Chapter 1824: Chapter 1669: Escape Game 21

Miao Shuangshuang and Xiao Zhongjing left the house and headed straight for the mountain. To avoid unnecessary trouble, they specifically chose a secluded spot on the mountain to avoid being discovered by the villagers.

Since there wasn’t much to chat about with Xiao Zhongjing, Miao Shuangshuang remained silent throughout the climb, and Xiao Zhongjing didn’t speak either. Thus, the two kept quiet all the way.

Xiao Zhongjing’s ability to stay quiet was more than satisfying to Miao Shuangshuang, much better than she had anticipated, and at least he wasn’t as pretentious as Ye Fuyu.

Earlier, at the foot of the mountain, Miao Shuangshuang hadn’t seen any obvious temple-like structures on the mountain.

However, with the lush and tall trees on the mountain, it’s possible smaller buildings were obscured by the foliage.

The two continued along the mountain path. Miao Shuangshuang had good stamina, but Xiao Zhongjing was struggling, and his breathing became heavy halfway through.

Miao Shuangshuang looked back at him and thought for a moment, then said, "If you can’t go any further, wait here. I’ll go check by myself and come back for you."

Xiao Zhongjing shook his head, "No need, I’ll go with you." He didn’t have the guts to stay alone on the mountain, feeling safer with Miao Shuangshuang.

Seeing he wouldn’t agree to stay, Miao Shuangshuang continued upward but slowed her pace to ensure Xiao Zhongjing could keep up.

The two of them climbed up through a grove of trees, not seeing any trace of buildings, with the summit already in clear view, and still no sign of structures.

Legs trembling with exhaustion, Xiao Zhongjing suggested, "I don’t think there’s a temple on this mountain. It might be built within the village. How about we head back down?"

Miao Shuangshuang didn’t respond. She turned to grab the trunk of a tall tree and climbed up nimbly, to Xiao Zhongjing’s anxious astonishment.

Once at the top, Miao Shuangshuang looked down, gaining a panoramic view of the village below. Her lips faintly curled up, just as she expected.

The path she chose to ascend was directly from the entrance of the village, but there was clearly more than one path up Liaoshan. Not far from the village was another path.

That path led to the backside of the mountain, and from Miao Shuangshuang’s current position, the path was quite a distance away laterally.

Without viewing from Miao Shuangshuang’s height, one would never realize there was another path on the other side.

Coming down from the tree, Miao Shuangshuang immediately turned to cross the grove, aiming for the other mountain path, confident it would yield results.

Seeing Miao Shuangshuang traversing sideways, Xiao Zhongjing seemed to realize something, following her and asking, "Is there something on the other side?"

As she moved forward, Miao Shuangshuang replied, "There’s another path up the mountain over there, and I suspect it leads to the temple."

Thoughtfully, Xiao Zhongjing said, "So the villagers didn’t build the temple in a visible spot from the village but on the mountain’s backside, hiding it?"

Miao Shuangshuang parted the obstructive branches, "Not necessarily hiding it. Perhaps they had reasons for choosing that site or it was suitable for their temple."

After exchanging a few words, they fell silent, mainly due to exhaustion, leaving Xiao Zhongjing particularly breathless, while Miao Shuangshuang remained more relaxed.

After about ten minutes of walking, Miao Shuangshuang finally saw the other mountain path, a small trail tramped out, seemingly seldom used.

They had covered most of the mountain. Looking up from the trail, they still saw no temple.

However, Miao Shuangshuang spotted a massive cave not far diagonally upward, midmountain.

The path led directly to the cave, suggesting the villagers’ temple might be inside.

The route to the cave was steep, and Miao Shuangshuang had to pull Xiao Zhongjing along since he was slow, trying her patience.

Upon reaching the cave’s entrance, they discovered an immense cave. The entrance was large, and inside it was a rounded shape that expanded inward, with a lofty ceiling.

Inside the cave stood an imposing temple. Though not exquisitely crafted, it was massive, towering, with closed doors.

Miao Shuangshuang pushed open the doors and entered, surprisingly finding the temple clean, not dedicated to some three-headed, six-armed Evil God.

Instead, it housed a statue of a dignified man in a long gown and robe, holding a scroll, with one hand behind his back, gazing forward.

Aside from the statue, the temple differed little from ordinary ones, kept spotless, evidently frequently cleaned.

A male statue, with offerings meant for a groom? The thought amused Miao Shuangshuang. Could this be a Rabbit God?

But the appearance was off. The modern attire didn’t match, and the Rabbit God wasn’t so fierce as to require human sacrifices.

"Does this look like a well to you?"

Xiao Zhongjing’s voice interrupted her thoughts. Turning, Miao Shuangshuang saw him standing in the temple’s northwest corner, peering down.

She approached, finding what he’d been blocking—a football-sized object resembling a miniaturized well.

Beside it sat a tiny wooden bucket with a rope, seemingly for fetching water.

Peering down, Miao Shuangshuang noted the well, though small, was quite deep, echoing faint watery sounds—suggesting water below.

What purpose does such a peculiar well serve inside a temple, and how was it excavated so small?

Miao Shuangshuang contemplated as she rose, noting the well for the record, then continued to explore the temple. From outside, the cave seemed huge, the temple expansive.

Inside, however, the temple was wide but narrow front to back, with just a single statue, no others, making it appear less grand than from the outside.

Inspecting the surroundings closely, Miao Shuangshuang found a door-sized mark on the wall behind the statue.

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