After Being Blackened All Over the Internet, I Ruled the Military Variety Shows
Chapter 495 - 486: Not a Single City Gate

Chapter 495: Chapter 486: Not a Single City Gate

Xu Zhao took the lead, and everyone switched their flashlights to headlamps, jumping down one by one.

"I..."

Yun Yi had just started speaking when he heard his voice echo throughout the entire space, quickly covering his mouth.

But without needing him to speak, the others knew what he wanted to say at that moment.

Because they also wanted to express their amazement.

The inside of the passage was not completely enclosed; every short distance, they would see a hole the size of a head.

Looking out from the hole, they could see the crisscrossing trunks of the petrified trees. Some were so extended that even the flashlight couldn’t reach their branches.

The dense trunks not only extended recklessly in the hollow underground but also supported the platform they had just descended from.

The further down they went, the thicker the trunks became, and the larger the holes grew.

They could almost squeeze through the holes with their shoulders hunched.

However, since they did not yet know if there were any dangers outside, everyone continued to descend the carved steps cautiously.

In the quiet space inside the trunk of the petrified tree, with only the sound of footsteps echoing, Jiang Lingxi kept looking at the walls on either side as she walked, but this time she didn’t see any markings left by Shen Yunqing.

It was understandable, though. A giant petrified tree like this could be considered a sign of good fortune, whether now or in her past life.

Even carving steps inside the trunk felt like squandering resources.

Any additional man-made marks would be destructive.

"We’ve reached the bottom."

Xu Zhao said as he switched his headlamp for a flashlight, shining it on the cylindrical space ahead. He turned to look at Jiang Lingxi, who was coming down behind him, "It’s truly incredible."

He was well-traveled in his work, but what he experienced this time had broadened his horizons.

The underground ruins accessible only through quicksand, the petrified tree supporting a massive platform, and the stairs hidden inside the trunk—each was a first-time experience for him.

Yun Yi, on the other hand, wasn’t so reserved, "It was worth it! Totally worth it!"

Compared to this experience, previous desert adventures seemed weak.

"It’s already past midnight, and I’m not tired at all!"

"That’s because your brain nerves are unusually active from the excitement," Changning rolled her eyes at him, stepping forward to Jiang Lingxi’s side, "Xixi, should we rest here or go straight out to find the others?"

"Let’s rest here for fifteen minutes and then head out."

Yun Yi immediately sat down against the tree wall.

But he didn’t idle his hands, touching the tree wall behind him and then the ground, ending up with his hands covered in fine sand.

"See, the sand really did leak from above. But there’s not much here; could the sand have leaked outside earlier?"

The person resting next to him glanced at him, "Possibly."

Jiang Lingxi sat down next to the only hole at the base space.

Perhaps because it was near the exit, there was the least amount of sand here.

As soon as she sat down, she felt a small bump under her palm on the ground. She lifted her hand and shone her flashlight, spotting a smooth, white pebble, thumb-sized, half-buried in the soft sand.

In the wild, choosing a place behind a temple or a similar structure to rest is a habit not known to many, but Shen Yunqing knew of it.

Was it calculated that even if she stopped to rest here, she’d choose to sit by the entrance?

Fifteen minutes passed in the blink of an eye. After a quick sip of water, Jiang Lingxi held the small stone and slightly bowed as she exited the hole first.

Looking up, she saw the towering city gate not far ahead.

"Looking down from above earlier, one didn’t realize how large this city gate is. Up close, it’s actually quite imposing."

Xu Zhao stepped forward a few paces, shining his flashlight on the city gate, examining it for a moment before frowning, "Something’s not right."

"Not right? What’s not right?"

"This city gate doesn’t seem to match the one we saw from above."

Yun Yi widened his eyes, "You can tell? What’s different?"

Xu Zhao shook his head, "It just feels off, but I can’t pinpoint exactly what."

"It’s not the same city gate."

Jiang Lingxi met the eyes seeking an explanation, "Let’s go in first."

After all, it was an ancient city gate; she was more than familiar with them.

"The gate isn’t shut, just push."

This time, no one asked how she could tell the gate wasn’t closed. They simply rolled up their sleeves and pushed.

Once the door opened wide enough for a person to pass, they entered one by one.

The flashlight revealed a straight, wide street ahead. The houses lining the street were neatly arranged, and perhaps due to being well-preserved underground, even the doors and windows showed little damage.

However, as far as the eye could see, there was only silence.

Yun Yi was a bit unnerved by the quiet, and as he followed along, he asked aloud, "Wait, I just realized, since we entered from a different city gate than those from the Changcang Sect, does that mean we won’t run into them anytime soon?"

"We’ll run into them eventually."

Elsewhere in the ruins.

Chong Shi had just asked Yin Chong a similar question.

"That Jiang girl’s team, even if they came down later than us, it’s been over an hour. They should have caught up by now, but it’s dead quiet back there. Could they have found another path?"

Yin Chong opened his eyes, which had been closed to rest, and watched Chong Shi pace back and forth, "Why are you concerned about them?"

"I’m worried they’ll sneak up behind us and stab us in the back!" Chong Shi slapped the table with wide eyes, "It’s pitch dark down here, I don’t want any nasty surprises."

"I was thinking, why not send a few people back to check on them? If we can kill them, let’s do it. It’s easier to deal with it here than above ground, no bodies for us to handle. Even if we can’t kill them quickly, we’ll still be prepared."

"You can only send your people. Mine must stay with me."

Chong Shi snarled through his nose, "Fine, but don’t try to steal credit with the Sect Leader later."

Yin Chong couldn’t help but chuckle, "Of course not."

Chong Shi found his laughter perplexing and cursed under his breath, hurrying out to make arrangements.

He naturally didn’t hear Yin Chong’s softly spoken words afterward, "We’ll definitely meet."

The two teams weren’t traveling quickly. After all, they had just entered, and being cautious wasn’t wrong.

Even going to explore the houses on either side of the street, when Yun Yi first wanted to rush in, Jiang Lingxi stopped him.

"Knock first."

"But no one’s living here!"

"Would you like it if your territory was intruded upon by strangers thousands of years later?"

Yun Yi felt a chill run down his spine.

Looking at the door right in front of him, he switched from pushing to knocking, "Excuse me..."

Before he could finish saying ’may I come in and have a look?’, the door in front of him suddenly opened.

Yun Yi froze at the door.