Chapter 362
Darkness
Chapter 362 Darkness
Luosha quickly found her way and began to walk slowly into the depths of the maze, with Qi Fei and Zhong Kui following closely behind.
The maze is a place that is both known and unknown.
Then, Rakshasa did not linger in the maze. Passing through the central area they had previously reached, Rakshasa led them through the maze to the other side of Nanling. The dense forest still covered the land even in winter. Half of the snow had melted, revealing broken stone steps that led them deeper into the mountains and forests.
The stone niche, formed over thousands of years, has appeared. Inside the grotto, a bixi (a mythical tortoise-like creature) with its face smoothed by wind and frost silently carries a stone tablet without any inscription. Legend has it that the abandoned, nameless prince was buried in Nanling. It seems that this is the prince's burial place.
Zhong Kui and Qi Fei stood in front of the grotto, looked at each other, and knew that at this point, there was no turning back.
Sure enough, the stone tablet began to slowly rotate, revealing a grotesque face carved on its back. Then, from somewhere in the grotto, Xi He's voice came: "This is the true face of this stone tablet. His father built this enormous tomb not to commemorate him, but to imprison him. They wanted to trap him in a labyrinth, to suppress him with an evil god, so that he could never rise again until his death. This is the truth you want to know, this is the truth of this world. What is kinship, what is love, what is morality and conscience? They are nothing but the taking and taking of those in power."
As soon as he finished speaking, the stone tablet descended, revealing a pitch-black entrance.
Rakshasa's fur stood on end, her amber eyes fixed on the entrance, blocking Zhong Kui's way and preventing her from going down.
Zhong Kui understood Luocha's feelings and gently bent down to stroke its head: "Good boy, it's enough that you've accompanied me this far on this journey. Wait for me with Grandma at Zizai Mountain. I will definitely come back to find you."
As he spoke, he seemed to lightly tap Rakshasa's head, but the big cat fell to the ground and lost consciousness.
“It will be alright.” Zhong Kui said to the worried Qi Fei, then took his hand. “Let’s go, this journey of confusion should come to an end.”
The moment their hands touched, a chill seemed to sweep over from the ground, as if it were Xihe's jealousy.
Inside the underground palace, facing the still unopenable interface, Xi He understood the reason for everything. He let out a mournful laugh in the darkness: "Come on, come on, Zhong Xiaoyu, you are truly an untamable beast!"
With a loud bang, the entrance closed behind Qi Zhong and the other person.
Everything was plunged into complete darkness. For some reason, Qi Fei's phone stopped working, and the flashlight wouldn't turn on.
The steps to the underground palace seemed to have no end. The deeper you went, the colder and more gloomy it became.
They cautiously probed downwards along the cold stone wall, but after an unknown amount of time, their path was blocked by a door.
Unlike the rough stone walls, the surface of this door is as smooth as jade, and it is not made of ordinary material.
"You're being too clever for your own good." Xi He's voice came from inside the door. "This isn't a place anyone can just walk into."
“You want Zhong Xiaoyu,” Zhong Kui said immediately, as if it were expected. “My mission has ended here.”
Qi Fei's eyes gradually adjusted to the darkness, and he could vaguely see Zhong Kui's back. In a daze, he saw her turn around. Even though he couldn't see anything clearly, his heart still skipped a beat, followed by a dull pain that made it hard to breathe.
This was a silent farewell.
On the other side of the heavy door, the demon had already bared his fangs, excitedly awaiting the return of his destined lover to the mortal realm. "It's me." In the darkness, Zhong Kui's voice changed; that cold voice belonged only to Zhong Xiaoyu.
The stone door made a loud noise in the silent underground as it began to turn and open.
The firelight caught Qi Fei's eye, so bright that he could barely open his eyes.
Xi He felt as if he were in the fires of hell, staring at the two people who appeared through the crack in the door with the dangerous eyes of a wild wolf.
Qi Fei had already drawn his gun and pointed it at Xi He, gritting his teeth as he said, "Come with me, or I will shoot for justice."
Xi He laughed: "You know I won't go with you. Come on, shoot and kill me."
Qi Fei was enraged by his arrogant attitude and growled, "Even if you are my brother, your hands are stained with too much blood. Don't think I won't shoot."
His eyes glistened with tears in the firelight; his emotions were complex.
"Is that so?" Xi He actually walked towards Qi Fei until he pressed the gun to his chest. He reached out his cold hand and grasped Qi Fei's hand, saying in a seductive voice, "Come on, kill me, if that will free you. All those who follow me will be freed. If your prison is me, then let me free you with my own hands."
"You think I can't?!" Qi Fei's low growl turned into an angry scream. He shouted and pulled the trigger. There was a crisp sound of metal rubbing against the air. Xi He's face gradually blossomed into a crazy and triumphant smile.
Nothing happened; his gun malfunctioned.
“This place has a special magnetic field, you can’t kill me. But I know now. You and Qi Dongjun are cut from the same cloth. I know that in this world, only Dr. Zhong truly loves me.” As Xi He spoke, he suddenly snatched Qi Fei’s gun with astonishing speed and struck Qi Fei’s forehead with the butt of the gun.
Qi Fei was like a demon, completely paralyzed and lying on the ground unable to move.
Like a rebellious student, Xi He showed off to Zhong Xiaoyu, saying, "How about it? You taught me this move, didn't I learn it well?"
Faced with all this, Zhong Xiaoyu remained silent. Her face, illuminated by the firelight, was half-lit and half-shadowed, and Qi Fei, lying on the ground, could not understand her expression.
What Xi He said next took him even more by surprise.
“You have to understand him, know that only Zhong Kui can make him obediently come here.” Xi He moved closer to Zhong Xiaoyu, tracing her chin with his finger in an ambiguous manner, and said flirtatiously.
“You know I brought him here to see you on purpose,” Zhong Xiaoyu said calmly.
"How should I put it? Whether it's your love for me or your hatred for me, you know that Qi Fei is the only weapon that can deal with me, because you thought I would show him mercy." Xi He didn't seem to blame Zhong Xiaoyu for plotting against him, and even took her hand with a fawning tone, "If this can keep you by my side, I can accept the pain of being hurt by my own brother."
"You don't care about any of this, stop pretending," Zhong Xiaoyu said indifferently. "The person you love isn't me. I'm just a vessel, the host of your lover!"
Xi He, who had been calm and composed, revealed his true, insane nature when Zhong Xiaoyu said those words.