Chapter 124

"Before we set out, I have a suggestion— I wonder if everyone would accept it."

Standing before the steel passage, the priest unusually offered an opinion; Su Xiao's eyes narrowed slightly, thinking to himself: Is the old fox finally showing his tail?

Everyone remained silent, waiting for the priest's next words.

"Since no one objects, I'll speak then."

The priest's demeanor was humble, his ever-present smile impossible to read.

"Your strengths are unquestionable, but this mission into the depths is extremely dangerous. Since we've formed a team, we should choose a leader—this will greatly improve combat efficiency and prevent internal conflict."

The priest smiled at them as he finished speaking.

"Excellent suggestion. But choosing a leader must involve everyone's input—how about a verbal vote? It'll save time."

Wudao Xin finished speaking with a sunny smile.

"Agreed."

"I support it."

"I don't care."

Ma Gui and Gao Tengquan voiced their opinions first; Su Xiao didn't mind who became leader—if he guessed right, he'd lose, since two people were almost certainly not going to vote for him.

"Then let's begin the verbal vote. I'll go first—I choose Mr. Ma."

Wudao Xin voted first; since Ma Gui had saved him, this choice seemed perfectly normal.

"I choose Donato Porpora."

Ma Gui voted for the priest—his intentions unclear.

"I choose myself."

After casting her vote, Gao Tengquan let out a light laugh. In her view, Ma Gui was already certain to become leader, and she assumed the priest and Su Xiao would both vote for him.

"I vote for Gao Tengquan."

"I vote for Gao Tengquan."

Su Xiao and the priest spoke at the same time; the other three froze.

Gao Tengquan looked confused—these two hadn't voted for Ma Gui.

Su Xiao and the priest locked eyes; Su Xiao sighed inwardly: Old foxes really are old foxes.

Before Su Xiao voted, the priest had one vote, Gao Tengquan had one, Ma Gui had one.

If the priest voted for himself, he could become leader—that was exactly what Su Xiao wanted to avoid, so he could only choose between Ma Gui and Gao Tengquan.

Ma Gui's intentions were unclear, and he'd already voted for the priest; Gao Tengquan's intent was clear—revenge. So Su Xiao voted for Gao Tengquan.

The old fox didn't reveal his hand—he too voted for Gao Tengquan.

Voting ended. Gao Tengquan, utterly bewildered, became leader. Since a leader had been chosen, it was time to move.

Gao Tengquan knew the route best, and as the host from Central City, now also leader, she naturally took the lead, stepping first into the steel passage.

After her came Ma Gui, the priest, and the others; Su Xiao entered last.

Ghoul had predatory organs on their backs to defend against rear attacks, but he was human—he didn't want anyone behind him.

The steel passage sloped steeply downward, its surface covered in thick, emerald-green moss; there was no need to walk—just lean your body and let gravity carry you down.

Sssss~

Inside the steel passage, silence reigned except for the sliding sound; Su Xiao drew Checking Zhan Long Shan—he could use it to brake if anything happened.

The passage grew steeper; their speed increased. The steel tunnel twisted and spiraled ahead, where Gao Tengquan shone a powerful flashlight.

"How long have we been sliding?"

Ma Gui spoke.

"Five minutes. In another ten, we'll need to be careful—if we can't stop, we'll fall into the well. That's death."

Hearing their conversation, Su Xiao was startled—his current speed wasn't slow, and if this continued for fifteen minutes, how deep underground were they going?

And from their tone, the steel passage connected directly to that vertical well—if they slipped in by accident, they'd be crushed.

Now the group was like drifting down a river, its end a bottomless abyss—and worse, the river was slanted. This was truly thrilling.

Eight minutes. Ten minutes. Fifteen minutes!

"Everyone, find a way to stop!"

Gao Tengquan shouted from the front.

"Ow! Ma, you just kicked my waist!"

"Sorry—I didn't activate my koukin fast enough."

Behind them, Su Xiao jammed Checking Zhan Long Shan into the metal layer of the passage; sparks flew. He slid a few meters and stopped.

The priest and Wudao Xin used their predatory organs to stop.

The priest was a Kakuja ghoul; his predatory organ sacs were behind his shoulders, and his predatory organ resembled a sharp cone.

Wudao Xin was also a Kakuja ghoul, but his predatory organ was strange—it wrapped around his hands, forming two blackish-blue claws.

Seeing Wudao Xin's predatory organ, Su Xiao frowned. He'd killed many ghouls, but never seen predatory organs of this texture. It immediately reminded him of the quinque "Xin"—their materials were identical, differing only slightly in color.

"Gao Tengquan, how much farther is the metal passage?"

The flashlight beam shone toward the tunnel's end.

"Still over a hundred meters. Timing is precise."

The group advanced slowly, each using their own methods; Gao Tengquan reached the end first.

"Phew~ That was intense. I'm jumping."

Gao Tengquan was at the front; Su Xiao, at the rear, couldn't see what happened.

A dull clang rang out, followed by Gao Tengquan's voice.

"No problem—same as before."

Soon after, another clang—Ma Gui.

"If you miss the jump, you'll definitely die."

Wudao Xin's voice.

Another dull clang—behind Wudao Xin, the priest moved forward.

From Su Xiao's angle, he could only see Wudao Xin leap into darkness, then hear the clang.

When it came to the priest, Su Xiao finally saw what was happening.

The steel passage connected to the well's inner wall; beyond its edge was a bottomless shaft—if you fell, you'd die unless you could fly.

On the opposite wall of the well, a ladder descended—iron rungs fixed to the wall, about half a meter wide.

Now the priest had to leap from the steel passage across a ten-meter-wide shaft and grab the narrow half-meter ladder on the other side.

The difficulty was high—mistake meant death.

The priest, always smiling, could no longer smile.

"Mr. Bai Ye, would you mind demonstrating first?"

"I'm afraid of heights."

If the priest refused to jump, Su Xiao wouldn't mind giving him a kick—he was right behind him, conveniently positioned.

"Alright then."

The priest took a deep breath, sprinted forward, and leapt.

Clang. The priest successfully grabbed the iron ladder.

Now it was Su Xiao's turn. He sheathed Checking Zhan Long Shan, took a deep breath, and glanced at the bottomless shaft. Anyone with acrophobia would now feel weak legs, dizziness, or bladder contraction.

Su Xiao couldn't fly—if he missed, he'd be crushed into pulp.

But he felt the depth of the shaft was enough to cover his return time.

Su Xiao stepped back a few paces, crouched, and pushed off—moss on the steel passage was slippery, increasing the jump's difficulty.

He sprinted forward, his eyes fixed only on the rusted ladder, then leapt with all his strength.

Mid-air, Su Xiao almost felt as if he were flying—arms extended, he precisely gripped the ladder.

Clang. Crunch!

Corroded by time, the rusted ladder had become brittle—it broke.

Please stop feeding the trash mosquitoes for more coins~—they're becoming like free phone credit.