Chapter 28 Chapter 28 First Release
Twelve girls were crammed into a not very spacious carriage, and they had to squeeze together and hug each other.
Huang Meizhu clung to Wu Jingxun, tears in her eyes, and murmured, "Jingxun, will we die?"
Wu Jingxun was also confused by the sudden disaster, but she still remembered the last time she was kidnapped by the kidnappers.
She is not worried and has something to do. Even if she really dies here today, she probably won't have any regrets.
"Don't be afraid. What that group of thieves wants is for us to lose our composure. Don't take advantage of them." The girl's calm voice fell into Huang Meizhu's ears. When the others listened, their originally nervous and frightened hearts calmed down a little.
At this point, the only thing they can do is wait and see.
He watched coldly to see what tricks the gang of thieves were going to play.
Waiting for their father and brothers to bring people to rescue them.
But when they were driven off the carriage and asked to walk down the dark and bottomless path, the girls who had been cheering and comforting each other in the carriage suddenly didn't know what to do.
Did the thieves want to bury them underground, so they could never see the light of day? Would anyone who came to rescue them be able to find them?
The girls stopped and refused to leave. A tall man in black stepped out and said sternly, "Gentlemen, don't refuse a toast. Walk down on your own, or I'll kick you out. It's your choice."
Wu Jingxun pursed her lips, looked at the tunnel that seemed to lead directly into the earth, deep and dark, with no trace of sunlight, and said, "Give us a few candles. It's too dark down there. If we fall and get hurt, I'm afraid the master behind you won't be happy, right?"
At this point, looking at the direction of this matter, Wu Jingxun subconsciously connected this matter with the sinking palace of Prince Rong's Mansion and the woman lying in the ice coffin.
It would be abnormal for Prince Rong to let off someone who had seen his true face so easily.
Want candles?
The leader of the men in black said impatiently: "Where can we find candles for you? We've been here many times. No one will fall to death. Just hurry up!"
Wu Jingxun clenched her palms tightly, forcing herself to calm down quickly and think about the implied meaning of his words.
Walked here many times.
This means that Prince Rong has been building something underground for quite some time. Given Prince Rong's extravagant and lustful nature, the things buried under this mountain may be quite astonishing.
Prince Rong was so generous that he revealed the secret he had buried underground to them. It must have taken him a lot of effort, and he would not give up until he left something behind.
The knife in the black-clad leader's hand flashed coldly in the sunlight, and it was stained with the blood of countless people.
Wu Jingxun calmly withdrew her gaze. The woman who brought her to that palace room was holding a very powerful knife in her hand.
He still died at her hands.
Strangely enough, that was her first time killing someone, but she didn't have a nightmare after returning home.
Evil always comes with evil consequences. Maybe the King of Hell borrowed her hand, which is why she could stab so accurately.
Wu Jingxun subconsciously bent his palm. The place scratched by the bark had healed. The ointment sent by Pei Jinguang was very useful. The new flesh and blood gradually covered the ugly scar, and it became snow-white and flawless again.
Huang Meizhu noticed that Wu Jingxun lowered her head and didn't say anything. She thought she was unhappy about the man in black rejecting her, so she walked over and held her hand tightly.
Another person walked out from among the men in black. They were all wearing headscarves, so their faces couldn't be seen clearly. "Brother, why don't you give them some candles? These little girls are so delicate and fragile. If they fall and get hurt, it might be a disaster."
All the girls present were unmarried, but they still understood the meaning of his words, and their eyes suddenly showed some fear and disgust.
This group of people... actually had such thoughts?!
The man in black found a few tinder sticks from somewhere, lit them, and handed them to them, saying sinisterly, "Hurry up and take them. Don't try to do anything else. Otherwise, these tinder sticks won't light the way, but will fall on your delicate little faces."
After making these harsh remarks, the man in black looked at the girls expectantly.
Although his master had ordered him not to do anything to them, the man in black felt very comfortable seeing the noble ladies, who were once high and mighty, showing all kinds of panic and ugly expressions under his intimidation.
The girls were quite calm. One of them said, "Let me go in front. I have good eyesight and I always win when I play pot tossing."
The man in black sneered. Do they think this is a place for them to play and have fun?
The girls lined up one after another, holding tinder sticks, and walked quietly along the path, slowly entering the deep and terrifying underground.
Wu Jingxun was walking at the end. She was wearing a crimson dress today. The hem of the dress was decorated with large peonies embroidered with colorful gold thread. Under the reflection of the skylight, it shone with an exceptionally bright light.
This bit of light happened to fall into Pei Huaiguang's eyes.
The snow-white horse was mercilessly driven to a farther place by its owner. He didn't want the sound of the horse begging for food and the sound of its hooves to disturb the group of thieves.
