Liu Dashao and Jackson took a quick look around but didn’t find anything significant. Finally, near the feet of the Buddha statue, they noticed something unusual. There, sitting quietly in meditation, was a mummified corpse holding a staff made of poplar wood. Discovering a corpse in a place like this wasn’t particularly strange, but finding one exposed like this was unusual. Liu Dashao and Jackson decided to take a closer look. The body was extremely well-preserved, wearing white Taoist robes with clearly visible facial features—though unusually pale, suggesting it might be a woman.
Jackson exclaimed in amazement, “A miracle! I never imagined an ancient corpse could be preserved so well.”
Liu Dashao chuckled, “There might be a preservative pearl in its mouth—that would be a real treasure.”
Upon hearing this, Jackson’s curiosity was immediately piqued. He approached the corpse and gently touched its jaw. The corpse’s mouth opened like a cherry, revealing a large preservative pearl inside. Jackson hesitated for a moment, then reached out to grab it.
“Stop!” Suddenly, a voice shouted from behind them.
Startled, Jackson froze, his right hand suspended in front of the corpse.
Both Liu Dashao and Jackson turned around simultaneously but saw no one—only a cold, grey brick wall. Liu Dashao was puzzled. Where had that voice come from? Could it be a ghost? The thought sent a chill down his spine.
Wiping sweat from his forehead, Jackson calmly asked, “What’s going on, Chinese Taoist?”
“I don’t know. That voice sounded similar to the gunshot we heard earlier—both were heard but not seen,” Liu Dashao mused before responding.
Jackson fixed his gaze on the wall, his brow furrowing deeply. He shone his flashlight over the surface, completely forgetting about the pearl in the corpse’s mouth.
Liu Dashao’s confidence began to waver. China was a country rich in myths and ghost stories. Despite his scientific outlook, he couldn’t help but associate unexplainable phenomena with spirits and ghosts.
Foreigners were different. Even if the sky fell, they’d probably explain it with something like magnetic field anomalies. Seeing Liu Dashao’s confusion, Jackson said, “Dashao, are you thinking there’s a ghost here? Don’t believe that. There must be some unusual magnetic field at work.”
After hearing Jackson’s explanation, Liu Dashao kept reflecting. The gunshot and the voice had sounded so real. Even if they were caused by magnetic fields or friction between objects, they couldn’t possibly sound that realistic.
Looking around, Liu Dashao finally focused on Jackson’s flashlight. This flashlight had been found by Vandebilt in the upper tomb chamber, which meant someone else had definitely been here before. Therefore, the voice they heard must have come from a living person. But how could that be, when they had just seen Jackson touching the pearl?
“There must be someone inside that wall. He can see us, but we can’t see him. Why don’t we go check it out?” Liu Dashao suggested to Jackson.
“Exactly what I was thinking,” Jackson replied with a grin.
Liu Dashao and Jackson wandered around for a while but didn’t find anything significant. Finally, they stumbled upon a clue between the feet of the Buddha statue. There, sitting quietly in a meditative pose, was a mummified corpse holding a staff made of poplar wood. Finding a corpse in such a place wasn’t unusual, but discovering one exposed to the open air was strange. Liu Dashao and Jackson decided to investigate further. The corpse was remarkably well-preserved, dressed in a white Taoist robe, with clearly visible facial features—though it was unusually pale, likely a woman.
Jackson exclaimed in amazement, “It’s a miracle! I never expected an ancient corpse to be so well-preserved.”
Liu Dashao chuckled, “There might be a preservative pearl in its mouth. That’s a treasure.”
Hearing this, Jackson’s curiosity was immediately piqued. He approached the corpse and touched its chin, causing the mouth to open slightly, revealing a large preservative pearl inside. Jackson hesitated for a moment, then reached out to take it.
“Stop!” Suddenly, a voice shouted from behind.
Startled, Jackson froze, his hand hovering in front of the corpse.
Liu Dashao and Jackson both turned around, but there was no one in sight—only a cold, brick wall. Liu Dashao was puzzled. Where had the voice come from? Was it a ghost? The thought sent a chill down his spine.
Jackson wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and said calmly, “Chinese Taoist, what’s going on?”
“I don’t know. That voice sounded similar to the gunshot earlier—both were just sounds without any visible source,” Liu Dashao pondered for a moment before replying to Jackson.
Jackson frowned deeply, his brow furrowed as he shone his flashlight across the wall. The preservative pearl in the corpse’s mouth was momentarily forgotten.
