After being pulled into the painting by a mysterious force, Gu Jun started to fall. All his eyes could see was shifting lights and flitting shadows. It felt similar to when he crossed over to Dreamlands but… not quite the same. The space appeared to be squeezing into him. He had no idea how he looked but his heart was pinched together in anxiety and nervousness. Blood streamed through his capillaries and his head numbed as the blood rushed to his brain. The simple bandage on his stomach and shoulder threatened to tear open…
Gu Jun had no idea how long he was suspended in this state. It felt like both a second and a lifetime.
Bang! The sound of something heavy hitting the ground. That something was Gu Jun himself. “Ah…”
Blinding light dilated his pupils. He narrowed his eyes as he studied around. The sun was blazing through the barely clouded sky. It looked to be around noon. He stood on a barren wasteland that stretched down the horizon. The ground was parched and cracked. There was no sign of any vegetation. The desolateness of his area helped Gu Jun snap quickly into attention. Pressing against the ground, he gently stood up. The ground was compact and tough, a result from a lack of water. Gu Jun had been to many barren places in his lifetimes, like the plains and desert at Dreamlands but this place topped the list. He searched for a long time, but found no sign of life, not even rocks and pebbles. There was only cracked dry earth. “Where the hell am I?”
‘Inside Dirty-minded Yu’s watercolor? No, it felt more like the split cross has used her painting as a medium to construct a channel to bring me here.'”So… I am in a different world?” The thought came to Gu Jun but the gravity, sunlight and air pressure did not bring him any discomfort. If anything, he felt a familiarity with the place. The only difference was the air here was extremely dry and appeared to have a low oxygen density. He took in several deep breaths but all it did was to sear through his lungs.
Gu Jun stopped to examine his wounds. Thankfully the wounds did not tear. Gu Jun decided it was best to move while there was still sunlight. He tried to gauge the nautical direction but it did not seem to have much point when every direction yielded the same infecundity. Everywhere he looked, barrenness stared back at him.
“Is anyone here?” Gu Jun said. Before he understood the situation, he did not dare scream. He conversed with the space around him, assuming that someone was observing him. “I’ve arrived. I heard your signal. You drew me here, right? So, please show yourself.” However, he got no response other than the hot wind. The sun baked the ground. Just standing there for minutes caused Gu Jun to sweat profusely. It was not good for his physical condition for the heat would cause his fresh wounds to inflame. He removed his muddied jacket and opened his backpack. There was a 550 ml mineral water bottle, 3 packs of digestive biscuits and some snacks. That was all the provision he had. Based on his assessment, food and water was his most immediate concern. Who knew how long it would take for him to leave this barren land?
“Since I came from Eastern State, I might as well head down the eastern side.” With the decision made, Gu Jun wielded the scalpel as a weapon and started his journey. The thought rumbled through his mind. ‘Back on Earth, I should be considered missing already… I don’t have the watercolor with me so they should be able to find it, but that’s probably the only clue they’ll find. However, I’m sure Phecda will still launch a carpet search…’ He was reminded of the promise he made to Wu Siyu and chuckled bitterly at his inability to fulfil it. Now whether he was able to return to Earth was still an unknown.
Another unknown to consider was that witch…
Gu Jun’s heart was weighed down by these problems. He swore to solve some of them before he returned.
‘I wonder if I am still on Earth…’ Gu Jun looked up into the sky. When night fell, he would be able to tell further by studying the constellation. Gu Jun walked down a straight road for a whole hour. He believed he had covered about 5 km but the scenery around him did not change at all. He stopped for some water before he continued to trudge for another hour. The ground was still as parched as ever. But on the third hour, he finally saw something different down the horizon.
‘Is that a flag?!’ Gu Jun focused his gaze. A pole was stuck into the ground and a flag was hung at the top. Never had he ever missed having a pair of binoculars that much. He did not have much water left. He had no choice. Perhaps the flag was a trap but it could represent aid and hope. Regardless, the only thing he could do was to stay on his guard while slowly approaching the flag.
After walking for half a kilometre, Gu Jun realized… it was not a flag but rotten tatters tied around an iron pole. A black iron cage strung from the top of the pole and someone appeared to be caged inside it… He walked closer and confirmed that it was a person, a dead person to be exact. It was a kneeling desiccated corpse. The hands were tied behind the body and the person was left to dry under the blazing sun. Part of his flesh was so disintegrated that pieces of white bone peeked through.
“That appears to be a human body.” With his knowledge of human anatomy, even through the distance, Gu Jun could tell the body inside the cage belonged to a homo sapien. ‘What kind of place is this?’ He looked around with guardedness. This was no friendly location. Evil lurked at every corner.
At that moment, something caught Gu Jun’s attention. A piece of paper was wedged between a crack in the ground. He went over to pick it up. His brows furrowed. It was a faded charity event poster. It was quite well-preserved if one ignored the bloodstain on it. The poster featured the sea with two swimming dolphins. The event slogan announced brightly, “Protect the ocean, save the world.”
That confused Gu Jun further. He studied the poster and then the corpse inside the cage. Did the dead person bring the poster over? He also transmigrated into this world just like he did? Or they were still on Earth?
Based on the condition of the corpse, it appeared like they were starved to death inside the cage. Who would do something so cruel and for what purpose…
Suddenly, a buzz came from the distance. It was the sound of a motor engine. It came closer and closer.
‘Someone’s coming!’ Gu Jun’s heart skipped but at least he was prepared. After all, he had considered the possibility of the ‘flag’ being a trap. ‘Are there bandits on the road? Will I be tossed inside the cage if I’m captured?’
There was no cover for him to hide and Gu Jun knew he could not outrun a motor vehicle. Gu Jun soon saw the motor vehicle in question, it was a strange vehicle fitted together with different, irregular parts.