Missing

Lin Ye had been walking in circles in the same spot for more than three double-hours.

Lin Ye was a PhD in Biology, mainly researching the direction of botany. For the past two days, she had been accompanying her colleagues from the research institute to a state-protected primitive natural forest in the southwest border of Shiluan, Huaxia, to conduct field surveys. The plants growing in this ancient primitive forest were extremely precious. She planned to bring back a few of these rare plant specimens for research.

The first two days had proceeded very smoothly until the third day, when they decided to venture into the deepest part of this forest. Her group consisted of people with rich experience in tropical forest surveys, so they knew that countless dangers lurked within these virgin forests. Therefore, they initially only lingered around the edges of the tropical forest. But deep down, their scientific enthusiasm perhaps harbored a kind of adventurous spirit, so after two days, they unanimously decided to enter the deepest part of the forest. Of course, they didn't dare to go too deep, so even after three days, they were still in the outer ring of the forest.

Even though it was only the outer ring of the forest, this ancient virgin forest had already brought them plenty of surprises and joy—many endangered plant species grew here. Everyone eagerly took out their cameras to photograph these precious plants, and Lin Ye was no exception.

Suddenly, a small pink flower appeared in her line of sight. In early autumn, the forest here was a landscape of withered trees, so the appearance of that small pink flower could be said to be extremely unique. She couldn't help but walk closer to the small pink flower to observe it carefully.

At first glance, the flower didn't look much different from the ordinary wild flowers by the roadside, but upon closer inspection, the differences became apparent. This plant had no leaves, only a straight, green bulbous stem. The flower was shaped like a butterfly, with petals bulging into a round shape, somewhat resembling a cactus. Moreover, the color of the petals was semi-transparent, making the entire flower look like a piece of jade carefully polished by someone. A faint, subtle fragrance could be smelled wafting from the flower, and the scent was extremely pleasant.

Lin Ye pondered for a long time, certain that she had never seen this kind of plant before. Could this be a subspecies of a new plant? Thinking of this possibility, she couldn't hide the excitement in her eyes.

She was about to turn around and call her colleagues over to take a look at this flower, but unexpectedly, when she turned around, there was not a single soul in sight. Only a few lonely backpacks remained on the ground. Lin Ye was stunned for a moment, not understanding how her colleagues, who had been right behind her just now, had suddenly vanished.

She looked around. In this virgin forest, countless towering ancient trees grew, blotting out the sky. Beneath these giant trees grew a profusion of weeds, as well as various vines, creepers, and ferns. The ground was covered with dry branches and fallen leaves. If anyone had walked around, it would have made a rustling sound. But she could swear that she hadn't heard even the slightest sound just now!

Furthermore, from the moment she discovered the flower to when she approached to observe it, it had absolutely been less than fifteen minutes. In such a short period, how could they have vanished before her eyes without leaving any trace whatsoever?

At first, Lin Ye didn't think too much of it, assuming they were just playing a prank on her and had secretly hidden. "Xiao Na, Old Zhang, Brother Zhao, Wang Tianyang..." While calling out their names, she continued to search for them nearby, even blowing her survival whistle.

But ten minutes had passed, and she still couldn't find any sign of them. At this moment, she tried to suppress the rising panic in her heart. Her colleagues were not people who lacked a sense of propriety; they wouldn't play a prank like leaving her all alone in this dangerous virgin forest. Moreover, their backpacks were still sitting on the ground, proving they hadn't gone far.

Where on earth had they gone? There was no signal in the forest, so even with mobile phones, there was no way to contact them. Thus, Lin Ye could only wait on the spot for them to appear. A faint scent of leaves drifted in the air, and the constant sounds of insects and birds echoing through the deserted forest inexplicably gave her goosebumps.

Waiting with anxiety and unease for several hours, she still didn't see a single soul from beginning to end. Lin Ye felt she couldn't just wait here foolishly. If they didn't appear before dark, staying alone in this forest would be extremely dangerous.

She glanced at her watch. It was already twelve-thirty in the afternoon. Their main purpose in entering this primitive forest was to collect plants for testing, so their pace had not been very fast. If she made good use of her time, she might be able to get out of the forest boundary before dark, where the danger level would be much lower than in here. Thinking of this, Lin Ye's heart finally settled a bit. Carrying her backpack, she retraced her steps along the path they had taken.