kingnovel Chapter 273: Obstruction of Progress
Chapter 273: Obstruction of Progress
"Let me go! Let me go!" Ji Anni was anxious and angry, and kept struggling under Yan Niang's hands.
The more she struggled, the more severely Yan Niang treated her. The situation was critical, and Yan Niang had no time to slowly persuade Ji Anni. She had to drag her in first, regardless of whether she was willing or not. If Ji Anni dared to resist, she would crush her shoulders.
Feeling Yan Niang's hand on her shoulder getting stronger and stronger as a warning, Ji Anni screamed in pain.
She was the only one who had ever captured thieves bravely, and no one else had ever captured her in this way.
After hearing Ji Anni's painful cry, Yan Niang seemed to soften her heart and eased up a little. Although the force was eased, her tone became more severe. She growled at Ji Anni, "Stop making noise! Follow me obediently!"
"Where exactly are we? This cave is a mess. If you don't know the way, don't walk around." Ji Anni's tone was not good either. She had read a lot of news about someone getting lost in a cave or forest in a tourist resort. She hadn't taken revenge for Yan Niang throwing her necklace just now, and now she was using violence against her again. Ji Anni and Yan Niang remembered both the new and old grudges.
There are many forks in this cave, like a maze.
It was only a minute after entering the cave that Ji Anni saw three or four forks in the road. And those forks were not three-way intersections, but simple crossroads, with at least five or six branches. If there were more, Ji Anni would be pulled away by Yan Niang before she could count them all.
Yan Niang didn't know the way, so she just followed her instincts and chose a random path when she came to a fork in the road. Anyway, her goal was not to get out of the cave, but just to temporarily get rid of the pursuers behind her.
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Yun Zhen, Taoist Yuan Rong and the others chased for a distance, but after seeing the complex terrain in the cave, they finally stopped and dared not move forward rashly. So far, they have been chasing the fox demon's aura. Now the fox demon has hidden in the cave. Even if they catch up with the fox demon in the end, it will be useless if they get lost and can't get out of the cave.
"Do you want to continue chasing?" Yun Zhen asked Taoist Yuan Rong for his opinion. He hoped that Taoist Yuan Rong would give up and return to the palace, so that he would have a chance to enter the cave alone and rescue Ji Anni. As long as Ji Anni and Taoist Yuan Rong were not allowed to meet, the chance that Taoist Yuan Rong would find out that Ji Anni was a fox demon would be greatly reduced.
After a brief hesitation, Taoist Yuan Rong's heart sank, and he answered with one word in a decisive tone: "Chase."
"It's easier to get in than to get out. Why don't we send someone to guard the cave entrance and wait until tomorrow morning to find a way to force them out."
Yun Zhen proposed this just to prevent Taoist Yuan Rong and Ji Anni from meeting.
"Who knows how many exits this cave has? I finally chased them here, I can't let them slip away from under my nose!"
Taoist Yuan Rong's attitude was so firm that even Yun Zhen was a little surprised.
I don’t know whether to say that Taoist Yuan Rong has a strong sense of responsibility, or that he is very persistent in capturing monsters.
"Even if we want to chase them, we should split up into two groups. Taoist Priest, you go back and report to the Queen Mother first. I will lead the others to chase them in and see what's going on."
Yun Zhen tried every way to get Yuan Rong out of the way, but Taoist Yuan Rong refused without hesitation, "No, even if we split our forces into two groups, I will be the one going into the cave to continue chasing the monster, and you go back to report to the Queen Mother." As he said that, he walked into the cave.
"Master." Yun Zhen stretched out his hand to stop him, "Think about it again."
"There's nothing to consider. If you delay any longer, don't blame me for being rude."
"Master..." Yun Zhen had a bad feeling, not expecting that he had angered Master Yuan Rong.
Sure enough, the next moment, Taoist Yuan Rong asked meaningfully, "Master, you should have heard that the palace has been very uneasy these past few days, with fox demons appearing at night. Those fox demons are not real fox demons, but paper gods. It is obvious that someone is maliciously disturbing the palace - Master, who do you think is the murderer?"
Taoist Yuan Rong did not say it out loud, but it was obvious that he had pointed the finger at Yun Zhen.
Yun Zhen was stunned for a moment, then responded: "Yeah... who is it?"
While asking the question, there was a strange smile on the corner of his lips, making his expression unpredictable.
Taoist Yuan Rong glared at Yun Zhen fiercely, pushed him away without any hesitation, and rushed into the cave. Yun Zhen's smile just now seemed to be a contempt for Taoist Yuan Rong, contempt for the fact that Taoist Yuan Rong still could not find evidence to identify the criminal as Yun Zhen.
"Master." Yun Zhen saw that Master Yuan Rong was about to walk away, so he hurriedly chased after him and stopped him, saying, "If you insist on entering the cave, I will go with you. But..."
He changed the subject and looked back at the dozen or so guards behind him.
Yun Zhen ordered the guards, "You don't need to follow me. Go back and report to the Queen Mother first."
The cave is very narrow and can barely accommodate two people passing side by side.
In such a place, it was impossible to surround the monsters with a large number of people, nor was it possible to use the advantage of numbers to conduct a carpet search. The next battle was between the Taoist priest and the monster, relying on magic power. Leaving these guards who used cold weapons would not be of much help, so it was better to let them go as soon as possible.
