The passage before everyone was still narrow, and in the center, five giant stones as large as two human heads were quietly placed on the ground.

According to Sun Shijie's account, a big part of the reason Iwakami Ryoji was severely injured back then was because he was struck by those stones.

With Sun Shijie saying this, Xiao Feng and the others instinctively looked up.

But just that one glance made everyone break out in a cold sweat.

The passage above wasn't as low as before; instead, it was towering and steep, at least ten meters high.

The most important part was that the top was densely packed with a large group of bats hanging upside down. A quick glance concluded there were at least hundreds, if not thousands.

These creatures were certainly not unfamiliar to Xiao Feng and the others, except for Master Jiu, as similar creatures once almost doomed the whole village in Huangshu Village.

"Don't shine your light!" Xiao Feng immediately reminded them.

Dark, damp caverns are the favorite habitat for bats. Conversely, liking darkness means they naturally hate lights, which is why in many movies, torches are used to drive away bats.

Xiao Feng didn't want to awaken these bats. If possible, it was best not to disturb them so they wouldn't attack as a group. Even with Zhao Guo'an and Sun Shijie around, while they might not be in mortal danger, it would certainly be unsettling.

Everyone quickly lowered their heads upon hearing this, directing the beams of their headlamps away from the bats above.

"Turn off the lights for now," Xiao Feng said in a deep voice.

"Brother Xiao Feng, I'm a bit scared," the little girl said while turning off the light, extending her small hand toward Xiao Feng, as if this gesture might provide her some sense of security.

"Don't be afraid!" Xiao Feng comforted softly, slightly increasing his grip on her delicate hand.

As all the lights went off, everyone instinctively held their breath, their nerves tightening.

When there was light, it was not obvious, but now surrounded by darkness, all sorts of terrifying thoughts uncontrollably emerged in their minds.

Those with a vivid imagination even wondered if the badly decayed corpse not far away might suddenly sit up in the darkness, like a zombie, reaching out and choking them.

"Luckily, we didn't disturb those bats. Otherwise, in a place like this, there's no way we could outrun them," Xiao Feng said with a sigh of relief.

Everyone nodded in agreement. For humans with two legs to compete with animals with wings in terms of speed, it's a ridiculous notion.

After a moment, Xiao Feng gently squeezed the little girl's soft hand again, praising, "You did well this time, not screaming out loud, a real improvement."

"That's for sure!" the little girl replied with pride.

Of course, she wouldn't admit that it was actually her excessive fear that kept her from screaming.

But just then, Zhao Guo'an suddenly blurted out a curse: "What the hell!"

Unprepared and with no mental readiness, even Xiao Feng was startled, let alone the others.

"What's wrong with you, being so jumpy?" the little girl complained.

Zhao Guo'an stammered, "Look, look to the right."

Xiao Feng's heart skipped a beat!

To the right?

If he remembered correctly, the severely decaying corpse was in that direction.

The next moment, Xiao Feng clearly felt the little girl grip his hand tighter, indicating her inner tension.

"Stay calm, screaming and fear solve nothing," Xiao Feng said, directing his gaze to the right.

A blue flame was floating in midair, like an ignited alcohol ball, with the flame flickering and looking eerily sinister at first glance.

"Just a phosphorescent flame; no need for such fright," Xiao Feng said, slightly annoyed.

Phosphorescent flames, to put it bluntly, are what folks in older times called ghost lights, often seen in cemeteries.

But now everyone knows that it's because when a person or animal's body decays, it releases phosphine gas, which ignites to produce blue flames.

Moreover, due to its light weight, the wind caused by running is enough to make it move along, leading to the saying of "ghost lights chasing people."

Zhao Guo'an looked embarrassed. He obviously knew the origin of phosphorescent flames, but when fear occupies the mind, it's hard to think clearly about such things.

Fortunately, it was so dark that no one could see each other, sparing him excessive embarrassment.

"Turn on your flashlights and move forward slowly," Xiao Feng instructed.

The air around was too stifling, not to mention staying here was pointless; they had to move forward.

However, before they could take out their flashlights, they heard a "fluttering" sound from above.

"Oh no! The bats have been disturbed!"

This thought ran through everyone's minds at the same time.

"Have you ever encountered this before?" Xiao Feng quickly grabbed Master Jiu's arm.

Master Jiu was startled, shivering as he forced a smile, "No, I already said that this is a cavern, fundamentally different from a tomb chamber. Very little of my experience is applicable here."

Just as he finished, a large, black shadow descended from above, scrambling towards the hovering phosphorescent flame.

"Flapping!"

The sound of wings fluttering filled their ears, sending a chill down their spines!

For a moment, everyone, including Xiao Feng, was dumbfounded.

Moths rushing to a flame is common, but bats rushing to a flame is unheard of, especially such peculiar flames as phosphorescent.

About a minute later, the only source of light vanished, and the bats flew off, silent for a long time.

"Should...should be fine now, right?" Lu Yao asked, frowning and uncertain.

Xiao Feng didn't reply, not being an expert in animal behavior, knowing only basic common knowledge. Naturally, he couldn't tell whether the calm meant the crisis had passed or if a storm was looming.

In fact, Xiao Feng always had a hunch that animals living underground, surviving without sunlight for a tens of meters, couldn't be viewed with common attitudes.

Because evolution is a biological instinct, who knows what unique abilities animals might develop to survive in such an environment.

"Ah!"

A scream rang out, and judging by the sound, it seemed to be Zhao Guo'an again?

"What's wrong with you now?"

Xiao Feng turned, facing where he remembered Zhao Guo'an stood, his tone heavy with irritation.

He truly couldn't stand it, in such a gloomy, dismal setting, where everyone's nerves were already stretched thin, this guy's jumpiness was a sure way to drive everyone to a nervous breakdown.

"Hiss..." Zhao Guo'an drew a sharp breath, sounding like he was in considerable pain, "Something pricked my foot."

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