White steam began to rise from the stone path. Mei Lin reached out her hand to test it, only to quickly withdraw with a gasp. She hurriedly dragged Murong Jing He up a few more steps.
"This is bad," she whispered, a hint of guilt in her voice. "If the fire doesn't go out, we might not make it out..."
If they waited for the fire to die down, they might either be roasted alive or suffocated to death.
Murong Jing He, however, wasn’t as pessimistic. He tore his gaze away from the raging flames and said, "Help me stand up." The smell of the burning flames wasn't like tung oil or kerosene—what kind of substance could produce such intense fire?
As he pondered, Mei Lin had already helped him to his feet, standing in front of him with her back supporting his weight.
Murong Jing He was tall, and his chin rested comfortably on Mei Lin’s head, allowing him to take in the full view of their surroundings. Previously, his position on her shoulder had limited his sight.
“Look at the passage on the left,” he directed Mei Lin, while his own eyes scanned other directions.
Following his guidance, Mei Lin’s skin crawled with goosebumps. The left passageway was swarming with dense, writhing creatures, possibly driven out by the heat or attracted by the firelight. They were crawling out of the tall passage, spilling onto the stone path, and many of them fell into the flames, making a sizzling sound. Mei Lin shivered and quickly turned to check the passage they had come from, relieved to find nothing crawling out of it.
Murong Jing He then had her look at the right passage. Although nothing strange was crawling out there, fire and black sand were spewing from it, seemingly in response to the flames outside.
"It seems our luck isn't too bad. We’ve hit a dead end, but not one that leads to certain death," he said with a smile, turning his gaze toward the white stone forest behind them, which glowed faintly pink. He wondered if it was as dangerous as the passages they had just passed through.
But whether it was dangerous or not, they had no choice but to move forward. Without further hesitation, he said, "Let's go."
Mei Lin gathered her resolve. The torch was no longer needed, making her load lighter. She slung the pack over one shoulder and supported Murong Jing He's weight with the other as they began to ascend the stone steps through the stone forest.
To their surprise, the small stone forest was not as labyrinthine as the outside. A clear path wound through it. They followed the white stone-paved road, which, despite its twists and turns, seemed to be leading steadily upward.
There were side paths branching off, but Murong Jing He kept them on the main path. Several times, when Mei Lin thought they had taken a wrong turn, she would see what she had thought was a shortcut winding down to another part of the forest. Each time, she would quietly wipe the sweat from her brow, grateful that she had trusted him.
"This is just a simple maze, much easier than the labyrinth outside," Murong Jing He said with a smile, though his expression remained serious. "But outside the maze lies the Eight Gates. Rest, Life, Harm, Obstruction, View, Death, Fear, and Opening—each gate can bring fortune or doom. One wrong step, and you're done for. I can’t tell if the one who built this place wanted to keep people out or to keep something inside."
Mei Lin didn’t fully understand what he was saying but found herself intrigued.
"Which gate did we come through?"
They had reached the top of the stone forest, where a massive coffin appeared before them. The coffin looked as if it had been carved from a single block of white jade, adorned with intricate carvings that reflected the flames outside in a dazzling display of colors.
Murong Jing He’s attention was drawn to the coffin, and after a long pause, he finally answered, “The Obstruction Gate. It signifies a blockage—there’s no way out, but it’s not particularly dangerous.” He laughed, as if recalling something amusing. “I bet the one who designed this place never expected someone to dig a pit just outside the Obstruction Gate, turning a dead end into a way through.”
Mei Lin thought to herself that if the pit hadn’t connected to the Obstruction Gate, they might have been able to climb out of it and leave the strange place altogether, avoiding this life-and-death gamble. She didn’t realize that without Murong Jing He, they might have been trapped and died in the outer stone maze. Even this seemingly simple small stone forest was not something an ordinary person could pass through safely.
“That must be the owner of this place,” Murong Jing He said, continuing to stare at the ornate coffin. “Let’s go see who they are, someone formidable enough to build a place like this.”
Mei Lin had also noticed the magnificent coffin, but she wasn’t particularly curious about it. What concerned her most was how they were going to escape this bizarre place.
Seeing her hesitation, Murong Jing He added, “There might be a way out inside.”
With that, Mei Lin didn’t hesitate and began to move quickly toward the jade coffin with him.
“Wait a moment.” A cold sweat broke out on Murong Jing He’s back as he realized how recklessly she was acting. Though she was usually cautious, her rare moments of recklessness always seemed to lead to serious consequences.
Mei Lin halted, puzzled, and looked at the man slumped on her shoulder.
“Look at the ground,” Murong Jing He suggested.
At first glance, the ground seemed to be paved with white stone slabs, but upon closer inspection, Mei Lin noticed that some of the slabs had a smooth, jade-like sheen, while others appeared cold and rough.
Mei Lin could see the difference but didn’t understand its significance. Confused, she asked, “How should we proceed?” She knew some traps were triggered by stepping on certain tiles, but she had no experience dealing with them and would probably have to brute force her way through.
Murong Jing He chuckled. “You’re getting slower,” he teased. He recalled her clever tactics during the pursuit, which had left a strong impression on him. But since entering this stone forest, she had become increasingly reluctant to think things through.
Mei Lin sighed, about to explain herself, but stopped. It was hard to admit that his vast knowledge made her feel out of her depth in such an unfamiliar domain. She also couldn’t deny that over the course of their journey, she had developed a sense of dependence on him, allowing her previously suppressed impulsiveness to resurface.
“Use the hilt of your dagger to tap the stone surface lightly,” Murong Jing He instructed, enjoying her expression of exasperation. He added, “Don’t press too hard.”
Mei Lin set him down and followed his instructions, tapping the stones lightly with the hilt of her dagger. The first two stones didn’t react, but when she tapped the third, there was a slight give underfoot. Her spirits lifted, realizing that this stone likely concealed a trap.
However, the jade coffin was nearly thirty feet away—was she supposed to test every stone on the way? And even if she did, how would she get him across safely?
While Mei Lin was wrestling with this dilemma, Murong Jing He continued to smile serenely, as if unaware that he might not make it to the other side.
Seeing his calm demeanor, Mei Lin had a sudden thought: she decided to let him solve the problem.
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