Chang Dong didn't wake up until three days later. His injuries were on his back, and during his unconsciousness he had coughed up blood. Due to being crushed and stepped on, the doctors suspected severe impact causing lung damage, with capillaries and bronchi ruptured—whether or not to proceed with a thoracotomy remained to be seen. For now, treatment focused primarily on pain management, medication, and respiratory support. His condition remained unstable. Gao Shen, who was injured more severely, had protected Ding Liu beneath him when the collapse occurred. Although the stones that struck him were relatively fragmented and didn't exert heavy pressure, when he was pulled out, blood covered the ground. Upon turning him over, it was discovered that two bent iron strips had penetrated his abdomen. The mine staff recognized these as fragments ejected from the "guan pao" explosion from within the structure. Given the severity of his injuries, how did he still manage to climb up and reach Jin Yang's face? When Fei Tang asked Ding Liu about Gong Shen's injury, she was crying so much her eyes were swollen—she had no idea Gong Shen had been hurt at all. She only remembered that when the "Guang Pao" exploded, Gong Shen had rolled her to the ground, then grabbed a body beside them to shield her, and then pushed her up, protecting her as she approached Jin Yang’s face and entered the sacrificial pit. Ahu was also injured, though only lightly. However, when they bandaged her, she suddenly started coughing up blood and spat out a piece resembling a tongue. Fei Tang couldn’t believe that such a light injury could affect someone’s tongue. Only after asking Ding Liu did she learn about the concept of "substituting a tongue." It was said that a pair of tongues existed—primary and auxiliary—where the primary tongue could generate many auxiliary ones. So, if one auxiliary tongue was lost, it didn’t matter. But if the primary tongue was gone, all the auxiliary tongues would fall off and wither. Jiang Zhan had used his primary tongue in the dome chamber, indicating he carried it with him. After suffering a severe injury and falling into the golden pool, his primary tongue was likely destroyed. Fei Tang didn't know how to comfort Ah He, so after a long pause, he pointed to a body that had been carried out with no hope of recovery and said, "Look, not as good as before, but better than after—at least we're still alive." Ah He nodded, tears in her eyes, and it was truly heart-wrenching. Ye Liuxi had also lain down to recuperate. Even with his strong Liuxi bones, injury was injury; if he could immediately bounce back to full health, he'd truly be no ordinary human. ... Thus, over these days, the busiest were Fei Tang and Ding Liu, rushing from bedside to bedside, inquiring about conditions, bringing soup and meals, offering gentle reassurances, and even arranging temporary walking sticks—something they never imagined would happen. One day, this group of five who had journeyed together would rely on just these two to row the boat. Fei Tang once expressed a deep sense of reflection to Ding Liu, saying, "Liu'er, do you think about it? Among us, we two are the weakest—always needing protection and support. Yet now, the strong ones have all fallen ill, and we, who were once so fragile, are Ding Liu replied, "Isn't it said that when the sky collapses, tall people bear the weight? People with greater abilities may be more prominent than us, but surely they also endure more hardships, don't they?" Fei Tang was stunned, realizing he had only wanted to shine and not suffer. Fei Tang was not satisfied. Though it had just been he who had asked Chang Dong to stay calm and not to exert himself, the events they had just gone through had been nothing short of dramatic—friends, even his lover, were still missing or possibly dead. How could Chang Dong not have turned red in the face? How could he not have been anxious to the point of panic or even hysterical? Instead, he was acting exactly as Fei Tang had imagined in his own mental script—boring. Fei Tang quickly straightened his posture and went through each person's situation in detail, particularly emphasizing that Ye Liuxi could now walk independently with a cane. He also explained the attack by Xie Yan that day—how the twin brothers had pretended to be Long Shen and managed to open the mountain gate, how fiercely the battle had been, how Xie Yan had driven the demons forward, and how even the local Daoist scholars at the Golden Mine were visibly outmatched. As the Yulin Guards kept retreating, it suddenly seemed as though members of the Long family had appeared to lend support, summoning earth fire and forming the Long family's decisive technique—the "Dragon Roar, Tiger Roar" seal—which ultimately turned the tide. Xie Yan's rebel forces then fled in disarray. He then spoke of Zhao Guanshou, who had returned to Black Stone City that very night. In the following days, reports confirmed that while Xie Yan was attacking the Golden Mine, disturbances had also arisen in Black Stone City. However, since Black Stone City was the stronghold of both the Daoist scholars and the Yulin Guards, the human casualties were not severe—mainly due to natural disasters. It was said to be the strongest earthquake