Half an hour later, a cave concealed by dense weeds appeared before them.
Mu Qi pushed aside the drooping weeds, but the thorns caught on his sleeve and made a faint scraping sound.
The cave was dry and quiet. In one corner, ashes from an extinguished campfire remained, scattered across the ground by the wind.
Though there was never absolute safety in the wilderness, for them—wanted criminals—this hidden cave was already the best shelter they could hope for.
At least it would let them sleep peacefully for a night amid their flight, where every sound put them on edge.
Zhang Zhao took out the lighter he carried with him, and a flame popped to life.
The faint orange-red firelight danced, illuminating their exhausted yet vigilant faces and casting their shadows onto the stone wall, where they swayed gently with the flames.
With a deafening boom, as though a massive bomb had detonated nearby, the entire earth began to tremble violently.
Inside the cave, Mu Qi and Zhang Zhao had been resting with their eyes closed. The sudden, ear-splittingly terrifying noise instantly jolted them awake from their half-dreaming state.
Zhang Zhao cried out reflexively, his voice filled with panic and unease. "Was that an earthquake?"
Mu Qi quickly climbed to his feet from the cold ground. His face was as grim as the gloomy sky before a storm. Without saying a word, he strode toward the cave entrance.
When he reached the entrance, he quickly extended a hand and forcefully shoved aside the large clump of weeds covering it. He stared anxiously outside.
By then, Zhang Zhao had gradually recovered as well. If it had been an earthquake, things definitely would not have looked like this.
He hurried to his companion's side and nervously peered outside too.
Both of them held