He squatted on a slightly higher hill, hiding his body in the dense grass, and squinted at them.
Well, at least I'm smart enough to know that I always take the wrong path. This time I'm at the end, at least there's someone ahead of me exploring the way.
...If there is danger, she can take a break.
Pei Huaiguang never thought of himself as a good person. He just wanted the people and things he cared about to continue according to his expectations.
But now it seems that it is not possible.
Pei Huaiguang took another look and was about to get up when he noticed that the girl's eyes were suddenly looking at him.
The distance was too far, Pei Huaiguang knew that she probably couldn't see him clearly.
But a strange feeling inexplicably rose up all over his body.
His heart seemed to have fallen into the pile of rotting juice under the sour fruit tree on the snow-capped mountains. It was sour and astringent, making him subconsciously want to escape from this environment that made him feel powerless and irritable.
But the girl's unintentional glance was like a net that he couldn't break free from.
He wanted to go back and ask for help, but before that, he had to find something for that group of people to do.
Suddenly, there were some buzzing sounds in the originally quiet forest.
The men in black frowned and looked at each other, but the next moment, they were startled by the flying insects rushing out of the woods and opened their eyes wide.
Those flying insects were as big as apricots, each of them was dark and fat, with a pair of transparent cicada wings on their backs, and the sharp teeth exposed in their mouthparts flashed with vicious light.
Wu Jingxun and the others quickened their pace when they heard the noise. Flying insects are afraid of fire, so they held the tinder tightly in their hands. The tunnel that originally frightened them became a good place to take shelter.
The men in black swung their swords and hacked at the flies, but it seemed as if they could not kill all the flies. After they killed a batch, more would swarm up. Even though they were wrapped in turbans, some of the exposed skin was inevitably bitten and became red and swollen.
"Hiss." Those flying insects were quite poisonous, leaving red, swollen, painful and itchy marks on the skin. Faced with a swarm of flying insects like a dark cloud pressing down on them, the men in black began to retreat. "Brother, why don't we hide in the underground palace first?"
At this point, this is all we can do.
The man in black frowned. According to the original plan, they should leave half of their men to guard the area to prevent anyone from noticing and chasing after them.
There is no one guarding this place, so I feel uneasy.
But those flying insects had taken some medicine that had offended them, and they came back with great force. They had just given all the fire starters they had to the group of girls, and now they had nothing on them that could drive away these flying insects.
Just as the man in black frowned and gestured to the rest of the people, indicating them to quickly get down the tunnel, a wolf howl suddenly came from the forest.
Soon, pairs of green eyes appeared in the grass around them.
The man in black couldn't help but feel creepy.
"Quick! Get down the tunnel!"
The wolves living in the mountains are faster than them!
Perhaps because they were stung by flying insects before, some people were forced to slow down. The man in black gritted his teeth when he saw this. It seemed that the flying insects had poison hidden in their mouthparts, which also had the effect of slowing down people's movements.
Someone was suddenly knocked to the ground by the wolf and touched a small mound nearby.
Then, as the man in black's eyes widened suddenly, the tunnel door was quickly closed.
There is a layer of loess covering it, and it looks no different from ordinary land.
The other men in black tightened their grip on their swords: "Brother, this door..."
Of course they knew the door couldn't be opened.
Prince Rong was suspicious by nature. Every time he entered the underground palace through the tunnel, he needed a new password and seal as a guide. This time, the password had been used, the tunnel gate was closed, and they could not enter the underground palace.
What was waiting for them behind them was a swarm of flying insects and a pack of wolves drooling.
Pei Huaiguang slowly stuffed the syrup-stained handkerchief back into his pocket and jumped onto his horse in a few strides. "Good buddy, let's go."
·
The tunnel gate behind them suddenly slammed shut, swallowing up the last bit of daylight. The girls held up their tinderboxes in panic, looking at each other's faces, which looked somewhat eerie in the orange-yellow firelight, and were all a little scared.
Huang Meizhu was just laughing at them, saying that evildoers will be punished, but now she couldn't help swallowing her saliva: "Jingxun, this place is so scary..."
The tunnel was very deep. They had been walking for a while, but it still seemed bottomless.
Could it be that they are leading to the eighteen levels of hell?
The tunnel was very narrow, and they walked very carefully. They accidentally bumped into the wall, but they felt that there seemed to be something on the wall beside them.
Huang Meizhu suppressed the scream in her throat and trembled, "Jingxun... me, what's behind me?"
Wu Jingxun held a tinder stick and approached the walls. His face, like a lotus in the distant mountains, was illuminated by the firelight, and the seriousness between his brows became even more eye-catching.
The other girls remained silent, but their feelings towards Wu Jingxun had changed a lot.
This person is a bit dull, but he seems to be very loyal to his friends.
