The frail counselor you said, you fight against three heroes alone?

"Now!" Elder Chen shouted loudly.

Master Lingyin clasped his hands together, muttered something, and a golden light shot out from his hands and hit the Shadow Demon.

The Shadow Demon let out a shrill scream...

"Not good!" The man in white suddenly changed his expression, "It's going to..."

Everyone worked together and the attack was like a tide.

The white-clothed man's sword shone like a rainbow, and every swing of his sword accurately hit the shadow demon's weak spot, making a sharp "chi chi" sound.

Luo Xiaoyu's body was agile and her dagger was flying like a fluttering butterfly, constantly shuttling between the shadow demon's attacks and restraining its movements.

The golden light of Buddha's light from Master Lingyin struck the Shadow Demon's body again and again, making muffled "bang bang" sounds and weakening its power.

Xiaohong's jade pendant shone brightly, as hot as the sun. Every time it hit the Shadow Demon, it would howl in pain.

Blacksmith Zhao and Hunter Wang also regained their spirits. They waved their weapons and coordinated with the attack of the crowd. They were like a solid wall, blocking the counterattack of the Shadow Demon.

Finally, under the joint attack of everyone, the Shadow Demon could no longer hold on, and his huge body fell to the ground with a loud bang. There was a loud "bang", which made the ground tremble and raised a cloud of dust.

When the dust settled, everyone looked at the shadow demon lying on the ground, howling, and their hearts were filled with indescribable excitement.

Luo Xiaoyu waved the dagger in her hand excitedly with a bright smile on her face.

Blacksmith Zhao and Hunter Wang high-fived each other, making a crisp "pa pa" sound, celebrating their hard-earned victory.

They knew that the battle ahead was just the beginning, but they had successfully taken the first step.

The morale of the crowd was boosted. At this moment, Elder Xuanfeng, who was hiding in the dark, saw that the shadow demon he summoned was so vulnerable.
The man in white hugged Xiaohong excitedly. Xiaohong felt extremely safe and happy in his arms.

Blacksmith Zhao and Hunter Wang hugged each other, expressing their joy and friendship after surviving the disaster.

Granny Lin looked at everyone with a smile. Doctor Zhang pushed his glasses on the bridge of his nose and a long-lost smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

Everyone felt the friendship between each other, like the warm sun in winter, warming their hearts.

The crowd did not celebrate too much, as they knew that tougher battles were still to come.

They followed the direction the Shadow Demon came from and moved forward until they finally found Elder Xuanfeng.

Elder Xuanfeng sneered as he watched a fierce battle break out among the crowd. The sword light of the man in white, Luo Xiaoyu's dagger, Master Lingyin's Buddha's light, Elder Chen's wisdom, the power of everyone gathered together, like a surging river, unstoppable.

Although Elder Xuanfeng's attack was powerful, it seemed a little weak under the combined efforts of everyone.

In the end, Elder Xuanfeng fell in a pool of blood, roaring in unwillingness.

The conspiracy was completely broken, the dark clouds hanging over everyone's heads dissipated, the sky cleared up again, the sun shone on the earth again, and everything became easy.

The man in white looked into the distance, frowned, and suddenly said: "Things may not be that simple..."

The sunshine dispelled the haze and shone again on this land that survived the disaster.

The rough laughter of Blacksmith Zhao made his chest numb. He hugged Wang the Hunter tightly, and the two strong men collided with each other like two iron towers, making a dull bang. It was the joy of surviving a disaster and also a symbol of brotherhood.

The wrinkles on Grandma Lin's face smoothed out like flowers blooming in spring. Her kind eyes swept over everyone. Doctor Zhang pushed his glasses on the bridge of his nose and a long-lost smile appeared at the corner of his mouth, as if a heavy burden had been lifted from his shoulders.

The air was filled with a faint smell of blood, but also with the relief of surviving a disaster. Everyone's heart was like cotton dried by the sun, warm and soft.

However, this relaxed atmosphere did not last long.

Xiaohong frowned slightly, and her sharp eyes caught a glimpse of an unusual movement deep in the woods in the distance. It was a vague, unsettling aura.

The smile on her face froze instantly, and her originally gentle eyes became alert.

