Although everyone's mood was gloomy and heavy, in this urgent situation, nothing could be delayed.
Zhao Yanbao found a clue in Xiao Qinxian's lip movements—the words were on her forehead.
"Could this be a clue? How did Xiao Qinxian know?" Many people couldn't understand.
"Xiao Qinxian's identity is special, and she appeared to be insane when she said those words, so it's hard to say whose mouth those words came from," Zhao Yanbao pondered for a while, and finally forced herself to make an unscientific conclusion, "That state of madness might have occurred when two souls were fighting for a body, or even be interpreted as a collision between the inside and outside of the city."
In any case, this statement shouldn't be unfounded.
The words on her forehead inevitably brought to mind the woman riding the scarlet beast in the Book of Revelation, whose forehead also had words.
This statement was less of a clue and more of a reiteration with emphasis.
"But the three characters 'Yu Bei Guo' couldn't possibly be on someone's forehead!" Wei Dong blinked his swollen eyes and voiced his thoughts. "Many people in this city have seen these three characters, but it's impossible for all of them to have seen the person with the characters on their forehead! Unless he's the mayor of Xin Cheng…"
Zhu Haowen: "Maybe it's an abstract expression, like a sculpture of a person or animal with characters carved on its forehead."
"Even so, this sculpture must be a landmark, otherwise so many people couldn't have seen it." Qin Ci looked at the map in his hand; he had been looking at it for so long that he could barely recognize the small characters on it anymore.
"Okay, everyone calm down for a bit and rest your eyes," Mu Yiran said. "I'll start reading the place names on the map now, circling each one as I read it. After I finish reading a section, Ke Xun will read it. The only thing I can think of right now is to change the perspective; sometimes you can't see something, but you might be able to hear it."
Everyone had no better ideas, so they all closed their eyes and listened to Mu Yiran read the place names on the map.
"Yaoguang Building, Heart-Shaped Lake Park, Biyue Street, Aimu Hostel, Paihuai Station…" Mu Yiran read slowly, circling places with a pencil as she read.
This was probably the quietest, slowest time everyone had experienced since entering the painting. Qin Ci closed his eyes, vaguely feeling like he was listening to an afternoon radio program.
Half an hour later, it was Ke Xun's turn to read. The sudden change in voice jolted the almost dozing group awake.
As Ke Xun read, he suddenly heard his companions call out to stop.
"Read the place names again," said Zhu Haowen.
Ke Xun himself was getting sleepy. He looked at the circle he had drawn: "Honey Island."
"Not this one, it's the one in front of this island!" Zhao Yanbao said.
Ke Xun looked closely: "Goose Mountain."
Everyone fell silent, staring at Ke Xun.
"Goose Mountain, that's a mountain in the suburbs of Heart City, is there a problem?" Ke Xun asked, confused.
Zhu Haowen wrote two characters directly on the paper: "Is this what you mean?"
Seeing these two characters, Ke Xun finally understood—Zhu Haowen had written "Eshan" (额山).
Ke Xun slowly shook his head: "This is the 'goose' in 'big white goose' (大白鹅)."
Mu Yiran walked over and took the map, carefully looking at the description of the scenic spot on the side of the map about Goose Mountain: "Goose Mountain, originally called Eshan (额山), was named because the shape of the whole mountain resembles a beautiful woman's forehead, and later it was said to be Goose Mountain."
Now everyone couldn't sit still. Wei Dong directly came over to look: "This mountain is in the southern suburbs! Let's go now!"
"Should we bring any tools?" Qin Ci stood up, not knowing what to bring for a moment.
"It's almost 6:00 now. We don't have time to climb or dig. After nightfall, we have to go back to our accommodation." Mu Yiran was more calm. "Let's hurry up and go."
So the group went out and hailed two taxis, heading straight for Goose Mountain.
An hour later, the group arrived at the foot of Goose Mountain.
The mountain wasn't high, standing alone, and its shape did indeed resemble a forehead.
It was nearly dusk, but the light was still relatively bright. Everyone surveyed the mountain, unsure where to begin.
"I asked the driver on the bus earlier, and he said Goose Mountain's most famous feature is the 'Frown-Heart Cave,' and that there are some amazing sights inside," Ke Xun said, having already spotted a cave located in the central part of the mountain's foot.
They trudged along the mountain path, their steps uneven. Above the cave was a stone plaque inscribed with "Frown-Heart Cave."
"Why does this cave have a stone door? How are we going to get in? Can we even push open such a heavy stone door?" Wei Dong stared at the pair of stone doors inside the cave, feeling a strong connection to the filming of Journey to the West.
Beside the cave was a stone tablet with an inscription about the mountain, and everyone gathered around it, reading it word by word.
"This stele was actually erected jointly by people inside and outside the city," Zhao Yanbao said, somewhat incredulously, her eyes continuing to read the inscription. "So that's how it is. Entering the cave requires a mechanism, and it's even considered a major feature of the Goose Mountain Scenic Area..."
Following the description on the stele, they finally found the large cobblestone, just big enough for one person to step on, on the slope behind the mountain.
"I'll try," Qin Ci said, standing on the cobblestone with his feet together.
With a loud rumble, Wei Dong, who had come from the front of the mountain to report, said that the stone door of the Eyebrow Cave had slowly opened.
