Chapter 78: The Condemned Prisoner Found

In the blink of an eye, Gao Hai pushed Xue Ze aside and used his blade to deflect the stone.

Xue Ze watched as the stone zipped past her face, then glanced at the mark left on Gao Hai’s blade. Without hesitation, she pulled Gao Hai five meters to the side.

Instantly, the light dimmed, and the air erupted with a deafening crash. The spot where they had just stood was plunged into a dull haze, sand and dirt flying. Hundreds of stones shot past like arrows, fiercely striking the walls and leaving holes, sending clouds of dust billowing.

“This—?” Gao Hai was speechless with shock. If not for Xue Ze’s quick reflexes, they would have been buried under a hail of stones.

“Don’t make a sound!”

Xue Ze focused her magical power, flicked her wrist, and summoned ice shards that fused into a single ice sword, which she sent flying toward the source of the stones.

“What are you doing?”

“Don’t worry about it now!”

Xue Ze and Gao Hai stood aside, listening intently to the sounds coming from around the corner. The pounding noises continued relentlessly, then converged into a single, crisp sound—the ice sword shattered.

“Miss, where are you going?”

Xue Ze frowned. “Don’t come any closer!”

She dashed forward, stopping at the edge of the broken ice, examining the wall ahead.

Gao Hai followed, only to find Xue Ze gathering up every shard of ice, while the ground was covered in a thick layer of stone debris—likely the aftermath of her ice sword.

A wall stood prominently in the passage, adorned with intricate carvings and clever mechanisms, barring the way ahead. On its surface, red words declared: This road is impassable.

“There’s actually a trap here?” Xue Ze exclaimed in awe.

“This… I’ve never known. It seems getting inside will be anything but easy!”

“That suggests both the dead and the criminal who once hid here are intimately familiar with this place. It seems the culprit is not alone—he must be entangled with the royal family.”

Gao Hai was deeply puzzled. He couldn’t fathom how Xue Ze had reached such a conclusion.

“Why? Is it not possible the culprit found this place himself, understood its mechanisms, and then lured his victim here?”

“We struggled just to get in; how could convicts enter so easily? You should know this is a murder, and the killer… has been scheming for a long time!” Xue Ze brushed the dust from the wall. “Without help, how could he succeed?”

Gao Hai thought, but found no rebuttal. “You’re right, miss. But… why did the culprit choose this place? It offers a secret haven, but lacks supplies. Does he not need food? Clothes?”

“…” Xue Ze turned away, unwilling to answer. As Gao Hai had said, the murderer was no ordinary person; even Xue Ze felt a tinge of anxiety.

“This killer is truly troublesome!”

Xue Ze glanced at Gao Hai’s troubled face, then at the wall declaring “This road is impassable.” Her heart made a decision, and her fingers moved involuntarily.

“The palace’s back mountain is heavily guarded, and ordinary folk never venture here. This forbidden land must have been sealed because of the cave, and only someone powerful would know its secrets and how to bypass its traps. Yet the murderer is clearly not in power—he hides, takes lives, likely acting in collusion…”

“You mean the deaths here were merely cover-ups? And the case at the prince’s mansion was a plot between the killer and the royals? Besides the prince’s mansion, who else could benefit?”

“That’s for you to consider. I only care why he kills. To take the lives of men with strong yang energy—does he truly seek some extraordinary power?”

Gao Hai was startled, nervously asking, “So there really are secret arts that require the essence of such men?”

Xue Ze smiled, lips pressed together. “You even know about essence? Seems your investigation rivals ours!”

Gao Hai nodded. “We both know that coming here isn’t the start, but a continuation. My familiarity comes from years of probing and discussion. I imagine you’re here on assignment too?”

“Indeed, I’d already learned much beforehand. I came to clarify matters and discover something new. Unexpectedly, I found it right away!”

“Oh? What is it?”

Xue Ze smiled, looking at the wall. “I suspect this trap wasn’t always here.”

“What?” Gao Hai examined it closely, puzzled. “How did you know? Both the wall and trap are old, marked by time. They clearly predate us—why do you suspect them?”

“Anything can be disguised or faked. Traps are no exception. The surface may be new, the details exquisite, but those hidden weapons can’t fool me!”

