Chapter 204

Chapter 204

The fuel cap of this off-road vehicle was located at the trunk, identical to the one they used before entering the Mummy Forest.

The first time Zheng Shu saw it, he criticized the design, thinking it wouldn't pass safety tests. But then he realized it was silly to fuss over such trivialities in their situation.

Shaking off his thoughts, Zheng Shu struggled to the trunk just as Bu Jiuzhao abruptly hit the brakes. Zheng Shu slammed into the rear window. Zhan Meng on the roof was thrown against the windshield but quickly scrambled back to his spot.

"Zheng Shu, hurry!"

Their lead over the golden snake, achieved thanks to the off-roader, was rapidly closing. Mu Yuji peeked out of the car window to keep an eye on the approaching danger. As the snake got closer, her tone became more urgent, urging Zheng Shu to speed up.

Seeing the peril, Zheng Shu didn't waste time. He quickly sat up, opened a canister, and started pouring fuel into the tank.

After emptying two jugs of gasoline, Zheng Shu felt the tank was nearly full; he could see the shimmering reflection of the gasoline near the tank's opening. He turned to Bu Jiuzhao and asked, "Bu Jiuzhao, check the dashboard. Is the tank full?"

"It's full."

As soon as Bu Jiuzhao responded, he floored the accelerator, giving everyone the familiar push-back sensation.

"Damn it..."

Zheng Shu held his repeatedly bruised forehead, gritting his teeth in frustration. He felt like giving Bu Jiuzhao a couple of punches on his forehead.

Once the dizziness from the intense jolt subsided, Zheng Shu opened his eyes. He felt he couldn’t stay in the hazardous trunk any longer and needed to climb back to the backseat. As he braced himself with his right hand on the floor, he touched something cold and smooth, like laminated paper. Lifting it up, he looked closely to discover it was a torn photograph of three people.

The photograph only showed their bodies without faces, dressed in a retro style from the last century. There was a caption at the bottom: "Moonlight Treasure Hunters Group Photo, 19...”.

Wasn't this the photo from the SUV they were in before entering the Mummy Forest?

Zheng Shu stared intensely at the photograph in his hand, then quickly glanced at the empty gasoline jugs beside him — two empty, three usable... and the ignition switch in the driver’s seat!

Bu Jiuzhao had mentioned that there was no car key when he first got in. To start the vehicle, he would have to dismantle the ignition switch and hotwire the car. Yet this time, they didn’t hear any sound of him doing so.

So...

Was the SUV they were in the same one they took before entering the Mummy Forest?

A surge of confusion and anxiety welled up in Zheng Shu's heart. Just as he was about to share his findings with the group, he heard Jan Meng shouting from atop the SUV, ecstatic like a wild gorilla, "I see the grassland!"

"Where? Where?!" The always squint-eyed Ying Yi Ling and Song Qu You exclaimed excitedly upon hearing this, their eyes gleaming at the lush green meadows ahead. "We're really back to this grassland!"

Their adventure from Na Luo Ta city began on an expansive grassland. So, when they saw it again, Ying Yi Ling, Song Qu You, Jan Meng, and others naturally assumed they had successfully escaped the Temple of the Lost Land and that driving straight would take them back to Na Luo Ta city.

Little did they expect, instead of the city with its red-tiled, grey-bricked exotic architecture, the SUV brought them to the verdant, seemingly peaceful entrance of the Mummy Forest.

Like protagonists in a video game escaping from a temple, they've come full circle, returning to where their adventure began.

The realization was so shocking that when Bu Jiuzhao suddenly hit the brakes, everyone was thrown off balance, leaving them dazed and disoriented. They could only stammer, "Bu... did you take a wrong turn?"

Bu Jiuzhao, seemingly unfazed by the appearance of the forest, replied nonchalantly, "No, I've been driving straight."

Struggling, Song Qu You asked, "But what if we were supposed to turn left or right, and you missed it?"

"The sun is about to set."

"Bu Jiuzhao's statement seemed out of the blue," he said, releasing his grip on the steering wheel. Glancing at the rearview mirror, he caught a glimpse of the sunset that resembled blazing flames. "The sun is setting in the west."

Ying Lingtian was puzzled by his words. "What?"

"When we left NaLuota City, we headed west to the Mummy Forest," the young man in the passenger seat began softly, his voice gentle and slow, reminiscent of a gentle drizzle, yet the content of his words was eerily chilling. "Now, with the sun setting behind us, it means we're heading east, which is the right direction back to NaLuota City."

"He's right," Yun Qian said, her eyes closed and her expression serious. She continued from where Xie Yinxue left off, "You all might not understand the treasure map, but Zhan Meng, Mu Yujing, and I do. The map indicates that the treasure route is circular. So theoretically, after leaving the temple in the Lost Land and heading east, we should return to NaLuota City."

