The flickering firelight illuminated the room, the burning wood crackled, and the swaying shadows danced on the walls, as if countless demons were rushing towards us.
Wei Shengnan was furious at Qu Ruilin's stubborn insistence on pursuing him. Song Laosan also advised her, "Little Qu, I know you are determined to catch Duan Jinyan to avenge your father, but the first condition for revenge is to ensure your own safety! Wei is right, in your current state, even if you meet Duan Jinyan, you are no match for him!"
"I don't care about anything as long as I can get revenge."
Qu Ruilin stubbornly replied, "For so many years, I have been tormented by hatred every moment. All my efforts have been to find Duan Jinyan and seek justice for my Qu family! Today is the closest I have ever been to this bastard. As long as I can avenge the Qu family, I will risk my life."
Jiang Man saw Qu Ruilin trying to get up and grabbed her shoulder: "Qu Ruilin, can you be a little more sensible? Didn't you hear what Third Master said? There are many opportunities for revenge, but life is only once. We choose revenge so that we can live without regrets, not die with these regrets!"
"From the day my father left until this moment, I have never given up my belief in revenge!"
Qu Ruilin pushed Wei Shengnan's arm away: "You can't stop me, and you shouldn't try to stop me! Our group was formed for revenge, so we should all work together towards the same goal. If you want to back out, then I'll leave the group now and take action on my own!"
Qu Ruilin coldly uttered these words, then braced himself against the ground to get up.
"Bang!"
Seeing Qu Ruilin's actions, Song Laosan delivered a karate chop to the back of Qu Ruilin's neck, knocking him unconscious.
Seeing Song Laosan's actions, Wei Shengnan drew her knife and held it to his neck: "Song Laosan, what are you doing?"
"I'm saving people!"
Song Laosan used his fingers to push Wei Shengnan's wrist away gently: "You know Qu Ruilin's personality. He's already gone mad from seeking revenge! In his current physical condition, let alone fighting someone, he might even fall while walking. In this situation of lack of medical care and medicine, if his condition continues to deteriorate, what will you use to save his life?"
After listening to Song Laosan's words, Wei Shengnan glanced at Qu Ruilin, who was still unconscious, and said, "You know his temper. If we stop him from seeking revenge now, he won't let it go once he wakes up!"
Old Song lit a cigarette: "For him to lose his temper, he first needs to be alive."
Seeing their situation, I knew these people wouldn't be able to set off anytime soon. I stretched my shoulders and said, "When Qu Ruilin approached me before, his condition was that we cooperate to find the Miao Jiang Immortal Palace. Now that I've brought you all in, I've fulfilled my promise. Let's go our separate ways now! Qu Ruilin was injured while saving everyone, and I won't ignore that. If we reach the second gate and it's closed, I'll keep it open or leave the key with you."
When Wei Shengnan heard that I was going to leave them behind, she glanced at the unconscious Qu Ruilin and looked at me with complicated eyes: "You're right. We've always been competitors. Now that you want to leave, we have nothing to say. If we meet again, we'll be enemies."
I knew Wei Shengnan's anger stemmed from the fact that we had entered the Miao Jiang Immortal Palace as a team, and I was now preparing to abandon them. However, I didn't explain anything, but simply instructed Jiang Man and Monkey, "Everyone, rest as soon as possible. We'll set off in ten minutes!"
After spending half a day struggling in the underground river, everyone's body temperature had dropped significantly. After listening to my words, everyone moved closer to the campfire to warm themselves and take out food from their backpacks to replenish their strength.
Our rat-themed clothes were waterproof, so despite the low temperatures, thankfully our clothes didn't get soaked. While the others were eating, Jiang Man bandaged my wound.
Ten minutes later, seeing that everyone had rested enough, I put my gas mask back on and said, "Time's up, everyone set off! Remember what Monkey said: the people of Ping'an Village have set up a lot of traps on our only route, so everyone must remain highly vigilant during the journey!"
After saying that, we all stood up and, led by the monkey, walked into the depths of the valley.
After leaving the cave, Jiang Man turned around and glanced at the flickering firelight behind her. She said in a low voice, "Judging from Wei Shengnan's attitude just now, he is very dissatisfied with you abandoning Qu Ruilin. If we meet again, I'm afraid we won't get along very well."
I scanned the road ahead warily and replied in a calm tone, "We've never been on the same path. It's just that we know each other well enough to feel at ease during our short-term cooperation. As for turning against each other, that's only a matter of time. I'm prepared for that."
“You misunderstood me. I’m not advising you to be soft-hearted, but I want to talk to you about the promise you just made to Wei Shengnan.”
Jiang Man paused for a moment: "Since everyone has decided to go their own way, there is no need for us to show any mercy. So my suggestion is that we should not only not leave a second door for them, but also, if possible, do our best to seal the door when we reach the second exit. This will not only ensure that they do not interfere with our plans, but also ensure that the two sides cannot meet and avoid friction."
"No, this door must be left open."
I shook my head: "There is no way back for us. Monsters are rampant in the underground river behind us. Going back the way we came is a dead end. We are ahead, which gives us the upper hand. Qu Ruilin has already risked his life for us once. We can't cut off their path to survival!"
Hearing our conversation, the monkey scoffed and said, "I think you're thinking too far ahead. Duan Jinyan and Ping'an Village, who are ahead of us, are no pushovers. How well they'll fare, and what the situation ahead is like, are all unknowns. Whether we can even defeat them is still uncertain. You've already soiled yourself, so don't worry about whether others are clean!"
I smiled and then sped up: "The monkey is right, Ping'an Village has already gotten there before us. Everyone, speed up the pace and try to catch Duan Jinyan before he opens the second door!"
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