Wu Jingxun paused for a long moment before saying, "Everyone, be careful and stay as far away from these earthen walls as possible."
The girls didn't understand why, but they subconsciously did as she said.
Wu Jingxun held the stiff Huang Meizhu with his other hand and leaned the fire starter in his hand against the earth wall so that everyone could see more clearly the white bones protruding from the loess.
White bones... ?
One girl couldn't help but turn around and vomit. The others were also shocked and scared. They had just walked all the way here. Could it be that there were people around them...
vomit!
Wu Jingxun's face was expressionless. Perhaps she didn't know what expression to put on. "This bone must have come from an adult male. Building the tunnel and possibly the palace and tomb below requires a lot of manpower. Those craftsmen and laborers may have been left here for their entire lives."
Her voice was calm, but the meaning contained in it was chilling.
Who was it that painstakingly set up this trap and dragged them all into it?
A timid girl was already sobbing softly. Wu Jingxun looked back and said, "The door is closed. They didn't open it immediately to chase after them. Either it can't be opened, or they can't open it."
"According to common sense, they should have sent at least two people to watch us go down together. But they didn't." Wu Jingxun had never been so eager to have her mind clearer and move faster. Her speech speed became faster and higher. "I guess that group of thieves is now unable to take care of themselves.
We can't go back, but if we go down, there might be more people down there."
"What should we do then?" The girls thought Wu Jingxun's words made sense, and they all frowned when they heard it.
Huang Meizhu's warm hands held her tightly, reminding Wu Jingxun that they were still in the world.
The incomparably beautiful girl had a calm yet determined look in her eyes as she looked past the crowd towards the other end of the deeper tunnel.
"Let's keep going."
It is always better to walk than to be stuck far away.
Everyone supported and encouraged each other in silence. After walking for an unknown amount of time, they finally saw a ray of light ahead.
Wu Jingxun had reached the front of the team without knowing when. She was clearly the one with the worst sense of direction, but she was now walking the most steadily.
Everyone looked towards the source of the light in front of them, took a few more steps, and when they saw the majestic and magnificent crystal palace in front of them, which should not exist so deep underground, their eyes widened in astonishment.
·
Pei Jinguang searched along the carriage tracks on another road for a while. When the tracks on the ground became lighter, he realized that it was just a feint by the group of men in black.
The handsome horse seemed to sense the unusual turmoil in its master's heart, and it raised its head and neighed twice, as if to comfort him.
"I'm fine."
Pei Jinguang stroked the mane gently and slowly. He was the one who made the bet, and he didn't want to be the one who broke his promise. He also knew that in fact, who he would accept depended entirely on Jingxun's opinion.
However, he couldn't help but feel some doubts in his heart.
Is it destiny, or...
Pei Jinguang didn't want to think about it anymore. Fate hadn't happened yet, so why should he waste his time on those vague things in the future?
"Xuan Guangcheng, let's go." Pei Huaiguang turned his horse and headed towards the fork in the road where the two brothers had parted before. He left a signal there, and soon the people from the Northern Twelve Divisions would come and join them.
Xuan Guangcheng carried his master back to the fork in the road, but saw the snow-white horse standing there with its mane standing upright and its head slightly raised, looking like it deserved a beating.
Its owner stood beside it, and he was obviously also handsome, but Xuan Guangcheng turned his head away arrogantly.
No master Jun.
Pei Jinguang didn't care about the discord between the two horses. He looked at Pei Huaiguang and asked, "Any news?"
Pei Huaiguang nodded, briefly repeated the story, and sneered, "It's probably that fat old husband Rong Wang who's causing trouble again."
Prince Rong.
They all knew that Prince Rong, who had been hiding behind the banner of absurdity and debauchery for so many years, was by no means a simple character behind the scenes. But now that the emperor had not spoken, they, as his subjects, could not disobey.
Now is probably a good time for Emperor Zhou Qing to justify abandoning his brotherly affection and having Prince Rong executed.
Behind Pei Jinguang stood hundreds of silent and solemn soldiers.
He looked at Pei Huaiguang with a serious gaze: "It is still unclear who is behind this, so don't jump to conclusions." He didn't want Erlang to be involved in the dirty affairs of the royal family.
Pei Huaiguang didn't want to waste time on official rhetoric and just snorted, "You keep saying you value your fiancée, but now she's buried underground, and you're not going to save her. Brother, it seems your feelings aren't nearly as deep as mine."
He lowered his voice when he said the last sentence so that only the two brothers could hear it.
He looked at Pei Jinguang's solemn expression and smiled.
Erlang would only call him "brother" when he was deliberately trying to piss him off.
Pei Jinguang jumped onto his horse and raised his hand, and the soldiers behind him immediately got ready for battle.
