Despite knowing it made no difference, Zu An held his breath and kept completely still, fearing that his movements would further alarm the slightly larger spider.
The spider stood there, looking in their direction with an entire row of eyes. Moments later, it began moving toward the three of them.
Zu An was horrified. He stared intently at the spider, not daring to make a reckless move.
The spider soon arrived before him, looking confused. It extended its chelicerae over.
Zu An barely avoided the spider’s chelicerae by leaning backward. He could sense their hairs less than a centimeter away from him. Even so, he maintained his composure and didn’t make any overly large movements, lest the other party sense something.
The spider moved its chelicerae around the vicinity, which Zu An dodged by carefully maneuvering his body. In the end, the spider didn’t find anything, lost interest, and scuttled off elsewhere.
Zu An didn’t move right away. He waited for the spider to fully depart before flitting out of the corridor. When they were finally out of danger, he put Isabella and Firework down. Both their faces were as red as apples. The earlier intimate contact was too much stimulation for them.
“That scared me!” Isabella patted her chest. Her cultivation was high enough to see through absolute darkness, and she'd gotten a clear enough view of the earlier situation to understand how close of a shave they'd had earlier.
“I thought that demon spider found us!” Firework stuck out her tongue. She regretted teasing Zu An earlier, which had nearly resulted in them being discovered.
“It’s a relief we survived the ordeal. I don’t think there are any spiders here.” Zu An scanned their surroundings. There were no spiders ahead of them; only fog.
This fog was different from the one they'd encountered on the ocean. Zu An felt a burning sensation on his skin, which was astounding considering his body’s sturdiness and poison resistance. The fog had to be extremely poisonous.
“Careful. This miasma corrodes one’s ki, flesh, and blood, reducing one to a pile of bones.” Firework spotted a few skeletons lying not too far away. Those had to be people who had reached this point but died to the miasma.
Isabella took out three jewels from her bag. “These are Poison Warding Beads. They should provide you with immunity to most poisons in the Myriad Worlds.”
They'd worked on all known poisons to date, but there were too many unknown things in the Myriad Worlds, so she didn’t dare to speak of it in absolute terms.
Firework was awed. “I’d expect no less from the Universal Conglomerate’s big miss. You have all kinds of treasures stashed away.”
Isabella’s face reddened. “Don’t tease me, big sister Firework. Aren’t you Dreamland’s big miss as well? Dreamland is a place countless in the Myriad Worlds look forward to.”
“But Dreamland has fallen. A demoness has taken control of it,” Firework said with a sigh.
“I’m sorry, big sister Firework...” Isabella was apologetic for mentioning something upsetting.
“Don’t worry about it. I've gotten used to it. I should be thanking you for helping me instead.” Firework quickly regained her smile.
Thanks to the Poison Warding Beads, they were able to travel within the miasma without suffering from its poison. Thus, they explored the area and quickly found their surroundings weirdly familiar.
“Another labyrinth?” Isabella frowned. The earlier labyrinth had nearly traumatized her. They had barely found the exit, only to bump into that terrifying demon spider.
Zu An shook his head. “It’s not a labyrinth. It’s just a trick of the eye.”
Proper labyrinths couldn’t be easily overcome unless one understood the trick behind them. This place was different. It merely induced a sensation that made one feel as if one were moving in circles.
Such tricks would be harder for others to unravel, but Zu An had the Eye of Truth. He could see through all trickery and deception. Worried that the two ladies would lose their way, he grabbed their hands and led the way.
“Are you taking advantage of Isabella now?” Firework teased.
Isabella’s face heated up. “Aren’t you holding his hand too?”
Firework was unfazed. “We’re close. It’s normal for us to hold hands.”
Isabella bit her lip, not knowing how to reply.
“Stop teasing her.” Zu An glared at Firework.
Firework stuck out her tongue as she turned her attention to the road he walked. Zu An paid no heed to the convoluted paths and walked straight in a single direction. Twice, the ladies noticed him leading them into a wall, but for some reason, they didn’t bump into it. The wall turned out to be an illusion, and there was a path through it.
It didn’t take long for the miasma to scatter. The convoluted labyrinth disappeared, replaced by a massive underground rift valley. The area beneath was cloaked in darkness, as if it were a pathway into the netherworld.
The rift valley was shrouded in demonic air, death energy, and similar energies that were uncomfortable to the living. Their divine senses could only sense what was within a fifty-meter radius. A bizarre wind blew, carrying with it terrifying noises reminiscent of demonic murmurs.
Those noises made Isabella shudder. She pressed closer to Zu An and grabbed his arm.
Zu An scanned the rift valley. The rift was so wide that he couldn’t see what was on the other side. He could only see eight chains extending from one side to the other, as if they were bridges linking both ends.
He couldn’t recognize the material the chains were made out of, but he could tell they were a precious material. They were densely inscribed with ancient runes that subtly moved as if they were breathing. They felt old and solemn.
“Are you sure your father is imprisoned here?” Zu An asked Firework. For some reason, he felt intimidated by the chains.
“I've investigated this place for many years, but the opposite side of the rift valley is the only place I have yet to check. If the demoness has imprisoned him, that is the best place for her to do so,” Firework said.
She could also tell this place was dangerous.