Urban Martial Saint

As the matter was brought up, Wen’er became extremely furious, gritting her teeth: ”The key members of the South Ridge Sect were personally trained by my father and his men, and they are very loyal to him. To ensure my safety, they had to be at the beck and call of Zhou Changjin and his group.”

”So, have they all entered these seven passages?” Ye Qing asked.

”Probably,” Wen’er shook her head and replied, ”After the South Ridge Sect people compromised, Zhou Changjin drugged me with something, and I fell into a coma. It seems they feared I might suddenly wake up and escape. As for whether the South Ridge Sect people entered these passages, I didn’t witness it, but I think they must have. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have survived until now!”

”How long have you been here?” Ye Qing asked.

”I don’t know either. I only just woke up when you arrived here. I have no idea how much time has passed in between,” Wen’er replied.

”Then when did you come in?” Ye Qing asked again.

Wen’er explained when they entered the valley, and after some mental calculations, Ye Qing realized that Wen’er and her group hadn’t been at Mount Duwang for long, only three days earlier than them. This meant that even if Wen’er and her group immediately found the entrance upon arriving, they only entered three days prior to Ye Qing.

In three days, who knows if these people could have reached the deepest part of the cave to find what was inside. However, Ye Qing could guess that they probably hadn’t left yet. Otherwise, Wen’er wouldn’t still be here, and whether it were the South Ridge Sect people or Zhou Changjin’s group who survived, they would surely have come for Wen’er.

This speculation made Ye Qing even more vigilant. If that were the case, Zhou Changjin’s group was still inside the cave, making the situation even more dangerous. Zhou Changjin’s group was far more dangerous than those Long-haired Monsters. Especially those blonde and blue-eyed foreigners, Ye Qing could almost determine that they were likely related to the Church members they had encountered in Humeng City before. Because, Ye Qing observed that the spy’s cause of death outside was similar to those wolves in Humeng City—seemingly drained of all blood, a typical method used by those foreign counts or whatever.

Moreover, Ye Qing saw another group in that waterway, who must be the group the spy had brought. Although that waterway had crocodiles and Long-haired Monsters guarding it, making it hazardous, who knows if any of those people survived. If they too managed to survive and escape, the situation would become more complicated. Inside this cave, Ye Qing not only had to face its inherent traps, but also those Long-haired Monsters, Zhou Changjin, and the people brought by the spy. In Ye Qing’s current situation, encountering any group would be troublesome.

Ye Qing turned and looked at the Stone Corridor behind him. He was now in a very awkward position. Moving forward would lead to those seven passageways, but, according to Wen’er, each passage was very dangerous, certain death if entered. And going back through the Stone Corridor, Ye Qing was even more unwilling to pass, as it led to the cave where the Long-haired Monsters were hiding. Heading back would undoubtedly lead to an encounter with those Long-haired Monsters, equating to certain death.

While staring at the Stone Corridor, pondering his next move, a thought suddenly occurred to Ye Qing. He quickly turned to Wen’er and asked, ”By the way, did you encounter those Long-haired Monsters when you reached this fork before?”

”We did, but not many. Only two,” Wen’er said, ”We encountered them just as we entered, one was killed by Zhou Changjin’s group, the other escaped.”

”Only two?” Ye Qing asked in surprise, ”How could there be only two? Isn’t that cave their hideout?”

”What cave?” Wen’er questioned, looking at Ye Qing in surprise.

”The cave leading to this Stone Corridor,” Ye Qing described the Long-haired Monsters’ hideout, but Wen’er was puzzled upon hearing it, saying, ”I’ve never seen the cave you’re talking about.”

”You’ve never seen it?” Ye Qing was even more astonished, curiously asking, ”How is that possible? If you haven’t seen it, how did you get into this Stone Corridor?”

Wen’er thought for a moment and said, ”Oh, right, I remember now. We didn’t come directly from this Stone Corridor but climbed in through a cave above it. That cave was a theft tunnel, likely dug by someone earlier. Zhou Changjin claimed that my father and his group dug it, but it seems now he might have been lying to us.”

