Chapter 57

Chapter 57

Meanwhile, the four people and a dog inside the palace were still trying to pry open the floorboards, but no method seemed to work on the stone brick.

Udo attempted to find a mechanism to open the entrance on the foundation stone, but to no avail.

"Granny U, you said there’s an underground city below. Did our leader and Brother An fall into that underground city?" Xu Fang asked.

"It seems likely. I believe Lin An intentionally distracted us to go alone to the underground city to find his parents, and Shen Xiuzes, realizing his intent, followed him down," Granny U analyzed, sitting cross-legged on the ground.

"So what do we do now? Just stay here waiting for them to come back?" Ouyang Dong sighed as he looked at the dog circling the stone brick incessantly.

Little Fu hummed and pawed at the brick. Since Lin An fell in, it had been doing this, a sight that was heartbreakingly pitiful.

Everyone turned to Granny U for guidance. She was the oldest and most experienced among them, and they were ready to follow her lead.

Sitting up straight, Granny U, with her hands on her knees and her usual casual demeanor, said, "Since Lin An doesn’t want us to go to the underground city... we definitely should go. I’ve never seen what an underground city looks like. Besides, waiting here indefinitely isn't an option. Having come this far, we should at least take a look down there."

The other three actually shared the same thoughts and cheered upon hearing Granny U's words.

"But how do we get down there?" Udo asked the crucial question.

The other two also turned their attention to Granny U.

With a keen gaze and a slight smirk, Granny U analyzed, "If Moues City is indeed an underground city, there must be other entrances. After all, people living underground thousands of years ago would need more than one entry for convenience. The entrance we’ve found seems more like a deterrent for outsiders and invaders, barely large enough for a single stone brick, making it hard even for daily hauling. We just need to find another entrance to get in."

"That makes sense!" Xu Fang exclaimed, applauding Granny U's insight.

As they prepared to leave the palace to search for other entrances, Little Fu stayed stubbornly at the spot where its master fell, refusing to leave even when Udo tried to pull it away with a leash.

Granny U, looking at the dog pitifully guarding the spot, said, "Let it off the leash. If Little Fu doesn’t want to go, it will run back here even if we drag it away."

Udo obediently unhooked Little Fu's leash and stored it away.

"But we can’t leave Little Fu here, what if it encounters danger?" Xu Fang worried.

"Right, if we come back and Little Fu is gone, we won’t even know where to look," Ouyang Dong agreed.

"I’ve always thought Little Fu is a very intelligent dog. Little Fu, we are going to find your master. Will you come with us?" Granny U asked Little Fu.

At that moment, Little Fu, with its back to them, twitched its ears upon hearing this but didn’t turn around.

"We’re going to find Lin An. Are you sure you want to stay here?" Granny U patiently spoke to Little Fu.

Xiao Fu could originally sniff out a hint of Lin An's scent from the tiny cracks in the stone slabs, but as they delved deeper underground, the scent vanished.

Xiao Fu turned its head, looking pitifully at Granny Wu, as if asking where its master was. Granny Wu promptly gestured: "We're off to find Lin An, hurry and follow."

As if understanding Granny Wu's words, Xiao Fu silently followed along.

"Good dog." Granny Wu squatted down to rub Xiao Fu's chubby cheeks before standing up to head out, "Let's go, we need to find the entrance quickly."

The group searched for the entrance to the underground city outside, while hundreds of meters below, Lin An and Shen Xiuzhe were inspecting their surroundings.

Although it was unclear what the source of light here was, Lin An did not dwell on it; he hadn't found any trace of his parents on the first six levels, and he felt this level might reveal some clues.

The stone houses here were neatly arranged, with clearly defined streets. Whether it was the stone ground or the stone houses, both were covered in lush vegetation, turning the originally somber ash-gray stone houses into adorable green homes.

Walking on the streets, Lin An and Shen Xiuzhe felt a sense of displacement as if they were in another world, thanks to the bright light and the vegetation-covered stone houses.

There were too many stone houses to search one by one. Lin An looked at the pyramid-like grand structure in the center. From this angle, the light source seemed to be at the very top of the pyramid, illuminating it with a sacred brilliance.