in recorded history "Fei Tang said, 'Jiang has fallen into the golden pool. By the way, the Golden Feathers Guard cleared out the Golden Lord's cave—turns out that massive serpent was actually the sealed Golden Lord. The Golden Lord's face was the entrance facade of his temple. The fierce bird guards who entered with us lost several, but aside from Jiang, all the others were found. Four bodies of scorpion-eyed guards were also discovered and burned.' Chang Dong was taken aback: 'Four? I remember Jiang brought in more than four subordinates. Where are the others? Have they been captured?' In his memory, there were well over a dozen. Fei Tang replied, 'No—only four bodies were found.' Chang Dong mused, 'Could it be that there's another hidden passage within the Golden Lord's cave, and they escaped through it?' Fei Tang shook his head, 'Absolutely not. I've personally inspected the site. The Golden Feathers Guard also checked thoroughly for any hidden passages—every part of the dome cave was inspected and confirmed to be completely clear. They must have escaped during the chaos. As for Qingzhi—the woman—she's also missing. I don't know where she went.' Chang Dong ponder How could he have escaped, when in his memory, at the very moment he lost consciousness, he saw the Golden Feathers already charging into Master Jin's cave? After all, once the situation turned in our favor—enemy weakened, us strong—it should have been easy to cut off the remaining Scorpion eyes inside the cave and trap them, making it impossible for anyone to escape. He looked at Fei Tang, hesitated to speak. Fei Tang understood immediately, chuckled warmly, "You'd like to see my sister, wouldn't you? Just wait—I'll have her sent for." After getting up, her consciousness was still a bit foggy. Fei Tang handed her the cane and repeated, "My elder brother has woken up and wants to see you." Ye Liuxi quickly took the cane and hurried off—her steps were brisk. Over the past few days, she had grown accustomed to using the cane, and with each step, the tip tapped the ground like a steady rhythm of small drumbeats. Listening to it, she found herself laughing at her own composure. When she reached the tent entrance, she first lifted the curtain to peer inside. She had come here ten or twelve times before, each time finding Chang Dong lying there, motionless, conserving even his breath—so serene that even when he fainted, he seemed to embody the grace of a seasoned artist who didn’t want to trouble the public. This time, however, was different: Chang Dong was now gently turning his head to look at her. Ye Liuxi exhaled, leaning against the side of the door, watching him. It truly was wonderful how people came alive when their eyes opened—the moment his eyes fluttered open, his entire face seemed to come to life. Chang Dong said, "Why are you standing there? Do I need Ye Liuxi smiled, pulled aside the curtain, and entered slowly, one arm leaning on her cane as she walked. Chang Dong watched her settle down by the bed and said, "You're so careless—when you come to visit, you never bring me two pounds of apples." Ye Liuxi picked up her cane and tapped it firmly on the floor. "Should I offer you two stumbles instead?" Chang Dong asked, "Are you tired of me getting hit less than before?" Ye Liuxi wanted to laugh, but felt a pang of tenderness, so she folded her arms and leaned against the edge of the bed. Chang Dong gently brushed her hair aside, furrowed his brow, and asked, "Did you leave a scar?" Yes, there was—one from Jiang Zhan's iron ruler that swept past her ear and down to her jaw, a bit deep. The doctor said even with the finest scar cream, it wouldn't fully recover to its former state. There was nothing to hide. Ye Liuxi turned her face so he could see clearly and said, "I don't think it's anything special. Everyone says, actually, this scar is quite nice." Chang Dong said, "...Who exactly is 'everyone'?" Ye "Still hadn't finished speaking when she buried her face and smiled. Chang Dong reached up to stroke the top of her head, slowly moving his palm down to her face. His palm was broad, warm, slightly rough. Ye Liu Xi pressed her face against it, her eyes gradually glistening, unwilling to move a single inch. Chang Dong said, "You're not feeling well today." Ye Liu Xi didn't look at him; her gaze fell on the bedsheet beside her face. The fabric was coarse, yet snowy-white, having been washed many times—slightly frayed now. She asked, "Do you really know all this?" Chang Dong nodded. "When you're not happy, the atmospheric pressure around your body changes subtly. As soon as I get close, I feel it... Why didn't you tell me? My breathing feels a bit tight, but my mind isn't." "He was a bit short of breath, so Ye Liuxi lifted her head and helped him roll the blanket aside, so it wouldn't press heavily on his chest: 'These days, I keep thinking about the moment Jiang Zhan died...' She recounted the entire incident in detail—his strange expression, the sentence he didn't finish, 'Be careful,' and the tears that quietly welled up in her eyes as she watched him just before he fully submerged into the pool. Chang Dong listened quietly: 'And then, what were your doubts?' Ye Liuxi said: 'When he died, he seemed completely different from just a moment before. I wondered if he had recalled something at the moment of death—had he, someone who had been so deeply resentful of me, someone who had wanted to kill me, actually been misled all along.' 