”Theft tunnel?” Ye Qing frowned slightly, realizing what it was—an entrance dug by tomb robbers into the tomb. In other words, the Stone Corridor has another passage, and it was artificially excavated. Through this passage, the Long-haired Monsters could be bypassed.

”I see,” Ye Qing exhaled in relief, asking, ”Do you know where the theft tunnel is?”

”I still remember,” Wen’er nodded. Although she hadn’t been to many tombs, having grown up in the South Ridge Sect where everyone was skilled in tomb-robbing, she had developing a certain familiarity with these things. Even in this dark cave, she wasn’t as panicked as ordinary people but could recall where she had been.

”Great, let’s leave through the theft tunnel!” Ye Qing glanced at the seven passages in front. Although knowing great secrets lurked inside, he was unwilling to press on further, not wishing to die in this cave.

Wen’er also looked at the seven passages, hesitating to leave as the people from the South Ridge Sect might have entered one of them, and their fate was uncertain. However, she was also aware that her staying wouldn’t change anything and, if danger arose again, it would only complicate matters. Thus, she had no choice but to follow Ye Qing out.

Under Wen’er’s guidance, Ye Qing spent some effort before finding the theft tunnel. Its location was well-hidden, and despite Ye Qing’s careful observation while traversing the Stone Corridor, he never noticed the theft tunnel’s presence until Wen’er pointed it out to him.

The theft tunnel was quite small, only accommodating a crawling adult, provided they weren’t built like Handsome Fatty Wang. Ye Qing took out the Metamorphic Iron Dagger, holding it as he led the way into the theft tunnel, making way for Wen’er who closely followed, not daring to stray far from him.

Crawling was difficult through the narrow theft tunnel, poorly dug, with occasional protruding rocks that Ye Qing often bumped into. Luckily, Ye Qing was robust and unhurt by these rocks, but his crawling speed was significantly hampered.

Covering the thirty to forty meters took Ye Qing and Wen’er half an hour, mainly because the theft tunnel went upwards, making climbing difficult.

Nearing the exit, Wen’er suddenly shouted from behind, ”Brother Ye, be careful!”

Having remained vigilant, Ye Qing was startled by this, hastily looking around, ”What happened?”

Wen’er said, ”Be cautious upon exiting; this theft tunnel opens onto a cliff, very high above the ground, don’t fall off.”

Hearing this, Ye Qing let out a sigh of relief, realizing Wen’er was merely warning him about the tunnel, not an immediate danger.

”On a cliff?” Ye Qing asked in bewilderment, ”Why is the theft tunnel set so high?”

”It wasn’t dug from the outside but from the inside,” Wen’er explained, ”As they dug out, they couldn’t precisely determine the outside’s position, so it ended up on a cliff.”

”Oh?” Ye Qing asked curiously, ”People dug out? Are there still people inside?”

”It wasn’t modern people, but ancient,” Wen’er clarified, ”Tunnels like these are common in ancient tombs. When ancient tombs were built, many traps were set, making it difficult both for outsiders to enter and insiders to exit. Additionally, the workers constructing these tombs, aware of the tomb’s structure and traps, would often be buried alive as tomb occupants. Thus, knowing their fate, they would prepare for it, leaving themselves a way out while building the tombs. Commonly, a theft tunnel like this is dug from inside. If it were dug from the outside, it would be much harder. After all, the Stone Corridor is only so wide, and a thirty to forty meter-long theft tunnel requires precision, any slight miscalculation could miss the Stone Corridor.”

”That makes sense,” Ye Qing nodded, ”So this tunnel was likely dug by the workers who built this place?”

”Very likely, or it could have been dug by those trapped inside,” Wen’er speculated.

Ye Qing nodded slowly as they arrived at the tunnel’s exit, still engulfed in darkness. Ye Qing slowed down, tentatively reaching out until he felt something cold and soft—like a human hand!

Ye Qing shuddered, quickly pulling his hand back, raising the Metamorphic Iron Dagger defensively, peering ahead. Though he couldn’t see clearly in the darkness, he sensed someone seemed to be lying at the exit.

(I’m on a business trip today, only updating one chapter, my apologies to everyone. I’ll make up the two missing chapters within the week.)