Chapter 377: Fresh Blood Traces

"Is this it? I haven't seen it either."

"It's already a fire pool—do we still need to ask? He just wants to change the subject, right?"

Mu Yuanzhi covered her face with the mask; the full protective gear was now in place.

Her lightness skill wasn't great, so she needed Cao Cixiu to bring her; before coming, Pei Si had already instructed Cao Cixiu.

"Princess, pardon me." Cao Cixiu grabbed Mu Yuanzhi and leapt up!

Before Mu Yuanzhi could react, she was pulled and flew across the pool; she almost cried out, quickly gripping Cao Cixiu tighter.

The process was very brief; she felt no heat, and this set of protective armor kept her well protected.

Only after landing steadily opposite did Mu Yuanzhi calm down; she removed the mask, took off the armor, and the view ahead suddenly opened up.

Before her were two sets of armor placed on the ground, presumably left by Qilin and Gu Rongjin.

Cao Cixiu didn't linger, striding forward; Mu Yuanzhi followed with big steps.

They quickly reached the swamp's edge; Mu Yuanzhi hadn't taken a Breath-Holding Pill, but upon arrival she noticed the miasma growing thicker, and even without the pill, holding her breath alone could block most of it.

Cao Cixiu showed no effect either; Mu Yuanzhi didn't know if he had held his breath after her reminder or had some special method, but he appeared completely normal.

Even without taking Breath-Holding Pills, to avoid inhaling more miasma they still chose to communicate via sign language.

Fortunately, both could understand each other's sign language, so no time was wasted.

Just like now, they both understood each other's meaning, didn't linger, and went straight across the suspension bridge to the other side.

The reason was simple: it wasn't that they tacitly agreed the swamp didn't need attention for now, but that they had discovered Gu Rongjin's sachet left on the suspension bridge.

This sachet was clearly left on purpose, not dropped.

It looks like he left a backup plan: if anyone came in looking, they could tell he and Qilin had gone up the suspension bridge.

Mu Yuanzhi opened the sachet; inside was nothing, but she still carefully put it away.

The suspension bridge looked dilapidated and swayed; even one person crossing would be scary, yet Cao Cixiu still chose to use his lightness skill to cross, while Mu Yuanzhi had intended to walk across, but Cao Cixiu pulled her along without explanation and leapt across.

She could only once again experience a not-so-good high-altitude flight.

That's fine; it spares her from possibly falling later if the bridge can't bear the weight, Mu Yuanzhi consoled herself.

The mist on the far side of the suspension bridge had thinned considerably, letting them clearly see the mini-palace of broken tiles and ruined walls opposite.

Are Rongjin and Qilin inside?

Aside from this dilapidated-looking palace that seems uninhabited, there are no other buildings or paths here.

Mu Yuanzhi glanced at Cao Cixiu beside her and saw his eyes brimming with excitement; he seemed very interested in the upcoming exploration.

Both are equally eerie; is he excited to see his kind?

"No way ahead—let's go back."

A sudden sound came from somewhere, startling the absent-minded Mu Yuanzhi; she looked around but couldn't find its source.

She isn't Rongjin, so it's hard to quickly pinpoint where that sound came from just from that.

The miasma here seemed to have subsided, so Mu Yuanzhi began breathing freely and asked Cao Cixiu: "Cao Sir, what do you think? Can you tell where this sound is coming from?"

Cao Cixiu shook his head: "I can't tell, but it doesn't matter."

Anyway, they were going in, so it really didn't matter, Mu Yuanzhi thought.

"Princess, be careful and stay close to me, or you might encounter unexpected danger," Cao Cixiu said.

Mu Yuanzhi nodded and kept close to him.

It seemed the voice was displeased that these two uninvited guests ignored its warning, and it flew into a rage: "Another two fearless ones! Excellent!"

"Again?"

Does it mean that Qilin and Rongjin earlier also ignored the warning?

Cao Cixiu went ahead, using the sword at his waist to clear the path, chopping off obstructive tree trunks.

His sword cuts iron like mud; such thick tree trunks, which would take several people to hold, he splits and hacks with his sword as if it required no effort.

Mu Yuanzhi noticed his sword: the blade was entirely black, yet when cutting it emitted a red glow; at first she thought she was seeing things, but after looking several times it remained, so it wasn't an illusion.

This person is utterly eerie everywhere.

But thanks to him, she was able to enter so smoothly.

But if Rongjin and Qilin had already gone in, why are there still so many obstacles blocking them? Shouldn't they have been cleared already?

Or could these trunks actually grow wildly fast? They've already grown in just a moment?

While thinking this, Mu Yuanzhi picked up a relatively slender trunk, examined it briefly, then noticed Cao Cixiu had gone far ahead, so she temporarily tucked it into her clothing and caught up.

Cao Cixiu showed no interest in these, heading straight for the ruined palace.

That voice hadn't sounded again, yet Mu Yuanzhi still felt its owner watching them, a strong sense of being coveted telling her that their every move could not escape the owner's eyes.

What exactly is in there? Why do the patriarchs not record it? They only tell disciples and grandchildren not to enter the Back Mountain.

"Qilin?! Rongjin?!"

Pushing open the palace's heavy, dilapidated door that seemed about to collapse, Mu Yuanzhi shouted twice.

No one responded.

They're not here?

As soon as she spoke, the damp, moldy air inside choked her into coughing; the air seemed stagnant for ages, then suddenly fresh air rushed in, filling the whole space with a strange feeling.

Mu Yuanzhi had no choice but to hold her breath again.

After this trip inside, she'll need to brew more lung-moistening, dust-dispelling soup medicine to drink when she returns!

Cao Cixiu still seemed unaffected, walking ahead.

Inside the dim hall, only faint moonlight filtered through the lattice windows; it was a drop in the bucket, making the interior hard to see clearly.

Cao Cixiu lit a candle and held it for light.

Mu Yuanzhi also brought a candle, but she didn't light it; instead, she used Cao Cixiu's candlelight to see.

The hall was empty, so they kept walking forward; suddenly Cao Cixiu stopped, and Mu Yuanzhi also stopped, following his gaze to the ground, where there was a fresh bloodstain!

It looked as if it had just fallen not long ago.

No wonder she just smelled a faint hint of blood!

This…… whose is it?

Mu Yuanzhi couldn't help but feel a little worried; she called out Gu Rongjin and Qilin's names again, but still got no response.

"Can the princess tell from the blood whether it's from one of our own?"