As Shen Jiaojiao watched the black mist billowing from the cave entrance grow thicker and thicker, she decided to make amends to him for the sword once they came out, as his displeasure was too obvious.
She turned to look down. It was too dark; she needed a torch. And it smelled so bad; it might be poisonous.
Shen Jiaojiao tore off a piece of her dress, poured water from the water pouch carried by the guard, wet it, and then tied the cloth to her face as a makeshift mask.
"Everyone saw what I did, right? Follow my example: wet a cloth with water and tie it to your face. There might be poison underneath, so this will prevent some of the poison from entering your body!" Shen Jiaojiao said to everyone.
Everyone suddenly realized what she meant and followed her example.
Shen Jiaojiao then said, "Fifty people come down with me, and the rest of you stay here at the cave entrance. If we still haven't come out after half an hour, immediately send someone to inform the Emperor!"
"Yes!" everyone answered in unison.
Seeing that Shen Jiaojiao had followed them all the way to the cave without ever complaining of being tired, and that she was just as capable as anyone else, speaking and acting in a clear and organized manner, these people began to respect her more.
Fu Hang was naturally in the same line going down into the cave. Seeing that Shen Jiaojiao, a woman, was about to jump down, he quickly rushed in front of her and jumped down as well.
His mother said that a real man should be brave enough to rush to the front, and women should be protected. Even though she is a vicious woman, he should protect her for now and stay away from her next time.
Shen Jiaojiao only felt something flash before her eyes, and when she could see clearly, she realized that someone had already jumped down. So she jumped down after her.
As soon as she jumped down, she felt the softness beneath her feet. As if knowing what she wanted to see, Fu Hang put down the torch and shone it on the ground.
Shen Jiaojiao only glanced at it before turning her head and vomiting.
"Ugh! Ugh! Ugh!"
Fu Hang looked at her with disdain. What was there to be afraid of? When he was a child, there were paddy fields all around his house, and there were plenty of these frogs! He used to catch them and play with them without being afraid at all!
She's still too weak. My mother said that such a frail woman can't live a good life and should be avoided!
He quietly stepped away; he was a good, obedient child today!
One by one, the people behind them jumped down and saw the toads rolling their eyes around them.
Since they were all men, most of them were not afraid. Even those who were afraid endured it, though their faces were unusually pale.
After Shen Jiaojiao finished vomiting, she felt much better. Looking up, she saw Fu Hang walking in front, kicking away the dead toads to make a relatively clean path.
Shen Jiaojiao looked at Fu Hang, who was looking annoyed, and couldn't help but smile. She hadn't expected him to be so thoughtful. She would definitely find him a good sword when they got back.
As Fu Hang kicked the toad, he thought to himself, "Women are such a hassle!"
Shen Jiaojiao regained her strength, got up, and followed. Soon after, she saw a skeleton on the ground. There wasn't a single piece of good flesh left on its body, only blood-stained bones.
"Find His Highness the Crown Prince first, we can collect the remains later! Time waits for no one!" Shen Jiaojiao felt very sad as she looked on.
Soon, they arrived at the stone gate, where even denser black energy was emanating from the cracks in the stone gate.
A chilling hissing sound came from the other side of the stone gate, making one's heart ache.
Everyone hesitated in front of the stone gate.
"If nothing unexpected happens, His Highness the Crown Prince is on the other side of the stone gate. Find a way to open the stone gate!"
Upon hearing Shen Jiaojiao's instructions, everyone began searching everywhere. Before they could find a solution, suddenly, something was surging beneath the stone gate.
Fu Hang raised his hand, and everyone stood still as the torches slowly moved closer to the ground.
Near the stone gate, there were small bumps on the muddy ground that were moving in and out.
A guard thrust his sword forcefully into one of the bulges. When he lifted it up, he saw that there was a pure black snake on the sword. Because it was not seven inches long, it still had the strength to wriggle at the tip of the sword.
Shen Jiaojiao felt a chill in her heart. Could it be that there were snakes all down there?
Or is there a whole bunch of snakes behind the door?
Hearts raced, and everyone gripped their swords, staring gravely at the stone gate.
The mounds rose and fell, and a stone gate teetered on the brink of collapse.
Before Shen Jiaojiao could figure out a solution, the worst thing happened!
The black stone gate was churning more and more violently at the bottom, and everyone took a few steps back.
Soon, the stone gate began to shake, making a few creaking and scraping sounds that sent chills down one's spine.
With a loud crash, the stone gate collapsed, revealing a surging sea of snakes!
Countless snakes shot out like a surging tide.
Shen Jiaojiao stared in horror at the slithering snakes, her face pale. Right, snakes are afraid of fire.
"Use fire! Snakes are afraid of fire!" Shen Jiaojiao shouted quickly.
With trembling hands, everyone held torches in front of them, hoping to scare the snakes away. However, there were too many snakes, and the fire alone was not enough. Soon, a fierce battle ensued.
The thick black fog had become even more viscous, and Shen Jiaojiao sensed that the person must be nearby.
But it was incredibly difficult to move around; several people had already been bitten by snakes. Shen Jiaojiao couldn't help but shout, "Chu Tianling! Where are you! Come save me!"
"Chu Tianling! Come save me!"
Fu Hang's sword had been bent when the door was opened from the outside, so he could only desperately fight the snakes with the scabbard while also protecting Shen Jiaojiao.
This is much more exciting than just wandering around aimlessly at home. It would be even better if there wasn't that silly woman behind me.
Shen Jiaojiao was still yelling loudly behind them, and Fu Hang's face darkened. What kind of time was this to be calling her "my lover"? She should at least stomp on a few snakes! If the atmosphere weren't so tense, he would have really wanted to curse her out!
Women are such a hassle!
...
Not far from Shen Jiaojiao, there was a patch of land about three meters away where a group of people had gathered and fainted.
A small figure curiously approached Chu Tianling, and casually grabbed a large green snake as thick as an arm and placed it on Chu Tianling.
The moment the snake was released, it fled in terror!
What's wrong with this guy? He's really interesting!
Even snakes don't like him, so who is he?
He seemed to hear shouts in the distance. Chu Tianling opened his eyes. Was it just my imagination?
He mumbled something and called softly, "Jiaojiao! Jiaojiao!"
Regardless of whether it was a hallucination or not, he gritted his teeth and crawled slowly toward the direction from which the sound came.
Completely ignoring the small figure beside him, the small figure seemed to realize that he was being ignored.
After Chu Tianling crawled a little bit, the little guy grabbed his feet from behind and dragged him back.
Chu Tianling was preoccupied with Shen Jiaojiao. After being dragged back, he was furious and kicked the little thing. Finally freeing himself, he crawled towards the direction from which the sound came.
The next second, they were pulled back again!
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