Chapter 60: Stone Figurine

Chapter 60 Stone Figurines

All the corpse vipers were meticulously extracted and incinerated, one by one.

Only then did they have a moment to examine the antechamber. Sang Xu noticed numerous honeycomb-like perforations on the floor tiles, their purpose unknown. The patterns on the tiles, however, struck him as familiar, bearing a resemblance to the designs on Zhou Xia’s urn, though their orientation differed. Could this place also be linked to the Sang family?

Zhou Xia carefully bandaged Sang Xu’s wound and helped him dress. Sang Xu then showed Zhou Xia the photos he had taken of the stone tablet inscriptions, asking, “Was Sang Liyou also an outsider? He knew English.”

“He was no outsider. This is a secret script devised by your ancestors,” Zhou Xia explained. “It combines ancient Yi script with the foreign language from your world, arranged according to specific rules. Ancient Yi script was used by our forebears to commune with deities. The Sang family employed this method to transmit information, rendering it incomprehensible to outsiders.”

Sang Xu grasped the meaning. “Then, can you understand it?”

Zhou Xia cast a quick glance, a look of exasperation crossing his face. “You want me to translate this? Are you the Sang family descendant or am I?”

Sang Xu leaned in and kissed Zhou Xia’s cheek, saying, “Our ancestor is truly learned and capable in all things. I must implore our ancestor to instruct me.”

Pfft, always with the flattery. Zhou Xia was not easily swayed, but seeing Sang Xu’s respectful demeanor, he gave a reserved nod and conceded, “Very well.”

Zhou Xia took the phone and read aloud, “He says this is the tomb of the Li State emperor, guarded by ten thousand dragons. Those who disrespect the emperor shall have their hearts devoured by the dragons.”

The Li State emperor? Could this be Zhou Xia’s own tomb? What an astonishing coincidence!

Yet, Sang Wannian had stated it was an empty tomb. Could its emptiness be attributed to Zhou Xia’s departure?

Hearts devoured by ten thousand dragons? The “dragons” Sang Liyou referred to were likely the corpse vipers.

“Continue,” Sang Xu urged.

“He says he was ambushed and gravely wounded by the five clans, fleeing to this place. Should any Sang family descendants arrive here in the future, they must remember to bring his remains back to his homeland.” Zhou Xia paused. “He also states that this tomb possesses an inherent feng shui anomaly, and time here does not flow correctly.”

Time doesn’t flow correctly? What could that mean? Sang Xu found himself utterly bewildered.

Zhou Xia scrolled to the final image, revealing Sang Liyou’s inscription:

“Zhou Xia and dogs are not permitted entry.”

Sang Xu braced himself to console Zhou Xia, but Zhou Xia merely furrowed his brow and asked, “Why can’t I and dogs come in?”

Sang Xu was momentarily stunned, then a grave realization dawned on him.

Zhou Xia had claimed Sang Liyou was not an outsider, and the Sang family had steadfastly guarded the long dream for generations, never having ventured into the modern world. Thus, they could not possibly have known contemporary slang or memes. The phrase “Zhou Xia and dogs are not permitted entry” was likely not an insult but a cautionary instruction. Could it be that this ancient tomb contained Zhou Xia’s corpse worm bead, prompting Sang Liyou to warn future generations against bringing Zhou Xia inside?

Sang Xu retrieved the satellite phone from Zhou Xia’s bag and checked the locations of Han Rao and Shen Zhitang. The two were in separate areas. The underground terrain was intricate, with no discernible elevation changes. He could only see that Shen Zhitang was quite distant, over 300 meters away, while Han Rao was much closer and moving towards them. It appeared Han Rao intended to rendezvous.

“Let’s meet up with Brother Han first,” Sang Xu decided.

He glanced up at the door, unsure if the snake-man had departed.

Sang Xu pressed his face to the door crack and peered out. The exterior was clear; it seemed safe.

However, exercising caution, Sang Xu placed his phone on the ground, slid it through the crack to illuminate the outside, then retrieved it. Upon opening the screen, it was utterly black, revealing nothing.

“Anything out there?” Zhou Xia inquired.

“Doesn’t seem like it.”

“Then I’ll open the door.” Zhou Xia placed his hand on the door.

“Wait.”

Sang Xu maximized the phone’s brightness. This time, something materialized in the photo—

It was a sharp, grotesque face, still recognizably human but profoundly distorted. Its facial bones were almost triangular, with two pairs of eyes like narrow slits, the pupils barely visible, staring with malevolent intensity at Sang Xu from the phone screen.

Though bizarre, it was still a human face, not entirely unbearable to behold.

Sang Xu increased the contrast. Behind the initial face, several more similar grotesque faces emerged from the void, all fixated intently on Sang Xu.

Fortunately, Sang Xu had exercised caution. Had he opened the door earlier, it would have been catastrophic.

“There are at least a dozen beast-faced corpse monsters outside,” Sang Xu stated. “Can you handle them?”

“...” Zhou Xia replied, “I’ll engage them. You run first.”

So, there was indeed a risk. Sang Xu understood.

They needed to devise an alternative plan.

“What is this Han fellow doing?” Zhou Xia abruptly asked.

Sang Xu looked down at the red location dot on his phone. Han Rao’s dot was moving back and forth erratically, as if he were caught in a ghostly maze. Had something happened to Han Rao? Sang Xu tried calling him, but the call wouldn’t connect. It was already fortunate to receive a location signal underground; making a call was impossible.

After staring at the screen for a few seconds, Sang Xu suddenly deciphered something.

He connected Han Rao’s movement path—it spelled “hide.”

