Starting Off Survival With A Small Treehouse

Chapter 1367 - 687: Quiet Escape (Part 3)

Xu Xin turned the bracelet on her wrist: "The monster just said that when we truly go to destroy the Scarlet Crystal, it will be released and draw part of their attention for us."

The monster might indeed attract most of the attention.

If the monster appears, the others might very well think that this entire series of events was caused by the monster, and they will go all out to hunt it down.

This gives Xu Xin and the others the chance to complete their task.

"The monster..." Li Wenxi muttered softly, then hesitated, "Can it really be trusted?"

"There’s no point in questioning that now; the plan itself was its suggestion." Xu Xin shook her head lightly. "If we don’t trust it, we wouldn’t have any reason to be here."

"That’s true..." Li Wenxi pursed her lips. "And Sister Gui Xin has communicated with it a lot and now trusts it. I... I trust Sister Gui Xin’s judgment. But it just feels unsettling to leave our fate in its hands."

"It’s not exactly in its hands," Xu Xin replied. "It’s only responsible for drawing fire. The outcome still depends on our effort."

"Hmm."

At this point, Xu Xin and the others had reached the end of the corridor.

At the end of the corridor, there was another door.

However, this door wasn’t closed but was wide open.

Behind the door was a very spacious wooden hall, almost identical to the one they entered.

"...I’ll go first," Lou Fei’Er stepped forward a few steps.

The wide-open door felt like a trap, but it was the only way they could go.

After stepping through the door, Lou Fei’Er lightly turned her head to look behind the door.

Then her pupils constricted again, and she held her breath, signaling to Xu Xin and the others with her eyes.

...As expected.

Was there another "gatekeeper" behind this door?

Calmly, Xu Xin and the others walked through the door and then took a peek behind it.

It was pitch-black and writhing, with hundreds of eyes blinking continuously.

Well, so that’s how it is.

At this moment, Li Wenxi gently tugged Xu Xin’s arm and pointed upward.

Xu Xin looked up.

The entire ceiling was covered with small, finger-thick, dark holes.

The small holes were densely packed, almost adjacent to one another.

Upon closer inspection, each small hole had a finer silver-tipped point. These silver tips seemed alive, swaying slowly within each hole.

All the small holes were like this, and the swaying silver tips made the entire ceiling seem as if it were wriggling.

The entire ceiling appeared to be a mass of pockmarked wormholes with worms wriggling within, which caused even Xu Xin, who didn’t have issues with trypophobia, to feel a bit uneasy.

Li Wenxi made a hand gesture mimicking a gun.

Xu Xin and the others immediately understood.

These dark holes were all... gun barrels?

The silver little tips were... bullets?

This means the gentle swaying is to adjust the attack direction?

...In any case, this room is dangerous, and the ceiling is full of gun barrels.

Meanwhile, this room had more than just this door.

Aside from the door they just entered, there were five more doors in front of them.

There were two doors on the left wall, one directly opposite them, and two more on the right wall.

These doors should all lead to routes inside the building within the walls.

Xu Xin rubbed Keke’s head nestled in her arms.

"Purr... Purr."

With its head being rubbed, Keke, who had been withdrawn, peeked its small head out again.

The little guy saw the mass of dark holes on the ceiling, quickly withdrew its head halfway, and only exposed its two eyes. Then a little paw pointed toward the door directly in front of them.

So it is that door.

Li Wenxi and the others noticed Keke’s small gesture, and Lou Fei’Er took the lead and walked toward that door.

Xu Xin and Li Wenxi followed closely, while Jin Yue gave a glance down the corridor they came from and joined them.

Lou Fei’Er reached the door.

This large door was also double-sided, but tightly closed.

"Purr..." Keke extended its two little paws and made a pushing motion.

Just push it open?

Xu Xin took a few steps forward and nodded to Lou Fei’Er.

The two didn’t hesitate further, pressing on the doors from both sides.

The double doors were gently pushed open.

Smoothly, without much force needed.

Once the gap was wide enough for a person to pass through, they stopped moving.

They couldn’t open it too wide; the risk of being discovered would increase.

Behind the door was a large ball woven from vines.

A vine ball elevator?

The few exchanged a glance and nodded lightly, then directly walked into it.

Xu Xin reached back to close the door.

With a slight sound, the wooden door shut.

Before the group could react, the vines under their feet began to wriggle!

They suddenly found it hard to stand firm and quickly supported each other.

But from the gaps in the vine ball underfoot, four blood-pattern-adorned vine tendrils as thick as arms emerged!

The four knew what was about to happen next. They neither spoke nor resisted.

The four thick vines slowly wrapped around their bodies.

As the four vines gradually enveloped them, the vine floor beneath their feet started loosening.

Eventually, when they were completely bound, their feet were already suspended in midair.

Cold winds gusted up from below.

Xu Xin looked down, able to see the ground a hundred meters below.

And then...

The vines binding them suddenly softened, and they began free-falling as if bungee jumping with ropes!

"Oomph...!"

Fortunately, all four managed to hold back screams.

Finally, about ten meters from the ground, the vines wrapped around them exerted force again, slowing their descent, and then...

They landed steadily on the ground.

Afterward, the Blood Patterned Vine that hung from the World Tree crown slowly retracted from their bodies at a very high speed, withdrawing back into the World Tree within just two seconds, disappearing completely.

"Did we... just make it out like that?" Li Wenxi said, pressing her pounding chest, unable to believe it.

"You all finally made it out."

At that moment, Xu Ying’s voice came from behind them.

Xu Xin turned to see Xu Ying standing behind them with a relieved expression, as purple-black whirlpools at her feet began to fade away.

She must have noticed the situation here from elsewhere and teleported straight over.

"Bro, you guys were so slow; if you were any slower, I would’ve gone in to find you." Xu Ying punched Xu Xin playfully.

Xu Xin caught her fist, hesitating, "Did you... find the place?"

"Of course. And you?"

"We got quite a lot." Li Wenxi whispered with a smile.

"Well, this isn’t the place to talk. Let’s leave here first."

"Okay, I’ve taken the others to a safe spot; let’s go find them now."