In midair, the undead collectively bowed to Wu Xiaode.
The leading male spirit said, "We are very grateful for what you have done; your reward has been placed in your book, hoping that you and your female companion can make use of it."
After saying that, they disappeared together.
Wu Xiaode glanced at the Book of the Dead.
He saw a map appear on the pages, with a line of small words beside it:
"You have received your reward for this commission:"
"A secret map."
"The red mark is the last underground safehouse, and its access password is:"
"734876X34235SG12P;"
"Locker password: D76892V19652537;"
"Safehouse coordinates: 32°20′ N, 64°45′ W;"
"Underground: 135.12 meters."
So that was it.
In the perilous Otherworld, there was still such a secretive and safe place to stay!
—The reward was not bad.
Even if he didn't need it this time, should he be transported near here again in the future, or should something happen, it would still be useful.
As for the time—
Wu Xiaode glanced at the Book of the Dead.
Only 4 minutes were left.
In 4 minutes, the guessing magic would arrive with his companions.
Wu Xiaode beckoned to Xia Ni.
"Xia Ni, take Sister Lan and retreat immediately; I have a friend coming over," Wu Xiaode said.
"Why can't I stay?" Xia Huilan furrowed her brows and bit her lip.
"My relationship with that person isn't very good. Without you here, I can retreat at any time; if you stay, I only have the option to fight to the death," Wu Xiaode stated calmly.
Xia Huilan's brows suddenly relaxed, and she immediately said to Xia Ni:
"Give him a tracker, set up a battle camp, and we retreat."
Xia Ni pinned a badge to Wu Xiaode's chest.
Then she quickly took out a stack of silver discs and covered the ground around Wu Xiaode with them.
"What's all this for?" Wu Xiaode asked curiously.
"Just obey, even if Sister isn't here, I will still protect you," Xia Huilan pinched his hand, then turned and walked toward Xia Ni.
Xia Ni hesitated not a second longer, embraced Xia Huilan, and flew away along the way they had come.
Her speed was now several times faster than before, sweeping away as fast as lightning.
Now.
Only Wu Xiaode was left sitting amidst a pile of silver discs.
Only 1 minute remained.
Who would arrive first?
The monster leader, or the guessing magic?
What should he do if the monster leader was the first to arrive?
What if the guessing magic and their group arrived first?
Wu Xiaode pondered various contingency strategies back and forth.
A noise gradually approached.
A huge creature emerged from corridor number 13 across the way.
Its head was so large that it completely filled the entire corridor, forcing the walls to stretch slightly, and rocks clattered down incessantly.
—It was a giant snake with three blood-red vertical pupils, and a black horn growing from its head, piercing the brick wall above the corridor as if slicing through tofu.
The monster leader had arrived first!
Just as Wu Xiaode was about to act, the giant snake suddenly spoke:
"Don't move, child."
Wu Xiaode suddenly found himself unable to move.
He gritted his teeth, trying desperately to step forward, but found that no matter what, he couldn't move even an inch.
The giant snake's three red vertical pupils slightly narrowed as it hissed:
"Child, why are you alone here?"
Wu Xiaode felt his mind begin to blur, involuntarily wanting to answer something.
Without warning—
A sharp pain erupted in his back.
No sooner had the pain appeared than Wu Xiaode fully regained consciousness and took back control of his body.
From the Book of the Dead appeared a line of Ice Frost small characters:
"The Spirit Control Skill continues to be effective, but it cannot act on you."
What?
If the skill is still effective, why isn't it affecting me anymore?
Without time to check his body, Wu Xiaode was about to flee, but in the next instant, he suddenly remembered something and forcibly suppressed his instinct, standing still on the spot.
Wait a minute—
Calm down!
If I run now, the monster will definitely catch up.
Since the snake's Spirit Control Skill is still effective, it must think that it still has everything under control.
Wu Xiaode glanced furtively at the snake, catching it staring at him, waiting for an answer.
He had been caught by its skill.
Which means...
Now, it would believe whatever he said.
"Because I am a newbie, I was ordered to be here as bait."
A look of distress crossed Wu Xiaode's face as he hugged his shoulders and sobbed softly.
"Bait? What bait?" the giant snake asked.
"All these silver disks around me are powerful bombs—I don't know if you understand what a Thermal Bomb is, but if you get close to me, they will explode immediately, specifically designed to deal with especially formidable monsters. Even if it doesn't kill them, it will bring down the entire place and trap them here for a while."
The giant snake's three vertical pupils stared intently at Wu Xiaode, but its massive body quietly moved backwards.
"Child, who ordered you?"
"They're looking for the fifth secret passage. They've found it already, but they won't tell anyone. Maybe they'll be back in a while." Wu Xiaode wiped away his tears as he spoke.
"Already found the fifth secret passage? Good..." A fierce gleam flashed through the giant snake's eyes.
At that moment.
On the Book of the Dead, the time reached "00:07".
— Time was about to return to zero.
"They're coming," Wu Xiaode said in profound sorrow.
"Good, don't mention I'm here, child," the giant snake hissed as it spoke.
Whoosh—
It disappeared all at once.
The entire body of the one-eyed three-eyed giant snake retracted into the passage, so well hidden that not a trace could be seen, nor was there any breath given away.
In fact, the snake had sensed something approaching even before Wu Xiaode spoke.
Wu Xiaode's words confirmed this and even disclosed the identities of the newcomers.
So, it immediately hid.
Across the cliff.
A flicker of emotion passed through Wu Xiaode's eyes.
This creature was extremely formidable, the most powerful being he had encountered, aside from the One-eyed Giant.
Yet it chose to hide and prepare for an ambush.
So powerful, and yet so sneaky—who could fight it?
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
...
Seven seconds.
A sound of footsteps came from deep within passage number seventeen.
Two figures stood at the entrance of the passage.
The one wearing a grey rhinoceros mask was Guessing Magic.
The other, holding a candle burning with green flames, was indeed a member of the S-class club.
"Congratulations on finding it."
Wu Xiaode looked at them and said earnestly.
Guessing Magic spread his arms wide and laughed, "Effortless! Hahaha, of course, we could find it—"
Boom!!!!!
Fierce flames engulfed the entire passage seventeen, spreading swiftly across the cliff opposite Wu Xiaode, like a demon that had suddenly descended.