390 XINGHE's CHILDREN

Under the moonlight, Xiao Tianyao and Xiao Jun didn't take turn to watch because none of them was really fallen asleep, but remained silent all night.

Only when the first light of the sun fell between the dense of the leaves Xiao Tianyao shook the shoulder of the sleeping girl on his lap.

"Wake up…" He lightly stroked his hand against her cheek, causing her to stir from her slumber.

Groggily she sat up and rubbed sleepiness from her eyes before offering a bright smiled at him. "How was your sleep?" Senja greeted Xiao Tianyao with hoarse voice.

"I slept well." Xiao Tianyao replied offhandedly.

Xiao Jun who heard that raised his eyebrows in disbelief, but kept his comment inside his mind.

The three of them walked deeper inside the mountain until they saw a deep ravine in the end of their road.

"Is this a dead end?" Senja asked in confuse, because she didn't see the way they could get through the ravine.

However, to her surprise Xiao Jun nodding to her left side and walked past her.

There, Senja could see a narrow footing that required the crosser to stick their back on the hard rock behind them or else they could fly like a meat straight down to the afterlife.

Senja has a hunch that they needed to walk through it and Xiao Jun proved her right. He started to creep along the narrow pathway, pressed his back against the solid rock as he walked sideway with ease.

She gulped hard.

Well, she had done this before, but with safety rope and a good plan. It felt totally different.

"Come on." Xiao Tianyao nudged her to step first so he could watch their back.

"Are you sure we need to cross this path?" Senja could feel the words that came out from her mouth were shivering.

"Yes, this is the fastest way."

"Can't we just pass the safest route? I don't mind to take a detour." Senja tried to compromise as she glanced at the bottom of the ravine that she wasn't able to see, only darkness surround it, especially when the bleak morning sun couldn't go through it.

"You will be fine." Xiao Tianyao reassured her. "Come on." He urged her again when he saw Xiao Jun had walked quite far from them.

With heavy breath, clenched teeth and a long pray, reluctantly Senja stepped in the death road. Exaggeratedly, she pressed her back against the harsh rock as though she wanted to be one with it. She ignored the pain that it caused.

Xiao Tianyao saw the fear in her eyes and couldn't help but chuckled as he walked sideway easily. "Relax… you won't fall."

"Talking to me later when we already in a safe place!" Senja screeched at him. She focused all of her attention to her footing.

Xiao Tianyao wisely didn't tease her, though he liked it when Senja lost her cool.

In silence the three of them crept along the rock, their stepping led them down to the bottom of the ravine, yet Xiao Jun stopped halfway and slipped his body between the narrow gap behind him.

Hastily Senja followed him, eager to be in the wider place.

Once they had slipped inside, the glowing from stalactites and stalagmites that were hanging on the roof of the cave and from the ground greeted their sight, their sparkling surface reflected on the river and it display beautiful scenery.

Senja gasped in surprised, she had never seen such nature beauty like this.

"It's beautiful…" She commented. Her eyes gawked in awe.

But, it seemed the two men didn't have the same opinion with her as they walked past those stalagmites nonchalantly.

Senja kept staring her surroundings and sometime stopped to inspect the beautiful solid calcite until Xiao Tianyao dragged her along so she didn't fall behind.

After the cave full of stalactites and stalagmites along with the subterranean rivers they were faced with a big wooden door with intricate carvings, thick dust covered it.

Xiao Jun pushed opened the door, at the same time dirt and dust scattered everywhere. The three of them were coughing hard although they had covered their face with their sleeves.

Senja waved her hands in front of her face, trying to get rid the dust off. Only after three minutes struggle their vision became clearer.

Behind the door they could see the long aisle. The track was so dark without light source. Only after Xiao Tianyao and Xiao Jun lit up the torch they continue to walk.

"Where are we going?" Senja asked, she knew they came for information, but how they plan to get it?

"We will sneak into the master's chamber. It was an important place throughout this ground." Xiao Jun said.

Senja nodded. Sneak in was her second nature after all, so she had nothing to worry about.

"What actually you are looking for?" Senja couldn't stand the silence any longer. Both of them were simply so quite.

"Thousands of Xinghe's children."

"Xinghe's children?" Senja repeated.