Now, Liu Dashao’s confidence began to waver. China was a land rich in myths and ghost stories. Despite his scientific mindset, encountering something unexplainable inevitably made him think of the supernatural.
Foreigners, however, were different. Even if the sky fell, they’d find some explanation like magnetic field anomalies. Seeing Liu Dashao’s confusion, Jackson said, “Dashao, do you think there’s a ghost here? Don’t believe in that. There must be some strange magnetic field at play.”
After hearing this, Liu Dashao kept pondering. The gunshot and the shout had sounded so real. Even if it were some magnetic field or friction between objects, it couldn’t have been that realistic.
Liu Dashao looked around and finally fixed his gaze on Jackson’s flashlight. It was something Fan Debiao had found in the tomb chamber above, which meant someone had been here before. So, the voice must have come from a living person. But why hadn’t they seen anyone when Jackson reached for the preservative pearl?
“There must be someone inside that wall. They can see us, but we can’t see them. Should we go and investigate?” Liu Dashao suggested to Jackson.
“Exactly what I was thinking,” Jackson replied with a grin.
Without further discussion, the two cautiously approached the brick wall in a free-assault manner. The place was vast, and they only had one flashlight, which Fan Debiao had found. Its battery was running low, reducing its range and making the tomb chamber even more eerie.
“I told you to stop!” The voice from the wall rang out again as Liu Dashao and Jackson moved closer.
“Did you touch something again?” Liu Dashao and Jackson looked at each other and spoke in unison.
Of course, neither of them had touched anything. Liu Dashao and Jackson shrugged, exchanging wry smiles. Liu Dashao muttered to himself, “What the hell is going on? Is there a madman inside?” The voice sounded somewhat familiar, yet also strange.
Liu Dashao tried to calm himself, wiping his face with his hands. “Jackson, there’s definitely a lunatic in there. We don’t have any sedatives, so if that person flies out of the wall, don’t hold back—just hit them with a brick.”
Jackson nodded with a sly grin, “What’s a ‘brick’?”
Liu Dashao was embarrassed. It seemed Jackson didn’t understand what “brick” meant, and he had no idea why Jackson was grinning.
Liu Dashao felt around and found two sturdy bricks, handing one to Jackson. “If something flies out, use this.”
Honestly, it wasn’t much of a weapon, but in this place, bricks were the best they had.
The two of them crept toward the brick wall like they were hunting a weasel. Jackson shone his flashlight across the wall, but there was nothing unusual—just an icy coldness. Liu Dashao hesitated to touch it, fearing it might be some kind of “man-eating wall” as old man Kelamai had once described. If he got sucked in, who knows where he’d end up? Maybe even the Great Hall of the People—that would be awkward.
“Damn it!” Jackson muttered angrily, then started banging the wall with his brick.
Five years ago, Liu Dashao had been fooled by Jackson’s words once. Hearing it again now, he felt a sense of déjà vu. He watched as Jackson frantically smashed the wall, sweat dripping down his face. He looked like a madman. If the lunatic inside the wall jumped out, it was hard to say who’d win in a fight. “Damn, Dashao, did you drive Jackson crazy?” Suddenly, Fan Debiao’s loud voice echoed in Liu Dashao’s ears.
The sudden shout startled Liu Dashao, almost making him lose his balance. Jackson, in a reflex, hurled his brick toward the source of the sound.
Liu Dashao turned to see Fan Debiao duck as the brick flew over his head. Wang Feifei stood beside him, calm and composed.
“What the hell, man! Why are you throwing bricks at me? Are you trying to play ‘Tiger Mountain’?” Fan Debiao scolded Jackson.
Jackson snapped out of it, realizing he’d overreacted, and awkwardly apologized.
They didn’t dwell on the incident. Fan Debiao and Wang Feifei joined them, and Fan Debiao asked Liu Dashao, “Bro, what just happened?”
Liu Dashao recounted the events to Fan Debiao and Wang Feifei. After listening, Wang Feifei walked up to the brick wall and examined it closely. “There really is a madman in there,” she said. Jackson, seeing her skepticism, confirmed it again.
Fan Debiao whispered mysteriously to Liu Dashao, “Dashao, where’s that preservative pearl you mentioned? I’ll go grab it.”
Liu Dashao thought to himself, “After all that, the only thing Fan Debiao heard was ‘preservative pearl’…”
However, seeing how lifelike the female corpse was, Liu Dashao felt it had significant research value and told Fan Debiao not to disturb it.
