Chapter 182: An Indelible Stain

At that very moment, the seawater surged up, instantly engulfing Shi Zhile, who was watching the fun from the sidelines.

Shi Zhile: “…”

She flailed about in the water until, before she knew it, a wave tossed her back onto the beach.

She wasn’t injured and hadn’t choked on any seawater. Aside from looking like a total mess, she was completely fine.

Shi Zhile wrung the water from her clothes and expressionlessly brushed back her hair. As she did, a miniature, glowing treasure chest fell out.

It landed squarely on her foot.

She picked it up and opened it.

[Acquired: Advanced Teleportation Gate x1, Teleportation Gate Key x1.]

The black fog had completely spread, plunging the area into darkness, but the open treasure chest shone with a particularly dazzling light.

Guided by the glow, Shi Zhiyi and the others made their way over with their flashlights.

Upon seeing Shi Zhile’s sorry state, they all couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

Jiang Jing reached out and squeezed her clothes. His fingertips were instantly stained black. “Zhile, did you fall into an ink pit?”

Wei Zhan coughed, then failed to stifle a loud laugh.

Wen Bai wanted to laugh too, but he managed to suppress it when he caught the sisters’ hostile glares.

Shi Zhiyi took out a bath towel to dry Shi Zhile’s hair, but the pink towel only grew blacker with each wipe. In the end, even she couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

Afraid that Shi Zhile would get angry, Wen Changming quickly intervened. “It’s getting a little chilly. Let’s head back to the village so Zhile can change her clothes.”

Shi Zhile nodded, casually tossed the treasure chest into her space, and then took off like a madwoman after the ones who had just been laughing at her.

Half an hour later, the lights flickered on in the first earthen house at the village entrance.

Shi Zhile, Shi Zhiyi, Jiang Jing, Wen Bai, Sun Ci, and Tang Yan stood at the entrance, all six of them covered in black from head to toe. Their faces and hands were smeared with black water, so when they grinned, only their white teeth were visible.

Even the three normally stern base chiefs couldn’t stop laughing at the sight.

Ms. He rubbed her head, a smile playing on her lips as she presented a bucket of seawater.

“All the seawater outside is black now. This is the only bucket of clean water we have. But you guys… you… Pfft! It won’t make a difference whether you wash or not.”

Their faces were simply too black. The seawater was like ink, only several shades darker.

Shi Zhile had been completely submerged, so her clothes were saturated. When she went to torment the others, if her hands ran dry, she would just wipe more of the black water from her clothes.

You never feel tired when you’re up to no good. She chased them all over, and even the fastest runners, Wen Bai and Jiang Jing, were eventually caught and had their faces smeared with black water.

Shi Zhiyi shot Shi Zhile a resentful look. She squeezed some of the black water from her own clothes, but when she went to smear it on Shi Zhile’s face, she realized there was no place to even start.

After a moment’s thought, she wiped it on Wen Bai’s face instead, making him a full shade darker.

Wen Bai: “…”

Wen Changming coughed twice, hiding a smile behind his fist.

“Why not just wait and wash tomorrow? You’re just a bit dark, it’s not a big deal.”

The words had barely left his mouth when “Wen Yuchu” pushed the door open and entered.

As his was the only unconscious body, one of the seniors remained inside it to ensure it wouldn’t atrophy.

When he saw the row of inky figures, he immediately burst out laughing. “HAHAHA!”

“Did you all fall into the sea? I knew I saw something splashing around out there! I thought it was a big fish, so I made sure to knock it ashore. Turns out it was just you unlucky kids.”

“It makes no difference if you wash or not, because it won’t come off.”

The six of them: “…? It won’t wash off!?”

The senior nodded with a smile. “Nope! But don’t worry. It’ll start to fade in about two weeks, and I guarantee you’ll be back to your old selves within a month.”

Everyone fell silent, especially Shi Zhile. Her silence was deafening.

She stole a glance at the other five, only to find them all staring back at her. Their faces were too black to read.

“Ahem. Actually, it’s a blessing in disguise. I found a treasure chest and got a Teleportation Gate out of it.”

Shi Zhile took out the chest again. Looking at the Teleportation Gate inside, she bound it to the Primitive Forest instance.

With a flicker of her will, the Teleportation Gate materialized before them.

“I’ve bound it to the Primitive Forest instance, where Mr. Wen and most of the players from Huaxia Base are.”

“The Teleportation Gate in the Primitive Forest is exposed to the main game, so it’s not as secure as our location here. This is the perfect chance to bring everyone over.”

One of the base chiefs said, “Good idea. Is it like last time? We just walk right in?”

Shi Zhile: “That’s right! I’m just not sure if the senior can go through.”

The senior shook his head. “None of us can leave. You see a gate, but we see nothing. Go on. Be safe, and come back soon.”

Shi Zhile nodded and stepped through first.

The others followed right behind.

The sun was setting, painting half the sky a fiery red.

The temperature was pleasant, neither too hot nor too cold.

They had teleported to a beach. Refusing to give up, Jiang Jing immediately tried washing his face with the seawater. The others saw this and followed suit, scooping up handfuls of water.

Shi Zhile’s clothes were still wet, so she went into her space first. She took a bath with the spring water from her Planting Space, and only after confirming the black stain truly wouldn’t wash off did she finally give up and change her clothes.

Before leaving the space, she used the surface of the well water as a mirror. Just as she’d expected, her entire body was black, except for her teeth and eyeballs.

Compared to the others, however, her completely uniform complexion wasn’t all that ugly.

After exiting her space, she met the exasperated gazes of the other five and took the lead.

Soon, the group entered the woods.

When a patrolling player saw Shi Zhile and the other inky figures, he drew his weapon warily.

“Who are you?”

The two base chiefs immediately stepped forward. “Stand down. It’s us.”

“Base Chiefs? Is the instance over? Who are they…?”

Jiang Jing covered his face. “It’s me, Jiang Jing.”

“Captain?”

Luo Chuan, who was stationed in the Primitive Forest, heard the commotion and came over.

He saluted first, then looked over the others with their blackened faces. The more he looked, the more familiar they seemed. “Shi Zhile? Jiang Jing, Wen… Bai? Are you… Shi Zhiyi? Pfft! Was the sun in the new instance that strong? How come you Base Chiefs didn’t get so dark?”

The two base chiefs: “…”

Wen Changming took a deep breath. “Compose yourself. Is everything all right in the tribe? How are our people getting along with the tribespeople?”

Not many people had been sent over—only some twenty-odd researchers and fifty soldiers to protect them. Aside from them, there were only Mr. Wen and Jiang Yu.

Mr. Wen and Jiang Yu had experience interacting with the tribe, so it was the others he was worried about.

Luo Chuan’s smile vanished and he stood at attention. “Reporting! All is well. To date, all personnel are coexisting harmoniously with the tribe. There are no issues.”

The base chief nodded. “Notify everyone to return to the tribe. We’re packing up and relocating.”

With Luo Chuan in the lead, they all proceeded quickly toward the tribal village.

By dusk, most of the players and tribespeople were in the village.

At the sudden appearance of the six pitch-black figures, everyone crowded around them.