Everyone was excited. Wei Dong pulled Qin Ci, "Come on! Let's go into the cave and see if the autograph is inside!"
But just as Qin Ci's foot left the cobblestone, the cave door made another loud noise, seemingly about to slowly close.
"No, someone has to stay here the whole time,"
Ke Xun estimated the distance from the cobblestone to the Eyebrow Cave. Running from behind the mountain to the cave entrance the instant the door opened and closed was almost impossible.
"Go back and call someone, or stop a passerby on the roadside and ask them to help step on the pebbles. It shouldn't be difficult," Zhu Haowen said.
Qin Ci looked up at the approaching dusk: "There probably aren't any passersby now. Don't bother, I'll step on them myself."
"Even Ke'er can't run this far, let alone you, Lao Qin," Wei Dong said, trying to make Qin Ci realize his limitations.
Qin Ci smiled: "I don't want to walk anymore. Staying here is fine."
Everyone was stunned; no one expected Qin Ci to give such an answer.
Wei Dong patted Qin Ci on the shoulder: "Old Qin, wake up, Brother Qin! This is a painting! We need to get autographs, we have to get out!"
"What good will getting out do? We'll just keep getting into paintings," Qin Ci said with a bitter smile. "It's better to find a painting we like the most and settle down in, living a peaceful life."
Mu Yiran clearly hadn't expected this either, and looked over with a slightly cold gaze: "Our efforts these past few days have been all for the sake of getting out, and that's what you think too."
"Actually, I've already thought it through. The reason I've been working so hard these past few days is so that you can get out." Qin Ci smiled.
"Don't be a jerk," Zhu Haowen suddenly said, "You think you'll find peace in the paintings, but what about your parents? How will they live without you?"
Qin Ci remained silent, whether out of inner conflict or a desire to avoid further discussion, it was unclear.
Ke Xun stepped forward and brushed a blade of grass from Qin Ci's head: "Brother Qin, we've been through so many life-and-death situations together; Luo Wei isn't alone anymore. Luo Wei is gone, and we promised to take care of his mother. In the next painting, we don't know who will leave, or how many will go—no matter how many, those who remain have to carry the burden. If you suddenly stop now, aren't you abandoning your brothers halfway through?"
Qin Ci looked up at Ke Xun, his eyes slightly red.
"This is actually quite simple, why make it sound like a life-or-death situation?" The speaker was Zhao Yanbao, standing outside the crowd. The mountain wind tousled her short hair, revealing an unusual beauty. "If we all want to get out, we can go down the mountain. Finding someone is easy; we can just hail a taxi and pay the driver a little extra to help us. —Even if we can't find anyone, we can try putting a big rock on the pebbles."
The crowd remained silent. Things didn't seem as simple as she thought. The key now was Qin Ci's opinion.
Zhao Yanbao smiled. "I think as long as there's even a sliver of attachment to the outside world, we shouldn't stay here. It's meaningless to live a life so vibrant and lively, turning yourself into a painting."
She said this to Qin Ci, who lowered his head and remained silent.
Zhao Yanbao continued, "We've been through thick and thin together, but our friendship isn't that deep, and I would never sacrifice anything for you—so, my decision has nothing to do with you. Please don't label me as someone who sacrificed themselves for a cause; I can't bear that."
Everyone seemed to guess what Zhao Yanbao was about to say. Zhao Yanbao gestured to interrupt Wei Dong, who was about to speak: "I really have nothing to hold me back outside the painting. My only remaining attachment, Chi Lei, is here. I want to stay with her. —If we successfully leave the painting, and I have to experience Chi Lei's death again in our world, I can't bear it, I really can't."
Qin Ci wanted to say something, but Zhao Yanbao interrupted him again: "You still have parents and friends. I only have parents who refuse to contact me unless I ask for money, and I don't really want to deal with them anymore. I'm not acting impulsively. I've thought it through since Chi Lei died. Even those two nights afterward, I hoped some kind of beast would emerge from within me, but nothing did."
Everyone fell silent, unsure what to say.
Zhao Yanbao's fitted long shirt made her look like a teenager just starting to develop, a boy with an innocent smile: "I'm not afraid of the night here. If I die, I can keep Chi Lei company. If I live, I'll go outside the city to find Chi Lei and the others' beasts and ask someone to perform a ritual for them. —Look, I still have so many things to do."
Wei Dong had cried too many times today, and his eyes felt swollen shut.
Zhao Yanbao smiled at each man in front of her, finally walking towards her former roommate, Zhu Haowen. Caught off guard, she hugged him and whispered, "Life is short, do what you want to do."
Zhu Haowen smiled, a rare smile indeed.
Zhao Yanbao walked step by step towards the large cobblestone behind the mountain: "Get your phone flashlights ready, it's dark in the cave, don't miss the autographs!"
Zhao Yanbao's gait was like that of a primary school student on their first school field trip.
Hearing the sound of the mountain gate opening, Zhao Yanbao slowly turned around on the cobblestones, only to see Mu Yiran still standing not far from her: "Aren't you leaving? If you don't leave, your boyfriend will run away with Haowen'er."
Mu Yiran looked at Zhao Yanbao and said, word by word, "I just want to ask you, what's the name of that scumbag psychologist who went abroad?"