Chapter 111: Sudden Crisis in the Secret Passage (Second Update)

Splash!

Jin Yue elegantly picked up an ice cube the size of a fingernail with her tweezers and dropped it into her wine glass, causing tiny red droplets to scatter.

There is a saying: when a butterfly flaps its wings in the Brazilian jungle, it can trigger a tornado in Texas.

This means that one event or phenomenon can be connected to another through a series of intermediate links; it’s not literally that a butterfly in Brazil causes a storm in Texas.

The dazzling Brazilian butterfly is completely unaware of the tornado in Texas; flapping its wings is just a daily routine. Similarly, the radiant and poised Jin Yue is oblivious to the fall into the uncovered sewer in the alley, and even more unaware of the tumble inside the secret passage beneath her villa’s cleaning room.

Splash! At the very moment Jin Yue dropped the ice cube into her glass, Wang Chao fell straight down the manhole, sending up splashes of yellowish filth.

Splash! As Wang Chao plunged into the sewer, Pao Fanshan tumbled into the secret passage. After finally regaining control of his body and painstakingly biting through the ropes binding his hands and feet, he slowly got up—only to trip over something and fall face-first into the muck, kicking up clumps of black sludge.

"Damn it!"

Pao Fanshan cursed bitterly, rising again. He wiped the mud-covered hands on his dirty clothes, then used the slightly cleaner hands to wipe the black grime from his face. Turning back to look at what had tripped him, a chill ran down his spine.

The words “skin and bones” were once just an idiom to Pao Fanshan; after all, as someone who always looked out for himself, he usually dealt with robust, fleshy types. At the moment of his fall, he thought he had tripped over a stick or something similar. Now, seeing clearly, he realized it was a human thigh—emaciated to the point of mere skin over bone.

In a pool of sludge lay a man, as limp as the muck around him. His cheekbones were deeply sunken, his face sallow. His hair, like dead winter grass, obscured most of his face, revealing only two dull, lifeless eyes. Through the torn fabric of his ragged clothes, one could faintly see ribs protruding like thin sticks beneath his pale skin, his chest rising and falling in an exaggerated, labored rhythm.

A biting cold breeze seemed to blow from nowhere, causing Pao Fanshan to shiver and take a cautious step back. His voice trembled as he tentatively said, “Hello…”

“Heh heh heh.”

The man’s eyes suddenly brightened but quickly dimmed again. He opened his mouth but only emitted harsh, grating laughter.

Pao Fanshan shuddered again, swallowing hard before trying once more, “Did you fall down here by accident too?”

“Heh heh heh.”

“Are you mute?” Pao Fanshan steadied himself and scrutinized the man carefully, relieved to confirm he was human and not some other filth. He cautiously stepped closer and smiled, “Brother, do you know where this is?”

This time, the man didn’t speak but weakly raised his right hand, extending his index finger to point upwards.

Following the man’s gesture, Pao Fanshan looked up at the black stone ceiling, seeing nothing but darkness. After thinking for a moment, he slapped his thigh and said, “Oh… you mean we’re under the villa?”

The man’s arm dropped lifelessly, and he nodded weakly.

Seeing how frail the man was, Pao Fanshan grew bolder and took a big step forward, pursing his lips and rolling his eyes. “Of course I know this is under the villa, do you think I need you to tell me?” He glanced around and suddenly noticed half a moldy cake covered in green fuzz on a nearby stone. Frowning, he asked, “How long have you been here? You don’t look like you’ve been surviving for just a day or two. Half a month? A month? Surely not a year?”

“Heh.”

The man shook his head, emitting a harsh laugh from deep in his throat.

“Right, it’s so dark here you can’t tell one day from another…” Pao Fanshan suddenly remembered something and frantically searched his pockets—only to find them empty. His face darkened immediately. “Damn it… that bastard really took my phone!”

“Heh heh.”

The man twisted the corner of his mouth, appearing to smirk with disdain.

“Are there any other exits here?” Pao Fanshan looked around anxiously. Aside from what was immediately around them, he could see nothing—not even where they had fallen from. His voice grew urgent. “This place can’t be too big. You’ve been here a while; have you found anything?”

“Heh heh heh!”

