wrapping around someone.
Next, it dove sharply toward the ground, braked hard in midair, and spun around Cen Yao even faster.
Cen Yao: “...”
She stared at the broom for a long moment.
“You mean he was dragged away by a monster?”
The broom immediately bobbed up and down.
“And dragged underground?”
The broom nodded frantically again.
Cen Yao frowned. Seeing this, the broom grew even more anxious, flying directly in front of her and tapping the back of her hand hard with its bristles.
“Alright, alright, I get it.”
Cen Yao tried to understand the meaning of its next movements. “And then?”
The broom suddenly became bashful in midair.
It stood its handle upright, let its bristles hang down, and swayed them side to side in the air. Then, it spun in a circle and tilted its head to the side, putting on a highly coy display.
Cen Yao: “?”
She fell silent for a few seconds.
“Are you saying he was abducted by a monster to be its bride?”
The broom became so excited it nearly did a backflip in the air.
Yes!
That was exactly what it meant!
Cen Yao: “...”
What on earth?
Why did she feel like she couldn't quite comprehend the broom's logic?
Xie Zhouxing was grantedly very good-looking.
No, it would be more accurate to say he was exceptionally handsome.
That face of his was excessively delicate, his curly golden hair accentuating his fair skin, and his features were both striking and beautiful. Even if he were thrown into a crowd of celebrities who made a living off their looks, he would easily be the most eye-catching one.
But surely monsters and humans had different standards of beauty?
A bandit chief's bride?
Cen Yao figured Xie Zhouxing was more likely captured to be kept as emergency rations.
However, she wasn't particularly worried.
From the very first moment she saw Xie Zhouxing, Cen Yao knew he was no ordinary person.
A blind man who could venture into an A-rank dungeon alone and survive until now in a laboratory crawling with monsters was not to be underestimated, no matter how pathetic he appeared on the surface.
Moreover...
Cen Yao looked up at the sky.
The setting sun had already sunk past the edge of the city.
The last trace of light in the sky was being swallowed by the slowly creeping night.
It would be night soon.
Hadn't Xie Zhouxing mentioned it before?
His Talent could only be used at night.
In that case, there seemed to be no need for her to rush to his rescue in a panic.
Perhaps if she waited a bit longer, he would scurry back on his own.
Once Cen Yao thought it through, she waved at the broom.
“Come back.”
The broom hesitated, still wanting to lead its master to save the little lackey.
But Cen Yao had already sat on it.
She sat sideways on the front end of the handle, resting one hand on the broom while propping her chin up with the other, looking up at the darkening sky.
“Let's wait first.”
“It's almost dark.”
Understanding her intent, the broom quieted down and gently held Cen Yao suspended in midair.
This was the first time Cen Yao had truly ridden it, and the broom instantly grew ecstatic again.
It carefully adjusted its altitude, flying smoothly and gently, terrified of jostling its master.
Its bristles even curled upward subtly, like the tail of a puppy trying its best to show off.
Sensing its mood, Cen Yao reached out and patted the handle.
“Good job. You did well.”
The broom instantly perked up even more.
Cen Yao waited for a while, and seeing no movement from below, she slowly leaned back and lay down on the broom.
Her long black hair spilled over the handle.
One leg was bent, while the other dangled naturally, swaying gently in the air with the slight drifting of the broom.
The evening breeze blew past. Not far away, sparks still flickered in the charred ruins of the laboratory.
Cen Yao squinted, her expression as relaxed as if she were sunbathing in her own courtyard.
In the live stream, the viewers were already utterly dazed.
Rate on N.U.
