A Group of People Abducted by the Demon King of Another World

What you thought about by day, you dreamed of by night.

Qin Luming thought it over carefully. The first time he dreamed of that scene, the first time he heard, "Are you calling me?" the dream had indeed been an abnormal state. The aftereffects on his body after waking up had not been an illusion or hysteria.

But the dream he had just had was his brain reacting to that first dream, not some abnormal state.

The fact that there was nothing unusual about his body after waking proved that it had only been an ordinary dream, unrelated to any mysterious incident.

Only ordinary dreams contained scenes related to reality, yet distorted and absurd, such as those seals and the novel contract.

In that first dream, there had been no distorted scenes related to reality at all.

Qin Luming sighed softly. People who wrote novels really were prone to overthinking. Then he took another bite of the tasteless abalone.

"Hey, how long are you planning to keep staring at me?"

Qin Luming came back to himself and saw that Che Yun had turned off the music. She was looking at him with a slightly smug, retaliatory expression.

Che Yun had originally planned to go to the dam with Yang Xiaoyan and the others. But she had gone to bed late last night, and Qin Luming had upset her so badly that she truly did not want to get up early in the morning. So she could not be bothered to go photograph the dam with them.

She had felt somewhat regretful after waking up. After all, they had come all the way out into this wilderness to check in at the dam and see the beautiful sunrise. But now, Che Yun felt thoroughly refreshed again.

Serves you right for being so cocky last night. Now that you've seen my figure first thing in the morning, you're regretting it, aren't you? Men really are cheap. Last night, when I sent him photos of my tent, he couldn't care less. Now he's gaping and sneaking peeks at me like some lecherous pig.

Che Yun had changed clothes and braved the morning chill to do yoga precisely for this effect.

Qin Luming could not be bothered to explain. He turned around and continued eating his awful canned abalone. He did not have a habit of wasting food carelessly. Besides, out here in the wilderness, he should not be judging canned food by the standards of fine dining.

After finishing the can, Qin Luming sat in his tent, looking in the direction of the dam while typing. It was not until around eleven in the morning, when he was about to go out and make something for lunch, that Che Yun came over again.

"Y-you're not going to the dam to have a look?" Che Yun asked hesitantly.

"No." Qin Luming shook his head. He was living perfectly well. No matter how strong his curiosity was, he would only observe from afar. The moment he thought of how this dam might be Zhou Nan's target, he could restrain himself from investigating this abandoned site, so full of industrial charm.

If Zhou Nan did not exist, he would have happily explored both the outside and inside of the dam. That sense of abandoned emptiness, silence, and darkness made his heart race.

"Yang Xiaoyan and the others haven't answered their phones all morning. They haven't replied to a single message, and I can't get through to any of them either." Che Yun had no other choice. Otherwise, she would not have taken the initiative to seek out Qin Luming again... This supposedly sophomore junior did look exceptionally fresh and appetizing, but unfortunately, he was covered in thorns.

Qin Luming frowned instinctively... A group of adults being unreachable for half a day normally was not something to worry too much about, even out here in the wilderness.

"Bad signal, maybe?" Qin Luming had no way of telling Che Yun, "Maybe your friends were abducted by the Demon King of another world."

"But that shouldn't be the case... My phone clearly has no signal problems. I can call and message other people, but not them." Che Yun had not been reassured and still looked unsettled.

"We're on a mountaintop, where the terrain is open and unobstructed. They're down between valleys and may even have gone inside the dam. It's perfectly normal for their signal to weaken there." Qin Luming checked the time. "Wait a little longer. If there's still no news by the afternoon, then we'll see."

"Okay." Che Yun thought that made sense and returned to her campsite.

Qin Luming continued with his own business and took out a self-heating hot pot. He had not been interested in one yesterday, but after eating two meals of canned food, the temptation of hot food had become irresistible.

After finishing the hot pot, Qin Luming cleaned up the trash around his campsite and packed it into a large plastic bag.

At two in the afternoon, Che Yun finally could not hold back any longer. She came over again and looked anxiously at Qin Luming. "I can't settle down. I really feel like something happened to them."

"I'll go take a look near the dam." Qin Luming understood what Che Yun meant. He was willing to check near the dam not simply because he enjoyed helping others or being kind... He had wanted to take a look anyway.

Looking around nearby and entering the dam, or setting foot on it, were entirely different matters.

When Zhou Nan used the divine art Great Dao Third: Stripping, she would pull the entire dam out by its roots, but she would not take anything else from around it.

If Qin Luming only looked around nearby now, he definitely would not be affected. But if he was inside the dam or on any part of its structure, he might vanish without a trace like Gu Qing'an.

"Okay, wait for me. I'll pack up." Che Yun hurriedly said. If something serious had really happened, there was no time to fuss over what had happened last night. A girl needed a man to give her some support at a time like this, even if that man had offended her.

"Wait." Qin Luming quickly made himself clear. "I'll go alone. What use would there be in you coming along?"

"I... How would I be useless?" Che Yun froze for a moment. "We could look out for each other."

"Forget it. If we really run into danger, like a wild beast or something, I can run for it. Can you? Or are you like Wu Song, capable of fighting a tiger?" Qin Luming picked up his entrenching shovel and headed toward the dam.

"Then... then at least tell me your number. I'll call you in twenty minutes, and we can test whether it's really a signal problem." Che Yun had been so thoroughly looked down on, yet there was nothing she could do. She could only stand where she was and try to be of some use.

"No need. I'll test it myself." Qin Luming did not even turn his head. He had no intention of giving Che Yun his phone number. It was not for any other reason... It was just that, judging from Che Yun's behavior, she was the sort of woman who could not calm down once she panicked. Before long, she would be calling him nonstop in a frantic mess, asking him this and that and interfering with what he was doing.

Che Yun took a deep breath. Was this guy still guarding against her trying to use this chance to get his phone number? Even if someone like him had decent qualities, he definitely did not have a girlfriend, right? Otherwise, why would he come up this mountain alone to camp on a weekend?