"How did we end up back in this desert again… I still don't understand," Ye Juan spoke softly as he walked up and stopped beside Xin Tingting.
"It's because we haven't found the magical item yet… My butterfly still refuses to open the path to the next place," Xin Tingting replied in a quiet voice, her clear eyes gazing out over the endless sea of sand.
"How long will it take… before we find the magical item you mentioned?" Lan Chanzhun asked, turning to look at Xin Tingting with a doubtful expression while standing beside Lian Yi and Bai Wangyan.
"I don't know either…" Xin Tingting answered softly as she moved closer to Bai Wangyan. Her calm eyes fixed on him without the slightest hesitation.
She didn't touch him at all only a soft whisper brushed past his ear. "Have you gotten rid of those glowing stones yet?"
Bai Wangyan was about to turn to answer, but when their faces were so close that their breaths nearly touched, he paused slightly. His light blue eyes, tinged with a hint of gray and yellow, flickered as if unsettled by the near-nonexistent space between them.
Xin Tingting didn't avert her gaze. She continued to look straight into his eyes with unwavering determination.
He stepped back two or three paces. His voice, barely audible, sounded as if he didn't want anyone else to hear. "I still have them…"
"Then would you take them out… I want to show them to everyone," Xin Tingting said gently as she stepped closer again, so near that Bai Wangyan could feel the warmth of her breath brushing against the tip of his chin.
He paused slightly before silently extending his hand. Resting in his palm were several multicolored glowing stones. A soft, dim light shimmered from them, as if they were breathing quietly in the scorching desert air.
Xin Tingting's eyes sparkled instantly. She reached out her hand… but instead of simply picking up the stones, she gently pressed her palm against his, letting the warmth pass between them in a flash. Bai Wangyan froze in surprise.
She said nothing only smiled faintly, her eyes calm and steady as she slowly removed the stones from his palm one by one, as if purposefully stretching the moment for no clear reason.
He watched her hand as it moved away, and once the last stone left his palm, he looked up immediately. His gaze fixed on her slender back, swaying slightly with the desert breeze. Her hair fluttered gently, like ripples on water stirring waves within his heart unexpectedly.
He didn't understand… couldn't comprehend why she had to touch his hand when she could've just reached for the stones. There was no reason to intertwine their palms or leave that lingering warmth so deliberately. Yet what remained in him… was more than just confusion.
"Everyone! These glowing stones are really beautiful!" Xin Tingting called out cheerfully, her eyes sparkling as she raised her hand to show the shimmering colorful stones in her palm. "I'll give each of you a few. Maybe we can trade them for some money… and then we can buy new clothes or rent a place that isn't so hot we're drenched in sweat!"
She walked around handing out the glowing stones with a gentle smile. Her small hand carefully placed the glowing stones into the palms of Ye Juan, Lian Yi, and Lan Chanzhun, each of whom received them with excitement.
But when she reached the last person Bai Wangyan she hesitated briefly before handing him a stone slowly, her timing clearly different from the others. And the stone in his hand was entirely pink.
Bai Wangyan stared at it for a moment before speaking in a cold, emotionless voice. "I don't like pink stones."
Xin Tingting paused for a second, but she still smiled. "Then what color do you want?"
"Blue and yellow," he replied immediately, his eyes calm without a hint of emotion.
"Alright, alright," she quickly swapped the stone in his hand with enthusiasm, acting as if nothing was odd at all, her bright smile unchanged so bright that it was impossible to tell whether she had meant to give only the pink one from the start or not.
"Let's hurry and continue our journey so we don't waste time," Xin Tingting said with a bright smile, her face glowing with eagerness.
"Mm~" Ye Juan, Lian Yi, and Lan Chanzhun responded in unison, their eyes shining with anticipation. Only Bai Wangyan remained calm and silent, showing neither agreement nor objection. He merely stood still, as if lost in thought.
As everyone began walking, Xin Tingting furrowed her brows slightly. A sudden thought popped into her head.
'Come to think of it… I completely forgot about that ostrich. I haven't chopped it into pieces yet… What a shame.' She let out a small sigh before quickening her steps to catch up with the others, a faint mischievous smile curling at the corner of her lips.
They stepped across the scorching sand, as the wind lifted fine dust into a light veil that stretched far into the horizon. From the vast desert, the path ahead led them up layers of sand dunes, overlapping in varying heights some steep and sharp, others smooth yet slippery and hard to climb. As the sun rose higher, its rays struck the dune peaks, causing the grains of sand to sparkle like dazzling gold.
They crossed countless dunes, without shade, without life. The sound of their footsteps on sand matched the rhythm of their unyielding hearts. Time passed, and the sunlight began to tilt gently. The path ahead gradually revealed a shape unlike the rest of the desert.
A small village appeared in the middle of a sandy basin, surrounded by crude stone-mud walls. The low roofs were made of dried straw and old fabric. Faded flags fluttered atop poles. Villagers in colorful robes began lining the main road, all eyes fixed on the far end of the street.
Dust rose in the distance, carried by a gentle breeze stirred by movement approaching. The sound of ancient drums beat slowly and solemnly, as silence mixed with reverence filled the air.
The Pharaoh was about to pass through that place, and every pair of eyes waited with anticipation…
Out of curiosity, the five children Lian Yi, Bai Wangyan, Ye Juan, Lan Chanzhun, and Xin Tingting each around eight years old, walked among the villagers standing along the main road. The desert wind carried fine sand dancing with the scorching sunlight, yet the atmosphere remained strangely still.
They looked through the dusty air toward the end of the road, where the sound of drums and horns announced the Pharaoh's approach.
Just then, as they quietly waited, a young girl appeared from behind the crowd. She had dark gray hair, her lips a pale orange hue. Her face was beautiful, though not strikingly so, yet her gaze held something captivating.
She walked up to Bai Wangyan the boy with white hair lightly streaked with gold, a face so exquisitely handsome it defied description, his fair skin glowing in the desert sunlight, making it hard for anyone to look away.
"You're truly quite handsome!" she said in an admiring voice as she reached his side.