You didn't follow the routine at all, did you?

When I woke up again, it was already dawn.

It's just that the closed shuttered windows blocked the light, making everything in the house look a little dark.

The fire in the fireplace burned quietly, crackling lightly from time to time.

The flames danced, and the shadows they cast also floated, dyeing the air with a faint smoky smell.

Gu Chi, who was lying on the sofa, opened his eyes and looked at the chandelier with obvious repair marks on the ceiling. There was a trace of dazedness in his sleepy eyes, which disappeared quickly, as if he remembered something. Yes, he sat up abruptly, wanting to reach for the mobile phone on the coffee table to confirm the current time.

He didn't notice that there was another person lying on top of him at all.

The bell cat in his sleep looks cute, with long eyelashes fluttering gently with his breathing, his face is light red, there is a faint sparkle hanging around his unconsciously parted lips, he seems to be sleeping soundly.

When Gu Chi got up, she rolled off Gu Chi like a quilt cover.

Boom.

"Ouch!"

Gu Chi: "..."

he did not do it on purpose.

"It hurts..." Lingmao supported the sofa with one hand and rubbed his head with the other, and got up in a daze. Before he could figure out the situation, he heard a cold male voice: "Don't move!"

Bell Mao was so frightened that his body tensed up and his drowsiness disappeared. It took two seconds for him to realize that the person who spoke was Gu Chi.

The man was staring at her right now.

Lingmao's face became a little hot from this gaze, and she didn't understand why Gu Chi suddenly looked at herself with such serious eyes, which could easily cause misunderstanding... She hesitated and said: "What, what's wrong? My face Is there something on it?"

Gu Chi: "Stand up."

Bell Cat: "Oh."

The girl obediently stood up.

Gu Chi said again: "Turn around."

What a strange request... Lingmao complained in his heart, but he turned around obediently with a blushing face.

Gu Chi copied his arms the whole time, like an experienced chaebol.

His eyes never left the bell cat, and after the girl finished turning around, he came to a conclusion.

"You've grown up." Gu Chi said.

"Eh...?" Lingmao obviously didn't expect Gu Chi to look at her for a long time, and finally popped out these four words. Her cheeks climbed up to Hongxia in an instant, and she wanted to scold Gu Chi for being a rogue, but somehow Yes, when the words came to his mouth, it seemed that someone had dropped his bag. Bell Mao looked down at his chest, and smiled shyly: "Really, really?"

Gu Chi remained expressionless: "I mean age."

Bell Cat: "..."

The air was quiet for a second.

Bell Cat's face became more rosy, but his expression became very calm.

"Really?" She tightened her toes and said lightly, "I know you're talking about age."

Gu Chi: "Oh."

While the two were talking, Mustard Soup and Jiang Niao woke up one after another.

Their changes are more intuitive and obvious.

Lingmao just grew taller, with a little more femininity between his eyebrows and eyes—only a little more, just like changing from a college student who has not yet graduated to a white-collar worker who has just entered the workplace. His temperament has the elements of a mature woman, but not much , generally speaking, it is still relatively green.

From the appearance alone, Bell Cat is not very different from yesterday.

Wasabi Soup and Jiang Niao are different, one is fat and has a beer belly, the other has a beard and long hair, like an old nerd who hasn't taken care of his personal image for several days.

These are changes that can be seen at a glance.

Wasabi Tang and Jiang Niao, who hadn't figured out the situation yet, saw each other's faces——

"I'm stupid!?"

"Are you Tom?"

"Are you a bird?"

"How did you become such a ghost?"

At this moment, Lingmao also realized that Gu Chi was not joking with her, she had really grown up.

It's just...she glanced at Gu Chi, why doesn't he seem to have changed?

Not even a single wrinkle can be found on that cold and handsome face, and there is no trace of time at all.

It took about three minutes for Jiangniao and Mustard Tang to finally realize the fact that they were getting old.

"Fortunately, we are relatively young." Jiang Niao said happily, "We should experience the feeling of being a mature man in advance, so it's not a big problem."

Really not big?

"No, it's a big problem." Gu Chi threw the phone to Jiang Niao, motioning them to watch it for themselves.

Gu Chi had a hunch when he discovered the change in the bell cat just now, they might have slept for more than a year yesterday.

