Obscuris Labyrinth

When Zhao Yuxuan finally finished walking along the winding mountain road and arrived at Yizhen, the sun had gradually risen high, nearing noon. The streets of Yizhen were like a sea of joy, already filled with crowds of people. The term "huge crowds of people" was given the most vivid interpretation at this moment. Men and women, old and young, were dressed in bright festival costumes, like blooming flowers, bustling and clustering together. The young people were especially active among the crowd. They were like a flock of cheerful birds, chattering and shuttling through, occupying most of this lively scene.

Zhao Yuxuan looked around. The hats on the girls' heads were like a magnificent landscape. The pointed hats were exquisite and unique, the single - horned hats had their own style, the upturned - spiral hats had a different charm, the askew - combed hats were cute and playful, the coiled hats were dignified and elegant, and the silver - ornamented hats sparkled dazzlingly in the sunlight. There were all kinds of hats as numerous as the stars, which made him a little dazzled. However, deep in his heart, Lin Yaxuan was like the most brilliant pearl. In his eyes, compared with Lin Yaxuan, these girls were like fireflies to the bright moon, really far from comparable.

Zhao Yuxuan was concerned about the New Eighteen - Village Assembly in his mind, so he asked someone for information and learned that the venue of the assembly was on the large square in the eastern suburbs two miles west of Yizhen. He was quite calm in his heart and unhurried. After all, he still had some money left from his trip to Tianwang Fort, and it was all safely in his pocket at the moment. His footsteps naturally led him to a Han - Chinese - run restaurant, planning to treat his stomach well. During this period of time, his taste buds seemed to have been constantly "bombarded" by sour and spicy flavors. At the beginning, this unique taste still made him feel fresh and interesting, like discovering a new continent. But as time passed, the sourness and spiciness were like naughty elves, wantonly making trouble in his mouth, which made him really unbearable.

After enjoying a delicious lunch, Zhao Yuxuan stroked his bulging round stomach contentedly. The stomach was like a small drum full of food. Then, he walked leisurely towards the west of Yizhen. Not far away, a large square was in sight. It was like a huge vortex, attracting people's attention. There was a sea of people, and it was extremely lively. Singing, music, and cheers were intertwined, like surging waves, coming towards him wave after wave.

Zhao Yuxuan's footsteps unconsciously quickened. When he arrived at the square, his eyes eagerly searched for Lin Yaxuan's figure in the crowd, but he couldn't find it for a while. He was like a lost deer and could only stroll alone in this lively square. But soon, a place was like a huge magnet, attracting all his attention. It was tightly surrounded by people, three layers inside and three layers outside, as if there was some rare treasure hidden inside. Zhao Yuxuan was extremely curious and immediately used all his skills, squeezing left and right, and finally managed to squeeze in with great effort.

Inside was a rather spacious open space. In the middle of the open space, a wooden stake was erected high. The wooden stake was about twenty meters high, like a giant standing there. Dozens of knives were densely inserted on both sides of the wooden stake. Those knives were like rows of cold - shining teeth, and each blade was neatly upward, exuding a chilling aura. Zhao Yuxuan knew that the Miao ethnic group had an extremely thrilling and exciting traditional performance, which was "climbing a mountain of knives and walking through a sea of fire". He had once been lucky enough to witness it on TV once. But at this moment, he couldn't help but mutter in his heart, secretly suspecting whether these blades were a bit blunt. After all, from a distance, even if the blades were slightly blunt, it was difficult to detect. If the blades were a bit blunt, the performers would not be cut, he thought in his heart.

Just then, the performance had just begun. A middle - aged man with his upper body bare and barefoot appeared in everyone's sight. He was holding a few radishes in his hand, with a calm and composed look, and his movements were as light as a nimble swallow. He gently shaved the radishes towards the blades, and the radishes immediately became thin slices as thin as cicada wings, like obedient children.

After the radishes were shaved, the middle - aged man loudly and vigorously invited the onlookers to check whether these knives were real. Zhao Yuxuan was already very curious. Hearing this, he immediately squeezed out from the crowd. The middle - aged man had an amiable smile on his face and enthusiastically led him to the bottom of the knife - stake. Zhao Yuxuan reached out to touch the blade with a nervous heart. In an instant, a stinging pain like an electric current spread throughout his finger. He quickly withdrew his hand as if scalded. He saw that the finger that touched the knife had been cut, and a little blood was seeping out. Only then did he realize in surprise that the knife was actually extremely sharp.

The middle - aged man politely asked Zhao Yuxuan to step back. Amid the exciting copper drum beating and loud shouts of his assistants beside him, he began his climbing journey. He climbed up the wooden stake slowly with his hands and feet, while also making some amazing difficult movements. Zhao Yuxuan stared at him without blinking, watching his feet move quickly between the blades and rise upward, and couldn't help but be secretly shocked in his heart. A voice seemed to be echoing in his mind: So there are really some unique skills in this world that are beyond ordinary people's imagination.

