"Be careful, the ground here is slippery," Shen Jingqi reminded.
Renault nodded, giving Shen Jingqi a grateful look, then continued along the lines.
They passed through one corner after another, each passage seeming so similar, yet completely different.
Renault began to feel a bit dizzy. He took a deep breath, trying hard to stay alert.
Just then, Li Baiyu suddenly noticed a change in the lines ahead. They no longer proceeded straight as before but started to bend and branch, forming multiple different directions.
His heart tightened, and he hurriedly called out, "Renault, Shen Jingqi, look! The lines have branched, what should we do?"
Hearing this, Renault and Shen Jingqi stopped in their tracks, staring at the branching lines ahead. Renault frowned, pondered for a moment, then said, "We might need to make a decision now. Let's study these branching lines together first to see which one might be the correct direction."
So, they crouched on the ground, tracing the directions of the lines with their fingers.
As time ticked by, they still had no clue.
Renault started to feel a bit anxious. He couldn't help but stand up and pace back and forth in the passage. Shen Jingqi also frowned deeply, a hint of helplessness in his eyes. Li Baiyu bit her lip, feeling secretly anxious: "We can't afford to waste any more time . We need to quickly find the right direction."
Just then, Renault noticed a peculiar detail. He saw that one of the branching lines had a stone different from the others, its surface smooth as a mirror, as if it had been artificially polished. His heart stirred, and he quickly exclaimed, "Look at this stone! It must be an intentional marker!"
Shen Jingqi and Li Baiyu gathered around when they heard this. They carefully observed the stone and indeed found it was different from the others. Shen Jingqi nodded and said, "That's right, this must be a marker left intentionally by someone. Let's follow this line and see if we can find the exit of the maze."
So, the three of them set off on their journey again. They cautiously followed the marked line, each step filled with anticipation and tension. The air in the passage seemed to become fresher, and the candlelight grew brighter, as if guiding their way.
As they went deeper, the scene inside the maze began to change. The previously monotonous walls became colorful, covered with various patterns and symbols. Renault stopped in curiosity, observing these patterns and symbols closely, trying to find some clues.
Shen Jingqi also came over, pointing to one of the patterns and saying, "Look at this pattern. Doesn't it look like a compass?"
Renault and Li Baiyu both nodded in agreement. Indeed, the pattern bore a striking resemblance to a compass. A surge of inexplicable excitement rose in their hearts, as if they were about to unveil the last veil of the maze.
Just then, they suddenly heard a faint sound coming from ahead. The sound came intermittently, as if from a distant place. Renault perked up his ears to listen carefully, but he couldn't make out what the sound was saying.
"What's that sound?" Shen Jingqi frowned and asked.
Renault shook his head, indicating he didn't know. He was filled with doubt and curiosity: "Could there be someone ahead? Or... something else?"
Li Baiyu also tensed up, softly reminding, "Let's all be careful. We don't know what's ahead."
So, the three of them proceeded even more cautiously along the lines. The sound grew closer and clearer. Finally, when they reached a corner, their eyes widened with astonishment as a passage appeared before them. And that sound was coming from the passage.
Renault's heart tightened. He couldn't help but quicken his pace, rushing toward the passage. Shen Jingqi and Li Baiyu followed closely behind, and the three of them stepped into the mysterious passage together.
The light inside the passage was brighter than outside, with countless gems embedded in the walls, shining with dazzling brilliance. As they moved along the passage, they saw a gigantic stone door ahead, filled with ancient inscriptions and patterns.
And the sound was coming from behind the stone door. A surge of inexplicable excitement and anticipation rose in Renault's heart, feeling as if the exit of the maze was just in sight.
"We've... we've finally found it!" Renault exclaimed excitedly.
Shen Jingqi and Li Baiyu also showed joyful smiles. They knew that after extensive exploration and effort, they were finally about to unveil the final veil of the maze.
However, just as they were about to push the stone door open, a sudden violent tremor occurred. The entire passage seemed to be shaking, with the gems on the walls falling off.
"What's happening?" Renault shouted in terror. Thɪs chapter is updated by novęlfire.net
Shen Jingqi also furrowed his brows, a trace of worry in his eyes: "I don't know, maybe some mechanism has been triggered."
At that moment, the stone door slowly opened.
A strong gust of air rushed out from inside, almost knocking them off their feet. And the sound became even clearer.
They focused their gaze and saw a massive cave behind the stone door, glowing with radiant light. The light didn't come from candles or gems but from a strange source they had never seen before, soft yet bright, illuminating the entire cave.
In the center of the cave stood a pair of eyes.
The eyes weren't on a face but floated alone in the air, like two brilliant stars, or two deep whirlpools, drawing their gaze so that they couldn't look away.
Those eyes simply remained there silently, gazing at them as if trying to see through their souls.
Renault felt a strange chill rising from his feet, reaching his head, and shivered involuntarily.
Shen Jingqi was also deeply attracted to the eyes, a hint of doubt and curiosity in his gaze.
He tried to close his eyes to escape the gaze of these eyes but found that lights appeared in his mind.
These lights flickered like stars in the night sky, seemingly following some kind of pattern. His heart stirred, and he began to observe these lights carefully.
He saw these lights slowly moving in the darkness, dimming and brightening, approaching and receding, as if conveying some message. Shen Jingqi held his breath, fearing that his every move would disturb these lights. He discovered that these lights didn't move randomly but followed a specific trajectory. He attempted to touch these lights with his consciousness and surprisingly discovered that his consciousness seemed to merge with them, resonating with these lights.
As his consciousness fused with the lights, they began to gather gradually, forming slender lines. These lines were delicate and gentle yet carried an indescribable sense of power. They interwove and entwined in the air, forming a complex pattern. Shen Jingqi was startled to notice that these lines bore a striking resemblance to the small lines in the maze before him.
He hurriedly opened his eyes and looked at the lines in the maze before him. The lines that were originally chaotic and disorderly suddenly became orderly. It was as if an invisible hand had arranged them according to a specific rule.