The Eerie Tunnel and the Obscured Portraits

Upon entering the tunnel, Amber lobbed several snowballs back towards the entrance.

The scattered ice crystals instantly froze the entire opening, layer upon layer, hoping to delay any potential pursuers, even if only for a brief moment.

The oceanic tunnel seemed to stretch on endlessly, its walls bathed in an eerie blue luminescence.

Within the glass panels flanking them, fish crafted from paper cutouts and rudimentary strokes writhed in stiff, unnatural poses.

In reality, the panels held no water at all, only undulating lines that merely mimicked the gentle sway of water.

With no patrolling guards seemingly present in the tunnel, the two eased their pace slightly, yet their vigilance never wavered.

After all, there was no telling what monstrous entity might suddenly lunge from the encroaching darkness ahead.

‘Where could this place possibly lead?’ Bai Muxue mused. ‘An exit? Or perhaps some uncharted dimension?’

‘Well, as long as it doesn’t lead us directly to the calamity beast,’ she thought, ‘especially since we still haven’t figured out the true nature of that barrier…’

Bai Muxue’s thoughts drifted further and further afield, leaving her utterly oblivious to the fact that Amber, walking just ahead, had come to a complete halt.

With an audible thud, Bai Muxue, caught completely off guard, collided squarely with Amber’s back.

“Uwah!”

Yet, the anticipated pain never materialized.

Instead, a thin, pale yellow barrier gently cushioned Bai Muxue, keeping her a slight distance from Amber’s lithe form.

Even with this separation, the younger girl could distinctly feel the warmth and faint, clean fragrance radiating from Amber.

“Ah, I’m so sorry…”

Bai Muxue instantly snapped back to reality, her pretty face flushing a deep crimson as she murmured apologetically.

“Oh, I know, our sophisticated Miss Xiaoxue enjoys contemplating profound matters,” Amber chimed, turning her head. “But you really should pay more attention when you’re walking. Try not to zone out quite so frequently, alright~?”

Amber turned, her gaze lingering on Bai Muxue’s flushed face, a teasing, half-smile playing on her lips.

Hearing Amber’s seemingly playful taunt, Bai Muxue felt a surge of indignation. ‘Hey! What kind of talk is that, little girl! What do you mean I ‘space out all the time’? You’re the one who stopped without warning!’

“I… I wasn’t spacing out at all! Don’t just make things up!”

Regardless, the fact remained that Bai Muxue had indeed crashed into Amber.

Feeling somewhat in the wrong, she nevertheless jutted out her lower lip and retorted stubbornly.

“Oh~ So, could it be that *this* young lady is simply too tall, and accidentally blocked Xiaoxue’s view~?”

Facing the fuming Bai Muxue, Amber actually extended a small hand, measuring it against Bai Muxue’s diminutive stature, a sly smirk playing on her lips.

Gazing at this small figure with a youthful face who constantly tried to project an air of maturity, Amber couldn’t help but feel a surge of secret triumph.

Seeing Bai Muxue’s cheeks flushed crimson, yet still stubbornly refusing to back down, was a truly amusing sight.

“You!” Bai Muxue felt as if she might explode from sheer indignation.

‘Alright, I take back everything I said,’ she thought, revising her earlier assessment. ‘This little girl is nowhere near as easy to handle as she appears… she’s the type who could send anyone’s blood pressure soaring!’

While the current Bai Muxue might be petite and lacking in curves, she, who had always prided herself on being a sophisticated ‘socialite’ (TL Note: A term referring to someone who is worldly and experienced in social interactions), genuinely didn’t concern herself with the typical things other girls might fret over.

However, that certainly didn’t mean someone could openly mock her physical attributes in public!

‘Fuming, trembling, and utterly chilled,’ she thought, using a popular internet expression to convey her extreme frustration. ‘Ever since I reincarnated as the Bai family’s young miss, even someone as aloof as Miss Shen (TL Note: Referring to Shen Jingyi) has had to obediently let me touch her. When have I ever suffered such an indignity!’

