Seeing the rope suddenly jerk upward, devoid of weight, Wang Jue’s heart sank. He guessed the rope had reached its end and Hou Dayong had untied himself to continue climbing down. Worried, he turned to Zhang Yuqiu and said, “The rope’s hit the end. I don’t know how far Dayong still has to go to the bottom. He’s probably untied it and is free-climbing now.”

Hearing this, Zhang Yuqiu’s heart began to race with apprehension. She couldn’t help but call down the well opening, “Dayong!”

A single voice echoed back, multiplied by countless reflections. Hou Dayong was just about to plant his feet on the ground, feeling the bottom was within reach, when he suddenly missed his footing and slid down another two or three meters along the well wall before thudding onto the floor. Looking back up, the well opening was a brilliant square of sky, halved on the left and right by Wang Jue’s and Zhang Yuqiu’s heads, casting down only an apple-seed-shaped patch of light.

“I’m fine!” Hou Dayong yelled up toward the opening, taking a moment to survey his surroundings. He found himself standing inside a tunnel. This tunnel connected to the dry well in a three-way junction; he stood precisely at the center, with paths leading both left and right.

“What’s the situation down there?” Zhang Yuqiu, hearing a response, grew impatient. While pulling the loose end of the rope up and tying it around her waist, she kept communicating with the man in the well.

Seeing the rope being retrieved, Hou Dayong cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted, “The rope was still five or six meters short of the well floor. You two decide whether you want to come down.” But before his voice had fully settled, Zhang Yuqiu leaped down the well opening as if performing a high-altitude parachute jump. Standing at the bottom, Hou Dayong watched a dark silhouette hurtle down toward him and quickly scrambled sideways to avoid impact. After a moment, seeing no further movement from above, he cautiously peeked out and looked up.

It turned out Zhang Yuqiu had descended too quickly. When the rope reached its limit, the sudden downward pull of gravity violently yanked Wang Jue toward the well opening. Fortunately, he braced himself with his hands and feet against the force, managing to secure the rope. But the tension made the rope perfectly taut, jamming the two people at opposite ends. Zhang Yuqiu was left dangling in mid-air, unable to go up or down. When she tried to untie the knot, it was pulled so tight it wouldn't budge. As the two of them hung there, one above and one below, growing anxious, Hou Dayong had a sudden thought and shouted up to Zhang Yuqiu, “Cut the rope!”

Zhang Yuqiu then remembered the dagger at her waist and forcefully sliced through the rope. She landed with a bang on the spot where Hou Dayong had just been standing, having dropped through five or six meters of empty air. Dust billowed up, and the beautiful woman was instantly transformed into a dirty Cinderella, coated in grime. When she wiped the sweat from her face, it smeared into a grotesque mask, and Hou Dayong couldn’t help but burst into laughter. Just as Zhang Yuqiu, unused to being mocked, was about to flare up, they heard Wang Jue shout from the well opening, “I’m coming!” Looking up again, they truly saw Wang Jue’s body plummeting downward like a giant lead weight. Startled, Zhang Yuqiu scrambled and crawled to the other side of the tunnel, terrified that Wang Jue’s nearly 150 pounds would crush her.

However, just like before, they heard the voice before the body appeared. Wang Jue’s shout had echoed for a long time, yet he hadn't fallen. Hou Dayong covered his mouth, smiling, and repeated the advice, “Cut the rope.” After a considerable pause, they finally heard Wang Jue reply weakly, “No knife.”