Sang Xu understood. He pulled Zhou Xia behind cover and lay prone. Sure enough, Han Rao ceased moving. Since underground calls were impossible, Han Rao had devised this method to transmit a message.

Two seconds later, a thunderous explosion erupted from the right wall. Instantly, a gaping hole was blasted open, and Han Rao poked his head through the dust, exclaiming, “Handsome, Mr. Zhou!”

The trio successfully regrouped. First, they thoroughly searched Han Rao. He was incredibly fortunate, having avoided parasitization by the corpse vipers, likely due to his pungent body odor, which made him unappetizing to them. His dark skin bore no bite marks. As Han Rao undressed, the acrid scent of sweat permeated the entire antechamber. Zhou Xia, visibly disgusted, covered his nose and kept a considerable distance.

After confirming Han Rao was unharmed, the three prepared to locate Shen Zhitang. The rule of not acting alone was paramount for outsiders. In such a perilous place, Shen Zhitang could be in danger at any moment. And if anything happened to her, Sang Xu would suffer a significant loss.

They first checked Shen Zhitang’s location signal. Two additional signals appeared between them and her—these were from the trackers Sang Xu and Han Rao had placed in the backpacks of the two outsiders from the Li family. After mapping out a route, Sang Xu realized that the shortest path to Shen Zhitang would necessitate passing through the area occupied by the Li family outsiders and the local group.

After a brief discussion, they decided that time was of the essence and opted for the shortest route.

The three headed towards the group. Zhou Xia, repulsed by Han Rao’s scent, vanished at some point, hiding who knew where. Sang Xu and Han Rao, accustomed to his disappearances, swiftly navigated through corridor after corridor, reaching a low door.

The tracker indicated that the Li family outsiders were just ahead.

They extinguished their flashlights and crawled forward. Ahead lay a wooden railing. Peering through it downwards, they saw several figures on the platform below.

Han Rao, with his keen eyesight, immediately recognized Li Jiashan, the young master from the Li family who had murdered his girlfriend.

His team, wearing headlamps, were crawling on the ground like dogs, inching deeper into the stone chamber. Sang Xu strained his eyes, attempting to discern their destination. Deep within the chamber was a vast pit, filled with dust-covered artifacts. He had no idea why they were crawling there.

The tomb chamber was too dark. Han Rao retrieved two night vision goggles from his bag, donning one himself and handing the other to Sang Xu. This fellow was remarkably well-equipped. Sang Xu noticed Han Rao’s goggles were military-grade, a difficult item to acquire. As Sang Xu put on the night vision goggles, he suddenly saw several towering shadows on the backs of the locals crawling deeper into the chamber.

These shadows were impossibly tall, perched on the locals as if using them as mounts. Sang Xu’s heart sank slightly. What were those things?

“Damn, so many Yaos,” Han Rao whispered, referring to their height.

Sang Xu removed the night vision goggles, but then saw nothing. Deep in the chamber, there was only the large pit and the crawling locals, with no sign of any tall figures.

Putting the goggles back on, the shadows reappeared, each lowering their massive heads as if observing the crawling people.

“I’ll go check ahead,” Sang Xu whispered.

He quietly crouched and shifted his position. Han Rao was now behind the group, while Sang Xu had moved to their diagonal front. Sang Xu took out his phone, snapped a picture of the group, then shielded the screen light, increased the brightness and contrast of the image, and zoomed in.

At that moment, Sang Xu saw it—everyone in the group had rolled their eyes, showing only the whites.

Although this tomb lacked a primary occupant, it contained numerous buried companions. Could it be that their unresolved grievances had transformed them into restless spirits? What were those towering shadows? Were they connected to the owner of this empty tomb—the emperor of the Li State?

Sang Xu turned to observe more closely. Through the night vision goggles, one of the tall shadows lifted its head, seemingly looking in his direction.

Sang Xu’s heart leaped in alarm, and he instinctively prepared to retreat. Just then, someone’s phone alarm blared from below.

In the silent tomb, the piercing alarm seemed intent on rousing every ancient corpse. The group below suddenly raised their heads, their pupils snapping back to normal. At that very moment, someone shouted, “What’s that stench?”

“Did the tomb owner bury salted fish as offerings?”

“Salted fish, my ass. Holy shit, there’s someone up above!”

Han Rao had been discovered. They raised their shotguns and unleashed a barrage of gunfire in his direction. In an instant, bullets flew wildly, illuminating the dark tomb like a chaotic fireworks display, echoing everywhere. Han Rao aimed and returned fire, instantly blowing off a local’s head.

Li Jiashan bellowed from below, “Who is it? Who dares ambush me, with such audacity?”

Sang Xu provided covering fire for Han Rao but missed every shot, only revealing his own position. Bullets rained down like a sudden storm, forcing Sang Xu to duck behind a pillar, vowing to himself he would never pull the trigger again. When he looked down again during their reload, he suddenly realized the towering figures (nicknamed 'Yao Mings' for their height) had vanished without a trace.

Han Rao crawled over in the darkness and cursed under his breath, “Hey, pretty boy, where did those ghostly things go?”

Sang Xu turned to look at him and froze.

Han Rao’s eyes had rolled back, showing only the whites, and an unnaturally tall, somewhat distorted shadow was perched on his back, its enormous head lowered as if staring directly at Sang Xu. Though it was too dark to discern its features, Sang Xu could feel two malicious, icy stares piercing toward him through the darkness from where its face should be.

Sang Xu found himself utterly paralyzed. A sudden, overwhelming urge swept over him—to drop to his knees and never rise like a human again.