Xuan Guangcheng usually kept a knife and a sword in his backpack. Pei Jinguang threw the knife to Pei Huaiguang and said, "After we rescue the people, I'll take you to the armory to pick out a suitable one."
Pei Huaiguang's face darkened. What he wanted was not weapons.
"I'll get what I want myself." Pei Huaiguang didn't look at him and jumped on his horse. "Let's go!"
The sound of horse hooves and the flying dust were noticed by the group of men in black who were suffering terribly from the flying insects and wolves.
But in order to protect themselves, flares were also thrown out, which only killed one or two wolves. They were short of manpower now, and most of them were injured, so they could not fight against the guards they might face later.
"Walk!"
The leader of the men in black supported himself on the ground with his knife and gave reluctant orders to the remaining people. The others had no choice but to grit their teeth and follow him into the mountains.
The flying insects only circled over the land near the tunnel and did not follow them, but the wolves were aroused by the bloodiness of their injured and dead companions and kept following them.
The men in black complained bitterly, but fortunately they were no longer harassed by flying insects. They climbed up the trees nimbly and managed to escape the disaster.
When Pei Jinguang and his companions arrived at the tunnel, the gate was tightly closed, and there was no sign that it had once swallowed twelve beautiful girls.
Pei Huaiguang lit a tinder, stood in front of a piece of soil that emitted a strange sweet fragrance, and threw the tinder on it. The flames quickly swallowed up the sweet fragrance, and the originally manic flying insects quickly dispersed.
There were also a few wolves lurking in the grass. When they saw the boy's gloomy eyes, they groaned softly in their throats and ran away without caring about avenging their companions.
There were many flying insects and wolf corpses scattered around, some of which were stained with human blood.
Pei Jinguang frowned, bent down and wiped off the mud covering the tunnel gate. The mud surface underneath was still smooth, as if it was seamless, and there was no chance to break the door.
Pei Huaiguang recalled the previous scene. There was an inconspicuous mound of earth standing in front of the right side of the tunnel entrance.
He kicked and the pile of earth shook, but it didn't fall apart.
Pei Jinguang's eyes turned cold. He walked forward and used his sword to poke the mound of earth, brushing away the yellow soil on top. There was a small mechanism underneath.
It seems that a specific token needs to be placed there before the tunnel will open.
"The rabbits on the snowy mountains will dig several holes. Sometimes, if you follow a path, you can only find a few stones." Pei Huaiguang stood aside with his hands folded. The rough long sword matched his face, which was so handsome that it could almost be called glamorous. In fact, it was a bit inconsistent, but the unruly wildness of the young man was too eye-catching. After looking at the long sword for a long time, he began to find it pleasing to the eye.
Pei Jinguang understood what he meant, turned around and gave a few instructions to his personal soldiers, and the hundred or so people immediately scattered around.
"A cunning rabbit has three burrows. This kind of thing is not uncommon." Pei Jinguang was still observing the mechanism. There were patterns engraved on the wall. He looked carefully and it vaguely looked like... a peony?
There are many styles of peonies, and the number of petals is countless. Even if the key to opening the door lies in the peony, they can't really find the same peony seal by chance.
While Pei Jinguang was frowning and thinking, he saw Pei Huaiguang scattering something on the ground with an expressionless face.
"Ji Lang, what are you doing?"
Pei Huai said without even raising his head: "Feed the ants."
A thin black line of ants meandered along the powdered sugar he had sprinkled until they reached the tunnel gate.
No matter how ingenious the gate mechanism made by the craftsmen is, it cannot compare to the exquisiteness of the real creation of heaven and earth.
Pei Jinguang's eyes lit up.
·
The well-trained guards went down the tunnel silently.
The crystal palace that looked like a pearl palace did not surprise them. They just remained silent and used the blood of the underground palace guards to water this mysterious and evil palace.
Pei Huaiguang walked in front with a long sword in his hand. He didn't care about others, so he didn't have to think carefully and take charge of the overall situation like Pei Jinguang.
He only cared about the fact that his favorite prey was buried in such a smelly and cold place underground. She must be very scared.
There was no air circulation in the underground palace, but Pei Huaiguang was born with extraordinary five senses, and he smelled the faint and subtle fragrance.
He walked lightly, the long knife in his hand was stained with blood, but he bumped into someone at the corner.
There were peony patterns embroidered on his clothes, and his blood-stained face had a coldness and cruelty that had never been revealed before.
Pei Huaiguang looked at the golden hairpin tightly held in Wu Jingxun's hand and raised his eyebrows meaningfully.
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The author has something to say: I'm late, I'll give everyone red envelopes, muahji, I'll update Xiaowan tomorrow and try to release it as soon as possible~
Thanks to Moonlight Angel for the nutrient solution, and thank you all (*^_^*)
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