801: Chapter 801 Giant Spider!

Yan Qingwu saw Ye Chen's awkward expression and couldn't help but chuckle.

"Alright, alright, let's stop talking about this."

"Uncle Liu, we are indeed not from the 749 Bureau, but from another organization in the Dragon Kingdom called the Dragon Group."

"Our intention to go there this time is specifically to investigate supernatural events."

"If we can resolve it, wouldn't that be a service to society? It would also ensure your safety, wouldn't it?"

A strategy of advancing by retreating.

Since the other party felt it was ominous, and Ye Chen had demonstrated bizarre abilities, he might as well go with the flow...

For one thing, it saved him from having to explain.

For another, it should be able to persuade Old Liu...

Sure enough.

Old Liu's expression shifted several times before he gritted his teeth and asked, "Are you... really planning to go?"

"Really going," Ye Chen nodded.

Old Liu took a deep breath. "Fine! Then I'll take you there! But I'll say this upfront: if anything happens to you, even the slightest bit, it has nothing to do with me!"

Ye Chen smiled.

"Don't worry, we won't cause you any trouble."

"We can even apply for a reward for you later."

Old Liu picked up his pipe, then dug out a wood-chopping knife from the corner of the wooden hut and tucked it behind his waist. "Then let's go, while it's still light."

The three of them set off.

More than an hour later.

The trees in the forest began to grow dense, and the light dimmed significantly. The canopy overhead blotted out the sky, and even the wind couldn't penetrate.

Old Liu's footsteps grew slower and slower.

After walking for a few more minutes.

He stopped and pointed to a fog-filled forest ahead. "We've reached the outskirts. If you want to turn back now, there's still time."

Ye Chen's gaze passed through the mist, landing deep within the forest.

"Since we're already here, wouldn't it be a wasted trip if we didn't go in and take a look?"

Saying this, he lifted his foot and walked inside.

Yan Qingwu followed. When she passed by Old Liu, she turned her head to look at him.

"Uncle Liu, if you don't want to go in, just wait here. You can be our backup when we come out."

Old Liu was silent for two seconds, but in the end, he gritted his teeth and followed.

"I, Old Liu, have lived in this forest for half my life; there's no reason to let two outsiders get into trouble on my turf."

He spoke firmly, but his hand gripping the wood-chopping knife was still trembling.

The three of them walked one after another through the mist.

About ten minutes later.

Old Liu suddenly stopped, his expression changing.

"Something's wrong."

He crouched down, drew a mark on the ground with his wood-chopping knife, and looked up at the surrounding trees.

"I marked that crooked pine tree earlier; we've circled back."

Yan Qingwu frowned. "Could you have mistaken it? The trees in the forest all look about the same."

"I couldn't be wrong."

Old Liu pointed to a fresh knife mark on the tree trunk. "I made that mark myself; how could I not recognize it?"

Yan Qingwu's expression grew serious.

Ye Chen, however, was not panicked at all. Instead, he crouched down, placed his hand on the ground with his palm against the soil, and closed his eyes.

[Earth Vein Tracking] unfolded silently, his perception spreading out along the earth veins.

A moment later, he opened his eyes.

"This forest is indeed moving."

Upon hearing this, cold sweat broke out on Old Liu's back. "What did I tell you? I told you it was ominous, didn't I?"

"It's not ominous."

Ye Chen brushed the dirt off his hands. "There's something underneath moving this forest, like a millstone. It's very slow, so slow that the naked eye can't see it, but if you walk for a long time, you'll end up back at the starting point."

Old Liu felt his scalp tingle. "What... is underneath?"

"We'll only know once we go inside and see."

Ye Chen smiled and walked in a certain direction. "This way."

Old Liu wanted to call out to him, but he suddenly realized...

The path Ye Chen was taking had tree shadows that were clearly slightly thinner than elsewhere.

If one didn't observe carefully, it would be impossible to notice.

Could it be... this person actually has real skills???

Thinking of this, he suppressed his emotions and followed Ye Chen. The three of them then made left and right turns through the dense forest.

Old Liu silently tried to memorize the path, but the more he tried, the more confused he became.

Every time they turned a corner, the surrounding scenery changed. Even though it was only a difference of a few steps, the shape of the trees, the color of the soil, and the humidity in the air all changed.

This change was very subtle, so subtle that if one hadn't lived in this forest for half a lifetime, they wouldn't have been able to detect it.

The further Old Liu walked, the more alarmed he became.

He didn't know how Ye Chen determined the direction, but this young man never hesitated at any turn, as if he had an eye growing on top of his head, overlooking the entire forest.

They walked for about another twenty minutes.

Ye Chen suddenly stopped.

Yan Qingwu and Old Liu looked forward, following his gaze.

