Chapter 46: Collapse
The folks listening to the stories were getting really into it, and so was the storyteller himself. Huǎngzi had been on a roll ever since he started talking. He went from one spooky tale to another, from lady ghosts to fox spirits, and from evil apparitions to fleeting phantoms. It felt like he had an endless supply of stories, and I couldn't help but wonder where he had gathered them all from. He was almost like those old-time professional storytellers who could spin yarns for days.But, you know, everyone has their limits, especially in this kind of tired state. As we listened on, a wave of drowsiness washed over us. Huǎngzi's storytelling voice was like a hypnotic melody, and my eyelids were struggling to stay open.Before I knew it, I had nodded off. Not wanting to spoil Huǎngzi's flow, I shook my head to snap myself awake and pretended to stay engaged.But the good times didn't last. Not just us three listenings, even Huǎngzi himself started to fade. His voice began to sound like mumblings from a dream.It wasn't surprising, though. None of us had gotten a decent night's sleep since coming down into this cave. Now, with our bodies finally relaxing, the urge to sleep kicked in. Even the toughest body couldn't handle such depletion.When I