Arc 3.28 Xiao Yao

It was time.

Their journey is about to end.

After the arduous journey, crossing the river of the man-eating fishes, journeying the hot desert, running from man-eating ants, continuing the journey, running away from poisonous snakes, reaching the doors of the Lost City, basking in its full glory when the gates opened, running for their lives from the corpse bugs and zombie soldiers, losing some of their allies, almost losing their lives, the journey is finally about to come to a close.

"I can finally die in peace."

The old bandit looked at the final form of the lost City with tear-stained eyes. His old bones shivered, not from exhaustion but from the fulfillment he was filling.

"We were not wrong. The Lost City does exist." 

Old Bai put a hand on his old friend's shoulder, his smile so wide.

"Ow. So, you are not tomb bandits?"

Xiao Yao looked at the two aged men beside him, he had respect for these two. Despite their age, and the danger they faced so far, they still lived till this stage.

'These two are not normal people.'

"Who said were bandits?!"

Old Bai raised his hand wanting to smack Xiao Yao in the back but he was quick and dodged on time.

"Get back here you lousy kid!" Old Bai yelled acting as if he was angry but his heart was light as a feather.

"Bleh. Who wants to go back? I'm not stupid, old man. Where do you see a person stay still when they are about to be beaten? If you had the skill, catch me!"

"You!"

"Enough of your childishness." The Old Bandit said helplessly.

"Shameless old bastard acting like a child." Xiao Yao made a face.

"This kid!"

Old Bai almost blew over his top if not because of Old Bandit stopping him. He huffed and quietly stood still beside the Old Bandit.

The Old Bandit then looked at Xiao Yao who also looked at him, he stopped making faces to irritate Old Bai and listened to what the Old Bandit was about to say.

"Actually kid, we are not tomb Bandits." The old Bandit started.

"But we are now after those no good son of a bitches said were crazy!" Old Bai whispered loudly.

"We were experts in this field, we were quite well known back in the days when we were young. Just thinking about those days, sigh, how quickly time passes by."

The Old Bandit had a pair of twinkling reminiscing eyes, but the depth of his sadness thinking of the past was also too deep and turbulent.

It looks like, what they had gone through during those times was quite hard and terrible.

"We're already both this old, let's not reminisce about the past too much. Just thinking about it makes me feel that I'm a sack of old bones waiting to just die in the corner." Old Bai said.

"Don't say that, Old Bai. We're still...we still have a few more years to live." The Old Bandit laughed.

"You old bag of bones, isn't this all your fault? What did I tell you before? Spending our life looking for the Lost City is such a waste of our life and time!"

"But still we found it in the end. Now, no one will tell us that we were just a bunch of crazy old fools imagining a place that never existed." Old Bandit wryly smiled.

"But, would that bring our youth back? Our lost time? We're now so old." Old Bai grumbled.

"And I thank you for that. After so long, you were still by my side, supporting this crazy old bag of bones." Old Bandit pat Old Bai's shoulders.

"Hmp! This is not enough compensation!"

Old Bai scoffed acting angry but he was smiling from ear to ear.

"You must fulfill your promise first. Whether we find the Lost City or not this year, the two of us will retire and leave our old life in seclusion. Let's go to the countryside, City life is not my cup of tea. So bustling and noisy." Old Bai scowled.

"Anything you want." Old Bandit laughed loudly in happiness.

'I think I'm not needed here.' Xiao Yao thought.

Watching the two of them, he felt so out of place. Their main topic had already gone out of hand, these two were in their own world.

[You better find your own man, Host. You are being a third-wheel.]

"I better go."

'Wait! What the hell?!!!'

[~whistles~]

"Xiao Yao."

"What is it?"

Xiao Yao looked at Chen Qiao, the story's protagonist who was supposed to be cool and indifferent and was trying to hide his foolish smile from him.

'Maybe, I should request a checkup for the characters in the world I worldhop to. The higher the world grade, the more the characters get haywire.'

[Isn't that your fault, Host? You are bending the wire that's why you get "hay (gay) wire (wife). Get it?]

'Not funny.' Xiao Yao said with a dark expression.

[.......Xiao Xiao has gone offline.]

"I just want to ask, if, we would take the same path we took when we came here?"

"If not then, where will we go?" Xiao Yao sarcastically replied.

"......" Chen Qiao was stomped and was not able to say anything even after Xiao Yao left.

'I swear. These characters are getting annoying as time goes by!'

Finally, the finale is here.

After discovering the Lost City and facing many dangers, losing allies, foes becoming friends, it was time to leave.

Xiao Yao led the bustling group out of the Lost City. 

The journey out of the Lost City was the same as ever, Xiao Yao bickered with Leng MianMian from time to time while Fei Chen calmed her down.

The bandits would cheer once in a while when the two would have their showdown and curse when Leng MianMian showed her power of being a bad luck magnet.

Xiao Yao and Xu Xin would talk from time to time while Chen Qiao would shamelessly come in between them.

Sometimes, Leng MianMian who was the magnet of bad luck still did not smarten up and brought trouble for them from time to time making them run faster again, corpse bugs and snakes hot on their heels.

Xiao Yao could only shake his head in helplessness, a smirk on his face.

Looking back now, this group of bustling people met by chance on the road and should have been foes pointing a gun at each other.

Walking into the dark litted cave, Xiao Yao looked at the backs of these people.

Fei Chen, who was supposed to be full of himself and always hot-headed, learned to keep himself in check and to always think thrice before doing anything.

Leng MianMian, who only thinks of herself and always brings trouble, well, is still the same bad luck magnet but she has smartened up a little not to shout when surrounded by danger. Although, just a little.

Chen Qiao, who was always indifferent and kept to himself, who had a hard time talking with others, finally knew how to open up and politely talk to other people without making them feel their life is on the line.

The Old Bandit, Old Bai, and the extra bandits were actually foes scheming at each other. Who knew that at the end of this journey, he would make friends with these unreliable people.

Also, there is Xu Xin, the mysterious person. 

This man who was surrounded by mystery, who was indifferent and a person in his own world, who would have thought that he would come to meet a friend here. 

A friend who will always have his back no matter what.

"It's about to end."

Xiao Yao looked at the end of the tunnel, a burst of light shone brightly on their faces blinding them the moment they went out of the cave.

They were met with the fresh breeze and earthen smell of the earth of the outside world the very moment they stepped out.

The sun rays illuminated their figures, and the joy in their hearts could not be described as the feeling of safety shrouded their hearts.

"This is it, we're finally back."