Chapter 479 Richard Is Not Dead
Mount Aragon.
Several helicopters appeared in the sky.
Since there was no flat ground at the summit, the helicopters couldn't land safely and had to hover in mid-air.
At that moment, the cabin doors opened, and ropes descended from above. Soldiers in special training uniforms, carrying equipment, slid down the ropes.
Larry glanced at the ground below.
They were about 150 feet above the ground. Even though he had reached the peak of his abilities, jumping from such a height would still be too much for him.
He leaped forward, grabbing a rope with one hand, and swiftly descended, landing smoothly on the ground.
Paisley did the same, easily appearing on the ground.
Chloe took one look and turned pale with fear.
Even though she had reached the third level of Qi, the height was too much for her. She didn't dare to go down. Even with the help of a rope, she hesitated and retreated back into the helicopter. After thinking for a while, she decided she had to go down; she couldn't let herself be looked down upon.
She approached the cabin door again, secretly channeling her Qi, then grabbed the rope and slid down quickly.
But she didn't land steadily and fell to the ground.
With Qi protecting her, she didn't feel any pain.
However, she felt embarrassed. She stood up, looking at Larry and Paisley with a sheepish expression, and said, "I'm still not very skilled at using Qi."
Larry smiled and praised her, "You're doing great."
Chloe had indeed changed a lot compared to before. She used to be soft and gentle, but now she could descend from such a height.
"Thanks, honey. I'll keep working hard. I won't embarrass you. I've decided that when we get back to Sunset City, I'll join the military for some training to improve my combat skills," Chloe said with determination.
Larry didn't say much, looking at the equipment brought down by the other soldiers. He said, "Let's go, into the cave."
He grabbed some iron cables and heat-resistant clothing and quickly entered the cave.
The helicopters left to find a stable place to land.
Larry soon arrived at the spot where Richard had fallen off the cliff.
Cody had said there was magma below, with extremely high temperatures, so Larry had prepared heat-resistant clothing.
He put on the heat-resistant clothing and began to prepare, installing pulleys on the rock wall.
Paisley also started putting on heat-resistant clothing.
Larry saw this and said, "Paisley, you stay up here. I'll go down alone."
Paisley replied, "I'll go with you. It's better to have someone to watch your back, and I also want to see if Richard is really dead."
"Alright."
Larry nodded and didn't say more.
"I'm going too," Chloe said, unwilling to be left out.
Larry scolded, "Don't be ridiculous. Stay up here."
Chloe pouted and said, "Fine, I won't go."
After everything was ready, Larry and Paisley began their descent.
They were both skilled fighters, and with the equipment, they easily went down.
It was a deep abyss, with no visible bottom.
Larry and Paisley kept descending, reaching nearly 1,000 feet without hitting the bottom.
At 1,000 feet, the temperature was very high.
Even with heat-resistant clothing, they still felt the heat.
Larry stood on a protruding rock, looking down.
Hot air rose from below, making it impossible to see clearly.
Paisley reminded him, "Larry, the temperature is too high. If we go further, the heat-resistant clothing won't be enough, and..."
Paisley looked up at the top.
The abyss wasn't a straight drop; some parts were indented, and others protruded.
Paisley pointed up and said, "Judging from where Richard fell, he couldn't have landed here. He would've hit a rock about 300 feet down and rolled..."
She thought for a moment and continued, "He should've ended up around 600 feet. When we came down, I saw a deep pit there. He couldn't have fallen further."
"Oh, really?"
Larry looked puzzled. He had been focused on descending and hadn't considered the terrain of the abyss.
"Yeah, let's go up and check."
Paisley leaped to a nearby rock and quickly climbed up.
Larry followed without using the rope.
They soon reached the 300-foot mark.
There was indeed a protruding rock here, extending about 60 feet.
Paisley looked up and pointed, "He fell from here and would've landed here."
She moved and pointed to the rock below her feet.
"But there's no blood here, and if he landed here, he would've rolled down this slope. Let's go down and check."
"Alright." Larry nodded.
They descended another hundred feet.
Paisley stopped and pointed to an indented spot, "If he rolled down from above, he would've landed here. But there's nothing here."
Larry thought for a moment.
Paisley's analysis was correct.
He asked, "Could it be that Grandpa isn't dead?"
Paisley nodded lightly, "From what we've seen, he likely isn't dead."
Larry asked, "If he's not dead, why hasn't he shown up?"
Paisley said, "I told you last night, I think this is all a performance by Richard. He's pretending to be dead to make outsiders believe it. That Grimshale the Gu was just to confuse Chloe, making us think he was captured and fell to his death."
"Why would Grandpa do this?"
Paisley analyzed, "Based on various clues, it's possible he staged this. As for why, you'd have to ask him."
Larry looked serious.
He then asked, "Do you think Chloe knows? Does she know Grandpa staged this to confuse me or Cody? But Grandpa didn't know Cody would come, right?"
Paisley said, "But he knew I was with you. He might have guessed I was there to protect and monitor you. He could have guessed I'd tell Grandpa about this."
Larry looked at Paisley.
Paisley quickly said, "I may have monitored you and reported to Grandpa, but I promised to keep the Artwork of Moonlit secret. I haven't mentioned it."
Larry didn't ask further. He could guess that Cody didn't know the secret of the map had been unlocked. Otherwise, knowing there was a Fire Lotus here, he wouldn't have been indifferent.
"Let's go up."
Larry didn't say more.
"Wait..." Paisley said.
Larry asked, "What's wrong?"
Paisley said, "Don't mention Richard in front of Chloe anymore, and don't ask her."
"Why? Do you suspect her?"
"We have to consider it. If our assumptions are correct, she knows Richard's plan and is still in contact with him. If she's with you, she'll eventually slip up. Questioning her now will only make her wary."
Larry asked, "So what do you suggest?"
"Act as if Richard is dead. Continue with your plans and keep Chloe close. I believe Richard trained her quickly for a reason. There must be a plot. As long as she's with you, the truth will come out eventually."
"I think you're overthinking it." Larry shook his head slightly.
One was his grandfather, the other his ex-wife.
He couldn't believe Richard would team up with Chloe to harm him.
He turned and climbed up the rope.
Paisley shook her head helplessly and followed him up.
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