Bored, Fan Debiao went over to Wang Feifei and started examining the brick wall with her.
“Rat-tat-tat…” Suddenly, the sound of a machine gun erupted from inside the wall. Everyone reacted quickly, dropping to the ground within seconds.
After the gunfire, a chaotic clamor followed, also coming from the wall. It seemed the burst of gunfire wasn’t aimed at them.
They got up from the ground and moved closer to the wall. The noise continued, with multiple voices, indicating there was more than one person inside.
They exchanged glances, momentarily speechless. Liu Dashao’s mind was a mess, unable to explain anything.
Then, another voice came from the brick wall, “Everyone, stop breathing, close your eyes, and rush to the left!”
Hearing this, Liu Dashao immediately recognized the voice. His expression changed. “It’s him! But how did he end up here?”
Fan Debiao, confused, asked Liu Dashao, “Who is it?”
Before Liu Dashao could answer, the entire tomb chamber began to shake violently. Coffins fell from above, smashing into pieces on the ground.
The shaking lasted for about twenty seconds before subsiding. Everyone was left dizzy and disoriented, taking a while to recover.
When Liu Dashao looked ahead, he was shocked. A hole resembling a palace gate had appeared in the brick wall, filled with a murky haze. Faint sounds of running could be heard from within.
It seemed the earlier shaking had been caused by the formation of this hole.
Fan Debiao stared at the hole for a long time before asking Liu Dashao, “Dashao, who exactly is this ‘him’ you mentioned?”
Liu Dashao swallowed hard and said, “That voice is unmistakable. It’s…”
Before he could finish, a figure burst out of the hole.
No—a group of people.
Liu Dashao quickly counted about a dozen people emerging from the brick wall. They wore gas masks and carried advanced weapons. A group of this size was unusual for tomb raiders.
Fan Debiao, Wang Feifei, and Jackson immediately jumped aside, on guard. The newcomers, seeing their movements, quickly loaded their weapons and aimed at them, signaling that any sudden moves would result in a hail of bullets.
Fan Debiao, Wang Feifei, and Jackson, being smart, immediately relaxed their stance, showing they meant no harm. Fan Debiao acted nonchalant, as if he’d been through this before.
Liu Dashao, however, wasn’t as tense. He had already identified the leader of the group—the voice earlier had been Uncle Diao. Liu Dashao knew him well and could recognize his voice anywhere.
“Put your weapons away!” Sure enough, Uncle Diao’s voice rang out again. As soon as he spoke, a man in an old-style Zhongshan suit and a gas mask stepped forward from the group. Liu Dashao was certain it was Uncle Diao.
“I told you to stop!” As they approached, the same voice rang out from within the wall again.
“Did you touch something again?” Liu Dashao and Jackson looked at each other and asked simultaneously.
Of course, neither of them had touched anything. They exchanged helpless shrugs. Liu Dashao muttered to himself, “Damn, what kind of messed-up situation is this? Could there really be a madman in there?” Yet, the voice sounded oddly familiar—faintly recognizable but also strangely unfamiliar.
Trying to stay calm, Liu Dashao rubbed his face and said to Jackson, “Jackson, there’s definitely a lunatic in there. We don’t have any tranquilizers, so if that person bursts out of the wall, don’t hold back—just hit him with a brick.”
Jackson grinned mischievously and nodded, “Hit him with what brick?”
Hearing this, Liu Dashao was a little taken aback. This kid clearly didn’t understand what “brick” meant, and he was grinning for no apparent reason.
Liu Dashao searched around and found two sturdy bricks, handing one to Jackson. “If anything flies out from in there, hit it with this.”
Truthfully, bricks weren’t particularly effective, but in this place, they were the best weapons available.
Like two men hunting a weasel, they crept up to the wall. Jackson swept the flashlight beam across it, but nothing unusual appeared—just a wall that felt bitterly cold. Liu Dashao hesitated to touch it. What if it was one of those “man-eating walls” Kramer had mentioned? He might get sucked in and end up god-knows-where—even the Great Hall of the People would be embarrassing.
“Cheng bi liang zhi fei yue!” Jackson muttered angrily, then began pounding the wall with the brick.
Five years ago, Liu Dashao had been fooled by Jackson saying that exact phrase. Now, hearing it again, he felt a sense of nostalgia. Watching Jackson hammering the wall with sweat pouring down his face like a madman, Liu Dashao thought, “Even if the madman inside jumped out, it might be hard to tell who would win in a fight.”
