With Song Laosan's help, I scrambled around in the cave for a long time before finally managing to crawl out.

Shining our flashlights around, we realized we had entered another cave.

The cave ceiling is still covered with stalactites, and there are obvious watermarks on the surrounding walls, though they have long since dried up.

Looking across, there was a dark, gaping chasm, completely shrouded in darkness.

Song Laosan picked up a large rock and pretended to block the passage behind him: "It seems that our guess was correct. There were underground rivers and fissure water in this mountain. The one we just walked on was the main river channel."

"Don't block the cave yet!"

Seeing Song Laosan's actions, I stopped him, saying, "Nie Guangzhi is still covering our retreat. If he's still alive, leaving the cave entrance for him is at least a way out!"

"He stayed behind to fight for our survival. If we don't block this escape route, his sacrifice will be meaningless if those Gu creatures break out."

Song Laosan ignored my advice and threw the stone into the cave anyway.

I saw Song Laosan's actions; he didn't show much anger, but simply leaned against the mountain wall and lit a cigarette: "I never realized you were such a heartless person."

"People change! There's nothing wrong with being a little selfish in this kind of environment. When you save a stranger, aren't you also trying to increase your own chances of survival? Or are you just being merciful?"

Without any hesitation, Song Laosan shone his flashlight into the opposite canyon: "The passage we just came down from is too steep, and there are still a lot of Gu creatures in the Cat Ear Cave, so we definitely can't go back. There are no other passages in this cave, so we can only explore the canyon ahead. Are you still strong enough?"

I sat up, took a piece of snake meat from Song Laosan's backpack, and took a couple of bites despite the fishy smell. Then I got up and walked forward: "No problem! Let's go!"

After taking a couple of steps, I noticed that Song Laosan hadn't followed, so I turned around and asked, "What's wrong?"

"fine!"

Looking at the surrounding caves, Song Laosan suddenly smiled and said, "I'm just a little worried that if there's no way out of the canyon ahead, we two might lose our lives here."

"We're already blessed to have survived this long. As for what lies ahead, let's leave it to fate."

I ignored Song Laosan's lament and walked towards the opposite rift valley with my flashlight.

The cave wasn't very big; after walking about ten meters, I stood in front of the rift valley.

Shining a flashlight forward, the ground and the walls on both sides of the rift valley were polished very smooth by the water flow, but it was a dead end with no way out.

Looking up, there was a cliff above the mountain wall, but without any tools, it was impossible for us to climb up.

Song Laosan, who had mustered up his courage to come, stood behind me. Seeing the situation in the valley, he gave a self-deprecating smile: "Those of us in this line of work are all superstitious! Before coming to Sichuan this time, I lit incense for my ancestors' tablets. It went out twice after three lightings, and the last time the incense broke. At that time, I felt that my ancestors were reminding me of something. I never expected that I would meet my calamity here."

Looking at the surrounding terrain, I felt a mix of emotions I couldn't quite describe.

Although I thought I was prepared for the worst from the moment I decided to go on the adventure, I still felt very uncomfortable when I actually found myself in a desperate situation.

I don't know whether this feeling, as if a huge rock is pressing down on me, is called helplessness or fear.

Neither of us, Song Laosan and I, shouted or yelled, which made the atmosphere a little chilly for a moment.

After a long pause, Song Laosan asked me, "Are we going to end our own lives, or wait here to die?"

“I injured my arm, so I definitely can’t climb up the cat ear hole, but you still have hope.”

I took a deep breath: "Go and move that rock blocking the hole, and you'll still have a chance to live!"

"Forget it. Just thinking about those Gu creatures in the cave makes me feel sick. I still vividly remember the pain they caused when they bit me."

Old Song waved his hand and lit a cigarette: "I returned to China to re-enter this industry because of you. Now that we've both perished in the same cave, it's a good ending, a fulfillment of cause and effect."

In this desperate situation, I had lost all interest in anything.

In an instant, all emotions—revenge, friendship, family, joy, and sorrow—left me.

There wasn't even fear.

Knowing I was going to die, all I felt was utter exhaustion, and I wanted to find a quiet corner to be alone for a while.

This emotion devoid of any feeling might be called despair.

Just as I was about to turn around, I suddenly heard a rustling sound behind me.

It gives the feeling of sand falling from a height.

Immediately afterwards, a woman's voice came out: "Hey, is anyone downstairs?"

At that moment, I felt like I was hallucinating.

Meanwhile, Song Laosan shouted loudly, "Someone's here! Sister, there's someone down there! Please help me! I'll give myself to anyone who can get me out of here!"

The woman's voice came again: "How did you end up down there?"

Song Laosan and I simultaneously raised our flashlights and shone them upwards onto the cliff.

Then both of them were stunned.

Standing on the cliff was a girl dressed in ethnic clothing. Her clothes looked similar to those we had seen in Ping'an Village, and she wasn't holding a flashlight, but a white paper lantern.

Seeing the girl's attire, Song Laosan lowered his voice and said, "Xiao Duan, could it be that people from Ping'an Village have found their way to Golden Bull Cave? Considering the Gu creatures we encountered before, this place is definitely connected to Ping'an Village. What if we've really stumbled into their forbidden zone...?"

"Being alive is much better than being trapped and dying."

I didn't think about Song Laosan's question. Faced with a glimmer of hope, my body trembled with excitement. I shouted loudly to the girl above, "Girl, we are geologists on an expedition. We've wandered into this place by mistake and are trapped here. Can you think of a way to get us up?"

The girl looked down at us and asked, "What is a geologist?"

I'd heard Miao Xiaoxian say that Ping'an Village was divided into many villages. This girl didn't know anything, so she was probably from another village. I didn't waste my breath arguing with her: "These are all minor matters, but we're both injured. Can you find a way to save us?"

“There are no roads in this place, I can’t save you all by myself.”

The girl thought for a moment and said, "How about this, you all wait here, I'll go and call the villagers over."