Ning Dao Covered with Snow

Chapter 351 Detonation
Chaolu suddenly realized: "No wonder I saw the Five Gods Sect people retreating just now. It turns out they planned to blow this place up. This way, they could not only destroy the traces they left here, but also kill all the imperial troops that came to besiege the Five Gods Sect."

Du Lingzhou cursed angrily, "These bastards are utterly depraved!"

Li Chengge looked at Xiao Wang and saw that he was still focused on unlocking the door. She wanted to say something, but she was afraid that he would be distracted, so she chose to remain silent.

At this moment, Xiao Wang was almost lying on the floor, holding a thin silver needle in his hand. The needle was slowly moving along the crack in the floor. When the needle encountered an obstacle and had to stop, he immediately pulled out the short knife he carried with him and slowly inserted the thin blade into the crack in the floor.

He pressed his ear to the ground, listening to the sounds underground while adjusting the angle of the blade.

This is an extremely delicate task that cannot be rushed, but time is of the essence, and they cannot linger here for too long.

A tremendous pressure weighed on Xiao Wang's heart. He concentrated, held his breath, cleared his mind of all distractions, and focused all his attention on the hidden door beneath him.

click!
A slight sound came from underground. The blade found the keyhole, inserted it, and turned it gently. Suddenly, a corner of the floor dented, revealing an iron ring.

Xiao Wang's spirits lifted, and he immediately sheathed his short sword, calling out "Uncle Nine".

Uncle Nine strode forward, bent down, grabbed the iron ring, and pulled it upwards with force. The hidden door in the floor was slowly opened, revealing a deep underground passage to everyone.

Xiao Wang picked up the lantern and said to Li Chengge, "You stay here and keep watch. We'll come back after we find Aci."

"Okay, you all must be very careful."

Xiao Wang took the lead and entered the secret passage, followed closely by Chao Lu, then Du Lingzhou, and finally Uncle Jiu.

The four of them continued down the stairs. When they reached the end, they saw an iron gate. Beside the gate stood a thin man, who was none other than Ah Fu.

When Ah Fu saw a stranger enter, he drew two short knives from his waist without saying a word. He moved with incredible speed, like a black bat flying in the dark night, rushing towards Xiao Wang at a speed that was difficult to detect with the naked eye!

Xiao Wang dodged to the side, and Uncle Nine and Du Lingzhou rushed out, drawing their swords and engaging Ah Fu in battle.

Ah Fu is exceptionally skilled in light footwork and adept at sneak attacks and assassinations, making a direct confrontation extremely disadvantageous for him.

After exchanging a couple of blows with them, he realized he was no match for them. He immediately gave up the attack and, using his familiarity with the terrain, slipped into the shadows.

Taking this opportunity, Xiao Wang carried a lantern and approached the iron gate, but the gate was locked from the inside and he couldn't push it open no matter what he did.

He took out the silver needle again and inserted it into the crack in the door, trying to replicate the unlocking process he had just gone through. However, he was greatly disappointed with the result. The lock on the iron door in front of him was extremely complicated. To open it, he would need not only very precise tools but also to try repeatedly. However, Xiao Wang only had the silver needle and the short knife in his hands, and his tools and time were extremely limited.

Even Xiao Wang, who was usually unfazed by the collapse of Mount Tai, couldn't help but feel anxious at this moment, and a fine layer of sweat appeared on his forehead.

He pounded on the iron gate: "Aci! Are you in there? If you can hear me, answer me!"

However, what answered him was a deafening roar!
Suddenly the ground shook violently, and Chaolu almost fell, but luckily she managed to grab the wall in time.

Ah Fu, who had been hiding in the shadows looking for an opportunity to launch a sneak attack, was also startled. He knew that the explosives hidden in Hengqing Temple had been detonated!
This place will soon collapse due to the explosion. A-Fu didn't want to be buried alive, so he suddenly emerged from the shadows and ran towards the exit of the secret passage as fast as he could.

But before he could run very far, he was caught up by Uncle Nine and Du Lingzhou.

The secret passage was narrow and the space was extremely limited, which was very disadvantageous for Ah Fu, who was good at stealth and ambushes. He had nowhere to use his lightness skills and was quickly caught by Uncle Nine and Du Lingzhou.

Ah Fu was pinned against the wall by the two men. He struggled desperately, shouting at the top of his lungs, "Let me go! This place is about to collapse! If you don't want to die, you'd better get out of here!"

He thought that saying that would scare the two away.

But Uncle Nine and Du Lingzhou were not intimidated. Du Lingzhou pressed, "Stop talking nonsense and tell the truth. Where are Ning Ci and the Divine Witch?"

A-Bat thought these two people were really crazy. They were about to die and they were still concerned about other people's affairs. He said, panting, "They are all in the altar."

Where is the altar?

"It's behind that iron gate, but only the shaman has the key. Without the key, no one can open it. Give up, don't waste any more time here. If we delay any longer, we'll all be buried alive!"

By the end, Ah Fu was extremely agitated, and his voice cracked from shouting.

Du Lingzhou felt a pang of panic. He turned to look at Xiao Wang, only to see Xiao Wang still pounding on the iron gate, showing no intention of leaving. He had no choice but to speak up and remind him, "Xiao Liulang, we don't have much time left!"

Xiao Wang made a shushing gesture: "Shh! I think I heard Aci's voice."

Everyone was shocked.

Ah Fu exclaimed in disbelief, "This is impossible! That woman can't possibly still be alive!"

Du Lingzhou punched him hard in the back of the head, knocking him unconscious and stopping him from babbling on.

Then another deafening roar erupted, this time even closer than before. The ground shook even more violently, with debris constantly falling from the ceiling and cracks appearing in the walls.

Chao Lu was terrified; this place was really going to collapse!
Xiao Wang, however, seemed oblivious to everything around him, remaining motionless against the iron gate, listening intently.

He was certain he hadn't misheard; there really was Yan Ciwan's voice behind the door.

Overjoyed, he shouted, "Aci! You're still alive, right? Can you get the key? I can't pry open this door; the only key is with the shaman!"

Inside the altar, Yan Ciwan's consciousness was gradually fading. In her daze, she almost saw her mother, who was standing in a white world, smiling and waving at her.

She wanted to go find her mother, but was suddenly awakened by a loud noise.

A piece of gravel hit her on the forehead, and the pain made her mind clearer.

She heard Xiao Wang's shouts and knew that he was outside the door. If she could open the door, she could survive.

Driven by her will to live, she gritted her teeth and shakily reached out her right hand, her fingers touching the shaman's body, which was still warm from the recent death.

Yan Ciwan's fingers slipped inside the shaman's sleeve and touched a brass key.

The key was stained with blood, sticky and slippery, and she almost couldn't hold it.

She tucked the key into her bosom, then picked up the shaman's staff, took a deep breath, and used all her strength to stand up.