Chapter One Hundred Forty-Three: Heaven’s Will

Among all the participating pairs, Daxi and Yu Xin were making the slowest progress. Shortly after they set off, Daxi spotted a dark shadow of a small animal darting through the bushes. Terrified, she burst into tears on the spot and refused to take another step, regardless of what anyone said.

At first, Yu Xin tried to soothe her with patience. However, Daxi’s fear only escalated, especially in a forest filled with strange, unsettling noises. Above them, only a crescent moon cast a faint, dim glow, and their only sense of security came from the flashlights they held. Daxi remained adamant, refusing to move forward until Yu Xin, too, finally lost her patience.

Yu Xin looked toward the live-streaming camera and told the audience, "Daxi is just a little girl. She’s terrified of the dark, and being away from her family in an environment like this makes it perfectly normal for her to be scared. I’m going to take her back to rest."

Having said that, she looked down at the sobbing girl with what little patience she had left. "Daxi, we won't play the game anymore. Come on, I’ll take you back."

Yu Xin had hoped this would resolve the dilemma, but to her surprise, Daxi cried even harder upon hearing this, shaking her head firmly as she stood her ground.

"It’s dark back there too! I—I don’t want to go!"

Yu Xin felt completely defeated. Frustrated, she sat down on a nearby rock. "You won't continue the game, and you won't go back. So what are we supposed to do? Wait here until dawn?"

[Yu Xin’s patience is running thin.]
[This child’s crying is truly frightening; my head is starting to ache.]
[Daxi seemed quite sensible before; why is she being so difficult now?]
[Niannian, who is only three, isn't even this timid.]
[Niannian is Sister Su’s own daughter, and she found the treasure all on her own. Can they even be compared?]

"Stop crying, Daxi. Aren't the cameramen here with us? What are you afraid of?"

The child’s wails were sharp and piercing. As the night grew deeper, everything beyond the reach of their flashlight beams dissolved into a thick, impenetrable blackness. The night breeze rustled the leaves of the nearby trees, and mixed with the soft, low cries of unknown creatures deep in the forest, even Yu Xin felt a chill run down her spine.

Combined with the child’s wailing, which echoed mournfully into the distance, Yu Xin looked up in despair, regretting her decision to join this program.

"What should we do? Should we ask the production team to send more people to escort her back?" Yu Xin asked, looking toward the camera.

Without Yu Xin’s comfort, Daxi’s crying intensified, her breath hitching in ragged sobs. Just as Yu Xin was nearing desperation, the sound of someone snapping a branch drifted from the distance, followed by footsteps and the rustle of leaves, drawing closer and closer.

"Is someone coming? Or... is it an animal?"

Yu Xin stood up from the rock in an instant, her first instinct to shield Daxi behind her. Daxi was startled as well, her hands gripping Yu Xin’s clothes tightly from behind, so terrified that she even forgot to cry.

Even the cameraman, knowing full well that nothing dangerous would occur here, could not help but break into a cold sweat. He aimed his lens toward the source of the noise, but the area was shrouded in darkness, revealing nothing.

Suddenly, a shadow began to emerge from that direction, swaying and growing larger by the second.

"Who’s there!"

Yu Xin’s heart was in her throat as she mustered the courage to shout into the darkness.

[Mom, save me! Am I watching a horror movie or a variety show?]
[The atmosphere is terrifying. The director really knows how to set the mood.]
[This is too scary. I’m going to check on the wholesome father-daughter duo next door. Goodbye, everyone.]

Just then, the figure finally spoke. It was a familiar voice: "It’s me."

Yu Xin exhaled a long breath, her initial fear quickly replaced by a surge of delayed anger. She couldn't help but complain loudly to Tian Boyu as he emerged from the darkness: "Do you have any idea how terrifying it is to sneak up on people? Why didn't you turn on your flashlight!"

Tian Boyu stepped into the light, shrugging with an innocent expression. "I don't know why, but my flashlight broke. I heard movement here, so I headed over, hoping we could travel together."

Daxi, who had been hiding behind Yu Xin, immediately ran out and grabbed Tian Boyu’s hand tightly. "Brother Tian Boyu, I’m so scared! You have to protect me!"

Tian Boyu simply bent down and scooped Daxi up, his strong arms cradling her small frame. Only then did Daxi feel a sense of security and stop crying.

"Let me see." Yu Xin took Tian Boyu’s flashlight and checked it, finding that the batteries were fine, yet it refused to turn on.

"Well, you’ll have to use Daxi’s light for now. She’s a bit scared and doesn't want to continue the game, but she’s also too afraid to head back with me."

"Then what should we do?" Tian Boyu asked.

Daxi clung tightly to Tian Boyu’s neck, burying her head into his shoulder, her voice muffled as she spoke: "Wherever Brother Tian Boyu goes, I go."

[It’s fate.]
[Destiny brought you two together. I’m rooting for this pair!]
[So exciting! One flashlight happens to break, and the other person happens to be scared—it’s a match made in heaven!]

"Shall we head out together then?"

Yu Xin had been quite frightened moments ago, but strangely, the moment she saw Tian Boyu, her fear vanished completely. Her interest in the game overcame her dread, and she decided to press on.

Meanwhile, Su Wanning and Sui Sui had traveled a long distance into the depths of the forest, yet they had not seen another treasure chest.

"Strange. If they are distributed this sparsely, where could all the other puzzle pieces be? The forest doesn't look that big."

Su Wanning frowned as she analyzed the situation while walking forward. Next to her, Sui Sui guessed thoughtfully, "The area of the puzzle is very small. There should be at least six pieces."

[I can feel the aura of a straight-A student.]
[Knowledge is power, friends! Neither of them is afraid at all!]

They took a few more steps forward, but Sui Sui, who had been leading, suddenly stopped.

"What is it?" Su Wanning asked, nearly bumping into her son.

"I heard a sound ahead."

As Sui Sui said this, he reached out and decisively turned off his flashlight.

Following suit, with an burst of unspoken chemistry between mother and son, Su Wanning also extinguished her light. The surroundings plunged into total darkness, with only the red tally light of the camera flickering in the void.

[So exciting! What sound is it?]
[There aren't any wild boars here, are there?]
[Could it be a wolf?]
[Sui Sui is so brave!]

The production team had anticipated such a scenario, so the cameramen had already switched to night-vision mode. In the darkness, the audience in the live-streaming room could see the silhouettes of the mother and son standing quietly, Su Wanning’s hand resting gently on her son’s shoulder.