She could effortlessly handle the emotional and artistic Qin Xiyao, and even the reserved yet distant Shen Jingyi, who had a certain leverage held against her.

No matter what either of them said or did, Bai Muxue always found it easy to cope.

Yet, the ‘socialite’ Bai Muxue found herself uncharacteristically flustered by the mischievous and unpredictable Amber.

For some inexplicable reason, she experienced a profound sense of helplessness, much like she had when dealing with Tang Xingwan during her rebellious phase.

Watching Bai Muxue’s small face, contorted in what Amber perceived as ’embarrassed rage,’ Amber’s honey-colored eyes narrowed slightly, and a smirk of playful mockery and triumph curved her lips.

‘Hmph! That’ll teach you to try and act all cool and aloof in front of *this* young lady!’

‘It’s clearly much cuter this way,’ she mused. ‘What’s the point of constantly maintaining a stern expression, pretending to be mature?’

Amber, feeling as though ‘great revenge had been exacted,’ secretly chuckled to herself.

In all fairness, she truly preferred this version of Bai Muxue — one who would throw tantrums and sulk, rather than the distant, mature, and utterly unapproachable aura she had carried just moments before.

Shaking her head to clear her somewhat scattered thoughts, Amber beckoned to Bai Muxue with a crooked finger. “Alright, no more teasing. Come take a look at this.”

“Hmm? What is it…?”

Frowning, Bai Muxue stepped closer, her gaze following the direction Amber indicated.

A portrait hung on one side of the tunnel wall, though the surrounding environment was simply too dim.

Even when Bai Muxue leaned in close, she struggled to discern the specific details of the painting.

“Do you recognize the person in the painting?”

Amber snapped her fingers, and a ball of pale yellow light slowly ascended, gently pushing back the encroaching darkness.

This illumination finally allowed Bai Muxue to clearly discern the painting’s contents.

Under the soft glow, the portrait’s contours gradually emerged: it depicted a young girl.

Yet, eerily, the girl’s face had been obscured by a blotch of ink, preventing any glimpse of her true features.

Glancing up, Bai Muxue saw that both sides of the tunnel were lined with identical portraits.

On every single one, the girl’s face was concealed by that unnatural blot of ink, as if her very existence had been purposefully erased.

The scene sent a distinct shiver down Bai Muxue’s spine.

‘What on earth is this…?’

Bai Muxue’s gaze ceaselessly swept across the array of portraits when, abruptly, the figure of a girl clad in a gothic long dress materialized at the furthest reach of her vision.

Her graceful demeanor seemed utterly incongruous with the eerie confines of the tunnel.

“Ah, do take a closer look, my dear young miss…”

The girl’s soft sigh brushed against Bai Muxue’s ear.

Before she could even react, the delicate figure dissolved into the boundless darkness, as though she had never truly been there.

‘It’s *her* again…’ Bai Muxue’s frown deepened, her dark eyes flickering with profound confusion.

‘What did she mean by ‘take a closer look’?’

Her gaze swept over the portraits once more, and a sudden, unsettling sense of familiarity began to stir within her.

‘This… no, it can’t be…’

As if a realization had dawned upon her, Bai Muxue’s lips parted slightly in utter disbelief.

“Well, did you discover anything?”

Noticing Bai Muxue’s prolonged silence, Amber couldn’t help but tilt her head inquisitively.

Bai Muxue’s heart gave a startled lurch.

Snapping back to reality, she quickly shook her head, denying, “I don’t recognize her…”

“Hmm, I see.”

Amber, who hadn’t held much hope in the first place, let out a light chuckle.

She patted Bai Muxue’s shoulder, her tone brisk. “I checked the notice board on the wall; once we pass through here, we’ll reach the safe passage. Come on, let’s go!”

Noticing Amber already walking further and further ahead, Bai Muxue quickly shook her head, swallowing down all the shock and uncertainty churning within her, and swiftly matched her pace to follow.

****

‘Of course Bai Muxue recognized them. How could she possibly not?’

‘All these paintings surrounding them… they were all portraits of herself…’