"Why can only two people pass at a time?"
The old man raised his head slowly like a puppet to look at Jiang Lai who asked the question, then repeated the sentence in his hoarse, grating voice.
"Only two can enter the passage ahead, no more than two, or face the consequences."
Everyone couldn’t help but think of the old man guarding the Black River and subconsciously looked at Jiang Lai.
Jiang Lai nodded.
"Alright, thank you for the guidance, elder."
At this moment, the fourth senior brother quietly asked a question.
"Did you ask if he has anything to sell us?"
"Why don’t you go and ask?"
The fourth senior brother turned around and looked at the old man with a smile.
"May I ask if there’s anything for sale here, elder?"
"Only two can enter the passage ahead, no more than two, or face the consequences."
The fourth senior brother frowned and suddenly noticed a few slender silver threads hanging behind the old man’s neck, which were not noticeable without getting closer.
He was shocked and, upon closer inspection of the old man in front of him, realized that the old man’s eyes had only been looking in one direction from the start, occasionally blinking stiffly and slowly. When he spoke, his mouth under the beard didn’t move at all.
He stepped back repeatedly.
"He’s a puppet! Made from a dead person!"
Jiang Lai laughed and patted him on the shoulder.
"So, what do you think he has to sell you?"
"You knew all along, didn’t you? And you still tricked me!"
"I didn’t trick you. Besides, if you couldn’t tell, why should I be able to?"
At this moment, the senior brother stepped forward and directly pulled the fourth senior brother aside.
"Junior sister is right, this puppet is indeed lifelike."
"Then should we still listen to him?"
The senior brother looked at Jiang Lai.
Jiang Lai nodded.
"Of course, fourth senior brother, you’re in the team with me."
The other three senior brothers: "..."
Why.
"If it’s two by two, there will definitely be an extra person."
Zhang Qingqing was a bit scared. She worried about being left behind and hoped to be with someone stronger.
The senior brother frowned and said.
"Second senior brother, take Du Furong, third senior brother, take Zhang Qingqing, and I’ll go last."
Du Furong wasn’t pleased. She wanted to follow the senior brother.
The fourth senior brother was also unhappy, trying to evade.
"Why do you want to team up with me? If we encounter danger, I can’t protect you, and you can’t protect me. I disagree; I want to team up with the senior brother."
Jiang Lai glared at him.
"Other than me, who else would want to team up with you? Or do you want to venture alone?"
The fourth senior brother looked to the senior brother for help, but the latter silently averted his gaze, pretending not to see.
Although it was unclear why Jiang Lai insisted on pairing with the senior brother, her decisions had never been wrong, so the senior brother didn’t question further.
At this time, Wu Lie said solemnly.
"Senior brother, you team up with her, I’ll go last."
"But..."
"It’s fine with me. Once inside, we can regroup."
The senior brother understood that Wu Lie had always been uncomfortable being too close to women. Pairing him with the chatty Du Furong who gets startled easily was indeed unfair to him.
"In that case, let’s do as you suggest."
Once the teams were formed, everyone went in one by one. They thought it would be a simple word game and that they could easily regroup once inside. But as soon as their feet touched the path, the scenery twisted and changed as if in a mirage.
The surrounding mist thickened like never before, obscuring everything on the path, rendering them unable to see what lay ahead.
When the mist cleared, everything had changed.
Looking at the deep path ahead, it seemed similar to before yet different upon closer inspection.
The original green stone slabs had turned white, and there was now the sound of wind at their ears. All signs indicated they were in a different place.
The fourth senior brother was a bit tense, but this tension turned into eager excitement at the sight of the blossom-filled Stramonium along the path.
Jiang Lai noticed his emotions.
"Fourth senior brother, the sign says no entry ahead—should we still go?"
At the end of the path was a cave entrance with a plaque hanging above it that read, "No Entry."
The fourth senior brother contained his excitement.
"Then you wait outside; senior brother will go check the situation."
Jiang Lai followed inside, watching as the fourth senior brother knocked on the surrounding walls, occasionally listening against them.
"This is it."
"What’s this place?"
"It’s where the treasure is buried. I know why you’ve always wanted to follow me. It’s not like you’re worried I’ll sneak away with the good stuff. Don’t worry, since I promised, I won’t go back on my word. Whatever I find, I’ll split it with you half and half."
Jiang Lai observed their surroundings with a faint smile.
"Hmm, let’s wait until you find the treasure to talk about that."
The fourth senior brother smiled mysteriously and brushed his hand over a protrusion on the wall, pressing it down with force.
The next second, the ground beneath them suddenly collapsed, and they were caught off guard, falling into the darkness. After a fall lasting several seconds, they landed with a "thud."
Before the fourth senior brother could shout in pain, a hand covered his mouth.
He widened his eyes in confusion, seeing Jiang Lai gesturing to a spot not far away that glowed with a cold, bluish light.
Seeing clearly what lay there, he was so shocked that every hair on his body stood up.
Lurking in the shadows was a massive creature. It was hard to recognize what it was because where its head should be, there were three heads instead. From the shadow, it was vaguely discernible as a wolf—one with three heads that vigilantly guarded a door.
At this moment, one of the heads was already awake, lifting to look around with a palpable sense of pressure.
The fourth senior brother took a deep breath, slowly removing Jiang Lai’s hand, and asked with his eyes what they should do.
Jiang Lai made a throat-slitting gesture.
The fourth senior brother’s eyes widened, shaking his head like a rattle.
Clearly, this was the spirit beast guarding the treasure. Anything below the Six Elements isn’t fit to be called a Guardian Beast, which means this three-headed wolf is definitely above Six Elements.
Six Elements correspond to the Tenth Rank.
Even combined, their cultivation didn’t add up to the Tenth Rank, and charging in would be like offering themselves as snacks.
The fourth senior brother wanted to flee but was reluctant to leave behind the treasure inside.
Jiang Lai, looking at the Demon Wolf, knew it was an Eight Element Beast. Even Wu Lie wouldn’t necessarily be its match if he were here.
Yet there was no way out. They’d already fallen into its lair, surrounded by walls; the only exit was the door behind it.
Staying still would eventually get them discovered, as it, after all, had three heads and six eyes. If all three heads awakened, Jiang Lai would certainly meet his demise here.