As it turned out, he was right.

"5782, November 15th..." Jiangniao was puzzled, "So we slept for five full years?"

"That's not the point." Gu Chi looked at the two of them and said, "Your hair, beard, his body shape, stomach, including Bell Cat's height, all prove one thing - our own state will also be affected by this time. Influence."

Yesterday's attention was attracted by the zombies, plus it was only a year later, Gu Chi didn't notice any changes in everyone, but now that five years have passed overnight, the power of time has become real.

The first night is one year, the second night is five years, and the third night?

ten years?

Or twenty years?

How about a few more nights?

Jiang Niao, who had reacted, was startled: "We won't die of old age here, will we?"

Gu Chi stated the facts: "If you can't find a way to stop the passage of time, you will, and you will definitely."

"So that's how it is." Mustard Tang fell to the ground and murmured, "I'm so stupid, really, I would actually believe that S-level dungeons really have no time limit..."

"Wait a minute, did we forget someone?" Bell Cat suddenly asked.

Hearing this, Jiang Niao's eyes widened suddenly, and he shook his finger and said, "Yes, yes, Neil! Neil is an NPC, maybe he can help us."

"What about others?"

"have no idea……"

"Are you still sleeping?"

"Go, go upstairs and have a look."

They have passed five years, and Neil should have passed five years. Yesterday, Neil looked like he was not a few years older than them. He should be in his prime at this time. Even if he can't help them solve the time problem, he is still a qualified thug , can not be wasted.

Unfortunately, they couldn't find Neil.

All that was found was a scrawled letter on Neil's bedroom desk.

———————————

Guys, I have some bad news for you - we are out of food storage.

It's all to blame for the damn weather, which freezes all the food we've worked so hard to grow into ice slag.

A few days ago, there were always some cute little guys who came to our door to feed us, but in the past few days, they didn't appear again, so I had to go find them myself.

Someone has to step up, right?

Remember when we first met?

I said I would provide you with food, shelter, and keep you safe.

I have been doing this before, and I will continue to do so.

I know it's dangerous outside, but don't worry, your Neil is not a vegetarian... Hey, I seem to know why my father chose to rush into the hospital in the first place.

People should not live just to live.

To be honest, I am very reluctant, I like the time I lived with you-although saying this is not very respectful to my father and former friends, but these five years are indeed the happiest time in my life.

How many five years can a person have in his life? Time always slips away when we sleep.

Thankfully, I had soup that was even better than the chefs at the city's fancy restaurants.

Your explosive gadgets are eye-opening too.

I also saw the most accurate marksmanship in the world—yes, I admit it, you are more accurate than me!

And the only lovely lady among us, I have always suspected that your medical skills are some kind of magic, it is unbelievable that it can make wounds heal quickly...

I seem to be talking too much nonsense?

In short, thank you all, if we hadn't met five years ago, I might not be able to persist now.

Well, I'm going to continue to fulfill my promise. If it goes well, I plan to go to the clock tower to have a look. Didn't you say you like that clock? I'll take it apart and give it to you, hahaha!

In case, I mean in case, in case I don't come back, please don't feel sorry for me.

Death is not terrible, what is terrible is loneliness, and from the day I met you, I am no longer lonely.

Love you Neil, 11.09, 5782

———————————

After reading the letter, Mustard Soup fell silent.

Neil had been away for six days, and the results were evident.

He knew that this was a plot killing, but he still felt a little uncomfortable.

Gu Chi patted him lightly on the shoulder to show comfort.

He saw early on that Mustard Soup was not sociable, and that such people tended to have richer inner emotions than others, and were more sensitive and vulnerable.

Maybe Mustard Soup didn't treat Neil purely as an NPC from the very beginning. It's normal for him to feel uncomfortable when Neil dies.

Gu Chi would not judge whether it was good or bad, he could only say that he could understand mustard soup's mood.

Jiang Niao was a little embarrassed, he simply regarded Neil as a tool, including now.

Could it be that his empathy ability is too low?

He also carefully read the letter without missing a single word, but he really didn't feel anything special...

Lingmao glanced at Gu Chi, but said nothing.

She didn't know which side Gu Chi was on.

In fact, Gu Chi doesn't stand for either side - in his opinion, this letter is not for the players to empathize with at all, otherwise why not directly inject the memories of the past five years into their minds?

