Collapse, but Stand users

As we headed south, the terrain rose subtly beneath our wheels until a continuous, green mountain range, like a sleeping behemoth, blocked our path.

The winding line on the map abruptly ends here, and detouring means a delay of several days.

Toulong shifted his gaze from the map to the window, where he met Alicia's eyes, which were filled with amazement and eagerness as she looked at the majestic mountain silhouette.

“We’ll turn the page,” he announced calmly, setting the tone for the days to come.

The off-road vehicle was well hidden in the dense forest at the foot of the mountain. The real journey begins the moment your feet touch the rough rocks.

Qianjie naturally took the lead.

His silent figure seemed born to cut through thorns. Without drawing his bone blade, he used his superhuman strength and precision to create shallow pits in the steep rock face, easily clearing away tangled vines and carving out a path that, though not wide, was firm enough.

His silhouette is the team's undisputed spear and shield.

Eden walked in the middle, her steps graceful and unhurried, as if she were not on a difficult journey, but rather inspecting an unnamed temple.

Her gaze lingered on the subtle details of the mountains, pausing at a clump of moss that shimmered with a metallic blue luster in the sunlight, softly telling everyone that it was called "mountain mist" in ancient pigment catalogs; she would bend down by a gurgling spring, listening to the rhythm of water droplets dripping into the crevices of the rocks, smiling as she said that it sounded just like the prelude to a lost ballad.

Through her touch, the tedious climb was transformed into a flowing lesson in art and history.

Alicia, on the other hand, is like a pink bird released from its cage, her abundant energy infecting everything around her.

She leaped lightly among the rocks, chasing after rare crystal-winged butterflies, and occasionally playfully activated the power of the Wind Herald, summoning a refreshing mountain breeze that wiped away the thin layer of sweat from her companion's forehead.

“Look! Doesn’t this flower look like the little gear that Vivi pinned to her hat last time?” she exclaimed in a clear voice, pointing to a wildflower that was stubbornly blooming in a crack in the rock with neatly shaped petals.

As she finished speaking, the light in her eyes dimmed for a moment. She lightly touched the cold gear in her coat pocket with her finger and added softly, as if speaking to the wind, "...If she were here, she could definitely tell you the scientific name of this flower and even use its structure to create a dancing mechanical flower."

Toulong walked at the back, his stone body making each step as steady as a mountain.

He needs no words; his very existence is his guarantee. When Ellie stumbles on the slippery moss, the rock she is about to step on instantly becomes rough; when Eden needs to cross a slightly wider ravine, a seemingly accidental boulder rolls down at just the right moment, becoming a natural bridge.

His gaze, like an unchanging mountain rock, silently followed the most vibrant color ahead.

As the sun began to set, they found an ideal campsite in a clearing in the woods near the stream.

The ground was covered with a thick layer of golden-brown pine needles, soft and elastic, and the air was filled with the fresh scent of pine resin and soil.

Qianjie silently began to work, gathering dry branches and striking flint. Soon, a blazing campfire was lit, the flickering flames dispelling the evening chill of the mountains and casting warm light on the metal surface of his mask.

Eden rolled up her sleeves, revealing a capable demeanor that contrasted sharply with her identity as an artist.

She used the tender wild vegetables and mushrooms she picked along the way, as well as the cleaned pheasant that Qianjie had casually hunted, along with clear mountain spring water and a few spices she carried with her, to stew them in a hanging pot.

Soon, a rich aroma filled the air, tantalizing everyone's taste buds.

Night fell slowly, like velvet, and the glittering Milky Way stretched across the sky.

Alicia cheered and eagerly lay down on the soft pine needle "carpet," gazing up at the starry sky.

"Look! That brightest one! Translucent Dragon, what's its name?"

Toulong sat down beside her, looked up, and his stone pupils reflected the cold yet dazzling starlight.

Sirius. In ancient civilizations, it was often associated with disasters and upheavals.

“Hey—it sounds both dangerous and romantic!” Ellie laughed, her eyes curving into crescents, and pointed to another star field. “Doesn’t that one look like a big bird spreading its wings? I’ve decided to call it ‘Ellie’s Lucky Bird’!” Her laughter echoed softly in the valley.

Eden was infected by this joy, and a slight smile appeared on his lips. He then softly hummed an impromptu melody.

Without lyrics, the ethereal and melodious tune blends perfectly with the crackling of the campfire, the whisper of the night wind, and the chirping of unknown insects, becoming the most moving background music on this mountaintop night.

The next day at noon, they successfully climbed the nearest main peak.

Standing atop the mountain, a breathtaking panorama unfolds. Clouds and mist surge and flow beneath my feet like a sea, while distant mountains rise like dark eyebrows, layer upon layer, their grandeur captivating the heart.

Alicia excitedly opened her arms, and the mountain breeze immediately embraced her warmly, making her long pink hair and skirt flutter wildly.

"Wow—!!! Dragon! Eden! Thousand Calamities! Look!" she shouted, her voice filled with boundless longing. "Is the 'paradise' we're looking for hidden behind the next mountain?"

Eden stood beside her, his wine-red hair and tasseled shawl dancing in the wind.

She took a deep breath of the incredibly crisp air, closed her eyes, and seemed to be composing a grand symphonic poem about the magnificence and tranquility of the world, a poem that existed only in her heart.

Qianjie stood a few steps behind him on a boulder, arms crossed. His gaze was sharp as he slowly swept over the mountains that now appeared tiny at his feet. In his piercing eyes, there was a rare hint of the almost calm satisfaction of conquest.

Toulong didn't look at the scenery. He stood a step behind Ai Li, like a mountain rock guarding a flower.

His gaze fell silently on Ellie's cheek, slightly flushed by the wind, and on her eyes that reflected the vast starry sky. To him, the meaning of this endless mountain range and the boundless world seemed to be merely a footnote to the pink figure before him.

The journey down the mountain felt much easier.

Ellie was still immersed in the excitement of reaching the summit and had already begun planning her next camping trip.

“Next time, we’ll find a place with a clear lake! We can have a barbecue on the shore, and I can even try to propel the boat with the wind! If Wilvi were here, she could definitely build the fastest and most beautiful mechanical sailboat…” Her voice dropped again, but she quickly perked up and gripped the gear in her pocket tightly, as if she could draw strength from afar from the cold metal.

Eden smiled and agreed, "If such a lakeside truly existed, I would gladly compose a 'Morning Serenade by the Lake'."

Qianjie listened in silence, but his gaze swept over several sturdy trees by the roadside, as if he were silently assessing their load-bearing capacity and buoyancy.

Toulong remained silent, but his stone fingers unconsciously caressed a strange stone he had picked up on the mountaintop, a stone eroded by thousands of years of wind and frost, with countless holes. He eventually quietly put it into his pocket, as if collecting a silent memory.

He looked into the distance and could already vaguely see the plains beyond the mountains.