---
Did this mean Chu Jiu was the marauder who bombed the tracks?
Why was she injured?
The wound was evidently not caused by the Secrecy Keeper.
Ji Xun remembered her state with white hair back then. Even as a card master apprentice, she could single-handedly take on a Class A, Level 1 eerie creature like the [Fallen Witch]. Given the right materials, she should have transitioned to a full-fledged spell card master by now, with her combat power increased tenfold.
Who could have injured her?
Ji Xun had initially guessed that the ambush for the governor was set by marauders. But seeing Chu Jiu here made him rethink.
The labyrinth's monsters attacked everyone indiscriminately; there was no need to enter the maze just to assassinate the governor.
Thus, he believed his old friend got caught up in this unintentionally.
Moreover, the wound was on her back—betrayed by someone she trusted?
The plot thickened.
Seeing his old friend immediately provided Ji Xun with a wealth of information.
However, he wasn't entirely ignorant of the world anymore. Having witnessed her demonic apparition in Room 407, he knew this old friend had a complex background.
The more special her identity, the less likely it was a coincidence.
But Ji Xun had no interest in others' private affairs.
What mattered most was that seeing his old friend sparked a solution in his mind.
Previously, he lacked some crucial information and had to rely on luck alone.
Now he had it!
With this realization, Ji Xun stood up and shouted at the two fleeing figures, "Miss Chu Jiu!"
...
Someone called?
The shout caused the two cloaked figures to hesitate.
The one with silver hair glanced back, equally surprised: How was he here?
Clearly, she recognized Ji Xun immediately.
Besides his familiar voice, a deep impression from their previous encounter resurfaced instantly.
Back in Room 407, this guy always faced seemingly deadly situations with a baffling calm.
Wasn't this just like then?
Would you believe it? This guy was now calmly waving at them from amidst a pile of skeletons?
This bizarre scene was something Chu Jiu could barely accept because she recognized Ji Xun. Her companion, however, was bewildered, eyes wide with disbelief: Is he human? Why aren't the skeletons attacking him?
Only Chu Jiu understood this guy's inhuman calmness.
Forget these skeletons; back in Room 407, even in the face of terrifying Class A entities, this guy's expression didn't change.
What was this minor situation to him?
He wasn't someone who could be measured by normal standards.
...
While the skeletons didn't attack Ji Xun, they were relentless towards the two of them.
Ji Xun, upon confirming it was Chu Jiu, jogged over to merge with the two.
In no time, the three were running side by side.
Though Chu Jiu was in a bad mood, she asked curiously, "How are you here?"
"We'll talk about that later," Ji Xun replied urgently. "You guys should stop running. The governor's men just passed through, and there are a bunch of [Secrecy Keepers] up ahead. If you keep going, you're likely to encounter them."
It was obvious that the two planned to follow the path cleared by the governor's men to reduce monster encounters.
We might not survive if we keep running like this.
Upon hearing this, not only Jiu but also her companion beside her were stunned, casting puzzled looks: What else can we do if we don't run? Confront the skeletons head-on?
Jisun understood their confusion but didn't elaborate much, and directly said, "Those skeleton creatures perceive emotional fluctuations related to rationality. Whether it's fear, excitement, or bravery, it triggers their hostility."
...
Upon hearing this, Jiu pondered for a moment.
After a moment, she chose to believe and then asked with a questioning look, "So?"
Her experiences in space 407 had given her a profound understanding of this former teammate. At least in terms of breaking through dimensional spaces, she felt there was no one more impressive than this guy.
In this maze, anyone could be an enemy, but only Jisun wouldn't be.
However, obviously, Jiu's companion was less friendly.
Nanjing looked at Jisun with suspicion about his motives.
They had just been betrayed by their most trusted companion a moment ago, and now no one could be trusted.
Seeing a stranger running towards them, she instinctively became wary, quietly reaching for her card slot.
Jiu quickly introduced, "Xiao Nan, this is my friend."
The psychic heard this, her guarded expression unchanged, but she had no intention of attacking.
Jisun ignored the inexplicable hostility.
In his eyes, only his old friend was worth paying attention to.
Others were just baggage.
He didn't beat around the bush and said directly the method he had in mind, "To shake off the skeleton group now, you must close off your senses and control your emotional fluctuations. If you can't do it, I can knock you out and take you with me."
These two can't die.
At least Jiu can't.
But it seems impossible to save only one; we can only find a way to save these two together.
When this was said, Nanjing's eyebrows immediately frowned.