“Damn it, Dashao, did you make Jackson go crazy?” Suddenly, Vandebilt’s loud voice echoed into Liu Dashao’s ears.
Startled by Vandebilt’s shout, Liu Dashao nearly lost his footing, while Jackson instinctively swung the brick toward the sound.
Turning around, Liu Dashao saw Vandebilt duck just in time as the brick flew over his head. Feifei Wang stood beside him, calm and composed.
“What the hell, Jackson! Why are you throwing bricks at me? You wanna play ‘Tiger Mountain Above’ with me?” Vandebilt shouted angrily.
Jackson snapped out of it, realizing his overreaction, and began apologizing awkwardly.
No one lingered on the incident. Vandebilt and Feifei Wang approached the group. Vandebilt asked Liu Dashao, “Bro, what just happened?”
Liu Dashao recounted the events to Vandebilt and Feifei Wang. After listening, Feifei Wang walked to the wall and examined it for a moment, then said, “There really is a madman in there.” Jackson, seeing her skepticism, confirmed it again.
Vandebilt whispered mysteriously to Liu Dashao, “Dashao, where exactly is that preservative pearl you mentioned? Let me sneak it out.”
Liu Dashao thought to himself, “I’ve been talking for so long, and all he heard was ‘preservative pearl’…”
Still, considering the female corpse’s excellent condition and its potential for research, Liu Dashao advised Vandebilt not to disturb it for now.
Seeing that Liu Dashao wouldn’t let him touch the pearl, Vandebilt, bored, went over to Feifei Wang and joined her in examining the brick wall.
“Ta-ta-ta…” Suddenly, the sound of machine gunfire came from inside the wall. Everyone reacted quickly, diving to the ground within a second or two.
After the gunfire stopped, chaotic noises followed, also from within the wall. It seemed the gunfire hadn’t been aimed at them.
Getting up from the floor, they all moved closer to the wall. The noise continued, now including multiple voices. There was definitely more than one person inside.
They exchanged glances, speechless. Liu Dashao’s mind was in a jumble, unable to offer any explanation.
Suddenly, another voice came from inside the wall: “Everyone, stop breathing! Close your eyes and charge to the left!”
Upon hearing this voice, Liu Dashao immediately recognized who it was. His expression changed: “It’s definitely him! But how did he get here?”
Vandebilt, puzzled, asked, “Who is it?”
Before Liu Dashao could answer, the entire tomb chamber suddenly shook violently. Occasionally, a coffin fell from above, shattering into splinters upon impact.
The tremors lasted for about twenty seconds before finally subsiding. Everyone was left dizzy and disoriented for a moment before regaining their senses.
Liu Dashao steadied himself and looked ahead in shock. A hole had appeared in the brick wall, resembling a palace gate. Smoke and haze drifted from within, and faint sounds of running could be heard.
It was clear now—the earlier tremors had been caused by this sudden opening.
Vandebilt stared at the hole for a long time before finally asking Liu Dashao, “Dashao, who was that ‘he’ you were talking about?”
Liu Dashao swallowed hard and replied, “That voice is so familiar to me. It’s none other than…”
Before he could finish, a figure suddenly burst out of the hole.
No—it wasn’t just one person. It was a group.
Liu Dashao quickly counted—about a dozen people. All wore gas masks and carried advanced weapons. A dozen armed tomb raiders weren’t exactly few.
Seeing the group emerge, Vandebilt, Feifei Wang, and Jackson immediately scattered to the sides, taking defensive positions. The newcomers, noticing their movement, quickly raised their weapons, aiming directly at them—clearly signaling that any sudden moves would result in immediate gunfire.
The three of them, being sharp-minded, quickly realized the odds were against them. They raised their hands slightly to show they meant no harm. Vandebilt even put on a casual expression, as if he were a seasoned adventurer.
Liu Dashao, however, wasn’t nearly as tense. He had already recognized the leader of this group—the voice belonged to Uncle Diao. Liu Dashao was very familiar with him and could recognize his voice anywhere.
“Put your weapons away!” Sure enough, Uncle Diao’s voice rang out again from the crowd. As soon as the words were spoken, a figure emerged from the group. He wore old-fashioned Zhongshan suit and a gas mask. Liu Dashao was certain—it was definitely Uncle Diao.
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