16, Dangerous Bungee Jumping!_1

At the peak of White Cloud Mountain, there were already quite a few people gathered, all here to watch the sunrise. The piercing cold wind made everyone's clothes flap noisily. As soon as Ren He reached the summit, he hurriedly pulled out 40 yuan to rent two military coats. Xu Nuo, having just draped on a military coat, sat down on a large rock, panting and said, "Looks like our classmates really aren't here. It seems they might indeed miss the sunrise. Lucky for us to follow you; if we followed them, who knows how regretful it would've been."

"Don't talk, the sunrise!" Ren He stood on the mountain's peak, focusing on the distant horizon.

Suddenly, from the deep blue clouds, a thin parabola arose. This line was a transparent red, shimmering with golden light, like a boiling solution suddenly splashed up, and then like a rocket, it surged upwards. This was the moment when the light of day burst forth from the night sky. Then, through a few gaps in the blue clouds, several smaller, even brighter, patches appeared. Upon closer examination, these patches broke through the clouds, joined together, merged, and soared forth; the sun had risen. It was dazzlingly bright, fiery red, intensely vivid. Unknowingly, all darkness was immediately illuminated by it.

It was at this moment that all the people watching the sunrise seemed to regain life once more. The so-called colors of life just got a bit richer.

"So this is the meaning of watching a sunrise," Ren He exclaimed, "There are so many miracles in life, it's important to try. Only after seeing more scenery will you know what you really want."

Even the usually uninterested Xu Nuo was mesmerized. He asked blankly, "Ren He, do you think life at school is too boring? I want to focus on coding and technology, but I'm afraid. Why am I scared?"

"You're probably afraid because the darkness ahead is unknown. You know, most of the time in life is spent watching, watching others take different paths, observing their lives, trying to find your own way out. But actually, what you're watching isn't life, isn't the path, isn't the choices, but how others succeed, because others' success is what motivates you. However, if you wait until others have succeeded before you start, then it's too late," Ren He replied.

These words deeply shocked Xu Nuo, who involuntarily closed his mouth, lost in thought.

Ren He said with a smile, "Alright, the sunrise is over. Let's head back!"

"Straight back home?"

"Bungee jumping!"

"Let's get one thing straight, you jump; I'm definitely not jumping!"

As Ren He and Xu Nuo were on their way down the mountain by the return route, Duan Xiaolou and the others had just managed to reach the summit. Everyone fell silent upon seeing the sun already climbing in the sky, until half a minute later, someone started to complain, "We've said it over and over to leave on time. I don't know why people always disregard our agreed schedule, and we also stressed not to split up and to bring flashlights, yet some just won't listen."

"Yeah, it was supposed to be a group activity, yet there are always laggards! Can't they set an alarm? How could they oversleep?"

The two girls who had overslept had red faces out of anger, "It's all Hao ZhiChao's fault for choosing this homestay. There were cockroaches in our room, we couldn't sleep for the first half of the night. We tried to get the owner to change our room, but he said they were fully booked!"

"Right, wasn't this homestay supposed to be clean? Why were there cockroaches?!"

The group argued back and forth, all frustrated for missing the sunrise. Duan Xiaolou observed calmly, while Yang Xi had already taken out her DSLR camera from her bag to start taking pictures.

Duan Xiaolou turned and asked Yang Xi, "Aren't you feeling any regret?"

"This is already beautiful," Yang Xi said with a radiant smile, "Aren't we on this trip for some fun and relaxation? Why fixate on the need to see the sunrise? We've already missed it anyway."

"True that!" Duan Xiaolou's mood also improved, and she suddenly understood a phrase her father had once said to her: always surround yourself with positive people.

So this is what positive energy is.

"I heard there's bungee jumping on White Cloud Mountain. We might not have caught the sunrise, but we can still enjoy bungee jumping," Yang Xi said to everyone with a smile, "I've wanted to try bungee jumping for a long time."

Bungee jumping?

Everyone exchanged looks, some eager to give it a try, while others were a bit fearful, "You guys go ahead; I'm a bit afraid of heights, I'll just watch."

Suddenly, Hao ZhiChao said, "I think I just saw Ren He and Xu Nuo again when we reached the top. They were descending the mountain by another route."

"You must be seeing things; just forget it. They're probably just a couple of lookalikes. I don't believe Xu Nuo, that chubby guy, could get up that early!"

"Come on, let's go bungee jumping!"

However, when they arrived at the bungee jumping site at Cloud Fly, everyone was stunned!

"Isn't that Ren He putting on protective gear?"

"And next to him, isn't that Xu Nuo?"

"Damn, they really came to White Cloud Mountain!?"

"So does that mean Hao ZhiChao saw them entering the White Cloud Hotel last night? Where did they get all that money?"

"I only care that they saw the sunrise and we didn't..."

At this point, everyone hesitated a bit, uncertain whether to go forward and greet Ren He and Xu Nuo. Faced with these two classmates who were usually at the bottom of the class and had no presence, they suddenly felt a little voiceless.

It was as if the people they had always ignored had suddenly become awesome, leaving them a bit unsure of how to act.

"How about we just watch them jump first?"

Ren He hadn't noticed that more than twenty classmates were already standing behind them, because he was a bit scared looking at this Cloud Fly bungee jumping—the equipment was covered in rust, and all the gear was seriously worn out.

No wonder he remembered that in his previous life, Cloud Fly bungee jumping was shut down later! It was a ticking time bomb not shutting it down!

He had thought the Divine Punishment System was being kind to suddenly give him an easy task that was both fun and not life-threatening, but now on closer inspection, this was not without danger at all. The Divine Punishment System was clearly sending him on a deadly gamble!

Xu Nuo voiced his concerns as well: "Ren He, shall we not jump? This thing doesn't look safe at all..."

If it had been the past, Ren He would have definitely backed out. Bungee jumping here was too unreliable. It would be a joke if the rusted support above him broke just as he jumped, not to mention that the rope clearly hadn't been replaced in a long time...

But others might opt out of jumping, he couldn't!

He was on a mission!

Ren He spoke with a trembling voice, "Fatty, do you remember me telling you... that life is all about trying new things?"

"What if I die..."

"Spit that out, crow's mouth, get lost!"

"Oh..."

The bungee jumping operator looked at Ren He's nervous expression and smiled, "Let go, don't clutch the railing, it looks scary but it's over quickly!"

"Easy for you to say, why don't you jump," Ren He clung to the railing and wouldn't let go; he tried to loosen his grip but the thought of free falling made him grab the railing again.

The operator tried to soothe him, "Don't be afraid..."

But before he could finish, Ren He suddenly took a deep breath and shouted, "Embrace the new life, let's go!"

With that, he spread his arms like a giant bird and pushed off with his legs, flying out.

Nobody expected him to jump out so abruptly!

However, as he fell, Ren He's roar echoed through the crisp mountain air, "Those who survive great disasters are destined for fortune later on! Damn you, Divine Punishment System, fuck!"