Ahead, between the tree shadows, a corner of stone was exposed.

It was a stele.

Half a person tall, greenish-gray, its surface covered in moss, with a few characters carved into its face.

The characters were already very blurry, but they could barely be made out.

Old Liu leaned in to look and read aloud, "...Longyin... Men (Gate)?"

"Not Men (Gate)."

Ye Chen reached out and wiped away a patch of moss. "It's Que (Watchtower)."

The characters "Longyin Que" were clearly carved on the face of the stele.

Yan Qingwu raised an eyebrow. "Longyin Que? Never heard of it."

Ye Chen narrowed his eyes.

"You haven't heard of it because this name has been lost for hundreds of years."

"Longyin Que was the base of a reclusive sect during the Yongle period of the Ming Dynasty; it existed for less than thirty years before vanishing."

"History books only left behind one sentence."

"Longyin Que, reaching the heavens and spanning the earth, vanished in an instant, whereabouts unknown."

Old Liu was stunned. "You even know this?"

"Read more books." Ye Chen patted his shoulder.

Old Liu: "..."

Yan Qingwu walked to the side of the stele, using her scabbard to push aside the surrounding weeds and vines, revealing a set of stone steps beneath the base.

The stone steps were very narrow, only wide enough for one person to pass.

A gust of chilly wind welled up from inside.

Old Liu shivered. "Is this... a grave down there?"

"Not a grave," Ye Chen shook his head.

"It's an entrance."

"The patterns on the stone wall are exactly the same as the patterns on the edge of the remnant map."

Yan Qingwu leaned in to look and indeed saw the familiar lines on the wall.

Old Liu leaned over to look, and he felt uneasy. "Those... those patterns are still glowing?"

"Don't make a fuss." Ye Chen stepped onto the stone stairs first. "Let's go."

"Are we really going down?" Old Liu trembled.

"Otherwise?"

"We traveled all this way; we can't just take a photo and go back, right?"

Ye Chen didn't look back, his figure quickly swallowed by the darkness.

Yan Qingwu and Old Liu exchanged a glance, and the two followed him down.

Damn it! Since we're already here, how can we just turn back?

Even if we take a step back... what if there's another exit outside?

So, just following them is all that matters!

But the stone steps were longer than imagined.

The three walked for nearly five minutes before stepping onto level ground.

Yan Qingwu took a tactical flashlight from her pocket and shone it forward.

But she never expected... it was actually an underground palace.

However, the surrounding walls were covered in dark red patterns that spread like spiderwebs.

"There's actually a palace here?" Old Liu was stunned.

He was a native of this place and had never heard of any underground palace in this area.

Yet, he never expected... Ye Chen would find it.

Suddenly! "Look over there." Yan Qingwu suddenly pointed in a direction.

Ye Chen glanced over and immediately discovered a few corpses lying there.

The bodies had already turned to skeletons.

But what was eerie wasn't that they were lying there; it was that their skulls all had three holes in them.

Obviously, those were fatal wounds!

"This..." Old Liu's expression changed. "Isn't this the expedition team from eight years ago?"

He recognized them. Those were the members of the expedition team, because he would never forget their uniforms!

But no one expected that that team would meet their end here!

Ye Chen and Yan Qingwu were slightly taken aback.

It seems... there is an unknown danger here.

Otherwise, how could such smooth holes appear on their heads?

Suddenly! "Rustle..." A sound came from the depths of the underground palace.

Immediately after, a pair of scarlet eyes suddenly lit up.

Those eyes were the size of fists, with vertical pupils, emitting an eerie light in the darkness.

Ye Chen narrowed his eyes and immediately saw the full picture...

A spider so huge it was suffocating.

Its body was the size of a calf, and its eight hairy, jointed limbs propped it up on the ground like spears.

Its abdomen was swollen, covered in dark red patterns identical to those on the walls.

That was a monster!

Old Liu's legs went weak, and he collapsed onto the ground. "Holy crap... a spider this big? What the hell is this thing???"

He had seen bears, wild boars, and wolf packs... but he had never seen such a huge spider!

This thing shouldn't even exist in this world!

The spider's scarlet compound eyes locked onto the three of them, its mouthparts opening to emit a series of hisses.

The next second, it moved violently.

Its eight limbs exerted force simultaneously, and its massive body launched toward them.

"Retreat!" Yan Qingwu gave a low shout, grabbed Old Liu's shoulder, and exploded backward.

The spider brushed past the corners of their clothes, its limbs carving grooves into the stone surface.

The spider missed its attack, exerted force with its eight limbs again, turned around, and lunged toward Ye Chen.

Because... it could sense that among these three people, this guy was the strongest and also the most delicious!