The mountain guardian raised his arms high and muttered incantations. Suddenly, accompanied by a thunderous roar, a long staircase appeared before everyone's eyes.
"Let's go," the Fourth Prince said to Li Mingke beside him.
"Okay." Li Mingke nodded.
The other four also started walking and followed.
After the three princes and princesses and their entourage entered, the staircase slowly closed again.
The people outside the mountain were both excited and expectant, each hoping that their favorite prince would be the first to bring Suihou Zhu out.
Dust swirled in the slightly thin air, leaving clear footprints with every step. Li Mingke couldn't help but cover his mouth and nose with his sleeve. Dim candlelight flickered on both sides of the stairs, casting shadows that stretched and shortened.
The only sound in the enclosed space was the heavy thud of footsteps on the steps.
The fourth prince had been observing his surroundings when he suddenly slipped and missed a step. Li Mingke immediately caught him.
"careful!"
The fourth prince helped her stand up with his arm and smiled apologetically at her.
Demon Lord Luan Hua walked a few steps behind them, watching the two support each other, and let out a cold laugh.
The Fifth Princess noticed the Demon Lord's reaction behind her and said with a smile to the two of them, "Fourth Brother, why don't you hurry back? You can't even walk properly, how can you shoulder the great responsibility of ruling the world? Let your younger sister share the burden!"
The Fourth Prince wasn't angry. Instead, he reminded her, "Sister, you should watch your step. If I fall, someone will help me up, but I can't guarantee that if you fall, sister." As he spoke, he gave the Demon Lord a meaningful look.
The Fifth Princess's smile faded slightly.
Li Mingke whispered in his ear, "Why are you arguing with her? Focus on moving forward. If you fall again and fall flat on your face, I won't even care about you."
"Okay, okay, I'll listen to you!" The Fourth Prince moved a little closer to Li Mingke.
Suihouzhu was probably located very deep underground; it took them a long time to climb the entire staircase.
However, two forks in the road appeared ahead.
Everyone stopped.
How to choose?
The two forks in the road look exactly the same from the outside, with no signs or markings, and both are pitch black when you look inside.
"Demon Lord, please enlighten me!" The Fifth Princess bowed to Demon Lord Luan Hua and inquired.
The Demon Lord simply stared at the two intersections, remaining silent.
"Mingke, which one do you choose?" the Fourth Prince asked.
Li Mingke looked left and right. "I can't see the difference, but if I were to go by intuition, I would choose the one on the right."
Of course, the decision is not in her hands; it depends on which side the Fourth Prince intends to take.
"Okay, let's go to the right then!"
The Fourth Prince pulled Li Mingke along and walked into the intersection on the right.
"Huh? Really going to the right?" Li Mingke's voice gradually faded into the right-hand intersection.
The Demon Lord looked at the two figures and said, "To the right."
The Fifth Princess nodded and followed the Demon Lord to the right.
Now only the second princess and her maid remain.
"Your Highness?"
"We'll go to the left."
The second princess didn't really know which was right, but given her consistent style of not following the crowd and choosing the less crowded but more difficult path, she believed that only then could she fight for a glimmer of hope.
The three groups that were just walking together are now divided into two groups.
As Li Mingke walked, he asked the Fourth Prince, "If I said the right side, you really chose the right side? What if I chose the wrong one?"
The fourth prince patted her shoulder and said, "Don't worry, I believe in you. And so what if we made a mistake? At worst, we'll die together. I'd be quite happy to die with you."
Li Mingke: But I don't want to die.
The Fourth Prince glanced at the Fifth Princess and the Demon Lord following behind them, "Besides, it's not certain who's right and who's wrong!"
They walked for about fifteen minutes, during which time no one spoke again.
Suddenly, Li Mingke heard a faint sound, like the turning of gears, which was clearly not something they could make.
Demon Lord Luan Hua shouted, "Lie down!"
Upon hearing this, the three immediately covered their heads and lay down.
Countless arrows came from all directions at the same time, but Demon Lord Luan Hua waved his sleeve and broke all the arrows in two.
Several broken arrow shafts grazed Li Mingke's face as they flew past, startling her so much that she covered her face and curled up into a ball.
Upon seeing this, the fourth prince embraced her, covering most of her body with his own.
Finally, the rain of arrows stopped, and the three of them shakily stood up, leaning against the wall.
Li Mingke still refused to take his hand off his head. "Is it over?"
"Probably." Demon Lord Luan Hua spoke sparingly.
The Fifth Princess breathed a sigh of relief, clutching her chest, clearly quite frightened.
"How could there be a trap here!" Her voice shrilly.
"They're probably afraid of outsiders barging in! After all, there are many good things in the mountains. Sister, you still need to study more," the Fourth Prince mocked.
"You!" The Fifth Princess was clearly angered.
Demon Lord Luan Hua interrupted the two, "Alright, stop arguing. This is the first mechanism. There might be more later. Be quiet."
The two fell silent.
So the four of them walked forward in silence, but they were on edge the whole way. They would jump at the slightest unusual noise, and the three of them, except for the Demon Lord, were on the verge of a nervous breakdown.
Fortunately, no more traps appeared.
After walking for about 15 minutes, a new fork in the road appeared before the four of them.
"Another choice to make." The fourth prince shrugged.
The Fifth Princess looked at Demon Lord Luan Hua again.
Li Mingke squatted down to carefully observe the differences between the two forks in the road.
Seeing how intently Li Mingke was looking at the document, the Fourth Prince assumed she had made some discovery.
"What did we find? Which side should we choose?"
“Hmm…” Li Mingke stroked his chin, his eyes wide open, “Of course… I didn’t find anything.”
The fourth prince sighed, rubbing his forehead.
Li Mingke stood up and patted the dust off the corner of his clothes.
"My style is—consistent to the end!"
"so?"
"So I'm still choosing the right side this time!"
"Alright!" Without saying a word, the Fourth Prince followed Li Mingke and stepped onto the right-hand intersection.
The Fifth Princess frowned. "My lord, we were in so much danger because we were with them. Let's go to the left this time!"
Demon Lord Luan Hua withdrew his gaze only after the two figures had disappeared from sight.
"Can."
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