ID No. 019 - Chapter 16.1

Zhang Yan had encountered ghosts during his first mission. He was an ordinary person and afraid, but it was the kind of fear that came with some understanding and expectation.

So he approached the shadow.

However, it wasn’t a ghost. It was a person who hadn’t yet mutated—Ah Wu.

This surprised Zhang Yan. In his opinion, ghosts were much simpler than humans. Humans were the most complex and unpredictable beings.

Ah Wu said he had also been chased into the forest. He added that due to the terrain, it was very hard to leave this place at night.

Zhao Yuan completely trusted this shy young man from Xiaoyin Island, who seemed about the same age as him. “Oh, so that’s why we couldn’t get out of the forest no matter what we did.”

Zhang Yan wasn’t as naive. “Ah Wu, you seem very familiar with this place.”

“Not really, just been here a few times.” Ah Wu scratched his face. “If I’m not mistaken, there’s a fairly large tree hollow ahead we can hide in.”

Zhao Yuan was delighted. “Then let’s go!”

Zhang Yan said nothing. It wasn’t until Ah Wu led the way that he quietly said to Zhao Yuan, “Don’t you think it’s strange?”

Zhao Yuan stammered, “W-what?”

Zhang Yan asked, “Why did we happen to run into him after coming in?”

Zhao Yuan replied, “Coincidence, I guess.”

Zhang Yan asked again, “And him following behind us—is that also a coincidence?”

Zhao Yuan’s steps faltered. “…He wasn’t following us. He probably just doesn’t walk as fast as we do.”

Ahead, Ah Wu turned and called out, “Why aren’t you guys moving?”

“Coming!” Zhao Yuan tugged at Zhang Yan. “Let’s go. There are two of us and one of him. If anyone should be afraid, it’s not us.”

Zhang Yan narrowed his eyes at Ah Wu’s back. “You’ve got a point.”

The tree hollow was spacious enough for three grown men to squeeze inside. The night passed without incident.

As the faint morning light filtered through the forest, Ah Wu’s attitude shifted. He urged Zhang Yan and Zhao Yuan to leave.

“It’s easy to get into this place during the day, but there’s nowhere to hide. We need to move quickly,” Ah Wu said.

Zhao Yuan whispered to Zhang Yan, “Nothing happened last night. We were overthinking it.”

Zhang Yan pulled the hood of his jacket down over his head. “Let’s go.”

Ah Wu carried a cloth bag with some water and food, which he generously shared.

While eating one of the biscuits Ah Wu provided, Zhao Yuan asked, “Have you come across any other tourists?”

Ah Wu shook his head.

Zhao Yuan sighed. “I don’t even know if we’ll survive this.”

Ah Wu’s eyes reddened, and his face was filled with sorrow. “This island is no longer the one I used to know.”

“Don’t dwell on it,” Zhao Yuan said, patting his shoulder. “Take it one step at a time.”

Ah Wu sniffled. “Okay.”

Zhang Yan, falling a bit behind, asked, “Ah Wu, how much longer until we’re out of this forest?”

“Almost there,” Ah Wu replied.

They ended up getting lost.

Ah Wu suggested that the three of them split up, each taking a different path. Along the way, they would mark their routes, so if one of them found the way out, the others could follow the marks out of the woods.

Zhao Yuan hesitated.

Zhang Yan adjusted his backpack. “I agree with Ah Wu. This is the best plan.”

Hearing Zhang Yan’s approval, Zhao Yuan reluctantly agreed. “Alright, let’s split up.”

So the three of them went in three different directions: Zhao Yuan headed east, Zhang Yan west, and Ah Wu south.

On the southern path, Ah Wu walked leisurely, a cheerful smile on his face as he hummed an unfamiliar tune.

“Hmm hmm… hmm hmm hmm hmm hmm… hmm… hmm… hmm hmm hmm…”

The strange, drawn-out melody abruptly stopped. Ah Wu turned his head, the fleeting glint of malice in his eyes quickly replaced by a look of surprise. “Mr. Zhang, why are you here?”

Zhang Yan stood still, hands in his pockets.

Ah Wu furrowed his delicate brows and said softly, “Why didn’t you go west as planned?”

Zhang Yan started walking toward him.

Ah Wu began to step back.

That movement confirmed Zhang Yan’s suspicions and a warm smile suddenly appeared on his face. Taking advantage of Ah Wu’s brief moment of confusion, Zhang Yan pulled a clenched fist out of his pocket and struck him down with ruthless precision.

“Ah!”

A deafening scream came from the east. Zhao Yuan was shouting in panic, “Help! Help me—!”

Zhang Yan didn’t rush over immediately. Instead, he walked at a measured pace toward the west, confirming that among the three paths Ah Wu had mentioned, only his own was safe.

The other two led to swamps.

Zhao Yuan was trapped in the swamp, with only half his body above the surface and sinking deeper by the moment.

The sight caught Zhang Yan off guard when he arrived. He had assumed that by now, Zhao Yuan would already have been swallowed by the swamp.

Zhao Yuan’s growing despair paused the moment he saw Zhang Yan appear. He drew a sharp breath and forced himself to relax all his muscles, and pleaded, “Zhang Yan… Brother Yan, please save me, I’m begging you…”

Zhang Yan said nothing.

Realizing something, the light in Zhao Yuan’s eyes began to fade, little by little. He swallowed the rest of his pleas, his face turning ashen.

Zhang Yan turned and left. All hope disappeared from Zhao Yuan’s eyes.

It’s over.

I’m going to die.

His gaze went blank as he waited for death.

After an indeterminate amount of time, a vine hit sharply against Zhao Yuan’s forehead, jolting him awake from the pain.

“Grab it.” Zhang Yan had returned, holding the other end of the vine. His resolute face showed neither warmth nor patience. “I’m counting to three.”

Zhao Yuan immediately grabbed onto the vine.

After escaping the swamp, Zhao Yuan was drenched in cold sweat, as if waking from a nightmare within a nightmare. He kept muttering words like, “Brother,” “good man,” and “life-saving grace.”

“Enough!” Zhang Yan stepped on the unconscious Ah Wu. “This guy clearly tried to harm us but couldn’t openly do it. Until I dig out the clues I need from him, I can’t kill him, and I don’t know if he’s still hiding any trump cards.” He stated bluntly, “I saved you only because if he makes another move, I’ll have you as a meat shield to block for me.”

Zhao Yuan’s overwhelming gratitude and lingering terror froze in place. Wiping the cold sweat from his face, he whispered, “Still, thank you.”

Zhang Yan mocked him mercilessly. “With how dumb you are, it’s just sheer dumb luck even if you manage to survive and get out. You’ll die in the next mission anyway.”

Zhao Yuan let out an awkward laugh. By now, he fully understood that Zhang Yan had been suspicious of Ah Wu all along. When they split up, Zhang Yan had deliberately played along with Ah Wu’s plan, trying to expose his intentions and figure out what he was plotting.

Still, Zhang Yan had saved his life.

Zhao Yuan could also see that the same anxiety that had been evident in Lin Yue’s eyes was now appearing in Zhang Yan’s—a pressure born from the mission dragging on without progress.

Speaking of Lin Yue, who was willing to kill the innocent just to avoid sparing the guilty, Zhao Yuan wondered how she was doing. And what about Chen Yang and the young man with the crutch? Were they still alive?