Chapter 266

Chapter 266

Building the stone stairs was a duty of the anthropomorphic creatures. Naturally, they would not decline. After counting the number of stones, they silently began to transport them.

It was at this moment that the participants came to understand the pattern in which the flawed stones appeared: 1-3-5-7-5-3-1 — precisely the cycle that offered them a glimmer of hope, yet remained tantalizingly out of reach.

This morning, apart from Chen Yun's, they found five stones that had shattered from those they had the mummies chisel for them the day before.

Together with the 69 stones they manually chiseled, they had a total of 90. They were still 104 stones short to complete the staircase, but it was sufficient for now.

After all, the height difference of 104 stones was roughly around 4 meters. As long as there was a point of leverage, Bian Yuchen could easily cross it. Thus, as soon as the anthropomorphic creatures left, the participants began urgently dismantling the ropes from the grappling devices.

"Which one of us weighs the least?" Chen Yun asked the ladies as he was undoing a rope.

After sizing up all the women, Li Chan Yi replied, "It might be either me or Xi Xi."

The two of them, being so slender and physically weaker, could never chisel as many stones as the more proportionate and healthier Chen Yun and Xin Yue Chun.

Hearing this, Xin Yue Chun said, "Why not have Bian Yuchen test lifting both of them to find out?"

"Either of them would do." Hearing his name mentioned, Bian Yuchen glanced at Li Chan Yi and Xi Xi and stated, "There's not much difference between them."

However, discussing this now was premature.

First and foremost, they had to be able to jump to the upper steps of the stone staircase.

Zhan Meng took upon himself the task of tying the knots in the ropes. He assured everyone by patting his chest, "I can tie a load-bearing knot, the kind firefighters use for high-altitude rescues. It's utterly reliable."

Yet, Lu Shuo watched nervously from the side, "Make sure the knot is secure. Otherwise, if someone falls, they're gone."

Xiao Si Yu suggested, "How about we test the knot's effectiveness at a lower height first?"

Xie Yin Xue responded, "That's feasible."

The group decided to test the knots at a point four meters above the ground on the stone staircase. They had Xie Yinxue and Bian Yuchen, tied with the safety knot, take turns jumping down to see if the knot would hold and if the group could pull them back up.

The results of the test were perfect—the safety knot held Xie Yinxue and Bian Yuchen securely, and the combined strength of the nine participants easily hoisted them back up.

Without removing the ropes, Xie Yinxue and Bian Yuchen, wearing their safety knots, proceeded to ascend the seemingly endless stone staircase.

The two of them led the group, with the others trailing a few steps behind to give them space.

"Stand behind me. We'll start running together. Listen for my count, and when I say jump, jump," Xie Yinxue explained his plan to Bian Yuchen on the way. "This height is only four meters, less than five. If you don't make it after a couple of tries, I'll take over."

Bian Yuchen tilted his head and stretched his neck with a nonchalant expression, "Don't worry. I won't miss a beat."

Xie Yinxue glanced down at Bian Yuchen, who was a step below him, a smirk on his lips, "Prove it to me."

Meeting Xie Yinxue's gaze, Bian Yuchen replied, "Alright."

He then shifted his focus to the looming gap in the staircase ahead, lowering his posture in preparation to run.

Seeing this, Xie Yinxue took a deep breath and began his countdown. Each number he uttered marked a step he took. When he reached the edge, without hesitation, he leaped into the air, shouting, "Jump!"

Bian Yuchen followed closely, only half a second behind. Using Xie Yinxue's back as a stepping stone, he pushed himself further, reaching the upper platform of the staircase. With a final effort, he gracefully climbed onto the top tier, flawlessly executing the maneuver as promised.

Meanwhile, Xie Yinxue descended rapidly, like a droplet during a downpour.

Standing at the rear of the group, Zhan Meng braced himself against the stairs and shouted to the others, "Hold on!"

Everyone tightened their grip on the ropes, resisting the force from Xie Yinxue's fall. Thankfully, due to Xie Yinxue's frail and slender frame, the impact was distributed among the nine of them. In a short time, they pulled him back up, the entire process proceeding without a hitch.

Yao Xiaoguo covered her mouth, tears of joy in her eyes, "We did it! We did it!"

Overwhelmed with excitement, Zhan Meng grabbed the nearest person, Lv Shuo, shaking him, "I can finally go home to see my mother! Hahaha!"

Dizzy from the shaking, Lv Shuo quickly tried to divert Zhan Meng's attention, "Yes, yes! We're all going home! Look, Xiao Siyu is happy too. Go give him a hug!"

Xiao Siyu: "What?"

Xiao Siyu tried to escape, but the narrow space on the stairs left him with nowhere to hide, and he was soon enveloped in Zhan Meng's embrace.

Not interested in the three men's hugging scene, Xin Yuechun looked up at Bian Yuchen, who was standing on the upper steps of the staircase, wondering, "You guys are so incredible, why don't you compete in the Olympics and bring glory to our country?"

Li Chanyi thought for a moment before answering on behalf of Xie Yinxue and Bian Yuchen, "They wouldn't pass the drug test."

Xin Yuechun: "...Indeed."

That explanation makes perfect sense.

