"You really don't know when to stop, just like a horse not knowing its own length or a cow not knowing its own horns. I've never met anyone so thick-skinned," Pang Bo swatted away his hand, glancing at him sideways, and then took the three fragrant fruits back.
"How can you speak like that?" Li Changqing's face turned a bit uncomfortable, and he said with a stern face, "We're classmates, we came to this strange world together, we should help each other. Now everyone is hungry, and when we find food, we should share it with everyone. Are you really going to eat it all by yourself?"
"Pfft! And you still have the nerve to say that?" Pang Bo sneered, "Who was secretly eating chocolate in the copper coffin, huh? Why didn't you think about 'everyone' back then? Now you're acting all righteous—don't disgust me. Seeing you makes me feel worse than seeing a crocodile. Go away, I can't be bothered with you!"
Li Changqing's face immediately turned pale. He couldn't possibly admit it, and after a few weak attempts to argue, he found himself at a loss.
Although Pang Bo's words were harsh and direct, it didn't mean he wasn't careful. He knew very well what Li Changqing was after—if he got food, it would be better; if not, he'd try to isolate Pang Bo and Ye Fan. After all, there were a lot of people present, and if the food wasn't shared, those people would definitely have thoughts about it.
"I'm sorry, everyone. There are too many people and not enough food. I only picked five fruits. I'll give two to Yi Yi since she's too frail, and I think no one has a problem with that, right?" Pang Bo didn't even look at the crowd as he spoke, handing out the fruits. "Zhang Ziling, here's one for you." He threw one over and continued, "These five fruits were picked by me and Ye Fan, so we should treat ourselves a little, right?"
Pang Bo directly shoved the fourth fruit into Ye Fan's mouth, while the fifth, bright and shiny, he took a big bite of.
So the five fruits were distributed. Liu Yi Yi looked a bit awkward and said, "I… I can eat just half. The rest can be shared with everyone." She tried to give back the red agate-like fruit, but Ye Fan pushed it back toward her and said, "Don't worry, there's a lot of vegetation here. We'll definitely find more wild fruits."
Pang Bo also glared at her and urged her to eat quickly, not letting her refuse. He knew this fruit wasn't ordinary; once eaten, it would invigorate the body, relieving fatigue, and surely had other unknown benefits.
"But…" Liu Yi Yi hesitated, glancing around at the others.
"Yi Yi, you're too kind. This can't be!" Pang Bo whispered, "A lot of them are holding chocolate, but no one has shared it with everyone."
Seeing Ye Fan nodding at her, Liu Yi Yi finally stopped hesitating.
"I still have some chocolate. Let's share it," Liu Yun Zhi suddenly stepped forward, offering a few packs of chocolate for everyone to share.
"Damn it!" Pang Bo immediately got furious. This was a blatant slap in the face, and it made his teeth itch in anger. However, there was nothing he could do about it. Even if he wanted to step in, there was nothing to say.
"Yun Zhi is really righteous!" Li Changqing unwrapped a piece of chocolate and stuffed it into his mouth as he said, still glancing at Pang Bo and Ye Fan.
"Only in times of hardship can you truly see a person's heart…" the female student who had been with Liu Yun Zhi said with a pointed remark.
This only made Pang Bo's face more awkward. He cursed under his breath, "He's playing the hero now! Why didn't he bring it out earlier? There's a lot of plants around, so we can find wild fruits. Chocolate is almost useless now. He waits until now to act like a hero. I'll say it to his face!"
"Time and distance show a horse's strength, and long-term companionship reveals a person's true nature. After we leave this place, Yun Zhi, I'll follow you," Li Changqing said, pretending to be moved, sighing heavily while casting a glance at Pang Bo and Ye Fan.
Pang Bo was so angry he wanted to beat Liu Yun Zhi senseless, but he had to hold back, knowing there was nothing to do in front of everyone.
The group looked at the distant mountains and terrain, confirming the direction they should take to get out of the area and reach a place with people.
They didn't waste any time and headed down the mountain, cautiously moving through the dense forest. Everyone held a wooden stick to guard against wild animal attacks, as the divine artifact was almost useless now.