Others also noticed Xiaohong's abnormality, and their smiles gradually disappeared, replaced by solemnity and vigilance.

The joy of surviving the disaster was instantly dispelled, and was replaced by an uneasy premonition.

Without any hesitation, everyone put away their relaxed mood and walked cautiously in the direction indicated by Xiaohong, heading towards the depths of the suspicious woods.

After passing through the dense woods, the view suddenly opened up, but we saw a group of ferocious bandits blocking our way.

The leader of the bandits had a beard covering half of his face, and his eyes were fierce. He was waving a chipped ghost-head knife in his hand, and the blade reflected a chilling light in the sun.

He growled hoarsely like a wild animal, "I built this mountain, I planted this tree, if you want to pass through here, you have to leave money for passage!"

Luo Xiaoyu sneered, the dagger in her hand flashing with cold light. She was not someone who would just accept things passively.

The man in white stepped forward, pointing the tip of his sword at the bandits, refusing to back down.

The others also took up fighting stances. Having just experienced a fierce battle, they were not afraid.

Seeing how tough the crowd was, the bandit became furious and howled, waving his weapons and rushing towards them.

The two sides immediately fell into a melee, with the flashing of swords, roars, and the sound of weapons clashing intertwined, breaking the relatively quiet forest just now.

The man in white was as fast as lightning and his swordsmanship was sharp. Every time he swung his sword, a trail of blood was left. However, he vaguely felt that the attack methods of these bandits were somewhat familiar.

Although their moves were crude, they were strangely familiar and somewhat similar to the men of Elder Xuanfeng that they had encountered before.

His heart suddenly sank and an ominous premonition came over him.

It seems that things are far from as simple as imagined.

At this moment, the bandit leader let out a strange cry and swung the ghost-head knife in his hand more frantically, pushing the battle to a new height.

The man in white had a stern look in his eyes and shouted in a low voice: "Be careful!"

The number of bandits far exceeded everyone's expectations. They came like a tide, one wave after another, as if endless.

Although everyone had good martial arts skills, the long battle had made them tired and their breathing became rapid.

Sweat soaked through the clothes, sticking tightly to the body, bringing a sticky discomfort.

The clanging sound of swords clashing, like a death note, echoed in my ears.

The air was filled with a strong smell of blood, which made people feel sick.

Doctor Zhang dodged the attacks of the bandits while trying his best to treat his injured companions.

Fine beads of sweat oozed from his forehead, but his hands moved extremely steadily.

However, the harassment from the bandits made it impossible for him to concentrate. Just as he had wrapped the bandage, it was interrupted by flying stones. The blood from the wound gushed out again, staining the white bandage red.

The injured companion groaned in pain, his face turned pale, his lips were cracked,

Xiaohong watched all this and her heart felt as if it was being tightly grasped by an invisible hand, making it difficult for her to breathe.

She could feel the exhaustion and despair emanating from her companions, as well as the bloodthirsty madness from the bandits.

She bit her lower lip, her eyes were firm, but her heart was full of worry.

The difficulties this time seem to be more difficult than any previous ones.

Just when everyone was about to collapse, Zhao the blacksmith, who had been silent all the time, suddenly took out a fist-sized metal sphere from his arms.

Everyone was stunned, not understanding what he was going to do.

Blacksmith Zhao just smiled, revealing a mouthful of yellowed teeth. He fiddled with the metal sphere with his rough hands for a few times, and then threw it into the crowd of bandits.

"Bang!" With a dull sound, the metal sphere exploded, and countless tiny caltrops flew out like flowers from the sky. The bandits were caught off guard and were hit one after another, with screams rang out one after another.

Seeing this, everyone was cheered up and took this opportunity to readjust their status and prepare for the next wave of attacks.

The man in white glanced at Blacksmith Zhao. The originally chaotic battle situation instantly became clear because of Elder Chen's command.

The bandits were caught off guard by this sudden change, and their original ferocious arrogance immediately dissipated, replaced by panic and fear.

Seeing the panic of the bandits, everyone's morale was boosted and their attacks became more fierce.

