The little fox was originally dozing by a large tree. The three of them had no good leads, so they were mainly resting and waiting for clues to appear.
For the time being, if there were no further discoveries, they would not wander around aimlessly. Their many conjectures had to be verified around this lake. Wandering around now held little significance and would only increase the risks they encountered.
Here, whether it was because their cultivation could no longer be used, or for some other reason, Ye Tiancheng and the other two felt that their needs for three meals a day, sleep, and rest were much stronger than usual. Therefore, they couldn't stray too far from the lake, as they needed to satisfy their hunger when it struck.
However, while resting, the three of them were not so careless as to all sleep at once. At least one person had to stay awake, and they would take turns on guard to ensure at least one person was alert to the surrounding situation.
They already knew that the surroundings were not safe and that there were wild beasts in the forest. Although they knew these beasts would not approach the lake, who could be sure they would never come near?
Moreover, the people they had fought with earlier were confirmed to be in this vicinity. These were not like wild beasts. If they also discovered this lake and approached it, and if all three of them were asleep, it would be truly dangerous.
It was the turn of the fat man and the little fox to rest. Ye Tiancheng was awake, guarding the surroundings to be ready for any unexpected incidents. The little fox and the fat man leaned against large trees to rest. However, the little fox, who was sleeping soundly, suddenly woke up and unconsciously smacked his lips.
The little fox inexplicably felt as if a faint scent of cucumber had appeared in his mouth, and even the crisp texture of cucumber lingered.
He opened his eyes in confusion, his face filled with bewilderment, clearly unable to understand what was happening. Ye Tiancheng, who was guarding nearby, immediately noticed the little fox waking up and looked towards him. He also noticed the little fox's unusual behavior and immediately turned his full attention to him.
"Little Fox, you're awake? Why did you suddenly wake up? Do you feel something is wrong? Your expression doesn't seem right, did you discover anything unusual?"
The little fox immediately looked back at Ye Tiancheng. He wasn't entirely sure, but he felt as if he had had an overly realistic dream, so real it was bizarre.
"Brother Ye, I… I think I had a dream. I was sleeping soundly, and then suddenly, vaguely, I felt like I was in a very dilapidated earthen house, sitting at a table eating. Brother Ye, you and Brother Fatty were also there."
"Then on those tables, there were all sorts of vegetables, cucumbers, and the like. Anyway, there was no meat. Before I could figure out what was happening, Brother Fatty gave me a chopstick of cucumber, saying I was still growing and shouldn't be a picky eater, and that we had no meat to eat. Then I took a bite of that cucumber, and I woke up."
Of course, if it were just a dream like this, the little fox wouldn't have been so confused after waking up. "But what's strange is that after I woke up, I felt as if I had actually eaten cucumber, and there was still a cucumber taste in my mouth. Brother Ye, isn't that very strange? What could be the reason for this?"
Ye Tiancheng's expression changed as he listened. He furrowed his brows and pondered for a moment before asking the little fox, "Besides this, how many more details of the dream do you remember?"
Seeing Ye Tiancheng's serious expression, the little fox knew the dream might be important, so he tried hard to recall the details of the dream.
"Let me think… I remember the earthen house was very broken, and Brother Fatty seemed to say that I hadn't eaten properly for a long time, and if any danger occurred, I wouldn't be able to run if I was hungry, so he advised me to eat more…"
"Uh, I'm sorry, Brother Ye. The dream was too short. I really only took a bite of cucumber, and then I heard Brother Fatty say that. I didn't encounter anything else before waking up, so I can't recall any more details."
After thinking for a moment, Ye Tiancheng said to the little fox, "It's alright, as long as you tell me the details you remember from the dream."
"However, for now, let's pretend that you having this dream never happened. When Brother Fatty wakes up later, we'll discuss it. Don't mention this to him either. I have a few ideas, and I'll tell you once I've confirmed them, okay?"
The little fox didn't quite understand Ye Tiancheng's intentions, but he knew Ye Tiancheng wouldn't intentionally harm him, unless he himself had a problem. However, the little fox was sure he had no problems, so he trusted Ye Tiancheng. Despite not understanding Ye Tiancheng's intentions, he immediately agreed.
No matter what Ye Tiancheng was thinking, he just needed to obey. He didn't need to know more. After all, Ye Tiancheng knew better than him what needed to be done and how to do it. If his help was needed, Ye Tiancheng would definitely say so.
