After Zu'an left, the Gu brothers became even more attentive to Bi Linglong, but unfortunately, Bi Linglong was clearly not in a good mood because of Zu'an.

Gu Xing said, "Linglong, I know you are very sad right now because you trusted the wrong people, but you will get better soon. Now that we have eliminated the bad apples and removed the hidden dangers, we will be more confident in completing the Crown Prince's big test."

Gu Heng, standing to the side, nodded and said, "That's right. As long as all the young men are united, with our strength, losing one Zu'an will have no impact whatsoever. Moreover, my brother and I will stand by the Crown Princess's side from beginning to end."

Bi Linglong forced a smile: "Thank you both. I really have to rely on you from now on. The disciples of each family are all proud and arrogant. They usually only show me superficial respect. But I'm worried that they might not be reliable when we encounter danger in the secret realm. After Zu An leaves, you are the only people I can trust."

The Gu brothers were overjoyed: "We brothers would go through fire and water for the Crown Princess!"

Bi Linglong's mood improved, and she smiled and chatted with the two of them for a while, encouraging them.

The two brothers chatted while gazing at the elegant and noble Crown Princess before them, truly enjoying a moment of tranquility.

The two were quite close, and could clearly smell the faint fragrance emanating from each other. They couldn't help but feel their hearts flutter, and their eyes began to dart towards her sensitive areas like her chest and waist, as desire began to stir within them.

"I used to think Linglong was just pretty and had a noble air about her, but I never imagined she had such a great figure."

"She really has a curvy figure with a slender waist. What good is that fat, stupid prince to have such a lucky woman?"

"Hmm, the Crown Prince didn't seem to mind that Zu'an had hugged Linglong before. Does he have some kind of fetish, or does he simply not know what this means? Either way, it seems like we have a chance."

...

For the next two days, no more scouts went missing, and everyone in the group breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhao Xi laughed and said, "It seems the murderer really is that Zu An. Once he left, all the trouble stopped?"

Gu Xing chimed in, "That's right. He deliberately led us around in circles before, claiming it was to avoid danger. It seems he was probably on Qi Wang's orders to obstruct our actions. All the detours made it easier for him to eliminate people in the group."

Gu Heng also cupped his hands in thanks to Pei You: "Speaking of which, we have a lot to do thanks to Young Master Pei. If you hadn't seen through his conspiracy, we would all be dead without even knowing what happened."

Pei You said calmly, "I was just making the most logical deduction; I wasn't targeting anyone in particular."

After saying that, he coolly picked up his sword, turned around, and left.

Bi Linglong, watching his figure from afar, seemed lost in thought.

The relaxed mood in the group didn't last long, because they soon encountered danger.

They didn't know why they had entered the territory of a pack of pale giant wolves, and were surrounded and chased by them. Fortunately, each of them possessed unique skills, and they also carried a lot of equipment to complete their mission, which allowed them to escape the wolf pack's territory.

They were relieved that they soon stumbled into the territory of the Ghost-Faced Green Flame Spiders, and they then understood why the pale giant wolves were no longer chasing them.

Many warriors were entangled in the spider webs and dragged into the cave, where they were instantly sucked dry by the Green Flame Spiders.

Some people were tainted by the green flames spewed by the Ghost-Faced Green Flame Spider, and their entire bodies turned into a ball of green fire that could not be extinguished. They would burn to ashes in just a few breaths.

They fled in panic, and when they crossed the river again, they encountered the attack of the Iron-Bone Black Thunder Python. As its name suggests, the Iron-Bone Black Thunder Python has a body of copper skin and iron bones, rendering the attacks of the warriors from various noble families ineffective. At the same time, it can also summon the power of thunder and, by taking advantage of the river's electrostatic properties, truly give everyone a taste of Master Yang's electroshock therapy.

Fortunately, Bi Linglong commanded the troops well and finally led them to safety.

After this triple attack, the once mighty army was reduced to one-third of its strength, and the rest were all covered in bruises and dirt. Even Bi Linglong's clothes had several scratches.

The only one who was completely unharmed was the Crown Prince, after all, he was the person everyone was protecting, and no one dared to let anything happen to him.

Given their current condition, they could no longer continue their journey. After confirming that the surrounding area was safe, they began to set up camp, some applying medicine and others treating their wounds.

However, these high-level officials still need to hold a meeting to discuss the series of events that have occurred.

Everyone shared details of their family's losses and discussed their upcoming travel plans.

Everyone lost their previous fighting spirit and began to sigh and groan.

"There's something wrong with this secret realm, isn't there? Why are the ferocious beasts we've encountered along the way much more powerful than those in the intelligence?" The other usually talkative young masters from aristocratic families were all deflated, while Gao Ying, who was usually taciturn, spoke up.

“That’s right. According to our intelligence, whether it’s the Pale Giant Wolf pack or the Ghost-Faced Green Flame Spider, although they are very dangerous for us, we have so many experts and are well prepared. We shouldn’t suffer such heavy losses,” Meng Pan analyzed.

Zhao Xi frowned: "Could it be that the academy is deliberately misleading us, intentionally underestimating the grade of these ferocious beasts?"

“Impossible!” Bi Linglong directly denied this guess. “The academy has always been neutral and would never help King Qi to trick us. Moreover, it’s not just people from the academy who have been into this secret realm. Some of our people have also been in here, and the information they provided is almost identical to that provided by the academy.”

"Then why have these ferocious beasts increased in strength so much?" Meng Pan said sinisterly.

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