As the staircase stretched on, the light ahead grew dimmer and dimmer. Luckily, thanks to the previous purification, the sensitivity of Bi Xia’s senses had sharply increased, so even in the darkness, Bi Xia could see everything clearly.

Finally stepping off the last stair, Bi Xia casually slid one hand into his pocket, adjusted his baseball cap, and looked down inattentively at the cement floor beneath his feet. His ears twitched slightly as the footsteps behind him grew closer. Only when they reached him did Bi Xia slowly lift his head and begin to walk forward.

Seeing the young man ahead move forward just as he arrived, Ji Qiutang curled his lips, taking three steps to catch up with Bi Xia. "If you’re going to wait for me, just wait properly, instead of starting to walk again as soon as I arrive. Aren’t you afraid I’d lose my way?"

"If someone your age can still get lost, then you’re really worse than Little Fei," Bi Xia replied calmly. "Of course, if you’re scared, you can go back upstairs."

With a light laugh, "If I were scared, I wouldn’t have come down in the first place. Besides, don’t we have Little Nine protecting us?"

"Heh," Bi Xia sneered sarcastically. "Being protected by someone younger, and you still have the face to say it."

"Isn’t it true that Little Seven often gets protected by our Little Nine? So why is it unacceptable for the second brother?" Ji Qiutang teased with a soft smile.

"He protects me too."

"Oh?" Ji Qiutang raised an eyebrow, tilting his head. "No worries, I’ll protect you too. After all, you’re not only our Little Nine, but also my future brother..."

Stopping in his tracks, Bi Xia gave Ji Qiutang a sideways glance, half-smiling, "We haven’t even started planning any of that, so if you keep jabbering, I’ll make sure my mom goes on a trip when we get back, so your dad won’t find anyone!"

Hearing this, Ji Qiutang immediately stopped talking. Tsk, using his dad’s lifelong happiness as a threat — was Bi Xia counting on him being a filial son? But... Ji Qiutang touched his chin, smiling gently. Although he was indeed a filial son, it wouldn’t be too bad to occasionally watch his dad panic and scratch his head, right?

Thoughts aside, Ji Qiutang really did stop speaking. Not because he didn’t want to see his dad’s embarrassment, but because he sensed an oppressive spiritual wave slowly spreading through the darkness, overshadowing his usually calm smile with a serious expression as he looked ahead.

The oppressive spiritual wave was detected by Bi Xia even earlier than Ji Qiutang. When they were still upstairs, she already sensed it, and the glass bottle containing the heart of a spiritual power user made it all the more oppressive, which is why Bi Xia felt something was amiss.

Finally reaching the end of the corridor, Bi Xia expressionlessly observed the walls enclosing all directions, her eyes cold as stars. She raised a hand to lightly tap the wall beside her, the solid sound resonating from within. Bi Xia tapped the other side, receiving the same solid response, before turning her gaze to the wall in front of her.

Slowly raising her hand, she lightly knocked again, and a hollow but very dull sound resonated from inside.

Their footsteps halted. Bi Xia and Ji Qiutang exchanged a glance and slowly closed their starry eyes. The azure spiritual power gradually seeped out, transforming into a transparent ripple as it sensed the innermost part of the underground corridor, seeping into the walls through the cracks.

Just as it entered inside, a powerful spiritual force rushed out. Bi Xia stiffened, reflexively stepping back, only to be stopped by a broad chest. A pair of hands gently steadied her on the shoulders, supporting her. A clear and gentle voice sounded softly from behind, "Take your time, I’m right here behind you. Nothing will happen."

"At any moment, in any situation, don’t panic, don’t rush. There will always be a key waiting for you to find it..."

"Little Nine, try to find the key hidden inside there..."

Although she had heard that voice countless times and often referred to the voice’s owner as a well-cloaked villain, Bi Xia had to admit that at this moment, this person standing behind her indeed reassured her.

A key?

She curled her lips slightly, thinking how talkative he was!