Although Xie Yuchen appeared refined, his physical condition was robust. It was unlikely he would catch a cold after just a brief immersion in water.
His coughing came on suddenly. At first, he could suppress it, but it gradually intensified, reaching a point where he could no longer hold it back.
This abnormality instantly triggered his vigilance.
"Cough, cough, I, cough, think there's something wrong here—" he was unable to continue, having to pause midway.
Wu Tianzhen, worried, wanted to step forward and assess the situation, but suddenly felt a sharp pain in his chest!
Ever since entering this Forbidden Land of Emei, he had been coughing intermittently. However, being a novice, he hadn't paid much attention. It was only when the pain in his lungs spread that he suddenly realized—
He might have been affected long ago.
Wu Tianzhen remained silent, but his sudden pallor was evident.
Seeing this, Zhang Qiling's heart tightened, and a guess popped into his mind.
...His and Hei Yanjing's physiques were special. Even if there was a problem here, they were unlikely to be significantly affected.
With this thought, Zhang Qiling turned abruptly, his fingers like lightning, pressing acupoints on the胖子's chest beside him!
"Holy crap!" The胖子 reacted strongly, shouting out with a yelp. He seemed to be in considerable pain. "Little Brother, what are you doing?!"
But Zhang Qiling didn't reply.
The胖子 only saw Zhang Qiling's eyes widen slightly beneath his hood, and then his gaze instantly became sharp.
"Blind!" he uttered softly, swiftly pulling open the胖子's backpack and finding a gas mask amidst a pile of explosives.
The胖子's vision blurred as Zhang Qiling shoved the gas mask onto his face. He looked ahead blankly, seeing Wu Tianzhen in front of him also being fitted with one by the swift-acting Hei Yanjing.
Xie Yuchen didn't give Hei Yanjing a chance to mask him. With a nimble movement, he pulled out the gas mask from his back and fitted it on.
"Impressive~" Hei Yanjing whistled, with a hint of amusement, then watched as Xie Yuchen unhurriedly took out a ledger and added a deduction record to the line item for (Hei Yanjing's salary).
The note for the deduction was: Mocking the boss.
Hei Yanjing: ???
Wu Tianzhen felt a slight relief under the gas mask, and the pain in his chest subsided somewhat. He rested for a moment, then a thought flickered through his mind—
...Little Brother, why did you suddenly call him "Blind" again? Did that detestable little Hei introduce himself just now?
Damn it, why is Hei Yanjing so proficient?!
While Wu Tianzhen's thoughts raced, it didn't impede Little Zhang's mission.
"We must leave immediately." After confirming the gas masks were secure, Zhang Qiling walked to the wall and reached out. As expected, thin streams of air were emerging from the mouths of the stone statues of human heads.
...The cement-like material inside wasn't poorly sealed; those leaks were deliberately set as exhaust vents!
It was likely that the poisonous gas here had been permeating for years, spreading outside. That was why Wu Tianzhen had started coughing as soon as he entered the forbidden land.
He wasn't choked by the mist; rather, due to his weakest constitution, he was the first to show symptoms.
Gas masks might not be effective for long. Delay could lead to unforeseen complications.
With this in mind, Zhang Qiling exchanged a glance with Xie Yuchen. The two teams immediately rose and quickly moved towards the mouths of the ape statues on the left and right sides.
Zhang Qiling had already explained the steps to unlock the mechanism to Xie Yuchen. The steps were not overly complicated, making them easy for Xie Yuchen to remember.
His fingers danced rapidly over the mechanism door, and the sound of stone slabs moving violently gradually echoed from within the apes!
Wu Tianzhen wanted to steal another glance at Xie Yuchen's side, but the ape's teeth blocked his view, preventing him from seeing clearly.
Then, a "click" sounded from both sides simultaneously!
Zhang Qiling withdrew his hand and took a step back, looking ahead with a hint of caution. The heavy door panel was slowly pulling open, revealing a sliver of darkness behind it.
A loud bang echoed from behind, and waves of water surged. The two ape statues had closed their mouths, sealing them inside.
Wu Tianzhen and the胖子 tacitly focused their flashlight beams forward. The gap between the door panels gradually widened, slowly expanding to about twenty centimeters.
...I wonder if we'll be able to regroup with Little Hua and the others later. Where does this lead? What if Little Hua and the others encounter danger...
Wu Tianzhen thought chaotically as he looked into the darkness. But just then, a harsh "creak" sounded from the door panel!
With this sound, the opening of the door panel instantly stopped, and the space inside fell into an eerie silence.
"What's going on?!" The胖子 looked around in bewilderment, trying to find the source of the sound. Soon, Zhang Qiling's clear voice rang out:
"It's stuck..."
"What, Little Brother, you just said, stuck—"
"CRASH—!!!"
Just as Wu Tianzhen was about to inquire further, a familiar sword's hum suddenly erupted in his ears!
He felt a gust of sharp wind sweep past, followed by a collision!
The stopped door panel seemed to have triggered some mechanism and suddenly accelerated its closure. But just as it was about to seal completely, it was jammed by the swiftly shot Black Gold Ancient Sword!
At this moment, the Black Gold Ancient Sword struggled to hold the thick door panels on both sides, emitting a creaking sound.
"This won't do. The gap is too small for us to pass—" Wu Tianzhen was somewhat anxious, but his words stopped abruptly. "Wait, what's that sound?"
From the darkness within the ape stone carvings' mouths, a hissing sound, like a snake flicking its tongue, gradually emerged.
"There are snakes, no, not snakes," Wu Tianzhen's gas mask was tightly sealed, but he faintly felt the pain in his chest flare up again. "It's those human head stone statues; they're releasing poisonous gas faster!"
But at this moment—
"胖子!" Zhang Qiling grabbed Wu Tianzhen and retreated abruptly. At the same time, the Black Gold Ancient Sword was withdrawn from the stone slab!
The inner side of the door panel was scraped by the sharp edge of the Black Gold blade, leaving two deep marks. But just as it was about to close again, a row of black objects blocked it once more!
In that very moment, the explosives the胖子 had prepared were thrown, accurately jamming into the gap of the door panel!
"Got it, Little Brother!!!"
The胖子 leaped back, dodging to the side behind a fang-like stone carving, and slammed down the detonator in his hand!
"BOOM—!!!"