'Chang Dong, often, the body remembers more firmly than the mind. For instance, I don't remember why, yet my hands can smoothly trace a scorpion across my eyelids—I don't understand why I should cry, yet I did cry at that very moment...' Ye Liuxi felt a little dazed." In her memory, aside from occasional performances, she had never cried—wouldn't she have cried if Jiang Zhan weren't important to her? But if he were important to her, then wasn't this—her having deliberately driven him to his end? Suddenly, she felt a growing fear toward the half-forgotten memories of her that remained blank and showed no signs of recovery. Chang Dong said, "Are you afraid you might have mistaken a close friend, and regret it later?" Ye Liuxi remained silent. Chang Dong paused for a long time before saying, "That is indeed a possibility." Liuxi felt her heart sink. She had come to Chang Dong not to hear agreement, but to hear him deny it—clearly and logically point out that Jiang Zhan had been an enemy all along, from beginning to end. Chang Dong continued, "But Liuxi, first of all, this event has already happened. Even if the truth comes to light later and you are devastated by it, the fact remains that it has already occurred." Liuxi nodded. "Second, I'm not sure if this will make you feel any better—but I managed to crawl all the way over and hold onto his legs because I thought he was going to kill you." "If I hadn't held onto him, if Fat Tang hadn't intervened, if you hadn't happened to grab the knife at that moment, the outcome might have been very different—under those circumstances, if you didn't kill him, he would have killed you. Not just you, but also me and Fat Tang, we might all have been out of luck." Yexiau remained silent. That was true—Jiang Zhan hadn't come to swap people with her. He had come to kill her. Even in the final moment when he changed his mind, in all the previous attacks, every strike had been decisive and ruthless. "Third, did you actually kill him? Did your blade pierce his heart?" Yexiau said: "But at that moment, he fell into the golden pool—" Chang Dong interrupted her: "Do you know what Fat Tang said? That only four bodies of the scorpion-eyed guards were found?" Yexiau paused: "Yes, I do." "Didn't that The tunnel didn't yield any hidden passage, and at that time, the Jin Yu guards had sealed off the exit—how did those scorpion-eyed figures manage to get through? Ye Liuxi hadn't given the matter much thought: "Perhaps they made it during the chaos? I didn't really pay attention to how the fights unfolded. Or maybe, since they're capable of controlling the spirits, perhaps..." "Perhaps they can truly pass through walls?" Chang Dong shook his head. "Don't imagine the spirits and ghosts to be so extraordinary. The Qimang grass we encountered in Xiaoyangzhou couldn't even withstand the pulling force of a SUV. If the scorpion-eyed ones truly could pass through walls, wouldn't it have been simpler to just walk straight through the mountain instead of pretending to be twin siblings to enter the mountain gate?" As he spoke more, a tightness settled in his chest, pressing heavily. Ye Liuxi hesitated, not daring to touch his chest, only holding on tightly to his hand. Chang Dong lowered his voice so he could speak more: "They entered through the Golden Pool." "Zhao Guanshou's words are sometimes reliable—he has strong confidence in the security of the gold mine. Ahu said that there's only one entrance on the ground, the mountain gate, and overhead, the earth-fire provides protection, so even birds can't fly through. Inside the gold lord's body, there's a giant serpent; ordinary people who see it would likely be so frightened they'd go weak in the knees. Therefore, no one ever thought there could be a passage there." "Recall how slow the gold lord has been—though I don't understand why it finally went berserk, before that, it was remarkably docile. Even when arrows pierced its flesh, it showed little reaction." Yefu Xi murmured, "So the people from the scorpion's eye must enter and exit through the gold pool? That doesn't quite make sense—the water there is corrosive..." Chang Dong reminded her, "We've only seen the guard eagles fall in and be half-eroded, but have you personally witnessed any scorpion's eye person falling into the pool? If they can enter through the pool, surely they can adopt some protective measures?" Yefu Xi fell silent. This assumption makes sense—the smoke billowed throughout the dome, and the pool surface was uneven, covered with scattered stones and large boulders. The remnants of the scorpion's eyes could easily bend slightly and slip through the gaps into the pool without drawing much attention. She exhaled in relief: "So, Jiang Zhan is still alive?" Chang Dong shook his head: "Though he broke his arm and plunged into the pool, the situation was still quite perilous. All I can say is that he still has a chance. Sometimes, people's chances of survival depend on timing, favorable conditions, and circumstances—what happens after they enter the pool, I simply cannot predict.