“Right, if you had found something, you’d be out by now… If all else fails, we can only try to go back the way we fell. But that will definitely draw those two bastards’ attention, and then it’ll be a fight.”

“Heh heh heh heh heh.”

“Still, we’re not without chances. There are two of them, and two of us…”

“Heh.”

“Okay, maybe one and a half—your condition’s pretty bad, you’re just cannon fodder. Your combat value’s not even five.” Pao Fanshan wandered around, sighing helplessly before returning to the man’s side. He tapped his lips and said, “Since we’re in the same boat now, maybe we should share information. Where exactly did we fall?”

The man fell silent for a moment, then raised his right hand again, pointing toward Pao Fanshan’s two o’clock.

Pao Fanshan pursed his lips and cupped his hands. “Thanks. I’ll go scout ahead. When I can get out, I’ll come back for you. Don’t worry, I always keep my promises. Just stay here and don’t make any noise.”

“Heh.”

The man drooped his eyelids and uttered the single word emotionlessly.

“Hey, hey, I just told you not to make noise, and you’re making a racket…” Pao Fanshan, who had already taken a step forward, turned back in irritation, holding the ropes that had bound him earlier. “Stay put and stop that endless ‘heh heh heh’—it’s annoying! I’m sick of it; every time I ask something, all I get is ‘heh heh heh’—no manners at all!”

The man’s gaze turned icy as he watched Pao Fanshan loop the ropes around his hands and feet again, a strange smile playing at the corners of his mouth.

After Pao Fanshan finished tying the man up, he tore a piece of cloth from the man’s ragged clothes and stuffed it into his mouth. Only then did he exhale deeply and say with feigned solemnity, “I’m doing this for both our sakes so we can get out of here. You have to endure it for now. You’ve been here a long time; your mind and body must be shot. If you make a fuss at a critical moment, we’ll lose everything. Let’s just do it this way. You got here first, you’re the senior. I’ll be the junior and go scout ahead.”

With that, Pao Fanshan turned and left without looking back. His hurried footsteps echoed through the pitch-black underground space.

After Pao Fanshan left, the man placed his hands on the edge of a nearby rock and began rubbing the ropes on his wrists back and forth. Even as his wrists bled profusely, he ignored the pain. After more than ten seconds, he successfully broke the ropes on his hands, deftly untied his feet, removed the cloth from his mouth, picked up a stone, and silently moved in the direction Pao Fanshan had gone.

“Thump! Thump! Thump!”

At the secret passage entrance, Pao Fanshan, after some fumbling, began to slam with all his might against the hidden door—again and again. Only then did he realize the door could only be opened from the outside. Sweat beaded on his forehead, a hint of madness flickered in his eyes. He took a few steps back, gritted his teeth, and charged at the door like a bull with red eyes.

Persistence paid off. After countless desperate rams, a crack finally appeared at the door’s edge, letting in a faint sliver of light. Pao Fanshan pressed his face against the panel and peeked through the gap. Sure enough, it was the cabinet where he had been trapped earlier.

His face lit up with joy, and he slammed the door even more frantically.

People are like this: seeing even the smallest glimmer of hope, they will throw themselves forward without hesitation, caring little for what lies ahead or who is behind them.

Under Pao Fanshan’s relentless assault, the crack widened like a wound torn open by a beast.

On the 163rd strike, the door suddenly burst open. Pao Fanshan wiped the sweat from his brow, swallowed hard, gasped for breath, and, relaxing, bent down and stepped into the cabinet.

Placing his right hand lightly on the cabinet door, he gave a strong push—and his smile froze. His legs gave way, and he collapsed to his knees.

Instead of the villa’s cleaning room he had imagined, there was another dark and endless secret passage.

Just as Pao Fanshan gathered his courage to get up and continue, a sudden voice drifted from behind.

“Despair, huh? Heh heh heh… I was pretty desperate too… There are seven more secret passages like this, winding and confusing, making you lose your way…”

A chill ran down Pao Fanshan’s spine. Turning around, he caught sight of the man raising the stone and smashing it hard against his forehead. Blood immediately flowed like a crimson stream; his vision darkened, and he collapsed heavily. Through blurred eyes, he saw the man strip off his clothes and change into them. The last words echoed in his ears:

“Thanks anyway. Now I can finally get out. You’ll stay here for me…”

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