Lin An decided to first go up the pyramid to have a look, and from the highest point, the layout of this level would be clearer.

The pyramid, over a hundred meters tall, was akin to a small mountain. The boulders were steep and wide, and for a zombie with poor physique and slow speed like Lin An, climbing to the top was too difficult.

Shen Xiuzhe, on the other hand, did it with ease. While Lin An was still clinging to the staircase-like boulders, climbing up slowly like a turtle, he had already ascended several layers.

Seeing the person behind struggling too much, Shen Xiuzhe simply sat on the stone, staring at Lin An as he slowly climbed up: "Shall I carry you?"

Even with someone on his back, reaching the top would be a breeze for him.

Lin An was tempted but still refused: "No, it's too much trouble for you, I can do it."

Clenching his teeth as he climbed, he finally reached the third step. Just as he prepared to strive for the fourth, a small pebble bounced down to his feet from above.

Lin An's first thought was that it was debris from Shen Xiuzhe dislodging stones as he climbed, but upon looking up, Shen Xiuzhe was standing on the upper right, gazing down at the stone houses below. Feeling Lin An's gaze, he even turned to ask what was wrong.

So where did this little stone come from?

Looking up, the light source above was so dazzling it was hard to keep his eyes open. Lin An squinted, trying to make out something above.

The small sun-like light source began to cast a shadow, as if a celestial dog were eclipsing the sun, slowly covering the light bit by bit.

Shen Xiuzhe also looked up towards the top

By now, the light above them had completely disappeared, casting a long shadow from the very top of the pyramid onto the two of them.

Lin An and Shen Xiuzhe exchanged a glance, an assumption quickly surfacing in their minds—could this be the zombie snake mentioned by the survivors of the Wood Spirit City?

Indeed, from their perspective, the unidentified object against the light above was indiscernible, but its elongated form was unmistakably that of a snake.

And it was an extraordinarily large one at that.

It was coldly overlooking the intruders who had trespassed into its territory from its high vantage point.

Although they had anticipated the snake that attacked Wood Spirit City to be large, only upon seeing it did they realize its immense size; despite being hundreds of meters below the top of the pyramid, its shadow stretched all the way down to them.

Why had all the animals and plants turned zombies grown so large? Lin An pursed his lips; after becoming a zombie himself, his height hadn't increased in the slightest.

Shen Xiuzhe moved to stand directly above Lin An, shielding him, drawing the knife from his waist.

Lin An noticed something strange; typically, zombified animals and plants would charge at humans recklessly, but this snake, with its body raised high in an aggressive stance, did not attack them immediately.

"Let's get down from here; it won't be easy to fight in this spot if it comes to that," Shen Xiuzhe judged the terrain unsuitable for a battle, deciding they had to descend first.

They retraced their steps down to the bottom of the pyramid, where the light was a bit off, and they finally got a clear view of the snake.

It was a colossal cobra, its hood flared on both sides, and the light above seemingly crowning it like a monarch, guarding the very top of the pyramid.

"Since it hasn't attacked us, let's look for clues about your parents nearby. We can decide what to do after we've searched the area below," Shen Xiuzhe, holding his knife, was ready for a fight but sensed no killing intent from the snake—it seemed only to want to drive them away.

Moreover, the cobra hadn't shown itself after they entered this level, only making its presence known as they attempted to climb the pyramid, as if to warn them.

That was the only option now, Lin An mused, looking up at the cobra standing tall above, feeling a sense of peculiarity.

Could it be that this wasn't a zombie snake? Otherwise, why wouldn't it attack them?

The windows of the stone houses were covered by thick vegetation, forcing them to push open each door to enter, and every house they opened sent up clouds of dust.

The sight was uncomfortable for Lin An, but there was no time to clean the houses; he had to endure and move on to the next one.

Shen Xiuzhe walked beside Lin An, the cold gaze from above still lingering, and he remained on alert.

After inspecting over a dozen stone houses and finding nothing, Shen Xiuzhe turned to Lin An, intending to gauge his expression, only to find Lin An's whole demeanor seemed somewhat dim.