Obviously, this letter is a mission clue, and has nothing to do with empathy.

Gu Chi did not forget the scene before he fell asleep last night. He didn’t need to tell Neil that he knew that the time leap must be related to the clock tower, and Neil specifically mentioned the clock tower at the end of the letter, which made Gu Chi believe that the content of the letter was not just Neil is saying goodbye to them, and there are still a lot of key information like the "bell tower" hidden on it.

For example, "Damn spooky weather" and "Little cutie who offered to deliver to your door".

Gu Chi glanced at the burning fireplace, walked to the window, and opened the blinds.

"Wow."

Suddenly, a strong light hit the face, instantly illuminating the entire living room.

Also illuminates the bell cat's face.

The huge brightness contrast made Bell Cat quickly reach out her hands to cover her eyes, but when she saw the outside scene clearly through her fingers, her narrowed eyes widened again, and her small mouth opened slightly: "My God..."

Jiang Niao was also stunned.

It was snow white outside the window.

The road is covered with thick snow, which has already passed the wheel, the trees and grass are covered in silver and have lost their original color, and icicles have formed on the eaves. It seems that the whole city is frozen, and their doors and windows are closed. Burning wood, completely unaware when the outside has turned into a world of pure white ice and snow.

"It's outrageous..."

"But it's also beautiful."

Gu Chi caught a glimpse of the light in Lingmao's eyes, and helped her turn off the light: "Want to play in the snow? Go if you're not afraid of being frozen into an ice sculpture."

"Oh, it may also be eaten by a monster that pops up suddenly."

Gu Chi has not found the so-called cuties for the time being, but since Neil mentioned them in the letter, they must exist.

Bell Cat: "..."

How did he know what he was thinking?

Can't you just think about it?

hateful!

Bell Cat snorted at Gu Chi.

Gu Chi didn't bother to pay attention to her, looked at mustard soup, and asked, "Have you sorted out your emotions?"

Mustard Soup: "Yeah."

Gu Chi: "Then work, we'll depend on you for our food, and make something refreshing, we won't sleep tonight."

"Okay." Mustard Tang nodded, and gave Gu Chi a grateful look.

This bell cat looked a little confused.

You are in a bad mood and he tells you to work quickly. Not only are you not angry, but you are grateful to him?

Is something wrong with you?

Obviously, Bell Cat doesn't understand the logic.

Mustard Soup felt sorry for Neil's death, and in the eyes of others, it was a typical example of being too involved in the drama, or hypocritical. At this time, what he needed was not comfort, nor a space to be alone, but someone told him that he would not Even if he is disliked, he will not be looked down upon because of this. He still has irreplaceable personal value.

This is called value affirmation in psychology.

One of the CPU tricks.

As for why not sleep...

the reason is simple.

Both time leaps happened after they fell asleep, and Neil mentioned the same sentence twice——

"Time always slips away when we sleep."

This is almost a clue thrown in the face, and it would be impolite not to see it.

Gu Chi looked at the white bell tower in the distance.

Time has something to do with the clock tower, so where would the prophet be?

...

into the night.

There was heavy snow in the sky.

Everyone gathered around the fireplace to keep warm.

I didn't feel how cold it was during the day, but at night when the wind blew and the snow fell, the chill poured into the house.

Bell Cat was wrapped in a big padded jacket, her little face was still red from the cold, she rubbed her hands vigorously, and asked in a trembling voice: "Gu, Gu Yuan, is it really, really useful if we don't sleep?"

The hot air exhaled by the girl while speaking condensed into fog, floating in the air.

"Always try." Gu Chi said, "At least figure out how the clock tower's hands turn after twelve o'clock."

Jiang Niao and Wasabi Soup were silent, they were busy warming up the fire.

Neil was right in scolding, this damn weather is really too cold.

If the snow keeps falling, they may not even be able to get out.

Lingmao didn't talk to Gu Chi again, she felt that every time she opened her mouth, she would lose a lot of heat.

Gu Chi was thinking about Niel's letter.

The air was quiet for a short while, only the sound of the flames burning and the breathing of a few people remained.

Waiting quietly, time passed by every minute.

Until twelve o'clock, the bell rang on time.

"when!"

...

A 4000-word chapter!