Neighbors in forbidden land

What does birthday mean? I originally wanted to ask that.

But seeing Yimi's appearance, I still couldn't ask this question.

Unlike the way I've seen her cry before, she didn't cry out loud, but her expression was dull, and strings of teardrops slid down her cheeks, dripping on the already dim little stone , I don’t know if it’s because of the tears, but I always feel that the crystal clear stone is a bit muddier than before.

"Yi? Are you crying?" Little Gu tried to get closer to Yimi, and asked worriedly.

"Let me... be alone for a while... okay?" Yimi squeezed out this sentence as if she was enduring something.

Before I could speak, I saw Lan Xue get up with a reluctant little Gu, and I got up with them, and slowly followed them out of the lounge.

Just before leaving, I took a last look at Yimi, and found that she just lowered her head, her eyes were covered by light orange bangs, leaving only a vague expression, submerged in the shadows.

"What is she?" Guo hurriedly asked after we left the lounge.

"It must be very sad..." After staying with Yimi for such a long time, in many cases, she would know what I was thinking without saying anything, but I could only feel her emotional changes, and rarely could Guessing what she was thinking, "I can't understand what those voices are saying... What is happy birthday? If you are happy... what is birthday?"

"I know this." To the surprise of Xiao Gu and I, Lan Xue, who had been silent since just now, said this softly.

"Eh? You know?" I hurriedly looked at Lan Xue, but she just glared at me: "Ah, of course I know, after all, even if I don't want to know, that idiot old man will let me know."

"What, what?" The excited little Gu hurriedly asked, but for some reason, Lan Xue had a bitter expression on her face, as if remembering something that made her unhappy.

"Birthday is an anniversary. From the day you were born in this world, it will be repeated every other year. If you are still alive on that day, then your age will increase by one year, which is one year. something to be happy about, and other people will give you gifts to celebrate you..."

"It's something to be happy about... So does that mean it's Yimi's birthday?"

"Judging from those few words... it should be."

"Since it's something to be happy about, why does Yimi have such a sad expression? And...you don't seem to be happy either?" Although I said that, I really felt the same way.

Yimi and Lan Xue didn't seem to be happy for their "birthday", their expressions were far from their hearts.

"I don't know why she's unhappy. As for why I'm unhappy...it's all because of my idiot brother..." I don't know why the expression on Lan Xue's face twitched, "Birthday gifts basically need some unique, Things you can't see normally...so..." Lan Xue covered her face, with helplessness written all over her face under her fingers.

"One time, my brother directly moved a mountain here...the mountain is full of shining stones...the question is what do I do with these stones?" Lan Xue sighed forcefully, "Is last year's birthday present Water that changes color by itself... who knows where he got all these things..."

"Oh..." Xiao Gu and I just listened to Lan Xue's continuation with our eyes wide open.

"Because he is giving me birthday presents every year, so I have to spend my time giving him birthday presents every year..." Lan Xue shook her head vigorously, and pressed her finger on the golden horn on her forehead, "This year I don't know what to give anymore, so I gave him the scales that fell from my body... I don't understand why he is so happy, he really is an idiot..."

"So... we want to give Yimi a gift too?" I seemed to understand something, but I didn't seem to understand anything.

"Maybe!" Xiao Gu also responded to my attention.

"I don't know about that, you guys think about it slowly." Lan Xue just spread her hands and didn't say anything more.

While speaking, we have come outside the cabin, looking at the beach covered by countless sand grains, the wasteland covered by vines and dead branches in the distance, and the still calm sea around us.

"There is nothing to give away..." Looking at the scenery that I have seen countless times, I suddenly didn't know what to do.

"Give me shells!" Xiao Gu raised his hand and suggested, "It looks really nice!"

"I have already given that..." I remember that before I became like this, I found some shells and gave them to Yimi. Gotta send some other-

"Ah! Hei, when did you give it away! Why didn't I know!" As a result, Xiao Gu grabbed my hands at once, and seemed to have other views on this matter.

"Uh... It was a long time ago... At that time, you were not there, Guo..."

"Hmm..." Xiao Gu just puffed up her cheeks, and those fin-like things seemed to be flapping slightly because of her emotions.

"So, have you two made up your mind?" Hearing Lan Xue's question, the chief rudder of Xiao Guli and I stopped immediately.

"Go to the north to see?" I tried to make this proposal.

"Go and have a look in the sea!" This is Xiao Gu's suggestion.

"You two...are you going to find each other separately?"

"I think it's better to go together... After all, there are some things that are not very convenient for me or Xiaogu." I looked at my hand, even if I found something that could be used as a birthday present, I'm afraid There is no way for me and Xiaogu to bring it back.

My hands can cut through most objects... But Xiao Gu still hasn't learned to use his hands as neatly as Yimi.

"Since we're going to go together...then where should we go first?" Lan Xue just glanced at me and Xiao Gu, and asked without interest. "Let's look north first?" At least as far as I know, there should be many things in the north that I don't even know.

"Go to the sea first!" But Xiao Gu seemed completely unwilling to give in.

"Couldn't you two be unified... Besides, it doesn't matter which side you go first?" Lan Xue sighed as if she couldn't stand us anymore.

"That's right, so it's okay to go to the north first and then go to the sea?"

"Then why don't you go to the sea first and then go to the north!"

"..."

"Is there nothing in the sea at all?"

"There are many things in the sea!"

"...You two stop arguing, it's very noisy, you know, let's go to the north first." Lan Xue just stared at Xiao Gu and me with her big red eyes, and then made this decision.

"Why?" But Xiao Gu still couldn't accept it.

