Tien Guoqiang suddenly shrieked, "Snake... a snake..." Then the light flickered, and the flashlight in his hand dropped to the ground. Though Tien Guoqiang was built like an ox, he had feared snakes his entire life.

"Where is it?" Everyone rushed over. They had been sticking to the edge of the cavern all this time, never paying attention to the center. Only now did they notice a circular, three-tiered tamped-earth platform in the middle of the space.

Tien Guoqiang was now crumpled at the very top of it, pointing up at the cavern ceiling and trembling, "Up... up there..." Young Master Liu shone his flashlight upward. About six or seven meters above them, coiled on the cavern roof, was a massive serpent.

It was jet black and gleaming, and two sharp fangs pulsed with a faint, eerie blue light in the gloom. Its eyes were blood-red, and as its crimson tongue flickered out, they could almost hear the chilling hiss. Young Master Liu flinched, ready to dart back, but suddenly noticed the great snake seemed stiff, utterly motionless.

He held his breath and illuminated it again, only to realize it was a carved stone effigy of a snake. Young Master Liu let out a long breath. Damn it, that carving was too realistic!

A single glance had nearly scared his heart out of his chest. He turned to the trembling Tien Guoqiang and said, "Get up! It’s a stone snake, not a real one.

Look at you, you’re so scared you’re about to wet your pants!" Helped up by Young Master Liu and Bai Erlaizi, Tien Guoqiang stood, patting his chest with lingering terror. "Mama mia, that nearly scared me to death!" To hear such a delicate expression from a man built like a lumbering brute almost made Young Master Liu gag. The shock must have been too much, draining every ounce of his masculinity.

Young Master Liu asked with genuine curiosity, "But why would someone carve a snake onto the ceiling of a cavern like this?" Bai Erlaizi seemed to seize the opportunity to finally speak, quickly chiming in, "You wouldn't understand this. In the countryside, snakes are called 'Earth Dragons.' Since it’s a dragon, of course, it belongs in the sky!" "I’ve never heard that. Are you just making things up?" Tien Guoqiang countered.

Zhang Enpu nodded. "Brother Bai is correct. In ancient times, the snake was seen as a manifestation of the dragon.

Because it crawls on the ground, it was also called the Earth Dragon. Among the deities worshipped by the ancients, there was the Snake God. Look at the circular platform beneath our feet.

If I am not mistaken, this platform was an ancient altar used for sacrifices!" An altar! If this was a sacrificial altar, then this cavern must have been the dedicated place for worshipping the snake god on the ceiling. Tien Guoqiang asked, "Then how did those ancient people get this snake god up there?" Zhang Enpu replied, "I believe it's for the very reason Brother Bai mentioned.

They regarded the snake as the embodiment of the dragon, and since it's a dragon, it naturally belongs in the heavens." The discovery of the altar excited everyone. Tien Guoqiang urged them to hurry and find a way out. Since this was a place of worship, there must be an exit!

The group resumed searching separately, but strangely, the cavern seemed like a sealed box; there were no visible exits anywhere. "Hey, has anyone found a way out?" Young Master Liu called out to the others. Everyone shook their heads.

After searching for a long time, not a single exit was found. The earlier excitement evaporated, leaving only sighs and resignation. Tien Guoqiang racked the bolt of his double-barreled shotgun.

"Damn it, this is weird. There has to be a way out. Something must be wrong somewhere.

No, I'll look again!" Watching Tien Guoqiang darting around, Young Master Liu was equally baffled. This was clearly a place dedicated to worshipping the Snake God. If it was a place of worship, there must be an exit; otherwise, how did the worshippers get in?

Yet, after searching for ages, the stone walls on all sides were smooth and seamless. Tien Guoqiang was right; something was amiss. But what exactly?

Young Master Liu craned his neck and let out a long sigh. Just then, his gaze fell once more on the carved stone snake. Its head was raised high, flicking its scarlet tongue directly toward the true East of the cavern.

The snake's head? A direction? A lightning bolt seemed to flash through Young Master Liu's mind.

He felt like he had grasped something pivotal, yet the key remained frustratingly vague. He followed the direction indicated by the snake's head toward the East, which pointed directly at the scroll depicting the Fourteenth Level of Hell—a painting of the Hell of Suicide. Young Master Liu moved toward the scroll, holding his flashlight.

This scroll was peculiar; it depicted several figures, some hanging, others with slit wrists, each showing a different method of self-destruction. Tien Guoqiang sidled up to Young Master Liu. "Young Master, what are you looking at?

You’re not studying which way to die is the happiest, are you?" Young Master Liu gave him a solid kick. "I'm wondering if the exit might be behind this scroll." "No way. Aside from the design, this scroll looks exactly like the others?" "I’m not talking about the scroll itself, but the stone snake!" Liu said.

Hearing the word 'snake,' Tien Guoqiang immediately hid behind Young Master Liu. "Wh-what about the snake?" "Look at the direction the snake’s head is pointing—it’s aimed right here. I hypothesize that the spot the snake head indicates is the exit.

That way, anyone entering to worship would first see the Snake God, and its head points precisely East..." Zhang Enpu suddenly understood. "Apprentice, I support your theory. Let’s focus our search here; the exit might very well be right here!" "Hey, look!

Why does this guy have an eye growing out of his stomach?" Tien Guoqiang pointed at a figure in the center of the painting. The others looked closely. The man was holding up his shirt with one hand and a sharp knife with the other, about to plunge it into his abdomen.

Right in the center of his stomach was a blood-red eye, looking extremely bizarre. Bai Erlaizi grumbled, "Who cares how many eyes he has? Let's find the exit quickly!" The more Young Master Liu stared at that eye, the more peculiar it seemed.

He told everyone, "Wait a moment, everyone!" "Young Master, what is it?" Young Master Liu pointed at the eye. "This eye here is just too strange. The more I look at it, the less right it feels." As he spoke, Young Master Liu took out a small knife and poked hard at the eye.

To his surprise, the eye sank in about half an inch. Then, they heard a muffled, rumbling sound from within the stone wall, like summer dry thunder, making their ears buzz deafeningly. The group covered their ears, staring blankly at the painting.

As they watched, the scroll, seemingly pulled by some unseen force, slowly began to roll upward. In the stone wall, an arched stone doorway appeared, inscribed with strange runes that looked somewhat like ancient oracle bone script. A seam split down the center of the door, and it slowly slid open to the sides, revealing a dark passage wide enough for three men to walk abreast.

A chilling wind gusted out of the passage, carrying a damp, salty, musty odor. "Great! We found the way out!" Bai Erlaizi excitedly started to step forward.

Zhang Enpu grabbed him back. "The mustiness in there is thick. If you rush in like that, you might breathe in toxic fumes and throw your life away for nothing!" Young Master Liu nodded vigorously.

"Master, what should we do?" "Let’s wait for a quarter of an hour for the air to circulate, then we go in," Zhang Enpu instructed. The quarter hour passed quickly. Young Master Liu took the lead, carrying his flashlight in one hand and his bird gun slung over his shoulder.

Tien Guoqiang followed close behind, hefting his formidable double-barreled shotgun. Zhang Enpu, gripping his Celestial Master Sword, walked in the middle, with Bai Erlaizi bringing up the rear, holding an iron rod. They entered the dark passage in a neat single file.

Just as they stepped into the tunnel, they heard a deep rumbling sound behind them. They whipped around to see the stone door they had just passed through had closed again. They were now sealed inside the dark passage; returning the way they came was impossible.

Young Master Liu muttered silently, "Amitabha, hurry like the law commands. Whichever Buddha you are, please ensure I return safely!"