Taking the opportunity of traveling through books

Going into the dark to explore the dangers

The black fog swallowed us like the bloody maw of a monstrous beast. As soon as I took a step inside, the thick darkness pressed down upon me like a substance, carrying with it a sickening stench of decay. The power within me began to stir restlessly, as if resonating with the darkness yet fiercely resisting it.

"Be careful!" Hao Yang walked in front, holding a dagger in his backhand, observing his surroundings vigilantly. It was pitch dark here, and only the night pearl in his hand emitted a faint light, illuminating the small area.

"The power here is very strange," Elder Wei's voice sounded behind me, with a hint of solemnity, "Yao'er, try to keep your mind calm and don't be affected by this power."

I nodded, trying to suppress the power surging in my body. Hao Yang suddenly stopped, and I hurriedly asked, "What's wrong?"

"There's movement," he lowered his voice, his eyes scanning the front sharply, "Watch your step."

As soon as he finished speaking, there was a loud "boom" and the ground beneath Hao Yang's feet instantly collapsed, revealing a huge, pitch-black hole. He reacted extremely quickly and leaped back, barely avoiding the disaster.

"That was a close call!" I exclaimed, my heart pounding. In the dim light, we could clearly see the trap—it was covered in sharp spikes, gleaming coldly, clearly a carefully designed one.

"This place is full of weirdness," Hao Yang steadied himself, his expression becoming serious. "We have to be more careful."

Elder Wei pulled out a night-shining pearl from his bosom and threw it higher. Suddenly, the light in the originally small area expanded several times, allowing us to clearly see our surroundings.

It was a long, narrow passage, flanked by towering stone walls carved with strange patterns that looked eerie in the dim light. The path beneath our feet was paved with irregular slabs of stone, and we had to be extremely careful with every step, otherwise we would fall into a trap, just like Hao Yang had just done.

"I'll lead the way," Elder Wei said, forming a hand seal. A powerful wave of spiritual energy emanated from him. However, as soon as this spiritual energy came into contact with the surrounding black fog, it disappeared without a trace, like a drop in the ocean. Only a faint light could barely illuminate a small area around it.

"This..." Elder Wei's face changed slightly, "This dark force is so powerful that even my spiritual power is..."

Before he could finish his words, a cold wind suddenly blew in from the depths of the passage, accompanied by a creepy sound...

Before he could finish his words, a chilling wind suddenly blew from the depths of the passage, like the howling of a wild beast, or the whispering of the dead, a chilling sound. I subconsciously clutched Hao Yang's sleeve, a sense of unease creeping up my heart like a vine.

"Don't be afraid, I'm here." Hao Yang held my hand tightly with his backhand. The warmth of his palm was transmitted through his cold fingertips, giving me a sense of security.

Elder Wei's brow furrowed, his hands rapidly moving incantations, muttering something to himself. Spiritual energy surged through him, radiating a brilliant light, attempting to dispel the suffocating darkness. However, the light seemed to be consumed by something, illuminating only a small area around us before quickly fading.

"This dark power is very strange. My magic is greatly restricted." Elder Wei withdrew his hand, his tone solemn.

"What should I do now?" I looked at the bottomless darkness around me, and a feeling of powerlessness surged in my heart.

"I'll try." I closed my eyes, attempting to mobilize the mysterious power within me. Ever since I came into this world, this power had been dormant within me, only occasionally emerging in times of danger. And now, in this darkness filled with uncertainty and danger, I felt it stirring, as if it were resonating with this darkness.

I tentatively extended this power, trying to sense the traps around me. However, a powerful resistance came against me, and a sharp pain suddenly exploded in my mind, as if being pricked by countless needles, and my vision fell into darkness.

"Yaoyao!" I heard Hao Yang's anxious voice, and then I fell into a warm embrace. I tried to open my eyes, but found that everything in front of me was blurry, and I could only see his anxious expression.

"I'm fine..." I shook my head weakly and wanted to reach out to wipe the cold sweat oozing from my forehead, but was grabbed by Hao Yang.

"Don't move, you look terrible." There was a hint of worry in his voice. "Don't push yourself. Let's walk slowly."

I nodded, leaning my weight on him. We continued groping our way forward along the narrow passage, taking every step with extreme caution. At that moment, I suddenly felt a strong sense of danger surge within me. Before I could even raise a voice, I heard a whooshing sound from the side...