After the middle - aged man successfully performed "climbing a mountain of knives", he waved his hand潇洒ly, like a general commanding thousands of troops. Immediately, someone carried over a copper - skinned platform about six or seven meters long. The copper - skinned platform shone with a bronze luster in the sunlight. Then, someone poured in charcoal that had been burned red - hot long ago. Those charcoals were like burning flames, emitting a hot breath. The middle - aged man asked someone to put a dead branch in it. After a while, the dead branch was like being awakened by a devil and quickly burned up. Obviously, there was no way to cheat, and everything seemed so real and shocking.

Under the breath - holding and unblinking stares of everyone, the middle - aged man suddenly shouted loudly. The voice was as loud as a bell. Immediately after that, he jumped into the burning charcoal without hesitation, barefoot. Zhao Yuxuan's heart suddenly rose to his throat, and his eyes widened. However, the middle - aged man was like a fearless warrior. After a while, he easily walked through the charcoal and was calm and composed, as if he had just walked along an ordinary path without any trouble.

Zhao Yuxuan had learned physics knowledge. He knew clearly that human skin would be damaged at a temperature exceeding 100 degrees Celsius, and the red - hot charcoal in front of him had a temperature of at least several hundred degrees Celsius. This middle - aged man could actually walk six or seven meters in it. This was almost like a miracle. His heart was full of amazement and admiration, and he couldn't help but be convinced by this unique skill of the Miao ethnic group. Immediately, he also cheered loudly along with the people around him, and the cheers echoed on the square.

After watching this wonderful "climbing a mountain of knives and walking through a sea of fire" performance, Zhao Yuxuan walked forward with a feeling of still wanting more. Not far away, he saw a rather strange object. The object was shaped like a spinning wheel, about 8 meters high, stably supported by thick wood, and had eight swings set on it. At this time, there were people sitting on each swing, and a group of people below were happily turning this huge "spinning wheel".

Seeing such a scene, the story about the Qiugan Festival that Lin Yaxuan told him on the way here immediately came to Zhao Yuxuan's mind. He thought to himself that this must be the "Eight - Person Autumn" she mentioned, which was the unique idea that a Miao ethnic group man named Li Yangze came up with in order to pursue the girl he liked.

The "Eight - Person Autumn" was slowly turning under the push of everyone. Once the people below stopped turning, the person sitting at the highest position had to sing. Zhao Yuxuan's thoughts were suddenly drawn back to the antiphonal singing contest that Lin Yaxuan was going to participate in, but he didn't know where this antiphonal singing contest was, so he began to search around the square again.

While walking, he saw a group of young men beside him hurriedly walking towards the north. Zhao Yuxuan also heard one of them say, "Li Yang, you said that the most beautiful girl has come to the antiphonal singing contest. Is it really true? Is she more beautiful than Chen Jiahao in our village? Don't delay me from competing for the 'Black Hawk Warrior'. My father has repeatedly told me that I must get this title." The young man who was speaking was extremely strong and sturdy, more than 1.8 meters tall. His facial features were like a work carefully carved by a sculptor, with clear - cut edges and corners, full of resolute masculinity. Among these Miao people, his appearance was indeed outstanding. He just didn't know how his skills were, but he dared to say such confident and boastful words.

The young man named Li Yang seemed a little worried when he heard this and quickly said, "Zhao Qiang, how could I lie to you? That girl is really too beautiful, like a fairy descending from the sky to the mortal world, even more beautiful than the fairy in my dreams. And her voice is as pleasant as a lark singing. If the most beautiful girl in our village, Chen Jiahao, stands beside her, I think no one will look at Chen Jiahao at all. I think, among so many people here, only you can be worthy of her."

At this time, another person couldn't help but ask, "Really? Is she really much more beautiful than Chen Jiahao? What's her name and which village is she from?"

Li Yang answered without hesitation, "I heard that her name is Liu Junhui, and she is the granddaughter of Li Yuexuan, the wizard in Miaowang Village. She rarely comes out usually."

But Zhao Qiang said in surprise, "Ah, she is the granddaughter of Li Yuexuan the wizard. She must be as beautiful as a celestial being. Let's go quickly, quickly."

This group of people walked faster while talking excitedly. Zhao Yuxuan quietly followed them behind. He thought in his heart that with Lin Yaxuan's extremely beautiful appearance and today's elaborate and gorgeous dress - up, if she couldn't cause a stir among these men, it would be strange. However, Zhao Yuxuan didn't know whether she would be looking for her sweetheart in this lively occasion. In his heart, he really couldn't think of any man who could be worthy of Lin Yaxuan. Even that seemingly handsome Zhao Qiang just now was still a bit lacking in his eyes.