Every time the giant python chased Zhou Yingxuan, Zhou Yingxuan would intentionally or unintentionally lead the python towards Jiang Jingyi, which made Qingyue, who was hiding everywhere with Jiang Jingyi, curse loudly.
"Did you offend this man?!" Qingyue complained breathlessly.
"Xiao Bai, lure the giant python over there, otherwise it'll be too easy for them."
After hearing Jiang Hua's words, the little white snake that had transformed into a bracelet suddenly disappeared, and the giant python that was following Bai Heng abruptly stopped and turned to pounce on the people from the major families who were hiding in the bushes.
"Let's go!" Jiang Hua shouted to the scattered group, and they all left in one direction.
They stopped when they could no longer hear any movement from the python.
"Are you injured?" Jiang Hua asked, looking around at them.
"No, I'm just a little tired." Qingyue patted Jiang Jingyi's shoulder:
"I think Zhou Yingxuan has some serious illness, but thankfully, he's reaping what he sowed."
Jiang Hua touched her empty wrist; the little white snake had transformed into a jade bracelet and returned to her hand.
Just then, Zhou Yingxuan and the others arrived, looking disheveled and with their silk and satin clothes torn and ripped.
"Jiang Xingzhou, how could you leave us like this!"
"Your Highness, if something happens to the eldest prince, how will we explain it to the Emperor and the Empress?"
The head of the Su family and An Yuanliang stepped forward to accuse them at the same time, while Zhou Yingxuan silently stared at them with a sinister look.
"Less than an hour ago, did the First Prince forget what he said?" Jiang Hua chuckled, looking at the disheveled group.
Two more are missing. The two people from the Lin family who came with them are gone. After thinking about it carefully, she seemed to have figured out how they escaped.
"So what if we go our separate ways! As the regent of the Great Sheng Kingdom, I have a duty to protect our prince."
"Hey, you old codger, who said there was only one prince here? We've been doing our best to protect him!" Qingyue clicked her tongue and glared at An Yuanliang, who was about to continue speaking.
"Enough!" Zhou Yingxuan snapped coldly.
"Now that those people from Wuxun Kingdom have been swallowed by the giant snake, we won't be able to get the other half of the map they had. How are we going to get into the cave later?"
"How else can we go? We'll walk on two feet." Lin Zhi replied casually, "Or are you going to find that snake and take that map out of its belly?"
Upon hearing Lin Zhi's words, Zhou Yingxuan and the others looked grim, clearly showing that the giant python had left a lasting impression on them.
They continued onward, and fortunately, they did not encounter any ferocious beasts along the way. The group stopped in a large cave.
Are there any wild beasts resting inside?
【No, Master. There's a group of poisonous bats around the bend about a mile into the road. Be careful.】
The little white snake reminded me.
While Zhou Yingxuan was still hesitating about whether to go in, Jiang Xingzhou had already stepped into the cave.
After walking less than 500 meters and seeing that there was no danger, Zhou Yingxuan and the others rushed to walk ahead again.
"ah--!"
The first sound was An Xinya's scream. When Jiang Hua and the others walked over with torches, a swarm of bats flew out in front of them.
After squatting down with the torch in hand, the cave fell silent again after a short while.
The cave was instantly brightened by the firelight. There were bat corpses on the ground. Zhou Yingxuan and the others leaned against the wall, panting, with An Xinya trembling behind him.
"They're still too young. They don't even know what it means to follow Sister Jiang and get ahead of everyone else!" Qingyue couldn't resist adding a few sarcastic remarks.
The faces of these people instantly darkened, but they dared not confront each other directly, fearing unknown dangers ahead.
After walking for a while, the appearance of the cave gradually changed, and the sound of flowing water could be faintly heard.
Following the sound, you'll find a bright, narrow opening, only wide enough for one person to pass through at a time.
【Master, ahead lies the Valley of Cannibals.】
Cannibal Valley?
Jiang Hua remembered looking at half of the map before leaving home, which marked Hundred Flowers Valley.
After they passed through the cave entrance, compared to the cave itself, it was a completely different world. What came into view was a sea of flowers, with birds singing and flowers blooming, like a fairyland on earth.
"There are many precious herbs that can't be found anywhere else." Qingling looked at the exotic flowers and plants growing exceptionally lushly on both sides of the path.
Everything was uncertain. Looking at the herbs in front of me, I was tempted, but I suppressed my urge to pick them.
"Isn't this a thousand-year-old ginseng? How come there are so many! This whole area is full of them!" The man following behind the head of the Su family was overjoyed as he discovered a patch of ginseng under a tree.
He hurriedly grabbed his sword and ran over to dig. Just as he unearthed one, he waved to them, inviting them to come and dig together.
Completely unaware that vines were constantly weaving and wrapping around his feet, the man only realized it when a sharp pain shot through his calf, but it was too late.
"Father, save me!" The man quickly got up, drew his sword, and tried to cut the vines binding him, but the sword was immediately pulled away by the vines.
The head of the Su family wanted to step forward to rescue his son, but Zhou Yingxuan stopped him: "You can't save him now. If you go in, you won't be able to get out either!"
And so, watching the man's limbs become entangled in vines, and finally being dismembered alive, with blood splattered all over the ground, in less than a quarter of an hour, the spot where the man had just stood became calm and still, as if nothing had happened.
"The reason this herb garden grows so well is because it's fertilized with human fertilizer. It seems that quite a few people have died in this meadow."
Jiang Hua glanced at the grieving and sorrowful head of the Su family, and felt a sense of satisfaction. It's alright, you'll be able to join him soon.
Sensing Jiang Hua's gaze, the head of the Su family rushed to her side in three quick steps:
"You know perfectly well why you didn't remind everyone how much hatred and grudge you have against the Su family, and you just stood by and watched my son go to his death!"
“If Young Master Su hadn’t died, who among us would have known?” Jiang Hua retorted, silencing the Su family head who was about to blame her with a single sentence.
"Besides, it's his own body, Young Master Su. He knew this place was dangerous. As the saying goes, he brought it on himself. Patriarch Su, don't you agree?"
"You vile woman, I'll kill you to pay for my son's death!" The head of the Su family was furious. Without saying a word, he raised his sword and stabbed Jiang Hua with deadly intent.
"Let me do it." Jiang Hua stopped Jiang Xingzhou and the others who wanted to help, and went to meet them alone with her sword in hand.
Jiang Hua always remembered that the Su family had played a crucial role in the Jiang family's betrayal on the battlefield.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com