In the darkness, time lost all measure.
Gu Liang never truly slept. Each time his consciousness blurred, his body's instinctive startle reflex pulled him back to reality, his ears still echoing with A Lie's roar and the howls of unknown creatures in the forest. He curled up inside the thermal blanket, its thin silver material trapping his faint body heat, yet the chill still seeped in through the stone crevices and from the depths of his soul.
He could hear faint, rhythmic breathing coming from the cave entrance. The woman—Emma—was awake. Like a silent statue, she stood guard before the vines that separated them from the dangers outside.
This feeling of being "guarded" was unfamiliar and strange. In the tribe, guarding meant surveillance and confinement. Here, it brought a fragile sense of security he dared not ponder deeply, much less rely on.
The first sliver of gray light finally squeezed through the gaps in the vines, stingily pushing into the cave and dispelling some of the darkness. Gu Liang shifted his stiff body, every muscle protesting last night's desperate flight.
Almost simultaneously with his movement, Emma's voice sounded low, slightly hoarse from a sleepless night, yet still alert: "Awake?"
Gu Liang didn't answer, merely pushing himself up against the stone wall and struggling to his feet. The thermal blanket slipped from his shoulders, and the chill of dawn immediately washed over him, making him shiver. He glanced at Emma, who remained seated by the cave entrance. Her face was pale, but her eyes were clear as she drew a sheathed hunting knife from the side pocket of her backpack and clipped it to the leather buckle at her waist.The motion was practiced and natural.
"We need to leave quickly," Emma said, standing up and stretching her stiff limbs before efficiently packing her backpack. "A Lie won't give up. The forest is easier for him to track through during the day."
Gu Liang watched silently as she methodically stuffed the water bottle, remaining energy bars, and other items back into the massive backpack. His gaze lingered on the pockets of her multifunctional jacket, the hunting knife at her waist, and that incredibly professional-looking backpack. It all seemed too... beyond the ordinary. Not something someone who had accidentally ended up here could possibly possess.
"You..." he began, his voice slightly less raspy than last night but still dry. "You seem very familiar with all this."
Amara paused midway through zipping up the main compartment of her pack, not looking up. "Survival requires preparation." Her answer skirted the issue as she hoisted the pack back onto her shoulders, adjusting the straps. "Let's go. We need to find water and figure out where we are."
Gu Liang hesitated for a moment, then folded the crumpled thermal blanket neatly and placed it on the rock where she had been sitting. He followed her out.
Emma parted the vines, her gaze sweeping over the neatly folded blanket. Without pausing, she scooped it up and stuffed it into the side pocket of her backpack as if it were just another routine step in their journey, then led the way out of the cave.
Outside was another world. Thick, impenetrable morning mist enveloped the entire Black Forest. The silhouettes of towering ancient trees flickered in and out of view within the fog, like silent giants. The air was damp and cold, carrying the pungent scent of decaying plants and earth into her lungs. Visibility was less than twenty meters.
Emma stood at the cave entrance, squinting slightly as she surveyed the surroundings. She pulled a small whistle pendant with a compass from her coat pocket, glanced at it, then pointed in one direction. "This way. The terrain seems to slope downward. There might be a stream."
Gu Liang scanned the direction she indicated but saw nothing beyond thick fog and shadowy tree trunks. He couldn't help asking, "How do you know?"
"Moss," Emma replied succinctly, pointing to a dense cluster of moss on the trunk of a nearby giant tree, growing in a specific pattern. She added, "And the humidity in the wind."
Without further explanation, she began moving forward, her steps light and alert. Her eyes scanned the surroundings constantly, her ears straining for any unusual sounds. Gu Liang suppressed his questions and followed silently. His footsteps were far less light than hers, inevitably crunching on the ground covered in fallen leaves and broken branches.
The trek grew exceptionally arduous. The fog not only obscured their vision but also made everything slippery. Gu Liang's scrapes and bruises stung with every movement. Gritting his teeth, he remained silent, striving only to keep pace with the seemingly tireless figure ahead.
After about half an hour, Emma suddenly stopped, crouched down, and wiped dew from a broad leaf with her finger before sucking it clean. Then she gestured for Gu Liang to do the same.
Gu Liang watched her, unmoving. Drinking untreated dew directly? His modern education had taught him this was dangerous.
Emma seemed to sense his hesitation and said calmly, "In an emergency, morning dew is a relatively clean water source. It's better than dehydration." She paused, looking at his dry, cracked lips. "Besides, we need to keep our strength up."
Her reasoning was practical. Gu Liang finally mimicked her actions, gathering dew from several leaves to barely moisten his throat. The amount was negligible, yet it offered a slight relief.
They pressed on. The mist seemed to thin slightly, and the forest began to stir with bird songs and the rustling sounds of small animals. Emma grew more alert, her hand occasionally resting on the hilt of the hunting knife at her waist.
