A moment after Han Li realized he was regaining control of his body, the torches had grown closer to them, allowing him to see with greater clarity.

The nearby surroundings had been brightened enough to reveal large piles of fish and prawn everywhere. Han Li and the woman happened to be on one of the comparatively larger piles.

The areas further away from them were still pitch-black and couldn’t be seen, but the cave appeared exceptionally s.p.a.cious as no walls could be seen.

When the men carrying torches were about a hundred meters away from Han Li, they stopped and quickly placed their bags onto the ground. With the exception of one person that vigilantly stood guard, the rest of them began to wildly stuff the fish and prawn into their bags.

Han Li was surprised to see this while woman on top of him couldn’t help but gasp in surprise, but the men hadn’t heard her because of how soft her voice was. Han Li unconsciously turned his gaze to the woman and discovered in the faint glow of red light that the woman had a beautiful face.

The woman immediately noticed Han Li’s gaze, and seemed to blush. She turned away, and her face was once again hidden in the darkness. However, her bashful eyes still glinted in the darkness.

Han Li couldn’t help but find her actions humorous.

This woman was somewhat odd. When they had yet to see each other’s appearance, she was outspoken, direct, and even a bit unruly. Now that he could see her, the initial harshness has disappeared and she immediately grew timid and bashful.

In that instant, they heard a cry of alarm in the distance.

The man on guard suddenly turned around and harshly whispered, “Not good! Scatter! The Firescale Beast is about to arrive!”

Suddenly, the men that were gathering the fish immediately tossed the bags onto their backs and madly scrabbled in another direction. All that was left behind were the flickering torches illuminating the darkness.

At that moment, several hisses could be heard from within the darkness as if something had discovered the men. Several quick thumps then sounded out.

Several fire-red, meter-long silhouettes leapt from the darkness and quickly disappeared with a blur.

For a instant, Han Li was able to clearly see the appearances of the Firescale Beasts. The beasts had a sinister appearance with red scales and a mouthful of razor sharp fangs.

In the blink of an eye, silence once again covered the cave.

Han Li let out a long breath of relief as it seemed that the strange beasts hadn’t discovered the two of them, providing a silver lining for an otherwise dismal situation.

Not long after the beasts disappeared, Han Li could weakly form a fist with both hands. Soon he finally recovered control over his body and could move well enough to hold onto the woman and slowly stand up.

While being held in his arms, the woman whispered with a blush, “Re... Release me. I will recover soon enough.”

Han Li glanced at the woman and indifferently said, “If you don’t mind squirming around with the fish on the ground, I’ll let you go.”

When the woman heard this, she lowered her head and glanced at the squirming fish on the ground with a trace of hesitation. In the end, she chose to remain silent.

At that moment, Han Li jumped off the pile of fish with the woman in his grasp and walked in the direction of the abandoned torches. Although he didn’t know what or where this forsaken place was, it would prove rather troublesome if they didn’t have any light.

Han Li crouched down and picked up a torch, and wore a pensive expression after glancing around.

A short moment later, the blus.h.i.+ng woman whispered, “Please release me. I can move now.”

When Han Li heard this, he silently relaxed his arm and the woman gracefully landed on her feet. After quickly patting down her clothes, she also pick up a torch and examined their surroundings.

After a moment, Han Li suddenly headed off in the direction that the group of men had arrived from.

When the woman saw this, she was alarmed and hastily asked, “Where are you going?”

Han Li replied without turning his head, “I’m not going to wait here for the beasts to return. It would be better to find somewhere safe for now.”

When the woman heard this, she wore an expression of fright and quickly followed after Han Li.

Han Li remained silent when he heard this and continued on his way.

After only walking a few steps, Han Li stopped and used the torch to illuminate the ground, revealing the men’s footprints.

The woman was caught off guard and nearly ran into Han Li. She was left slightly bewildered and whispered, “What’s wrong?”

Han Li didn’t answer her. Instead, he crouched down and brought a handful of sand to his nose. He revealed an odd expression after taking a sniff.

“There’s a dense smell of blood. This isn’t a good sign!” Han Li expressionlessly said this before continuing to follow the men’s footsteps.

The woman was startled by what he said and quickly followed after Han Li.

After the time it took to finish a meal, they eventually spotted a glitter of blue light in the distance.

Han Li narrowed his eyes at the sight and quickened his steps.

He soon discovered that the sparkling blue light marked an exit from this black expanse. Although it was only about three meters wide, it was more than enough for a person to pa.s.s through.

When the two saw this, they quickly walked through it with roused spirits.

In the instant they arrived at the opening, a white light flashed before Han Li and eight flawless swords quickly appeared against his neck. A hoa.r.s.e voice coldly said, “Who are you? Where are Ah Hu and the others? Are you new arrivals?”

Han Li’s heart stirred upon seeing that he was surrounded by over twenty young men and woman. Each of whom held a strange sparkling white blade, and wore the same strange green robes as the men from before. They were all gazing at Han Li with differing expressions.

As for the beautiful woman following him, she had been surrounded as well and didn’t dare to move.

Han Li rubbed his nose and wryly smiled, “I imagine that we are what you consider to be new arrivals! Do outsiders often appear here?”

When the middle-aged man heard Han Li, his expression relaxed but his voice still remained cold, “I would’ve guessed it if you hadn’t said anything as your strange clothes are something only outsiders would wear. However, it’s quite fortunate for you to encounter us. After all, a majority of outsiders meet their ends in the stomach of the umbra beasts without ever realizing what was happening.”

He then waved his hand and the youths withdrew their swords.

Han Li rubbed his neck and glanced at the weapons with a trace of astonishment.

When those blades were touching his neck, he felt an astonis.h.i.+ng burning sensation as if they were all made of scorching hot iron. It was a truly weird experience.

Han Li then swept his gaze around and discovered that they were in front of a small stone mountain. It appeared that they had just left the heart of the stone mountain. When he gazed into the distance, there was an endless yellow desert.

He then raised his head to the sky and felt an even greater shock.

He saw pitch-black clouds covering the sky. They appeared endless and continuously arced with deep blue lightning, causing the sky to s.h.i.+ne with a faint blue light. It was all stranger than anything Han Li had imagined.

Before Han Li finished observing his surroundings, the lean middle-aged man frowned and asked, “Did you encounter anyone when you arrived? They would be my companions!”

Han Li immediately answered without hesitation, “I saw a group of men, however, they were chased down by a few beasts. They ran off in another direction.”

The lean man grew nervous and he unconsciously tightened his grasp on the blade, “Beasts? What kind?”

“I heard those men call them Firescale Beasts.”

The lean man relaxed and calmly said, “Firescale Beasts? That’s good. Ah Hu and the others should have no problem dealing with them. But just to be sure, Fan Li, bring a group of people inside and help them. Then take them through the nearest alternative exit.”

A towering dark man wordlessly brought a group of people into the cave.