2820 Someone Underground
"Your Highness, would you like me to descend and investigate?" Huifeng deftly secured a rope around his waist.
Duan Yue shot him a skeptical look before expressing his concerns, "How can you descend with this rope? The astral winds down there are like razor blades. Even if you use a shield, the rope will likely be severed upon exposure."
Mo Lian turned to him inquiringly, "Do you have a plan?"
Duan Yue extended his hand, revealing a metal rope, and confidently stated, "I will go down and assess the situation."
Huifeng quickly interjected, "It might be better if I go!"
Duan Yue waved his hand, securing the peculiar metal rope around his waist before passing the other end to Mo Lian. Without a word, he leaped into the abyss of darkness.
Mo Lian felt his grip tighten, and he pulled on the rope with determination. The metal rope seemed to extend infinitely into the depths of the cave.
Huifeng was left in awe and trepidation, unable to find words, "My heavens, how deep does this hole go?"
Five long minutes had passed since His Highness, the Chen Prince, descended into the depths, yet the rope continued its seemingly endless journey into the abyss.
Several more minutes crawled by when Mo Lian decided to step back cautiously. He raised his left hand and forcefully tugged at the metal rope.
The peculiar rope remained taut and unyielding, landing vertically within the pitch-black void, its tension accentuated by the silence that enveloped the scene.
Huifeng felt an urge to rush forward and assist with the pulling, but he held back as he observed Crown Prince Mo's disapproving shake of the head.
A stifled cough suddenly pierced the stillness, startling everyone. Their attention was abruptly redirected as they were shocked to witness the dirty, huddled figure gradually straightening up.
"Didn't all the meridians in his limbs get snapped inch by inch?" Huifeng blurted out.
The hidden guards reacted instantly, their every nerve on edge as they moved to encircle and protect His Highness, the Crown Prince, with unwavering vigilance, their focus fixed on the enigmatic figure before them.
"Cough. Cough, cough," the mysterious individual emitted a profoundly peculiar cough. It seemed as though he hadn't spoken in decades, and each utterance was a grating ordeal, as if his vocal cords had endured considerable strain.
The tense atmosphere hung heavy as everyone remained on alert, anticipating the next move from the enigmatic presence on the other side.
However, even after waiting for half a day, there was still no response from the other party. Those faintly discernible eyes, however, seemed to have grown sharper as they fixated on them.
Even Huifeng, typically experienced and knowledgeable, couldn't help but feel a sense of unease creeping over him.
"Who could have witnessed a blind and mute man with all his meridians severed miraculously recover in less than an hour?" he pondered silently. "Is he some sort of anomaly?"
"Your Highness," Huifeng felt a growing urgency to remove His Highness, the Crown Prince, from this unsettling situation. "This individual seems highly unpredictable."
Mo Lian, however, communicated the need for patience with a glance, conveying that he couldn't free himself from the metal rope.
Fortunately, Duan Yue acted swiftly. Mo Lian hauled him up along with the quilt, the bundle of cotton wrapped around his shoulder. Upon landing, Duan Yue promptly discarded the bundle with a displeased expression. "It reeks!"
/It really was so stinky./
Mo Lian had also smelled this strange smell, and he couldn't resist breaking loose with a frown as he took a step back.
That cotton wrapper unraveled, revealing a person with disheveled hair and a body covered in dirt. It looked like he had been buried in the ground for so long…
/It was dirty and stinky. Most of the beggars on the street for sb's sake were better off than him./
By this time, Duan Yue had already seen the appearance of the monster in the corner.
"What happened to him?" /He stood up?/