Close off the senses now? Isn't this seeking death?
Also, knock us out? Isn't this letting someone manipulate us?
Moreover, appearing at this time, the origin and motives are very suspicious...
Nanjing just wanted to remind to be cautious about strangers, but she never thought that Jiu, who was on the side, agreed without hesitation, "Okay!"
What... agreed just like that?
Nanjing widened her eyes and wanted to argue and remind, "Jiu, you...!"
But before she could finish her words, Jiu reached out and touched the back of her neck, and a spiritual force pierced into her mind. Nanjing instantly fainted.
...
How could Jiu not see the current situation clearly?
Now is definitely not the time to hesitate.
If they delay and rush into the group of people from the Governor's Mansion or the Keepers ahead, there will be no chance for regret.
From the current perspective of this maze, there is simply no hope of escaping the predicament in the short term by themselves.
And there's one more thing.
They have a foundation of trust from past cooperation.
The calmness of that guy seemed to give her an inexplicable confidence, as if he could immediately resolve any crisis.
Seeing Jiu so decisive, Jisun smiled lightly.
This old friend of his was a bit too kind, but decisive in handling things.
This also saved a lot of words.
At this critical moment, the more chaotic the running, the more dangerous it is.
Jiu already understood Jisun's meaning. If she closed off her eyes and ears, she could naturally control her rational fluctuations.
She spoke quickly and clearly, "I can close off my senses, but it will severely limit my actions afterwards..."
Before she could finish, Jisun didn't hesitate at all. He suddenly ran up to her, crouched down in front of her, and effortlessly carried Jiu and the psychic who had already passed out on his shoulders, saying, "I'll carry you both."
"???"
Jiu's expression instantly showed bewilderment.
She had anticipated Ji xun's move in advance and guessed what he intended to do, but still found it unbelievable.
In that split second of hesitation, she realized she was being hoisted up from the waist.
Without much explanation, Ji xun carried both of them and started running.
Jiu looked slightly puzzled.
She vividly remembered nearly falling down a few meters from the space's exit through a narrow passage... How did her body become this strong now?
Oh, it must be the epic source card she obtained from space 407.
Thinking of this, Jiu suddenly realized.
Without any pretense, she closed her eyes and simultaneously shut off her hearing and other unnecessary senses.
...
Unable to see the monsters or feel the oppressive environmental cues, and with no sound of the monsters' "click-clacking" movements nearby, her mind gradually calmed down.
Seeing the tide of skeleton creatures behind them gradually losing their target, Ji xun knew his old friend had gotten into the zone.
Tsk, a master is indeed a master.
He carried both of them swiftly through the maze.
Before long, they couldn't hear any movement from the skeleton creatures behind them at all.
The nearby skeleton creatures had also completely lost their target of hatred, aimlessly wandering the corridors.
Although Jiu closed off her vision and hearing, she was not completely unaware. As they walked, she suddenly spoke up, "Go left. There's a strong monster disturbance at two o'clock to the right."
Upon hearing this, a faint smile appeared on Ji xun's lips: Just as he expected.
Choosing to rescue people required Jiu's ability—human radar!
And his teammate was smart enough and tacitly understood her role at this moment.
...
During space 407 earlier, Ji xun had discovered that Jiu could sense the presence of monsters from a considerable distance away, a supernormal ability bestowed by the demon mark, something even high-level spell card users might not possess.
In this maze, this ability became even more crucial.
If Ji xun were on his own, he might have some confidence in breaking out of the maze.
But because someone had triggered a hidden plotline prematurely, disrupting the order of puzzle-solving, they clearly lacked some crucial clues.
To find clues in the maze without running into the Keepers, they would need to rely on luck.
But now, with Jiu here, the situation was completely different.
Jiu could sense monsters from far away, which meant they could avoid many unnecessary dangers.
Even if Jiu's sensing range was slightly smaller than that of the Keepers, she could still perceive danger well in advance over a considerable distance.
They still had a chance to escape.
Based on Ji xun's previous observations, the Keepers' pursuit speed wasn't particularly outrageous. As long as they could detect them early and escape at full speed with preparation, the likelihood of avoiding them was very high.
Moreover, with Ji xun's photographic memory, he was unlikely to make the kind of rookie mistake of leading them into a dead end.
As a result, as long as they didn't encounter the Keepers, what was originally a life-threatening maze predicament suddenly reduced in danger by eighty percent.
With the remaining time, they could completely focus on deciphering the maze.