To be safe, Xie Yun had already placed the spiritually attractive Butterfly Loving Flowers scent on Wen Zhanxin beforehand. Thus, as soon as they left the City Lord's mansion, Xie Yun released the spirit butterflies. With the spirit butterflies leading the way, they wouldn't be like headless flies, lost without direction.
They followed the spirit butterflies out of the city and into the forest. The Butterfly Loving Flowers scent accompanied them along the path. Ordinary people couldn't smell it, but the spirit butterflies were highly sensitive to this fragrance.
After walking in the forest for about the time it takes an incense stick to burn, reaching what they estimated to be the deepest part of the woods, the path underfoot became increasingly secluded, and the environment grew more eerie.
The spirit butterflies, which normally emanated a faint blue glow, suddenly intensified their radiance and quickly returned to Xie Yun's hand.
Before them lay a stone cave, significantly larger than the one Qin Jiujiu had been taken to last time.
"Wen Zhanxin is very likely inside, but we can't ascertain the situation within the cave for now. Let's split up!"
Xie Yun took out several talismans from his sleeve and distributed them to everyone.
"What you hold are talismans. If you encounter minor demons, you can use them."
After explaining the uses and incantations of these talismans to everyone, Xie Yun divided them into groups. Upon entering the cave, there were paths to the left and right, perfectly suited for dividing into two groups.
Each group was led by either himself or Wei Ting, and each group comprised fifteen people, including the leader.
"Be careful!"
Wei Ting clenched his fists, his right hand gripping a sword, and moved them to his chest. He lowered his head slightly, his clasped fists rising to the height of his head. His armor clanked, and his deep voice boomed, "Yes!"
This resounding affirmation was indeed morale-boosting. Those who were somewhat fearful among his subordinates found renewed courage.
The two teams diverged, heading left and right. Xie Yun, being on the left, went that way, while Wei Ting led his men to the right.
With the system's guidance, Qin Jiujiu reached the cave entrance effortlessly, only about half an incense stick's time after Xie Yun.
Looking at the eerie cave entrance before her, she began to hesitate about whether to enter.
System: "Host, please enter quickly to trigger the plot!"
Qin Jiujiu: "..."
Liu Jin, on the other hand, was full of high spirits and pulled Qin Jiujiu along, eager to enter.
Truly worthy of being the second female lead who could fight on the battlefield, she was so brave!
Even if she absolutely didn't want to go in, she had no choice but to comply. She wondered if this cave was the murderer's lair. If it turned out to be a dumping ground like last time, the number of corpses this time would be unimaginable, given how much larger this cave was.
Putting aside thoughts of the murderous and skin-flaying culprit being some kind of fiendish demon, just considering the nine-tailed fox they had encountered earlier, which had sought her life, even with her bravery, she couldn't bear it!
However, there was no other way now. She could only go in and take it one step at a time, ready to flee if anything felt wrong.
Qin Jiujiu touched the Qiankun Bag at her waist again. The talismans inside were crucial for saving her life at critical moments. Ever since she had lost it once, she cherished it immensely, valuing it more than her own life.
For some reason, she felt that this Qiankun Bag was somehow different from before. The appearance of the character 'Jing' out of nowhere might have been something she overlooked before, which was understandable. However, this bag would sometimes get hot and would even move on its own.
She clearly took it off and placed it on her dressing table when she slept, but the next morning, it would be back around her waist. It happened once, but this situation occurred frequently. To avoid losing it again like last time, she would often touch her waist to feel for the bag; only when the bag was there did she feel at ease.
Qin Jiujiu was pulled into the cave by Liu Jin. Seeing the two paths to the left and right, she was momentarily at a loss for which to choose.
"System, which way should I go?"
"Host, go right. Let the second female lead go left!"
As soon as she heard about separating, Qin Jiujiu felt a question arise.
"Why do we have to go separately? It's safer to be together..."
"Host, don't forget that you need to trigger the plot. I've detected that the path on the left does not pose significant danger; the second female lead will be fine!"
Qin Jiujiu: "..."
She naturally knew Liu Jin would be fine; after all, she was the second female lead. Even though the plot had deviated significantly, Liu Jin was still the second female lead, and she wouldn't meet her end here. But she, a mere nobody, was surrounded by danger everywhere, and could perish at any moment.
"This means the right side is dangerous, right! You heartless system, you're leading me to my doom!"
"Please complete the mission, Host. Go right!"
This damned system didn't even deem it necessary to explain! Qin Jiujiu was so angered that she was about to give up when she heard the system's cold voice: "Please complete the mission quickly, Host. If you miss the timing, this mission will fail..."
Before it could finish, Qin Jiujiu quickly said to Liu Jin, "Sister A Jin, let's go separately. You go left, and I'll go right!"
Before Liu Jin could react, Qin Jiujiu strode decisively to the right.
"Jiujiu, be careful!"
Qin Jiujiu heard Liu Jin's voice and turned back, shouting, "Sister A Jin, you be careful too!"
After saying that, she realized her voice was too loud and hit her forehead regretfully before turning to continue forward.
Because of the system's words, Qin Jiujiu proceeded with extreme caution along the way. She held the Qiankun Bag directly in her hand. She wasn't sure if it was due to her nervousness and sweaty palms, but she felt the Qiankun Bag getting hot again.
The path underfoot became narrower and narrower, and the stone cave grew lower and lower. Such an environment made one increasingly uneasy, especially as the cave was very dark.
She walked cautiously, taking a few steps and then looking back. Fortunately, there were wooden sticks on both sides of the cave that could be used to start fires. She had fire talismans and lit a torch, which lessened the horror of the gloomy stone cave somewhat.
However, the torch did disturb the bats in the cave. One or two would occasionally dart out, scaring her into ducking and covering her head. Gradually, she grew accustomed to it.
The City Lord's mansion remained undisturbed. Everything had concluded, and the guests had dispersed.
The troupe members were housed in the guest rooms of the City Lord's mansion, guarded by mansion guards. Although there was temporary peace, the guards could not be withdrawn.
For some unknown reason, Xie Jing felt a sense of unease. He had a hunch that Qin Jiujiu wouldn't be so obedient. As expected, when he went to find her, her room was empty.
Even Liu Jin was not in the City Lord's mansion.
Clearly, these two must have gone together to find Xie Yun.
The moment Qin Jiujiu suggested accompanying Xie Yun, he had felt annoyed. Now, standing in her empty room, he was even more enraged.
She was originally a timid person, but for Xie Yun, she was unafraid of demon beasts like the nine-tailed fox and insisted on going to find him!
The more Xie Jing thought about it, the more vexed he became. Had Xie Yun become so important to her?