After all, athletes undergo rigorous drug testing for competitions. Their daily diets are closely monitored, and even their medication intake must be free of banned substances. Who knows what Xie Yinxue and Bian Yuchen might have consumed over the years? Perhaps they've frequently used stimulants.

Thinking of all the medication he had taken over the years, and recalling jokes about his constant sips of "medicine-infused bubble tea," Xie Yinxue raised an eyebrow without denying anything. He untied the ropes around him, focusing on the task at hand: "Let's first get the ladies across."

Li Chanyi courteously suggested, "Sister Qianxixi has a smaller frame than me. Let her go first."

Qianxixi accepted without hesitation, nodding, "Alright, Zhan Meng, can you help tie the knot for me? I'm unfamiliar with this 'human-harness' knot."

"On it—"

Immediately releasing Xiao Siyu, Zhan Meng approached Qianxixi to secure the rope around her. "Double it up for safety—once on our side and once on Bian Yuchen's. It's a precaution against accidents."

Lv Shuo leaned in curiously, "This type of knot seems very useful. I want to learn for the next time..."

He paused abruptly, then slapped his forehead, "Oh! I almost forgot there won't be a next time. We're finally leaving this cursed place."

"Learning new skills is always good," Chen Yun commented with a smile, "Better to have skills and not need them than to need them and not have them."

Xin Yuechun nodded in agreement, "True. My home is on the 25th floor. I should learn this just in case."

After tying the knot for Qianxixi, Zhan Meng meticulously checked it several times. Only once he was entirely satisfied did he signal to Bian Yuchen, "All set."

Observing the situation, Bian Yuchen started pulling the rope.

This process was much simpler than jumping. Given Qianxixi's petite stature, it didn't take long for him to pull her to the upper tier of the stone steps.

The two then cooperated to pull Li Chanyi across in a similar fashion.

Within less than half an hour, all the women had safely reached the top.

When it was the men's turn, Zhan Meng volunteered, "I'll go last. I need to tie knots for you all. Mr. Xie, would you go first?"

"No need," Xie Yinxue replied, raising his wrist dismissively, "Once all of you are up there, I plan to descend."

"Oh, right."

It dawned on Zhan Meng that Xie Yinxue didn't share their desire to return to the real world. He then looked at Mingsheng, who, after two sleepless nights, looked exhausted and nearly had to lean against the wall to stand, and asked, "So, Mingsheng's turn?"

Ming's nod was feeble, as if even speaking was an immense effort for him.

"Man, you look incredibly weak," said Zhan Meng, careful not to exert too much force as he checked Ming's knot. He was gentle, fearing he might hurt Ming further. "You need to get some good meals in you once we're back."

Ming just kept nodding.

After ensuring everything was in order, Zhan Meng glanced past Ming and addressed the people at the upper steps, "Alright, he's good to go—"

But before he could finish, Zhan Meng noticed Chen Yun, Li Chan Yi, and Xi Xi's eyes widening in terror. Suddenly, the figure who had been hunched over straightened up, blowing past Zhan Meng like a gust of wind, and collided with Xie Yin Xue behind him.

As Zhan Meng quickly turned around, all he could see was the young man's hair drawing a graceful arc in mid-air before plummeting.

"Ahh!"

Yao Xiao Guo's piercing scream rang in everyone's ears.

Instinctively, Zhan Meng shut his eyes.

Only Ming was secured by the rope, so it was clear what had become of Xie Yin Xue whom he had knocked over.

Zhan Meng couldn't understand how he'd managed to regain his composure. When his thoughts refocused, he saw Lv Shuo leaning over the edge, shouting down at Ming, who was dangling in the air, "Are you insane? What were you thinking?!"

Even Lv Shuo's voice carried a hint of sob. Chen Yun trembled as he spoke, "...Why would you do that?"

With a faint smile, Ming whispered hoarsely, "I didn't like him."

Xin Yue Chun shouted, "What didn't you like about him? He was trying to figure out how to get us all out alive, and you just... Why?!"

Holding his chest, Ming coughed slightly, "Because he had better eyesight than me?"

Xin Yue Chun felt the urge to let go of the rope, to let Ming fall and meet his end, but they couldn't. If they did, they'd be responsible for his death, and they'd face consequences when the scenario ended. They had to pull Ming up.

But once Ming was up, no one dared to get close to him; they all kept their distance.

Ming, aware of his unpopularity, untied himself and handed the rope to Zhan Meng. He then walked to the back of the group and sat against the wall, "Go on without me. Don't mind me."

"How can we continue?" Xi Xi clenched her fist, challenging him, "Who'd dare turn their back on you? Want to get killed faster?"

Ming sighed, reaching to adjust his glasses, only to remember they'd fallen off with Xie Yin Xue. Changing his gesture, he pinched the bridge of his nose and tried to reassure the others, "Don't be scared. I won't do anything to you."

"You're full of crap!"

Zhan Meng, at the bottom of the stone stairs, was so furious he started spewing profanities again, "We all have better vision than you!"

Ming Sheng: "..."

"When you first entered the dungeon, you mentioned that your family runs a 'funeral' business," Li Chan Yi scrutinized Ming Sheng before continuing, "Your 'funeral' business, does it involve killing?"