My hand instinctively reached for the black donkey hoof at my waist. Just as I picked it up, ready to engage whatever was behind me in a fierce battle.
With a sudden turn, the space behind me was empty, nothing at all. Immediately after, Wang Yang's laughter rang out.
It was then I realized I had been tricked.
This fellow really can't sit still!
I intended to turn back and teach him a good lesson, but the moment I turned my head, I saw a figure suddenly sit up from the coffin beside Wang Yang!
Upon closer inspection, it was a desiccated corpse, its face dark, its features shriveled, and its head wrapped in a piece of brown cloth!
"You..."
I swallowed, my eyes wide with fear, wanting to alert Wang Yang that there was something beside him.
But he only laughed more brazenly: "You're copying me? I'm not as timid as you are."
I glanced sideways at Wu Tingxiu and Song Bing. Both of them wore expressions of great surprise.
Wang Yang seemed to notice this, his smiling face slowly turning serious, his eyes darting back and forth.
With a gritted teeth, I shouted, "Get out of the way!"
As my voice echoed, I hurled the black donkey hoof in my hand!
It struck the corpse squarely between the eyebrows!
The desiccated corpse's head was directly smashed off by the black donkey hoof!
The surroundings were eerily silent, as if no one dared to breathe. After a long moment, Wu Tingxiu said, "It's not a zombie."
Hearing her words, the tension in my heart eased slightly.
Looking at the headless desiccated corpse that had sat up, Song Bing drew a short knife and walked over.
After he prodded the corpse with his knife, he said, "It's a snare."
I didn't understand what "snare" meant. I watched as he used his knife to cut something behind the corpse, and only then did the desiccated corpse fall back into the coffin.
Now I understood. This was a mechanism designed to scare people.
The tomb owner was truly inventive.
I had to admit, it could indeed frighten people.
Imagine, if some tomb robber opened the coffin, ready to venture in and plunder, only for the corpse to suddenly sit up. Even if it didn't kill them, it would surely scare them ill.
Song Bing, holding his mining lamp, peered into the coffin and reached in, retrieving a box: "Manager Wu."
Wu Tingxiu stepped forward, took the box, and walked towards me, clearly wanting me to examine it.
This box was exquisitely crafted. It was square, with both height and width roughly twenty centimeters. The entire exterior of the box was carved with patterns.
The front featured a circular pattern resembling a clover, with two dragons coiling around the "clover." The dragons' heads had round pearls.
In terms of craftsmanship, it was undoubtedly an artifact from the Western Jin Dynasty, though the carving was exceptionally rare, with faint hints of the Tang Dynasty.
Wu Tingxiu turned the box over, examining it, but found no opening. The entire box appeared seamless.
"It's a puzzle box," I stated.
Wu Tingxiu looked at me with a puzzled expression. I continued to explain, "It requires a specific technique to open, much like our modern combination locks. Forcing it open might very well damage what's inside."
"Do you have a way to open it?" Wu Tingxiu asked.
I gave a wry smile and shook my head: "How could I possibly have a way? The design principles of these ancient puzzle boxes are very different. Some are designed with reference to 'Qimen Dunjia,' others to 'Lu Ban Shuo'... Unless we can find a master of ancient locks, it will be very difficult to open."
At this point, I looked at her: "You know so many people in Guangling, finding a locksmith expert shouldn't be difficult, right? If all else fails, you could always hire one."
Hearing my suggestion, she seemed to have an idea, nodded, and placed the box into her backpack.
It seemed our objective for this trip had been achieved, and we could finally catch our breath.
I didn't want to spend another moment in this ancient tomb. A trip to this place would likely shave years off my life.
Song Bing finished packing, and we resealed the coffin lid.
No one was interested in the burial objects within the ancient tomb.
It appeared that Wu Tingxiu and her team were quite principled in their actions. They only took what they sought, leaving other items untouched and undamaged.
"Let's go," Wu Tingxiu said to everyone, slinging her backpack on.
"Should we return the way we came?" I asked.
Wu Tingxiu nodded.
"What about those rats?"
"We'll deal with them the same way we did before," she replied.
With that, Wu Tingxiu walked towards the stone door.
I sighed, thinking that I would soon have to contend with those rats again, a thought that filled me with both helplessness and dread.
As I approached the stone door, I found Wu Tingxiu standing still, her eyes fixed intently on the stone door.
I looked up and saw that there was a mural on the stone door.
I hadn't noticed it before. Upon closer inspection, this mural was exceptionally strange in shape, circular overall, spiraling inwards. Within the circles were some small characters.
For some reason, as I gazed at this mural, the space around me seemed to become wondrous.
As I watched, the characters on the mural began to move. The lines then slowly separated, forming a ferocious and terrifying ghastly face, with a gaping maw!
Its mouth widened, and it lunged at me with a sudden rush.
I stumbled and fell to the ground in fright. Looking back, the tomb chamber was completely empty!!
What was going on?!
The coffin began to shake violently, as if something was about to burst out at any moment.
Encountering this situation for the first time, I was instantly flustered. I wanted to grab something for defense, but the black donkey hoof had already been thrown into the coffin.
At that moment, the coffin lid suddenly sprung open, and the desiccated corpse leaped out directly, lunging at me without a hint of hesitation.
I took out the dagger Bai Hanyan had given me and, without a word, thrust it directly at the desiccated corpse!
To my surprise, this desiccated corpse was also afraid of the blade!
It actually dodged!
My confidence surged. I gripped the dagger tightly, determined to fight this thing to the death!
Just as I was about to press my advantage, a voice called out from behind me: "Don't chase!"
I turned to see Wu Tingxiu. She was squatting in a corner, seemingly severely injured. I saw her face was deathly pale, and she was clutching a box to her chest.
I hesitated, but still obeyed her words, moving towards her. Just as I intended to check on her, another voice rang out: "Xiang Fei! Don't go over there!!"
It was Wang Yang's voice. He looked at me with great anxiety.
I was somewhat bewildered. What did this kid mean by telling me not to approach? He looked troubled, "She's not Wu Tingxiu..."
Not Wu Tingxiu?
Then who was she?
I was completely perplexed. Wang Yang continued, "She has no shadow. She's a ghost!"