I took the compressed biscuit handed to me by Fu Honglang and finished it in three bites, then drank half a bottle of water.
Although I still felt a bit unsatisfied, I knew that having something to eat and drink was already quite good.
After resting for a while, Fu Honglang and Mao Guizhi seemed to have a lot to discuss. I tactfully gave them some space and walked ahead a distance.
Ten minutes later, we emerged from the passageway and returned to the crossroad.
Fu Honglang said that he had already gone down the other two paths. One was a dead end, and the other contained mechanisms.
"That's not right..." Mao Guizhi said, "Logically, there must be a correct path, otherwise, this would be a dead loop."
"Could it be that the exit isn't in these passageways at all?" I said casually.
Unexpectedly, after hearing my words, Mao Guizhi froze, as if she had thought of something.
She walked up to the stone figurine and examined it carefully. She felt around on it with her hands, and suddenly she gave the trident in the stone figurine's hand a strong tug. Instantly, a "kaka-kaka" sound rang out.
Immediately, the stone figurine actually moved, and a downward passage appeared before us.
This suddenly appearing passage surprised all of us.
Fu Honglang said, "I'll go down first."
With that, he took the lead, holding his flashlight, and descended.
This passage was a series of descending steps, and the steps were very narrow, requiring us to place our feet sideways to maintain balance. Moreover, the steps were also very steep.
We followed the steps downwards for about three to four minutes before reaching the bottom.
Just as I was about to continue forward, Fu Honglang's voice rang out, "Don't move!"
Hearing this, I froze and shone my flashlight forward. I saw that less than two meters ahead of us was a water channel, and within the channel was a pool of stagnant water.
The water channel stretched all the way to the back, and faintly, I could see a passage within it.
The water channel was about four meters wide, and at least ten meters long, like a small swimming pool.
"What is this?" I asked.
Fu Honglang replied, "I don't know."
"How do we cross this? Could it be that we have to swim across?" I asked.
Mao Guizhi moved past Fu Honglang to the front and observed the water channel. "This looks like an Yin Canal."
"Yin Canal?"
"Legend has it that in Fengdu City, there is an Yin Canal. Anyone who commits grave sins will be thrown into the Yin Canal and undergo the punishment of bone stripping."
"Fengdu City?" I said, "Isn't that the underworld?"
As I said this, I chuckled, "Sister-in-law, do you mean we've descended into the underworld?"
"It's not necessarily only the underworld that has Yin Canals..."
As she spoke, she took off her hair tie and threw it into the water channel.
As soon as the hair tie hit the water, the water churned violently, and a wisp of green smoke shot out from the surface. The hair tie vanished without a trace.
I was stunned. What was going on?
It seemed this was some kind of corrosive liquid!
"How do we cross this?" Fu Honglang asked.
Mao Guizhi waved her flashlight and pointed above the water channel. There, she saw a large iron ring.
"What is that?" I asked.
"It should be some kind of mechanism," Mao Guizhi replied.
I was about to ask whether we should go up or what, when Fu Honglang had already taken a coil of rope from his backpack.
This rope was very thin, about the thickness of a little finger, and it wasn't climbing rope.
At one end of the rope was a grappling hook.
Fu Honglang picked up the grappling hook and said, "Brother Xiang, lend me some light."
I quickly did as Mao Guizhi did, aiming my flashlight at the iron ring above.
Fu Honglang suddenly threw the grappling hook. To everyone's surprise, it passed precisely through the iron ring.
Fu Honglang gave a strong tug, and the grappling hook swung back, twirling twice before securing itself onto the iron ring.
Could he be planning to swing across using this rope?
The moment this thought crossed my mind, I instinctively glanced at the water channel and swallowed.
Wasn't this too risky?
"I'll go over first to check," Fu Honglang said.
He then gave the rope a strong tug.
Mao Guizhi said, "Be careful."
"It's fine."
I initially wanted to dissuade him, but at this moment, it seemed I might have underestimated Fu Honglang.
Wang Yang had said he was from the Golden Scent Sect, and coupled with his experience in tomb raiding, if he didn't have some skills, he probably wouldn't have survived until now.
While I was lost in thought, Fu Honglang had already rushed down from the stairs, leaped forward, and soared into the air. In the blink of an eye, he had reached the other side of the water channel.
Before I could even react, he was already on the other side.
I had always thought Fu Honglang was quite agile, but I never expected him to be so nimble.
Watching him appear on the other side, I pursed my lips and looked at Mao Guizhi. Just as I was about to ask her how we were supposed to cross, Fu Honglang's voice came from the other side: "You two go back to the steps first. I think I've found the mechanism..."
Hearing this, Mao Guizhi and I quickly retreated and returned to the steps.
Immediately, sounds of stone grinding against each other and metal clashing could be heard all around.
Suddenly, several cylindrical stone pillars emerged from the water channel, spanning its entire length.
Fu Honglang shouted, "Take a look, see if you can cross."
Mao Guizhi heard him and, holding her flashlight, tentatively stepped onto the stone pillars. She found that the pillars did not sink, so she looked at me and said, "Follow me."
I nodded. After she had taken a few steps forward, I quickly stepped onto the stone pillars as well.
With every step, I was extremely cautious and my heart was pounding with anxiety.
As we reached the middle section, the sound of mechanisms activating echoed again.
The stone pillars beneath our feet began to descend!
"This mechanism has a time limit! Hurry over!" Fu Honglang shouted.
Mao Guizhi quickened her pace and leaped across in just a few strides.
I dared not delay and also ran towards the front.
Just as I stepped onto the last stone pillar and landed on the bank, I looked back and saw that the stone pillars had completely sunk into the water.
I let out a sigh of relief. The mechanisms in this place were indeed complex and ingenious.
"Brother Xiang, are you alright?" Fu Honglang asked me.
I shook my head and replied, "I'm fine."
He nodded and then turned to lead the way again, disappearing into the passageway.
This passageway wasn't long, only about ten meters. We emerged from it shortly after.
Soon, we arrived at a very vast and wide plaza.
This plaza was enormous, so large that I couldn't even estimate its size!
The entire plaza was a massive circle, with numerous passageways around it, at least dozens of them.
Those passageways looked similar to the one we had entered.
This meant that all the passageways ultimately led here.
In the center of the plaza was a domed building, supported by many stone pillars.
Around this pavilion-like structure, a dozen thick pillars were arranged in a circle.
Other than that, there was nothing else in the entire plaza.
This place could accommodate at least ten thousand people. If this was a place for rituals, wouldn't tens of thousands of people participate in each ritual?
The thought of such a grand scene made me involuntarily swallow.