It wasn't his expression that was grey, but rather, it was a literal greyness on a physical level.

Shen Xiuzhe looked closer, then, suppressing a laugh, poked Lin An's shoulder.

At the touch of his index finger, he felt a cool, soft sensation—that was the layer of water Lin An kept wrapped around himself.

Since leaving the Mechanical City on foot, the fastidious Lin An had always been enveloped in a water membrane, which had now turned murky from the dust in every stone house they entered.

And he hadn't even noticed it himself.

"Have you gotten over your germaphobia?" Shen Xiuzhe withdrew his finger immediately after the touch.

Lin An looked at him perplexed, then at his own shoulder where he had been poked; upon seeing the turbid water membrane, his eyes widened in disbelief as he inspected his entire body.

The water membrane detached itself promptly, leaving a circle of moisture on the ground.

"I've never been, ever so dirty," Lin An hurried to explain, unable to bear even a speck of dirt normally, yet now, he had failed to notice the filth on his membrane—a situation utterly inconceivable to his former self.

"Haven't you always wanted to rid yourself of your germaphobia and social anxiety? Now, you seem less anxious around us, and your obsession with cleanliness has improved considerably—it's quite the silver lining."

Lin An paused, realizing the truth in that; he could never have imagined that one day he would be away from home for months, with companions he could talk to normally, even his severe germaphobia being overlooked.

Although preoccupied with finding his parents, the fact that he could tolerate the dust here and not notice the dirtiness of his water membrane at first indicated a lessening of his germaphobia.

"Germaphobia is largely psychological. When you start to overlook the things that once were intolerable, it means the condition is improving."

Lin An clenched his fist: "Yeah, I'll keep trying."

He had always wanted to come to Mous City to find his parents, but was unable due to social anxiety and germaphobia. Now, as a zombie, he had made it here, and even those symptoms had lessened—a strange twist of fate.

This time, Lin An didn't cover himself with a new water membrane, instead bravely pushing open the door to the stone house before him.

The next second, he was chased out by a cloud of rolling dust.

"No, once I'm aware of it, I just can't," Lin An said, looking at Shen Xiuzhe with embarrassment.

Shen Xiuzhe, holding back laughter, advised: "Take it slow, no rush. It's indeed very dirty here. Keep using the water membrane for now, and we can gradually tackle your germaphobia later."

Lin An promptly coated himself with a fresh water membrane, thereafter keeping vigilant; at the slightest hint of murkiness, he would immediately renew it.

The two continued their search for clues in the various stone houses, while the cobra above had retracted and was no longer visible.

As they moved to another street, they finally discovered a clue in one of the stone houses.

Inside the stone house, there were several travelers' backpacks, designed specifically for adventurers.

Moreover, the dust inside was significantly less than in the other houses.

Lin An approached excitedly; these backpacks too were covered in dust, which he cleared with his powers as he walked, leaving them much cleaner by the time he reached them.

Opening a backpack, he found typical explorers' tools: rope, flashlight, compass, and even a map copied from one on a stone door.

The other backpacks contained similar items, commonly used by adventurers, and among them, Lin An found several documents.

The documents detailed some records about Mous City, which Lin An recognized at a glance as identical to those left by his parents—the ones at home were original, and these were copies.

"They were here, they must have been!" Lin An's eyes sparkled as he spoke excitedly to Shen Xiuzhe.

Shen Xiuzhe suggested, "Let's look around for more clues then."

Searching the house, they found nothing but the few backpacks. Lin An clutched the documents tightly; though he had seen them countless times at home, he couldn't stop looking at them now.

In the next stone house, they found several more travelers' backpacks, and even the stove bore signs of use.

The explorers from decades ago seemed to have stayed here for a while; each house in this row had left traces.

Backpacks, weapons, food, and documents were all present, and in one of the houses, Lin An found documents left by his parents.

There were notes beside those documents. After entering the underground city of Mous, they had kept records of locations, mechanisms, and some speculations.

Lin An recognized his father's notes at a glance; despite the years apart, he had read his parents' documents countless times and knew the handwriting by heart.

