The airplane landed at T City Airport, and Lu Zhi and the others took a special car to a five-star hotel near St. Island No. 7.
The sky was still overcast, and snowflakes had turned the entire city white.
The treetops, still green, were bowed by the accumulated snow. They snapped and fell onto the road. A startled stray dog barked a few times, turned, and ran into an alley.
The weather had changed suddenly, and with the cold, not many people were out walking.
Stepping out of the car, Lu Zhi clearly felt the temperature dropping as time passed. He took out his phone from his hoodie pocket to check the time, and his breath fogged up the screen.
In another hour, it would be six in the evening.
"Your rooms are all booked. Rest for a night, and meet in the restaurant tomorrow between 11 AM and 1 PM. The rest of the time is yours," Jiang Yue said, handing out the room cards to everyone. She then ran off as if she had completed an important mission.
Lu Zhi and the others were speechless.
Lu Zhi's room was Room 1007 on the 38th floor, a five-star single standard suite, with a floor-to-ceiling window facing St. Island No. 7.
On the plane, Lu Zhi had learned from Jiang Yue that they would enter St. Island in groups of three. He, Jiang Yue, and Wang Cao Tian were in one group, while Xia Zhi, Luo Shiyu, and Lan Yushan were in another.
Lu Zhi walked to the window. Outside, the night was hazy. On the dark sea, an island shone brilliantly in the night sky, its emitted light like holy radiance from an anime, attracting countless extraordinary individuals to explore it. They discovered that the island was home to countless exotic flowers and plants, all containing immense energy, but also accompanied by danger.
St. Island No. 7 opens daily from 11 AM to 1 PM. If one does not exit by 1 PM, they must wait until the next day's opening hours to enter or leave.
At other times, the island is completely sealed, making entry and exit impossible.
Three days ago, on the day the rules of the Cage were rewritten, a divine tower, the Extraordinary Trial Tower, appeared in the center of the island.
According to the information provided by the school, on the day the divine tower appeared, many ordinary people entered it, but none had walked out alive yet.
However, this did not stop ordinary people from flocking to it in pursuit of power.
All these changes were due to Shen Qi.
"Why, why did you do this?" Lu Zhi placed one hand on the glass window, his dark eyes filled with confusion. But unless Shen Qi appeared, his confusion would never be answered.
The more he thought about it, the more his head ached, so he found his pajamas and took a shower.
After coming out, Lu Zhi habitually lay on the bed and used his phone to search for information about St. Island No. 7. Although he had more information from his Lumina, often the information posted by ordinary people online was more extensive.
Soon, Lu Zhi's attention was captured by a website's live stream title: "Live Streaming St. Island No. 7 Trial Tower," which had reached the website's trending list.
Lu Zhi clicked in out of curiosity. The excessive traffic caused a few minutes of lag upon entry.
The screen showed a young man wearing glasses standing in a forest full of dreamy colors. The light sources were all from the bioluminescence of various exotic flowers and plants, illuminating a very magical forest.
Below the live stream, a flurry of comments scrolled by: exclamations, doubts, curiosity, concern... But more were netizens tipping the streamer, begging him to show them the divine tower of St. Island No. 7.
However, the live stream was soon shut down.
Lu Zhi muttered, "At this point, shutting it down again will likely cause panic, right?"
He didn't need to guess that it was the authorities, fearing other problems might arise with St. Island No. 7, taking precautionary measures.
But eventually, the news of the island would have to be announced to the world, which was why they were so urgently sending extraordinary individuals like him to scout.
Lu Zhi casually tossed his phone aside and opened his Lumina. His eyes suddenly fixed on a red dot within a golden profile frame, and he tapped it.
Shen Qi: [Baby, miss me?]
Lu Zhi: ...He started with flirtatious remarks, which Lu Zhi was not accustomed to.
After thinking for a moment, Lu Zhi decided to pretend he hadn't seen it.
Shen Qi: [Are you angry? Good boy, I'll be back soon.]
Lu Zhi's dark eyes narrowed slightly. How did he know he was angry? Was Shen Qi nearby?
Thinking of this, Lu Zhi's heart beat a little faster. He sat up from the bed and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, casually looking outside.
Shen Qi: [Why aren't you wearing shoes?]
Lu Zhi's expression tensed. He looked down at his bare feet and quickly replied: [Where are you?]
Shen Qi: [Miss me?]
I miss your grandpa!
Lu Zhi didn't know if Shen Qi was considered a god or a human now, but so far, the chat seemed communicative, aside from his frivolous tone. At least, it was more relaxing than Shen Qi appearing directly as a god in the Cage.
Lu Zhi: [When are you coming back?]
After sending this message, Lu Zhi was stunned.
Why was he focusing on this question? Did he really want Shen Qi back that much? He knew Shen Qi's true identity, and to him, Shen Qi was now an extremely dangerous figure, or perhaps an extremely dangerous deity, and it was still uncertain if he was on humanity's side.
But, Lu Zhi didn't know why, the moment he saw Shen Qi's message, he always remembered that kiss in the Cage.
Then, his face couldn't help but blush.
Damn it, what was wrong with him?
Shen Qi: [Baby, your face is red, are you shy?]
Lu Zhi: ... [I'm not, I'm just hot! And stop calling me baby randomly!!!]
To escape the constantly replaying images in his mind, Lu Zhi quickly changed the subject and his focus: [Right now, are you Shen Qi... or a deity?]
Shen Qi: [Whatever you like.]
Lu Zhi was stunned. What did he mean by that? If he liked deities, he was a deity? If he liked humans, he was human?
Shen Qi: [Do you miss me?]
Lu Zhi recalled the moments he spent with Shen Qi and asked with a strange expression: [Shen Qi, are you playing with me again?]
It was like when they were at school, he would tease him, say ambiguous things, but his eyes would show no emotional fluctuations.
Shen Qi: [Do you miss me?]
Before Lu Zhi could reply, Shen Qi sent another message: [I miss you so much, I'm going crazy!]
Shen Qi: [Do you miss me?]
Lu Zhi frowned, feeling that Shen Qi's constant repetition of this question was because he wanted to get some answer from him.
[Shen Qi, what's wrong?] Lu Zhi continued to ask: [You... you're acting very strangely.]
It was like a paranoid person seeking a desired answer from another important person.
Shen Qi: [Do you miss me?]
Lu Zhi pinched his brow, certain that Shen Qi was not normal. Just as he was about to type "no," his heart suddenly skipped a beat, and he felt a chill down his spine. The message he sent was changed to: [I miss you.]
The feeling of dread down his spine subsided slightly then.
After nearly a minute, Shen Qi: [Do you like me?]
Lu Zhi: ...I'm actually straight.
But Lu Zhi didn't dare to reply, feeling that Shen Qi's current condition was very abnormal.
After thinking for a moment, Lu Zhi cautiously replied: [Feelings need to be cultivated slowly.]
Shen Qi: [I understand.]
He understood?
And then what?
Then, the floor-to-ceiling window suddenly reflected a handsome face appearing behind Lu Zhi. An arm wrapped around his waist, and a breath whispered near his ear, "I knew you missed me."
Lu Zhi: ...???!!!