"Why?" After Lan Xue sneered for a while, she suddenly stretched out her hand and clasped Xiao Gu's neck and her scale-wrapped legs with her hands. Sticking it to her face, she used her sharp horns to touch Xiao Gu's forehead, and said each word, "Because if I hadn't taken you with me, where would you have been?"

Indeed... I basically took Yimi Lanxue and Xiao Gu for the long-distance journey between the experimental area and the stronghold, but I usually use my back instead of carrying it today. ?

And because Xiao Gu's body is taller than Lan Xue's, this appearance doesn't look right.

"Uuuuuuuuuuu..." In the end, Xiao Gu just curled up in Lan Xue's embrace with a face of reluctance. Lan Xue just looked at me and smiled slightly: "Isn't that all right?"

"oh oh……"

Although I said that I was leading the way, but in fact, because I was looking for something, I just looked around to the north to see if there was anything unusual, but——

"This side... so it's like this?"

After we flew northwest for quite some time, we all found the anomaly.

It is not abnormal to say that it is abnormal, but the scenery in front of me is really strange.

There is water in front of us, even if we are in the air, it is still endless water.

This can no longer be called water. I didn’t remember much of what Yimi taught me. Anyway, the small area is the lake and the large area is the sea.

And this one before us can undoubtedly be called the sea.

Because it doesn't look much different from the sea to the south, the dark blue sea covers all the area below, and the northern skyline is still the same sea, as if there is no end.

"I don't remember, the only sea in this world is the one in the south." Even Lan Xue showed a surprised expression, but the little Gu in her arms didn't seem to think so.

"It's the sea!" After the quiet little Guo yelled this before, he suddenly grabbed the hands of me and Lan Xue, twisted his body suddenly and got out of Lan Xue's arms, and jumped down. down.

Take me and Lan Xue together.

Before Lan Xue and I could react, we had already fallen into the sea with Xiao Gu.The loud noise, and the huge splash, mixed with the strings of white foam pulled out after we entered the sea, drowned us.

"What are you doing, you ancient loach!" This was Lan Xue's first reaction after adjusting her figure in the sea.

"Since we've reached the north! Then we should go into the sea?" Xiao Gu just shuttled in the sea with sensitive movements, and said to us with a smile.

"The clothes are soaked again..." I looked at the clothes woven by Yuyomi on myself and Xiaogu, and I always felt that I would be told by Yimi again when I went back?

"I'm really convinced of this ancient loach..." As soon as Lan Xue finished speaking, Xiao Gu, whose lower body had turned into a huge silver-white tail fin, rushed over at an extremely fast speed and crashed into Lan Xue's arms. Because the speed was too fast, they hugged each other and rotated several times in the sea, churning out countless foams.

When the burst of bubbles dissipated, the postures of the two of them had been reversed from when they were in the sky just now.

Now it's Xiao Gu holding Lan Xue in his arms, because Xiao Gu's body is taller than Lan Xue's, so I always feel that it looks more... more coordinated?

"You ancient loach...let go of me! Why are you hugging me?"

"If it wasn't for me to take you! Where would you go?" As a result, Xiao Gu just clumsily imitated the words Lan Xue said before, but failed.

"You think I'm in the sea and I can't—" As a result, before Lan Xue finished speaking, Xiao Gu made a long sound in the sudden acceleration, which was covered by a series of foam.

"Hei and follow!" Xiao Gu carried Lan Xue into the depths of the sea.

I looked up at the sunlight falling from the top of my head, only the sea water on the surface turned a transparent color, and the rest of it was still dark blue.

I took another look at the figures of Xiao Gu and Lan Xue who were already faintly invisible in the depths. Only the silver-white trace left by Xiao Gu's tail fin remained, so I had no choice but to chase after it in a hurry.

When we went to the depths of the sea, we found that this side was really different.

There are many, many things in the sea here.

There were groups of small fish swimming by, and they scattered when they saw us approaching.There are also colorful fishes that slowly move forward with their bodies shrinking, and there are also almost transparent... Is that thing a fish?Is it floating in the sea anyway?

All kinds of fish that have never been seen before are moving in the dark sea water, only the sound of gurgling water can be heard, and the whole sea has a kind of quiet prosperity.

It's like... the old sea.

The big goblin said before that he wanted to recreate the sea... Is that what he was talking about...

"It's Mr. Whale!" A huge body appeared in front of him, and Xiao Gu excitedly rushed towards that figure.

"You ancient loach, why are you so excited!" However, Lan Xue's complaint was ignored.

I also chased after it, only to find that there was not just one Mr. Whale, but a patch of whales of different sizes. The smaller one was only not much bigger than us, and they all swam in the same direction.Their huge or small bodies only need to swing their whole bodies with slow movements, and they can draw a huge arc and swim forward.

The dense school of fish scattered after encountering them, and we shuttled in Mr. Whale's team.

"Hello!" Little Goo swam up to Mr. Whale and greeted him, but was ignored.

"Why?"

"You idiot ancient loach..."

"I always feel that it's normal for them to see us in this way and not have any reaction..." After all, they only react to us in the original form...that is to escape.

Even if the movements are not obvious, they are still at large.

In the end, after Xiao Gu got tired of playing, he continued to go to the darker depths.

until--

"Lan Xue...do birthday presents have to be things that can be given away?"

I remembered the things that once existed in the deep sea.

"Not necessarily, I remember my brother took me to the extreme north for a birthday present on my birthday 35 years ago."

"Then... this one."

In the distant past, what I saw when I came to the deep sea.

To this day, they still stay here quietly.