Too many female prisoners, a special forces soldier transmigrates and marries wildly.

The drumbeats and chanting coming from underground, like the pulse of a ghost, appeared and disappeared in the thick darkness of the night, lasting for about half an hour, before suddenly falling silent, as if a blind hand had abruptly cut it off.

No one in the camp could sleep peacefully anymore.

"Commander, this commotion... it doesn't seem like military training, it looks more like some kind of sinister ritual." Chen Heng's expression was grave.

"Is it a rehearsal for a ritual, or... some kind of necessary preparation?" Lin Feng said in a low voice.

"Should we sneak over there to check it out at night?" Bai Xiaohe suggested.

"No," Lin Feng shook his head. "Visibility is poor at night, we're unfamiliar with the terrain, and the other side is clearly on guard, possibly even using this to lure us. Approaching rashly would play right into their hands. Be patient, wait until dawn, and figure out the mystery of the waterfall first."

He forced himself to calm down and arranged for everyone to take turns resting, but the alert level was raised to the highest level.

Nothing unusual happened in the latter half of the night.

As dawn broke after a long and agonizing wait, Lin Feng, along with Chen Heng, Bai Xiaohe, and five scouts, quietly made their way to the waterfall area. The morning mist provided excellent cover.

"We need to understand this place better," Lin Feng said. "The people of the Crimson Feather Clan must have some way or method that we don't know about to enter and exit. They can't risk being swept away by the undercurrents every time. There must be a safer, more conventional passage, which is very likely to be cleverly hidden nearby."

"Chen Heng, you take half the men and expand the search area around the waterfall, especially looking for possible ground caves, hidden crevices, or unnatural-looking mounds of earth or rocks. Pay attention to any signs of human intervention, no matter how subtle."

"yes!"

"Xiaohe, let's carefully observe the area around the pool and see if there's anything suspicious or illogical."

"clear!"

Chen Heng led his men to disperse, meticulously combing through the surrounding woodland and rock crevices like a comb.

Lin Feng led Bai Xiaohe and the others as close to the rocks on the shore as possible, avoiding the deep water. The closer they got to the waterfall, the stronger the water vapor became, and the deafening roar made it necessary to use gestures to communicate.

He squinted, focusing his gaze intently on that area. He noticed a dark patch of color in the pool, seemingly the entrance to a cave hidden beneath the surface!

"Look there! Under the water!" Lin Feng lowered his voice and pointed to that spot with his dagger.

Bai Xiaohe and the others looked in the direction he pointed and carefully examined it, and they also discovered the extremely subtle color changes one after another.

"There really is an entrance! And it's underwater!" A glint flashed in Bai Xiaohe's eyes.

"But this entrance seems to be submerged year-round. How do we get in? Do we have to dive?" a Duan Yue Guard, who was skilled in swimming, whispered.

"I'm afraid it's not that simple." Lin Feng shook his head. "If it were just diving, Strategist Feng wouldn't have mentioned needing a special method and a specific time. It might be related to the waterfall's water flow or changes in the pool's water level. The specific time... perhaps refers to when the water level drops to expose the cave entrance, or when the current slows down enough for safe passage?"

"On the night of the full moon, the tides or the earth's atmosphere may change, causing a temporary anomaly in the water level or flow, revealing the entrance or forming a safe passage."

This hypothesis is reasonable. Many naturally wondrous and dangerous places have passageways that are often related to natural rhythms.

"Defend! There's been a discovery over here!" Just then, Chen Heng's deliberately hushed call came from afar.

Lin Feng and the others immediately retreated quietly and joined Chen Heng.

Chen Heng led them to a rock face about a hundred paces northeast of the waterfall.

The rock face was covered with thick lichen and vines, seemingly ordinary. But Chen Heng parted a patch of lichen to reveal the rock face below—on which were very shallow, seemingly old marks left by repeated slashing with a sharp weapon, arranged in a peculiar, arrow-like pattern pointing towards the waterfall.

Below the pattern, there is a slightly protruding rock with an unusually smooth surface, as if it has been frequently rubbed.

"This is a road sign!" Chen Heng whispered, his fingers tracing the smooth rock. "This stone... seems to be movable?"

Lin Feng stepped forward and tried pressing and rotating the protruding rock. At first, it wouldn't budge, but when he rotated it at a certain angle with a certain amount of force—

"Click".

A soft, clicking sound, like the meshing of a mechanism, came from inside the rock wall! Immediately afterwards, a seemingly intact section of the rock wall silently slid inward, creating a gap just wide enough for one person to pass through! A heavy, earthy smell mixed with a faint sulfurous odor, a muffled stream of air flowed out from the gap!

A secret passage! A man-made passage leading underground!

Everyone was both surprised and delighted. This was the regular passageway used by the Akabane Clan every day! It was hidden so cleverly!

Lin Feng signaled everyone to be on guard, then peered through the crack. Inside was a rough, downward-sloping tunnel, pitch black and bottomless, its destination unknown.

"It seems this is the right way." Lin Feng's eyes gleamed. "The underwater entrance might be the ancient main gate or an emergency passage. This secret passage is what they usually use."

He made a decision quickly.

"Xiao He, go and select fifteen brothers, take three days' worth of dry rations, medicine, tinder, ropes, and all the usable hidden weapons and tools, and come with me into this secret passage. The rest of the brothers, hide outside the passage and wait for orders, ready to provide support at any time."

"Guard, it's too dangerous! The situation inside is unknown. You should go down yourself..." Bai Xiaohe said worriedly.

"It is precisely because of the danger that I must go." Lin Feng's tone left no room for doubt. "The night of the full moon is just around the corner, and we have no time to slowly probe any further. Remember, our mission is reconnaissance: to ascertain the terrain within the valley, the distribution of guards, the location of key figures, and the situation at the sacrificial site."

"Understood!" The group accepted the order and quickly split up to prepare.

Just past noon, everything was ready.

Lin Feng took one last look at the deep, secluded passage hidden behind the vines, then gazed at the roaring waterfall in the distance. The mysterious "Dragonfall Valley," the eerie "Crimson Abyss" ritual, the conspiracy of King Lin and "Earthfire"—perhaps all the answers lie at the end of this dark passage.

"Enter!"

He took a deep breath, bent down first, and stepped into the unknown darkness. Bai Xiaohe and fifteen elite Duan Yue Guards followed closely behind like ghosts, disappearing silently behind the rock wall.