"I've checked around. This place appears to be a sacrificial site," Wang Yang said.
"A sacrificial site? Sacrificing to what? That so-called Esha Heavenly God?" I asked.
"Unclear, but many people must have died here. The coffins likely contain their remains."
"You mean living people, used for sacrifices?"
"Yes."
Upon Wang Yang's words, I glanced again at the room filled with coffins nearby.
My mind conjured an image: thousands of years ago, living individuals were killed and ground into pieces here, their blood splattering everywhere, with their skulls placed in coffins.
The thought sent a chill down my spine.
Fortunately, I wasn't alive in that era, or I would have faced much hardship.
Due to the limited reach of our flashlights, the surroundings weren't very clear. After discussing with Wang Yang, we decided to use a signal flare to survey the area. If there were no other paths, we would retrace our steps.
As Wang Yang prepared to fire the signal gun, a loud bang came from the room with the coffins, sounding like one of the coffins had fallen to the ground.
Hesitating, we instinctively pointed our flashlights towards the sound. A dark shadow flashed by the doorway of the room, moving incredibly fast.
Before we could get a clear look at what it was, Li Zha Si, who was less than three to four meters away from me, was violently dragged away by something!
Li Zha Si's flashlight fell to the ground and instantly extinguished.
"Help!!!"
The moment Li Zha Si's scream rang out, Wang Yang and I quickly shone our lights towards the source of the sound.
We saw him being dragged across the ground, his limbs flailing.
To drag a person away like that, the creature must have been quite large.
Recalling the sound of the cracking coffins, two words came to my mind: zombies!
"Grab your weapons!" Wang Yang said, drawing his pistol.
I, meanwhile, picked up my entrenching tool.
"Li Zha Si!" I called out, receiving no response.
If it truly was a zombie, he would be in grave danger by now.
At this moment, I was at a loss for what to do.
Suddenly, something violently swept my leg, sending me crashing to the ground.
The fall dazed me completely, making me feel as if all my bones were about to scatter!
Damn it, this zombie knows how to sweep the leg?
In the darkness, I saw a figure lunging towards me. Almost instantly, I swung the entrenching tool in my hand, smashing it down.
I put all my strength into that blow.
The thing I hit seemed to be injured, and it was at this moment I clearly saw what it was!
It was a large lizard, its body covered in scales, with hot air steaming from its nostrils!
Damn it!
I cursed inwardly. This was worse than encountering a zombie!
Such a large lizard could only be described as a monster!
The creature seemed to sense me observing it and rapidly crawled towards me, its tail thrashing. As it got within a meter of me, I quickly got up, ready to engage it with my entrenching tool, when I heard several gunshots: "Bang, bang, bang!"
Wang Yang fired several shots at the monster. Modern firearms possessed immense destructive power. Even though the monster had thick hide, it was hit and rolled on the ground, emitting green liquid from its body.
The lizard writhed on the ground for a few moments before lying still on its back, appearing to have been hit in a vital spot by those shots.
Just as I was about to relax, Wang Yang shouted at me, "Careful!"
Before I could react, something heavy slammed into my back, sending me face-first onto the ground. If I hadn't braced myself with my hands, my head would have likely been crushed.
Regaining my senses, I turned around and saw there was another one!
The sound of hissing, like sand flowing, came from all around.
Scanning the area with my flashlight, I saw more than a dozen lizards staring at us menacingly.
This was it, I thought. I was actually going to die by the jaws of lizards!
Having fallen twice, my hand touched a blood scab in a groove on the ground, which was still somewhat damp.
Logically, after over a thousand years, this blood should have long solidified. How could it still be wet?
Perhaps it was desperation, but at this moment, I even raised my hand to my nose to confirm if it was indeed blood.
The moment I inhaled, I smelled a greasy odor.
"Fire!!" I shouted at Wang Yang.
He didn't understand my intention. I gritted my teeth and said, "Signal flare!!"
Without a word, Wang Yang pulled out the signal flare and fired it into the sky.
Suddenly, everything around us was illuminated, and the lizards, as if seeing light for the first time, all prostrated themselves on the ground, motionless.
The moment the signal flare landed, a flame erupted from the ground.
"Run!" I yelled.
As I ran, I unzipped my jacket to prevent the fire from spreading to me.
The fire spread incredibly fast, reaching me in the blink of an eye. Fortunately, I was quick to shed my jacket, stripping it off and running out of the courtyard, rolling on the ground.
I smelled the scent of burning hair, indicating that the hair on the back of my head was probably lost.
Wang Yang also emerged from the inferno, accompanied by Li Zha Si, who was limping.
Their feet had also been ignited by the fire, but thankfully it wasn't severe and was quickly extinguished.
Meanwhile, the lizards in the courtyard, engulfed in flames, leaped and writhed like fiery projectiles.
Faintly, I detected the aroma of roasting meat...
At this moment, a lizard leaped out of the fire and darted towards the west. Seeing this, Wang Yang said, "Follow it!"
I didn't understand his reasoning, but seeing him already running in that direction, I had no choice but to follow.
When we reached the cliff edge, we found a cave there. The lizard, engulfed in flames, disappeared into it.
Wang Yang stopped, panting for a moment, and said, "This is it!"
I was taken aback and asked, "You're going to the lizard's lair?"
Wang Yang replied, "There must be a way out from here."
"Are you sure?" I asked. "What if this is the lizards' nest? Wouldn't we be walking into a trap?"
"But it could also be the way out," Wang Yang said. "If we go back the way we came, we don't know what other traps we might encounter. It's better to take a gamble and see."
My heart sank. You're gambling with our lives!
"All the lizards that attacked us were burned to death. There shouldn't be many left inside, and we have guns, so we don't need to be afraid," Wang Yang stated.
I glanced at Li Zha Si beside me, who looked distressed. "Bosses, let's get out of here quickly..."
Given our current condition, with me sustaining several new injuries, I didn't know what else we might encounter if we stayed here. It was better to leave first.