Aunt Mei gave a faint smile. "No need to say thank you. It's what I should do. Take good care of your sister."
Aunt Mei left the small wooden house and stood guard outside the door for the two sisters. Looking at the expanse of yellow sand outside, a tinge of melancholy welled up in her heart.
What exactly lay behind that wall, and what had happened there? No one knew, and no one dared to know, except Dongfang Huaizhu, and herself...
When Dongfang Huaizhu woke up, she was alone in the room. Aunt Mei was keeping watch outside the door, while Dongfang Qinlan was cooking food for her.
When she was fully awake, Dongfang Qinlan was setting out lunch. Aunt Mei sat opposite her, looking cold. "Hurry up and eat. I guess your sister will wake up soon. When she does, take her back to the manor."
Dongfang Qinlan nodded. Just as she was about to pick up her chopsticks, she heard a faint voice calling her. She turned around and saw that Dongfang Huaizhu had opened her eyes.
"Sister, you're awake. How do you feel?"
Dongfang Huaizhu threw off the quilt on her body and tried to go inside the wall to look for Wangquan Baye. But at this moment, she was still very weak. Excessive grief left her with no extra strength to break free from Dongfang Qinlan's restraint.
"Let go of me. I'm going to find him. Don't stop me!" Dongfang Huaizhu kept wriggling in Dongfang Qinlan's arms.
Dongfang Qinlan was momentarily distracted, and Dongfang Huaizhu rushed out of bed.
"Why are you doing this to yourself? What can you change by going there now? It's better to wait here for them to come out." Aunt Mei grabbed Dongfang Huaizhu's hand to stop her from being too impulsive.
Dongfang Huaizhu smiled bitterly and tried to break free but couldn't.
"Sister, don't be like this. If he knows you're like this, he'll feel heartache too!" Dongfang Qinlan and Aunt Mei held Dongfang Huaizhu tightly, afraid that she would struggle free.
Tears streamed down Dongfang Huaizhu's face. Dongfang Qinlan felt heart - broken but was helpless. She could only hope that the Masked Group would come out soon so that her sister wouldn't be so sad.
"Okay, I know. Don't worry. I just couldn't think it through for a moment." Tears still streamed down Dongfang Huaizhu's face, but her expression gradually calmed down. She stood at the door, her eyes dull.
Dongfang Qinlan couldn't quite believe it. She hesitated for a moment and then let go of Dongfang Huaizhu, always on guard against her actions.
Aunt Mei simply let go of Dongfang Huaizhu, sat down at the table, and watched her out of the corner of her eye.
"Come and sit down and eat something. Don't just stand there. Take good care of your body." Aunt Mei said while eating.
At night, Aunt Mei and Dongfang Qinlan had fallen asleep. Taking advantage of their slumber, Dongfang Huaizhu held her breath and tiptoed past them.
She walked out of the small wooden house, took a look around, and then quickly ran towards the wall. As she watched the scenery flashing by, her heart grew calmer. She thought of Wangquan Baye, her father, and Qinlan.
At this time, the wall - keeper was meditating. A moment later, he suddenly opened his eyes and launched a fierce attack in the direction Dongfang Huaizhu was coming from.
"I've told you, you can't enter here!" the wall - keeper shouted as he attacked Dongfang Huaizhu.
He didn't expect that Dongfang Huaizhu tonight was not so vulnerable. No matter how he attacked, Dongfang Huaizhu deflected his attacks. Then, she managed to sneak attack him with a move and knocked him to the ground.
"How... How did you become so powerful?" The wall - keeper spat out a mouthful of blood as he lay on the ground. Dongfang Huaizhu ignored him and walked straight towards the wall.
"Listen to me. Don't go in. You'll lose your life if you do!" The old voice of the wall - keeper reached Dongfang Huaizhu's ears.
Dongfang Huaizhu paused for a moment but still walked towards the wall. A moment later, the wall - keeper watched as she disappeared by the wall without any further movement.
Inside the wall, Dongfang Huaizhu was looking around for Wangquan Baye and the others. At the same time, she remained on guard, holding a sharp dagger in her hand.
"Is anyone there?" Dongfang Huaizhu called out.
Suddenly, she saw some familiar fabric in a corner. She quickly rushed over and found that the fabric was exactly the clothes the Masked Group had worn when they entered.
"Wangquan Baye!" Dongfang Huaizhu shouted. Her calm began to shatter. The string she had been holding onto was vibrating violently.
She kept exploring, using her hands to search for anything she could find. Fear and confusion overwhelmed her. When she saw the masks piled up together, her emotions reached their peak.
"No, it can't be. There must still be a chance..." Dongfang Huaizhu knelt on the ground, clutching the mask in her hand. Her heart ached. Looking at the familiar mask, she suddenly didn't dare to take another step forward.
She stood up, ignoring her fear, and continued to explore forward. When she came to a place she had never been to before, Dongfang Huaizhu heard the voice of the plot in her mind.
[Warning, warning. Do not explore important plot clues. Cleaning will be carried out soon. Please leave immediately!]
This message kept repeating in Dongfang Huaizhu's mind. She ignored it and still wanted to move forward. But with each step she took, a beam of light would hit her body. The pain made Dongfang Huaizhu more and more conscious.
Suddenly, a powerful beam of light knocked Dongfang Huaizhu away. She fell to the ground, motionless, with only a faint breath indicating that she was still alive.
Endless darkness enveloped Dongfang Huaizhu. She struggled desperately in the darkness but couldn't break free. Suddenly, she saw a beam of light and ran towards it.
"Why? Why is it here?!" Dongfang Huaizhu opened her eyes from the coma. She was still lying on the bed in the small wooden house. Everything remained the same as when she hadn't left.
If it weren't for the dull pain on her body, Dongfang Huaizhu might have thought that everything before was just a dream. But Dongfang Huaizhu clearly knew that she wasn't dreaming. She had indeed reached the depths of the wall and found something about Wangquan Baye.
Thinking of that mask, Dongfang Huaizhu's eyes turned red. She didn't want to believe that Wangquan Baye had died inside the wall, but she had to. Staring at the ceiling of the small wooden house, Dongfang Huaizhu lay still.
Just as dawn was breaking, Dongfang Huaizhu regained her former vitality. Thinking of the information she knew, she kept calculating in her mind what she should do now.
Suddenly, she remembered what had happened when she left the manor. A hint of panic welled up in her heart. Looking at the rising sun, she became even more anxious.
"Let's go back to the manor quickly. We can't stay here for long. I'm worried that something might happen to the manor." Dongfang Huaizhu said to Dongfang Qinlan.
Aunt Mei leaned against the door frame, listening to the conversation between the two sisters. She didn't seem to want to say anything, just lost in her own thoughts.