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The screams behind me completely stopped.

Instead, a chilling chewing sound filled the air.

In such a narrow and cramped space, the sound was amplified infinitely, as if it were echoing right next to Chen Qian's eardrums.

Chen Qian's heart was in his throat, but he dared not stop for even a second.

He pressed himself against the cold rock wall, like a rat that had stumbled into a snake pit, every muscle taut to the extreme.

At this moment, the pain from the wound was completely forgotten.

As his fingers touched the slippery grease on the rock wall, combined with what had just happened...

The passageway is interconnected and clearly used frequently.

This is clearly the network through which they travel underground to hunt and reach their various nests!

"I've walked right into the tiger's den."

Chen Qian could only sigh helplessly.

But retreating was no longer an option; behind them lay a dead end. Only by moving forward could they perhaps gamble on a sliver of hope.

After climbing for an unknown amount of time, the terrain ahead began to slope upwards.

The smell of blood in the air was so strong it almost solidified.

Since he came down to Niushou Village, this is the smell he has smelled most often.

If you were to mix all sorts of blood together, he could probably tell by the proportion of each type of blood.

"exit!"

Chen Qian was startled.

About two or three zhang ahead, an irregular hole appeared, through which one could vaguely see outside.

But he didn't rush out immediately.

A very clear tearing and swallowing sound came from outside the cave.

The sound was very close, not far from the cave entrance!

There's something eating there!

To advance or to retreat?

There's really no choice; there's only one answer left!

Therefore, we must clearly understand what's going on outside before deciding on the next step.

Only by knowing yourself and your enemy can you survive.

He moved silently to the edge of the hole, like a gecko.

Only half of its eye peeked out.

Night vision allows the gaze to penetrate the darkness.

Even with Chen Qian's strong mental fortitude, his brows furrowed the moment he saw what was happening before him.

It was less than two zhang away from the cave entrance.

A humanoid monster was crouching on a rock.

Its entire body has no skin; its dark red muscle fibers are exposed to the air, constantly writhing and stretching with its movements, covered with pale fascia and viscous fluid.

A few sparse strands of long hair hung loosely from its head, draped damply over its shoulders.

His head was severely deformed, with an enormous back of his head, while his face looked as if it had been smashed with a heavy hammer, with his features squeezed together.

Especially its mouth, which split open to the roots of its ears, like an everted beast's mouth, filled with interlocking sharp teeth.

The most important thing is!

Where eyes should have been, there were only two slightly sunken lumps of rotten flesh.

Doesn't that mean the monster has no eyesight?

It's unclear whether the degeneration of their eyes was caused by living underground for a long time.

At this moment, the skinning monster was mechanically gnawing on a mutilated corpse.

Chen Qian could see and smell clearly.

That's a person.

Judging from the remaining fragments of clothing, they seem to belong to other factions.

And this monster is feeding...

Chen Qian's gaze fell on its hands and feet, which resembled the claws of a wild beast. Although the nails had turned black and sharp, and the bones had become twisted, the outline of a human hand could still be seen.

Even on its bare neck, there was a piece of jade pendant that hadn't completely rotted away.

"Was this thing... a person before?"

Chen Qian felt a chill run down his spine.

Is this the secret of the great tomb in Niushou Village?

The living come in, the dead go out.

Or... become this kind of inhuman, skinned monster?

"No eyes..."

Chen Qian suppressed his fear and his mind raced.

"It rushed over here in the passage after hearing Wang Meng's voice."

"It's blind; it hunts by hearing!"

This is extremely important intelligence.

But it must be verified!

At this critical juncture of life and death, there is no room for guesswork; one mistake could lead to utter ruin.

Chen Qian's fingers quietly touched the ground.

There was a pebble the size of a fingernail.

He picked up a pebble, held his breath, and fixed his gaze on a stone wall about three zhang to the left of the monster.

With a slight flick of the wrist, a skillful force is released!

"call out"

The sound of the pebble cutting through the air was so faint that it was almost drowned out by the sound of the monster chewing.

"clatter."

With a soft thud, the pebble struck the stone wall and bounced off to the ground.

The next moment!

"roar!"

The skinned monster, which had been focused on eating, suddenly stiffened and then let out a low growl like that of a wild beast.

Without the slightest hesitation, it dropped the corpse in its hand.

With a sudden burst of strength from his limbs, he lunged towards the direction where the stone had fallen, like a red lightning bolt!

"boom!"

Its sharp claws slammed into the stone wall, carving deep gashes and sending fragments of rock flying.

It frantically tore at the air in that clearing, its nose twitching incessantly, as if wondering why there was no scent of prey.

"really!"

Chen Qian, hiding in the shadows of the cave entrance, covered his mouth and nose tightly, a glint of shrewdness flashing in his eyes.

"He is blind, has extremely keen hearing, and is violent in nature; he will fight to the death if there is any disturbance."

The weakness has been found.

As long as it doesn't make a sound, it's blind!

Chen Qian looked at the monster that was pacing anxiously in the distance, and a slight smile appeared on his lips.

Since he's blind.

Then the road will be much easier to travel.

After venting his anger in front of the stone wall and finding no prey, the skinner became somewhat agitated.

Chen Qian flicked another pebble, and unsurprisingly, the skinner continued his indiscriminate attack.

But it was during this opportunity that Chen Qian crawled out of the cave.

They plunged headlong into the wide main road that led into the depths beside them.

Once you enter the main road, the terrain becomes increasingly complex and unpredictable.

This is no longer a single crack, but more like an underground labyrinth hollowed out by a giant ant colony.

Countless forks in the road spread out like a spider web, some leading to dead ends and others to danger.

But this seemingly insurmountable terrain, which would be impossible for ordinary people, became Chen Qian's natural home ground at this moment.

All five senses are now exerting their strongest supporting effects.

Throughout this journey, Chen Qian's nerves were on edge.

In just a quarter of an hour, he encountered two more skinners in the maze.

A stalactite was resting upside down on the top of the passageway, its saliva dripping onto the ground and forming a pool of foul-smelling mud.

The other one paced back and forth in a dead end, its skinless paws making wet, squelching sounds as they trod on the ground.

If Chen Qian hadn't noticed in advance and cleverly used the terrain and blind spots to bypass them, he would probably have already become the monsters' meal.

"Just how many of these monsters does this place keep?"

Chen Qian felt a chill run down his spine; every inch of air here was filled with a strong aura of death.

After rounding another corner covered in claw marks, the space ahead suddenly opened up a bit.

Chen Qian was about to walk along the wall when he suddenly stopped.

About a hundred paces ahead, in a recessed rock, a faint and flickering light shone through.

That's firelight!

It wasn't that eerie, ghostly green glow, but a real, warm firelight!

"Is anyone there?"

Chen Qian's pupils contracted slightly, and he immediately shrank back into the shadows, even slowing his breathing.

Meeting a person in this awful place is probably safer than meeting a ghost.

Did Zhao Feng and his group break through the encirclement?

Or did the Wang family take a different path?