Song Quyou stared blankly at the towering green trees before her. "But there's no NaLuota City here."

Instead, there was just a foreboding Weirui Forest blocking their way back.

They all knew how dangerous this forest became after dark, yet they had no choice but to enter it. Staying would mean certain capture by the Golden Snake.

From the back seat, Zheng Shu saw the approaching form of the Golden Snake growing larger with every moment. He was the first to leap out of the car, pulling Mu Yujing with him, "Stop daydreaming! Into the forest, quick!"

Inside the Mummy Forest, tall trees shaded the sky, their complex terrain and the rich scent of living creatures offering good concealment from the pursuing Golden Snake. Song Quyou's only concern was, "It's going to be dark soon. If we go in, aren't we doomed?"

Especially considering the mosquito bites she got yesterday hadn't healed and were still yellowing her skin.

Mu Jinhai, Yi Yao, and You Lan hurriedly approached Liu Buhua, pleading, "Doctor Liu, please give us some of your mosquito repellent!"

Within three minutes, except for Bu Jiuzhao and Xie Yinxue, everyone including Bian Yuchen turned yellow from applying the repellent.

Zheng Shu tried to persuade Bu Jiuzhao, "You don't want Xie Yinxue to be a widow, do you?"

Bu Jiuzhao: "?"

He spoke honestly, "Those mosquitoes can't bite me."

Hearing this, Zheng Shu felt Bu Jiuzhao was just showing off.

In contrast, Bian Yuchen's words were more polite, "Applying it would be safer."

Yet, Xie Yinxue remained unmoved, just like Bu Jiuzhao, "My vision is sharp; mosquitoes can't get to me."

At this point, no one tried to persuade them further, thinking it might be helpful to have someone to distract the mosquitoes.

The group then abandoned their vehicle, carefully navigating around sharp branches and jagged leaves as they cautiously ventured deeper into the Mummy Forest.

Contrary to their expectations, the Golden Snake didn't chase them deep into the rainforest. It stopped right at the entrance, hissing furiously, its crimson eyes glaring resentfully through the gaps in the trees, yet it refused to move any further.

Yi Yao looked back and asked, "It doesn't dare to enter?"

Zheng Shu scoffed, "With the Spear of Fate in Thirteen's possession, which can wound it, and these trees in the Mummy Forest being sensitive to its wounds, if it dares to enter, who knows who'll be the one ending up dead?"

Song Quyao sniffled, her voice trembling, "With the golden snake outside, we can't exit, and it's too late to find a safe camp. What do we do now?"

"Even if it's too late, we have to find that safe camp," Ying Yiling said, holding her hand firmly. "If we're to die, let's die on the move, not waiting for it."

"Exactly, I won't be content dying without a fight," Zhan Meng said, pulling out the treasure map from his pouch. "Let me see the route to the safe camp. Is it the same as the one we took earlier?"

Zheng Shu remarked, "I believe it's the same. Let me show you something."

Zhan Meng inquired, "Show what?"

"A photograph." Zheng Shu presented a torn photo of the Moonlight Treasure Seekers team with three members. "I found this in the trunk of that SUV."

First startled, Yu Lan soon caught on to Zheng Shu's implication, "You're suggesting..."

"The car we were in—” Bu Jiuzhao paused, looking back at them, his taller stature allowing him to look down at them, "has been the same one all along."

Had it not been for the golden necklaces containing the Elixir of Immortality around their necks, it would be easy to doubt whether they'd actually been to the Lost Temple, or if they'd been circling within the Mummy Forest all this time.

Mu Jin Hai pulled out his necklace with the elixir bottle, examining it in the evening light, "How could this happen? Is it because we took the Elixir of Immortality?"

In most adventure films, where treasures lie, curses often lurk.

Hence, adventurers, while acquiring these treasures, often find themselves cursed, leading to their inevitable doom.

Could their current predicament be the result of obtaining the Elixir, casting them into an endless loop of the curse?

After hearing Mu Jin Hai's suspicions, Zhan Meng said, "But Enoch's mission for us was to bring back the Elixir of Immortality."

"Enoch told us to find it and not return empty-handed. He didn't specify that we had to bring the Elixir back." Having been toyed with by "Lock Eternal Life" multiple times, Yi Yao knew too well the intricacies of words. Perhaps, being enticed by the gold beneath the marble floor in the inner temple, he shared his thoughts, "Maybe what we need to bring back isn’t the Elixir, but that gold."

After pondering for a moment, Yun Qian proposed, "It might be worth a try. Tonight is too late, but tomorrow is our third day. We still have time."

Mu Yu Ji nodded in agreement, "Then let's find the safe camp tonight, head back to the Lost Temple in the morning, return the Elixir, and then take some gold."