"Right now, I just want to kill you, hmph." Qingluan still wanted to regain some dignity and tried to make her tone sound fierce, but no matter how it sounded, it felt like she was being coy.

Song Xiaodong didn't expose her, and said, "Well, thank you Miss Qingluan for letting me enjoy such bliss before killing me. Even after I die, I'll always remember your kindness."

"Hmph, as long as you understand, I'm giving you a taste of sweetness before I kill you."

"Yes, yes, I really hope you can delay killing me by two days so I can savor this sweetness a bit longer."

"Alright, considering you're a dying man, I won't argue with you."

Qingluan spoke with a certain kind-hearted tone. Yet it was also a sort of self-comforting illusion, as she knew well enough that she had fallen for him, but was unwilling to admit it, thus finding reasons to console herself.

Snuggled in Song Xiaodong's arms, Qingluan quickly fell asleep soundly. This man's embrace seemed to have a peculiar magic, providing a strong sense of safety, even in such a perilous place.

The next morning, Song Xiaodong and Qingluan woke up early.

Soon, someone delivered food. The two ate a simple meal, and then the big man from yesterday appeared again in front of them.

"I am the City Lord here, Huyan Lie. How should I address you two?"

Song Xiaodong quickly said, "I am Song Xiaodong, and this is my wife Qingluan."

Huyan Lie nodded, saying, "Then please follow me." His attitude was quite polite.

Song Xiaodong and Qingluan led the way to the mountain side, and then guided them into the Crystal Cave.

Huyan Lie, on seeing this Crystal Cave, couldn't help but be surprised, saying, "I did not know about such a cave, we have been unaware until now."

One correction immediately said, "City Lord, we had examined the cave before, but because the entrance was too small, no one could get through, they dug through from this side."

Huyan Lie nodded and then looked at the crystals, asking, "What are these things?"

His followers didn't know, while Song Xiaodong's mind flashed with a possibility, though he didn't speak it aloud.

Finally, they found the little hole they had initially crawled through.

Song Xiaodong said, "This is the cave we escaped through. Outside is a big river with two giant pythons."

Huyan Lie waved his hand, and a subordinate quickly crawled into the small hole. A moment later, he returned, looking grim and said, "City Lord, we indeed saw the Python God."

Huyan Lie nodded, then turned to Song Xiaodong and Qingluan, saying, "You truly have great luck, to escape from the Python God's mouth."

Song Xiaodong smiled wryly, saying, "It's just our good fortune. City Lord, I believe no one would want to come through this passage, and indeed if not for fate, we wouldn't have found this place."

Huyan Lie nodded, waved his hand and said, "Then let's return for now."

Everyone crawled out of the Crystal Cave. Huyan Lie looked at the entrance and said, "Arrange to seal this cave temporarily for future purposes."

Returning again to the City Lord's Mansion, Huyan Lie led Song Xiaodong and Qingluan to the parlor, where several chairs were set, all woven from vines, not the usual wooden type.

Huyan Lie looked at them and said, "Now that you're here, I'm afraid it's impossible for you to leave. We won't let you take our news outside, so as long as you stay here peacefully, I'll treat you with courtesy."

Song Xiaodong smiled wryly and said, "City Lord, even if I wanted to leave now, I fear there's no way out."

Huyan Lie directly said, "That's correct. There used to be a passage when we first came, but our ancestors sealed it long ago. Now, after many generations, no one knows where the original passage was."

"Lord Huyan, what dynasty was it before you came here?"

Huyan Lie said, "Dynasty? We were from Zhao State, but fled here when Qin State attacked."

"You are actually from that era!" Qingluan couldn't help but exclaim. Qin Shi Huang unified six states, a matter from Before Common Era, meaning they've lived here over two thousand years.

Huyan Lie said, "That was our ancestors, recorded in ancient texts. What is the outside world like now?"

Song Xiaodong said, "The outside world has changed tremendously. Qin State lasted only a few generations before perishing, followed by many dynasties. Now it's unified and called China, a peace-loving country with rare wars. No one knows this place, and even if they did, they wouldn't disturb you."

Huyan Lie said, "China, we are all descendants of China. That's a good name for a country." His tone was calm; he'd been born here and felt little about the outside world, just wanted to know about it.

Song Xiaodong said, "Lord Huyan, could you introduce this underground world to us?"

Huyan Lie nodded, saying, "This area is quite large. Originally under a hundred people entered here, and because there's no war and no shortage of food, the population grew to over two thousand, but..."

He sighed here, "Initially, there were ordinary folks, but as life became easy and people multiplied, scarcity of space and resources led to some ambitious ones attempting to establish a dynasty. They gathered allies and oppressed opponents, dividing into four factions, each wanting to unify this place. War ensued and reduced the population to a few hundred."

"After the war, with fewer people, we began to recuperate, but not long after, more wars broke out, repeating the cycle over and over... Originally searching for a peaceful life, but endlessly trapped in these vile wars."

Song Xiaodong nodded, saying, "With limited resources, the likelihood of war over resource competition increases greatly."

"Resources? Likelihood?" Huyan Lie evidently didn't understand these terms.

Song Xiaodong explained briefly, "Lord Huyan, is this place currently peaceful?"

Huyan Lie said, "Our city holds over four hundred people, and we have dozens of births each year. It's becoming crowded. Other cities are likely similar. Plus, our city is the smallest; others are bigger. The coming time might indeed breed another war."

Qingluan said, "If you don't have ambition, you don't have to go to war."

Huyan Lie shook his head, saying, "That's impossible. Even if we don't want war, other cities will surely come to rob our food, seize our land, and oppress our women. We must take up arms to protect our families."

"Robbing women? That's simply vile." Qingluan frowned.

Huyan Lie frowned slightly, saying to Song Xiaodong, "It seems your family discipline is lax; your wife speaks out even when you are talking."

Song Xiaodong and Qingluan were stunned for a moment, then Song Xiaodong smiled and said, "Lord Huyan, in the outside world, women's status is quite high, almost equivalent to men's, so they have all kinds of rights."

Huyan Lie's face tightened, saying, "Wouldn't that be chaos? Women should be at home; it's not right for them to show themselves outside."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.