Suddenly, she halted abruptly, raising her right hand in a clear "stop" gesture. Gu Liang froze instantly, holding his breath.
Emma listened intently for a moment, her gaze sharpening toward a thicket of bushes to the left. Slowly, she drew her hunting knife, the metallic scrape against the leather sheath echoing distinctly in the silent forest.
Gu Liang's heart leapt into his throat. Was it A Lie? Or something else?
Seconds later, the bushes rustled. A creature resembling a badger, but with duller fur and a long, pointed snout, emerged. Unaware of their presence, it dug at the roots on the ground with its claws.
Gu Liang exhaled in relief. Not A Lie.
But Emma's gaze remained fixed. She studied the creature's thick forepaws and pointed snout, then whispered urgently to Gu Liang, "Look at its claws and mouth—it's built for digging and tearing. Carnivores or omnivores this size are extremely dangerous when guarding food. We need to go around."
She retreated cautiously, moving extremely slowly, signaling Gu Liang to follow. Throughout the process, her gaze never left the creature until they were at a safe distance, then she turned and quickened her pace.
"How did you know it was dangerous?" Gu Liang couldn't help asking again. Her judgment had been too swift and assured, as if this knowledge had long been ingrained in her instincts.
Emma didn't pause her stride, her voice carrying from ahead with a hint of matter-of-factness: "When encountering unfamiliar carnivores or omnivores in the wild, the default is to keep your distance."
Gu Liang pressed his lips together, saying nothing more. Common sense? Of course he knew to avoid dangerous strangers. But her confident, expert risk assessment—based on an instant observation—was far more than mere "common sense." The sense of unease about her grew heavier.
Yet questioning her now was pointless—even dangerous. He needed her knowledge and gear to survive. All doubts had to be suppressed for now. He followed silently, burying his swirling suspicions and wariness deep within his heart.
After walking some distance further, the faint sound of flowing water reached their ears. Both men perked up.
Passing through a patch of ferns, a small stream about two or three meters wide came into view. The water was clear, flowing over a bed of smooth pebbles.
Emma didn't immediately offer Gu Liang water. She first carefully scanned the streambank, confirming no fresh tracks or droppings from large animals, then retrieved a metal kettle from her backpack.
"Drink from the living water upstream," she instructed Gu Liang. She then filled her canteen downstream, took out a small bottle, added a few drops of pale purple liquid (Gu Liang recognized it as potassium permanganate solution), shook it thoroughly, and set it aside to settle. "This needs time to disinfect. It's for backup."
Gu Liang walked upstream, crouched down, cupped his hands in the icy stream, and drank deeply. The crisp spring water washed away the parched thirst and metallic taste in his throat, bringing an unprecedented sense of satisfaction. He drank several handfuls before stopping, letting out a long, relieved sigh.
Emma used this time to fill another canteen and treat the water similarly. Watching Gu Liang drink, a complex emotion flickered in her eyes before vanishing.
"We'll rest here for ten minutes," Emma said, finding a dry tree root to sit on. She took out the compressed biscuit and once again shared half with Gu Liang. She herself ate small bites while pulling out the waterproof notebook and permanent marker, quickly sketching something.
Gu Liang accepted the biscuit, this time offering thanks. Sitting on the rock opposite her, he chewed while glancing involuntarily at the notebook in her hands. It contained a simple sketch of a map, marking their direction of travel and the stream they were following.
"You're drawing a map?" he asked.
"Mhm," Emma replied without looking up. "Recording our route to avoid getting lost, and analyzing resource distribution." Her pen moved steadily, lines clean and precise.
A woman who could map terrain, possessed an almost instinctive awareness of wilderness dangers, carried professional survival gear, and seemed to have arrived here fully prepared? What exactly was this "same place" she mentioned? Ordinary city dwellers simply couldn't possess these skills. Gu Liang's doubts grew deeper.
After finishing the biscuit, he felt his strength returning somewhat. His gaze fell on the exposed skin beneath his tattered clothes—the bloody scrapes from last night's branches had congealed but remained red and swollen. He frowned instinctively.
At that moment, Emma closed her notebook and looked up, her gaze settling on the wounds on his arms and knees. She set down her pen, retrieved the first-aid kit from the inner pocket of her backpack, and opened it.
"We need to treat these wounds to prevent infection," she said, handing him a small bottle of iodine swabs and a roll of bandages. "Do you want to do it yourself, or should I help?"
Her tone was matter-of-fact, as if discussing the most natural thing in the world. But Gu Liang's body instantly tensed.
Treating the wounds meant touch. And touch, in his past experiences, had almost always been linked to violence, coercion, and pain. The memory of A-Lie applying ointment to him wasn't pleasant; it felt more like routine maintenance on property after branding.
He stared at the iodine swab in Emma's hand, her calm, professional demeanor starkly different from A-Lie's brutality. Yet the resistance within him remained fierce.
He stared fixedly at the swab, his throat tightening. After a long moment, he ground out a single word:
"...No."