Luo Xiaoyu was nimble and moved among the bandits like a butterfly. Every swing of the dagger hit the target accurately, causing blood to splatter and screams to be heard.

Blacksmith Zhao swung the hammer in his hand with great force and power. Each blow was as powerful as thunder, smashing the bandits in front of him into pieces.

The others also showed their talents and cooperated well to defeat the bandits.

Seeing his men being beaten without any chance to fight back, the bandit leader was terrified and turned around to escape.

However, before he could run a few steps, he was blocked by Li the Hunter.

Hunter Li is a burly man, standing in front of the bandit leader like an iron tower, with the hunting knife in his hand flashing coldly, and his tone is cold: "Want to run? Not that easy!" Xiaohong hides behind the man in white, and his broad back gives her a great sense of security.

He looked at Xiaohong tenderly. "Luo Xiaoyu and Granny Lin supported each other. Granny Lin patted Luo Xiaoyu's hand kindly. Everyone encouraged and supported each other. The power of friendship was fully demonstrated at this moment.

In the end, the bandits were completely defeated, and they fled in all directions, abandoning their weapons and armor.

Everyone looked at the fleeing bandits and cheered, the joy of surviving the disaster once again filling their hearts.

However, this joy did not last long, and everyone's expressions gradually became solemn.

They knew that although they had defeated the bandits, there were still more unknown dangers waiting for them ahead.

The man in white looked at the direction where the bandits fled, frowned, and said in a deep voice: "Things...I'm afraid it's not that simple."

The setting sun was as red as blood, dyeing the mountains and forests scarlet. The figures of the fleeing bandits gradually disappeared into the twilight.

Everyone looked in the direction where they disappeared, but there was no joy of victory on their faces. Instead, there was a layer of solemnity.

There was a strange smell in the air that made people feel uneasy.

The surrounding trees became twisted at some point, and their branches stretched towards the sky like ghost claws, making rustling sounds like low whimpers.

The originally clear sound of birdsong disappeared, replaced by an eerie silence.

An invisible pressure enveloped everyone, as if a pair of invisible eyes were watching them in secret.

"This place... is a little weird." Doctor Zhang whispered. He subconsciously touched the medicine bag on his waist, his palms sweating slightly.

Elder Chen stroked his graying beard, looked ahead with deep eyes, and said in a deep voice: "This place seems to be shrouded by a mysterious force. We must be careful."

Granny Lin held Luo Xiaoyu's hand tightly and looked at everyone worriedly, "Children, why don't we go back? It's too dangerous here."

Luo Xiaoyu shook her head firmly, "We have finally come here, we can't just give up like this! Grandma, don't worry, I will protect you."

Everyone exchanged glances and finally decided to move on.

They stepped into this strange forest carefully, taking every step with extreme caution, for fear of disturbing some unknown existence.

As they went deeper, the fog around them became thicker and thicker, and visibility became lower and lower.

The outlines of the trees became blurred, as if they were hiding countless ghosts.

A chill rose from the soles of the feet and rushed straight to the top of the head, making people shudder.

"We seem to be... lost." Xiaohong's voice was trembling a little. She clutched the sleeve of the man in white tightly, as if she had grabbed a life-saving straw.

"This... this is a maze!" Elder Chen exclaimed, his face becoming extremely solemn, "We must find a way to break it as soon as possible, otherwise..."

Luo Xiaoyu interrupted him impatiently, "Stop whining! It's just a maze. Let's just rush forward, we will definitely be able to get out!" As she said that, she was about to move forward.

"Don't be reckless!" Elder Chen grabbed her and said, "It's hard to tell the direction in this maze. If you walk around aimlessly, you'll only get deeper and deeper into trouble!"

"What do you mean? Are you saying I'm stupid?" Luo Xiaoyu glared at Elder Chen, and an argument was about to break out.

Suddenly, the man in white raised his hand and signaled everyone to be quiet.

He slowly squatted down and put his hands on the ground, as if feeling something.

After a moment, he raised his head, his eyes fell on an ancient tree not far away, and he said slowly: "There..."

In the maze, the air seemed to be stagnant and breathing became difficult.

Everyone felt their strength rapidly draining away, and their legs felt as heavy as if they were filled with lead.

