The burly man frowned deeply. It was clear he didn't want to do this either, but reason told him that if they kept going, they would all be in danger. No one knew what kind of monstrosity might climb up the rope. Besides, he understood that the three people below were probably already
He drew his dagger and cut through the rope with all his strength. As he watched the severed rope plunge into the darkness beneath their feet, an indescribably complicated feeling wrapped around him, leaving him unable to breathe.
"Stay alert. We're pulling out."
They had only taken a few steps when a point of light suddenly appeared beneath them. A torch flared unexpectedly in the darkness below the slope.
Before they could react, more torches began lighting up in the darkness, one after another, as if the first had started a chain. By their light, Jiang Cheng and the others could finally see that the slope below was packed with people.
Every one of them stood rigidly upright, their heads stiffly raised as they stared up the slope.
Jiang Cheng immediately realized these were the things they had followed earlier. They hadn't disappeared; somehow, they had doubled back without anyone noticing and hidden nearby!
The torchlight flickered constantly. Stranger still, Jiang Cheng could make out the clothes on these people, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't see their faces.
Their faces were blurred, as if the colors in a painting had run after getting wet. The sight was bizarre and uncanny, and the whole scene was imbued with a distinctly religious atmosphere.
Perhaps they were well-trained, but more likely they were too terrified to react. Jiang Cheng and his group held their breath, and no one cried out.
The scene froze in a standoff.