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Cang Hai Plays with the Qilin — Chapter 21. Flying Rats. Part 1


 Qilin's eyes widened. “The deeper part of the lake? Can we still get out of here?”

Wang Cang Hai reached out, intending to help Qilin up, but when he saw Qilin’s arm covered in dust and mud, he hesitated—should he really just take Qilin’s hand?

Before Wang Cang Hai could decide, Qilin had already stood up, casually patting the dirt off himself. He then asked Wang Cang Hai, “Since you deciphered the Eight Steeds Painting, taught me how to cut down the Snake Cypress, and led me into this damned place, do you actually know the way out?”

“I don’t.” Wang Cang Hai’s voice was utterly emotionless. “I’m not the head of the Zhang family, so how would I know their secrets?”

Qilin crossed his arms and said irritably, “Then why were you blindly leading the way? We had more people before, and that made things easier. We could’ve gone back the way we came and just dealt with a few Miluotu. But now we’re in real trouble—you and I are alone.”

“More people doesn’t necessarily mean things go smoothly.” Wang Cang Hai remained calm, selectively ignoring Qilin’s complaints. He continued, “The Zhang family is already divided. Half a year ago, Zhang Pei Shan killed Zhang Qiling. He’s only pretending to search for Zhang Qiling—his real goal is something else. In that group just now, who knows how many were still loyal to Zhang Qiling and how many were working with Zhang Pei Shan? It’s safer for us to act alone.”

Qilin's expression changed dramatically. “You’re saying Zhang Qiling is dead? Killed by Zhang Pei Shan? Is this information reliable? How do you know?”

Wang Cang Hai then described what he had witnessed outside the Jingpo Cave—Zhang Pei Shan killing members of the Zhang family.

Qilin had also seen those Zhang family members fall into the cave’s pool. By then, they were already dead. Wang Cang Hai was likely telling the truth.

Qilin’s face turned cold. “If the real head of the Zhang family was truly Zhang Qiling, then there’s no way Zhang Pei Shan could have killed him.”

Wang Cang Hai frowned, clearly not agreeing with Qilin’s assessment. But in the end, he held back from arguing. Instead, he pulled a luminous pearl from his sleeve, using its dim glow to survey their surroundings.

They were in a labyrinthine cavern, surrounded by countless holes of varying sizes. The largest was wide enough for three people to walk through side by side, while the smallest was only the size of a fist.

“These holes seem to be naturally formed karst caves. There’s no particular pattern to their arrangement,” Wang Cang Hai observed.

Qilin responded, “So that means you can’t calculate which path leads out?”

Wang Cang Hai nodded. “Since this is a natural cave, Qimen Dunjia techniques won’t work. We’ll have to explore several entrances and test them.”

Qilin suddenly chuckled. “You seem like the kind of guy who’s read a lot of books but lacks real-life experience—a bookworm.”

Wang Cang Hai accepted the remark without offense and humbly asked, “I do lack experience with cave exploration. Do you have a better method?”

Qilin said, “Just listen.”

Then he walked over to the largest cave opening and pointed into the pitch-black depths. “This cave is the widest, but there’s no wind sound at all. That means it’s a dead end.” He then shouted, “Ah—!” into the cave. Moments later, an echo returned—proving that the cave wasn’t very deep and wasn’t an exit.

Qilin lifted his foot to move toward another cave, intending to listen again. But suddenly, something felt off. He paused, straining his ears. Amidst the echoes, there was something else…

“Wanbao, hide—now!” Qilin shouted, grabbing Wang Cang Hai’s arm. With all his strength, he leaped upward, pulling both of them into a smaller, higher cave.

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