Sweat soaked through my clothes, sticking to my body and bringing waves of chills.

There was a buzzing in my ears and everything in front of me became blurry and I felt like I would faint at any moment.

"I... I can't walk anymore..." Luo Xiaoyu's voice was weak. She staggered and almost fell.

Granny Lin quickly supported her, her face full of worry.

"Be careful!" Doctor Zhang exclaimed, and saw Xiaohong turn pale and fall to the ground.

Her forehead hit a sharp stone and blood gushed out instantly.

"Xiaohong!" The man in white rushed over and held Xiaohong in his arms.

He frantically searched for the hemostatic medicine in the medicine bag, but found that due to the influence of the maze, he could not even distinguish the medicinal ingredients.

"What should I do? This...what should I do..." Doctor Zhang was so anxious that he was sweating profusely. In the maze, his medical skills became useless.

Xiaohong lay in the arms of the man in white, her consciousness gradually becoming blurred.

She felt like she was trapped in an invisible cage, surrounded by darkness and without a glimmer of hope.

She tightly grasped the treasure in her hand, but found that it had lost its former brilliance and became cold and silent.

The feeling of despair surged into her heart like a tide, drowning her.

Hunter Wang, who had been silent all this time, was surprisingly calm at this moment.

He squatted down, carefully observed the fallen leaves and soil on the ground, then looked up at the growth direction of the surrounding trees.

Everyone looked at him in confusion, not understanding what he was doing.

"Follow me." Hunter Wang stood up and said in a firm tone.

"You...you know how to get there?" Luo Xiaoyu asked in surprise.

Hunter Wang did not answer, but just walked in one direction.

Everyone hesitated for a moment, but finally chose to believe him.

They followed behind Hunter Wang and moved forward cautiously.

The fog was still thick, but for some reason, a glimmer of hope ignited in their hearts.

"Wait..." Hunter Wang suddenly stopped and pointed at a strangely shaped tree in front of him. He said in a deep voice, "It's right there."

Following the hunter Wang, everyone walked through the fog, taking one step deep and one step shallow.

Hunter Wang seemed to be extremely familiar with the area. He could always accurately avoid obstacles hidden in the thick fog, such as protruding rocks and tangled tree roots.

After walking for about half an hour, the thick fog around us miraculously began to dissipate.

A ray of light shines through the mist, illuminating everyone and bringing long-lost warmth.

"Fog... the fog has dissipated!" Luo Xiaoyu exclaimed in surprise, with a hint of trembling in her voice, as if she couldn't believe what she saw.

Others also showed happy expressions, and the feeling of surviving a disaster made them excited.

Granny Lin clasped her hands together and muttered something to thank God for his protection.

As the thick fog dissipated, the view gradually became wider.

The group found themselves in a clearing, in the middle of which, a large rock had a strange mark carved into it.

The mark was like an ancient rune, emitting a faint golden light, mysterious and solemn.

"That's it!" Hunter Wang pointed to the mark on the rock with a hint of excitement in his tone, "This is the key to leaving the maze!" Everyone gathered around and carefully observed the mark.

It has smooth lines and complex structure, and seems to contain some profound meaning.

Xiaohong looked at Hunter Wang with gratitude, "Thank you, Brother Wang." Hunter Wang smiled naively and scratched his head, "Nothing, I just happened to know it." The man in white exchanged glances with Master Lingyin, and both of them saw a hint of admiration in each other's eyes.

Granny Lin patted Luo Xiaoyu's hand gently and comforted her, "Don't be afraid, child. We will be able to get out soon."

Following the instructions of Hunter Wang, everyone touched several points on the mark in a specific order.

As the last point was touched, the mark suddenly burst into a dazzling light, illuminating the entire clearing.

After the light faded, everyone found that the surrounding scenery had undergone earth-shaking changes.

The fog completely disappeared, replaced by a lush forest with singing birds, fragrant flowers and fresh air, which formed a sharp contrast with the previous gloomy and terrifying maze.

"We...we made it!" Luo Xiaoyu cheered. She jumped up excitedly and hugged Grandma Lin. "Grandma, we succeeded!" Others also smiled and cheers echoed in the forest. (End of this chapter)