Second, Yun Zhen was worried that Ji Annie would suddenly transform again. In order to prevent too many people from seeing Ji Annie's transformed appearance, he had to order the guards to return home first. As for Taoist Yuan Rong... I hope I can keep it a secret from him by then...
Yun Zhen did not dare to underestimate the power of Taoist Yuan Rong, because his paper gods were discovered by Taoist Yuan Rong. Although he was lucky not to be caught, since Taoist Yuan Rong could see through the disguise of the paper gods and bring about a sudden rain to destroy all the paper gods, it was enough to prove that he was not just a name, but a genuine master.
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After the guards left, Yun Zhen and Taoist Yuan Rong continued to chase into the cave.
They followed the evil spirit left by Yan Niang and Ji Anni, groping forward cautiously step by step.
Humans are not like monsters. Monsters can see things clearly in the dark, but once humans enter the dark, their vision is difficult to function. Even if they open their eyes, they are like blind people and can't see anything.
Yun Zhen and Taoist Yuan Rong had just chased for a hundred steps when the surroundings became pitch black. Not to mention the road, even the companions who were close by could not be seen clearly. They could only judge the location of the other party by the sound of footsteps and the other party's breath.
The deeper they went, the slower their steps became, because it was becoming difficult for them to identify the evil aura left behind by the fox demon.
For some unknown reason, the further they chased, the weaker the fox demon's aura became.
To Yun Zhen and Taoist Yuan Rong, the fox demon's aura was like a rope, pulling between them and the fox demon. As long as they followed the rope, they would definitely be able to catch up with the fox demon. Now the rope suddenly broke and disappeared. This would not only cause them to lose the fox demon, but more frighteningly, it would also cause them to lose their way in the cave.
"No... No..." Taoist Yuan Rong finally realized that the situation was not good. He stopped at a fork in the road, shook his head and pondered, "An ordinary cave cannot have so many forks in the road..."
If it was a naturally formed cave, there would never be such frequent and confusing intersections.
The complex terrain inside the cave seemed to be designed to disorient intruders.
"Maybe this is a monster's lair..." Yun Zhen had this premonition a long time ago.
Even so, Taoist Yuan Rong still refused to give up and insisted on finding the fox demon.
On the one hand, Yun Zhen couldn't persuade Taoist Yuan Rong; on the other hand, Yun Zhen was worried that Taoist Yuan Rong would really subdue Ji Anni. So he could only risk his life and follow Taoist Yuan Rong to the depths of the cave.
They walked forward for about a quarter of an hour, when a strong demonic aura rushed towards them.
This was a completely different kind of demonic aura from the fox demon just now; it was a completely unfamiliar demonic aura.
The evil spirit came coldly and powerfully, as if issuing a warning to the intruder.
Under the pressure of this evil spirit, Yun Zhen and Taoist Yuan Rong both felt a tightness in their chests and suddenly couldn't breathe.
"Such a strong demonic aura..." Taoist Yuan Rong covered his chest, his heart beating faster because of the confrontation with a powerful enemy. Taoist Yuan Rong had a lot of experience in fighting demons, but this was the first time he encountered such a powerful demon.
"Could it be another trick of the fox demon?" Yun Zhen made his own guess. Just like the fox demon released ten little fox demons to confuse the sight just now, this time the fox demon deliberately strengthened its demonic energy to force them to leave.
"Impossible." Taoist Yuan Rong rejected it outright. "If the fox demon really had such a powerful force, she wouldn't have to hide all the way. Even if the two of us joined forces, we might not be able to defeat a demon with such powerful power."
Taoist Yuan Rong has always been "indifferent to demons" and would never show weakness to a demon easily. But now he actually frankly admitted that both he and Yun Zhen together were no match for that demon. This must be considered the highest compliment to that demon.
Yun Zhen calmed down and carefully felt the powerful demonic energy surging in the air.
The evil spirit that attacked him was like a gust of wind, so strong that it almost knocked him to the ground.
And this is only a part of the monster's power. The further you go, the stronger the power will be.
Under the obstruction of this demonic power, Yun Zhen and Taoist Yuan Rong were unable to take a single step and had to stop where they were.
What is hidden in this cave? Will it hurt Ji Annie?
Compared to his own safety, Yun Zhen was more worried about Ji Anni's situation.
If Ji Anni encounters the entity of this evil spirit, will she be in danger? Can she protect herself?
Yun Zhen tried to call Ji Anni with his mind, but the gem he gave to Ji Anni had already been thrown at the entrance of the cave by Yan Niang, so no matter how he called, he got no response - he and Ji Anni had completely lost contact.
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On the other hand, Ji Anni and Yan Niang, who had gone deeper into the cave than Yun Zhen and Taoist Yuan Rong, had already felt the terrible evil spirit in the cave.
That evil spirit not only hinders Taoist priests like Yun Zhen and Yuan Rong, but also monsters like Ji Anni and Yan Niang.
Ji Anni's ability to recognize evil spirits was much weaker than Yan Niang's. Under the torture of the evil spirit, she had a splitting headache, her limbs felt heavy, her chest felt stuffy, and she could no longer walk.
"No, no... I really can't walk anymore..." Ji Anni's knees felt weak. If Yan Niang hadn't been holding her, she would have crawled on the ground and squirmed like a caterpillar.