"Be careful!" I screamed, pushing Hao Yang away. "Yaoyao!" Hao Yang yelled in my ear, but the next second, I was tightly held in his arms. At the same time, a sharp sound of breaking air came from the side, so dense that it was impossible to avoid it.

"Ugh..." Hao Yang groaned, and I could even feel the warm liquid splashing on my face. I looked up in horror and saw that he was gritting his teeth, his face was pale, and there were several feather arrows stuck in his arms and back, and his clothes were stained red with blood.

"Hao Yang!" I frantically tried to check on his injuries, but he held me tightly in his arms. "Don't be afraid, I'm fine..."

"Evil creature! Stop your arrogance!" Elder Wei roared, suppressing the backlash of his spiritual energy depletion. He swung out a golden light curtain, blocking the subsequent rain of arrows. However, I could clearly feel that the light curtain was shaky, as if it would shatter at any moment.

"Elder..." I looked at Elder Wei, whose face was ashen, and my heart was filled with guilt and self-blame. If they hadn't protected me, they wouldn't have ended up like this.

"Let's get out of here first!" Elder Wei said, holding himself up. Hao Yang supported me and struggled to get up from the ground. Every step I took was accompanied by excruciating pain.

We trudged forward, one foot deep and one foot shallow. The darkness around us seemed like a giant monster, its maw gaping, ready to devour us. I clutched Hao Yang's sleeve tightly, not daring to let go.

"Yaoyao, how are you? Are you hurt?" Hao Yang looked down at me, his tone full of worry.

"I'm fine..." My voice was trembling a little, and my eyes were blurry. The scene of Hao Yang being shot by an arrow and the shaky figure of Elder Wei kept flashing before my eyes. My heart seemed to be tightly grasped by an invisible hand, and I was almost suffocating.

"Be careful!" Elder Wei suddenly shouted and pushed us away.

"Boom——"

There was a loud noise behind us, and the ground shook violently, as if some giant creature was awakening. I looked back in horror, but saw nothing, only endless darkness...

"Hurry up! This place is going to collapse!" Elder Wei's voice became urgent. He pushed us hard, but he staggered and almost fell.

"Elder!" I reached out to help him, but he grabbed me.

"Leave me alone, go! Go find..." He hadn't finished his words when his expression suddenly changed and he shoved me towards Hao Yang. At the same time, a dark figure leaped out of the darkness and charged straight towards... "Yaoyao! Go!" Hao Yang grabbed me and led me away from Elder Wei. I watched helplessly as the dark figure and Elder Wei engaged in a struggle, my heart aching as if it were being torn apart. Elder Wei had already exhausted his spiritual energy to protect me, and now he was risking his own life, all because of me...

"Don't worry, the elder will be fine." Hao Yang seemed to see my thoughts and whispered soothingly. He supported me and stumbled forward in the darkness. His steps became heavier and heavier. I knew that he was seriously injured, but he said nothing, just held my hand tightly, giving me strength.

We walked for a long time but still couldn't find the exit, as if lost in this endless darkness. The surroundings were eerie and silent, with only the sound of our heavy breathing and heartbeats echoing in our ears.

"Cough cough..." Hao Yang suddenly started coughing violently. In the dim light, I saw a trace of blood flowing from the corner of his mouth.

"Hao Yang! How are you?" I asked in panic.

"I'm fine..." He tried hard to force a smile, but it looked uglier than crying, "It's just... ahem... a little injury..."

"It's all my fault... If you hadn't protected me, you wouldn't have been hurt..." I choked and tears flowed out uncontrollably.

"Silly boy, what nonsense are you talking about..." He raised his trembling hand and gently wiped away the tears on my face, "It is my responsibility to protect you..."

I couldn't hold it in any longer and threw myself into his arms, hugging him tightly. At this moment, I was not afraid of anything. I just wanted to be with him, even if it meant dying in this darkness, I would be willing to do that.

"Ahem...we have to find a way to leave here..." He patted my back gently and said weakly.

"Well..." I raised my head from his arms, wiped away my tears, and tried to calm myself down.

We continued to move forward, but as we went deeper, I felt an invisible pressure growing stronger, as if I were carrying a heavy burden, making every step extremely difficult. Furthermore, the air around me became increasingly thinner, and I began to have difficulty breathing. My vision went black...

"Hao Yang...I..." I grabbed his arm weakly, feeling that I could not hold on any longer.

"Yaoyao, what's wrong with you?" He looked down at me, his eyes full of worry. "Hold on, we'll be there soon..."

Before he could finish his words, his feet suddenly felt empty, and we both fell into a bottomless abyss...