Chapter 418

She kept walking straight along the path, but all the mountains here looked exactly the same, with no distinguishing features.

Compared to them, Luo En took a shortcut—he rose into the air and observed from above, making it easier to search.

At this moment, Chuixue had been cruelly left in a small cave on Maple Forest Mountain. Fortunately, the scenery inside the cave was quite pleasant.

Red maple leaves fell in the wind; if Chuixue weren't pitifully locked here, she would have thought this place incredibly beautiful.

Unfortunately, she had no heart to appreciate the beauty now—she could only pray someone would come rescue her soon.

Time quickly passed, and all three returned to their previously agreed positions.

Longjuan spoke first: "I didn't notice anything unusual. What Maple Forest Mountain? I didn't see a single maple tree. Could they have lied on purpose?"

"I found something! Maple Forest Mountain is real!" Xiang Banggu immediately interrupted Longjuan's mistaken words.

Upon hearing Xiang Banggu had found something, Luo En immediately asked excitedly: "What did you find?? Did you locate the spot?"

Xiang Banggu shook his head.

Luo En's eyes, which had just lit up, dimmed again.

Then Xiang Banggu added: "Although I haven't found it yet, I'm certain that going in that direction will lead straight to Maple Forest Mountain!"

His dramatic words made Luo En and Chuixue's emotions swing like a rollercoaster.

"Why do you talk with such dramatic pauses? Just say it straight," Longjuan joked in complaint.

Luo En followed up: "As long as we can find it, let's stop wasting time—let's go search now! We don't even know for sure yet!"

After his earlier shock, Luo En had lowered his hopes to the bare minimum, so disappointment wouldn't hurt as much.

The three of them walked in the direction Xiang Banggu indicated.

Soon, they reached the end of that path.

It appeared impassable—clearly not the kind of place where Maple Forest Mountain could exist.

"There's no path here at all! How could there be a Maple Forest Mountain? Are you even capable?" Longjuan asked Xiang Banggu.

Xiang Banggu himself was no longer certain, so he didn't answer Longjuan's question—instead, he continued searching the surroundings.

Suddenly, Luo En spotted a maple tree on a narrow trail.

Though small, its leaves were brilliantly red, and unless you looked closely, you wouldn't notice it seemed to emit a faint glow.

Luo En reached out and touched it—the faint light grew noticeably brighter.

Before their eyes, the ordinary mountain slowly vanished, and in the distance, a mountain covered entirely in red began to appear.

From afar, the mountain looked like a sea of fire—no sane person would ever go there.

Instantly, all three faces broke into smiles.

Luo En whispered: "Is this Maple Forest Mountain?"

"Great! Great! You've got something after all—if you hadn't found it, you'd have been humiliated!" Longjuan said.

Xiang Banggu's joy now surpassed Longjuan's praise—he muttered to himself: "Truly rare—this mysterious mountain isn't visible to just anyone."

All three couldn't help but marvel that such a mountain existed in this world.

"Alright, let's hurry inside—we'll know what's going on once we're in!"

With that, the three hurried toward Maple Forest Mountain.

As they drew nearer, Maple Forest Mountain became clearer; by the time they reached its base, it stood fully revealed before them.

Now, Maple Forest Mountain was no longer a sea of red—it consisted of individual maple trees, creating a uniquely evocative atmosphere.

"How beautiful this place is!" Longjuan sighed.

Luo En glanced around; though beautiful, it was surely filled with great danger.

"Stop gawking! We must find Chuixue first!"

66. Ancient Serpent

Luo En's words immediately snapped Longjuan and Xiang Banggu out of their distracted gazing.

Since they'd set out, more than a day had passed—nearly two days—and all they knew was that Chuixue was somewhere here, nothing else.

The God of the Universe had left a message then, and since then, there had been no further sign.

Luo En didn't believe he'd truly be so kind—just hiding Chuixue here for them to find.

Now that all three were moving together, their target was too obvious; acting separately would surely be faster.

Luo En led the two deeper into the forest.

"Luo En, is Chuixue really inside this mountain? There doesn't seem to be anywhere to hide here!" Longjuan asked, puzzled.

The entire view was a sea of red maple leaves—nothing else, impossible to conceal anything.

Luo En observed as he spoke: "This mountain only appeared once we entered—it's natural that hiding spots can be concealed too."

Luo En had just cut to the heart of it.

Indeed, the cave where Chuixue was currently held was part of this mountain's structure—extremely hidden, hard to find, rarely discovered by anyone.

"So it's a maze! How do we find Chuixue?" Longjuan frowned.

"Let's search carefully—I'm sure we'll find Chuixue. She's blessed by fate; she'll be fine," Xiang Banggu quickly reassured Longjuan.

Luo En looked around and said: "Longjuan, you two go that way. I'll take this side. Maple Forest Mountain is huge—searching together is too slow."

Longjuan thought quickly and agreed with Luo En.

Luo En walked alone toward the west, while Longjuan and Xiang Banggu headed in the opposite direction.

After Luo En had gone far, he slowly sensed something following him.

He had noticed it—but he didn't want to scare it off yet. Revealing it too soon might disrupt what came next; better to let it follow.

Luo En allowed the figure behind him to trail him all the way.

The mysterious figure stealthily watched Luo En's every move—but noticed he was genuinely searching for someone.

After walking a long time, Luo En spotted a narrow path beside a maple tree; thick layers of fallen leaves made it nearly invisible as a trail.

Luo En followed the path downward.

The more he walked, the more he realized the path seemed deliberately laid out for him—every direction led to a marker.

Soon, at the path's end, Luo En saw a cave.

He was certain Xue Chui wasn't inside, but someone clearly wanted him to go in.

Just as Luo En was still deciding whether to enter, that familiar voice finally came.

"Hahaha, go in! There's what you want inside—you'll know once you're there!"

The voice was deeply alluring, designed solely to lure Luo En in.

Without a moment's thought, Luo En walked straight in.

Inside, it looked nothing special—just like an ordinary cave.

He stepped inside into utter darkness. From his palm, he conjured a wisp of light to illuminate his vision.

As Luo En walked, he reached a fork in the path.

He stood in the center, hesitating over which way to go.

After a moment's thought, he decided to enter the right cave. At that moment, a faint voice came from the left cave.

"Luo En, I'm here! I'm right here, Luo En!"

Upon hearing the voice, Luo En turned instantly and headed toward the left cave without hesitation.

The mysterious figure trailing behind, seeing the plan succeed, secretly sent word.

The farther Luo En walked, the louder the voice became—he was certain it was Xue Chui's.

"Xue Chui, are you in there? Xue Chui! Xue Chui!" Luo En shouted into the cave.

But after calling out several times, there was no reply—only echoes rebounding off the walls.

Though the atmosphere was deeply eerie, Luo En had already entered and had no intention of turning back.

Soon, the path ended. He walked toward the only sound and entered a vast, spacious cave.

In the center was a pool, seemingly deep, with bubbles continuously rising from its surface.

Luo En slowly circled the pool. Suddenly, a massive creature burst from the water.

Meanwhile, Banggu and Long Juan had not yet found the cave and were still walking along the path.

"What kind of hellish place is this? Everywhere is just these damn trees and dead leaves—where the hell is the cave? Where did they hide Long Juan?!"

Long Juan punched a tree in anger.

Because Long Juan's strength was considerable, leaves flew off in large numbers, carried by the wind.

Banggu quickly stopped her: "Why are you hitting the tree? It didn't provoke you. If we can't find it, just keep searching—stop throwing tantrums."