Adventure Is More Fun with Good Friends

The air carried a sinister chill.

December in northern cities was already bitterly cold, but in Yangcheng, it only meant adding an extra layer or two of clothing.

Yet the cold they felt now had nothing to do with the weather.

It crept up from the soles of their feet, crawled along their spines to the nape of their necks, and settled in the back of their heads. That numbing cold made several people at the table instinctively hunch their shoulders.

No one spoke.

It wasn't that they dared not talk; they simply didn't know what to say.

An Yuexin's personal experience had been told too vividly. Every detail was pinned to specific people, places, and things, yet the ending carried an inexplicable eeriness.

To make matters worse, the people at the next table had also stopped eating.

They'd been minding their own business, eating and chatting, the two tables never interfering with each other.

But An Yuexin's voice had grown louder, and in this semi-open barbecue stall with no barriers, the others couldn't help but overhear.

Now the entire barbecue joint was dead silent.

Even Uncle Jian's movements as he flipped skewers had quieted.

In that unsettling stillness, Lin Mo raised his hand and tapped the table with his knuckles.

A few people flinched, snapping their heads toward him.

Fang Jun nearly spilled the drink in his hand.

"What's with the knocking! You scared the hell out of us!"

Lin Mo ignored him. He picked up his cola, took a sip, and spoke lazily.

"First of all, didn't Bro Fang mention he's eaten at Lilin Plaza before? That alone proves Lilin Plaza isn't just a jade market."

This remark made several at the table nod in agreement.

Right—they'd been so spooked they'd forgotten that detail.

But An Yuexin wasn't convinced. He shot back, "But that guard did say there was no arcade."

Lin Mo shrugged. "The guard you asked might have meant there was no arcade during his time working there. But you know how it is—arcades are disappearing more and more.

Like the Modern Mall near my place. It used to have an arcade, then it closed down and turned into a restaurant. If you asked the restaurant staff if there was ever an arcade there, they'd probably look just as clueless."

The effect was immediate.

Luo Ruiyu was the first to nod, letting out a long breath as she leaned back in her chair. She'd unknowingly leaned forward earlier, her whole body tense with fear.

Jiang Yunlu nodded too. "Yeah, that's very possible. You said it was the summer break of your first year of middle school, which was years ago. The guards could have changed several times since then. Plenty of staff turnover there—who'd remember what was around before?"

With this analysis, the tension around the table eased considerably.

Even the neighboring table resumed eating, someone picking up a skewer and another gulping beer as if their earlier silence had just been a collective moment of distraction.

An Yuexin scratched his head. Truth be told, this was his real experience. He'd walked that road, entered that arcade, dropped in coins, pressed buttons—those memories were too clear to forget.

But Lin Mo made sense, too. Maybe those people just didn't know. The arcade really might have just shut down.

Still, An Yuexin wasn't ready to let it go. He pressed further: "But what about the arcade itself? The whole road disappeared—how do you explain that?"

Lin Mo shook his head again.

"It's not that it disappeared. Some things just got blocked off. When a mall gets renovated, they wall up roads, put up barriers, or set up temporary fencing. From the outside, it looks like the road is gone, but it's still there—you just can't get to it."

"Right, right, right!" Luo Ruiyu slapped her thigh. "The malls in Yangcheng are always under renovation. One day a storefront is there, the next it's sealed off. The layout changes all the time."

An Yuexin opened his mouth to argue but found he didn't have much of a counter.

Fine. Science wins.

Fang Jun put down his drink can, glanced around at everyone's faces, and suddenly said, "How about this—let's go check it out sometime?"

Xie Yuling frowned. "No. What's there to verify in a place like that?"

She had been quiet the whole time, listening to An Yuexin's story without a word, occasionally playing with the grilled shrimp in front of her.

Her sudden response, laced with irritation, made everyone turn to look.

Jiang Yunlu's heart sank with a sudden unease.

Fang Jun blinked, unbothered, and waved a hand. "It's fine. You don't have to come. We'll go. Old Mo, wanna join?"

Everyone's gaze shifted to Lin Mo.

Lin Mo picked up a skewer of grilled chives, took a bite, chewed, and swallowed.

"Sure, why not."

Before Fang Jun could look pleased, Lin Mo added,

"But only after I'm back from the competition in South Korea. You guys will wait for me, right?"

Fang Jun nodded as if it were obvious.

"Of course. Going on an adventure is always better with friends."

“One more person makes it an adventure; one less makes it suicide.” Xie Yuling muttered under her breath.

Lin Mo glanced at her lightly.

The girls, however, didn’t say they wanted to join.

Jiang Yunlu lowered her head and drank, pretending not to have heard the topic.

Luo Ruiyu shook her head directly, her expression full of the message that the guys could go court death if they wanted.

Xie Yuling glanced at Lin Mo a couple more times.

Her lips moved, as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she swallowed the words. There were too many people here with loose lips; she could bring it up when they got back.

Just as the atmosphere was gradually returning to normal, movement came from the entrance of the barbecue stall.

Several people walked in. The ones leading the way were a man and a woman, followed by a few members of the boxing club.

As soon as they entered, those people noticed Fang Jun.

“Fang Jun!”

Fang Jun looked up and saw two of them.

“Oi, it’s you two.”

Everyone turned to look. It turned out to be the sisters Lu Xiaohua and Lu Xiaochen, along with a few guys from the boxing club.

Fang Jun had also seen the video from the afternoon and knew that Lin Mo and the boxing club president had their final showdown.

So he didn’t suggest they all sit together.

And Lu Xiaochen and the others just greeted them and sat down nearby.

Fang Jun asked casually, “Old Mo, are you heading to Tianjing?”

“Yeah, I’ll gather there first, then go to South Korea. The passport and everything are all sorted out.”

“Nice. Hope you bring back a national award.”

“We’ll see,” Lin Mo said, stuffing the last skewer of grilled chives into his mouth, standing up to wipe the oil off his hands. “Alright, time’s about up. Let’s go.”

Fang Jun glanced at his phone. It was almost past midnight.

“Let’s go, let’s go.”

Everyone got up one after another. Fang Jun went to the counter to pay the bill, An Yuexin had already started heading outside, and the girls were still gathering their things.

Lin Mo said directly to Fang Jun, “I’ll take them back. You take Luo Ruiyu back.”

“She lives just behind me. Of course I’ll take her.”