Additionally, the backpack contained several women's garments, which the keenly observant Lin An recognized as his mother's.

He excitedly showed these items to Shen Xiuzhe, like a child sharing treasures with a playmate. Shen Xiuzhe listened attentively, his heart sinking slightly, realizing that everyone's belongings were left behind, likely indicating they all remained on this level.

Even though he had anticipated this outcome, seeing the joy in Lin An's eyes made it hard for him, knowing that finding his parents' bodies might be devastating for Lin An...

"Look at this!" Lin An exclaimed, pulling out a notebook with 'Lin Huai' written boldly and beautifully on the title page.

Shen Xiuzhe's worry was hidden behind a calm demeanor as he focused on the notebook in front of him.

They pored over the notes together, detailing the events that befell Lin An’s father after he left Chuxi City, reading like a diary or work log.

Lin An wanted to read every word, but the thick notebook was impossible to finish at once, so he flipped to the last pages to see the most recent entries.

The final pages recorded their surprise upon entering the seventh layer, yet without finding a way downward, Jiang Huai speculated this area might be the collective term for layers seven through nine, suggesting they were at the bottom with no further descent possible.

They also described the light source above as a stone embedded in the rock ceiling, its origin unknown, but it maintained a high luminance, which they named the Sun Stone.

The accompanying adventurers had wanted to remove the Sun Stone, but a minority resisted, leading to heated arguments over selling the stone versus the scholars' belief that its removal would plunge the layer into decay.

They considered everything here a human treasure that must not be destroyed.

After the argument, the adventurers abandoned the idea of removing the Sun Stone, their interest shifting to the pyramid, convinced it held treasures.

It seemed they then prepared to explore inside the pyramid, and that's where the journal ended.

It was now clear their destination was inside the pyramid, where something must have happened.

"Does it say how to enter the pyramid?" Shen Xiuzhe asked.

Lin An searched the notebook and found relevant information a few pages earlier.

Based on ancient folk songs, the treasure of Mous City was guarded by deities, and here the only being that could be deemed divine was what the Wood Spirit City folk referred to as the "Serpent God."

It turned out that since their entrance over a decade ago, the serpent had always coiled atop the pyramid, attacking anyone who approached until they left its domain.

Therefore, the pyramid's entrance was likely at the top, where the serpent resided.

Having observed for some time, they noted the serpent occasionally left to hunt, planning to enter the pyramid during one of these absences.

Lin An found it unbelievable; in the Wood Spirit City people's tales, the serpent had turned into a zombie snake, yet it reacted just as it had a decade before.

Shen Xiuzhe looked at Lin An, finding it incredible too, but it wasn't the first such case; after all, Lin An, as a zombie, had his own cleanliness and social anxiety ingrained in his bones, so the snake acting out of habit seemed normal.

And judging by its size, the serpent likely existed for a very long time.

Lin An packed up everything in the stone house into a backpack, planning to take all his parents' belongings in case they never returned.

One backpack wasn’t enough; it took two full ones to pack everything, Lin An even included the cups left on the table.

Each shouldering a pack, they headed towards the pyramid once again.

True to the journal's description, the cobra assumed an aggressive posture as soon as they began to climb, but this time they did not back down.

Regardless, Lin An was determined to explore the pyramid.

With his limited strength, climbing such steep terrain was exhausting for Lin An, yet he persisted, gritting his teeth. Midway up the pyramid, the massive cobra could no longer contain itself and swiftly slithered towards them.

While humans struggled to ascend the daunting pyramid, the cobra could effortlessly spiral down at great speed.

It was then that they got a clear view of the serpent in its entirety.

The deep brown scales shimmered under the light, the ribs at its neck flaring out like a hood, with a pair of blood-red vertical pupils fixated on them, and a slender, forked red tongue flickering, hissing threats.

The entire serpent coiled upon the pyramid made the already monumental structure seem diminished by comparison.

The cobra lunged directly at them, its blood-red eyes locking onto its targets, while Shen Xiuzhe and Lin An finally felt the cold murderous intent emanating from the serpent.