Not less than a centimeter from Elder Dong's neck, two fangs were poised to bite. It seemed if Elder Dong had turned his head a second later, the fangs would have already pierced his carotid artery!
The owner of these two fangs was none other than that flying squirrel figurine!
"Did it also change its position?"
Elder Dong held his breath, watching the flying squirrel figurine before him.
The flying squirrel figurine showed no outward changes, remaining entirely in its stone form, showing no signs of life.
But the more it appeared that way, the more eerie it became!
For logically, how could a stone figurine move on its own?
"Hmm?"
In the few seconds Elder Dong stared at the flying squirrel figurine, that Yu Rong figurine changed again!
It had moved another step closer to Elder Dong!
Its arms, spread apart, were now in a closing posture, as if if Elder Dong didn't look at it, its arms would have already throttled him!
"Something's wrong, something's wrong! When you say they're like living beings, they still maintain their stone figurine state. Even if you face them, they won't show any unusual movements."
"But as soon as you turn away from them, not looking at them, they change their position and posture."
"What on earth is going on?"
Elder Dong muttered to himself, his face pale with fear.
Fortunately, he still retained a sliver of reason and quickly found an angle from which he could observe both the Yu Rong figurine and the flying squirrel figurine simultaneously, keeping his eyes fixed on both.
Indeed, under Elder Dong's watchful gaze, the two stone figurines froze as if struck by a petrification spell, no longer showing any changes.
However, Elder Dong couldn't possibly stare at the stone figurines indefinitely.
Elder Dong would eventually tire, he would blink. What if the figurines moved during the blink of an eye?
Even more terrifying was the fact that there were tens of thousands of stone figurines in this underground palace.
If all these stone figurines also moved, how could Elder Dong possibly keep track of them all?
He could watch the front but not the back!
He could watch the back but not the sides!
Elder Dong felt like a lamb trapped in a wolf pack, surrounded by enemies with no escape!
*Rip!*
As soon as the thought crossed Elder Dong's mind, he heard a tearing sound from behind him.
Elder Dong quickly turned his head.
Behind him stood a long-tongued ghost stone figurine, its tongue hanging in mid-air, its eyes rolled upwards.
Now, the long-tongued ghost stone figurine's tongue had lifted!
Its eyes had also changed from looking upwards to a level gaze!
As if it were staring intently at Elder Dong!
And in the moment Elder Dong turned to look at the long-tongued ghost, the Yu Rong figurine and the flying squirrel figurine moved again!
The Yu Rong figurine's arms had already touched Elder Dong's body!
The flying squirrel figurine's fangs had lightly pierced Elder Dong's skin; with just a little more force, they would break the skin!
"What to do? What to do?"
Elder Dong was frantic.
He was now at a point of life and death. If he turned his head again, the Yu Rong figurine and the flying squirrel figurine would kill him!
But if he didn't turn his head, the long-tongued ghost behind him would slowly approach until it wrapped its tongue around his neck!
Elder Dong could even feel the approaching footsteps of the long-tongued ghost behind him!
Elder Dong felt an urge to turn his head and look at the long-tongued ghost.
Just one glance would temporarily halt the long-tongued ghost's advance, forcing it back into a petrified state.
But if Elder Dong turned his head, his life would be in immediate danger!
*Drip, drip.*
Cold sweat poured down Elder Dong's forehead like raindrops. His body trembled uncontrollably. For a moment, he even wanted to close his eyes and just die!
This dual pressure, both physical and psychological, made him wish he were dead!
Yet, Elder Dong managed to withstand the pressure, his mind racing to find a way to survive this desperate situation.
Suddenly, the strap of the camera in Elder Dong's hand slipped, reminding him.
If the demonic figurines were petrified when seen, could the camera, acting as Elder Dong's third eye, serve the same purpose?
Without further thought, Elder Dong immediately aimed the camera lens behind him.
On the camera screen, a long tongue immediately appeared.
Just a little more, and it would reach Elder Dong's neck!
As the camera lens focused on the tongue, the tongue instantly froze in mid-air.
Petrified.
"It works! It really works!" Elder Dong was overjoyed.
He let out a sigh of relief and then adjusted the camera to its wide-angle setting.
This way, the camera's eye became even more useful, encompassing over a dozen demonic figurines around him!
Elder Dong had gained temporary safety.
However, this was not a long-term solution.
Because Elder Dong would eventually get tired, he would eventually blink. Perhaps the demonic figurines wouldn't even need to act; after four or five days, Elder Dong would collapse from exhaustion and die!
"If only I could contact Mr. Ying."
"Mr. Ying would definitely have a way to save me!"
Elder Dong thought with regret.
At this moment, Elder Dong suddenly felt a stinging sensation in his eyes.
It felt as if something had gotten into his eyes, like sand.
But there was clearly no sand here; the entire underground palace was remarkably clean.
The stinging in Elder Dong's eyes came from an unknown source.
Elder Dong wanted to raise his hand to rub his eyes but feared that doing so would lead to his death at the hands of the Yu Rong and flying squirrel figurines.
He could only endure it, remaining motionless.
But as time passed, Elder Dong's eyes grew increasingly itchy and painful, as if something were trying to force its way out of his eyeballs!
This sensation instantly filled Elder Dong with terror.
He cautiously pulled the camera back a little, just enough to capture his own eyes.
When Elder Dong saw his eyes through the camera lens, he was instantly startled and almost fell to the ground!
Within Elder Dong's eyes, two stone figurines had appeared!
The Yu Rong figurine in his left eye, the flying squirrel figurine in his right eye.
These two stone figurines were not mere reflections; they possessed a life-like quality, constantly moving outwards from Elder Dong's eyes.
It seemed that in a short while, the two stone figurines would emerge from Elder Dong's eyes!
What fate awaited Elder Dong then, he did not know. But he knew it would not be a good one!
"It's over, it's over, this is completely over!"
Elder Dong fell into despair.
He had initially thought the camera would provide some respite, but now it seemed these demonic figurines had more than one method!
If one stared at the demonic figurines for too long, they would also manifest within the gazer's eyes!
"It hurts, it hurts so much..."
Elder Dong felt his eyes becoming more and more painful, to an unbearable degree.
His eyeballs felt as if they were about to burst at any moment.
Through the camera lens, he could see that the Yu Rong figurine and the flying squirrel figurine had already stepped one foot out of Elder Dong's eyes!
And Elder Dong discovered with horror that his skin was showing signs of petrification!
Like a spiderweb, it was spreading across his body.
It seemed that by the time the Yu Rong figurine and the flying squirrel figurine had fully emerged from his eyes, he would have completely turned into a stone figurine, destined to slumber forever within this formation of ten thousand demonic figurines!
"No..."
"I haven't even learned the path to longevity, how can I die here?"
"I am not reconciled, I am not reconciled!"
Elder Dong roared hysterically.
But it was to no avail. In his eyes, the Yu Rong figurine and the flying squirrel figurine continued to step out.
And the petrification marks on Elder Dong's body were growing increasingly severe.
His entire arm had already turned to stone!