But even after walking for most of the day, there wasn't a sign of any large beasts, not even a rat. There were no birds in the air either.
"It really is a forbidden land, not even birds want to crap here…" Li Changqing muttered.
Pang Bo mocked, "You should be grateful. If you ran into a large beast, you'd probably be praying to escape to a place where even birds don't live."
The dense vegetation continued as they collected many wild fruits, temporarily solving the food problem. But even as night approached, they hadn't yet left the forest, and the endless mountains seemed to stretch on forever. After crossing one peak, there was another.
"Did we go the wrong way? Are we heading deeper into the forest?" someone questioned. But the group decided to keep moving forward.
By the time night fell, they had no choice but to stop in the forest and decided to resume the journey the next day.
That night, a bone-chilling scream echoed through the forest at midnight, a terrifying sound that was accompanied by the sound of chains rattling. It sent a shiver down everyone's spine.
"It seems to be coming from the Abyss of the Ancient Forbidden Land," many people whispered, looking toward the distant, enormous abyss formed by nine mountain peaks.
In the dark of the night, the shadows of the trees and ancient woods swayed, like ghosts in the wind.
The roar grew louder, shaking the entire mountain range. The surrounding trees shook, and leaves fell in a flurry.
A cold, ominous aura spread from the abyss, chilling everyone to the bone. Even though they were far from the abyss, they could still feel its terrifying presence, which was frightening indeed.
"Bang!"
A massive shaking sound echoed through the night, as if some colossal creature was pounding metal, causing the forest to tremble.
Everyone turned pale. They couldn't help but think of something.
"The nine dragon corpses and the bronze coffin fell into the abyss…" someone murmured.
"Could it be…" The rumbling, forceful impact sounded like something was smashing the bronze coffin, sending a wave of coldness through everyone's bodies.
"What is that thing?" many of them thought, their minds in shock and terror. The mysterious bronze coffin was still an enigma. No one understood what was inside, and now, something seemed to be trying to smash it open.
"Does the Ancient Forbidden Land really exist since the ancient times?" someone said, trembling.
"Ancient times… How long ago was that? Has anyone stepped foot here since then?" someone else asked.
"Bang!"
The tremendous sound of pounding continued, followed by the echoing noise of the trembling copper coffin. The ground shook violently, and the trees swayed even more. The leaves fell in a cascade.
The roars were full of rage, growing even more terrifying, leaving the group unable to imagine what could be down in the abyss.
"We should be thankful that if the nine dragon corpses and the bronze coffin hadn't fallen into the abyss, drawing the creature's attention, it would've likely attacked us during the night. If that happened, none of us would survive…"
This was likely true. After all, the forbidden land was so dangerous that not even birds dared to linger here. It was clearly a place of death, with something terrifying inside.
"Something ancient from before the Ancient Times… it's hard to even imagine!"
"Looks like it can't do anything to the mysterious bronze coffin for now, luckily…"
That night was one of unrest, and many couldn't sleep.
"Boom!"
Suddenly, a violent roar shook the distant mountains. The abyss erupted with a violent earthquake, releasing endless black mist that completely covered the sky, erasing the stars and moon, creating an oppressive atmosphere.
"Rumble, rumble…"
The black mist was suddenly sucked back into the abyss, and the sky became clear once more. But everyone saw a stunning sight.
A blurry black figure, hard to tell if it was man or beast, was wielding hundreds of feet long chains, roaring toward the heavens, its power shaking the world!
Even though it was far away, they could still see the enormous chains, and the deafening roar nearly knocked them unconscious. The shockwaves were so strong they hurt their eardrums.
The creature, bound by enormous iron chains, struggled as it moved, its power overwhelming, gathering strength. After a furious roar, it suddenly dived back into the abyss.
"Bang!"
The bronze coffin was slammed again.
"Do you think it's trying to open that coffin within a coffin?"
"It seems that way. After all, that big coffin is already open, so there's no reason to smash it for no reason."
Everyone's minds were in chaos, both shocked and terrified. Only later in the night did the abyss finally quiet down, and the group fell into a restless, uneasy sleep.