Ancient Eden

ad fallen asleep on the crooked stone wall.

The sun was up again for another day and shone inside the cave, so dazzling, her eyes were somewhat unable to stay opened.

That rustling sound was coming from Li Mang, who was moving away the tree branches at the entrance of the cave.

Mu Qing moved around the back of her neck which was a little sore and got up to go meet him.

Li Mang’s expression didn’t look any different from before.
He only gave her a glance and turned around to walk forward.

Mu Qing was glad that she had not smiled at him.

Just now, she had been hesitating whether to smile at him or not.

She grabbed her messy hair, and casually picked, beside her, a thin and soft vine, covered with yellow flowers, using it like a leather band to tie up her hair behind her head.
She then followed after him.

Here, the ground was also covered with layers of fallen leaves.
Stepping on it felt like stepping on a sponge.
Between the crisscrossed roots of the trees, there were blooming flowers with strange shapes and attractive fragrances everywhere.
Zigzagging vines were glossy like the body of a snake, but rough like the teeth of a saw.
They were widespread, entwined together, hanging from tree to  tree, covered with countless colorful parasite flowers.
From afar, it looked like a giant python suspended between several trees, it was absolutely terrifying.
Everywhere was green, even the rising sunlight here seemed to be tinted with a greenish halo.
It did not look like the real world.

Mu Qing was struggling to keep up with his steps, while also being careful not to be scraped by those sharp, thorny vines.

Little by little, she was starting to hesitate.

It looked like he had brought her back to the side of the forest where the stream was, the one where she had taken a bath yesterday.
Further forward, it was his people’s settlement.
She was even starting to hear the sounds of women laughing in the distance mixed with the sound of the stream.

Mu Qing stopped in her tracks, her hand held on to a tree beside her as she stared at his back.

Li Mang also stopped in his tracks and looked back at her.
He then turned around and walked up to her.
Without explaining anything, he pulled her arm and brought her forward.

He was squeezing her a little too hard, and her arm was slightly uncomfortable.
She struggled a little, but he did not have any intention of letting go, so she could only give up.

Her heartbeat immediately started accelerating again.
What exactly was this man’s intention?