Following Ye Tiancheng's wishes, the little fox acted as if nothing had happened and kept silent. However, after waking up from this sleep, the little fox couldn't fall back asleep, so he joined Ye Tiancheng in keeping watch of the surroundings.
Some time had passed when the fat man also woke up. Upon waking, he saw Ye Tiancheng and the little fox and said with a smile, "Little Fox woke up first. It seems I'm the only one who slept in. Brother Ye, do you want to rest too? Now that I'm awake, I can take over."
Ye Tiancheng looked at the fat man's reaction and did not object. "Yes, I should rest for a while too. It seems you rested quite well, Fatty."
"Yes, quite well. I slept soundly. I didn't expect to sleep so well in a place like this. I didn't even have a dream. Since Brother Ye is also tired, go and rest quickly. I'll be here, Brother Ye, you can relax."
The fat man nodded with a smile, responding to Ye Tiancheng's words. The little fox glanced at the fat man, thinking to himself that it seemed only he had had such a strange dream.
Ye Tiancheng also smiled and nodded, then looked at the little fox and said, "Little Fox, you just woke up not long ago, so you probably don't want to sleep anymore. Why don't you keep watch with Fatty? But please don't chat and disturb my sleep, so I can rest well. If anything happens, Little Fox, wake me up immediately, and I'll wake up, understand?"
Hearing Ye Tiancheng's instructions, the little fox immediately nodded and agreed. Then he heard Ye Tiancheng say again, "Then I'll go rest with peace of mind. Please don't make any noise, I'm a light sleeper."
After Ye Tiancheng finished speaking, he leaned against the tree and fell asleep. Only then did the little fox sense something was amiss, feeling that Ye Tiancheng's words had hidden meanings, as if he were hinting at something.
Because he suddenly realized that he had been awake for a long time and had even talked with Ye Tiancheng for a while, yet Ye Tiancheng had just said that he had just woken up and probably wouldn't want to sleep.
Moreover, when Ye Tiancheng gave instructions, he specifically named the little fox and told him to wake him up if anything happened, instead of asking the fat man to do it. This was particularly strange.
Ye Tiancheng also told him not to chat with the fat man, using his light sleep as an excuse, which made things even more peculiar. He also recalled Ye Tiancheng asking him to pretend that the dream had never happened.
Therefore, was Ye Tiancheng hinting that he shouldn't reveal the dream to the fat man? But why? Was there something wrong with the fat man? How could Ye Tiancheng trust him more than the little fox? This wasn't just a matter of personal trust; the little fox was a child and inherently less reliable than an adult like the fat man.
The little fox was a smart child. Since he understood Ye Tiancheng's meaning, whether he thought he had guessed correctly or not, it was better to believe it than not. The little fox chose to remain silent, acting as if nothing had happened, and didn't reveal a single word about his dream to the fat man.
Moreover, he didn't stray too far, staying close to Ye Tiancheng to keep watch. The fat man saw this and called out to him, "Little Fox, let's go to the side and chat, shall we? Don't disturb Brother Ye."
The little fox lowered his voice and replied to the fat man, "Brother Ye has sharp ears. Let's not disturb him. Brother Ye guarded us so hard just now, let him sleep well."
Seeing the little fox's attitude, the fat man did not insist on inviting him. Instead, he nodded and sat alone a bit further away, not doing anything extra. However, this also made the little fox notice something was not right.
The little fox knew the fat man. No matter how careless or unstable the fat man was, he still valued Ye Tiancheng greatly. How could he not take Ye Tiancheng's words to heart?
But Ye Tiancheng had just told them not to chat idly to avoid disturbing his sleep. Yet, shortly after Ye Tiancheng closed his eyes, the fat man invited him to talk aside. This was too much like disregarding Ye Tiancheng's words.
This was really unlike something the fat man would do. Could his guess be correct? Was this fat man problematic? Could it be that… the person sitting over there now was not Brother Fatty, but a fake?
The little fox's mind raced with speculation, even scaring himself a little. If the current fat man was fake, then where was the real Brother Fatty? And when was Brother Fatty swapped? Was it during the dive? Or perhaps… even earlier? Was he fake from the beginning?
Otherwise, there was no way to explain why Ye Tiancheng would subtly guard against Brother Fatty. They had such a good brotherhood. Logically, even if he guarded against the little fox, Ye Tiancheng would absolutely not guard against the fat man like this. This was truly too abnormal.