Qin Zhiyu swiftly swung her scimitar toward the source of the sound, but the blade only grazed the edge of the creature. Judging by its small size and agile movements, it likely wasn’t injured.
The creature refused to give up and lunged at Qin Zhiyu again, leaping with such speed that it stirred a whistling gust of wind.
She bent backward, shifting her feet to change direction, narrowly avoiding its second attack.
“Darling, it’s a cat! So cute—but it’s about to pounce on you!”
“Yuan Yuan, Yuan Yuan, save me!”
Qian Di was so terrified that his blood seemed to freeze, screaming and running around the room like a headless fly.
“Di Di, you can do it! I’ll light it up so you can escape more easily and hide faster.” Xu Yuan took out a torch, lit it, and placed it in a corner.
Qin Zhiyu stared at the scene, momentarily stunned. She had no intention of getting involved.
While the cat chased the couple, Qin Zhiyu seized the opportunity to observe her surroundings. It was a sealed room.
The walls were pitch-black, oppressive and stifling even if darkness hadn’t fully descended.
If she couldn’t find an exit, the only option was to go back the way she came. The drop wasn’t high, but climbing back up wouldn’t be easy.
Keeping an eye on the cat’s movements, she tapped the walls with the hilt of her scimitar. All four walls produced faint, indistinct echoes, suggesting adjacent rooms on every side.
The cat let out a sharp yowl, followed by Qian Di’s heart-wrenching scream. Xu Yuan joined in the chaos, sometimes teasing the cat, sometimes taunting Qian Di.
For a moment, the small room felt like a bustling marketplace, the cacophony of voices threatening to burst Qin Zhiyu’s eardrums.
Amid the chaos, Qin Zhiyu dodged several attacks and avoided the fallout from the couple’s antics, finally feeling along a crack in the wall until she found a switch.
In her view, this room’s danger level was second only to that of Brother Pig and his companion.
With a rumbling sound, the floor began to shake, and the three humans and the cat felt the world spin around them.
After a series of tremors, the entire room started rising, the floor beneath their feet swelling upward at a perceptible pace.
They had to move fast!
A small door in the corner slowly opened, just wide enough for an adult to squeeze through sideways.
Qin Zhiyu sprinted toward the door—any later, and she’d be flattened by the descending ceiling.
“Ah, darling, hold me tight! I can barely stand!”
Xu Yuan’s delicate voice echoed in the room, but anyone who could see her face would be surprised by the excitement and anticipation written across it.
“I’ve got you, Yuan Yuan!”
For some reason, Qian Di, who had nearly stepped into the exit, pulled back and reached out to Xu Yuan.
As Qin Zhiyu reached the doorway, she stepped aside slightly, waiting for Qian Di and Xu Yuan to enter one after the other before following them into the next room.
Just as she was squeezing through sideways, something heavy landed on her leg—the cat she’d fought earlier. Was it trying to hitch a ride?
Qin Zhiyu didn’t shoo it away. It was just a kitten, hardly a threat.
After Qin Zhiyu and the cat entered the room, the candles inside suddenly lit on their own. The pale glow of the flames was blinding to everyone accustomed to darkness.
Once their eyes adjusted to the light, another figure appeared in the room.
“Di Di, this young man is so handsome! He’s better-looking than you.” Xu Yuan slightly opened her eyes, gazing in surprise at Bai Qianyu, who stood on the other side of the room, having appeared out of nowhere.
Qin Zhiyu sized up Bai Qianyu the moment he appeared. Bai Qianyu was smiling with a pair of peach blossom eyes, visibly fair and delicate, his lips upturned at the corners as he looked at their group with just the right amount of warmth. The line of his jaw flowed smoothly like an exquisitely crafted work of art.
This person had also been transferred during the room shift, but the blinding white light had only allowed Qin Zhiyu to hear the commotion without seeing how he entered.
“Yuanyuan, you can only look at me. If you keep staring at this pretty boy, I’ll get angry!” After saying this, Qian Di pursed his lips, casting an unfriendly gaze at Bai Qianyu.
Hearing the young couple’s conversation, Qin Zhiyu turned to look at them again. Qian Di was indeed not as exquisitely beautiful as Bai Qianyu, but his features were gentle and handsome.
Xu Yuan’s appearance, unlike her usual soft and hesitant speech, was that of a true goddess—with slender eyebrows, long eyes, a delicate nose, and cherry lips.
“You probably aren’t with them, are you?” Bai Qianyu smiled slightly at the young couple, then turned to Qin Zhiyu with narrowed, smiling eyes, speaking with certainty.
“Thinking about that is less useful than considering what we can gain from these Ruins and how to get out of here.” Qin Zhiyu replied calmly, thinking to herself that beauty could indeed be distracting.
“This lady is quite aloof. Handsome, what’s your name?” Xu Yuan offered a friendly smile, her eyes fixed unwaveringly on Bai Qianyu.
“My name is Bai Qianyu. And what’s yours, beauty? Is the person beside you your boyfriend?”
Bai Qianyu spoke at a measured pace, his tone carrying a unique charm. Even when he called her “beauty,” it didn’t come across as annoying—at least Xu Yuan found it quite pleasant.
As Bai Qianyu and Xu Yuan bantered back and forth, Qian Di occasionally exchanged a few sharp words with Bai Qianyu, all of which Bai Qianyu deflected with ease.
Just as the group was getting heated, a white table quietly rose before them. The table was five meters wide, neatly arranged with five golden, gleaming Treasure Chests that immediately captured everyone’s attention.
Qin Zhiyu, holding the cat that had been clinging tightly to her since entering the room, pondered whether the fifth Treasure Chest might be for the blue cat in her arms.
“Lady holding the cat, I’m afraid two of these boxes are reserved for you,” Bai Qianyu remarked.
Hearing this, Qin Zhiyu remained silent. At this moment, Bai Qianyu likely shared her thoughts, though he didn’t know where her cat had come from, and the other two hadn’t bothered to explain.
“Let me open a chest first. I’ve always had good luck,” Xu Yuan said, pulling Qian Di forward.
“My dear, you’re the best! Open mine too while you’re at it.” As he spoke, Qian Di’s eyes were filled with nothing but Xu Yuan.
“Wow, it’s a necklace, and it’s so beautiful! Does the Heavenly Disaster know what I’m missing too?”
As Xu Yuan opened the Treasure Chest, a familiar white light flashed, leaving behind a silver necklace with a gemstone pendant on the table.
Xu Yuan proceeded to open the second Treasure Chest, but this time, it wasn’t the good fortune she had spoken of. Inside the chest lay only a bag of Bugles snacks, resting on the table.
“My dear, weren’t you craving snacks? Look, it’s what you wanted—Bugles, the Heavenly Disaster’s favorite snack.”
Qian Di seemed even happier than if he had gotten something good himself, speaking joyfully to Xu Yuan.
Qin Zhiyu wondered whether Xu Yuan truly had good luck or if the two were just putting on a show.
Seeing that Bai Qianyu made no move, only giving her a slight hint with his peach blossom eyes, Qin Zhiyu didn’t stand on ceremony either. She nodded and went forward to open the chest.