Li Zhuang and Shu Laiyun exchanged a look.
Then, Shu Laiyun's nose twitched slightly, and he frowned.
What was going on here? There was danger, yet there was also no danger...
Zhao Lin had already noticed that between Li Zhuang and Shu Laiyun, Shu Laiyun was the one calling the shots.
He was also well aware of Shu Laiyun's background.
After all, the wanted poster for him had spread across the entire country back then. Anyone who had entered the path of cultivation—as long as they weren't hermits living deep in the mountains—knew a thing or two about him.
After a moment's thought, Zhao Lin offered an explanation.
“There's no need to be too tense. I'm highly skilled in the art of Qi-gazing and can help locate the exit. You can just follow me when the time comes.”
“Of course, if we run into any specters later, I hope we can all work together to get through this.”
He spoke high-sounding words, but none of those present took them to heart.
Hearing this, Shu Laiyun's eyes widened slightly.
He seemed to realize something, and his eyes darted around.
“Traveling together is fine, but I have my own way of determining the correct path, so I won't be needing your help.”
Wu Su shared the same sentiment.
Although his method didn't seem as reliable as theirs, he still trusted himself more.
Only those who had absolutely no idea where to go would blindly follow Zhao Lin.
Zhao Lin felt a pang of displeasure.
If they could find their own way, then even if they traveled together, they wouldn't owe him anything. If that was the case, what was he going to do with the two curse seeds in his hands?
Of course, despite his thoughts, he kept his expression perfectly neutral.
“That works out perfectly!”
“We can verify the correct path with each other as we go. That way, we can get out of here even faster.”
Seeing that they had made up their minds, Li Zhuang hesitated.
“Then... what about that specter from before?”
Zhao Lin knew he was referring to the specter that had repeatedly blocked their path.
At first, he had thought the specter was coming to attack them. But to his surprise, whenever he led his group to flee or change direction, the entity never gave chase.
It was as if it was intentionally stalling for time.
He had already noticed earlier that the specter always appeared whenever they moved in a specific direction. In other words... that direction was the correct way out.
“Don't worry about it.”
“Even though it blocked our way, it never actually attacked us. It seems it only wants to stop us from taking the correct path. If we see it again, we can just ignore it and push straight ahead.”
Shu Laiyun gave Li Zhuang a look and made a quick hand gesture.
Understanding the cue, Li Zhuang took the lead.
“In that case, let's not waste any time.”
Shu Laiyun followed close behind, with Wu Su right after him.
As for Zhao Lin and his group, they naturally trailed a step behind at the very rear.
At that moment, another player standing behind him whispered a question.
“Brother Zhao, is this path correct?”
After all, the one who had chosen the direction just now was Shu Laiyun, not Zhao Lin.
Although they knew how capable Shu Laiyun was, they still trusted Zhao Lin more.
Zhao Lin smiled.
“I just took a look using the art of Qi-gazing. It's indeed the correct way. Rest assured and keep walking.”
With his reassurance, the others finally set their minds at ease.
Their journey this time was incredibly smooth.
The specter seemed to have vanished, never showing itself again.
Perhaps because they hadn't run into any specters, it took them just over half an hour to exit the narrow mine shaft and enter a relatively spacious chamber.
But when they did...
“Look ahead! And up there!”
A few people with glowing fingertips raised their hands.
They channeled more of their spiritual energy, and the light quickly dispelled the darkness before them. Then, everyone saw the two human skins hanging from above.
There were also bones scattered across the ground, along with minced pieces of flesh.
“This...”
A thick, nauseating stench of blood washed over them, causing everyone to frown.
But that was the extent of their reaction.
After all, while their own world seemed peaceful on the surface, there was no shortage of darkness in the shadows. They had all witnessed bloody scenes like this to some degree.
Before long, Shu Laiyun recognized who those two human skins belonged to.
“Brother Li, I think that's Guo Xingcheng and his partner...”
Earlier, he had sensed danger and had Li Zhuang carry him away to hide, while the others followed their shadow splits down the wrong path.
He once again felt incredibly grateful for his 【Danger-Scenting】 talent. It really was exceptionally useful!
It had allowed him to escape disaster.
As for Li Zhuang...
He hadn't recognized them at first. After all, they had been skinned, and the hanging hides were somewhat deformed. But after being reminded, it suddenly clicked.
“You're right! It really is them.”
“I didn't expect the specter here to be so brutal. To think its method of killing would be this gruesome.”
Wu Su stepped forward to examine the scene closely.
However, he wasn't looking at the corpses, but rather the tracks on the ground.
“There are footprints here.”
The footprints had been left by Zuo Lin'an and Fang Tang's living bodies. Although Zuo Lin'an's specter body had carried them when they left, they hadn't covered their tracks when they first arrived.
Li Zhuang raised an eyebrow.
“They must belong to Guo Xingcheng and his partner. I didn't expect those two to reach this place first after we separated. What a shame, though. Getting here first didn't do them any good...”
The early bird simply died early.
Wu Su studied the prints carefully, then shook his head.
“No, that's not right.”
“There are indeed two different sets of footprints, but the difference in size is quite significant. They should belong to a man and a woman.”
“A man and a woman?”
Everyone was puzzled.
There were indeed men and women among them, but they had been moving together as a group this whole time.
At this point, Zhao Lin suddenly remembered something.
“I remember now! Do you still recall those two ordinary people from earlier?”
As soon as he spoke, the others finally remembered Zuo Lin'an and Fang Tang, whom they had ignored since the very beginning of the dungeon.
“The woman who kept tripping while walking?”
Zhao Lin nodded. “Yes, her. And the man next to her, who should be her boyfriend.”
Wu Su frowned.
“How is that possible? How could they have moved so fast?”
“Could they have a specter item or a talent that helps them find the correct path?”
“But that doesn't make sense either. Did they not run into any specter attacks along the way?”
He found it hard to believe. Stepping forward a few more paces, he bypassed the scattered remains of the two players and continued to investigate.
And then...
“No, there are no footprints of theirs on this side. They only exist in the area where they exited the mine shaft.”
Hearing this, Zhao Lin asked, sounding somewhat uncertain, “So, they did make it here, but then an accident occurred...”
“The specter must have captured Guo Xingcheng and his partner in the mine shafts earlier and brought them here to kill them. But when it arrived, it just so happened to run into those two.”
“In the end, the specter slaughtered Guo Xingcheng's group, left their bodies like this, and snatched those two ordinary people away before leaving?”
Wu Su thought about it. Although it felt a bit strange, he still nodded.
“That seems to be the only explanation.”
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