“Hidden weapons?” Gao Hai picked up a stone, studied it, and suddenly understood. “So you deduced it from this? Your insight is remarkable—I’m ashamed! If I hadn’t examined it, I’d have missed the trick.”

“You flatter me. I only guessed because of the mark left on your blade.”

“So you used the ice sword to investigate?”

Xue Ze nodded. “You’re sharp! If these stones had been here for ages, no matter how tough, they wouldn’t have such force. Your blade isn’t legendary, but sharp enough to slice iron—how could it be marked so easily?”

“That’s true. Your ice sword is formidable, yet was destroyed along with them. The trap seems deliberately set to block us. I focused on safety and missed the clues. Fortunately, you’re here, else our trip would be wasted.”

“Actually, my senior came here not long ago. He investigated shortly after the incident and found his way straight to the cave’s depths, reporting hundreds of corpses. He told me to follow the scent to find my way, but as we walked, the maze-like layout and dissipating scent made it impossible. That’s why I suspected the trap was deliberately blocking us.”

“Luckily, we detected it in time and weren’t harmed, or I wouldn’t know how to explain myself.”

“Explain?” Gao Hai was momentarily embarrassed. “Wrong word, don’t mind it!”

“Never mind. Let me remove the trap and we’ll enter quickly!”

“But… dismantling this trap will take time. Why not find another way?”

“The danger is gone; only the mechanism remains. Who knows what lies elsewhere—it may be even more treacherous. Rest assured, my magic will clear it swiftly!”

With that, Xue Ze summoned a gust of wind, pushing Gao Hai safely around the corner.

Focusing her mind, she called forth an ice needle, which appeared in her hand. Gently she sent it forward; a flash of silver light appeared and vanished at the trap. Instantly, a cold wind swept through, and the wall and mechanism crumbled to the ground.

Gao Hai saw the silver flash and rushed over, finding Xue Ze already putting away a silver needle. The path ahead was unobstructed.

The remains of the wall and mechanism lay scattered on the ground, save for drifting dust—nothing remained alive.

“…”

Unperturbed by Gao Hai’s astonishment, Xue Ze strode forward.

Once past the wall, Xue Ze could clearly smell the scent she was searching for. She mused: Was this wall placed here deliberately? Passing through it gives me direction—thankfully I didn’t take another route. Yet, now that I’ve crossed, I feel uneasy. Why?

The deeper they went, the darker it grew. Xue Ze was about to summon light, when suddenly she sensed a flicker of fire. Looking back, she saw Gao Hai approaching with a torch.

“It’s pitch-black ahead. Be careful, miss!”

“Thank you!”

Gao Hai stayed close to Xue Ze, lighting their surroundings. Though he couldn’t smell what she did, he sensed the strange atmosphere. The cave was silent, damp, alternately chilly and warm—a peculiar place.

Before long, they saw a few points of light ahead, white beams shining as if a hidden source was present.

Exchanging glances, they hurried forward to find the light’s origin.

It was an open, circular area. Light streamed in from a small hole above, casting a beam onto a round platform at the center. The surface gleamed like a mirror, reflecting the light elsewhere.

By its glow, they saw corpses arrayed beneath the platform, each clad in prison garb, unmarked yet faces twisted in fear.

“So these are the condemned criminals—they really were brought here!”

“Why are you so surprised, sir?”

Gao Hai smiled awkwardly, twisting his hands. “I never entered before; all I knew were rumors. Now that they’re confirmed, it’s hard not to be excited…”

Xue Ze frowned slightly. “Confirmed rumors?”

“A man once fled from the mountain, terrified, claiming the forbidden ground harbored a monster. The palace was soon awash with rumors. Not long after, a hundred condemned criminals vanished. People claimed the mountain monster devoured them, leaving no bodies or news. The emperor quarreled with the empress dowager, as she had ordered the prisoners released, but she wanted no further investigation…”

“And then? No one ever returned, nor cared where these people ended up?”

“Twice, investigators came, but stopped at the cave’s entrance. They were condemned, so no one cared about their fate. If it weren’t for the prince’s mansion case, this place would have remained hidden!”

“I see!”