Shintaro suddenly let out a scream and quickly covered his mouth. The two people in front of him were startled and almost thought Shintaro had fallen off the bridge.

"What's wrong?" Feng Jie asked quickly.

"Front, front, front..." Shintaro pointed forward with trembling fingers.

Fuusuke and Nana looked in the direction that Shintaro pointed, and stared at it carefully for a few seconds before they both showed some weird expressions.

"That's... a person?"

"Can't see clearly...but it looks very similar."

"Why are there people in a place like this?"

"And he seems to be motionless."

I don't know if it's a psychological effect, but in the white mist, the motionless black figure that looks like a human figure becomes more conspicuous.

The expedition team was quiet for a minute.

"What should I do?" Captain Nana said.

"Try going around from the side? Maybe it's just a pillar." Feng Jie boldly proposed a plan - although it is really strange to put a pillar in the middle of the bridge.

At this point, Shintaro also knew that it was useless to say "Go back", so he could only follow everyone's footsteps tremblingly.

Of course, it would be okay to turn around and go back alone, but the thought of leaving two friends in danger... might be more frightening to him than jumping off the bridge.

The three people tried to make their footsteps quieter. The black shadow was getting closer and closer, and the heavy fog blocked their sight, preventing them from seeing its true appearance.

Everyone has tensed up their nerves, held their breath, and approached the black shadow step by step.

A second before they passed each other, the black shadow changed.

It made a dull coughing sound.

Normally, this is just the sound of clearing one's throat before speaking, which would not attract anyone's attention. However, in the current environment, this stimulus is amplified without limit, creating a bomb-like effect.

The three people, who were already very nervous, almost jumped up in fright and dodged to the side randomly. The communication bridge itself was not wide, so when they dodged, they hit the guardrail and were about to fall down.

The black shadow seemed to pause for a moment in surprise, and then his clothes fluttered slightly.

The three young explorers felt that the world was spinning in front of them, and they didn't know what was going on. They landed on their feet in a daze and stood on the bridge again. The boys and girls looked at each other in shock. Shintaro thought he was definitely going to fall.

I fell to death, and it took me a long time to recover.

"Are you students from Guanghui Academy?" A clear human male voice came from the other side.

"Yes, yes." Nana, the leader of the expedition team, felt relieved again. Could it be that... he was caught and acted like that?

However, the person on the opposite side did not delve into why they were on the communication bridge leading to the Purple Zone. They just made a gesture that seemed to be a nod, "Really? It's very foggy today, so be careful when walking."

"It was just an accident, I was just shocked." Nana replied with a smile.

"I'm sorry for bothering you." Feng Jie apologized to the other party politely and thoughtfully. Presumably this person was also frightened by their surprise - thinking of this, Feng Jie suddenly felt that the behavior of his group just now was a bit...

funny.

"Is this your first time going to the Purple Zone? After walking off the communication bridge, there is a cafe on the edge of the forest. You can take a rest there." The man seemed to remind him kindly.

"I understand, thank you!"

After saying goodbye to each other, the three of them moved forward much more briskly.

"Huh, at first I thought it was a ghost. I didn't expect to meet such kind people on the bridge."

"Besides, he didn't seem to realize that we came here illegally."

“What luck!”

The second half of the journey was completely different from the first half, full of fun and laughter. Time seemed to flow faster, and within a few minutes, they set foot on a brand new land.

"Purple Zone, here I come!" Nana made an emotional gesture of hugging the air.

Shintaro followed cautiously at the end, sizing up the scene in front of him.

...an ordinary forest. The trees are not as tall as the Forest of Trials.

What, I'm still worried about whether there will be a large group of vicious wild Pokémon to greet us.

Shintaro shook his head and put aside his strange thoughts.

"Is that the coffee shop that person mentioned just now?" Feng Jie pointed to the cabin at the edge of the forest, "Would you like to go have a drink?"

"Okay, okay, I happen to be a little thirsty."

The three young men rushed into the coffee shop in a hurry. The wooden door was pushed open, causing a crisp sound of wind chimes.

The decoration in the store is very ordinary, and there is no weird impression given by the "legendary purple area". The thin male chef is leaning against the bar and seems to be tinkering with the coffee machine.

Hey, do the clerks in cafes... usually wear chef uniforms like this? Feng Jie secretly muttered in his heart, but did not express this little question for the time being.

"Please give me a cup of coffee, thank you."

"I want ice cream!"

"I, I just drink water."

The chef got busy in silence. Then, sitting side by side in front of the bar, Nana looked around restlessly, "Hey, Mr. Clerk, are there any special drinks here?"

Nana might want to hear a strange answer like "Super 100,000 Volt Soda" - unfortunately, the chef still didn't say anything, and just slowly pointed to the menu on the wall.

The orange-haired girl tilted her head and said with a smile, "Mr. clerk, why don't you speak? Do you have a cold? Are you still shy?"

"Hey, Nana-san, it's a bit rude to ask this..." Shintaro whispered quickly.

Upon hearing Nana's question, the chef paused for a few seconds, causing the three of them to look at him.

For some reason, Feng Jie suddenly had an ominous premonition.

The skinny man turned his head little by little like a stiff puppet.

"..."

"ah----"

====================

When the screams resounded throughout the forest, the black figure in the mist showed a strange smile.

"Welcome to the Fantasy Forest."

====================

The next moment, the fog suddenly dispersed. The young man did not take back his somewhat evil smile, but watched with interest the little boy in strange clothes descending from the sky.

"Tama-che-!" The little boy's eyes widened angrily, "Why are you bullying my friend again!"

"No way~" The young man spread his hands innocently, "I didn't stop them because I saw that the boy had your certificate."

The little boy suddenly choked, apparently recalling the gift he had personally given, "But, but, you tricked them into the forest!"

"It's too much to say that I lied. I didn't lie at all. I just told them that there was a cafe next to the forest."

"Well..."

"Moreover, I rescued them when they almost fell off the bridge."

"Well……"

"I saved them and showed them the way, but you wrongfully accused me of bullying them."

"...wu qaq."

With just three words, the child in front of him choked up and looked aggrieved, "You obviously did bad things but I can't refute you." The young man couldn't help but laugh and reached out to pinch the little boy's soft face.

"Okay, Diwei, let's play with your friends later." The young man clapped his hands, "It's been a long time since we cooperated with you to complete the task. We must give Mr. Bai Ye a perfect answer."

"Of course!" the little boy puffed up his chest, "and I won't lose to you!"

"Yes. Really, do we even have to compete at this time..."

The young man looked at his watch, squinted his eyes, and cast his gaze into the distance.
Chapter completed!