The darkness in the silent chamber lasted only three heartbeats.
Gu Qinghuan struck her firestarter with a sharp "hiss," the dim yellow glow revealing a pitch-black hole beneath the bluestone floor. A mixture of mold and damp earth surged upward. She reached back to steady the Goose-Feather Saber at her waist, thrusting the tip into the hole first. "I’m going down first."
"What’s the rush?" Pi Yanlin popped an osmanthus candy into his mouth and leisurely smoothed out his crumpled official robes. "If this secret passage is trapped, you’d be a fool to take the lead." As he spoke, he flicked the wall with his finger—the stone emitted a hollow resonance, suggesting it was a man-made tunnel.
Chapter 80