Chapter 316: Isn't It Just Right There?

The woman seemed to perceive the hostility between Ma Chulong and Ma Chulan, and her smile grew even more kind.

"Miss Su, do you really not remember me? I am Auntie Wang, the one in charge of hygiene at the publishing house."

She proactively revealed her identity.

Not only was Su Yan's expression one of astonishment, but the Ma siblings were the same.

Immediately after, they heard Auntie Wang continue, "Last time you came to the publishing house, wasn't everyone from the office there? But it's normal if you don't remember me; there were so many people that day, after all."

Su Yan and the siblings exchanged a glance, now completely certain of Auntie Wang's identity.

It was their own nerves that had been too sensitive.

"Hello, Auntie Wang."

Su Yan's gaze, hidden beneath the black cloth, swept past Auntie Wang to look at her surroundings.

That eerie feeling had not disappeared, yet Auntie Wang had appeared here quite normally.

"What happened to your eyes? Can you see through that black cloth?"

Unable to suppress her gossipy nature, Auntie Wang began to inspect her with curiosity.

Su Yan, of course, would not say much to her. "A friend is accompanying me. Auntie Wang, why are you appearing here?"

Although she could confirm this woman's identity, she could not rule out the possibility that something was wrong with her.

"I just came back from my daughter's house, and I just happened to be taking this road," Auntie Wang replied very casually.

"Look at this road, is it correct? We couldn't find the publishing house at all." Su Yan couldn't help but raise her voice, while simultaneously staring intently at Auntie Wang's cheeks, not missing a single minute expression.

Auntie Wang froze for a moment, her eyes filled with confusion, before she looked toward the alleyway opposite them.

"Miss Su, you aren't joking with me, are you? Isn't the publishing house right over there?"

As she spoke, Auntie Wang pointed in the direction where the publishing house had vanished.

Su Yan was about to retort, but in the next second, her expression changed.

It wasn't just her; even Ma Chulong and Ma Chulan gasped in shock.

The publishing house and Yongxiang Road, which they had searched for so long without success, were now sitting perfectly in their original positions.

Su Yan's shifting gaze immediately looked toward the changed road sign. Sure enough, the sign had completely returned to normal, clearly displaying the three large characters: "Yongxiang Road."

"How can this be?" Ma Chulong revealed a look of horror.

Could it be that they had all been blind just now?

Seeing the grim expressions on the three of them, Auntie Wang hurriedly asked with concern, "Miss Su, are you all alright?"

Su Yan no longer knew what to say. "Thank you, Auntie Wang."

Before the words had even fully landed, the three of them had already run toward the publishing house.

Auntie Wang watched their retreating backs with a helpless smile and walked away.

Su Yan and the others stood before the door of the publishing house once again.

The large doors were tightly closed, but the hearts of the three were gripped with tension.

Because they remembered clearly that when they had left the publishing house before, the doors had not been closed, but now...

Su Yan reached out to push the door.

"Su Yan, wait a moment." Ma Chulong actually stopped her. "Don't you think all of this is far too suspicious? We walked here so many times and couldn't find the publishing house, yet now it has appeared out of thin air?"

Who could guarantee that what lay behind the doors was truly the publishing house and not an enemy's trap?

Su Yan frowned deeply, instinctively glancing toward the road sign.

If there truly was a problem here, then Auntie Wang just now must have had a problem as well.

But by now, Auntie Wang's figure had long since vanished.

"There's no time to investigate."

Regardless of what was inside, finding Gu Yang was the most urgent matter.

Having said that, Su Yan no longer hesitated and pushed the doors open with force.

A violent gust of wind howled out, blowing so hard that the three of them could not keep their eyes open.

At this moment, they were all certain that what was inside was not the publishing house, but it was already too late to escape.

Fortunately, the gale only lasted for a short ten-odd seconds.

By the time Su Yan could see the scene before her clearly, even she wore a look of disbelief.

Ma Chulong and Ma Chulan were even more utterly stunned.

The three of them were now standing in the middle of a dense forest.

The thick foliage blotted out the sky, instilling a sense of terror.

Ma Chulan spun around quickly, wanting to confirm if the door was still there.

In the next second, cold sweat broke out on her brow.

Because at this very moment, directly behind the three of them was a bottomless cliff.

Therefore, aside from moving forward, there was no way back.

"Is this an illusion?" Ma Chulong's voice was suppressed; this was the first time he had encountered something so bizarre.

Ma Chulan was visibly more uneasy. Hearing her older brother say it might be an illusion, she immediately took out talismans used to break illusions.

After throwing out over a dozen talismans in succession without any change appearing before her eyes, her breathing grew more rapid.

"It's not an illusion." At that moment, Su Yan gave an answer that made one's heart tremble.

Just now, she had already mobilized the power within her pupils. This power, besides possessing world-destroying explosive force, could also see through all falsehoods. Yet, after she had activated the power in her pupils, the scenery before her remained perfectly clear.

They were likely facing a situation they had never experienced before; even she could not be certain what this space that had suddenly appeared out of thin air actually was.

"Su Yan, Big Brother, what should we do next?"

Ma Chulan was truly panicking. They couldn't get out, it wasn't an illusion, and there was no telling what unknown dangers lay within; it was truly difficult to remain calm.

Although Ma Chulong was also at a loss, he was much calmer than her.

"Since there is no way back, then we go in."

After saying this, he looked at Su Yan.

Su Yan nodded.

The three reached an agreement and stepped into this mysterious forest.

Ma Chulan followed closely at Ma Chulong's side, feeling more and more suffocated the deeper they went.

This sense of suffocation did not come from encountering something terrifying or the presence of venomous snakes or fierce beasts, but rather because this forest was simply too quiet.

It was so quiet that there wasn't a single sound, as if there were no living things here at all.

Su Yan's expression grew increasingly grim, as she had also realized this.

A normal forest would never be like this, and it was getting darker and darker inside, to the point where not even a sliver of starlight could penetrate.

She took a torch from her Qiankun bag and lit it, but even so, the light could only illuminate a distance of one or two meters around them.

In truth, she didn't need it, but Ma Chulong and Ma Chulan needed the light to see the path clearly.

The three of them walked aimlessly like this, to the point where they could barely distinguish direction and could not even sense the passage of time.

"Su Yan, we've been in here for about an hour now. Just walking like this probably isn't the way."

Ma Chulong kept his voice low; in this forest, it felt as though their consciousness was gradually being eroded. Without direction and without a purpose, they might not find an exit even if they walked until the end of time.

"Yeah, Su Yan, I feel like we've been walking in circles." The unease and irritability in Ma Chulan's heart were growing heavier and heavier.

(End of Chapter)