The sky had completely darkened, and the forest was so dark that you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. Only a few beams of flashlight beams struggled to cut through the darkness, providing limited light.
The strange howling sounds, insect chirps, and distant low howls of unknown wild beasts all blended together, creating an eerie atmosphere.
The hikers were experienced and not too flustered; they simply quickened their pace and reminded each other to watch their step.
But neither of these two ancient sages had ever experienced this.
In the past, they would either meditate in caves filled with spiritual energy at night or ride the light of escape to travel thousands of miles in an instant, surrounded by either ethereal music or demonic shadows.
Unlike now, where we have to trek through dark, muddy mountains where wild animals might roam.
It's even more unbearable than sending them to venture into the forbidden territory of the Demonic Cult!
"This godforsaken place! How can it be so dark! Not a single decent star can be seen!"
Night Enchantress irritably brushed aside the branches blocking her path, her voice carrying a barely perceptible hint of tension.
The intense darkness made her extremely uncomfortable. Her magical skills should have been at their best in the dark, but now... she could barely even see in the dark!
Although Ling Qingxue didn't speak, her tense profile and slightly quickened breathing betrayed her discomfort.
She was used to the soft glow of the moon, not this oppressive, unknown pure darkness.
The sound of a dry twig snapping underfoot made her heart skip a beat.
"Don't be afraid, ladies. Just follow our light. We've walked this mountain path many times before, so it'll be fine!"
A kind-hearted female hiker seemed to sense their nervousness and spoke up to comfort them.
"Afraid? Humph! Me, afraid of the dark?"
Night Enchantress seemed to have been stepped on, and immediately tried to appear calm, straightening her chest.
"It's just that they hate this filthy mud!"
Ling Qingxue simply gave a cold "hmm" in response, sparing her words and maintaining her precarious aloof persona.
Zhang Shaozhong listened from the side, silently complaining to himself:
If you're not afraid, then don't try to get close to me!
This almost pushed me off the hillside!
Just then, the leader of the group suddenly exclaimed:
"Ouch! Watch out! There's a mud puddle ahead! I almost stepped in!"
Shining the flashlight down, sure enough, there was a sizable area on the road ahead that had become muddy and impassable due to the previous rain, with no clear boundaries in the darkness.
"Go around in circles, jump over that rock over there!"
The team leader was giving instructions.
Several hikers, agile as ever, used the rocks as cover and jumped across in no time.
It was Zhang Shaozhong's and the two big shots' turn.
Zhang Shaozhong was alright. Although he was tired, he was young after all. He spotted the rock and jumped over it with a running start, but he stumbled a bit when he landed.
The problem lies with the two bigwigs.
Wearing ill-fitting sneakers, they were already struggling to walk, and with their immense physical exertion, they hesitated when they saw the slippery rocks and dark mud pits.
Ling Qingxue took a deep breath, trying to mobilize her meager spiritual energy to lighten her body, but as soon as she tried to gather her breath...
The soul imprint burned again, but instead of gaining strength, his legs went weak and he almost slipped into the mud!
"ah!"
She let out a short gasp, and luckily managed to grab onto a small tree to steady herself, but her shoes and trouser legs were already covered in mud, and the hem of her white windbreaker was also splattered with mud.
"puff!"
Ye Meier originally wanted to mock her, but she got distracted and didn't find the right balance when she jumped. She slipped when she landed.
"Holy crap!"
She gasped and fell backward, about to land hard on her bottom in the mud!
In a flash, Ling Qingxue, who was closest to her, almost instinctively reached out and grabbed her arm!
Zhang Shaozhong, on the other side, was also startled and quickly turned around to grab Ye Meier's other arm!
With their combined efforts, the two finally managed to pull Ye Meier back from the brink of being turned into a mud monkey.
But the scene was quite awkward at one point.
Ye Meier, still panting from the shock, looked at her nearly injured bottom, then at Ling Qingxue's hand gripping her arm. She jerked it away as if burned, her face flushing red and then pale, stubbornly saying:
"You hypocrite! Who asked you to meddle in my business! I can stand on my own two feet!"
Ling Qingxue quickly withdrew her hand, as if she had touched something dirty, and wiped it on her clothes before saying coldly:
"If I weren't afraid you'd soil the only thing you have to cover yourself with, making us even more conspicuous, I wouldn't have bothered to do it!"
"you!"
Night Enchantress was furious.
Zhang Shaozhong quickly tried to smooth things over:
"It's good that you're alright! It's good that you're alright! You two worked together quite well! See, you pulled it up right away?"
This is the power of teamwork!
"Who's on the same wavelength as her?!"
"Shut up!"
The two big shots attacked him simultaneously once again.
After passing the mud pit and walking a while longer, the sound of flowing water came from ahead. A stream, not very wide but with a rapid current, blocked our path. There were only a few smooth stones in the stream that we could use as stepping stones.
"Be careful, the stones are a bit slippery, go one at a time!"
The team leader was the first to step on the stones and jump across.
Zhang Shaozhong and his fellow hikers also carefully crossed the stream one after another.
It was Ling Qingxue and Ye Meier's turn again.
The two looked at the gurgling stream and the smooth stones, their expressions not very good.
Their balance is terrible right now.
Ling Qingxue took a deep breath, focused all her attention, and stepped onto the first stone with extreme slowness and caution, as if walking a tightrope.
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