Qi Guze's expression was solemn. He gripped the tinderbox tightly in his hand, ready to deal with any possible crisis at any moment.
Xu Yuehuai kept her eyes tightly closed, her brows furrowed, as if sensing everything around her. Her hands were clenched into fists, her nails digging deep into her palms, but she felt nothing.
Suddenly, a sharp pain came from under their feet. Xu Yuehuai opened his eyes abruptly and saw a sharp iron spike emerging from the ground, pointing straight at their chests.
Qi Guze reacted quickly, pulling Xu Yuehuai aside abruptly. The iron spikes grazed their bodies, bringing with them a gust of cold wind.
"Ah Yue, be careful!" Qi Guze's voice carried a hint of tension.
Xu Yuehuai took a deep breath, gripped Qi Guze's hand tightly, and a resolute glint flashed in her eyes: "It's all my fault for coming to such a dangerous place."
"This isn't your fault," Qi Guze comforted her softly. "We'll face it together and overcome the difficulties together."
They continued onward, but the dangers within the secret passage were far greater than they had imagined. Traps, poison gas, hidden arrows… each time they narrowly escaped death. Xu Yuehuai and Qi Guze's clothes were already soaked with sweat, but they never gave up.
During a dodge of a hidden arrow, Xu Yuehuai accidentally fell to the ground. She struggled to get up, only to find that her ankle was tightly bound by a thin thread. Looking up, she saw a huge stone slab hanging overhead, threatening to fall at the slightest movement.
Upon seeing this, Qi Guze immediately rushed forward, wanting to untie the thin thread binding Xu Yuehuai's feet.
However, at that moment, a burst of poisonous gas spewed out from behind the stone slab and attacked them.
Qi Guze quickly channeled his inner strength to attack and dispel the poison gas.
However, this gave the stone slab time to fall.
Qi Guze reacted quickly, shoving Xu Yuehuai aside and leaping forward to block the falling stone slab with his body.
Xu Yuehuai watched helplessly as Qi Guze was crushed under the stone slab, and an endless grief welled up in her heart.
"Aze!" she cried out hoarsely, tears blurring her vision.
Qi Guze struggled to lift his head and smiled slightly at Xu Yuehuai: "A-Yue, I'm fine."
Xu Yuehuai knew that Qi Guze was trying to comfort her. Suppressing her grief, she quickly checked Qi Guze's injuries. Fortunately, the stone slab hadn't directly crushed him; it had only caused some minor abrasions. She carefully treated his wounds, her eyes flashing with determination.
"We must survive." Xu Yuehuai's voice was filled with determination.
Qi Guze nodded and held Xu Yuehuai's hand tightly: "Let's live together."
They continued onward, and finally, they reached the end of the secret passage. The place where the treasure should have been hidden was empty. Their hearts were filled with disappointment and resentment, as if all their efforts had been in vain.
Xu Yuehuai and Qi Guze looked at each other, speechless for a moment. They stood there in silence for a long while. Then, Xu Yuehuai sighed softly and patted Qi Guze on the shoulder.
"It seems we're still a step too late." Her voice was a little hoarse.
Qi Guze didn't speak, but silently put away the tinderbox in his hand. "Although we didn't find the treasure, at least we tried. We didn't fail."
Xu Yuehuai looked at him, a hint of admiration flashing in her eyes. She knew that although this adventure had not yielded the expected results, they had gained something more important—courage, perseverance, and mutual trust.
They turned around, preparing to leave the empty secret passage. However, just as they were about to take their first step, Xu Yuehuai suddenly stopped. Her gaze fell on a carving on the wall of the passage.
“Look here,” she said, pointing to the engraving.
Qi Guze leaned closer and saw some strange symbols and characters engraved on the marks. They studied them carefully for a while and finally understood their meaning.
"So this was a mystery." Xu Yuehuai's eyes gleamed with excitement.
They began to study the mystery, trying to find the true location of the treasure. Time ticked by, and their anxiety grew.
Just as they were about to give up, a flash of inspiration suddenly struck Xu Yuehuai, like a ray of dawn in the darkness. Her tightly furrowed brows gradually relaxed, and she whispered to Qi Guze beside her, "I've thought of a possible solution."
Following Xu Yuehuai's instructions, Qi Guze carefully operated the mechanism. Suddenly, the walls of the secret passage emitted a muffled rumble, as if an ancient mechanism had been awakened.
The wall slowly slid open to one side, revealing a hidden chamber. An ancient and mysterious aura permeated the chamber, sending chills down one's spine.
They entered the secret room and found a mummified corpse inside!
The corpse had been dried into a mummy, lying there quietly as if telling a secret of a thousand years. Its face and attire were indistinguishable. Qi Guze and Xu Yuehuai were both shocked; they had never seen such a peculiar corpse.
Xu Yuehuai carefully examined the corpse, her brows furrowed. Pointing to the wounds on the body, she said, "The wounds on this corpse are not fatal. It seems he was stabbed and fled here."
Qi Guze stepped forward and examined the wound carefully. He nodded and said, "That's right. The man's wound wasn't fatal. He must have entered this secret room, where a mechanism was triggered, sealing the room and preventing him from escaping. He eventually suffocated to death."
"Bang!"
As they were discussing, suddenly the door to the secret room slammed shut, trapping them inside.
Qi Guze's expression changed: "This mechanism has been triggered again! We need to find a way out quickly!"
They searched everywhere for clues, hoping to find a way to solve the puzzle.
Unfortunately, the surrounding area was all stone walls, and there was nowhere to escape.
Inside this enclosed space, the oxygen became increasingly scarce, and they could barely breathe.
"Are we going to die here like this dried-up corpse?" Xu Yuehuai felt a little scared.
Qi Guze held her hand and comforted her, "Even if we die, we will never be apart."
"Okay, Aze!" Xu Yuehuai was now prepared to live and die with him.
Qi Guze had not given up looking for a way out; he tried to cut an exit out of the stone wall with his sword.
However, the sword tip grazed the stone wall without leaving a mark. This stone wall was clearly not made of ordinary stone; even an iron sword couldn't damage it, let alone any other method.
After struggling for a long time, their faces turned bluish-purple, and they leaned against each other, their heads spinning and barely able to breathe.
Just as they were about to despair, a glimmer of light suddenly flashed in Xu Yuehuai's eyes, and her gaze was fixed on the desiccated corpse that had weathered into a mummy.
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