When Zhao Shuning regained consciousness, the scene before her eyes had completely changed.
The pitch - black sky seemed to be utterly lightless. There was no warmth, not even a single star in sight.
Kong Shishuang let out a scream first because she felt something crawling on her body.
Zhao Shuning rolled her eyes. Having such a burden around, it was no wonder they had been teleported to the wrong place. Even if they hadn't, having Kong Shishuang around would have been a headache.
Seeing that Kong Shishuang was on the verge of crying, Zhao Shuning sighed and stepped forward to pat her clothes, shaking off the bugs onto the ground.
Kong Shishuang was taken aback but didn't utter those two words.
Zhao Shuning took out a night - pearl from her bosom. Although its light wasn't very bright, it was enough to illuminate the path ahead.
In the past, when she had the divine beast Phoenix, it had a great fondness for night - pearls. So Zhao Shuning had developed a habit of always carrying a few with her.
They walked forward all the way. After wading through the black pool of water, they finally made it outside.
It turned out that they had been teleported into a pitch - black cave.
It was already deep in the night.
Shuang'er and Sese walked at the back, while Ashui and Ayue took the lead. They protected Zhao Shuning in the middle.
Zhao Shuning could sense that Kong Shishuang's body was trembling constantly.
Sure enough, a pampered young lady like her must have never experienced such darkness before.
Under the night sky, the pale moonlight bathed the land. The desolate grass in the cold moonlight cast countless strange shadows. From afar, they resembled the flickering flames of the undead, burning ceaselessly.
After walking for about an hour, they found a relatively spacious area and sat down against the tree trunks.
Zhao Shuning took out the map, glanced at it, cursed under her breath, then crumpled it up and threw it away.
"Zhao Shuning, are you crazy?"
"Xiaoning'er, what's going on?"
"Leader, is there something wrong with the map?" Sese, being quite smart, noticed the problem at once.
Zhao Shuning nodded.
"We've come to the Dark Marshlands, a trial ground only for second - year students."
Hearing this, the young lady Kong Shishuang burst into tears.
Zhao Shuning frowned and threatened, "Keep crying. Cry louder. Attract all the spirit beasts here and let them scratch your face to pieces."
Hearing this, Kong Shishuang shut her mouth but sobbed quietly. Tears kept streaming down her face. She looked extremely aggrieved.
Shuang'er said, "Did Teacher Su make a mistake with the teleportation?"
Zhao Shuning shook her head. Su Nian was a great teacher, and her teleportation was always accurate.
Sese said, "We'll never be able to pass a second - year student's trial ground. Leader, do we have any signal flares? If we fire them, the people in the Misty Rain Tower will see them and come to pick us up."
Zhao Shuning shook her head and said, "This time, it's the Meng father and son who are behind this. The maps they gave us and Teacher Su are all faulty. The place we were first teleported to was a flooded area. The signal flares got wet and won't work. This must have been pre - planned by the Meng father and son. And the map in our hands was supposed to be for the first - year freshmen's trial ground, but it's useless now."
"Leader?"
"We're in a desperate situation. If we can't complete the mission, we won't be able to get out."
Everyone fell silent. Even Shuang'er, who was always fond of joking, sank into deep thought.
At this moment, Kong Shishuang, perhaps engrossed in the conversation, forgot to cry. She asked, "Why would Deacon Meng want to harm you? He seems like a nice person."
Seeing that no one was going to respond to her, Kong Shishuang continued, "Deacon Meng should have seen that I'm in your group. If he tampered with the maps, wouldn't he be including me in his scheme?"
Still, no one paid her any attention.
Kong Shishuang went on, "It's impossible. Deacon Meng is just a low - level deacon. If my brother comes back and finds out what he's done to me, he'll beat him half to death. That old fool doesn't have the guts."
"The Meng father and son's intentions are beyond what a little girl like you can fathom."
"Hey, Zhao Shuning, what do you mean by that? I'm seven years older than you. Who are you calling a little girl? Are you looking down on me?"
Shuang'er shook her head and said, "Miss, are you out of your mind? The situation is obvious. You're still acting like a high - and - mighty miss. Talk about it after you manage to get out."
Seeing that everyone didn't want to talk to her, Kong Shishuang turned around and angrily fell silent.
If only her brother were here.
Looking at Kong Shishuang's expression, for some reason, Zhao Shuning suddenly thought of Zhao Xiangxiang, her second uncle's daughter. For a moment, her attitude towards Kong Shishuang softened.
"Miss Kong, if you want to get out, you have to follow the orders. Otherwise, it's just a matter of time before you end up in the mouth of a wild beast."
Kong Shishuang turned around. Despite her temper, she could tell that Zhao Shuning meant well.
"Will you... will you take me with you?"
"As long as you don't cause any trouble and obey the rules, I can take you."
Kong Shishuang's eyes were a bit red. Fortunately, it was night, so no one could see. Otherwise, she would have felt extremely embarrassed.
Zhao Shuning gave some trivial instructions in an orderly manner.
No matter how anxious they were, they had to get through the night first and wait until dawn.
She asked Ashui and Ayue to stand guard first, and then at midnight, Shuang'er and Sese would take over.
As for Zhao Shuning, she would climb up the tree to study the layout of the Dark Marshlands and draw a rough map.
"Zhao Shuning, why don't you assign me any tasks? Do you look down on me?"
"What can a young lady like you do?"
These words suddenly aroused Kong Shishuang's competitive spirit.
"If you don't assign me any tasks, how do you know I can't do them?"
Everyone looked at Kong Shishuang but said nothing. At this moment, Zhao Shuning even thought that Kong Shishuang, this young lady, wasn't that annoying after all. She was even a bit cute.
"Can you start a fire and cook?"
Kong Shishuang shook her head, looking defeated.
"Then rest well tonight. Tomorrow, go and collect some tree branches. We'll need them to start a fire."
Kong Shishuang's eyes lit up. Then she said, "Okay, tomorrow I'll collect a whole lot of firewood for you. It'll definitely be enough. I love collecting firewood the most."
"Okay. It's a tough job. Your role tomorrow is very important. Go and rest quickly."
"Okay!"
Kong Shishuang lay down on her side. After turning around, the corners of her mouth involuntarily curled up.
It seemed that this brat Zhao Shuning wasn't that hateful after all.